Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were

THINGS OF WATER, SKY, AND AIR 195

humans, who risked their lives for the themselves to the great god Zeus and his Harpies
wife Hera.
Aglittering harvest. few survived, but most Huge predatory birds with the faces of
The gods could not forgive such impiety, women and the talons of eagles, used by the
were sighted by griffins patrolling the hot but there is some uncertainty as to the
method of punishment chosen by Zeus. gods to punish or torment humans. Their
blue skies. The end was inevitable when a Some say he changed Halcyon and Ceyx name derives from the Greek harpyiai,
into seabirds: others that he caused Ceyx to meaning 'snatchers', which indicates their
griffin pounced and tore the prospector to be drowned in a shipwreck, so that Halcyon's practice of swooping upon a victim and
pieces with teeth and claws. grief made her cast herself into the sea. snatching him or her away. In one such
exploit they snatched the daughters of
Over many centuries, enough humans Thetis, a kindly sea goddess, then changed
the lovers into waterbirds so beautiful that Pandareus, who had stolen a golden dog
have evaded the griffins to strip the deserts from Olympus, and carried them off to be
of their bounty. But griffins are still active they appeared to be made from jewels. They
and they have extended their sphere of servants in hell.
have glistening blue-green backs and chest-
operations, so that any man who is too much nut breasts, and long beaks to fish their food Apparently there are two types of harpy.

in love with riches is in danger of being torn from the waters. When they mated they One consists of wind spirits, with such
apart by griffins.
built a floating nest, and Thetis caused the names as Swiftfoot, Stormwind, and Swift-
Griffins hate horses, perhaps because they sea to remain calm during the seven Halcyon wing. They are ruthless personifications of
Days so that the eggs might be hatched
see them as competitors in chariot-drawing, the wind, but not nearly so unpleasant as
and are likely to prey on these animals as safely.
the other type. These, with such names as
Awell as other livestock. griffin is strong But as time passed by the descendants of Dark, are violently antagonistic to humans.
Halcyon took to living on riverbanks instead
enough to carry off a good-sized horse. The harsh semi-human screams of a harpy
of by the sea, and spread throughout many as it swoops upon its prey, the thunder of its
Halcyon, Halcyone, Alcyone parts of the world. They and their relations
now have various names such as kingfishers wings and the foul stench of its unpreened
The daughter of Aeolus, Lord of the Winds, in Britain and America and kookaburras in feathers, are signals that it is executing a
She married Ceyx, the son of Atlas. The sentence of the gods from which there is no
young couple made such a handsome pair Australia.
escape.
and were so happy together that, in the
careless pride of their youth, they likened

THINGS OK WATER. SKY. AND AIR 196

Hippopotamus Goddess heaven and her winged sandals carry her tive misfortune, but it may be difficult to
swiftly to her destination. identify the culprit. It is then that men begin
The hippopotamus or river horse (Greek
Jonah to mistrust each other and the stage is set
hippo = horse potamus = river) is a huge for a conclusive disaster.
The person aboard a ship who attracts bad
lumbering creature weighing as much as weather or other misfortunes. When he or Juturna

four tonnes. Despite its size and strength it she has been disposed of, the ship and crew The goddess of pools and still waters.
is a benign personality, generally harmless enjoy fair winds and a prosperous voyage.
to mankind unless it is hunted for its flesh Originally she was a princess of Rutilia, a
The original Jonah was a prophet who kingdom of Italy in the days when the Trojans
or tormented when it emerges from the invaded that country. Juturna tried to help
river to browse on a villager's crops. tried to evade his responsibilities by taking in the war against the Trojans, but when
her brother was killed she sank weeping into
The hippopotamus people inhabit most ship from Joppa to Tarshish. On the voyage,
a spring near the battlefield.
large rivers of Africa, and perhaps because the ship encountered such a fearful storm
of their portliness they are widely revered as that the crew were terrified and cast lots to The great god Zeus immediately turned
her into a water nymph, and then appointed
good omens for pregnancy and fecundity. discover who was to blame. The lot fell
The hippopotamus goddess Taueret is an upon Jonah, who admitted he had offended her goddess of still waters. All persons
God by running away and told the sailors to
Egyptian deity of childbirth and maternity. cast him overboard. As soon as he splashed concerned with waterworks, swimming

especially benevolent towards women suck- into the raging ocean (where he was pools, ornamental fountains, and similar
swallowed by a sea monster) the wind water usage should pay homage to Juturna
ling infants. dropped and the waves became smooth. on 1 1 January each year.

Her husband. Bes. is a grotesque dwarf Countless generations of seafarers have Kappa
learned an important lesson from this
with a kindly, helpful nature. He presides A demon dwarf of Japanese waters, resem-
experience. One should not take an unlucky
over childbirth, protects families against bling a grotesque little naked man with a
person or object aboard ship. But. if he or it
venomous insects and reptiles, and takes a tortoiseshell on his back and clawed webbed
has found a way aboard, then one should
special interest in beauty culture. fingers and toes. He has a greenish skin,
take the necessary steps without delay.
Iris In the opinion of seamen, all passengers round eyes, a beaked nose, and smells

The Nymph of the Rainbow, who is related are Jonahs because they may be as irrespon- strongly of rotten fish. On the crown of his
sible as the well-known prophet. Clergymen
to air. sea. earth, and sky. She is the daughter head there is a circular depression filled
are certainly unlucky, because they are in with water.
of the ocean nymph Electra. and grand- direct line of descent from the prophet Jonah.
Corpses should not be carried under any The kappa's ancestors are the ghosts of
daughter of Pontus the sea god and Gaea people drowned in Japanese rivers, but this
circumstances, and if a crew member dies semi-human connection does not endow him
the earth mother. Zephyrus the West Wind with pity for living mortals. He lies in wait
he should be committed to the deep before
. is either her husband or her lover. for people and other animals straying close
the end of the day. Members of the female to the water's edge, drags them into the
Iris is a beautiful young woman with water, and consumes them from the inside
gender are likely to attract misfortune and it
golden wings and winged sandals. Her family out.
connections make her equally at home in or is safer to leave them ashore. The people ol
certain races, especially Finns who are There are. however, two ways to avoid
under the earth and water or in the boundless
sky. Consequently, she is the ideal messenger notorious wind wizards, should not be signed the clutches of a kappa. One is to watch the
for the great god Zeus and his wife I Icra. on as crewpersons. I lens may be carried
aboard ship but not cockerels, whose ciow Ing water carefully for his appearance, and to
who employ her to carry messages to gods will attract contrary winds.
give him a polite bow when he surfaces. He
and men. Unfortunately it is not always eas) to
will return the bow. the water will pour out
When Iris has a message for one of the identif) a Jonah. A shipmaster m.i\ take of the depression in his head, and he is
powerless until he has refilled the depression
gods, she speeds on the errand on her every precaution not to accepi one in his by submerging again. This process gives the
golden wings. It the addresser is .1 sea god
she plunges into the depths: it the message crew, and then discover that a crewman— human enough time to escape.
is for I lades or one ol his staff, she d.uts
fearlessly through the gloom} caverns ol perhaps quite unconsciouslj carries the
the Underworld.
affliction. The presence ol .1 Jonah is made
Hut it Zeus or Hera have a message foi
obvious by prolonged bad weather or rtpeti
mortal men or women. Iris runs with it
down the rainbow bridge between earth and

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR 197

The other method is to carve one's name or pony which is easy to mount and ride, but The strength, speed, and manoeuvrability
and age in the skin of a cucumber and throw anyone who rides an Ech-Ushkya finds it is of powered vessels protects them against
impossible to dismount. The horse gallops
it into the water. Apparently the kappa is off with him into the loch, and on the krakens, but the occasional disappearance of
following morning a portion of his body
fond of cucumbers, and when he eats the a small sailing craft indicates that this mon-
gift he will remember the donor's name and drifts ashore as a token of his fate. ster still roams the deep.
spare him from his clutches.
The presence of kelpies may be detected Leviathan
Kelpie
by their habit of wailing loudly before storms. This word is often used as a synonym for
The water-horse of Scottish rivers. The the whale or even the crocodile, but the only
water-horses of the lochs are known as Ech- During storms, one may see their hooves
authentic description of Leviathan (in the
Ushkya. galloping across the surface of the water.
Book of Job) shows he is a totally different
Kelpies may appear in either human or Kraken
equine form. As humans, they emerge from type of creature.
The devilfish or giant octopus seen off the
the water in the shape of a hairy and ungainly coast of Norway and in the North Atlantic. He is a firebreathing sea monster, of such
Like other members of the squid family the
character who waits for a horseman riding kraken can squirt 'ink' by way of a smoke- enormous size that the sea boils when he
by. then leaps from the heather to mount screen to obscure it from enemies. The
behind him. The terrified horseman's first Norwegian bishop Pontoppidan, who swims on the surface. He breathes smoke
knowledge of the unwelcome passenger described the kraken in 1752, commented
comes when two hairy arms encircle him, from his nostrils and flame from his mouth,
clamping and crushing him in a deadly grip. that all the sea around the kraken was which is rimmed with terrible teeth.
He loses control of the horse, which gallops darkened by its defence mechanism.
His skin is like a double coat of mail,
madly along the riverbank until the kelpie It is difficult, however, to believe that the covered with overlapping scales as big as
tires of the sport and slips back into the kraken needs any defence against other sea shields on his back and as sharp and hard as
broken pottery on his underparts. Swords,
water. —creatures except perhaps Leviathan. It is darts, javelins, harpoons, and fishing spears
simply bounce off this armoured hide.
J* - W-a= " - far larger than sperm whales, which prey
upon lesser specimens of the giant squid. Leviathan's character is ruthless and fear-
When the kelpie appears in equine form,
In sailing ship days the kraken was a less. He has a heart as hard as a millstone
it is as a splendid young horse wearing a fearsome menace to navigation. Seamen
bridle. It waits by the roadside for a weary aboard becalmed ships kept an uneasy look- and he is unperturbed by any attempts to
out for the boiling waters which heralded
pedestrian, but if a man or woman is unwise the ascent of a kraken, but once it broke the catch him — not that any human huntsman
surface there was no escape. Its great cold
enough to mount the kelpie it rushes into eyes studied the screaming men, as they ran or fisherman is likely to make the attempt.
the river, swims to the deepest part, and up the rigging in an effort to evade the The sight and sound of this enormous sea
giant tentacles, but it soon plucked them off dragon, glaring around with fiery eyes as he
Adisappears. non-swimming rider will be in one by one and gulped them down its gigantic churns through the waves, strikes terror
maw.
dire distress. into the heart of the mightiest warrior.
Men who ran below decks lived only a
A kelpie does not. however always triumph. Loch Morar, Loch Ness,
A person familiar with kelpie activities may little longer. The kraken simply wrapped its Monsters of

carry an ordinary bridle with him. and when tentacles around the ship, squeezed until all Sometimes supposed to be members of the
her timbers burst open, and then picked out
he sees the water-horse he should leap onto the tasty morsels. diosauria, order Saurischia. suborder Sauro-
its back and quickly substitute one bridle for poda, species brontosaurus ('thunder lizard")
Probably a great many sailing ships and and/or brachiosaurus. It has not been
another. He will then be able to make the
fishing boats which failed to return to port possible, however, to explain why cither of
kelpie work for him. and to use its bridle to
work certain magical phenomena. Neverthe- were destroyed by a kraken. One of the these lifeforms should have survived in two
less a kelpie-owner should not keep the Scottish lochs, and nowhere else in the
water-horse and its bridle for too long or theories about the Marie Celeste, the ship world, during the 200 million years since
make the creature work too hard, or it will found drifting in mid-ocean with nobody
aboard, is that all her people were taken by a the Mesozoic Age in which dinosauria
curse the human and all his descendants stalked the earth. Nor may one know how
kraken.
forever. each of the brontosauri or brachiosauri
obtains its daily ration of a tonne or so of
Some say that kelpies eat humans, but soft tropical vegetation, which would be its
they may be confusing it with the Ech-

Ushkya. This water-horse is definitely a
people-eater. It appears as a handsome horse

THINGS OF WATHR. SKY. AND AIR

usual diet. But it is of course possible that, the seabed. Soon the great pit of waters survive the raging tumult of waters as the
during the two Ice Ages which have elapsed assumes a funnel conformation, with the maelstrom, subsides. If not, then they must
since the Mesozoic Age, the monsters have spout touching the seabed and the whole
adapted to a different diet. process revolving at such enormous speed perish when the whirling waters grind their
that the sides of the funnel are as smooth as
Descriptions of the monsters vary so thick green glass marbled and streaked with ship against the seabed and its timbers burst
widely as to render scientific identification foam. The ghastly cry of the maelstrom open against the rocks.
mounts higher and higher until it is a
Adifficult, if not impossible. nine-year-old continuous whistling scream, so loud that Mare Tenebrosum
no voice could be heard above the noise.
girl, who saw one of the monsters land at Literally The Sea of Darkness". An oceanic
The crew of a ship caught in the vortex of
Inchnacardoch Bay in 1912, described an the maelstrom must endure a prolonged region, sometimes believed to be the so-
elephant-coloured monster with great called Bermuda Triangle, where the ghosts
stumpy legs. This might fit a brontosaurus agony. Their ship revolves faster and faster of lost ships and seamen sail forever in
or brachiosaurus, but later sightings of the as it descends into the funnel of the gigantic
creatures indicate that they have long necks, whirlpool, until it is whirling round at perpetual darkness. The Mare Tenebrosum
calf-like heads, and 'three humps' following dizzying speed and at such an angle that is not marked on any charts and may even
behind. This would not fit the dinosauria. they can only cling helplessly to the rigging. move slowly over the surface of the waters.
which had bodies curved into a single hump, They can see great rocks caught up from the
seabed, the wreckage of ancient ships, and following the track of such great ocean
but might apply to sea serpents. The sea
even the skulls of those who have previously currents as the Gulf Stream. Seamen never
serpent, however, like sea snakes, would know that they have entered the Sea of
travel by a lateral writhing of its body in the perished in the maelstrom, all sucked up Darkness until night has fallen and the sea
same way that a snake does on shore, and into the glassy hollow column of water which becomes mysteriously calm, no matter how
not with a caterpillar-like 'humping' action. they are descending with every turn of the rough it may have been before the sun went
Furthermore, recent submarine photographs down. There is no moon or stars and the
have pictured a great fin or paddle, believed whirlpool.
to belong to the monster. Neither dinosauria heavens are obscured by solid black cloud.
nor sea serpents possess such appendages. The maelstrom does not only move con
The first indication of other presences upon
An alternative is that the monsters are centrically but also laterally^ as the whole
mass of water is pressed bet with the islands the water is an agonised hail out of the
plesiosaurs, great sea creatures of the by the heaped up tide. The seamen's last darkness: the kind of choking, despairing
faint hope is that the maelstrom will burst
Mesozoic Age. which did possess 'paddles'. free oi the constricting channel between the ci\ that a swimmer might utter in the
Perhaps they were trapped in the loch 200 islands before their ship touches the seabed. moment before drowning.
million years ago, and they or their descen- It n does, there is a chance that their ship
dants have lived there ever since. will be thrown to the surface, and pei haps This is soon followed by other sounds and
voices: the roar of a cannon, although there
The monsters have been seen by so many are no flashes from the gunfire: the savage

monster-watchers, and they have tipped so yells of men fighting for their lives: the
screams of women and children as a ship
many people out of their boats or astounded
them by appearances on the lochside. that

there can be little doubt as to their existence.

In recent decades an immense amount of

scientific or semi-scientific effort, using the
latest oceanographic technology, has been
devoted to the monsters. It is unfortunate
that reputable zoologists and biologists

remain unconvinced about this phenomenon.

Maelstrom

A huge whirlpool that seizes and destroys

ships caught in its sucking inflow. The word

derives from the Dutch malen = to grind
and stroom = a stream, and so may be

translated as a 'grinding stream". Possibly

this means that a maelstrom grinds ships to
pieces on the seabed.

This is certainly the case with the most
infamous of maelstroms: that which lies

between the islands of Mosken and Amoske-

naes. in the Lofoten Islands off the coast of

Norway. The tides always race tumultuouslv

between these two islands, but on most days
of the year they present no real danger to
experienced seamen. It is only when un
usually high tides roar between the islands

that a fluke of wind may turn the waters
back on themselves, and trigger the marl
strom. The surface of the sea begins to
revolve, and swiftly gams impetus until it
becomes a gigantic basin of tormented foam.
The sides of this basin mount higher and

higher, emitting a deafening highpitched

roar, while the centre probes down towards

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR 199

sinks beneath the waves; orders bellowed in Mediterranean are only distant relations) not resent and never interfere with fisher-
the language of every seafaring nation since but they seem to prefer the cold water and
the Phoenicians. Occasionally the sails of a rugged Atlantic coasts of Britain and Ireland men—unless of course the humans have
offended them in some way.
full-rigged ship seem to glimmer through (where they are known as merrows or
tr\e darkness, or the water is churned into Most mermaids are strikingly beautiful,
foam by the oars of a war galley or the bows merucha) and the cliffs and fiords of Scandi- even if this beauty sometimes appears a trifle
cold. They are blonde, with long tresses
of a destroyer. navia. ranging in colour from light brown to the
tint known as 'strawberry blonde", and
At last all the sounds dies away into a Merpersons are also sighted on other
bloodcurdling wailing, and ghostly ships coastlines of the world, including North possess large green or blue-green eyes. Their
loom up and disappear before the bows of America and China, but they often differ skin is an immaculate pearly white, with a
the intruder. In sailing ship days, when a greatly in appearance from European mer-
vessel might drift becalmed in the Mare maids. The theory that they are, however, silvery sheen when it is slick with seawater.
Tenebrosum, the experience was so appalling related to dugongs or manatees is incorrect.
that dawn might find her crew in a condition Breasts, arms, shoulders, hips, and waist are
of near insanity. Powered vessels pass swiftly Mermaids and mermen live in and beneath
through the accursed region, but the sights the sea but can make themselves at home on all in perfect proportion. The species
and sounds are still so uncanny that seamen land. They have their own language and
rarely mention them for fear of being dis- develops slowly and it is impossible to tell
customs, but are also able to speak the
believed. the age of a merperson. The exquisitely
language of humans living on the nearest
Mermaids, -Men coastline. They like to make frequent trips beautiful children take a long time to reach
ashore, if only to sit on rocks and comb out adolescence, they enjoy a prolonged maiden-
A race of amphibious beings. Probably they
their long hair, and so they generally live in hood, and when they reach their prime they
originated on the coast of Brittany and swam soundings rather than in the deep sea. retain the appearance of a mature human

across the English Channel to Cornwall, Fishermen often sight merpersons, espe- female for innumerable years.
where the inhabitants gave them the Anglo- cially in rough weather. They say that
nothing could be more strikingly beautiful Mermen are stalwart, swarthy, hirsute,
French name of mermaids and mermen, than a school of merpersons of all ages
and muscular, but with softer characters
i.e. sea-maids and sea-men. frolicking in the great Atlantic rollers, their than their appearance would seem to indicate.

From Cornwall they spread up the west silvery bodies glistening amid the tumultuous Both sexes are human in appearance above
surf and their green eyes flashing as they
coast of the British Isles and around northern the waist and fishlike below, with large tail-
Scotland to Scandinavia. Merpersons are glissade down the waves. Contrary to popular flukes but no dorsal fins. They are, however,
occasionally sighted along the other coasts capable of changing their fishlike nether
of Europe (although the nereids of the belief they are never caught in the fisher-
regions into human lower limbs, so that
men's nets. They are much too sea-wise and they may walk upon dry land, whenever
they so desire. It is even possible that many
agile to become entangled in such obstacles.
They live on fish and other seafood but do merpersons spend the greater part of their
lives, in or out of the water, with limbs

instead of fishtails.

THINGS or WATER. SKY. AND AIR 200

Relationships between merpersons and Mermaids sing very sweetly, but they are as golden combs and mirrors. It is very useful
hopeless cooks and mermaid beauty soon
human beings are exceedingly complex. The palls on a husband who arrives home and for a fishing village to have an infallible
finds nothing but raw fish for his tea. They weather forecaster, and to be told exactly
two races have a great physical attraction neglect the housework, being so vain that where to fish for the biggest catch.
for each other, but their characters are so they can spend most of the day admiring
different that associations between them themselves in the mirror and trying out new Occasionally a mermaid who conceives a
usually end in disaster. Merpersons do not passion for a human male will endow him
have souls, they are able to foretell the hairstyles. When the children come along with some of her own supernatural power,
future, they are vain, jealous, and unfor-
giving, they have some degree of super- they have webbed hands and feet, which such as the ability to find treasure in sunken
natural power, and they are probably makes them expert swimmers but ineffective
immortal. ships. Or a merperson may take a special
at most other children's games. On the liking for a human child, become its self-
There are many accounts of shore-dwelling
humans falling in love with merpersons. whole it is a relief for all concerned when a appointed guardian, and inflict horrible
mermaid slips away with her children and
both male and female. When a woman falls punishments upon anyone who ill-treats the
in love with a merman he has the power to rejoins her friends in the sea. human ward.

make her amphibious, and she goes to live Merpersons always know, by their power Some members of the clergy have caused
of foretelling the future, that marriage with
with him under the sea. A mermaid, how great distress by attempting to convert mer-
human spouses cannot endure, but neverthe-
ever, always sheds her tail and goes to live less they often show jealous fury when a persons to Christianity, especially when they
marriage collapses. They tend to blame the are beautiful young mermaids. It is, of course,
ashore with her human lover or husband. human, and often cast some spell or curse
a hopeless endeavour.
Initially, such relationships are passionately upon the wife or husband. A fisherman who
happy, but the first fine careless rapture Generally it may be said that merpersons
takes .1 merwife may as well stay ashore
soon dies away. A human female starts to after she has left him. He will never catch are delightful creatures to observe at a
distance but uncomfortable on closer associ-
long for all her friends and relations ashore, another fish, and there is even a likelihood
thai he and his boat will be destroyed. ation. Their intentions towards human
and eventually forsakes her merhusband. A
["here are numerous relationships with beings are usually amiable, and they are
mermaid begins to yearn tor the wild freedom merpersons apart from marriage. I In. saddest rarely malicious unless they conceive them-
ot lite among the waves, anil finds it is very is when a young mei maid falls in love with a selves to be offended, but the differences in
human but he do^s not respond, so that she temperament between persons and mer-
difficult to adjust to the dry dustiness ot lite pines away from hopeless desire. Sometimes persons are insurmountable.
a coastal community befriends a mermaid in
ashore. She scandalises the gossips In order to benefit In her powers ot tuturcsight. Moby Dick
stripping ott on the seashore and plunging which she employi in return for such gifts
naked into the sea. attracting her old An enormous sperm whale (Physeter
companions to join her and sitting with them
catodon) about 20 metres long. Probablv
on the rocks to sing, chatter, and comb her of great age. because the white markings
sometimes seen on old sperm whales were
hair.
especially noticeable. He had a peculiar snow-

white wrinkled forehead, and an unusually

large white hump at the point where his
enormous head flowed into his body. The

rest of his body was so streaked, marbled,
and spotted with white that whalers named
him the White Whale.

The white markings were distinctive
enough to make him instantly recognisable.

When he was seen gliding at high noon

through a dark-blue tropical sea. leaving a
wake of creamy foam, he seemed to be a
complete glistening white, totally different
from the glossy black or brown of other
sperm whales.

But he had other marks of distinction. 1 le
had a somewhat deformed lower jaw, studded
with great teeth each weighing about 3 kilo-
grams; he was bigger than most other
sperm whales; he had three harpoon punc-

tures in his starboard fluke: he always
travelled alone, w ith no harem ot cows; and.
most ot all, he had a maligan intelligence

which terrified every whaler who came into

conflict with him.

In the days w hen whalemen hunted whales
in small boats, using hand thrown harpoons.
Mob) Dick's favourite stratagem was to
swim awaj from the harpooners pursuing

him m then six oared whaleboats and then

to turn suddenl) and attack them. His huge
head smashed and sank the boat and he then
crunched up one or more ol the whalers

struggling in tin 1 water.

Numerous whalers suffered death or dis-

THINGS OF WATER, SKY, AND AIR Atlantic to the Sea of Japan, and began to 201

ablement in the jaws of Moby Dick. He regard him with superstitious awe. Someone three whaleboats pulled frantically after the

killed the mate of the whaling ship Town- gave him the name of Moby Dick, though White Whale, striving to reach him with
Ho, bit off the arm of the captain of the
Samuel Enderby, drowned the mate of the nobody remembers why. their harpoons, until Moby Dick attacked
Jeroboam, and caused many other casualties. Sometime in the 1840s, Captain Ahab of them in his usual way. As the three boats
Whalers saw the White Whale on all the
tropical whaling grounds from the South Nantucket encountered Moby Dick in the sank in a cauldron of churned white water.

