The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-07
THE LEGEND or ST. GINGO.
Patriotism and JingOism Are Indis-
tinguishabIy Mingled Just Now.

ttuEuI shNbIE mingled just Now
From the Piitsburg Dispatch.
Nearly all of us are Jingoes nowadays.
No reproach is intended. Whatever may
have been ats complexion before the war
actually broke out, Jingoism and
patriotism are now indistinguisha-
bly, mingled, and viii remain so
until Spain is thoroughly whipped.
Every true American, from the President
down. is enough of a lingo to be passion
ately, and even fiercely loyal to his flag.
At such a moment the story of the pa
tron saint of the Jingoes ought TO be OF
much interest l presume that many of
them don't know that they have a patron
saint; but that doesn't alter the fact. What
we know about him is derived from me-
diaeval legend which was put into excess
sively bad Latin by some monk about loo
years ago; but the saint himself must
have lived several years earlier. He IS
known to the English-his most devoted
admirers-as st. Glngo; whence comes the
calloduiaI by Jngo." The French call
him Gingue or GengOul; the Germans, Golf,
though il doesn't appear that he ever had
anything to do with the Scotch game that
is the popular fad just now In books his
name is commonly given at Genguf, the
Latin form being Gengulphus The le-
/
| some curious features.
Gingo is said to have been Burgun-
| dian nobleman, in high favor with Pepin
| the Short Gather of the famous Charlie
| magnet whom he attended on all his war
| like expeditions. That st. Gingo should be
| a dashing soldier is, of course, quite the
| proper thing; we only regret that the
monkish historians have not recorded
| more about his fighting qualities. But be-
| ing themselves men of peace, they are
silent on this branch of the subject.
| It Is related, however, that the King,
| trusting our hero above all others made
| him his personal guard and required him
| to sleep in the royal tent One night the
| lamp which hung over the entrance, Just
| above the head of Gingo, suddenly kindled
| itself and bazed up brightly. The King,
| disturbed by the glare, arose and blew It
! out; but Immediately it again kmdled.
| This was repeated many times until at
last the King gave it up. He was not
| the first monarch, nor the last, who has
| succumbed to the flame of ardent Jingo-
| ism. This trick of blazing up at uneX-
! pected moments and refusing to be eX-
| tinguished has been very characteristic of
the followers of St. Girgo ever since.
| Another story is that he once purchased
| a magnificent spring Of water in re-
| mote district and on returning 10 his
castle at Varennes struck the rock a its
| base with his staff; whereupOn the spring
! gushed forth, quite regardless of territor-
| ial limitations, lingo fashion. The only
! thing to surprise US in this tale in the
| statement that the spring was bought,
which is not the usual lingo method of
acquiring possession. The gushing, how
! ever. is quite natural. The enthusiastic
! lingo still gushes most eloquently, even
/ when no blow has been struck and the
slightest rap makes him spout like a
| geyser.
The use to which st. Glngo subsequent
| ly put this spring was singular. His lady,
II seems, had been disloyal. So, one day
! he led her aside into the garden and be-
sought her to tell him the truth She de-
MED the charge with great Indignation.
"Well, my dear" said the saint, here
! is this clear, cold fountain; thrust in thine
arm If thou are innocent 1t wall not hurt
thee If thou are guilty God shall judge. -
She plunged In her arm and was dread
fully scalded. She ought to have known
better The fountains of Jingoism are al
ways boiling hot, no matter what their
| owners may say of their GOODNESS. The
lingo Is always inviting you to plunge into
hot water. There is nothing In the whole
tale more suggestive than this.
At last, it is said, St. Gingo persisted by
the sword, hs have so many of his jealous
followers since. According 10 one ac-
count, his body divided into many pieces
and scattered far and wide, but the frag-
ments were soon miraculousy reunited
That, too, seems highly characteristic, for
the resurgence of Jingoism when seeming
ly dead and buried is something phenome-
ma if not strictly miraculous.
Ali in all, the legend of St. Gingo reads
exceedingly like a prophecy
Lawrence Boone
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