St. Paul daily globe., 1892-06-14

s-Sz<&6A apocry
evangelists or in
the Latin fathers or the church. Ac-
cording to the best authorities it orig
mated in the fourth century about the
time of the discovery of the So-called
''true cross" There are two versions
the Oriental, in which the Jew is called
Carthaphilus. and that of Europe. IN
which ne is called AhaSuerus. In the
Eastern portion lie is represented
as a porter of Pontius PLATE; :;
in the Western as a cobbler living
on the slope of Mount Calvary, by
whose door Christ passed bearing
His cross to the place OF crucitiXion.
The Oriental legend attributes to MN
wife and five children, details omitted
I'D that of the Occident. The otfense
committed was the same in both cases,
a brutal refusal to permit the Savior 10
enter into the residence of the porter or
cobbler-a favor asked by himself or
the Roman soldiers who were guarding
Him-accompanied with the suggestion
that he had better walk on. With the
greatest gentlenesS of manner, accord
ing to the legend, Christ informed the
inhuman Jew that as a punishment OF
his unkindness it would be his fate to
walk till the day of judgment. sem
tence he has since been and is believed
by many to be still eXpiating. Ac-
cOrding to some authorities he started
on his travels within the hour. Others
assert that lie was given till the follow
ing day to bid farewell to his wife and
children and arrange his Scanty bag
gage.
Noroute appears to have been indi-
cated for this endless journey, but
Ahasuerus appeared to consider 1T the
most natural TO make the tour OF the
globe, no forest or desert being path
less 10 him, and the ocean being to hlm
as easily traversible as the dry land
According to Eugene Sue, he had
preference for the land as presenting
the fewest obstacles, this author, in the
introduction of his work, 1.-The Wan-
dering jew" representing him crossing
Behring straits, accompanied by his
wife. This is believed to be the only
appearance of this lady in literature.
In the thirteenth century knowledge
of the wanderer began to be ditfused
by means of the bards and pop
ular ballads among the common
people of Europe. but it was
only some 200 or 800 years later,
that the extraordinary tale of his
sufferings became universally known.i
and this person was made familiar to ali
bv the accounts of those who had seem
and conversed with him. No one APP
pears to have met with him until late III
the sixteenth century, but after that
date he was often seen by persons OF
rank and education in England, Scot
land, France, Italy, Hungary, Sweden,
Persia and Denmark and other coun-
tries. In 1878 two ambassadors at the
court of the Spanish monarch met him
at Madrid. In 1899 lie wSS seen at
Vienna, and in 1901 at Lubbock. In 1916
many persons saw and talked with him
in Livonia. CrucOvia and Moscow. The
German cities were particularly favored
with his flying visits, for he is heard of
at Rostock, Wemar, DantZig and
Konigsberg, at each of which places he
was treated with all the hospitality the
brief time at his disposal permitted.
His positively last appearance was at
Brussels in 1T74. He would probably
have passed by this city with his usual
haste had not the burgesses, attracted
by the great venerability of his appear
ance, asked him to stop moment. He
at first replied chat he could not stop,
but, being urged, paused briefly. Being
invited into an inn to partake of pot
of Flemish beer, he consented to drink
the beer, but positively refused to sit
down. However, he delayed long
enough to tell tine eutire history OF his
sin and IT'S 1.S00 years of eXpiation.
From his personal explanation it ap-
peared that he crossed seas, rivers,
rivulets, deserts, mountains, hills, val
leys and plains with the same facility.
He passed through fire and water
without harm. He had passed
among warning hosts in Europe
and Asia without deviation from his
America aid Africa. He had neither
property, and his only financial re-
sources were five cents, which, sent,
were constantly renewed in his pocket.
All this is told in quaint old French
ballad, the most popular OF all the nu-
merous accounts in verse OfthiS extra
ordinary parsonage, believed in almost
universally during period of 400 or 800
wears. There seems to he no good rea-
son why he should have chosen Bel
gium for his last appearance, but it is
fortunate that the curiosity of the BruS-
sells burgesSeS drew from him iuch an
amount of valuable biographical knowl
edge on the eve of his disappearance. if
is really true that his travels have been
abridged and his SutferlngS ended by an
indulgent Providence.
1t was perfectly natural that this fam
tastic legend should have a certain in-
fuence on literature i'll all countries.
The effort of Eugene Sue to mlngle the
mysterious character with the events OF
everyday life was not perfectly sue
cessful. Goethe had in his youth the
idea of making the Wandering Jew the
subject of semi-religious epic. Schu-
bart, German poet, has left fragment
of verse in which he represents him as,
endeavorIng to destroy his own life by
throwing himself into the crater Of
Ktna, which throws him out again.
and by Offering himself to wild
beasts or to the AK of the execu-
toner, or by rushing into the very,
thickest of the battle, but all in vain.
Beranger wrote song on the subject.
Edgar Quinet. French poet, makes the
Wandering Jew the persontcation OF.
the human race since the Christian eTa.1
Others make him typical of the people
of which he is representative, COM
PEELED to wander without pause or rest
in foreign lands, always, nevertheless,
with something in the purse SYM
bOlized by the five cents re-
placed as fast as expended in
the pocket of the eternal wanderer. Re
cent events in Russia have given new
and wider Suggestiveness to
the legend, which bids fair to last as
long as there shall remain veStage of
Christian literature.