Sea of Japan, and set off in wild pursuit. His Ahab stabbed savagely at Moby Dick with a
whaling knife. The whale reacted by biting

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR The crew did not know what to make of 202
this performance, but for some time the
off one of Ahab's legs, and leaving him half- Ahab's frenzy, but the old man answered
dead amidst the blood, wreckage, and foam. voyage proceeded normally and the ship took
' . . . This whole act's immutably decreed . .
Ahab's men rescued him and took him several whales. As they sailed down through
the South Atlantic, around the Cape of Good I am the Fates' lieutenant, I act under orders.'
back to the ship, where he lay in his bunk Hope and up into the Indian Ocean, Ahab's Like all men obsessed by hatred and the
during the long voyage back to Nantucket
and developed a venomous yearning for only sign of abnormality was his questioning thirst for vengeance, Ahab at last brought
of every other whaleship they met as to
revenge. When the stump of his leg healed whether her crew had sighted the White disaster to himself and all round him. In the
Whale.
he fitted it with a peg-leg made from whale- final act of the tragedy, Moby Dick charged
But when the Pequod entered the Sea of
bone, and sent to sea again as master of the Japan, Ahab ordered her blacksmith to make and sank the Pequod and sank the remaining
whaling ship Pequod. boats. Ahab had time to sink his razor-barbed
him a special harpoon. He had collected harpoon in the White Whale, but the
Yankee whaling ships ranged the whole harpoon line caught him around the neck
world in their relentless pursuit of 'grease', nail-stubs from racehorse shoes, the finest and dragged him under when the great sperm
and whalemen hailed from every port steel then known, which he said would 'Weld whale sounded. Ishmael alone survived to
touched at by the ships. The Pequod's crew together like glue from the melted bones of
was a mixture of salt-pickled seamen from tell the story.
places as far apart as Tahiti and the Isle of murderers.' The blacksmith moulded the
Man. having only the courage and fortitude Moby Dick vanished into the depths, and
of their profession in common. They were steel into the shaft and head of a harpoon,
and fitted Ahab's razors into it for the barbs. perhaps still exists as a symbol of man's self-
led by three Yankee mates of whom the destructive pursuit of that which he can
When the harpoon head was still redhot never overcome.
chief was Starbuck: a long lean thirty year
old whose flesh seemed as hard as twice- from the blacksmith's forge, Ahab baptised Nagas
it 'In the name of the devil' with blood
baked ship's biscuit, but who was neverthe- Indian snake-spirits of water and land, which
donated by three of the Pequod's harpooners. appear sometimes as snakes, sometimes as
less a reasonable and intelligent man. semihumans with snake tails, and quite
The crew were used to hardcase skippers Ahab now raved so eccentrically that the often as humans, especially as beautiful
crew longed for the voyage to be over. They
but they were awed by their first sight of killed four more whales and rendered down maidens. The Nagas comprise an entire

Captain Ahab. He first stumped out onto their blubber into oil, but looked wistfully at nation or perhaps several nations. Their
principal capital is Bhogavati, an under-
the quarterdeck on a stormy winter morning, the whaleship Bachelor: homeward-bound ground city in the Himalayas, but they appear
fitted the tip of his whalebone leg into a hole with a full cargo, island girls dancing on the to have other underground cities. These are
bored in the deck, and stood there like a deck, and a skipper who said heartily that he all of great splendour magnificently orna-
great bronze statue balancing itself against didn't believe in the White Whale. But a
the leaping surge of the Pequod. His face few days later they met the Rachel, which mented with precious stones. The Nagas are
very fond of jewellery and may steal it from
seemed like that of a man cut away from the had seen Moby Dick only the day before. humans.
One of her boats, with the captain's twelve-
stake, scorched and tawny, with a whitish Nagas have important supernatural
scar threading its way from his grey hair to year-old son in its crew, was missing and powers, including the ability to make human
his neck. Superstitious seamen believed this believed wrecked by the White Whale. The
beings invisible in the water.
scar was a brand placed upon him by some captain begged Ahab to join in the search
fearful experience, and that it ran from his for the boat, but news that Moby Dick was Nereids
near at hand drove Ahab into a frenzy. He
head to his foot. refused to search for the missing men and Sea nymphs of the Mediterranean: the fifty
turned away to hunt for Moby Dick. granddaughters of Pontus the sea god and
One of the crew, a man who called himself Gaea the earth mother. They have some
For the next four days he stayed continu- relationship to the mermaids of other seas
Ishmael, thought that Ahab's expression ously on deck or up at the masthead, shouting and oceans, and like them are extremely
showed an infinity of firmest fortitude: a
determinate unsurrenderable wilfulness: that and raving about his obsession. The Pequod beautiful, but they do not have fishtails.
he had a 'crucifixion in his face', and all the met the whaleship Delight, which had lost
nameless regal overbearing dignity of some five men to Moby Dick, and after this Some nereids, such as Galatea and Thetis,
mighty woe. occupy important positions among the gods.
encounter Ahab seemed to break down. He Thetis is so beautiful that numerous gods
Some days after his first appearance he
told Starbuck that he could not understand sought to marry her, but she avoided accept-
assembled the entire crew, and nailed an
Ecuadoran gold doubloon (now worth about the force of his own mania. He had much to
S500) to the mainmast. In an impassioned
live for, a young wife and little son awaited
speech he said that the first man to sight the him at home, but he felt he could not rest or
White Whale should have the doubloon, return until the White Whale's death had
and shouted, 'I'll chase him around Good released him. Starbuck begged him to
Hope and around the Horn, and round the
Norway Maelstrom, and round perdition's abandon the search, but Ahab only raved
flames before I give him up. And this is
what ye have shipped for, men! To chase 'What is it, what nameless, inscrutable,
that White Whale on both sides of land, and
unearthly thing is it . . . that against all
over all sides of earth, until he spouts black natural lovings and longings, I so keep
blood and rolls fin out!'
pushing, and crowding, and jamming myself
Starbuck protested that the Pequod'?, on all the time . . .?'
mission was not that of wreaking personal
Starbuck abandoned the effort to persuade
vengeance on a dumb brute, but of filling
him. That night. Ahab sensed the nearness
the ship with whale oil for the Nantucket of Moby Dick and at daybreak they saw the
White Whale. Ahab armed himself with his
market. Ahab replied that nothing but
vengeance would satisfy him, and made Ins special harpoon and took one of the boats in
matesdrink Death to Moby Dick! God hunt pursuit of him.
us all if we do not hunt Moby Dick to his
The ship anil the boats had to chase Moby
death!' out of the sockets of their harpoon
Dick tor three days, in which he wrecked
heads. two boats and drowned one of the men.
Starbuck made another attempt to calm

THINGS OF WATER. SKY, AND AIR 203

waters seeped under the earth and oozed
upwards to form the Mediterranean and
other bodies of water, together with wells,
ponds, lakes, and streams.

With this work done, Oceanos married
his sister Tethys. She gave birth to the 3,000
rivers of the world and to 3,000 daughters,
the Oceanids, whose task is to supervise all
waters and waterlife.

Oceanos and Tethys then settled down in

a palace they built beyond the western stars,
and lived there contentedly until the gods

challenged the might of the Titans. When

the gods won the cosmic combat, Poseidon

received the ocean as part of the spoils of
war.

Pegasus

A winged horse, one of the two offspring

which Medusa the Gorgon bore to Poseidon
the Lord of the Ocean. (The other was a
warrior named Chrysaor. ) The horse's name
derives from a Greek word meaning 'strong'.
It would appear that Medusa was pregnant
with her strange children when Perseus

struck off her head, because they both sprang
fully developed from her headless body.

ance until the great god Zeus insisted on themselves to human eyes. The female nixies When Pegasus first appeared it was as a
her union with the King of Thessaly. Thetis
thought that marriage to a mortal was so are dazzlingly beautiful, with blue eyes and magnificent white stallion with golden
degrading that she evaded the king's court- long fair hair.
ship, by turning herself into such shapes as wings, but this colouration may have changed
a flame, a wave, and a fish. But the king Nixy maidens often sit in the sun on the later in life. He ignored the man who had
persisted, and made her the mother of the banks of their watery homes, admiring their slain his mother and instantly took to the

hero Achilles. reflections in the water while they comb air, his golden wings beating steadily as he
All the other nereids have remained
their long hair. If they hear a mortal approach- flew to Mount Helicon, the home of the
virgins, and they spend most of their time ing they disappear quickly, and the intruder nine Muses. He repaid the hospitality of the
gambolling through the waves with the Muses by using his hooves to dig out a
sees no more than a ripple in the water. But, spring named Hippocrene, meaning 'horse
dolphins and tritons who accompany the if he is a handsome young man, he runs the
well', which flows with waters that give
chariot of Poseidon, Lord of the Ocean. risk of a nixy falling in love with him. If she
Nereids, like the mermaids of other waters, poetical inspiration to anyone who drinks
does then he is lost forever. Her beauty
are exceedingly vain. When they heard that lures him down into the water and he is them.

Cassiopeia of Ethiopia had boasted of her never seen again. Occasionally a god or mortal attempted to
daughter Andromeda, saying that she was
more beautiful f han the nereids, they were A different fate awaits those who creep catch Pegasus, but he evaded them with
so insulted that they asked Poseidon to punish
the mother and daughter. Poseidon obliged up on nixies to gloat on their beauty. As he Acontemptuous ease. single beat of his
by sending a monster to ravage Ethiopia,
watches these watermaidens from the under- wings sent him soaring into the blue, where
and would not recall it until Andromeda growth, their songs cause him to lose his
wits and he is never the same again. he circled about Mount Helicon with
had been chained naked to a rock in the sea.
Luckily the hero Perseus fell in love with Oceanos, -Us trumpet-like whinnies of triumph.
the naked maiden, killed the monster, turned
Andromeda's fiance and his friends into One of the Titans who took part in the But eventually the goddess Athene
stone by showing them the Gorgon's head, creation of the Cosmos out of Chaos. In the
and married the young princess. arranged for his capture, to help Bellerophon
beginning, the creators fashioned a flat
Nixies world, with the Mediterranean countries in to destroy the Chimaera. She appeared to
the centre, Ethiopia to the south, Cimmeria,
The water sprites who inhabit the springs Bellerophon in a dream, telling him to catch
and rivers of Germany. They may be male the Land of Darkness, in the north, the
or female, but the male nixies rarely show Land of Dreams in the west, and Pygmyland Pegasus with a magical golden bridle. When
in the east. Oceanos then surrounded the
whole construction with a great river, named Bellerophon awoke he found the bridle in
the River Oceanus, and arranged for the
stars to rise out of it at nightfall and plunge his hand.
back into the waters at daybreak. The river
Pegasus submitted meekly to being
harnessed by Bellerophon, and then flew off
with him to seek the Chimaera. This was a
great fire-breathing monster with a lion's
head, goat's body, and serpent's tail, which
was ravaging the country of Lycia. It lived in
a cave, but could take to the air and swoop

down upon the Lycian communities to blast
them with jets of fire.

Bellerophon and Pegasus found the
Chimaera hiding in a storm cloud, and in

what may be the first recorded aerial combat

they pursued the monster through the dark

valleys of cloud. The gallant stallion, faster
and more manoeuvrable than the ungainly

THINGS OF wa rER. SKY. AND AIR 204

monster, evaded the blasts of flame while Phaethon insisted. He said that everyone would see
Bellerophon fired volleys of arrows, until him at the reins, and know for certain that
One of the many sons whom Helios the Sun
they literally shot the monster down in he was the son of Helios.
God had by his numerous wives and
flames. Unhappily. Helios kept his promise. He
mistresses. Phaethon's mother was the sea
Bellerophon then flew Pegasus to the took his son to the eastern stables where the
south-east, so that he might fly the stallion nymph Clymene, Queen of Ethiopia, who two Horae, the goddesses of the seasons and
as a kind of gunship against the Amazons. thought him so beautiful that she gave him
These fierce female warriors were on one of the name which means 'The Shining One". the calendar, harness the horses to the chariot
their raiding expeditions along the coast of each morning, and gave his son careful
Syria, but they soon scattered in confusion But Phaethon grew into a reckless and
operational instructions. When rosy-fingered
when Pegasus swooped upon them and arrogant youth, rather apt to boast of his
Bellerophon showered them with arrows. Eos drew aside the curtains of the dawn, he
divine descent. One day an acquaintance handed the reins to Phaethon and gave the
Flushed with success. Bellerophon then
scoffed at this claim, and Phaethon asked starting signal.
decided to fly Pegasus up to Olympus and his mother for proof of his solar paternity.
take his place among the gods. But Zeus She could only advise him to ask his father, Phaethon slapped the reins on the backs
saw him coming and sent a horsefly to sting whereupon Helios promised any favour of the snow-white horses, they snorted great
Pegasus, who bucked so frenziedly that which Phaethon might ask of him. blasts of flame, and then with a thunderous
clap of their golden wings they soared up
Bellerophon fell to the ground. When To the Sun God*s alarm. Phaeton promptly
asked to drive the Chariot of the Sun on one into the eastern arch of the sky.
Pegasus recovered from the pain he flew on
up to Olympus, where Zeus took him into of its daily gallops across the sky. Helios Phaethon immediately lost control of the
his stable and thereafter used him to carry protested that Phaeton would be unable to
control the nine winged firebreathing horses nine immense horses. No matter how he
his thunderbolts.
that draw the golden chariot, but Phaethon dragged at the reins he was not strong
enough to keep them on their appointed
track. Thev veered wildlv in one direction or

THINGS OF WATER. SKY, AND AIR The phoenix is friendly to humans, who 205

another, so that terrified mortals saw the are enthralled by his gorgeous plumage and seducer, traitor, bandit, and kidnapper) they
sun careering around the sky. At last they all rejected Orion's advances and fled into
sweet singing voice, but does not concern the woods and mountains of Boeotia.
swooped down so close to earth that their
himself with their affairs. Orion, with his trusty dog Sirius, followed
fiery breath set forests afire, destroyed crops, the sisters to Boeotia, and pestered them for
He is semi-immortal, having a lifespan of five years without managing to conquer any
and made the rivers boil. of them. At last they grew so weary of his
at least 500 years (some say 1,461 or even approaches that they begged the great god
This cosmic chaos disturbed the great
12,954 years) and he uses a unique method Zeus to succour them. He responded with
god Zeus, who looked down from Olympus
of reproduction. At the end of each life cycle the ironical trick of changing the sisters
and saw Phaethon still vainly struggling with into stars and also placing Orion and Sirius
the horses. Zeus realised that the foolish he builds a nest of spice tree twigs, settles
youngster might destroy the entire universe, in the heavens. The Pleiades, Orion, and
into the nest, and with a single clap of his Sirius the Dog Star are now fixed in eternal
and made a quick decision. He seized a
wings sets it afire. The mature bird perishes pursuit. Alcyone shines the most brightly,
thunderbolt, took careful aim, and fired. but Merope usually hides her face because
in the conflagration, but as the flames die she is ashamed of her marriage to Sisyphus.
The guided missile knocked Phaethon out
of the chariot and sent him tumbling down down a young phoenix emerges from them In North America, where all the Indian
into the River Eridamus (now the River Po). tribes had different names for the seven
The nine horses, freed from his clumsy in all the glory of his pristine plumage. sisters, 'they were important star spirits with
efforts to steer them, resumed their normal strong influence upon the affairs of men. In
The first task of the young phoenix is to the far north they are an Eskimo hunter and
course across the sky until they plunged
into the sea at evening. fly to the Temple of the Sun, at Heliopolis his dogs, who once chased a Polar bear so
ardently that they followed when it tried to
As for Phaethon. the impact killed him in Egypt, with the mummified corpse of his
and the river nymphs buried him on the escape into the sky.
Hefather. lays this upon the altar, then flies
river bank. His seven sisters travelled from In the southern hemisphere, many dif-
to Phoenicia and settles down for several
Ethiopia to mourn his death, and changed ferent stories are related about Orion and
into the poplars which now line the river- contented centuries until his time arrives
the seven sisters. Some Pacific islanders say
side, forever sighing and whispering their for immolative self-reproduction.
grief. Their tears turned into the golden they are fish which have escaped Orion's
Pleiades net. In southern Australia, they are his wives
amber which may sometimes be dug out of and daughters. They disappear over the
In the eastern parts of the northern hemi-
the ground. sphere these stars are the seven daughters horizon before he does so that they may
prepare camp and cook his food. In the
Phoenix of the giant Atlas, who holds up the sky.
The eldest is named Alcyone and her sisters centre of the continent, however. Orion is a
A large male bird of the eastern Mediter-
are Asterope, Electra, Kelane, Maia. Merope, brutal warrior forever pursuing seven women
ranean, so magnificent in appearance that and Taygete. who flee from his attentions.

the Phoenicians named their country after The seven beautiful sisters once attracted
him. (Or it may be that they named the bird the attention of the handsome giant Orion,
but although six of them had had passionate
after their country.) It is possible that he affairs with various gods and Merope had
originated in Egypt or Arabia and migrated
married the mortal Sisyphus (a notorious
to Phoenicia. He is the only member of his

species, although he_ may have some links

with the peacock family, and he is closely
related to the sun.

Descriptions of phoenix plumage vary

considerably. Some say the bird is an overall

reddish-gold, others that he is royal purple
with a golden neck and head, and others
again that he has a plum-coloured body,
scarlet back and wing feathers, a golden
head and a sweeping tail of rose and azure.
Possibly the bird displays different colouration
at various stages of his long life.

WOTHINGS OF WATER, SKY AIR

Poppykettle horizon. Brown Pelican carried the seven sank beyond the horizon and the) were alone
gnomes from Callo. on the seacoast, up to on the mighty Pacific, still uncertain about
An ancient clay pot made and fired by the Macchu Piccu. where they found the Poppy-
their destination.
Throwers of the Gods, in the now-deserted kettle on a ruined wall and decided it would
First they passed the Iguana Islands, where
Inca city of Macchu Piccu in the high Andes. be the ideal craft for their voyage. greal dragon like monsters terrified the sea-
The pot has some resemblance to a teapot or going gnomes. The) were almost wrecked
The great Silverado Bird carried pot and on the rock\ islands, but the fiery breath of
teakettle, used tor the brewing ot poppvseed crew down to the seashore, w here they named the monsters filled the sail and drove them
it the Poppykettle. They made a sail
tea. (Recipe: Fill poppykettle through spout. out to sea again.
emblazoned with the symbol ot tin- Silverado
Stir in poppyseeds. including the pods it an Bud. loaded tin ship with sacks ot poppvseed Alter that the) sailed on tor months and
months across tin Pacific, until the wind
extra strong brew is required. Place ti- as provisions for the voyage, and ballasted and suit carried the Poppykettle close to the
her with two brass keys stolen from the
mold brass kevs the bottom ot pot. and Shining Spaniards mts ot a coral island. Their da) pot would

bring contents to the boil. I A sihrr fish, made bj the Incas. towed have been shattered on the reets if an island

Mam years ago. seven Hair] Peruvians them out 10 sea until a tair wind blew them woman had not rescued them and carried
on then voyage. The peaks ot the Andes
or Incagnomes decided to leave Peru, which the Popp\icft/c ashore.

had been conquered by tht Sliming

Spaniards, and see what la) beyond the

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR 20-

The gnomes rested on the island for a family reunion in the waters of the far south. into a great circle under the ocean, to support
while, and the islanders showed them a
strange chart, made of sticks and cowrie He lifted the Poppykettle out of the water the weight of the earth. The rippling of its
shells tied together with vines, to help them coils may be seen in the movement of the
find the way on the next leg of their voyage. and the gnomes lashed it to his head, using a
long rope made from the remnants of their waters, from which it sometimes arises to
They set off again aboard the Poppykettle arch itself across the sky.
sail. When all was secure the dolphin
and sailed through rougher and colder waters North American tribesmen often see the
until they ran into a great storm. For three gambolled off on his voyage, and gave the rainbow serpent. In that part of the world it
days, giant waves tossed the Poppykettle so Poppyket tie's crew a rough but fast ride all
played some part in the creation of man and
violently that the gnomes could hardly hold the way to Australia. He tipped the clay pot
onto the beach, snorted farewell, and swam other animals, and then assumed the
on to their reeling craft. When the storm
off with a flip of his tail. important role of providing rain. Occasionally
subsided, they found that their ship had it sleeps for too long between seasons, so
cracked and was slowly settling into the The Hairy Peruvians left their cracked
that the ground begins to crack with
water. vessel on the beach and wandered off to prolonged drought. The serpent's failure to
make the best of their Unchosen Land. They
Luckily, a friendly dolphin had followed appear in the sky indicates that it is still
them through the storm, on his way to a were the first gnome settlers in Australia.
The proof of this story is that, in 1847, asleep, and it must be awoken with specially
noisy dances and ceremonies.
two men were digging for lime in the cliffs
near Geelong in Victoria, Australia. One of Rainbow serpents are prevalent in every
part of the Australian continent, where they
their shovels clinked against metal and they have such names as Karia. Muit. Wulungu,
dug out two ancient brass keys. and Yulunggu. Their task in creation days
was to carve out creeks, rivers, lakes, and
Nobody could understand why the keys waterholes. The rivers have many curves
should be buried so deep in the cliff. The
because they follow the wriggling tracks of
Aborigines did not use keys, and the white the serpents, and the waterholes are round
people had only been in Australia for a short because they are in the shape of a snake
coiled up to rest.
time. The only explanation is that they were
Nowadays, the rainbow serpents live in
the keys brought in the Poppykettle. the depths of the waterholes during the dry

Quadriga season. One must be very careful not to

Specifically a two-wheeled chariot drawn by disturb them, or they will rear up in fury
and create all sorts of disasters by lashing
four horses, but also a flying chariot used by their great bodies through earth and sky.

gods and sorcerers. The flying chariot in In the wet season, the rainbow serpents
which the sorceress Medea escaped from emerge from the waterholes and fulfil their
'appointed task of bringing lifegiving water
Corinth to Athens, after burning up her
lover's fiancee in a self-igniting wedding to the land. The brilliant arches of rainbows
gown, was doubtless a quadriga although it show that the serpents are travelling from
was drawn by flying serpents instead of
winged horses. one waterhole or watercourse to another, to

Eos, goddess of the dawn, gallops across make sure that they are well topped-up for
the sky in a quadriga to herald the arrival of
Helios, although her chariot is by no means the dry season.
as magnificent as the great golden vehicle
ridden by the sun god. It seems likely that Rainmaking
Eos also uses her chariot in order to indulge
her taste for beautiful youths, by sweeping This essential art is practised in many parts

down and carrying them off to her home of the world, to ensure rain during the
proper season or to remind the gods that
beyond the horizon. they have forgotten to send enough rain.
Quadrigas are never self-propelling. They There are innumerable methods of attracting

have to be drawn through the sky by various
winged creatures, usually horses but

occasionally serpents, dragons, basilisks,
or even harpies.

The great god Zeus made some use of a
quadriga when he fell in love with the
delectable youth Ganymede. He changed

himself into an eagle in order to snatch

Ganymede up to Olympus, and compensated
the youth's father by giving him a team of

'stormhorses' to draw his terrestrial quadriga.

Rainbow Serpents

Enormous reptiles known in many parts of

the world for their creation and rainmaking
activities, especially in North America,
Australia, and West Africa. In Africa, the
rainbow serpent was the first creation of

Mawu the supreme being. The serpent then
helped Mawu to create the rest of the world,

and when they had finished it wound itself

THINGS Ot WATER. SKY. AND AIR 208

rain, ranging from the use of items related gods and water spirits into doing their duty. get his bearings and saw what he thought to
to water to the performance of elaborate
ceremonies. In the desert regions of Aus- In desperate situations it may be necessary be the white dome of a building. He hastened
tralia, the shells of pearl oysters from the to pound great drums incessantly to awaken
north-west coasts are greatly valued as the sleeping gods, or to build huge fires towards it. but found that the great object
whose smoke will make them weep. Some- had no doors or windows. While he was
rainmakers. They are traded across the times it becomes obvious that a community puzzling over it the sky darkened with an
enormous shadow, and he looked up to see a
country until they reach the Aborigines of is being punished by the rain gods, and then gigantic bird settling upon the dome.

desert regions. The tribesmen polish the the people may have to dismiss their chief or It was in tact a rukhs egg, and the rukh
did not even notice Sindbad as she spread
nacreous inner surfaces to the accompani- even sacrifice a witch or wizard. On the herself over the egg and settled down to
ment of special incantations and then show brood. After some time. Sindbad realised
them to the sky. This reminder that rain is other hand, a community which enjoys a that the bird might be his means of escape
overdue will often bring on a downpour. In succession of good rainv seasons must
other regions, the people use a simpler recognise the power of its chief and medicine- from the island. He used his turban to lash
method. They fill their mouths with water men, and reward them with bounteous
and spit it towards the sky. again by way of himseli to on^ of the huge legs, hoping that
reminding the clouds of their proper offerings. the bird would overlook his weight when
she took ott again. At last she arose, spread
function. Rukhs her wings, and Happed slowl) into the air.
with Sindbad tearing that she would snap
In some areas, the Dreamtime ancestors I Incorrectly known as rocs.) Enormous birds him up into her massive beak. But his weight
which live on certain islands of the Indian
of the tribal groups are the bringers of rain meant nothing to the rukh. When she landed
and must be appealed to with the proper Ocean. Their size is indicated by the tact
that each feather is as large as a palm frond. on another island Sindbad cut himself free,
ceremonies. One of them. Irria. is associated The island habitat ot rukhs does not pro\ ule onl) to become embroiled in another series
them with sufficient food, and so the)
with the black cockatoo: the bird which frequently visit the mainlands ot India or ot adventures
brings the dark rainclouds to the country in Africa in search ot prey. Thej carrj of! all Sindbad's second encounter with rukhs
kinds ot creatures including elephants.
•the rainy season. came on his fifth voyage, when he and some
Sindbad, the merchant adventurer from other merchants landed on an island where
Irria taught another Dreamtime per- Baghdad, had two experiences with rukhs. thev found a rukhs egg. Despite Sindbad's
sonality. Inungamella. how to make rain by warnings, the merchants chopped the egg
giving him a number of large stones shaped On the first occasion, after he was accidental]) open and were devouring its contents when

like rain clouds. When the tribal leaders marooned on .in island, he climbed a tree to the parent birds returned to the island.

sing the proper songs over these stones thev
will help to bring rain.

