THE BANSHEE IN POETRY AND PROSE
"'Twas the Banshee's lonely wailing,
Well I knew the voice of death,
On the night wind slowly sailing
O'er the bleak and gloomy heath."
These are the dramatic lines Thomas Crofton Croker, in his inimitable
"Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of Ireland," puts in the mouth
of the widow MacCarthy, as she is lamenting over the body of her son,
Charles, whose death had been predicted by the Banshee; not the beautiful
and dainty Banshee of the O'Briens, but a wild, unkempt, haggish creature
that seemed in perfect harmony with the drear and desolate moorland from
whence it sprang.
Mr Croker, indeed, almost invariably associates the Banshee with the heath
and bogland, for at the commencement of his Tales of the Banshee in the
same volume, we find these well-known lines:
"Who sits upon the heath forlorn,
With robe so free and tresses worn,
Anon she pours a harrowing strain,
And then she sits all mute again!
Now peals the wild funereal cry,
And now--it sinks into a sigh."
Very different from this grim and repellent portrayal of the Banshee given
by Mr Croker is the very pleasing and attractive description of it
presented to us by Dr Kenealy, whose account of it in prose appears in an
earlier chapter of this book.
Referring to the death of his brother, Dr Kenealy says:
"Here the Banshee, that phantom bright who weeps
Over the dying of her own loved line,
Floated in moonlight; in her streaming locks
Gleamed starshine; when she looked on me, she knew
And smiled."
And again:
"The wish has but
Escaped my lips--and lo! once more it streams
In liquid lapse upon the fairy winds
That guard each slightest note with jealous care,
And bring them hither, even as angels might
To the beloved to whom they minister."
In reference to phantom music heard at sea, Mr Dyer, in his "Ghost
World," p. 413, quotes the following lines:
"A low sound of song from the distance I hear,
In the silence of night, breathing sad on my ear,
Whence comes it? I know not--unearthly the note,
Yet it sounds like the lay that my mother once sung,
As o'er her first-born in his cradle she hung."
As I have already stated, the Banshee is not infrequently heard at sea,
either singing or weeping, hence, in all probability, the author of these
lines, whose name, by the way, Mr Dyer does not divulge, had the Banshee
in mind when he wrote them. But, perhaps, the best known, as well as the
most direct reference to this ghost in verse is that made by Ireland's
popular poet, Thomas Moore, in one of the most famous of his "Irish
Melodies." I append the poem, not only for the reference it contains, but
also on account of its general beauty.
"How oft has the Banshee cried!
How oft has death untied
Bright bonds that glory wove
Sweet bonds entwin'd by love.
Peace to each manly soul that sleepeth!
Rest to each faithful eye that weepeth!
Long may the fair and brave
Sigh o'er the hero's grave.
We're fallen upon gloomy days,
Star after star decays,
Every bright name, that shed
Light o'er the land, is fled.
Dark falls the tear of him who mourneth
Lost joy, a hope that ne'er returneth,
But brightly flows the tear
Wept o'er the hero's bier.
Oh, quenched are our beacon lights
Thou, of the hundred fights!
Thou, on whose burning tongue
Truth, peace, and freedom hung!
Both mute, but long as valour shineth
Or Mercy's soul at war refineth
So long shall Erin's pride
Tell how they lived and died."
With the following extracts from the translation of an elegy written by
Pierse Ferriter, the Irish poet soldier, who fought bravely in the
Cromwellian wars, I must now terminate these references to the Banshee in
poetry:
"When I heard lamentations
And sad, warning cries
From the Banshees of many
Broad districts arise.
Aina from her closely hid
Nest did awake
The woman of wailing
From Gur's voicy lake;
From Glen Fogradh of words
Came a mournful whine,
And all Kerry's Banshees
Wept the lost Geraldine.[14]
The Banshees of Youghal
And of stately Mo-geely
Were joined in their grief
By wide Imokilly.
