The Paducah evening sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1906-1929, 1907-12-23
SUBMERGED CITIES
LOCATED ALONG GERMAN OCEAN
AND OTHER PLACES.
Legendary Tales Handed Down From
Generation To Generation Are
Interesting.

Many OF those persons who have
been fortunate enough, due to ample
means or lucky circumstances of a
business or other nature, TO spend a
holiday at many of the charming re-
sorts dotting the coast line of the
German ocean, will have been anus
cd land perchance interested) by the
many tales and legends related as to
submerged cities-all supramundane
trace of which has now disappeared.
OF such cities which once were IA
nous for their wealth, beauty and
power. it is whispered that their love
of luxury. their greed and cruelty led
to the offended and unseen powers
above casing the waves to rise In
the night and engulf them forever.
Not only are such legends rife on the
coast, but even in inland German
towns many lake Is invested with a
halo of similar mystery.
Although most OF the stories rife
in Germany as TO vanished towns in
the interior have no actual historic
basis. or. at best, slight one (the
Werbellin story being based upon the
disappearance of a castle called Wer-
bellin. one OF. the Ascsnian castles
built in 115O-117Of by Albert the
Bear, Margrave, of Brandenburg. and
contemporary Of Frederick Barba-
rossa), this is not so on the coast:
here the legends are all well founded
on fact, and, in most cases, the salient
features have lost but little of their
original truth in the telling.
The most striking of all the le-
gends current in the coast towns OF
the German ocean is that dealing
with the lost Dutch town OF Stavoreu
at the entrance to the zuyder Zee
Here there lived a rich and powerful
woman, whose pride, cruelty and self
ishness aroused the anger of heaven
and caused the wicked and misguid'
ed city to sink beneath the waves
A small portion of the city (whert
the good people llved) was saved
and its name still cleaves to the small
town of Stavoren, which is wei
known to every traveller going by wa
ter from Amsterdam TO Leeuwarder
and Groningen. IL Is an indisputa
BILE fact that, in the Thirteenth cen
fury. Stavoren was a wealthy and
powerful commercial city; however
due partly to the port becoming chok'
ed with sand. and partly TO the irrup'
ton of the Zuyder Zee in 1917, II rap
idly lost its importance, and at the
present time what is left of II only
affords shelter TO about eight hun
dred souls. The roofs and spires OF
the now submarine buildings can, Il
is said, be often seen far down in the
depths when the sea is stif and the
weather is clear, while silent listen
ers on Christmas eve will hear the
distant and muhied tone OF churcf
bells arising from the depths, only t'
break in bubbles and ripples on th'
surface of the Zuyder Zee.
Visitors 10 Sylt, the well known
seaside resort and island in the Nortf
Sea. will doubtless remember thu
small village OF Wenningstedt. Al
Though its present population Is onl!
lffty persons. IT is none the less com
memorative of the, large Commercial
town of Wenningstedt, which went t.
| the bottom of the sea during a grea
food and storm which took place OF
January 16. 1862.
Wenningstedt Is by no means tn
only town which once stood on TIL
shores of Friesland and Holland, onl!
Ito meet with destruction at the hand
Cor rather blllows) of cold Hans" a
the Tristan Familiarity terms tn
North Sea. As a matter of fact, o
all the seas in the world II Is tn
German ocean alone which can es
Itablish record for the number o
towns. villages and hamlets which
has either destroyed or engulfed
Since the Eleventh century "Ol'
Hans" has devastated no less thai
I144 towns and villages, either b.
Swallowing them UP entirely or els
by burying them under heaps of sand
THE fate of the Dutch town OF Run
:, gholt, which disappeared during
great storm in the year 1887. Is still
lsung and told In story by the presen