The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-15
THE FAMOUS MAELsTROM.
What the Norwegian photographic
Office Says of the Whirlpool.
Norwegian Letter in Chicago Record-Her-

Norwegian Letter in Chicago Record-Her-
aid.
We sailed through the famous maelstrom,
which the ancients believed guards the
trance to the sublimeSt beauty Of the
fJords of the LOfOden islands, and has fur
nfShed so much material for the magma
ton OF the authors of Norwegian Legendary
and modern nOVelistS. 1t Is reanty-nOt
one, but several maelstroms actually exist,
and any Of them Will answer the descrip-
tons given by Victor Hugo, Jules Verne,
Edgar A. Poe and writer's Of lesser fame.
The chief and most dangerous is an ex-
traOrdinary whirlpool between the islands
of Moskene and Roest, near the southern
extremity OF the Lofoden archipelago. 1t
is called Mosknaes-Srommen Another, by
the island of Vaero, called the Saelstrom
is almost as dangerous. There are many
narrow channels between the mountains
where great volumes of water, coming
from opposite directions, meet as the tide
flows in and out. They form temporary
whilrpOOls twice a day, and during the
spring tides. when the natural currents
are accelerated by heavy Western gales,
passage is impossible. No vessel could
survive them Even whales have been
caught and whirled around until they were
dead. Between times these channels look
innocent enough. Even small boats can
pass safely through them at the proper
time each day, and the departure of the
mail boats is regulated accordingly, but
they have caused the loss of many lives.
Boats have actually disappeared, being
sucked into the vortex and carried TO the
bottom 10 Whit ana Wnlrl ana Wnlfl until
the waters are tired and flow away, carry
ing the wrecks and the bodies of the dead
with them on the undercurrent, to emerge
miles and miles distant.
1t is not strange that the ignorant and
superstitious sailors of the middle ages at
tributed this mighty and mysterious ac-
ton of the waters To supernatural power,
and their imaginative minds, always Gre
ating monsters and miracles out of natural
phenomena which they cannot under
stand. placed in them an octopus, whose
awful arms were always extended to grasp
unwary mariners who were so unfortunate
as TO come within his reach. Later writer's
and more intelligent represented the mael-
str0m as vast caldr0n, In which the
waters revolve with terrific speed. their
centrifugal force extending long distance,
and gradually drawing toward the center
all who venture within their power. The
mariners struggle and shrek in vain The
comes the vessel springs out of the water
and then shoots suddenly down into the
vortex, while the shrieks of terror and
despair are drowned in the rushing of the
hungry torrent and the bowling of the
winds.
vessels are warned to keep out of them
| The notes upon the charts issued by the
| Norwegian photographic office say that
when the wind is steady at flood and ebb
| tide each day the whirlpool is still for hall
an hour or more, when boats may then
| pass through, but half way between flood
| and ebb tide the passage becomes danger
| GUS although il can be used by steamers
and large vessels when there is no wind
for several hours a day. Toward the height
of the tide or when a gale is blowing the
water revolves with a speed of twenty-six
which the largest steamers would be help
| less