The ceremonies of another Dreamtime

rainmaker. Ilpailurkna. are associated with

his sacred yamstick. When rain is needed.

the celebrants paint a yamstick with red
ochre, attach white feathers to the whole

length of the stick, and then blow them
towards the sky. The feathers then turn into
clouds which will bring rain.

Rainstones are important components of
the ceremony in many parts of the world.
Sometimes they are portable, like those of
Inungamella. and they are handed down
through countless generations. In other

places, including the tribal lands of the
Apaches, they are certain fixed stones or

boulders which must be thoroughly wetted,
to remind the gods that rain is overdue.

Many communities keep special images

of gods or saints near to the wells or ponds

providing the water supply. When the water

level runs dangerously low the people first
decorate the image, with appropriate pravers
to remind the deity that rain is required. If
this has no result then the people either give
the image a drenching or dip it into the
water, as an unmistakable hint to do its

dutv. As a final resort, all the adults give the
image a good whipping and throw it into the

Stagnant water, to remain there until it sends

down plenty ot ram. But if the image has
usually been beneficial to the community, it
mav be enough to give the water a beating

instead. I he imam- sees what lies in store foi
it it it does not do tlu' righi thine, and
probabl) responds with a downpour ot ram.

It is widely recognised th.n rain falls only
as the result ot magical intervention, and
there are innumerable ceremonies to t>

force, or inspire the huge variety of ram

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR 209

The merchants escaped to the ship, but the weed never escapes. Over the centuries, Sars. It was a profitless venture, because the
the weed has accumulated in such quantities hull timbers of the old ships had long since
the rukhs were so furious that they that it forms a semisolid carpet on the rotted away and they had sunk below the
canopy of weed.
Abombarded it with huge boulders. direct surface of the sea.
Countless powerful vessels have traversed
hit sank the ship and all but Sindbad perished. The danger of this natural obstacle to the Sargasso Sea during this century, with
their screws cutting and scattering the weed,
He floated off on some wreckage and landed shipping is increased by the fact that it lies but it is still dangerous to small craft which
drift into its silent embrace.
on Old-Man-of-the-Sea's Island, which is within the Horse Latitudes, the great sub-
Scylla and Charybdis
described earlier in this book. tropical region of light variable winds. Sailing
Two monsters which lay in wait for ships
Rusalki ships lay becalmed there for weeks on end.
Seamen called it the Horse Latitudes because passing between Italy and the island of Sicily.
The spirits of girls who have drowned in the they were forced to slaughter any horses Scylla lived in a cave on the Italian side,
being transported in the ships, in order to while Charybdis still dwells under a rock on
rivers of Russia. During the cold winter save drinking water. the Sicilian side.
months they live deep in the water and even
Christopher Columbus, westward-bound Scylla was originally a beautiful young
survive under the ice. When summer sun- with his three ships, narrowly escaped entrap-
ment in the Sargasso Sea. His ships drifted woman, who may have been a daughter of
shine warms the waters, the rusalki climb helplessly in the clogging weed for many
weeks, until a fortunate breeze gave them Poseidon, Lord of the Ocean, by one of his
the branches of overhanging trees and go to enough headway to sail free.
many mistresses. When Poseidon himself
spend a kind of summer holiday in the Many other seafarers did not escape so
seduced her, his wife Amphitrite com-
forest. easily. In sailing ship days, a ship becalmed missioned the sorceress Circe to change
in the Sargasso Sea often lay motionless, Scylla into a monster.
There are two species of rusalki: northern while the drifting weed piled remorselessly
and southern. Both are dangerous to humans Circe contrived this by steeping magical
around her hull, for weeks on end. When herbs in Scylla's bathing pool, so that Scylla
who venture near the water, but the two
species use very different methods of the wind at last blew favourably, she could entered it as a lovely woman and emerged as
destroying them. The rusalki of the gloomy
northern rivers, who look like the naked no longer move. Her crew would make a monster with twelve legs and six huge
corpses of drowned women, snatch any desperate efforts to clear the weed away, and dog's heads on long serpentine necks. Her
innocent wayfarer and drag him down into even to tow the ship by using her boats, but bite was worse than her bark, because the
the weed which held a sailing ship fast had dog's heads only yapped like puppies.
the depths. There, they bully and torture
no difficulty in obstructing a rowing boat She found a lair in the sea cliffs and lived
him before putting him out of his misery. and clogging its oars. Eventually the ship's by snatching dolphins and other seafood
But the southern rusalki, who resemble crew died slowly of thirst and starvation. from the water, together with passing sailors.
beautiful girls clad in gossamer garments of Whenever a galley rowed through the straits,
water vapour, entice mortals to join them by The ship herself lasted longer, until her she used her six heads to scoop up a whole
singing with irresistible sweetness. The man row of oarsmen.
who hears a rusalki song wades into the sails rotted and the rigging frayed and
depths and drowns with a smile on his lips. snapped so that the masts leaned drunkenly. Any shipmasters who tried to steer clear
of Scylla fell foul of Charybdis. who created
Both types of rusalki are extremely The teredo worm ate away at her hull timbers
a monstrous whirlpool by sucking in and
mischievous during their summer holidays. and at long last she began to sink. regurgitating the waters of the straits three
They may ruin the harvest with torrential Countless ships, from Spanish galleons
rain, tear up fishermen's nets, damage such times a day. Nothing is known about her
constructions as dams and watermills, and laden with treasure to slave ships with their
steal the garments which women are making living cargoes, drifted into the Sargasso Sea background.
and lay rotting there with crews of skeletons. Improvements in ships and navigational
for their families.
When steamships began to plough the methods at last enabled seafarers to evade
Anvone who ventures near Russian rivers both these monsters. Nobody has seen Scylla
oceans, there was much talk of an expedition for many centuries, and so she may either
should protect himself against rusalki by into the Sargasso to salvage the money and have died or sought more fruitful territory.
Charybdis, however, still follows her routine
carrying a few leaves of wormwood treasure in this silent fleet. But shipmasters of swallowing and regurgitating the seawater
(Artemisia absinthum) in an amulet. Worm- were afraid that their paddle wheels would
wood also protects any article which rusalki become entangled in the weed. thrice daily.

might steal, damage, or destroy. In cases of At last, after steamships had grown much
severe infestation one should scatter a larger and more powerful, a proper ex-
quantity of the leaves upon the surface of
pedition was prepared. In 1910 it entered
the river. the Sargasso Sea in the steamship Michael

Sargasso Sea

A region of the North Atlantic south-east of

Bermuda, on the approaches to the West
Indies, lying between 25 and 31 degrees
North and 40 and 70 degrees West. The
tract of ocean is named Sargasso after the
floating seaweed Sargassum Bacciferum (or
Gulf Weed). This tough pale-brown sea-
growth is distinguished by the multitude
of small air-bladders which keep it afloat,
and it is infested by tiny crabs, barnacles, sea
lice, and other minor sealife.

North Atlantic storms tear huge quantities
of this weed from the coastal regions of
America. It then drifts on the ocean currents
until it reaches the Sargasso Sea, where the

currents move in a huge slow circle so that

THINGS (>(• WATER. SKY. AND AIR 210

The Sea King's Palace the strength of currents, the height of waves, grows in Persia and Afghanistan. This
reddish-brown resin, with its acrid taste and
The palace lies two degrees off the western and the amount of ice to be released by the strong onion-like odour, should be ground
into powder and scattered on the water
approaches to sunken Atlantis, equidistant Sentinels. around a boat or ship. Sea serpents abhor
asafoetida so violently that the merest
between the eastern column of the Sea Every ocean creature from krill to cephalod suspicion of the substance keeps them awav.
is administered by the Life Balancers: from
Rainbow and the Whale Seaway from north the subjects of the Marginal World between Sea serpent sightings are so well docu-
sea and shore to those of Utmost Dark.
to south. Whale deputations break their Each one is dealt with fairly, and each one mented that one may ignore suggestions
knows that the plan fulfils its needs but that the monsters are no more than schools
world-curving voyages to report on their demands a sacrifice. of dolphins, giant squids, or other common-

plight to the Sea King, and hear what has At last the conch horns gurgle the signal place maritime occurrences.
that the court is to close, and the Sea King
been decided at the Court of the Life utters the valedictory: 'The Sea is the Fount Ship Spirits
of Life. Whoever ignores this rule must die.'
Balancers. Ships, like every other object to which
The delegates swim or drift back to their
The Sea King convenes sessions of this humans have devoted the art of hands and
territories, and the Lords. Ladies. Masters,
court by sending eel messengers to the River and Sentinels depart to do the Sea King's minds, each have individual spirits of their

Masters of the world, dolphin couriers to bidding. own. The character of artefact spirits is

the Ice Sentinels of north and south, albatross Sea Serpents formed partly by the materials from which
an object is made, but very largely by the
emissaries to the Ladies of the Rain, and Gigantic seafaring reptiles with cylindrical
amount of human love, pride, art. skill, and
stormy petrels to summons the Lords of bodies, about 70 metres long and 7 metres imagination devoted to its creation. Our
Storm. The times when the court is in
session may be known by those periods when in circumference, clad with glistening scales fascination with things of the past springs
which are sea-green on the upper surface of from the fact that a piece of antique furniture
the seas of the world lie in glistening repose, the body and white underneath, and having or a veteran motor car was constructed bv
a flattened snakelike head, with large hornv
with great flocks of seabirds gossiping on men who fashioned it with love and pride,
eye sockets and a membraneous 'mane'.
their surfaces and flying fish scurrying with so that their spirits flowed into it and created
Widely seen throughout the world, especially pleasing and responsive object spirits'. These
the latest news of court decisions. The Lords off the coasts of Scandinavia. Denmark, the spirits have the power of instant thrilling
British Isles, and North America, but also
of Storm allow the oceans an interim of in the South Atlantic and Pacific. Whalers communication with human beings. We
often observe sea serpents locked in combat
peace. respond to them in a way in which it is
with sperm whales. The water foams with
The River Masters. Ice Sentinels, and impossible for us to respond to a plastic
blood as the whale's great jaws crunch frag- bottle, or to a motor vehicle created by
Ladies of the Rain sit as a jurv while the Sea ments out of the serpent's body, but the automation.
King listens to the charges laid by his monster always wins by wrapping its coils
And so it is with ships. For many centuries,
subjects. Whales report on the deaths of around the whale and dragging it down into
sailing ships were the largest and most
their people at the hands of harpooners. the depths. complicated pieces of machinery built by
mankind. Immense skill went into the con-
Tunas say their families have been decimated In sailing ship days, sea serpents often struction of every ship, and she was built
entirely from natural materials from the
by fishermen. Black marlin weep at the attacked ships in search ot prey. Sometimes timber of her hull to the canvas of her sails.
the monster washed men of! the decks and
passing of their race, cruelly snatched from into the sea b) surfacing alongside and A host of proud craftsmen worked on ever)
spouting a hose like jel ol water. More often,
the depths in the name of sport. Salmon and it simply snatched them with its huge jaws. detail of her construction. When at last she

trout from the rivers tell of the hooks which On rare occasions u totall) destroyed small took to the water, she floated there as though

pluck them from their homes. Lobsters and ships by wrapping its coils around them. w ith a delight in her own existence.
I he only certain defence against sea As soon as she felt the winds and waxes ot
crayfish recount stories of wicked traps,
x nts is the gum resin known as as.itoetida. her natural element, her spirit sprang to life
abalones and oysters of divers wrenching in a brilliant manifestation of temperament.
them from the rocks, shark and cod of the obtained from the plant Ferula faetida which She seemed to possess every facet ot the

bitter substances polluting the waters of human characters which had brought her
into existence, somehow blended into some
their territories.
thing entirely new. She could be willing or
Representatives of every species have their wilful: happy, sulky, joyful, responsive.
ardent, courageous, or difficult. Like a
say. Octopi gesticulate as they tell how they
beautiful woman or a spirited horse, she was
are chopped up for bait, sardines and
anchovies whimper their tales of genocide, nevei dull but often capricious. Only those

the brilliant creatures of the tropics tell of who understood her could persuade her to

the devastation of their homes. give ot her hi st

After each complaint, the Sea King asks Of course some ships had spin t s which
the jury to pronounce either for or against resisted ever) blandishment ot those who
mankind. The verdict is always the same: sailed in her. For some reason their spirits
were stunted or warped, perhaps because
Guilty .
their designers Ol builders hail skimped their
The king then passes sentence to be tasks riu\ were dull, balky, and seemingly
hint on silt destruction.
executed- by the Lords of Storm. He bids
The glory ot sailing ships faded slowly
them to arrange typhoons, cyclones, hurri- into the past, and the) were replaced by
greal metal fabrications propelled by
canes, and waterspouts. He nominates the

ships to be wrecked and the storms to be

whipped up to keep fishermen in port. In

extreme cases, he commands a lidal wa

The Ice Sentinels nod silentl) at instructions

to crush ships and build bai md the

Ladies ot the Rain promi \ei

Masters to create floods.

The court then turns to pleasanter

Subjects. The) agree upon (1 i ot

seawater to the Ladies ol th< Rain ihe
work ol ihe 1 oids ot Storm in
I
Hade winds. 1 he) ratif) the annual i

the Sea King with the moon, to estal lish
the rhythms ol the tides. They agree upon

THINGS OF WATER. SKY. AND AIR

pounding engines. Such ships still had spirits Whatever the facts may be, there can be In due course Mululu died, and the four
of their own: the spirits of fire and steam
which thrust them doggedly through wind no doubt as to their technique. When they girls followed his instructions by going to
and water. Ship spirits no longer chuckled
with the sweet rush of water past the bows, sighted an approaching ship, they posed on see the medicine man. They found he had
the rocks and sang songs of such exquisite plaited a long rope from the hairs of his
nor hummed and sang with the wind through sweetness, promising such transcendental beard, and that one end of it stretched up
delights, that the sailors abandoned their
the rigging, but chanted a monotonous song into the sky.
of the thumping machinery. ship and swam ashore. As soon as they
He told them to climb the rope, and when
Then came a new generation of ships: landed the sirens pounced, tore them apart
with their cruel talons, and added their bones they reached the top they found their father
designed by computers, built by machines, to those which littered the island.
navigated by electronic instruments: massive waiting for them. He placed them in the sky
ugly creations fashioned without joy or pride. Sirens were a supreme danger to navi-
Their spirits are brutal and sullen, and from gation until the crews of two ships managed as the four stars of the Southern Cross, and
to evade them. The first were those of the
time to time they show their contempt for made himself into the nearby star known to
mankind by driving their ship on the rocks ship commanded by Odysseus, whom Circe
and spilling out her contents to pollute the Europeans as Centaurus.
the sorceress had warned of the power of
seas. Swans
the sirens. He stopped up the ears of his
Sirens These splendid creatures of water and air
crew so that they would not hear the siren are known in many parts of the world. Their
Birds as big as adult humans, having the songs, and had himself lashed to the mast so
heads of beautiful women, voices so sweetly that he would not surrender to their stately beauty, powerful flight, and strong

seductive that no man can resist them, and a seduction. swimming ability have either been accredited
taste for human flesh. There may have been
as few as three of them or as many as eight. Odysseus and his men passed safely by, to various supernatural beings, or used by

Their family history is complex and contra- but other crews perished until Jason and the such beings to further their own ends. As
dictory. They were originally water nymphs,
daughter of a river god named Achelous, Argonauts came within siren range. They mentioned earlier in this book, the great god
but they seem to have been related to knew nothing of the sirens' dreadful powers, Zeus turned into a swan in order to ravish
Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld. and one of the crew, Butes, actually jumped the beautiful Leda, by swimming up to her
overboard and swam into their grasp. The while she was bathing in a pool and taking
No one knows exactly why they evolved into rest of the Argonauts might have followed
an avian species. One story is that they did him, but Orpheus, the supreme musician, advantage of her unsuspecting admiration.
struck up a tune on his lyre and sang even
so in order to console humans, by singing to more beguilingly than the sirens. The crew In Java and other parts of Indonesia, the
them during their afterlife in the Under- could not help listening to him instead of to
world, but this would not account for their the sirens, who were so infuriated by this white swans are usually beautiful maidens
later activities. Another story is that when
they were water nymphs they insisted on second failure that they threw themselves who want nothing to do with men. They are
occasionally captured when a flight descends
retaining their virginity, thus exasperating into the sea.
on a pool, discards their swan's clothing,
Venus Aphrodite into changing them into Southern Cross, The
and frolics in the water in the form of human
birds. The four stars of this brilliant constellation
Agirls. man may take one of the maidens by
Nor is it known precisely why they devoted are the daughters of Mululu, an Aboriginal
themselves to devouring humans, especially tribal leader of the Dreamtime. stealing her swan's attire, so that she is left
seafarers. One account says they were so
Mululu had no sons, and when the time behind when her companions take off. But
proud of their musical ability that they came near for him to die he worried about he will have to hide the swan clothing
the fate of his daughters. With no brothers carefully, because she will spend much of
challenged the Muses to a singing contest, her life with him in a search for the clothing.
and when they lost it they exiled themselves to protect them, and to ensure that they As soon as she finds it she will fly away,
leaving him with any children she may have
to a rocky island (possibly the Isle of Capri) received their share of the game killed by
and revenged themselves on passing sailors. had by her wingless lover.
tribal hunters, they might find themselves
Some stories say that they also had the ability poorly treated after their father had departed. Swan-maidens also live in many parts of
Europe, especially Germany and Russia.
to change themselves into mermaids, so that Mululu thought deeply on this problem
and eventually consulted a medicine man. European males seem to be less interested in
their bare-breasted beauty made them even Soon he told his daughters that when he
more seductive to seamen. died he intended to become a star, and that marrying them than in making use of their
for their own sakes they must join him in
Aability to foretell the future. man who
the heavens.
wishes to know what the future has in store

for him should hide by a pond until a flight

of swan-maidens descends. He should then

hide the feathered garments of one of the

maidens, and refuse to return them until

she has told him what he wants to know.

But a man who catches a swan-woman, by

mistake for a swan-maiden, will regret that

he was ever born. Swan-women are usually

witches without souls, adept in sorcery and

remorseless towards anyone who offends

their dignity.

In Australia, the black swans appeared for

various reasons in different parts of the

continent. In one region, they were originally
Aborigines with very black skins. During

the Deluge, which swamped that country as
it did so many others in the world, they
changed themselves into black swans and
swam to safety.

In another region, the swans were

originally white and they had very sweet

voices. But thev lost all their feathers in a

I HINGS OF WA fER. SKY. AND AIR tralia. Jambuwul of Arnhem Land, and everyone to keep out of the way of the
Mamaragan of central Australia, whose stormy Lord of the Ocean.
great battle with the eagles, and were so
exhausted that they could sing no more. tremendous laughter is the sound of thunder. U-Boats, Ghosts of
Fortunately a family of ravens took pity on They are all powerful but capricious per-
So many of the German fleet of submarines
them, clad them with some of their own sonalities who must be kept in a good
black feathers, and tried to teach them to humour. When they are pleased with their or U-boats (unterseebooten) were sent to
sing again. The black swans, however, only people they send down beneficial torrents of the bottom in both world wars, in circum-
rain, but when they are displeased they either stances of such appalling pain and terror,
tried to imitate the ravens, and ever since hold onto the rain or dump it in such
then they have had strange harsh voices. that one might well expect a number to
quantities as to cause disastrous floods.
Thunder reappear as apparitions. It seems, however,
Tritons that only one or two have been associated
The reasons for thunder vary greatly from
one country to another. In many instances. The mermen of the Mediterranean. They with phantom manifestations.
have some resemblance to the mermen of One. believed to be the U-17, was a sub-
the sound reverberates through the heavens other waters, but are much less attractive in
marine of World War I. Her second-in-
when various gods are fighting. The thunder character and appearance. Apart from a command was drowned, probably because
is the sound of their great swords or hammers fishlike tail they also have scales on their
torsos, sharp fish's teeth, and webbed fingers the boat had to crash dive while he was on
beating against each other's shields, or the deck. After that, he reappeared as a ghostly
hooves of their horses galloping through with long claws. Like mermen of the figure in the bows of the U-boat whenever
the sky. while the lightning flashes are spears
and arrows which miss their aim and fall to northern seas, they can change their tails to she surfaced after dark. He allowed crew
the ground. legs and walk upon the land. members to approach closely enough to

No less than eight thunder gods function Northern mermen sometimes fall in love recognise him. but if anyone tried to question
with human females, but tritons have no him he disappeared. After a few nights, none
in Japan, and are associated not only with concept of the tender emotion. Whenever of the crew of U-17 would go on deck after
the thunder in the skies but that below
they go ashore they behave worse than dark and she had to make a difficult return
ground, when earthquakes roar horrendously drunken sailors on a spree. Thev get dis- to base. The crew was dispersed among other
underfoot. Each god is responsible for a submarines, but when a fresh crew took the
different type of thunder and is named gustingly drunk, ravish any females who U-17 to sea, and also saw the ghostly second-
accordingly, such as Kami-Nari. the God of in-command, they came close to mutiny.
Rolling Thunder. stray within their grasp, and vandalise the The captain again returned to port and the
seaport towns. Landlubbers often have to boat was withdrawn from service.
China, however, has only one thunder resort to violence to rid themselves of a
A U-boat of World War II has been seen as
deity: Lei Kung. the Lord of Thunder, who gang of tritons. One community suffered so
a seagoing apparition in various parts ot the
covers his blue body only with a loincloth badly from a drunken triton that they cut off Western Approaches. Various stories sur-
his head while he lay snoring on the beach. round her. including the seamen's vain that
and has dragon-like wings and claws. He
Strangely, old father Triton is a peaceful she is the ghost ot a boat commanded by
rides through the heavens in a chariot pulled and helpful merpersdh, quite unlike his
by little boys, and creates thunderous noise Kapitanleutnant (Lieutenant-Commander)
delinquent sons. He has often emerged from Klaus Till. It is said that Till sank a British
by banging with a hammer on a drum. In his his home in the depths of the Mediterranean merchant ship mu\ (lien shot several ot the
survivors. Soon after that, a Royal Navj
other hand he holds a sharp chisel, used to to assist seafarers in trouble, including the corvette sank the I' boat, but the war crime
punish sinners. of Klaus Till has new; allowed it to rest
Argonauts. He can cause the roughest sea peacefullj on the bottom ot the Atlantic.
Lei Kung is only one member of the
to subside by blowing on his conch shell Vainamoinens Ship
heavenly department which controls storms trumpet.
and tempests, comprising twenty-five deities Vainamoinen is one ot the creation ancestors
His sons have no occupation apart from ot Finland. Even though he appeared on
eac h responsible for a different type of storm. accompanying their grandfather Poseidon
earth as an old man he possessed ureal
Thej are .ill supervised by Lei Tzu, the on his rules across the ocean. When the magical powers, and among other In-net its

Ancestoi of Thunder, to whom om^ should dolphins have been harnessed to Poseidon's to mankind he invented the art ot apiculture.
chariot, and the nereids an assembled to
pray, rather than to Lei Kung, foi the passing frolic around them as u charges through the
ot .i thunderstorm waves, tin' lecherous crew ot tritons acts as
outriders. Blowing shrill blasts on conch
Other thundei spirits and thundei deities shells, the) rampage ovei the waters to warn
include Hino of the Iroquois; the great
1 hunderbird oi the north west l\u [fit coasts
ot America; Pakadringa oi northern Aus

THINGS OF WATER, SKY. AND AIR 213

After many adventures he decided to seek Ilmarinen more than that of his older brother With blue eyes flashing they watch the
a wife, but his first choice drowned herself and agreed to marry him, whereupon armies charge into battle, and the first savage
Vainamoinen consoled himself by kidnapping clash of arms is the signal for the Valkyries
rather than marry an old man. His search to swoop to earth, dismount from their
for a bride then led him to a country of the her sister. chargers, and stride amidst the opposing
far north, eternally locked in snow and ice. ranks to choose who shall be slain in that
where the Maiden of Pohja agreed to marry He took this young lady to his ship and day's combat. They favour the most heroic
him on condition that he should split a fighters: those most highly qualified to join
horsehair with a blunt knife, peel a stone, sailed back with her to Finland, but the the heroes already in Valhalla. Each Valkyry
tie a knot in an egg. cut a block of ice forced marriage turned out unhappily and
without leaving splinters, and build a ship identifies such a man and urges him into the
from her weaving loom. when she took a lover he turned her into a
thickest of the fray, sharpening his blood-
Vainamoinen's magic enabled him to seagull. After that he stole the talisman
lust with her savage cries and bidding him
perform all these tasks except for the ship- back from her mother. The old woman ignore the wounds which sap his strength.
At last he falls to the weapons of his
building. He forgot three words of the smashed it in a terrible storm, but it was
still powerful enough to bring prosperity to opponents, and his attendant Valkyry waits
necessary spell, and had to venture into the by the bleeding corpse.
Underworld in search of them. Finland.
When the sun sets over the battlefield,
He outwitted various supernatural Vainamoinen decided that his ship had
brought him nothing but trouble and that each Valkyry lifts up the spirit of a dead
creatures before he found the giant Antero he was too old to bother with any more warrior and takes it to her horse, to join all
Vipunen, the guardian of the magic words.
The giant had trees growing from his head, young women. He abandoned his ship, built the others who will be carried to Valhalla
face, and shoulders, and in Vainamoinen's that night. The host of women falls into a
efforts to make him reveal the three words a boat out of copper, and sailed away to the
land which lies between heaven and earth. column behind their leader, and then soar
he cut down the trees and pushed his staff
down Antero Vipunen's throat. The giant Valkyries back to Valhalla. There, as the dead heroes

reacted by swallowing Vainamoinen, but the (More correctly spelt Waelcyrgean.) The feast among the slain of countless wars, the
Valkyries serve them with roast pork and
old man hammered on the giant's heart until Choosers of the Slain: magnificent young tankards of mead and ale.

