Thaumaturgia; Or, Elucidations of the MarvellousOxonian
Religion
Thaumaturgia; Or, Elucidations of the Marvellous
Oxonian
Occultism
Many of the rocks are distinguished for their marked and lengthened
echoes, and the structure, which in acoustics reflects sounds to the
ear, from a point from whence they did not come, reflects images on the
eye, from a place very different from where the objects stood which
produced them. Frequently men riding along shore, are seen as if they
were moving across the lake, and this has given rise to the story of
O'Donougho. This celebrated chieftain was, according to the tradition of
the country, endued with the gift of magic; and, on one occasion, his
lady requested him to change his shape, that she might see a proof of
it. He complied, on condition that she would not be terrified, as such
an effect on her must prove fatal to him. Her mind failed her, however,
in the experiment, and at the sight of some horrible figure he assumed,
she shrieked, and he disappeared through the window of his castle, which
overhung the lake. From that time he continues an enchanted being,
condemned to ride a horse, shod with silver, over the surface of the
lake, till his horse's shoes are worn out. On every May morning he is
visible, and crowds assemble on the shore to see him. Many affirm they
have seen him; and one person relates many particulars of his
apparition, that the deception must have proceeded from some real
object, a man riding along shore, and transferred to the middle of the
water, by the optic delusion of the Fata Morgana.
But perhaps the most wonderful, and apparently preternatural effect
arising from this cause, is the _spectre of the Hartz Mountains_ in
Hanover. There is one particular hill, called the Brocken, in which he
appears, terrifying the credulous, and gratifying the curious to a very
high degree. The most distinct and interesting account is given by Mr.
Hawe, who himself was a witness to it. He had climbed to the top of the
mountain thirty times, and had been disappointed, but he persevered, and
was at length highly gratified. The sun rose about four o'clock in a
serene sky, free from clouds, and its rays passed without obstruction,
over another mountain, called the Heinschoe. About a quarter past five
he looked round to see if the sky was clear, and if there was any chance
of his witnessing what he so ardently wished, when suddenly he saw the
Achtermanshoe, a human figure of monstrous size turned towards him, and
glaring at him. While gazing on this gigantic spectre with wonder mixed
with an irrepressible feeling of awe and apprehension, a sudden gust of
wind nearly carried off his own hat, and he clapped his hand to his head
to detain it, when to his great delight the colossal spectre did the
same. He then changed his body into a variety of attitudes, all which
the figure exactly imitated, but at length suddenly vanished without any
apparent cause, and again as suddenly appeared. He called the landlord
of the inn, who had accompanied him, to stand beside him, and in a
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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