The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1919-10-25
A Chostly Ship

the demon sailor steers.
The doom of those is sealed to
whom the phantom ship
appears.
They'll never reach their destined
port. thcyll see their homes
no more,
They who see the Flying Dutch
man never never, reach the
shore"
Once upon a time. a Norwegian
vessel commanded by man named
Daland was caught in a storm SO
terrible that no human being could
hope to keep to his vessel and re-
main alive SO, he was forced to
enter a port not far distant from
the port of his destination.
A mysterious ship all black, as
black. could be, except its sails.
wh,~h were a brilliant red. entered
the same "nrt just as Dalands
ship was rusn- INV '''i,'i
This wizard ship was G. ul" hueu
by wandering flying Dutchn,~ a.
who was forced by some fateful
curse to sail the seas without ever
stopping to rest until he found a
maiden who would be faithful I'M
til death.
The two captains met and liked
each other very much and, after a
while. Daland invited the stranger
to his home. Daland had promised
his beautiful daughter, Senta. TO
the Flying Dutchman.
Now. Senta was not like most
girls, liking to play and dance. and
interested in everything around
her. Scnta was always going off
by herself and dreaming wonder
full dreams She lived in world
of dreams, where strange peoples
live and the queereSt kind of things
happen. Although Senta had ac-
cepted lad named Eric as her
lover, she was so charmed by the
story of the Inflated stranger that
she believed she was the one TO
save the Flying Dutchman from his
sad fate.
AS soon as the stranger arrived,
Senta recognized him as the person
of her dreams and vowed to be true
to him forever
But Eric, Stung by Scnta'S re-
fusal to marry him, in great sor-
row and wrath went to Daland's
nI nf holnC
untrue to him. AS they were talk
ing, they grew so excited that
their words became louder and
louder. and the stranger who
was walking underneath their bal
COny overheard them. Fearing that
Senta would be untrue to him, as
she had been to Eric, the stranger
decided that he must again begin
his wanderings for, if he stayed
and sSenta proved untrue, the pen
atty of eternal death would be put
upon them both
Again he embarked in the
strange. black vessel, arranged
the scarlet sails for greatest speed,
and left port although the sea be-
yond the sheltered harbor was
tossed frightfully by great tenn
pest of wind and lightning and
driving hail.
But Scnta saw the scarlet sails
just as they were leaving the har-
Dor. She rushed to a high cliff and
called wildly to him that if he did
not return, she would give her life
for his release But the vessel
sailed on swiftly, making toward
the maddened sea.
With a wild shrek, she hurled
herself from the cliff. down into
the sea, promising to be rue to
him, even in death.
Suddenly the phantom vessel
sunk. the sea grew as still, as
still, could be, and far out in the
distance two shapes rose from the
quiet waters into the sunlight.
Senta and the Flying Dutchman
were at last united, and they were
never to part again.
Editors Note - Many people
have taken this story of The
Ghostly Ship and have written
poems or music about it, or painted
pictures of what they thought it
looked like Richard Wagner made