Antero Vipunen disgorged him and revealed women who ride on great airborne war Valkyries sometimes visit the earth in
the magic words.
—horses. They have two functions primarily between battles, on errands for Odin. On
Vainamoinen hurried back and completed
his task of shipbuilding, eager to sail away to attend battles in order to select warriors such occasions they assume the guise of
and claim the Maid of Pohja as his bride. fit to enter Valhalla, the Hall of the Slain;
But her mother imposed yet another task and secondly to act as waitresses to the swans, and may be seen sweeping down the
upon him: that of forging a magical talisman
out of iron. Vainamoinen knew nothing of warriors feasting in Valhalla. They work storm winds with their great pinions beating
ironworking and regarded the metal as evil, under the instructions of the Norse god the troubled air.

but he persuaded his brother Ilmarinen, who Odin. In England, it is possible that some
was a blacksmith, to make the talisman for Waelcyrgean chose to abandon Valhalla and
A Valkyry is the archetypal Nordic settle in various parts of the country, where
him. they either began a new existence as witches
maiden: tall, strong, and handsome, with
He had to tell Ilmarinen why he wanted icy blue eyes and plaits of blonde hair as or acted as witches' consultants.
the talisman, and when the blacksmith
thick as the cables of a Viking ship. When Vodyanoi
finished the difficult work he thought he
would try to take the Maid of Pohja away Odin learns that a battle is planned he orders Water-monsters prevalent in many parts of
the Valkyries to attend, and they don their Russia, especially in millponds. (The ponds
from Vainamoinen. He knew that Vain- breastplates and horned helmets and saddle where water is dammed so that it may pour

amoinen would take eight days to sail to her up their flying horses. On the word of through a race, and turn the great wheel
country and set off on horseback in an command they stream forth from Valhalla which powers the grindstones of a water-
attempt to get there first.
to the thunderous skies above the battle- mill.) The owners of watermills, who depend
Vainamoinen actually won the race, but field, where the Valkyry host splits into two
the Maid of Pohja kept him in suspense for divisions to ride above the opposing armies. on waterpower for grinding grain, are very
conscious of the influence of vodyanoi and
so long that Ilmarinen had time to reach her take care not to offend them. Vodyanoi hate
and ask for her hand. She liked the look of watermills because they obstruct the free
flow of water, and try to destroy them by
floods or put them out of business by

droughts, but they perversely spend much
of their time in the millponds and may be

heard growling, complaining, and splashing

about as the millwheel turns. When the

water runs low, and there is a danger of the

mill grinding to a halt, the owner may try to
placate the vodyanoi by drowning some
unwary person in the millpond. Obviously
the vodyanoi appreciate human sacrifices

because they often snatch people into the
water.

Vodyanoi have the strange characteristic
of living an entire life during each monthly
cycle of the moon. They grow old as the

moon grows old, but reappear in full vigour
with the new moon. It is hard to describe a
vodyanoi because they have so many different

I IIINC.S Ol- WATER. SKY AND AIR of water they inhabit. Potamids live in rivers. >l4
naiads in streams, crenae in springs bubbling
manifestations. Sometimes the creature may from hillsides, limnads in ponds and pools. moods he made up for his destructive
appear as an old man with green hair and All. like Egeria. are friendly towards mankind
beard, which whitens as the moon wanes, or and play an important role in agriculture, activities by sending spring breezes and
as a beautiful naked woman. It may be a and in their many-toned voices they will
huge fish covered with moss and trailing bounteous rains. Ga-oh the Wind Giant,
foretell the future for those who can under-
waterweed. or a snarling monster with fiery stand them. They rarely endanger humans one of the deities of the Iroquois nation, had
eyes, or simply a floating log. It is no wonder a somewhat similar character, although his
except for handsome young men. whom they softer side is represented by the girl Breath
that Russian women warn their children to
may drag down to join them. Probably this of Wind and her husband Master of Winds.
keep away from millponds.
is to ensure continuation of their race, Their son Ioskeha is the supervisor of all
Water Spirits vegetable and animal foods.
because a water nymph lives only for about
Apart from the beings already mentioned in Often a single god is insufficient to control
1 0.000 years, although she retains her youth-
this book, a great many spirits of different ful beauty until the end. all the winds. The brothers Boreas. Zephyrus,
Eurus and Notus are responsible for the
types live in the waters all over the world. There are innumerable sea spirits and sea winds of the Mediterranean. Three brothers
deities, especially around the islands of the administer the winds of some Baltic coastal
They include Wala-Undayua. who lives in Pacific. Their stature and influence depend communities, and no less than nine gods
upon the size and power of the sea creatures
the water even though he is a lightning with which they are associated. Whale gods Acontrol the winds of Nicaragua. number
deity. For several months of each year he are the most important and are often the
protectors of chiefs and their families. Shark of separate spirits concern themselves with
inhabits a river in northern Australia. He the winds of Australia, from the wandjina.
gods are common, under many different
rarely emerges during the winter months, who live in the cyclonic storms of the north-
which are dry in tropical Australia, but in names, and should be propitiated before west coasts, to the spirits who dance across
setting out on a canoe voyage. Other spirits
early summer he keeps a keen lookout for concern themselves with fishing and net- the desert in their whirlwind garments of
making, the building of canoes, navigation
the huge thunderstorms which roll in from between the islands, and the law of storms. tawny dust. The Aborigines treat the whirl-

the sea. When they appear he darts up into Japan and China have many important wind spirits very respectfully, because they
deities of the rivers and seas, who must be remember that a young hunter tried to kill
the clouds, and spends the wet season stalking one of them with his boomerang and was
treated very respectfully because of their never seen again. In northern Australia.
among them on his long glittering legs. Bara the north-west wind plays an important
Many of the Australian lakes, rivers, and power to help or damage the aspirations of
mankind. In China, the water gods and water role. Each summer he brings rain from the
waterholes were created by various Dream-
time creatures, including the Rainbow spirits are invariably dragons. north, together with the spirits of all the
Serpent. Others were Windulka the bandi- children to be born to local tribeswomen
coot, who dug out such a deep burrow that The European land mass, from the Baltic during the following year. But he tends to
he released underground waters; and sleep very heavily during the dry season and
to the Urals, proliferates with water spirits has to be sharply reminded of his duties. In
Mangowa the Hunter, an Aboriginal of
southern Australia who chased an unwilling of which many are unpleasant and anta- early summer, the Aborigines use their axes
maiden up into the Milky Way. When she to gash the trees where Bara is sleeping, to
gonistic. Apart from the rusalka and wake him up and let him out for another
still refused to surrender to him, he was so vodyanoi. already mentioned in this book, wet season.
angry that he snatched clusters of stars from
they include Nakki. who is a lake spirit of The Chinese seem to be rather uncertain
the heavens and flung them down to earth.
They struck it with such impact that they Finland and should be asked to leave the about the controllers of their country's winds.
water before one dives in for a swim: Vizi-
formed a string of waterholes across the Some believe that a celestial dragon named
Ember of Hungary and other places, who Fei Lin. who appears sometimes as a bird
countryside. will drown people if he does not receive
regular human sacrifices: and Vu-vozo of beating the air with his wings and sometimes
Water spirits are often dangerous, and the as a dragon with a bird's head, deer's horn,
southern Russia. and a snake's tail, creates the winds which
rivers of many parts of the world are blow over China. Others are sure that wind
The gypsies who roam Europe have long and weather are provided by the Department
inhabited by serpents or dragons which since discovered a way to control local spirits of Thunder, which has twenty-five tunc
if one wishes to camp near water. The
demand regular human sacrifices to keep tionaries including Lei Kung the Lord of
method is to soak three iron nails in the
them quiet, but there are also benevolent Thunder. Lightning-Mother, and Little Boy
spirits who understand that water is vital to watercourse for three days, then hammer ot the Clouds. Wind is controlled by an old
mankind. Egeria, a Grecian water nymph, gentleman named Feng Po, a mandarin of
them into a tree as close to the water as
whose marriage to Numi Pompilius in the possible. The nails pin down the water spirits the second class. He uses two fans to create
sacred grove <>t Nemi symbolises the fecund until the campers move on.
light winds and occasionally releases strong
union ot water and vegetation, is especially Wind Gods and Spirits
well disjx)sed towards mortals. Her chuckling winds from a leather sack. Some believers
voice, heard where clear waters run over A multitude of beings, with widely differing maintain that old Feng Po retired some
stones, will forecast the future for those
characteristics, control the wind and weather centuries ago and was replaced In Feng P'o
who can interpret her words. Pregnant ot communities throughout the world. In
women find Egeria a kindlv deity when they some places, wind control is the prerogative Po. or Mrs Wind, who rides a tiger through
pray to her tor an easj delivery. She knows ot a principal god such as Quetzalcoatl ot
the A/tees, although he delegates the task the sk\.
the secret of finding a way through ever) to lessei deities. In other places a specific
god is appointed controller ot the winds. It seems likely that Hava Ji. the Japanese
kind ot obstruction. god ot the whirlwind, also carries tin- wind
Ah dad ot Babylon was one ot these, anil in a leather sack, to be released whenever he
Another water nymph, Carmentia, also teels that mortals are Overdue tor punish
like main other wind gods he was a two ment As in China, there are several Japanese
iose to an important position .is .1 deity. gods ot wind and weather. The principal
faced personality. He rode on a charging wind ^.ol\. Shina-Tsu-Hiko, is one of the
When her son Funnier emigrated from
bull, carried thunderbolts in his hands, and oldest deities ot the nation, having been
Greece to Italy she went with him, ami like spoke in the voice ot thunder, Inn in softer born from the breath of the creation \hk\
ria she became a godd< ss ot watei and [zanagi to blow away the primal mists which

childbirth. She also taught the Romans to shrouded Japan. He and his wife. Shina-to-

read and write, and changed Greek letters

into the Roman alphabet.
1 here are main water nymphs in Greet e,

with different nanus according to the type

215

Tlll\(.s OF WA [IK SKY AND AIR

Be. now occupy the vacancy between earth windpower into energy, transmitted down a howling gusts which make the sails bend
and heaven and move within it in various
vertical shaft by a basic gearing system of dangerously and the grindstone roar angrily
directions.
large wooden cogs. (Well-seasoned oak is at its task.
The Japanese wind gods Tatsuta-hiko and the most favoured material for the gears.
Tatsuta-hime. who live in the shrine of The shaft turns a large grindstone used for An infestation of windmill spirits quickly
Tatsuta. are more closely concerned with
milling grain into flour. brings work to a standstill, but an experienced
the everyday needs of the Japanese people. miller knows the solution to the problem.
The windpower may also be used to operate
They help to provide good harvests and good such machinery as pumps, lathes, or drills. He simply throws a few handfuls of flour
fishing, and favourable winds for seafarers.
It may be thought that once a miller has into the wind. This diverts the attention of
Apart from the principal wind gods there
is a multitude of wind spirits, with charac- paid the millwrights to rig the sails, and fit the windmill spirits, who spend the rest of
teristics ranging from benevolent to mal- the cogs and grindstones, he is comfortably
situated to profit by free windpower. But a the day blowing the flour around and leave
evolent. In many parts of Europe the windmill is a noisy and demonstrative the miller to get on with his work.
apparatus, with whirling sails and grumbling
fertilising spirit of the grain is also a wind grindstones, and this noise and activity are Yu Tzu, Yu Shih,
spirit, with such names as Corn Maiden or certain to attract a group of wandering
windmill spirits. They take up residence in Ch'ing Sung-Tzu
Rve Wolf. He. she. or it may be plainly seen
the cupola: the movable dome that may be Names of the Master of Rain, one of the
running over the standing grain, which bends twenty-five members of the Department of
and sways under the passage of spirit feet. turned in order to adjust the sails to the Thunder which controls the weather of
Obviously this type of spirit is benevolent, wind.
but malevolent wind spirits stir up the sand- China. In the days of Shen Nung. the ox-
storms of Arabia or live within the terrifying Windmill spirits, like most other spirits headed emperor who ruled for seventeen
twisters' which roar over the prairie states of the air. resent anything which impedes generations, there was a great drought which
of North America, like huge black serpents the freedom of the wind. Their usual ploy is
with heads in the thunderclouds and tails to arrange for a brisk wind at the beginning Yu Tzu ended by dipping a branch into a
of the day's work, so that the windmill sails
lashing the ground. Jinni. who are powerful clatter around gaily and the grindstone bowl of water and shaking it over the ground.
evil spirits of the Middle East, often move For this feat he was nominated Master of
across deserts in a whirling column of dust. growls contentedly. When the miller has the Rain and he continues to sprinkle rain

whipped up by wind spirits controlled by the fallen into a good working rhythm, pouring over China. Some believe that he does this
in grain at one end and filling sacks with
jinni. flour at the other, the windmill spirits cause with a watering can: others that he dips his
the wind to veer round to another direction. sword into a jar of water and shakes the
Mortals use countless ways to control
No sooner has the miller gone through drops down onto the ground.
wind spirits but are not always successful.
the tedious process of disengaging the main Zephyrus
On becalmed ships, the sailors may arouse mar. swinging the cupola round so that the
sails catch the new wind direction, and The west wind: brother of Boreas the north
the winds by whistling certain tunes, but on stannic work again, then the windmill spirits wind and Eurus and Notus the east and
arrange another change in the wind. They south winds. The lives of Boreas and
the other hand, a sailor who whistles when maj cause it to drop, fluke .\n<.\ flaw through Zephyrus are well documented but little is
the wind is fair may cause it to drop or several points ot the compass, or blow in known about their brothers.
change. In severe storms, a shipmaster may
Probably Zephyrus was originally a tierce
order his crew to stick their knives into the wild stallion, with power to gallop furiously
mainmast and leave them there until the
wind subsides, with its power bled away by through the air and over land and sea. No
doubt he was a stallion when he married the
the knife points. harpy Podarge, who gave birth to two horses

In some parts of Africa the medicine-men named Xanthus and Balius. They could both
talk Greek, which proved a useful attribute
keep the winds bottled up in jars, to be when the hero Achilles harnessed them into

Areleased only as required. wind spirit his chariot.

should not leave its jar unless compelled to When Zephyrus assumed human form he

do so by the appropriate spell, but the spirits fell in love with the Spartan prince

are so devious that they often escape without Hvacinthus. who was ahead) the lover of

permission and have to be recaptured bv Apollo. In a jealous anger. Zephyrus blew
on a discus thrown by Apollo and caused it
complex ceremonies. to strike and kill I Ivacinthus. whose blood
spilled on the ground and sprang up into the
The wizards of many nations profess the flowers we call hyacinths.

art of wind control, by repeating certain Alter these troubled beginnings, Zephvrus

spells or casting charms into the face of the became a reformed charactt r. He ceased his
wind. The practice has its dangers because
furious outbursts and became either the
wind spirits delight in tormenting or em- husband or lover ot the rainbow nymph Iris.

barrassing humans. Manv a wi/ard has Later he married Chloris, the springtime

suffered in reputation by causing an easterly divinity who causes plants to burst into

wind to subside, only to find that it blows blossom. Their son. Carpus or Carpos. is
even more violently from the west. the fruit ot all trees and vines.

Windmill Spirits The influence of Ins and Chloris helped

This subspecies of the wind spirit family to calm Zephyrus and as the west wind he
infests souk- types of windmill in Holland now brings sofl airs and beneficial rams.
and England.

A windmill is a fairly simple bul

effective machine. Four or more sails convert

CHAPTER SIX

THINGS

OF

THE NIGHT

'*IJM\

»

\^<!fi

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THINGS THAT NEVER WERE

THINGS OF THE NIGHT

Black as a bat's wing, night brings release to all we creatures who

must slither or shuffle away when cockcrow heralds our enemy the

sun. People have given us many names: ghouls, ghosts, night

wanderers, vampires, werewolves, and so on. But we are all members

of the same family; the tormented souls who must return forever to
the scenes of our lost humanity. You may hang garlic or a crucifix
above your bed, prepare silver bullets to shoot us, call in holy men to
exorcise us from your home, but you cannot defeat us. Our name is

Legion, and we are too many for you because we are the forces of evil

who reflect the evil within your own souls. Even though you run

screaming into the darkness we will always catch up with you,
because your own evil will always betray you. You know that we live

not only in the darkness of the night but also in the darkness within

your heart.

Who dares to wander alone through a midnight graveyard? There

is no coffin strong enough to contain us; no weight of earth or

chiselled stone heavy enough to hold us down. We hate and envy the

lifeblood warm within your veins; the love and hope and joy which

we abandoned. Locked into an eternity of despair, we find fleeting
contentment only when we transform your warm life into an icy

terror of the soul. Once you have met one of us you will never be the

same again.

Some of us, like the countless folk infected by Drakul's fangs, are

Weoutwardly pleasant to the eye. appear ripe and blooming, fed as we

Weare by a nightly enrichment of new blood. are plausible and

charming, so that you welcome us into your home and never know

your error until you awaken one morning wan and exhausted. Of

course you can recover your strength by seeking your own victims.

Others of us are not so attractive to the eye. It is not charming to

turn a dark corner and confront a living corpse. You believe that is

impossible? There are unfortunates, who shiver and whimper each

Wetime the sun sets, who would tell you that you are wrong. live

eternally, everywhere, even in your quiet neighbourhood, but show

ourselves only when it pleases us to do so. Did you hear that dog

howling in the night? No doubt it had seen one of the great company

of the grave.

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 220

Abiku on the fringes of the afterworld, and then he ornamented with red cloth or beads. The
is allowed to seek a replacement spirit to
An insatiable demon of the night which stand in for him. colour protects one against the effects of
her death song and anyone dressed wholly in
preys upon the Yoruba people of West Africa. The process is complicated by the fact
Parents living in the little villages huddled that he must find the spirit of a person who red may listen to it unperturbed.
deep in the forest are terrified of Abiku. died in the same way as he did. It is not
enough for the spirit of a man who drowned Adh Seidh
because his diet consists of children. He
accidentally to take the spirit of a person Irish spirits never seen by persons with a
relishes nothing better than a plump newborn
baby but will satisfy himself with any child who fell out of a high window. He must clear conscience. They are said to be of
up to the age of puberty. As soon as the sun have that of another person who died in the terrifying appearance, perhaps somewhat

sets, parents hustle their children into the water. witch-like but with fangs that tear at one's
flesh. Other stories say they are like beautiful
huts, and sometimes hide them under mats Consequently the homeless demons haunt
or blankets so that Abiku will not find the places where they died in human form, women who lure one to destruction, or even
them. especially after nightfall. They are quite
like animals such as shining black horses,
Nobody seems able to give a definite capable of encouraging similar accidents, with fiery eves and terrible teeth.
and so the Chinese people always avoid the
description of Abiku. except that he is as Fortunately, those of us who live an
sites of accidental deaths.
shapeless as smoke and able to filter his way upright life have nothing to tear from the
Acheri adh seidh. They appear only to such people
through the densest thicket of thorn bushes. as blackmailers, seducers, corrupt leaders.
A female ghost ol some Amerindian nations. maltreaters ol children, tellers of harmful
They all agree, however, on his principal
peculiarity. lie has no stomach, and is She is a skeletal squaw-like creature attired lies, and others who have managed to evade
mortal justice. To such people the adh seidh
therefore obliged to eat continuously because in tattered deerskin robes, who sleeps during
are terrible indeed, and the fear oi their
he never knows the satisfaction oi a lull the day and appears at nightfall to sing her midnight visits m.n destro) the sinner's

belly. death chant, heat upon her little tomtom. sanity.

Accident, Spirits of and shuffle through the ritual steps oi her Altebar, Baroness
dance. 1 lei voice, as eerie as the wailing of
Any Chinese person who dies accidental!) is Russlein Von
wolves in the depths oi winter, floats down
judged to have perished before Ins appointed A female ghost who appears only to
from the mountains to the plains and \ alleys
time. This means lu has broken the i u le oi and penetrates even the thickest blanket descendants ol Count Johannes Rathenau.
wrapped around a sleeper's head, foretelling During the religious wars. Rathenau cap
existence and cannot be reincarnated until death for the hcatci oi Ins family. The onlj tured Schloss Altebar in Bavaria and
he has provided the gods oi the afterworld protection against Achei i is to wear garments
with a replacement spun. For three years

aftei death he must exist as .1 stan ing demon

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 221

slaughtered the whole Altebar family with certain regions of north-eastern South hair and eyes red from weeping, and dressed
in a green robe and grey cloak. She has an
particular savagery. America, especially the part once known as
Surinam or Dutch Guiana. appalling cry, described by some who have
Baroness Altebar appears to Rathenau
The azeman is invariably a woman, who heard it as a blend between the howling of a
men as a seductive and beautiful woman. wolfhound, the cry of wild geese, the screams
has been infected with vampirism by the of an abandoned child, and the groans of a
She chooses her victim at night, at a ball or blood contact of another azeman. During
some other happy occasion, and displays the day she appears to be perfectly normal, woman in labour.
such charm and promise that he is unable to but after dark she changes into a bat and Those who have heard a banshee say that
flits around the village in search of prey. In
resist her. What happens after that will vary normal vampire bat style she seeks for a this dreadful semi-human sobbing, scream-
sleeper whose foot is exposed, and with ing, and wailing will awaken the soundest
according to her whim. exquisite care uses her fangs to scrape away sleeper and rise above the wildest gale. It is
In Vienna in 1896, a cab driver picked up especially awesome when it echoes over the
a fragment of flesh from the big toe. When moors and lakes in the twilight of a grey
Walther Rathenau and a beautiful woman summer's day.
late one night. He heard the couple laughing the blood trickles she laps it up until she is
The wail of a banshee has only one
and talking in his cab, but suddenly smelt an engorged, and flaps heavily back to her own
appalling odour of rotting flesh. His horse —meaning that a member of the family which
hut. In the morning her victim is drained
stopped and refused to move, and when he and weak whereas the azeman is in hearty hears it is doomed to die. The man or woman
opened the cab door he found the woman good health. may be far from his home, but the banshee

had vanished and that Walther was speechless Luckily it is easy to prevent an azeman warns the family in the homeland.
from entering one's hut, simply by propping
with terror. He died three days later. a broom across the doorway. The word 'banshee' derives from the Celtic
words bean seidh, meaning 'Woman of the
At Baden Baden in 1938, Major Helmut Banshee Fairies'. Numerous ancient families of Eire
Rathenau was enjoying a successful evening A female spirit of the Gaelic and Celtic
and of the Scottish islands and highlands
in the casino in the company of a woman peoples, rarely seen but often heard. She is claim to have their personal banshees, which
only attend families of pure Celtic or Gaelic
later described as 'More beautiful than Hedy said to be a woman with straggling black
Lamarr'. At midnight, he strolled into the descent.
garden with her and his winnings. At dawn, -iftSKS

a gardener found his corpse under a lilac 30
tree. It appeared to have been immersed in
/A
water for many weeks.
The baroness always makes sure that the

Rathenau men know the reason for their

fate. In 1703 she transformed Carl-Heinz
Rathenau into an object resembling a

mummy, which lived long enough to croak

out the story she told him.

