Chapter IX

THE SPECTRE HUNTSMAN AND THE FURIOUS HOST.

Hunting the white doe in the Vale of Todmorden, Lancashire. The
"Gabriel Ratchets." The wish-hounds. The "Gabriel hounds" in
Yorkshire. The classic Orion, "the mighty hunter." The classic
white doe and its mediaeval descendants. The fair maid of Kent. A
fawn attendant on the Greek deities of the morning. Odin, the wild
huntsman, and the furious host. The Yule host of Iceland.
Personification of storm and tempest. Herod, the "Chasse Maccabei,"
and the Wandering Jew. The "seven whistlers" in Lancashire and
Yorkshire. Restless birds believed to be the souls of the damned
condemned to perpetual motion, on the Bosphorus. The wandering
Odin and his two ravens, representing Thought and Memory. The
Wandering Jew's last appearance in the flesh. Temporary death of
the weather-gods typical of the seasons. Odin slain by the wild
boar. Thammuz and the Greek Adonis. Odin lord of the gallows.
Odin's spear. Roland's "Durandal," the sword of Chrysaor, of
Theseus, and of Sigurd. Arthur's "Excalibur" and others. Their
Aryan prototype, Indra's thunderbolt. Magic cudgels. The lad and
the "rascally innkeeper." Indra and Vritra, and the Panis. Long
Aryan winters. Hackelberg's coit throwing. King Arthur's similar
exploit in Northumberland. The devil's doings at Kirkby Lonsdale,
at Leyland church, and at Winwick. Etymology of the word "Winwick."
Odin buried in the cloud mountain. Heroes slumbering in caves.
Frederic Barbarossa, Henry the Fowler, Charlemagne, and the
renowned Arthur. Arthur's death and translation to Avalun. The
Eildon Hills and the Sewingshields castle traditions. The
"Helmwind," near Kirkoswald, Cumberland. Sir Tarquin's castle at
Manchester. Arthur's battles on the Douglas. Arthur still alive as
a raven. The Gjallar horn. A Cheshire legend says Arthur reposes in
the "Wizard's Cave," at Alderley Edge. Ancient reputation of
Britain for tempests and pestilential storms. The departure of the
genii. A similar superstition in equatorial Africa. Irish
superstitions. The furious host. Wandering souls of the unquiet
dead. The Aryan Maruts and Ribhus. The approach of the furious
host. The black coach legend. The yelping hound. The stray hound of
Odin. The Lancashire and Dorsetshire black dog fiends. The "Trash"
or "Skriker" of East Lancashire. Cerberus and the Vedic Sarvari.
Hermes and the Vedic Sarameyas. The howling dog, an embodiment of
the wind and herald of death. Recent example of the power of this
superstition in Lancashire. Acute sense of smell probably at the
root of this personification. Dogs supposed to be able to see
spirits. Dr. Marigold's dog and the approach of domestic storms.
Will-o'-whisps, or souls of unbaptised children. The Maruts after a
storm assume the form of new-born babes, as Hermes returned to his
cradle after tearing up the forests. Odin sometimes chases the wild
boar, sometimes Holda, or Bertha, his wife. The hell-hunt. Hell or
Hela, the goddess of death. The English hunt. England the realm of
Hela. Niflheim, the world of mists, and the Greek Hades. Nastrond
and the modern Hell. After death punishment for crimes done in the
body. Valhalla and the Gothic Hell and Devil. Contrast between the
Eastern and Northern notions of Hell, and Shakspere's powerful
description thereof. Wandering spirits of the Greek and Aryan
mythologies. Yorkshire ballad concerning the passage of the soul
over Whinney Moor. Cleveland belief in the efficacy of a gift of a
pair of shoes to a poor man. Salt placed on the stomach of a
corpse. Salt an emblem of eternity and immortality. Flights of
birds. The seven whistlers. The bellowing of cows. Odin and his
host carry off cows. The Milky-way or the _kaupat_ to heaven. The
Ashton heriot. Figurative character of Odin's accessories. Examples
from Greek archaeic art of the gradual evolution of mythological
personification from physical phenomena. Orpheus the Aryan Arbhus.
The nightmare. The Maruts. The Valkyrs or wild riders of Germany.
The "Black Lad" of Ashton-under-Lyne. The wild rider. The demon
Tregeagle, or tyrant lord of Cornwall, and his endless labours.
Tam O'Shanter and the witches. Bottomless pools. Sir Francis Drake
and the hearse drawn by headless horses. The wish hounds. Poetic
sympathy. The Ashton "Black Lad" or tyrant lord. Bamford's poem
"The Wild Rider." Earthly heroes substituted for Odin. Page 153