New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-06-11
.MONARCHS AND GHOSTS
King George ReCountS Seeing
the Flying DutChman.
.OTHER ROYAL VISITATI0NS
Spectres Have Appeared to
More Than One European
King Now Living.

.>.corvr,rht 1911. hv ,he Brentwood Company
King George is the only living ruler
who can boast Of having actually seen
the spectral ship known as "Tne flylhg
Dutchman'' Indeed. there is no record
of any anointed of the Lord having ever
seen II in the past. although some o.
them were. like him. sailors by PROBES
sion. George il may he recalled. as
rnidshipman made tour of the worid
on board the warship Bacchante WIN
his elder brother. the late Duke OF car
ence. and the story Of the voyage, as
recorded in the diaries Of the young
princes. was published some time after
ward in book entitled THE Cruise OF
the Bacohante." In il is TO be found
the following paragraph. taken from
Georges diary: AT a. M. the Flying
Dutchman crossed our bows. A strange
red light. as Of a phantom Ship AL
!aslow. in the midst OF which light the
-snasts. spars and sails of brig TWO
hundred yards distant stood out III
strong relief as she came up on the port
how This encounter of the Bacchante
with the phantom ship took place in the
southern ATTITUDES of the Atlantic. ana
although this uncanny apparition, so
threaded by seafaring men, is held to
jpresaee death and disaster to those who
set. eyes thereon, yet nothing untoward
seems TO have happened to mar the sue
cess of the remainder of the cruise OF
the warship bearing on board the TWO
hprinces. one II whom is now Great Brit
aims King.
That the Flying Dutchman should
have been seen by George and his
brother. as well as by all the officers and
men of the watch on the Bacchante' ana
the apparition made matter OF official
record i'm the ships log is remarkable
circumstance: for it is perhaps not one
tn a thousand of the vessels that sail
4he southern extremity of Africa, from
yhe Atlantic into the Indian Ocean and
vice versa. can boast of having seen the
craft. which. according to some. is COM
manded by the Dutchman Van der
Decken. and according TO others by
German noble Of the ancient and historic
house OF on dlhtHttiS'
i suppose that every one knows pretty
well the story. which has furnished in
SEPARATION to poets, playwrights, noVehsts
and composers. chief among them OF
rourse. being Richard Wagner There
are variations of the legend, but the sum
total of them is the same and in TINS
connection it is well TO bear in mind that
the Flying Dutchman is the name OF the
ship and not OF its captain. II seems
that the vessel. commanded by either
Van der Decken or By Won Falkenberg,
or. according TO still others, by the Dutch
naval hero Bernd Focke. started to
round the Cape Of Good Hope in the
midst OF one Of those terrible storms
which rase in that part of the world.
His officers and men -entreated him to
abstain ahG1o wait FOR the tempest 10
abate. Tie captain. however, was half
crazed With drink, turned deaf ear to
them. and when they thereupon mutinied
he caused the leaders of the mutiny to
be thrown overheard
The Holy Ghost then appeared TO those
present, III TIE ltl III " NiiN li6iiN - ~
Elmo. al the masthead. TO warn the cap
tain to desist but he seized pistol
and shot al the brilliant light. AS he did
so the pistol exploded. shattering his
hand and paralyzing his arm. Wild with
rage. he cursed his Creator. and swore
that he would keep on trying to round
the cape IL il took him until the Day
of Judgment to do SO. Providence, ac-
Cordng TO the legend. took him at his
work. and condemned him TO remain in
those ATTITUDES forever. trying without
avail 10 round the cape. In fact. he is
the maritime embodiment Of the Wan
derng jew" and while his ship is
manned by officers end sailors who, like
himself. have been guilty Of the greatest
of blasphemes. the flag flying from the
mainmast bears the. words Liberia nos