Carah Mona in gloom
Of deep sorrow appears,
And all Kinalmeaky's
Absorbed into tears.
* * * *
The Banshee of Dunquin
In sweet song did implore
To the spirit that watches
O'er dark Dun-an-oir,
And Ennismare's maid
By the dark, gloomy wave
With her clear voice did mourn
The fall of the brave.
On stormy Slieve Mish
Spread the cry far and wide,
From steeply Finnaleun
The wild eagle replied.
'Mong the Reeks, like the
Thunder peal's echoing rout,
It burst--and deep moaning
Bright Brandon gives out,
Oh Chief! whose example
On soft-minded youth
Like the signet impressed
Honour, glory, and truth.
The youth who once grieved
If unnoticed passed by,
Now deplore thee in silence
With sorrow-dimmed eye,
O! woman of tears,
Who, with musical hands,
From your bright golden hair
Hath combed out the long bands,
Let those golden strings loose,
Speak your thoughts--let your mind
Fling abroad its full light,
Like a torch to the wind."
In fiction no writer has, I think, dealt more freely with the subject of
the Banshee than Thomas Crofton Croker, the translator of the
abovementioned elegy. In his "Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of
Ireland," he gives the most inimitable accounts of it; and for the benefit
of those of my readers who are unacquainted with his works, as well as for
the purpose of presenting the Banshee as seen by such an unrivalled
portrayer of Irish ghost and fairy lore, I will give a brief resume of
two of his stories.
The one I will take first relates to the Rev. Charles Bunworth, who about
the middle of the eighteenth century was rector of Buttevant, County Cork.
Mr Bunworth was greatly beloved and esteemed, not only on account of his
piety--for pious people are by no means always popular--but also on
account of his charity. He used to give pecuniary aid, often when he could
ill afford it, to all and any, no matter to what faith they belonged, whom
he really believed were in need; and being particularly fond of music,
especially the harp, he entertained, in a most generous and hospitable
manner, all the poor Irish harpers that came to his house. At the time of
his death, no fewer than fifteen harps were found in the loft of his
granary, presents, one is led to infer, from strolling harpers, in token
of their gratitude for his repeated acts of kindness to them.
About a week prior to his decease, and at an early hour in the evening,
several of the occupants of his house heard a strange noise outside the
hall door, which they could only liken to the shearing of sheep. No very
serious attention, however, was paid to it, and it was not until some time
afterwards, when other queer things happened, that it was recalled and
associated with the supernatural. Later on, at about seven o'clock in the
evening, Kavanagh, the herdman, returned from Mallow, whither he had been
dispatched for some medicine. He appeared greatly agitated, and, in
response to Miss Bunworth's questions as to what was the matter, could
only ejaculate:
"The master, Miss, the master! He is going from us."
Miss Bunworth, thinking he had been drinking, sternly reproved him,
whereupon he responded:
"Miss, as I hope mercy hereafter, neither bite nor sup has passed my lips
since I left this house; but the master----" Here he broke down, only
adding with an effort, "We will lose him--the master." He then began to
weep and wring his hands.
Miss Bunworth, who, during this strange recital, was growing more and more
bewildered, now exclaimed impatiently:
"What _is_ it you mean? Do explain yourself."
Kavanagh was silent, but, as she persisted, commanding him to speak, he at
length said:
"The Banshee has come for him, Miss; and 'tis not I alone who have heard
her."
But Miss Bunworth only laughed and rebuked him for being superstitious.
"Maybe I am superstitious," he retorted, "but as I came through the glen
of Ballybeg she was along with me, keening, and screeching, and clapping
her hands by my side, every step of the way, with her long white hair
falling about her shoulders, and I could hear her repeat the master's name
every now and then, as plain as ever I hear it. When I came to Old Abby,
she parted from me there, and turned into pigeon field next the
berrin'-ground, and, folding her cloak about her, down she sat under the
tree that was struck by lightning, and began keening so bitterly that it
went through one's heart to hear it."