One would think that Rathenau men

would be on their guard against strange
women. But the rich and scented beauty of
the baroness, with dark eyes promising
untold delights, always makes them forget
the old story as they follow her into the

night.

Ankou

Silent walkers of the night, whose appearance
on the roads of Brittany presages death for

those who see them pass by.
They manifest themselves as a tall gaunt

man, driving a cart drawn by a pale boney
horse, accompanied by two silent figures
who walk beside or behind the cart. All have
bowed heads so that one may not see their

features.

They appear at dusk, at the time when it

is just possible to distinguish black from

white, and pass silently by. The unfortunate

observer does not realise that the horse's
hooves, the cartwheels, and the feet of the

walkers make no sound upon the rough road

until they have passed him. When he turns

to look after them they have vanished into
the darkness, and he knows that he, or one

whom he loves, must soon follow the same

road.

Azeman

A rare example of a vampire actually

appearing in the form of a vampire bat.
Fortunately the azeman is restricted to

THINGS OF THE NIGHT His successors, Vlad Tepes and Vlad maintaining immortality by regular engorge-
Tsepesh, were equally cruel. Vlad Tepes,
Bassarab, Vlad Drakul ment with human life essences.
known as 'The Impaler", liked to have
(Also known as 'Count Dracula'.) The sole This Vlad Drakul lived in Transylvania
prisoners of war impaled on pointed stakes, for about three centuries, but in the 1890s
survivor of the Bassarab dynasty of Walachia. and enjoyed eating his dinner in front of a the peasants of his estate were almost
group of impaled prisoners groaning away
which is now a province of Roumania. For their lives. In between wars, he indulged exhausted by his continuous blood tax. He
many centuries, this country of the Vlach this taste for torture by having Walachian
men. women, and even children impaled for decided he must venture further afield, and
people was torn by wars and invasions until arranged with a firm of London estate agents
the great warrior Ralph the Black consoli- his pleasure. to buy property in England.
dated Walachia as a nation, and established
the Bassarabs as the ruling family. Reigning Slowly the nation became more civilised They sent a young representative, Jonathan
under such titles as Vlad I. Vlad II. Vlad III.
and Vlad IV. the Bassarabs still had to fight and the Bassarabs presented the appearance Harker, to Drakul's castle in Transylvania
off invasions by Mongols. Turks, and of learned and cultured aristocrats— although
Hungarians, however, and these perpetual the Turks drowned one of them as the result in order to negotiate the deal. He saw Drakul
wars gave the Bassarabs an unquenchable of a family intrigue. By 1658 the dynasty (whom he named 'Count Dracula") as a tall
seemed to end with the death of Constantine gaunt old man with sharp teeth, pointed
lust for blood. Bassarab, but there was one survivor of the
ears, hair in the palm of his hands, and a
One was so horrifyingly cruel that he tainted line.
became known as Vlad Dracul or Drakul, —foul breath all the symptoms of vampirism.
meaning either 'dragon' or 'devil'. The He was another Vlad Drakul. who had
Walachians said that a man so appallingly One of Drakul's three female companions
bought a great estate in Transylvania. It is
evil must have been sired by Satan or a uncertain whether he was a Bassarab manifested herself in Harker's bedchamber,
dragon. Also, he bore all the marks of descendant or simply a continuing reincarna- and in a scene of near-sexual seduction
tion of the original Vlad Drakul and of Vlad enjoyed a feast of fresh young English blood.
vampirism and seemed to flourish on human
—Tepes and Tsepesh in fact a vampire In a complex series of events. Drakul made
blood. his way to England and attached himself to a
young lady named Lucy Westenra. After

draining her blood he turned to Harker's

THINGS OF THE NIGHT out the mattress, to rid the bed of one's piece of bread beneath the stove to attract
lingering personality.
young wife Mina, but was eventually foiled Domovoi. His wife accompanies him but
by Harker and a group of friends. They Bodach takes up residence in the cellar.
chased him back to Transylvania, where
A malicious house spirit of the Scottish Domovikha never speaks, but one may
Harker cut his throat and another man
Highlands, having the form of a shrivelled often hear Domovoi during the night. When
stabbed him through the heart. These are he chatters and murmurs softly, the family
not, however, the prescribed methods of little old man who lives up in the chimney
during the daytime. He survives quite may be sure that nothing unpleasant is likely
dealing with vampirism, and there can be to happen. But when he sobs or groans
little doubt that the last survivor of the comfortably in the fumes of the burning loudly it is a sign of misfortune, and Domovoi
peat, and keeps a sharp ear open for trouble-
Bassarabs still prowls in search of human weeping is a sure sign of a death in the
some children who make a fuss at bedtime.
blood. When all is dark, the bodach slithers down family.

Baykok the chimney to tweak the naughty child's Humans rarely see Domovoi and never
toes, ears, and nose, pull its eyelids open and see Domovikha. It may be that he resembles
A night spirit of North America, restricted look into the terrified eyes, and inflict horrid a small man covered with silky hair, who

to Indians of the Chippewa nation. The nightmares. Amay be mistaken for a dog or cat. Domovoi-
baykok has some resemblance to a walking If the child's behaviour improves then the
sighting is extremely unfortunate, and if he
skeleton, except that its bones are covered bodach will leave him alone, but it is said
that if a cunning child drops a pinch of salt does appear it may be better for the family f o
Aby a thin translucent skin. fearsome red on the fire it will keep the bodach in his lair. seek a new habitation.

light glows out of the eye sockets of the Chuang Kung Duppy

skull. The Chinese immortal who occupies every A type of ghost raised by people of the West
bed, together with his wife Chuang Mu. and
The baykok only preys on warriors, who has some influence on every bed activity Indies to perform some service, usually of
receive some warning of its approach because
including sleep, lovemaking, sickness, and Arevenge. duppy is raised by calling the
its bones creak and rattle as it walks. There childbirth. (Although there are, of course,
is, however, no escape from the baykok, name of a dead person continuously over a
which either smites with its club at close other deities who play separate parts in such
grave until the duppy arises through the
quarters or kills with invisible arrows. activities.)
earth and awaits instructions. Ideally, a duppy
Bedclothes Probably Chuang Kung's principal func-
should be a relation of the caller, because
The intimate embrace of one's bedclothes tion is to provide a peaceful and unobtrusive
bed environment, so that (for example) non-related duppies may attack him instead
provides evilly disposed persons with an ideal persons making love on a cold night are not
distracted by the bedclothes sliding to the of doing his bidding.
opportunity for unpleasant spells. The
impression on the mattress, and the shape floor. The extent of the powers of Chuang A duppy does not seem to be capable of

of the bedclothes after a sleeper has arisen, Kung and Chuang Mu is not fully under- performing useful tasks, and even when

provide a kind of invisible mould of the stood, but it is wise to placate them by ordered to attack someone it can only cause
placing a cup of tea on one side of the bed
occupant's body. It is therefore possible for and a cup of tea on the other. The deities may vomiting by breathing on the victim or

a spellbinder to cast influences which affect then refresh themselves during the night convulsions by touching him or her. When
a person next time he or she lies in the bed.
and will not become restless. it has performed the task it should be
These influences may range all the way from
Domovoi and Domovikha rewarded by placing rum and tobacco on the
bad dreams to actual bodily anguish, and
The Russian household spirits who crept grave.
any sleep disturbances may be attributed to into the first human habitations and have
lived there ever since. On the whole they Anyone who has reason to fear duppy-
bewitched bedclothes. are benign spirits, who live beneath the stove attack may keep them away by sprinkling
or doorstep or in the cellar. When a family
In extreme instances, a sorcerer may moves into a new home it is wise to place a tobacco seed around the house.

pervert the life essences which have seeped Forso
into the bedclothes and cause the sheets and
Ghosts of the islands off northern Australia,
blankets to assume a life of their own during
including some parts of New Guinea. One
the night, to stifle or at least terrify the
sleeper. very rarely sees a forso but often feels the
effect of forso activities. Death is a very
It is, of course, easy to foil such bewitch-
ments, simply by giving the bedclothes a tedious occupation, and the forsos become
good shake each morning and smoothing
bored in their lonely graves or in the trees

IHI\(.s Of ["HE NIGHT

where corpses have been placed to rot away, creates a ghost. But. if some danger threatens Ghouls
and thev pass the time by pestering their
those whom they loved during life, they may Ghastly creatures of the night, originating
living relations. When anything goes wrong
in human affairs, one may be fairly sure that make a supreme effort to re-appear in their in Arabia, who lurk around places of burial
once familiar form. If you should see a
a forso is reminding mankind of its presence beloved relation or friend in this manner, and keep watch for the interment of fresh

in the universe. you should take instant warning that danger corpses. They may resemble demons, with
lies ahead. fiery eyes and breath, but it seems more
The best way to keep forsos calm and
reasonably contented is to make frequent The most dangerous ghosts are of those likely that they are horrid jelly-like grey
who practised some treachery during life.
visits to the abode of corpses, or to keep the They may have been murderers, cheating creatures which become invisible by standing
skulls and bones of one's ancestors on displav still, and move in complete silence on large
in the village. These practises give the dead friends, callous lovers, cruel parents, or feet which make no impression in the dust.
Despite their amorphous bulk they are
plenty of company and the forsos do not treasonable retainers. They betrayed those extremely strong, able to wrench away piles
become bored and restless. who trusted them. Their sins deny them of stone covering a grave, and possessed of
rest, and they seek perpetual revenge on sharp fangs so that they may rend corpses
Ghosts those who still know love and life.
apart for a ghoulish feast.
The spirit of a dead person appearing in Exorcism will help any ghost to find eternal
visible form, usually because of some tragedv As a precaution against ghouls it is best
suffered during life on earth. Most human rest, and it may be a kindness to have this
for funerals to be carried out quickly, quietly,
tragedies begin with a lost belief, because ritual practised even for harmless ghosts. and simply, without any rich display,

we are nothing if we do not believe in Golem interment of jewels or money with the

something, and the loss or betrayal of a An animated clay figure whose name derives deceased, or any other activity likely to arouse
from that given to Adam before Jehovah ghoulish interest.
belief wounds us so deeply that even death
will not heal the trauma. Those who carry breathed life into him. In about 1 590. Rabbi Hallowe'en
these unhealed wounds beyond the grave
are known as ghosts. Low Ben Bezalel made a golem to protect The night of 3 1 October: the eve of Hallow-
mass (Holy Mass). The night on which the
The most common ghosts are those of the Jews of Prague against attack by the
betrayed lovers, deserted children, and men spirits of the dead visit their living relations
or women murdered by false friends. All Christians. The rabbi approached his task in search of comfort.
have known the betrayal of belief and the
with great reverence, using pure water and The multitude of spirits abroad on
abandonment of love.
The ghosts of murdered lovers are the clay from a newly opened pit. He blessed Hallowe'en creates an ideal atmosphere for
every kind of occult happening. Goblins
most pathetic of all. because murder is the each portion of the golem's anatomy as he seize their last opportunity, before they are
ultimate betrayal. They return forever to fashioned it from clay, and eventually frozen in for the winter, for wreaking all
brought it to life by inserting a slip of paper,
the scenes of their lost happiness, bewil- bearing the sacred word sheni. under the kinds of mischief on human beings. The

deredly seeking the reason why their love clay tongue. shrieks and cackles of witches fill the night
was so betrayed. The broken-hearted sobbing sky. as flocks of them fly to the final Sabbat
The golem proved not only an effective of the year. Fairies spirit away voting wives,
and wailing of such a ghost is a hair-raising
sound. sentinel, but also a useful domestic servant. whom they return dazed and amnesic 366
It scared away Christians prowling around
Ghosts of this character are quite harm- the ghetto after dark, and did the heavy days fcrter. and snatch babies from cradles.
housework in the rabbi's home. But on one Werewolves howl and prowl; every kind of
less. They are wistful creatures who have no Fridav night the ponderous creature ran amok. ghost gibbers and moans around windows
reason to harm you. If you should see the because the rabbi forgot to remove the slip and doorwavs: skeleton hands reach up out

spectre of a weeping child, or the misty ot paper at sunset, when all Jews should of ancient graves.
All these supernatural tensions create a
form of a woman dressed in the garments of M work until sunset on Saturday. The
golem rampaged through the dark streets ot splendid ambience for divination and fortune-
the past, vou should feel pity rather than the ghetto until the rabbi and his friends telling. Crvstal-ga/ers are busier than at any
could catch it. remove the slip ot paper, and other time ot year, while palmreaders drive
fear.
the da) figure off to the cellars ot the a thriving trade. The best fortunes are those
pie who lived a norniall) contented u SynagogiH According to tradition,
the golem still lies there awaiting re annua told by gypsies in church doorways.
life, and died from natural causes or even Mortals should not cower inside their
from violence, never return as ghosts. The)
did not suffer tlu' betrayal of belief which homes on Hallowe'en. Thev should light

great fires on hilltops to frighten the witches
aw ay; throw riotous parties and dance around
houses and barns to scare ott goblins and
fairies: stone witches' cottages; And give
plent) ot food and drink to children and

poor people in the name ot charity. The
community which stages an uproarious

Hallowe'en will drive aw.i\ all the prowling
creatures ot the night.

Heme the Hunter

The figure ot a shagg) man or torest spirit,

horned with antlers like a great stag, which
rides a firebreathing horse through the woods
ot Windsor Great Park in the vicinity of

Windsor Castle. Numerous stories explain

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 22 s
,

this apparition of the dusk and darkness, becomes pregnant in the normal way, and greedy that they even carry off the coffin in
which a corpse reposes. Consequently, it is
last seen as recently as 1964. The most eventually gives birth to a child of super- necessary to keep a tight guard on corpse
and coffin until they have been cremated,
believable account says that Heme was one natural capabilities. Possibly it will grow
and to make a lot of noise during the night
of the Royal Huntsmen of King Henry VIII, into a person of evil intent or possibly, like
and that he offended the king in some now- before cremation in order to scare the kashas
the magician Merlin who was born of the away.
forgotten way. Heme was either hanged by
union between an incubus and a nun, it will K'uei
royal command, or he hanged himself in the become a powerful wizard of strongly moral
The undead of China: the souls of persons
forest out of despair and remorse. Probably character. who have not earned sufficient merit during
his silent gallop through the forest, which their lives on earth to warrant promotion to
Inua the afterworld, and must continue a
has been witnessed many times over the miserable existence on earth. This fate makes
The inner spirit of a person of the Indian them angry and evil, always on the lookout
centuries, portends ill-fortune to any
observer. and Eskimo nations of North America. An for sinners on whom to take their revenge.

Imandwa inua may be regarded as a spirit of both life They resemble skeletons except that their
skulls are fronted with demonic faces. K'uei
The ghosts of certain rolk heroes and tribal and death. It inhabits a person during mortal always move in straight lines, and so they
leaders of the Tanzanian region. Even though
existence, and then reappears in some other are easily frustrated by setting a screen just
they played important parts in tribal life form after the death of its physical host.
during their mortal existence they are jealous Each of the stars and other heavenly bodies inside the doorway of a room. They cannot
of living people, and revenge themselves for which shine down on the Arctic ice was move around the corner of the screen and so
their deaths by troublesome activities during once the inua of a human being. must go elsewhere in search of prey. It is
the night. also advisable to build roofs with upward-
An inua never reveals itself until the time
Incubus curving gables, so that k'uei cannot slide
comes near for it to depart from its human
A male spirit or demon which visits women habitation. Then it appears as a flickering down them and pounce on anyone standing
light in the darkness, and the host human
in their sleep. Its name derives from the Latin knows that the tribe will soon be singing his below.
incubare, meaning to lie upon, in, or with,
because an incubus lies with a mortal woman death song. Lilith
in ghostly sexual intercourse. The woman
does not awaken during the peculiar embrace Kasha The Queen of the Night, but also known as
although she may experience it in a dream. Lili or Lilu which means 'monster of the
Malicious ghoul spirits of Japan. Unlike night". Jehovah created her out of mud to be
A woman impregnated by an incubus Adam's first wife, but her soul was marred
the ghouls of Arabia, who disinter corpses, in the making and she gave birth only to evil

the kashas have to steal a corpse before it is spirits. Eventually she deserted Adam to
cremated. Sometimes they are so eager and
join Satan's henchmen, and Jehovah created
her replacement by fashioning Eve out of
one of Adam's ribs.

Lilith is a woman of ageless sinister beauty,

marred by the coarse black hairs smothering
her otherwise shapely legs. She is so ashamed
of these that she always keeps them covered.

By the time any man discovers the reality it
is too late for him to be repelled by this flaw.

Probably Lilith is the original vampire,

whose tainted touch has been passed on
from one unfortunate to another during
countless centuries. She has the vampirish

fHINGS oi III! NIGH1 226

ability to pass through any kind of obstruction Lycanthropy lingly dangerous in their bestial form and
and manifest herself on the other side, either
for a feast of blood or to seduce sleeping (From the Greek lukos = wolf, anthropos may even eat their own human children or
— man. ) The phenomenon in which a human
men into somnambular intercourse, from other relations.
turns into a beast during the night and
which they awaken as exhausted as though The only exception to this rule is that of
they had been drained by a vampire. Also reverts to human form at sunrise. The were- were-persons who change into vegetarian
beast may be as harmless as a rabbit or as
she has an unpleasant habit of acting as a creatures such as squirrels, rabbits, or hares.
dangerous as a wolf, crocodile, or tiger. In
invisible attendant on couples making love Probably these are witches or wizards who
during the night, so that she may steal some Africa, where whole tribes may be affected
semen which she will conjure into new wish to spy on people for the purpose of
demons. by lycanthropy, a white hunter once shot
hyaenas wearing golden earrings. blackmail.
She hates children because her own were
Lycanthropy occurs internationally and The causes of lycanthropy are obscure. It
so repulsive, and often tries to pervert their may be that a human deliberately learns the
nature or even to destroy them. always follows the same course. An appa- necessary magical powers, or he may be

Any man who fears midnight seduction rently normal human, usually quite in- under a spell cast by a magician (St Patrick
offensive in everyday life, changes at sunset of Ireland changed Veretius. King of Wales,
by Lilith should follow the simple practice of into some kind of wild animal. During the
into a wolf). Or he may become infected
writing Adam and Eve may enter herein night the were-person indulges a taste for
with lycanthropy by physical contact with a
but not Lilith the Queen' upon the door or human flesh or for the raw flesh and blood
wall of his bedroom. were-beast in human or bestial form. Some
of other animals. Were-persons are appal-
researchers believe that even the consump-

tion of food prepared by a lycanthropist is

ML

THINGS OF THE NIGHT

enough to carry the infection. Lycanthropolo- •
gists are still uncertain whether a were-
person makes an involuntary transformation "
at nightfall, or whether he/she aids the •
process by smearing the body with ointment
made from the fat of the relevant animal. 1

Sometimes a were-person reveals himself ''''•'•"

or herself involuntarily, as in the case of the rap . «... .v

Indian were-tigress caught in a trap. At _^B(P^^ vi»|
sunrise, the villagers found the trap con-
II *m
tained a naked woman. On other occasions a
Yoki, shows himself as a rabbit on the face of goes on long journeys. In the Algonquin
hunter shoots at some beast spotted during the moon. nation of North America she disappears each
the night, and on the following day a villager
is seen limping from a wound. The moon goddess has many names. The month to summons the sun back from his
Romans knew her as Luna, and the Greeks hunting trips, and in some parts of Australia
Apart from such obvious revelations, a
as Selene, sister of Helios the sun. Each she wearies of lovemaking with her com-
were-person is easily detected when there evening she bathed her white bodv in the panion and goes away for a few days rest and
ocean and set off across the sky in a silver
have been night-time attacks in a neighbour- chariot. Selene has an especial liking for recuperation. But on the whole the moon is
more faithful than the sun. who is sometimes
hood. He or she has no appetite, because of lovers, and on many nights she caresses her
own sleeping lover, Endymion. with her soft hot and sometimes cold, whereas she smiles
the feasts of raw meat taken during the
night: and is always tired and stiff in the rays. down on us in both winter and summer.
daytime because of the vigorous nocturnal
Cheng O. the Chinese goddess of the Nightingales
activities. If the lycanthropist co-operates moon, is also a beautiful young woman. She
stole the elixir of immortality from her Small rather drab birds of England and parts
then the condition may be cured by any husband, fled to the moon, and now lives of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Noted for their
exquisite song heard during the nights of
accomplished witch or wizard. If not, then there comfortably in a splendid palace. Hina, late spring-early summer.
the were-person should be shot with a silver the Polynesian goddess of life and death,
Originally the nightingale was Philomela,
bullet. also chose the moon as a refuge. She retired whose sister Procne was married to King
there when she had completed her cosmic Tereus. But Tereus fell in love with
Menahune tasks on earth, and now spends her time Philomela and pretended to her that Procne
was dead. They enjoyed a passionate affair
Night spirits of the Hawaiian Islands. They making tapa cloth from the bark of a great until Philomela discovered the truth. Tereus
banyan tree. cut out her tongue so that she might not
are unusual spirits of the night because they reveal it to others, but Philomela managed
are helpful rather than dangerous. Like the The stars over Russia are the children of to find where Procne had been imprisoned
the sun and moon, whose marital relationship by Tereus and to convey the story to her.
brownies of the British Isles, the menahune has sometimes been turbulent. In some parts
appear when the household is asleep and do of Africa, the moon once had a shining The two sisters planned a terrible revenge.

all the housework. It seems, however, that immaculate face until her husband the sun by cooking Tereus' son Ithys and serving
splattered it with mud. In other regions they
the menahune are very particular about their were once two suns, until the wife washed the king with roast boy for his dinner. When
employers. They do their work only for herself white in a river.
families which they feel to be especially they did this, the gods were so horrified that
pleasant and kind. Very few people have The moon, like all beautiful and intelligent they changed the two sisters, the king, and
seen the menahune, which are believed to ladies, has many sides to her personality. his son into different types of birds.

have pointed ears, shaggy black hair, and She changes a little every day and regularly

tiny agile bodies.

Min Min Light

A phenomenon of the Min Min region of

Queensland. Australia. Midnight travellers
across the plains are often followed or
accompanied by a large flickering lumin-
escence which appears suddenly, stays for
varying periods, and disappears as abruptly

as it came. Some travellers have described
the Min Min as no more than a glowing

amorphous light, while others claim that it
assumes the shape of a -horse or man. Modern

travellers often confuse it with the lights of
an approaching vehicle and take violent

evasive action. Many people have been badly
frightened by the Min Min Light although it

does not seem to have harmed anyone so

far.

Moon, The

Most people agree that the moon is a lady,
either the wife or sister of the sun. The
Babylonian moon was. however, a god named
Sin, who sailed across the heavens in his
moon boat, and the Japanese moon god, Suki-

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 228

Philomela became the nightingale, forever P'ang Che, P'ang Chiao,
singing the sad sweet song of Tereus' betrayal
P'ang Chu
of her love.
The three goddesses of corpses. They live
Owls in a corpse during the Chinese mourning

Nocturnal birds of prey found in many parts period between death and burial, and are
of the world. One of the best known is important functionaries in the spirit's
Athene noctua, the Little Owl of Great difficult and dangerous journey from this
Britain. This owl, once the companion of world into the next. It is important, therefore,
to prevent them from leaving the corpse,
the all-wise goddess Athene, is noted for its
wisdom and knowledge. Awhich they may do during the night.

Owls are favoured friends of witches, nightwatchman must be set over the corpse,
but if he nods off into sleep the goddesses
wizards, sorcerers, and other practitioners
will certainly depart, in order to report his
of black arts. Anyone who keeps a pet owl
may be regarded as some kind of magician. neglect of duty to the other gods. These are
The silent nocturnal flight, all-seeing night sure to punish him. and the whole occurrence
vision, and supernatural wisdom of the owl will have unfortunate results for the family

family are invaluable to magic-makers, and of the deceased.
anyone acquainted with an owl is certain to
absorb some of these qualities. Quicksilver

Unfortunately it is not uncommon for The name of a particularly mischievous and gobble up with shrieks of demoniac
glee. Mortals are helpless against rakshashas
such people to cook owls, in order to extract female poltergeist (German polter = noisy, and must rely on the gods to keep them
their essences for use in spells and potions. =racketing, geist spirit). Poltergeist activ- under control, even though the terrible

Elixir of owl is commonly prescribed for ities are well known and extensively docu- Durga, a rakshasha with the body of a man
mented—the smashing of crockery and
sleepiness, poor vision, mental incapacity, and the head of a bull, once conquered all
and fear of the darkness. windows, noisy crashes and rappings, the gods and forced them into exile.
furniture falling over, and so on. Modern
Pretas researchers tend to believe that poltergeists A host of lesser fiends supports these
always work through the agency of an
The ghosts ot 1 lindu men who have died by dominant demons, and plagues both the
adolescent girl. It is true that poltergeist living and the dead. Pishacas, which are
violence, and whose corpses have been goblin-like creatures but even more repul-
manifestations are rare in families which do sively hideous, live in cemeteries and torment
disposed ot without the proper ceremony. not include a teenage girl or at least a the dead but also affect living humans. They
are vampires and creators of such foul
They may also be the ghosts ot men shun by pubescent boy, but Quicksilver may be the
diseases as leprosy.
violence whose parents or relations neglected exception to the rule. Bhutas. their kindred spirits, also infest
She has pestered people in various parts
to perforin, or instruct them in. the correct cemeteries. They are the evil spirits of the
of the English-speaking world, and always dead, probably aroused and spurred on by
rites tor male I lindus when the) were air. leaves her 'trademark' in the form of a large the pishacas. and they can actually force the
The pretas appear as naked males ot dead to arise from their graves and attack
Q scrawled in soap, lipstick, or crayon on a humans.
diabolical aspect and are remorseless towards
wall, mirror, or window. Her other character- Grahas, another branch of this unholy
living humans, especial!) theii survh istic is a tinkling laugh, loud enough to
family, are demons of disease. They too
mnrelations The) strangle them, stnkc disturb a sleeper but intriguing rather than
frightening. inhabit cemeteries, and lie in wait for an
them dead, frighten them out ol their sen
Unlike other poltergeists she visits families unwary human who passes by after dark. As
them with crippling illnesses without teenage children and is mis-
chievous rather than destructive. She soon as he comes within reach they enter
Probabl) there is no protection against ,i plays such pranks as slamming every door in his bodv by its various orifices and settle
the house at midnight, turning on all the down to destroy it from within,
! determined on revenge. lights, turning all the clothes in a wardrobe
inside out. and filling baths, sinks, and wash- Revenants
basins to overflowing. Luckily she never
literally returners', from the French word
stays long enough with a family to become a
revenit meaning 'to come again'. They are
real nuisance. the restless ghosts who return eternalK io

Rakshashas the scenes ot deadly crimes, of which the)

The appalling 'unhol) family' of Hindu India. were either victims or perpetrators. The
The lord ot all rakshashas is R.i\ ana. 1 le has
ten heads and twenty arms which grow again victims return to bewail their untimely fates:
the perpetrators because their bloody deeds
as soon as the) are cut off. and a body
hideous with the myriad scars and open den) them eternal rest. Rcwenants of
murderers can be very dangerous to the
wounds ot Ins endless battles with the gods.
Rakshashas are dedicated evildoers who living and should be dismissed by the rites
ot exorcism.
e continuously to dete.it the cods, some-
times winning and sometimes losing, but In Haiti, the voodoo island of the West
the) also war against mankind and devour
Indies, revenants are ot a different character.
great quantities of men. women, and
They are the ghosts of dead persons who
Nchildren. at U rail) they hate holy men. feel they are fading out of living memory.

whom they snatch awaj from their prayers

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 229

and return to give vigorous and sometimes offerings he will heal the sick and fight off this problem by seducing men into lustful
unpleasant reminders that they still exist in intercourse during their sleep. The succubi.
Ondisease spirits. the whole he is a just
Aanother dimension. revenant may jolt a however, being incapable of true love, have
god, and if anyone is eaten by Sakarabru. or
relation's memory with such actions as over- to seduce men in strange phantasmal forms
dies from disease despite prayers and offer- and lure them into all manner of nocturnal
turning a boiling pot into the fire, inflicting
ings, one may be reasonably sure that it is a perversions, from which the sleeper awakes
skin diseases, or leading a child away to exhausted, dissatisfied, and ashamed. Prob-
become lost in the jungle. punishment for some sin.
ably the name of the succubi derives from
Rona Sleep
the Latin word sugo meaning 'I suck", because
The moon-woman of New Zealand. Ori- The mysterious process which immobilises
the physical body so that the soul may rove they suck the strength from human males
ginally she was a Maori girl who forgot to freely upon its own adventures. The god
Hypnos causes sleep by touching mortal during the hours of darkness.
bring water from the stream during daylight Succubi take a particular delight in
eyelids with his soft fingers or fanning a
and had to fill her waterpot after dark. The person hypnotically with his dark wings. tormenting holy men under vows of chastity,
who believe that fleshly contact with women
moon was shining brightly as she walked Hypnos (known to the Romans as Somnus) will deplete their spiritual powers. The

down the rocky path from her village to the has three sons: Morpheus, Phoebetor, and female fiends visit such ascetics while they
Phantasus. Their duty is to occupy the are asleep, drag them into phantasmal orgies,
stream, but it suddenly hid itself behind dark sleeper's mind while it is empty of the soul,
and entertain, warn, or punish the sleeper and seduce them into the very ecstasies they
clouds so that Rona tripped on the rocks have sworn not to enjoy.
with the fantastic activities we know as
and fell over. She was so angry that she Taxim
dreams. In the personalised dramas, Mor-
called out insults to. the moon, which also An Eastern European name for the walking
pheus takes the form of human beings while
lost its temper and came down to earth to dead or 'undead': the ambulant physical
his brothers assume the forms of animals or remains of mortals whose souls cannot rest
carry her away. Rona resisted violently and in peace. Usually a person afflicted in this
objects. way finds a way out of the grave because he
clung to a tree, but the moon tore up the (a taxim is invariably male) is determined to
Dreams are extremely important, because extort revenge for some evil suffered during
tree by the roots and carried it off with Rona the gods may employ Morpheus and his his mortal existence.
brothers to advise or warn human beings
Whenstill attached. the moon is full, it is There is an essential difference between
about their destines. It is essential, therefore, the undead and ordinary ghosts. The latter
possible to see Rona, the tree, and her water- for a dreamer to consult an oracle or augur appear in shadowy or even transparent form,
each morning, so that the purpose and whereas a taxim may have the appalling
pot on the face of the moon.
meaning of a dream may be correctly appearance of a person who has been buried
Sakarabru for some time. In fact the dreadful stench of
interpreted.
The God of Darkness who reigns in those corruption often precedes a taxim and gives
regions of Africa now known as Guinea and No living person has been able to pursue warning of his approach. This is not.
however, invariably the case, and a taxim
Senegambia, where he is worshipped by the the adventures of the errant souls who escape
may manifest himself in comparatively fresh
Agni peoples. He lives in the fetish house at from a sleeper's body, and rove unchecked condition. It all depends upon how long the

the entrance to every village, together with through space and time. Some people, taxim needs to gather up the supernatural
strength required to burst out of a vault or
all the gods who look after such important including the Transylvanians, say that the grave. Sometimes this is sufficient to enable
it to achieve a kind of ectoplasmic condition,
matters as fertility, the weather, and the soul exits through the sleeper's mouth in pass through any solid obstruction, and
magical arts. the form of a white mouse or white bird, but reassemble itself on the other side.
no one has actually seen this phenomenon
Jfj- "$ and so it is probably no more than a fable.

Sakarabru is a two-sided personality. In No doubt the soul has methods unknown to

some moods he prowls through the village mortal man. Its transcendental journeyings
and snaps up any person foolish enough to
leave his hut after dark, and crunches him may include visits to the afterworld, to
up with its terrible teeth. But he also guards
consult with the ancestral beings of its mortal
the village against night attack by wandering host.

demons, and when he receives the proper One should never wake a sleeper abruptlv,
or the soul may not have time to return to

the body before he or she awakens. It then
has to hover helplessly until the owner goes
to sleep again. In the meantime, the lack of

a soul may allow a mortal to engage in

uncharacteristically foolish or violent activi-

ties. On the other hand, one should not

allow a sick person to drift off into sleep.
This allows the soul to escape on its usual

adventures, and it may not care to return to
a body weakened by illness.

Succubi

Lascivious -female spirits or demons, probably
descendants or relations of Lilith, Queen of
the Night. They are ardent for masculine
embraces but their equivalent male demons,
the incubi, are interested only in mortal

women. Succubi are too hideous to appeal
to human males, but they find a way around

I HINGS oi THE MCI I I 230

A taxim moves only during the hours of Vampire through the First. Second, and Third Worlds,
even though it is said that vampires cannot
darkness, because it is dazzled by daylight', A bloodsucking ghost or undead person.
and has a fairly limited range. Naturally it cross the sea. In fact, they may do so quite
cannot use public transport or hitch a ride, Vampirism and vampirology have been
and so it must travel on foot over the ground. easily it they fill their pockets with grave
It is. therefore, comparatively easy to escape practised at least since the days of the ancient
a taxim seeking revenge, simply by fleeing soil.
Egyptians and probably since much earlier
immediately to some other part of the centuries. Modern vampirologists believe There is no relationship between vampires
country. One may be reasonably sure that a that the original vampire was Lilith. Queen and the so-called 'vampire bat' [Desmodus
ruined or abandoned house has been deserted of the Night and Mother of Demons, who rufus) of South America. The bloodsucking
bats were named alter vampires and not vice
because its occupants were threatened by a was Jehovah's first flawed attempt at making versa. The true vampire always appears in
taxim.
womankind. The tainted touch of her lips the form ot a human male or female.
Usually a taxim has no desire to hurt upon the throat of some hapless mortal of Vampirism is contracted onl) bj blood

people unknown to it during lite, but it the Middle East, and the razor sharp incision contact with an existing vampire, who enters
cannot help inflicting icy fear upon them as of her teeth so that she might suck her a sleeper's bedroom and with exquisite
bloody (cast, began the line of vampires
it shuffles through the night. It seeks only which has proliferated internationally. delicacy presses a vampire kiss against the
throat above the carotid artery. Then, with
the person upon whom it desires revenge, The greatest concentration of vampires is supernatural surgical skill, the vampire's
found in Magyarorszag or the Countrv of scalpel sharp teeth pierce through to the
and until it succeeds in this search n must the Magyars, which covers portions of artery, and release the life essences which
arise from time to time, uxu.ilU at the dark ensure a vampire's horrid immortality.
of the moon, and set off on its stumbling modern Hungary and Roumania. Our own
journey through the night. Naturally it looks word vampire derives from the Magyar The vampire drinks us fill of hot blood
and smells worse on each expedition.
/'!> or Vampyr. Possibly the \ . implies ot and then, using a process which scientists
Anyone who has sufficient coinage (and the Middle last dritted into the region in
cannot understand, seals the wound so that
such people arc lew indeed > maj set a taxim search ot fresh blood, or thev may have it is no more than a taint red mark. Now
at rest In confronting it as u follows its
midnight tiac k. and explaining that revenge entered Magyarorszag during the Turkish that a victim has been selected the vampire
is the prerogative of the Supreme Being, invasions. The rapid development ot trans returns t *.> the blood feast again and again.
port facilities during tin- last centurj ot so
who will ensure that divine justice is done. has enabled vampires to spread wielcb The involuntary blood donor wanes, becomes

feeble and skeletal, and eventually die S.

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 251

But now the tainted kiss shows its eternal the spread of the problem. When burying a Voodoo originated in the ancient religions
effect. The victim himself becomes a vampire person who has died from the vampire kiss, and magical arts of western Africa, from
Gambia in the north to Angola in the south.
and in due course rises from the grave to the attendants must sprinkle poppyseeds
When African chiefs sold huge numbers of
seek his own victims, thus continuing the within the coffin, secure it with a rope tied
their tribespeople into slavery, the crammed
dreadful cycle. in many knots, and place the branch of a slave ships carried many priests and wizards

It must be noted, however, that a vampire's thorn tree on the lid before the grave is of the ancient beliefs across the South
victim does not always die. Often the effect filled. Each householder should place a
of a vampire kiss is so powerful that the crucifix and a string of garlic bulbs above Atlantic. The slaves were eager for the
victim is vampirised while he or she is still each bed in the house, and encourage a support of such magicians, who quickly
'vampire garden' to grow close to the
alive, and seeks his or her own blood supply windows and doorways. This garden consists established themselves in the New World.
of wild rose bushes, garlic, wolfsbane,
in the community. hemlock, and wormwood. Vampires abhor All magic depends upon the co-operation
It is sometimes said that vampires appear the smell and touch of these plants and will of spirits, demons, and deities with the
magicians, and in the West Indies the massed
as bats or other animals, to creep or climb not venture near a home protected by such a spiritual forces of the great slave com-
into the victim's bedroom, but this is munities created a whole new assemblage of
garden. such beings. They are known as loas, and
Aunlikely. vampire combines the attributes If these precautions are carried out then
like the spirits of every other part of the
of ghosts and mortals and so is able to pass the vampires will move away and inflict world their function is to help, comfort, or
. themselves on some other community.
torment human beings.
freely, in ghostly or ectoplasmic form, Vetala The wizards and sorcerers founded a whole
through any obstacle, and manifest himself
or herself as a 'human' on the other side. The Indian breed of vampires. They appear new cult, popularly known as voodoo, upon
the worship of loas. Probably its real name
Jonathan Harker, who was a vampire victim, to be very similar to those of other nations is unknown except to the trained prac-

has left a clear description of a female although they may have more 'ghostly' titioners of the cult.
vampire manifesting herself, through what characteristics. They live in corpses, which
he thought was a strange whirling of dust in The priests of voodoo, known as houngans,
remain incorruptible for as long as they are and the sorcerers, who are called zobops,
the moon rays entering his chamber, and may be either male or female. They have to
vampire habitations, but it may be that the
then transforming into a voluptuous young corpses stay motionless in tombs etc. while undergo prolonged training and initiation,
woman. the vampires leave them in search of prey.
in absolute secrecy, before they are qualified
The symptoms of vampirism are easily Voodoo
to perform voodoo rites and formally
detected. If it is believed that a 'dead' person The cults of black and white magic and
is responsible then the grave or vault must accepted into the order of zobops. Fully-
sorcery practised by the black peoples of the
Abe opened and the corpse inspected. initiated houngans and zobops possess
West Indies, especially Haiti. The word powers similar to those of witches, wizards,
vampire corpse, even if centuries old, will and sorcerers of all other parts of the world.
probably have the appearance of a healthy derives from the Creole French vaudoux = They can raise the dead, fly through the air.
appear in a variety of forms, and supply all
human being or at least will not show any sorcerer or witchdoctor, probably applied the usual spells and charms ranging from
by early Haitian slaveowners to black
signs of corruption. If it has not had a blood magicians. love potions to death spells.
feast for some considerable time, it will look It appears, however, that the male prac-
pale and weak but will have a slowly beating
pulse. If it has fed recently, it will have titioners may be more powerful than the
flushed cheeks and ruby-red lips, abundant females. It is said that a male zobop may
glossy hair, and soft pliable skin. If it should
open its eyes, then it will look up at the voluntarily turn himself into a loup-garou, a
investigators with a brilliant hypnotic stare kind of ghost mosquito which sucks the

of cold intelligence. The only way to deal lives out of children, whereas a female may
with such vampire corpses is to remove them
change into a loup-garou against her will.
instantly from the original place of interment
There is a huge assemblage of loas, led by
to -a new grave, preferably dug at a cross- Papa Legba and Maitre Carrefour. They
have such names as Amelia, Bazo, Danger
roads. When the corpse is laid in the raw Mina, Gangan, Ogoun, and Wangol. Many,

earth, it must be pinned down by a stake like Erzilie, the loa of erotic love, help
driven through the heart. The corpse will
humans in special ways when the houngans
remain inert throughout the operation if it ask them to do so. Others perform more
is carried out between sunrise and sunset, generalised tasks, and may torment men and
but not otherwise. women unless the houngans hold them at
bay. Some are new manifestations of ancient
'Living' vampires, that is, those infected tribal deities, but many, known as the proto
this side of the grave, always develop long
sharp white incisors, pointed ears, hairs in loa, are those which sprang into existence in
the palms of the hands, and a foul breath.
the New World. The houngans also maintain
Their diet of the life-essence of other humans
gives them an appearance of abounding that a number of Christian saints, including
John the Baptist, has joined the ranks of the
vitality, with red cheeks and lips, although loas, and even that Christian angels (known
in voodoo as zanges) play their part in voodoo
this may fade from time to time if there are rituals. The zanges, and the loas with saints'
long intervals between blood feasts. As a names, act as messengers to the God of

final check, one should sprinkle a suspected Christianity, to ask Him to help with what-

vampire with a few drops of holy water. He ever may be required.
Houngans and zobops contact the loas in
or she will scream as though burnt with
order to perform their magic, whether
acid. helpful or harmful. They dominate Haitian

The elimination of such a vampire is

inevitably a messy affair, because the heart
must be cut out of the body and burned.

Vampire-infested communities should
follow a preventative programme to check

I HINiis OF II II- NIGHT 232

communities because of their ability to hillside, a church steeple, or the top of a
manipulate the spirits and deities. Voodoo tree, which gives them an overview of
rituals for contacting the loas are shrouded
in secrecy, but people speak in whispers of nocturnal human activities. Their dark
fearsome ceremonies using the blood of forms, more or less human in outline, sit or
white children and of the appearance of loas
in the form of venomous serpents. stand motionless, as though they were gazing
intently through the darkness.
Some voodoo ceremonies involve whole
communities, so that the total force of many A watcher will allow a human to approach
mortal minds and souls may be concentrated
into an irresistible power. When the beat of quite close to it, but does not move or give
voodoo drums is heard through the jungle any sign of recognition. If the human speaks,

night, and distant firelight flickers through or attempts to touch the watcher, it simply
disappears.
the trees, it means that every man and
woman of some village is dancing in a Nobody has been able to explain the
frenzied ritual. Anyone not directly con- purpose of the watchers. They do not seem
to do any harm or foretell any kind of disaster.
cerned should keep well away, because the
night will be full of loas answering the It can only be surmised that they report to
zobops' call.
some superior being on the sins and follies
Walpurgisnacht committed by humans after dark.

The eve of St Walpurgis' Day or May Day, Witches, Black or White

which in many parts of the northern hemi- Persons, usually female, who practise

sphere is the first day of summer. On the magical arts activated by association with

night of 30 April, covens of witches gather supernatural powers. Black witches enter
for their second great Sabbat of the year, to
worship Satan and draw renewed vigour for into a compact with Satan and cast spells
with the help of demons and other evil
all their evil activities. The soft spring night
spirits. White witches dedicate themselves
is besmirched by their horrid rituals, which
attract every kind of evil spirit to hover to the Supreme Being and derive their

around human habitations. mysterious powers from saints, angels, and

On May Day, the taint of such vile in the spirits of the faithful departed. Male
witches, generally known as warlocks, tend
testations should be dispelled by ceremonies
dedicated to Si Walpurgis. She was an to be white rather than black.

lish nun who emigrated to German) in The English word witch derives from the
about 750 AD. founded a religious com
munity renowned tor its holiness, and Anglo-Saxon 'wit', meaning 'to know'.

ame a notable performer ot miraculous Witchcraft is therefore the seeking of know-
cures, llie very name ot St Walpurgis is ;i
ledge and wisdom, approached by the path
protection against witchcrafts. Dances,
Aof good or evil. witch, like a scientist, is
processions, and other May Das celebrations
ottered in hei name will protect a community devoted to study and research for their own
throughout the summer months.
sakes, regardless of their efforts upon human
Watchers, The
beings.
M' sterious beings glimpsed ai night in main
A principal difference between black and
- ot the world. Usually they sit ot stand
white witches is that the latter adheres to a
in some commanding position such as ,i
reputable form of religion. In some com-

munities, a white witch may actually create

and lead a branch of such a religion and

administer it for the good of the populace.

But a black witch worships Satan and is

devoted to the whole assemblage of de-

moniacal creatures such as Lilith, Queen of

the Night. Black witches seek a more

complex knowledge than the simple truths

revealed in the sacred writings of acceptable

religions, but if they are left alone they may

never use this knowledge except in a purely

Aexperimental form. witch who casts a

spell upon a farmer's cattle, causing them to

speak in Latin, may <.\o so purely to satish
her own curiosity.

But even a black witch has to make a

living, and she does so bv selling spells and

c harms. It is the effect ot these, in the bands

ot bloody minded human beings, which has

brought witchcraft into ill repute. Like an
armaments manufacturer, a black witch docs
not see win she should be held responsible

tor the uses made ot hei products.

A white witch usually works tor the good

ot the community, in such ways as the pre
paration ot tolk medicines While witches
limit then communication with the other

233

mixes oi mi- NiGHl 25-t

world to acting as mediums, and to such Covens assemble once a month at the full venture becomes overwhelming, and you
moon, and organise Witches' Sabbats four sell fragment after fragment of your soul
straightforward activities as crystal-gazing. times a year; on Candlemas in February.
until it is entirely in the witch's possession.
They never attempt to conjure up the dead. Walpurgisnacht or May Eve. Lammas in
August, and Hallowe'en or November Eve. She. of course, will pass it on to her master
or to affect natural forces in such ways as Those who fear witches may easily avoid
Satan.
bringing down thunderbolts upon their them by staying indoors during the full
A witch's great problem is the jealousy
enemies. In times of trouble they may find moon or on Witches' Sabbats, although
and prejudice of her neighbours. She has no
themselves condemned as black witches, but witches often welcome outsiders to these spells efficacious against these superior
assemblies. The only rules are that all
at least they escape the eventual fate of a attendants must strip themselves naked, powers of evil. Many male members of the
worship Satan, and join wholeheartedly in community enjoy nothing better than
black witch. The latter carries such a burden
swinish guzzling, public fornication, the tormenting women, and they use the Biblical
of illicit knowledge that she cannot ascend defilement of maidens, and congress with injunction 'Thou shalt not suffer a witch to
goats.
to heaven and must be snatched by Satan. live' as the excuse for an agreeable pro-
Despite the fear and disgust which many
White witches are usually self-taught. gramme of persecutions including stoning,
well-meaning people feel towards witches,
They gain their knowledge from a close ducking, flogging, and preaching against
an accomplished witch may be an asset to from the pulpit.
study of nature and the sacred books, and the community. It is useful to have a source
This persecution turns the witch against
reading in herbals and other approved of such staples as 5 centimetres ot so of
hangman's rope to cure skin blemishes, the community and she becomes actively
documents. Occasionally a white witch graveyard mould gathered at midnight to dangerous. She causes epidemics, storms in
silence a nagging mother-in-law, or the pubic
accepts a pupil, but she generally tends to harvest time, and infestations of flies, weeds,
hairs of a mummy to bring home an errant
keep her knowledge to herself. frogs, and toadstools. She turns strong men
wife.
On the contrary, black witches are quite weak and maidens reluctant, forces babies to
Witches do not presume to judge com- cry all night and dogs to howl at the moon,
willing to accept students in the long and munity morals. If you have an enemy, then curdles the milk and sours the butter, and
a single gold piece will buy you a mannequin inflicts rheumatism upon the elders of the
difficult craft. They offer the initial rewards gris: a wax doll fashioned in the form of
your enemy, so that you may torment him village.
of physical beauty and irresistible sexual mentally and physically by thrusting needles
through the doll. The thirteenth needle Soon, the villagers decide to settle all their
attraction, with the side effect of inability to
brings death. problems at one stroke. They set out on a
Areproduce. black witch cannot produce witch hunt to pull in all likely and suspected
Regardless of your age or character, a witches in the neighbourhood, and haul
offspring. Other rewards include that of witch will sell you a love potion guaranteed them before a summary trial. Usually there
is ample evidence, even if it is no more than
prolonged life, because a black witch may to make the most modest maiden surrender. the possession of a 'familiar' such as a dog or

live a century or more. The witchmistress It you believe that a seducer has administered cat. If an old woman possesses a cat to

does not, however, tell a pupil that the early such a potion to your wife, you may purchase which she talks at all hours of the day or
an antidote which will cause his vital parts night, it is obviously a familiar spirit which
beauty fades quickly and that a witch's destiny
to shrivel and your wife to devote herself to helps her in witchcraft.
is not appealing. Satan may return her to you with renewed ardour.
When the witch hunters have satisfied
earth in some form after death, but this is A witch is also willing to cast beneficial
themselves then their dutv is clear. They
likely to be a toad, viper, or earthworm. spells, ensuring a good harvest, increased must burn the witch on a fire of seasoned
nulk yields, success in business or publk oak. carry her ashes outside the parish, and
A witch may commence her studies at scatter them to the four winds. This of
affairs, or other advantages. The only draw
any age after puberty and proceed through course leaves a vacancy in the local coven,
back is that the price is a tin) portion of to be filled by one of the student witches.
numerous degrees of achievement. The your soul, and that such witchboons are
Xenoglossia
aspiring witch commences with relatively maddu tive. Ihe temptation to succeed ever)
'The tongue of a stranger' (Greek xenos =
minor witchcraft, such as the mixing of love stranger, glottis = tongue.) The voice of a

potions and the casting of blights and demon speaking through the mouth of a

murrains, and proceeds slowly to the final human. An accomplished sorcerer mav
throw a human into a trance, and summon
degrees. These include the gift of prophecy up a demon who will speak through his or

with the aid of a familiar; levitation. or her mouth, to give the sorcerer any
information he desires. It mav also lie possible
flying through the air with or without the to persuade a spirit of some deceased person
to speak through the same medium. This
use of a broomstick and flying ointment: midnight practice, performed with complex
spells and rituals, is appallingly dangerous
lycanthropy, or transformation into the form
for the human who .icts as the 'tongue of a
of an animal; and the casting of runes to stranger'. The demon may either refuse to

gain power over human beings. leave its mortal host, or snatch his her mind
and soul awa\ when it departs.
Witchcraft is taught by word of mouth.
The only written instructions have long Yama Uba

since been burnt by the public hangman. An A Japanese witch of mountainous regions.

aspirant witch spends a great deal of time in Little is known of her except that she may
cause avalanches b) throwing stones down
learning spells by heart, but cannot actually

make them work until she has sworn her

soul to Satan.

Isobel Dowdie, a beautiful young red-

headed Scottish witch of the seventeenth

century, told her prosecutors much of what
we know about the induction ot young
witches into the craft. An aspirant must

stand naked before witnesses, place her right

hand on her head, raise her kit foot and

place her left hand on its heel, and VOW to

surrender to Satan all that lies between her

hands.

The voung witch becomes an associate

membei en ol thirteen witches, but

cannot gain lull membership until one of

the othei witi lus has been exorcised,

snatched by Beelzebub, burnt at the stake,

or otherwise robbed or witchly powers.

THINGS OF THE NIGHT 235

at those who attempt to approach her, and to distinguish a zombie from a living person. Eventually, when they reach the end of the
that she can catch children by lassoing them It can 'see' in the dark, so that it avoids period for which they would have lived but
obstacles which might trip a living person,
with her hair. This drags a child towards and it never moves faster than a slow for the accident, they settle peacefully into
shambling walk. If it should confront a their graves.
her so that she may gobble it up.
human being, it will not raise its head to Zashiki Warishi
Yowie, Whowie, or Wowie look him or her in the eyes.
A Japanese poltergeist, probably the spirit
An Australian creature of the night, which A zombie is obedient to all human
of a little boy. Like all little boys he can be
probably assumes a form midway between a commands and will do the heaviest work very mischievous and he will often disturb a
family by his activities during the night.
reptile and an insect. Those who have without protest or wearying, although it
One should not, however, resent his appear-
glimpsed it say that it has six legs like an must return to its grave before sunrise. The
insect, the head of a great lizard, a body owner does not have to feed or care for it in ance because he often brings good fortune,
scaled either like a beetle or a reptile, and any way, but must make sure that it never and it is unwise to try to scare Zashiki
the tail of a snake. Apparently the yowie touches salt. Even a few grains of salt will Warishi away.
lives in deep caves and only ventures forth make a zombie realise it is dead, whereupon
Zorya Vechernaya
after dark in search of prey. Some of the it will dig itself back into its grave and
livestock losses blamed upon dingoes may in ignore any further attempts at resurrection. The goddess of the dusk, whose father is
Dazhbog, the sun, god who rides over eastern
fact have been caused by prowling yowies. It may be assumed that any prosperous
farmer, who does not exert himself unduly, Russia. Each morning, her sister the goddess
Zombies is the owner of zombies who do all the work of the dawn opens the gates of Dazhbog 's

Persons brought back from death by voodoo Afor him during the night. zombie-owner palace, so that he may ride through the skies
in his golden chariot. In the evening, when
rituals, so that, as living corpses, they may does, however, lead an uneasy existence.
be programmed to work for the houngans or There is always the possibility that some he drives the great white chariot horses
zobops who have resurrected them. Some- back into the palace stables, Zorya Vechernaya
rival or enemy may use the appropriate spells
times a voodoo practitioner will actually kill closes the palace gates after him. As the
a person, in order to resurrect and enslave to re-programme one of his zombies, so that
him in the form of a mobile corpse. it will turn upon him during the night. gates close softly together, so evening falls
and night brings a peaceful end to the
Zombies only move around after dark, so There is another class of zombies known activities of another day.
as 'errant zombies'. These are the bodies of
that anyone seeing one from a little distance people who have died in accidents instead of
away during the hours of darkness might living out their natural lifespan. They arise

not know it to be dead. It is easy, however, from their graves and wander around during
the night, but do not seem to do any harm.

I N< Y< I.ol'1-OIA OF THINGS THAT NEVER WERE 236

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BRANEK )N, VICT( )RIA I iulerstanding HAGGARD, RIDER Ayesha. The Return of
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She London: 1905 (Collins Ne^ Classic
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brewer, E ( OBHAM A Dictionary of DAVIDSON, H.R.E Scandinavian Mythol- HAINING, it hk ( ihosts; The Illustrated
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Phrase and Fable Boston: l870(Avenel History London: 1974
Books edition, Ne* York, 1978)
HowI >A\ [SON, RONA1 DC Astrology to HAINING, I'l II RAn Illustrated
BRIGGS KATHERINl An Encyclopaedia oi
Fairies, Hobgoblins. Brownies, Bogies, ( ast ) our Horoscope London: l >< '"
l
Vwand other Supernatural Creatures 1
(Granada paperback 1979) History of Witchcraft London: I
York 1976
DEFOE, DANIEl The I ife and Strange iiw\ ["HORNi wiiiwii Tanglewood
i
Surprizing Adventures of Robinson
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Press edition, 1936) ( 1 ( edition)

bi nyan.john The Pilgrim's Progress DIAGRAM GROl P, 1 1 II Ihc Complete Book HAWNTHORNl WlllWHl Wonder Book
London (?): 1678, 1684 (J \l Deni edi ofPredictions London: 1983 Boston: L841 (Dent DuttonC l (
lion. 1958)
ih )WNING, ( Russian Tales and legends edition)

wiwbi ki \ Secrets ofthe Occult Oxford 1956 HandbookheLANI II \i >K\ \l
I I Ft >

London: 1972 London: 1980

237

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Folk Customs London: 1976 Louvain: 1516. First English translation, burgh: 1893
by Ralph Robinson, published in 1551 as
hope, ANTHONY The Prisoner ofZenda stoker, bram Dracula London: 1896
London: 1894 (Nelson Sevenpenny Afruteful and Pleasant Worke ofthe best (Arrow paperback)
State of a Publyque Weale, and of the
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HUXLEY, FRANCIS The Invisibles London: New York: 1976
1966 MUNTHE, axel The Story ofSan Michele
London: 1929 SWIFT, JONATHAN Travels into Several
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page, michael Weird Tales ofLand and
Adelaide: 1979 Gullii 'er, first a Surgeoi i ai id then a Cap-
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ingpen, ROBERT The Voyage of the tain ofSeveral Ships Dublin: 1 ^26 ( Hurst
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London: 1983 TENNYSON. LORD ALFRED Poems London:
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BARKER, MARY & COOK, CHRISTOPHER (eds)
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Pear's Encyclopaedia ofMyths and
king, teri Love, Sex, and Astrology tures of Tom Sauyer Hartford, Conn.:
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London: 1972 1875 (Nelson school edition, undated)
planer, fellx e. Superstition London:
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Fairy Tales London: 1856 (Dent/Dutton
poignant, roslyn Oceanic Mythology tures ofHuckleberry Finn New York:
C.I.C. edition) Feltham, U.K.: 1967
1884 (Harrap edition, undated)
koutsoukis, a (trans.) Indonesian Folk psychic research society, the Proceed-
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Tales Adelaide: 1970 Supernatural London: 1978
rideout, p.m. ( ed. ) Larousse Ecyclopaedia
kreiger, LEONARD ( ed ) Time-Life Great usher, george Dictionary ofPlai its i ised
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Ages ofMan Series New York: 1965, 1968. by Man London: 1974
RHYS, JOHN Celtic Folklore, Welsh and
Including Ancient Egypt by Lionel Manx Oxford: 1901 VERNEJULES AJourney to the Centre of

Casson; Imperial Rome by Moses Hadas; ROBERTS, AINSLIE & MOUNTFORD, CP, the Earth Paris: 1864
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VERNEJULES From the Earth to the Moon
iamb, charles & mary Talesfounded on ROBERTS, AINSLIE & MOUNTFORD, CP.
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the Plays of Shakespeare London: 1807 The Dawn of Time Adelaide: 1969
(Dent/button C.I.C. edition) Verne, jules Around the Moon Paris:
ROBERTS, AINSLIE & MOUNTFORD, CP.
lang, Andrew Adventures of Odysseus 1870 (All above in Dent/Dutton C.I.C.
The First Sunrise Adelaide: 1971
London: 1883 (?) (Dent/Dutton C.I.C. edi- editions)
ROBERTS, AINSLIE & MOUNTFORD, CP.
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la\g, Andrew Blue Faiiy Tale Book ROBERTS, AINSLIE & ROBERTS, MELVAJEAN
Dreamtime: The Aboriginal Heritage WARRINGTON, JOHN ( trans. ) AeSOp 's Fables
London: 1889 London: 1955
Adelaide: 1981
LAWRENCE, P. & MEGGITT, M.J. Gods, Ghosts, WATSON, LYALL Supemature. The Natural
ROGO, D. SCOTT The Poltergeist Experi- History of the Supernatural London:
and Men in Melanesia 1973
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Melbourne: 1965 WELLS, H.G. The First Men in the Moon
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lurie, ALISON Fabulous Beasts London: London: 1901 (Heinemann/Octopus
1981 shelley, MARY WOLLSTONECRAFT Franken- omnibus)

MACKAL, ROY The Monsters of Loch Ness stein London (?): 1818 (New English WELLS, H.G. The Time Machine London:
London: 1972 1895 (Heinemann/Octopus omnibus
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.\l\ckenzie, da Myths of China and WHEATLEY, Dennis The Dei il and All his
shulman, sandra Nightmare Stanmore,
Japan London: undated Works London: 1971
New South Wales: 1979
MANGUEL, ALBERTO, & GUADALUPI, GIANNI WHITE, SIR HAROLD (ed. BOARD CI [AIRMAN )
The Dictionary of Imaginary Places SIMPSON, COLIN Adam in Ochre - Inside Australian Encyclopaedia Sydney: 197"

New York: 1980 Aboriginal Australia Sydney: 1962 wilde, oscar The Picture ofDorian Gray
London: 1896 (Penguin paperback)
mac cana, prinsias Celtic Mythology stanton Robert The UnexplaU xed at Sea
Feltham, U.K.: 1970 , wolf, Leonard Monsters New York: 1974

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stevenson, R.L. The Strange Case of nica (1955 edition) London: 19S5
the Supernatural New York: 1968
DrJekyll and Mr Hyde London: 1886
melville, Herman MohyDick or The White

Whale New York: 1851 (Macmillan

edition, 1972)

I.OPEDIA OF THINGS THAT NEVER WERE 238

INDEX

Abarw a 5 147, 163 1"4 Atlas 40. 44. 91, 142 3 195.205. Carpets, flying 150 Dracula see Bassarab. Mad Drakul
Ablku 220 Atoharto 2-1 Carpus, -os 216 Dragons 13. 21. 142. 1"2. 187-90. 214;- teeth, 148
Cassiopeia 203
Abominable Snowman 84 Audumla 13 Castle Leir 28 Draupnir 168
Augurs 143 Drawings 149
Aborigines (of Australia) 17, 19 20. 75, 83 Auspices 1 43 &Castor Pollux 22. 173, 1K2 Dreams 32, 229. Land of, 203
JO" 211 214 Dreamtime, the 19-20. 83. 208. 21 1, 212, 214
Australia 66, "1. "3-5. 83. 128-9. 184-5, 193. 205. 20", 208. Cats 5", 77, 144, 1"4, -cradle 146 Drums 149-50, 174,232
Abstyrus 18i 211-12.214,227 23s Caucus-race 132 Drunkenness see Bacchus. Cluricauns, Dionysus. Satyrs
Cauldron, magic 51 Dryads 75
lent, Spirits of 220 Auto Porburu 58 Cavern of the Seas 185
Achclous 21 Autrimpas 3 84 Caves of Kor 115 Duchess, the 132. 134
Avalon 16. 94. 101 Ceiron 57 Duck 132
V hen 220 Avesha 115. 119 Celestial Citv 101. 105
Azeman 221 Celsusl53 Dung beetle 1"0
Acheron. River -tl. 1%. 181. 185 Centaurs 1", 39, 57 Duppy 223
Achilles 203. 216 Centaurus 21 Durendal (sword) 1"2
Centre Earth 101-2
Acrisius 46 Babel. Tower of 120 Cerberus 41. 58. 174 Durgas see Rakshashas
Acropolis 19 Babylon, lans 25, I64. 18". 214, 22" Ceres 5"
Vtaeon 52 Ceyx 195 Dusk, Goddess of see Zona Vechamava
Bacabs 124 Chaos 18. 25.34, 203 Dwarfs 29. 59. H0-2
Adam 225-6 Chariots, flying etc 205 also see Medea. Phaethon,
Adekagagwaa 51 ~Bacchantes 1 Eaglet 132
Adh Seidh 220 Quadriga
Admetus 52 Badger 122. 125-6 Charon 185
Admiral Benbow Inn 126 Baghdad 153. 15-), 164 Cheiron 39. 182

Adoni 6" Cheng O 22"

Adivniun. the 106 Balmbarbi 94-6. 118, 150. 151 Chenoo 5"-8 Earthquakes 34. 70
Cheshire Cat 134
Aeaea Aiaia 89 Ball Play, God of 44 Chimaera 203-4 Easier Island 20
Aeetcs King 182 China 64. 67, 68. 82. 135, 141, 158, 165. 190, 193. 199.212. Ebb Tide 190
Baltic Sea "2, 8-t. 15", W-,
-Aegean Sea 89 Bahus216 214, 216. 220. 223. 225. 227. 228. Echo 60, 75
Aegeus. King ~) "5 Ch'ing Sung-Tzu 216
Baltimore Gun Club 161 Ector, Sir 14
Chippewa 223
Acgir 181 Bannik 184 Chloris216 Edward Ml. King 122
Aeolus 13.195 Christopher, St 80
Bara2l4 Chronus 57 Egeria 214
Aesculapius. Asklepios Ul Chrysaor 203-4
Barbegazi 52-3 Chuang Kung Mu 223 Egypt 25-6. 34-5.38, 39, 57, 79.80. 141, 169, 1"0. 185-6. 193.
Cibola, Seven Cities of 1 22 196. 205
Aesir 13, li 16.29.3-i. 129. 181 Bardoyats 184 Cimmeria 203
Acson 182 Circe. Queen 89. 209, 211 Elam,Godsof25
Barmecide Feast 1 43 Clay 146
Cleito91-2
Africa 105. 113-16. 177, 18". 193. 191 216 220. Basilisk 53 Cleopatra 72 Elder Trees, Old Lady of the 60
Climentole 151 El Dorado 105
225,226. 22". 229. 231 Bassarab Mad Drakul 222-3 Clio 33
Clolho21 Electra 205
Agamemnon 1~3 Basi 5" Cloud Cuckoo Land 54 Elephants 208 - Graveyards. 105
Cloudland 13
Agapinnus. King 2H Baths I84 Cluncauns 58
Clvmene 204
Ahab, Captain 201-2 Baykok 223 Chut 25 Elixir of Life 141
Ah Dad 2 l-l Cockatoo 208
Beanstalks 54 Cockatrice see basilisk El Nino 20-1
Cockayne 102
Ahui/otl 181 Bedivere. Sir "2 Cockerels 141. 143 Elves 60
Colchic 182
1 Columbus, Christopher 105. 106. 209
Corinth "9. 184.20"
Ailifl ol Penzance 58 Beds, bedclothes 16". 223 Elysian Fields 41, 181
Albatross, Great Wandering 1H1 Corn-Dolly, -Maiden, -Mother, -Wolf, -Spirits 58, 68, 146.
Beelzebub "8. 234 14". 216 Emma Hoo "0
Emus 19
Albion 13.22-3. 181 Belarivo, Joachim I43 Cornucopia 14"
Alchemy 141.153 Cornwall 16. 23, 40. 70-1.76, 143. 199
Alcyone 205 also see Halcyon Bellerophon 203-4 Coronado. Francisco Vasquez de 122 Enceladus 34
Ale-Brewer. The l«l Coronis l4l Enchanted Horse, The 153-4
Bells 143-4 Endymion 22"
Court of Life Balancers 210
Belt-of-5trength 153 Coyote 1"0
Cramp Rings 169
Alectrumancy l4l Bendeigeifran 109 Crete 19, 411 73 England 13. 14-16. 22-3. 28. 32. 42. 61, 68. "2. "6. 77, "8. 83,
.Alexander of Ueograd 25 Creusa, Princess I84 99-101. 112. 118. 122. 131-4. 136. 146. 152. 181. 199.
Bendith y Mamua 5) Cnmbils 54 213.225
Alexander the Great 158, 181 Crocodile gods 185-6
Bengal. Princess of 1 53-4 Cronus 34 Enmitv, Mr 129
Alfred. King 186 Beowulf 190, 193 4 Cronos 40
Algonquins 22" Croquet 134
Bergelmir 13 Cruelty. Mr 129 Eos 184. 190- 1.20"
Bergerac, Cyrano de 161 Crusoe. Robinson 109- 12
Alice in Wonderland 132-4 Bermuda 126 Epimelheus4l
Alps 52 3. 14" Crystal balls, gazing 147
Cuba 106. 126 Epirus "3
Alph. River 1 is CuChulainn 18-19, 172
Ahebar Baroness Kusslt-in won 220-1 Cullan the Smith 18 1
Culhwch 1 36
Bestla 13 Cumberland 115 119 Erigone41

BeulahLand 129 CuRoi 18 Erinnvs 4 1
Curtis, Sir Henry 113 15
Alulei 181-2 Bhogavau 54 Ens 30
Cusith 58-9
Amaltheia 147 Bifrosi 16 Eros 21. 34, 39, 57
Cymn 13
Amaierasu 22 Bigtoot84 Eruyale 66"
Amalhus 30 Cyprus 16"
Amazons 51 Bimini 106 Ervmanthian Boar 39
Ambrosia 3-*. I64 Eskimo 141,205, 225
Amemail 26 Birds, birdwatching 143. 21 1 also see Albatross, Cockatoo,
Emus, Kingfishers, Magpies. Owls. Pelican, Rukhs, sil Eth)opial20, 190.203.204
verado B. Sirens, Swans
Eurus 13. 184,214,216

Vmerica. Central 36. 44, 105 181,184.221 Black Annis 56 Eurydice sa
Black Diamond 1 30-
.America. North 38, 51 56 5" H4. 122, 124 5, 126. 143, 161. Black I). Euterpe 33
Evander2l4
18) i- I 212,223 225 22" Excalibur (sword) 14, 16,59.99.101, 1"2

Amo-No-Hashidatc 25 Black of Sainghu 18

Amphurilc 209 Blefuscu 96. 1 18
Blue Mountains 19
Amulet lil

Andaman Islands 5K Blustrugs 116 Fafnir 1"2. 188

Andes 206 Boat blessing, burial, burning 184 Fairies 22 54 58 61 1 71.72,152-3
Bodach 223
Androgcus "a I aravai 182
Andromeda -
Boggarts 54 Farbauti 29
Angakuk HI Fates. The 21. "9
Ankou 221 Bogies, bogey-men. bogles, bogey-beasts 56 Fauns, Faunus 21. "9
Annwa 51 Bokwus 56'

Hones. Bill 126 FeiLin214

.Anonyma 1 t2 Bonfires 144 Feng Po 2 1 1
Answen Bookwriring machine 94 5
Aniero Vipunen 213 Ikximcrang 20 Ferdinand, King. 106, Prince Ol Naples 121
Bordaudu 58 Fcnilm , g.Kls and goddesses 23, 28. 4-). 51,57,167
Antonio 120-1 Fiddlers Green 10s

208 Boreas 13. IH4 191. 214.216 Figureheads 191
Bors Sir IV 1 I
Apep 3H 681 in it).
Bottle Imp, The in
Apes t.irs ,,l '»), Mountain of. 90 Finland 21 «>> 158,213 21)

Aphrodite 2 1 alvj sit- Venus Britain, Britons i J, 210 also see England, Ireland, Scotland, Finn, Huckleberry 124
Males
Apples, Golden 142; of Youth 14 rreeM Fir Bolga 11
Appleseed lohiim 1 is
Brittam hi 221 17,21,29.31.34,40 God of, 26s lake ol 1
Apollo s, V) 52 111 161 173 2H. Brohdingnag 96-8
ol, 13. Fircbreathingiot dragons

Apia IN Brokk 29 Plroui shah. Prince I53V4
Brooms I 1 Insl Pool 16"
Aquarhj

90 Broth of Oblivion 144 Pish Pouunan 154

Arachnc 5i 2 Brownies 54 Flandoiu i .agnole ISO
Bruin the Bear ""
Arawn, King 51 1 I.im.i Queen sn
-2. 5"
1
I
llrulus 3I 22 PUrnnap 1 16
Vim the 152 Flint. Captain 126 12S
Bullets, magi. DaDuku 58
Ares 1X2. 191
Bulls 10 Daedalus 19 73 . Floating Islands 191

Ar/tt, ihe 182 > 191 Burma Dagworth Castle 72 Flora 67
Hulas vr Kaksh.1sh.1s Dana Dagenda 58
..is 182 ) 191 211 Florida 106
Argus 1M2 5"
Danae * Prying SBf ,ar|x-is brooms dragons Fnchanied Horse.
13

Darkness. Land ol SM t imnuri.i i.ipma oinmicni Pegasus ran saucers, snakes

Arn I 120 I Bumba 1" Davj tones Locker 186 7 Dutchman 191-2
Aries I Maiden 184, I'M 1
Bunvil 17, 20 I
Arnhem I and 7 ^ 212
Bunytps imi 5 Prying Horsi -
Ml 121.
)9 s.2 Hun 13 Dazhbog235 Poam oi ihe Ocean 193

Arthur. King I . Death, Court ol 1 19: Hall of, lis, Rivet ol 1 OIIIOI I .
172 IVidameia 57

Anuroak 58 Dekarra 1 Porea -puns "2, 75

. 99 nil ||J ]|M | ,,, ,,,,, NM19 ivhgiurul Haven 103 s -'2<
Delectable Mountains 103
Ig 172 FiHintain ot Ybutfl 106
(alais IN2 191 de Leon, Ponce 106 Prance 52
Frankenstein \ulor |S2
Caluop Deluge Ihe 187,211 12 I i.inks LJ
Pre) i
Demetet Progs 109, 193 Piugfutainaii 134

Marcos 122 .-

Denn 110 Fuluix-sighi -.
1

- Deucalion I8~
. Diamonds lis |S

I 129 Dido 132
the! rah 17
Diomsiis 17,25,57,76,79, 130, 161 Gaca 34 4<> 167

I Dodona talking Oak >s |S2. 191 113 15

i anoi :v>gs 58 wheat, 67 al*< aarTI I

l appad Mam Black Dog Gaharls Sil 16
i apn 111
- Galahad, Prince 14, 99

Dolphlru i~. 206 Galatea nj

' 181 1 u.lill Mill 124 Doinovol 70, and Dc^movikha, 223 Ganymede 16 107
21 1 1 I H»p]X-lgangct so mi
1 21)
I iormouae 1 * 1 Gareth, SU )"

239

Garlic 152 188; [gnosi, King 113-15 Leviathan 19" Nails 162-3. 214
Gargareans SI Iguanas, Island of 206 Nai-no-kami 34
Uythla21 Libra 29, 46 Nakki214
Gaul in llpailurkna 208 Lidenbrock, Hans and Otto 101 Name(s) 163-4
Geatasland 190 Imandwa 225 Napaeae "5
Geelong 20" Implacable. Mr 129 hi n Naples. King of 121
Gemini 22 16 Incas Incagnomes 147. 206 Narcissus 60. "5
Geneva 152 Incubus 225 Ufdrasir 44 Nardacll8
George. St 2 India 54, 73, 82. 84. 105. 18". 202. 208. 228, 231 Lightning 17, 20. 143. 214. - Mother, 214 Naxos 74
Germany 60, 203. 21 1. 220-1, 232 Lilliput 116-18 Necromancy 164
Ghosts 224. Ghost Ships. 193. 199. 212 Indians, ofNonhAmenca21, 2-1.51,56,5", 6", "5, 122, 143, Nectar 34. 164
Ghouls 224 1-T. 164. P0. 205, 208, 212,220. 225,227 Lilith 225-6, 229. 230, 232 Nemesis 21, 194
Giants 22. 34, 136. 213 also see Brotxlingnag Limnads 214 Nemeds (h
Gignosko m, oo Indonesia "3, 82, 83. 211 Urmis terrae 1 53 Nemi214
Gin Sengo-t 73 Injun Joe 124 Lions 28, 77 Nereids 202-3
Glamour, glamarve 1 S3 Ireland. Irish 14, 18-19.22, [0, 41. 64. 80. 109. 152. 191. 199. Nepal 84
Lipara 13 Nephele 5". 182
Ghmignm 1 18 220.221.226
Irria 208 little- Boy of the Clouds 214 New Year, New Year's Eve 16". "9
Glubbdubdrib 106 Iroquois 24, 57; 67, 212, 214 Loas 231-2 New Zealand 68. 80. 229
Gnomes 13. 22. 64-6. 206 losheka67 Loch Ness. Morar. Monsters 197-8
Goblins 66 Ino 182 Loki 14,29.40 Nibelungen 169
Gogmagog 13. 22-3 Inua 225 Longapoa 80 Nightingales 22"
Gohone S Inungamella 208 London 102, 103, 149 Night. Queen of see Lilith
Golem 224 lolchus 182 Lord of the Runes 169 Nile. River 18. 35. 38, 120
Lords of Storm 210 Nimiane see Lady of tfie Lake
Gonad :s Iran 25 Lory 132 Noble the Lion, King
Iraq 194 Lothur 13 Norns. the 44
Gordus, Gordian knot 1S8. 161 Ins 181,1%, 216 Lotos land 118-19 Norway 14, "".80. 169.181.19"
Gorgon 66--, 182. 203 tseult, Lady 40. of-the White Hands, 40-1 Love 21, 29-30, 72; - potions. 159 Notusl3. 184. 214. 216
Golbasto. Emperor 1 16 Ist.inot, Judas 60 Low Heels 116 Nymphs 17, 18. 34. 44, 46. 60. 64. 75, 147. 202-3. 211, 214
Golden: Age 14, 23. Apples. 30. Fleece. 182-4. Isis25.35 Lucan. Sir 16 Nysj. Mount 1"
Lucifer "8
Scaler 29 Islander, Beg no Luggnagg 1 18 Oats-Stallion 146
Good. Capt Edward. R.N. 1 13-15 Luna 227 Oberon, Prince, King 62. 78
Gi.ic.ie 66 Islands 3, 26, 38, 80, 99. 109-10. 118, 119-20, 120-1. 125, Lyar. Mr 129 Oblivion see Brotfi of
Gi.ih.is see Rakshashas 126-8, 206 Lycanthropy 226" Obolus 185
Lynceus 22. 182. 191 Ocean of Milk 54
Grain Gods and Guardians 67 Isegrim the Wolf "" Lyonnesse 118 Oceanids 203
Grand Canyon 122 Italy 36, 61 Oceanus -os 36. 203
Gray, Dorian 149 Ixion 5" Maat 26 Odin 13. 16, 26, 29. 34. 42. 59. 129. 169. 172, 213
Great Tom of Lincoln 144 Odysseus 13, 89, 173, 211
Greece, Greeks 19.58.61.^9. US. 141, 173, 182 [zanaml, Izanagi 25-6, 214 Madagascar 185 Oedipus 79
Gremlins 68 Oeneus 52
Greenland 39 lack the Giant-Killer 54 Machaon 141 Oeta34
Green Man. The 68 Jackson's Island 125
GrenJel 193-4 Jambuwul 212 Maelstrom 198 Ohdows 75
Grev of Macha 18 James I, King 105 Ohio River 143
Japan 22, 25-6, 34. 67. 80. 82, 1 18, 196-7, 201. 202, 212,214. Maera(dog) -il
Griffins, griffons 134. 194-5 Ointment, flying 14-*, 152
215,225.22", 234-5 Magic 159
Grymban the Badger 77 Jason 22, 148, 182-4. 191.211 Old Man of the Sea's Island 119 120
Guinevere, Queen 14, 16. 112 Jehovah 18"1 Maglauns. Duke 28 Olwen 136
Gulliver. Lemuel 94-6, 106-9, 116-18, 150-1 Jekyll.Dr Henry 15" Olympic Games 74
Gunn.Ben 126.128 Jeroboam, the 201 Magpies 2 Olvmpus 14. 16. 18, 21 . 23. 25, 29-30. 31 . 34. 44. 5", 60. 190.
Jigoku "'O
Gurrangatch 19 Jinni 216 Magyars 230 205. 20"
Gypsies 214 Jocasta T9
John II. King 120 Maia 205 Omens 164

Jonah 1% MaidofPohja213 Oneida 24
Oni70
Joseph of Arimathea 94 Mako tfie Serpent 186 Onions 152
Jotnar 26 Onokoro 25
Joyboy 26 Malaysia 73 Optics of Al Rasheed 164
Joyous Gard 16, 112 Oracle 165
Judges of the Dead 26 Malekin 72 Oread 70
Judy 36 Orion 205
Jupiter 194 Mamaragan 212 Orpheus 34. 58. 182.211
Jurawadbad 174 Osiris 25. 26, 34-5
Hades 34, 36, 41, 68 Jutuma 196 Manchuria 64 Ossa34
Haiowatha 23-4 Oiherworld 18
Kabigat 70 Mandrake "2-3 Otter 122
Hairy Peruvians 64. 65 Kagu-Zuchi 34 O-Wata-Tsu-Mi 34
Haiti 231-2 Kaiserglocke 144 Manes 73 Owls 228
Kallikrates 115,119 Mangowa 214
Hai Wang Mu 165 Kaloon, Children of 119 Pacific Ocean 18, 20-1. 31. 40. 80. 159. 181-2. 18". 205.
Kalvaitis 157 Mannequin gris 234 210.212.214
Halcyon, -e 195 Kangaroo 83
Hall of Double Justice 26 Kappa 196-7 Manticore 73 Pactolus. River 161
Kasha 225 Paintings see Drawings
2MHallowe'en 144, 22-i, Kashmir, Sultan of 154 Maoris 42, 193. 229 Pakadringa 212
Hammer of Thor 153 Kelane 205 Palladium, the 1"3
Kelpie 197 Mare Tenebrosum 198-9 Pan 18, tw. "5-6. 1-1", 172
Hanth lbnjabala 158 Kent 15 Panacea 141
Haroun al Rashid 90. 164 Kerith. Lady 158 March Hare 134 Pangaea34
Harpies 191, 19S Kern Babies 146
Hate-Good, Lord 129. 130 Ketch, Jack 36 Mane Celeste, the 197 Pang Che, -Chiao, -Chu 226
Keys 207 Pandora 41
Haumu -\2 Knackers, knockers 70-1 Mark. King 40 Paphos 167
KnighLsl3,26-8 Papua New Guinea 58. 70, 184. 224
Haw-an 22" Knots 15"-8 Man Rose, the 186 Paracelsus. Theophrastus Bombast von 153
Kheperi 170 Paris 30. 1"3 (place) 102
Haw kins. Jim 126-8 Khirbat-al-Baidha 158 Mars 16, 17,30.31 Parnassus. Mount 18"
Kilyakai "0 Partholons 64
Headless Hessian 124 Kingfishers 195 Marsyas 161 Pa Sha. General 6"
King Solomon's Mines 112-15 Pasiphae 73
Hearts, King, Queen and Knave of 134 Kisin 70 Masks 159-60 Patrick. St 226
Heavens. The 24-5 Kobolds 13. 71 Peaches of Immortality 165
Helen of Troy I"73 Kookaburras 195 Maui 31. 159 Pegasus 66. 203^
Helicon, Mount 203-4 Korll5 May Day see Walpurgisnacht. Witches Peinthous 57
Korea 64 Pelican. Brown 20
Helios 25. 204. 20". 22~. Hehopolis. 205 Kraken 197 Medb, Queen 18 Pelias 182
Heliotrope 25 Kratos 22 Medea 182-4. 20" Pelion, Mount 34
Kublai Khan 135 Pendragon family 13
Hell 34, 58. 68-70 K'uei 225 Medusa 66-7. 182 T 31 Penelope "5
Kukuana tribe 113-15 Melpomene 33 Pequod, the 201-2
Helle. Hellespont 182, 191 Kupala 28 Menahune 22^ ,
Percival. Sir 14
Heng Po 2 1 -i labyrinth 74 Men. creation of. first, etc 13. Persephone 34. 68. 211
Henwinus 28 Lachesis 21 Merchants, gods of 16" Perseus 66-1, 203
Hephaestus 25, 30 Ladon 142, 172 Persia 79, 143. 158; Shah of, 153, 154
Hera 17. 25.30.44,57,60,79. 142,195, 196 Ladies of the Rain 210 Merlin 14.22.32.99.101,169. 176,225
LadyofByblos25 Peru, Peruvians. Hairy 20-1. 158. 206"
Hercules 17, 21. 28, 39, 142-3, 173, 182 Lady of tfie Lake 14.22.99 Mermaids, -men 199, 200. 212 Phaethon 204-5
Hermes 18.41.75, 141.158. 165. 191 Laifey 29 Merope 205 Phantasus 229
Lammas see Witches Pharaohs 39. 169
Heme the Hunter 224-5 Lancelot. Sir 14. 16,99. 112 Merrows. merucha see mermaids Philippine Islands 70
Land of Youth 191 Philomela 22"
Hesperides, Hesperus 142-3 Lapland 81-2 Metal, metalworkers 25, 29, 59, 170-2 Philosopher's Stone l4l
Hieroglyphs 158 Laputa94. 150-1 Mexico 70 Phineus, King 191
High Heels 116 Lebanon 25
Hina227 Leda22, 46. 173. 211 Michael Sars. the 209 Philyra 57
Leicester 28 Phlegethon. River 181
Hine-nui-le-po31 Leir. King 28 Micronesia 181-2 Phoebetor 229
Hino 51 Lei Tzu 212 Phoenicians 35. "0-1. 76. 109. 191. 199.205
LeiKung212, 214 Midas, King 161 Phoenix 205
Hippocrene Spring 203 Leo 28, 46 Phrixus 182
Hippopotamus goddess 196 Leodegrance. King 169 Midgard 16. 40 Phrygia, -an Cap 16. 158. 161
Hispaniola, the 126 Leprechauns "1 Midsummer Day, 28, - Night, 144 Pillar of Life 115
Hoenir 13 Leprignomes 66
Holly, Horace Ludwig 115.119 Lesbos 51 Mighty Island of 109 Piper at the Gates of Dawn 122
Holy Grail 14.101. 169 Lesrn "2
Homunculus 153 Letfie, River 41, 181 Milan 120-1 Pirates 17. 126. 128
Honey. Ilya's 155 Lettering 158 Pisces 35, 46
Hope 41 Leucothea 25 Milky Way 214 Pishacas see Rakshashas
Leudippus 22 Pixies 13. 22. 76
Hop o My Thumb 1"0 Mildendoll6 Planet Earth 46
Pleiades 205
Horae 25 Mimahwu 174 Plumed Serpent 36
Horse. The Enchanted 153-4 Mime 1 T2 Podahnus 141
Mimis 73 Poleviks 67
Horses, flying 203-4 Min80
Horse latitudes 209
Horus 35 Mines. Mining 59. 65. "0-1. 113

Hounds of Heaven. Hell. Baskervilles 58 Minerva 167
Houngans 231-2
House gods and spirits 70. 223 Mm Min Light 227
Houssain. Prince 150
Houyhnhnms, Island of 106-8 Minos, King 19, 734
Hudson River 124
Hugi40 Minotaur 40, 73-4
Hugtnn 34
Hungary 214.222.230 Miranda 120-1

Hunting, H magic 52. 154-5 Mirragan 19
Hu Shen 67
Mistletoe 161 (sword) 172
Hyacinthus 216
Hy Brasil 109 Mjolnir 153
Hyde. Mr Edward 157
Hydra 1" Moby Dick 200-2

Hygeia 141 Mock Turtle 134
Hyperborea 109 Modred 14, 16,99, 101
Hypnos 32-3. 229
Mole 122, 126

Moly (herb) 89

Monastery of the Mountains 1 19
Monsters see Loch Ness

Moon, the 22", 229. -Shots 161-2

Mopaditi 75

Morholt 40

Morpheus 32-3, 229
More, Sir Thomas 128
Mouse 132

Mululu211

Muninn 34

Munodi. Lord 94-5

Mululu211

Muraroa Atoll 21

MuromyeLs, Ilva 54-5

Muses, The 33. 203, 211

Icarus 19 Music, musical instruments 33. 34, 35. 64. 77, 122, 1"2,
lean us. King 17, 41 182,211
Iceland 101. 197
Ice Sentinels 210 Nagas 54, 202
Idas 22 Naga-Sanniya 54
Idunn 14 Nagumwasuck 75

240

: Zashllti Warishi Scarab 1"0 Tangaroa 42 Yeretius, King 226
Tanzania 225 Vetala 231
Poludnii scheherczade 90 Taol41 Victory, the 186
Taranga31 Vikings 16.34, 191
. Scorpio 39. 46 V1I1 13, 16
Tarn Town 1 24 Vinoey. Leo 115, 119
Polvhvmnia 33 Scotland. Scots 13. 14. 54. 56. 58. 64. 146. 181. 197, 199. Vineland 130
foffnkettle. ihtr 21.206-^ Tartarus 181 Virgins 13, 17,203
221.223 Tasmania 80. 116 Virgo 41, 46
Tatsuta. -hiko. -himo 216 Vizi-Ember 214
forth 122 sails Isles 1 18 Vlad Drakul, Tepes, Tsepesh see Bassarab. Vlad Drakul
1 Vodyanoi 213-14
Poseidon 31. 36. "3-«. 9H. 159. 1"3. 182 203. 209. 212 Sovlla and Charybdis 209-10 Volcanoes 102
Tanoos i Voodoo 143. 228-9. 231-2. 235
Potamids214 Sea Kings Palace 210 Taurus 40, 46 Vulcan 25
Sej i >i Darkness see Mare Tenebrosum Tawhiri 42 Vu-vozo 214
Pragu. V-j serpent 210 Taxim 229-30
Taygete 44 205
PreMerJohn s Counm 120 Miner, 166 Tefnut 38
Temperance: Tavern. 124, Cadets of, 125
Preu- Seasons, goddesses of 25 Tereus 11~
Sedil s Wings 1"0 Terpsichore 33
Priam. King 31 Selene 190, 22" Ternman, Dr Robert 142
Tethys 203
Priap. selket 39 Tetzcadipoca 36-8
Thailand 105
pnma materia 1 4 set 35 Thai is 33
Thanatos 32
Prince Liu 6" Thebes "9
Themiscvra 51
princtpa metali; Setanta 18 Theseus 57, "4, 16"
Serpent see Flying. Plumed, Rainbow Sea Thessalv 5"
Procne22" Thetis 195, 203
Procrustes. Procrustean Bed 16" sesheta 158 Thia/.i 14
seven League Boots 1"0 Thor29. 40. 59. 153
Projectors. Academy of 94 Thoth 141, 153 Watchers, The 232
Thunder 40. 51. 153. 212, 214, 216
Prometheus 3 Shalott. Isle of. Lady of 99 Thought 40 Walachia 222
Prospero Prospero s Island 120-1 Tibet 84
Shamans 22. 24. 39->0 Tigris. Rjver 120 Wala-Undayua 20. 214
Tien Lou, Princess 6"
Puck. Pixika 76 Shark 214 Time Machine l"2-3 Wales. Welsh 54, 94. 136 also see Annu-n

Punchinello 36 shawm 64 Tir n an Og 191 Walpurgis. St. Walpurgisnacht 232
Pygmalion King. P s Wife 16" Sheba. Queen of 36 Titania. Queen see Fairies
ShenKung216 W and. Magic 74-5
Titans 18, 23. 31, 34. 36, 40. 41, 181, 184. 203
Pygmyland 203 Tithonus 190-1 Wandjinas 83. 214
Toad 122, 125. T Hall. 125-6; Mr T. (senr) 125 War see Mars, Tetzcatf ipoca, Wotan
Pyrenees 66. "2 Sherwood Forest 80 Toby (dog) 36
Tonga 40, 80
1 Tongue of a Stranger see Xenoglossia
Totem 1"4
Pyrrhal8" Shetland Isles 80 Toun-Ho, the 201 Water Rat 122, 126
Transylvania 222, 229
Pvthoness 165 Shina-to-Bc 214 Travellers* Friends 80 Water spirits 75, 214
Shina-Tsu Hiko2l4 Treasure Island 126-8
Wax figures 1"6
Treels) 13. 44. 60. 68. 80, 82. T of Bells, 122; T Geese. 80;
ship spirits 210-11 Talking Trees, 165. 182 see also Apple Tree. Dodona. Weasels 54, 126

Quaaltagh 16" Shu 38 Elder Tree Leshy, Forest Spirits Wells. H G 54. 1"2
Quadriga 20" Trelawney. Squire 126 Wen Chang 158
Siberia 39. 152 Tnptolemus 67
Queen of the Night see Liliih Tristram 40
Quecalcoad 36 8 21i Sicily 34 Tritons 212 Wendigo 83
Trital8
Quicksilver 228 siege Perilous 169 Trojans 13. 22-3; Trojan Horse, 173; T. Wars, 89 Werewolves etc see Lvcanthropy
Quinquatrus 67 Trolls 81
Quivera 122 Siegfried 1 "2, 188 Tros. King 16 West Indies 26. 103. 221. 228-9. 231
Trov22. 30, 141,173
Sif29.40 Tsar Kolokol 144 Whales, whaling 200-2. 210. 214
Sigmund Yolksung 1~2
Tsetse Bumba 1" White Cat s Casde 130-1
Silent Ones. The 115 Tuatha64
White Rabbit 132 and see Wonderland
Tuli40
Silenus 1". 161 Tung Wang-Kung 165 White Sea-Mist 193
Tu-of-the-Angry-Face 42
Ra38-9 Silver. Longjohn 128 Turkey 51, 173, 194 Whowie, Wowie see Yowie
Twala. King 113-15
Rabelais. Francois 128 Silverado Bird 206 Tyben the Cat 77 Wide World, the 122
Rainbow 196. -Serpent 19. 174,207,214 Tyndareus 46
Rainmaking 20" 8 Rainstones 208 Master of Rain. 216 DomSilvestra, Jose de 1 13 Wigan 70
U-boats. Ghosilv 212
Raiah Guru 58 Sin 22" Ukko 21 Wilde, Oscar 149
Rakshashas 228 Uldra81-2
Sindbad 90-1. 1 19-20. 208-9 Ulster IK Wild Wood, the 122, 125. 126
Raleigh, Sir Walter 105 I'mbopa 113-15
Ram. flying 182 Smdn 29 Unchosen Land 20" Will o' the Wisp 83-4
L'ndead see KVuei, Taxim. Zombies
Ran the Widowmaker 181 Sing Sing 124 Underworld 34. 38. 39, 41. 51, 68. 181, 196. 211. 213 WWinds 13. 31, 36, 51, 182. 184. gods and spirits. 216.
Unicorn 82
Rassendyl. Rudolf 136 Sinon 173 Upas tree 82 3 W WWindmill spirits, 216. Breath of , 214; Master of . 67;
Urania 33
Ran Mbau Ndua 68 Sirens 21 Uranus 34. 40 Mrs W„ 214
Urbar l~4
Rattles 16" sinus 205 l tgjrdoloki Windsor Casde 224-5
Rarwife "6-" Uther. King 14
Ravana228 Sisyphus 205 Utopia 128-9 Windulka 214

RedCap~ Skeleton Island 126 Vail 1"4, 185 Wine 17 also see Vineland
Vjinamoincn. V S Ship 21. 212
Red Cross 11 skv Queen of see Hera Valhalla 25. 34, 129,213 Witches 22, 144, 152. 174,213
Regan 2« Valkvn ies 129,213
Slaves 26. 124. 231 Wizards22, 169. 176-7
Reldresalll6 Vampires 221, 111''. 230-1 ciIm . s,v Hassarab. Mad Drakul
Sleep 229 Yanderdecken. van Falkenberg sr Using Dutchman Women, creauon of 13. 41
Revenants 228-9
Sleepy Hollow 124 Yanits Fair 129 30 Wonderland (Alice in) 131-4
Reynard the Fox 77, 1 70 Ve 13, 16 Wooden Horse of Troy 173
Rhea ' ilvia 31 Sleipnir 34 Venus 21. 25, 29 30, 76, 157, 190. 211
Rhinoceros Horn 168 Snakes 1 "4 also see Serpents. Zalrys Woodman s Hall 134-5
Riser The. and River bank 122 125-6. River Masters 210
Robin Goodfcllow "8 SneffeLs Yokul 101 Wotan 42-4
Rock Candv Mountain. The Great 125
Rocs 208 Snilpall 116 WuHsing 177
Roland 1"2
Solomon, King 113
Rollingstone the Paper Citv 1 25 Somnus 229
Rome. Romans 25. 31. 58. 61 70. 77, 141
Romulus and Remus 31 Sorcerers 13 Yachimata-nito80
Rope Trick. Indian 155 Yahoos 10"-8
Roumania 222. 230 Southern Cross 211 Yakkus84
Round Table 99. 169 Yakshas84
Rudolf V King 136 Spaniards 38, 105 Yakshis 84
Rue l herb ) 53
Rukhs- spam 148 Yama Uba 234-5
Yang and Y'in 141
Runes 169 Spells ro Yjlding Towers 135
Rumania 126
Sphinx "8 Yeti84
Rusalki 209 Ygerna 14
Spiders 51-2 Yggdrasil 44
WRussia 28, 70, 155. 182. 184. 209. 21 1. 213-14. 223. Ymir 13.26
Sprague, Mr 124 Yowie 235
Rve-Vjw 146 Ysbaddaden's Castle 136
Rve Wolf 1 16 St Albans, Battle of 14 1 u shih 216

Starbuck 201-2 YuTzu216

Stars 182.205.211,214,22"

St George 36

Stheno 66-7

Stoats 126

st Petersburg. Missouri 124-5

strelsau 136
Strmanus 1"4

Strombok 102

struldbruggs 118 Xanadu 135
Xanthus21b
suki Yoki ir Xenoglossia 2>4
Xolol'l 44
sumatra 58
Sal69
SabbaLs see Witches &Sun. gods goddesses of, temple of, etc 22, 25. 3 1 . 83. 1 5".

Sagittarius J PO. 186.191, 194, 204, 205 also see Helios. Heliotrope.
Sakarabr Phaethon

Salamander "K Sw-ans 11. 46. r3. 211 /jlns 84
Samothros 51 Sweden 81, 190
Zanges 231-2
a 40
Samuel Enderby. the 201 Switzerland 52 /.tshiki sV .irishi 2,ss
Sangarius. Riser 161 Swords In 25. l"0-2
Zends 136
i Sea 209
Satan "«y 129, 130.152,22! sveorax 120-1 Zephvnis 13. 184, 196. 214. 216
Saucers, dying ISO
Satvrs 1 7 svmplegades 191 /ties 182. 191
Sjw-vcr Ton
Scapev S\ru ISM Zeus 13, 16,17,22.25.31.34,36 39.40,41
Scandinavian mMh< ilogs 1 s svriiu 1"2
141.142.147.158 87. 193. 195. 196. 20J,
s< ins j\ Sweden 20s 20". 211

Tahiti I44 /in Kilsaru s Guitar 177
TailrinK
Zobops2M 2
..imi s-t Zodiac ltv 17, 22. 28 29 35. V9. 40. 41. Houses of Z.. 46
Talos 19 Zombies 14 ) U5
ZorysVeoUauaya 235
Tangj!
/uhcnclgebunubi. Zulx-neschalami 29

A note on the illustrations the pioneering work ol adventurers into the regions ol fantasy.
Apart from these illustrations, a few others have deliberately
The ardent student oi Things Out ol this World, who has read developed out ol possibly familiar scenes, figures, and situa-
ations, with the intention ol showing that the real can he
mwidel) the wondrous literature ol the imagination, will
unreal and vice versa. The majority, however, spring from
notice that some of the illustrations pay homage to the styles the same source tapped bj the original tellers oi the tales
and techniques o( earliei artists in the field. The unmistakable
stamp "i sin h illustrators .is l toward Pyle, Arthur Rackham, ui ounted in tins book.

and tlu .mi icnt School ol Classical Sculptors has been
imposed here and there to remind the reader that this volume
follows a long and honourable tradition, and to acknowledge





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AUG 95

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