Miss Bunworth listened more attentively now, but told Kavanagh that she
was sure he was mistaken, as her father was very much better and quite out
of danger. However, she spoke too soon, for that very night her father had
a relapse and was soon in a very critical condition. His daughters nursed
him with the utmost devotion, but at length, overcome with the strain of
many hours of sleepless watchfulness, they were obliged to take a rest and
allow a certain old friend of theirs, temporarily, to take their place.
It was night; without the house everything was still and calm; within the
aged watcher was seated close beside the sick man's bed, the head of which
had been placed near the window, so that the sufferer could, in the
daylight, steal a glimpse at the fields and trees he loved so much. In an
adjoining room, and in the kitchen, were a number of friends and
dependents who had come from afar to inquire after the condition of the
patient. Their conversation had been carried on for some time in whispers,
and then, as if infected by the intense hush outside, they had gradually
ceased talking, and all had become absolutely hushed. Suddenly the aged
watcher heard a sound outside the window. She looked, but though there was
a brilliant moonlight, which rendered every object far and near strikingly
conspicuous, she could perceive nothing--nothing at least that could
account for the disturbance. Presently the noise was repeated; a rose tree
near the window rustled and seemed to be pulled violently aside. Then
there was the sound like the clapping of hands and of breathing and
blowing close to the window-panes.
At this, the old watcher, who was now getting nervous, arose and went into
the next room, and asked those assembled there if they had heard anything.
Apparently, they had not, but they all went out and searched the grounds,
particularly in the vicinity of the rose tree, but could discover no clue
as to the cause of the noises, and although the ground was soft with
recent rain, there were no footprints to be seen anywhere. After they had
made an exhaustive examination, and had settled down again indoors, the
clapping at once recommenced, and was accompanied this time by moanings,
which the whole party of investigators now heard. The sounds went on for
some time, apparently till close to dawn, when the reverend gentleman
died.
The other story concerns the MacCarthys, of whom Mr Croker remarks, "being
an old, and especially an old Catholic family, they have, of course, a
Banshee."
Charles MacCarthy in 1749 was the only surviving son of a very numerous
family. His father died when he was twenty, leaving him his estate, and
being very gay, handsome, and thoughtless, he soon got into bad company
and made an unenviable reputation for himself. Going from one excess to
another he at length fell ill, and was soon in such a condition that his
life was finally despaired of by the doctor. His mother never left him.
Always at his bedside, ready to administer to his slightest want, she
showed how truly devoted she was to him, although she was by no means
blind to his faults. Indeed, so acutely did she realise the danger in
which his soul stood, that she prayed most earnestly that should he die,
he should at least be spared long enough to be able to recover
sufficiently to see the enormity of his offences, and repent accordingly.
To her utmost sorrow, however, instead of his mind clearing a little, as
so often happens after delirium and before death, he gradually fell into a
state of coma, and presented every appearance of being actually dead. The
doctor was sent for, and the house and grounds were speedily filled with a
crowd of people, friends, tenants, fosterers, and poor relatives; one and
all anxious to learn the exact condition of the sick man. With tremendous
excitement they awaited the exit of the doctor from the house, and, when
he at length emerged, they clustered round him and listened for his
verdict.
"It's all over, James," he said to the man who was holding his steed, and
with those few brief words he climbed into his saddle and rode away. Then
the women who were standing by gave a shrill cry, which developed into a
continuous, plaintive and discordant groaning, interrupted every now and
again by the deep sobbing and groaning, and clapping of hands of Charles'
foster-brother, who was moving in and out the crowd, distracted with
grief.
All the time Mrs MacCarthy was sitting by the body of her son, the tears
streaming from her eyes. Presently some women entered the room and
inquired about directions for the ceremony of waking, and providing the
refreshments necessary for the occasion. Mournfully the widow gives them
the instructions they need, and then continues her solitary vigil, crying
with all her soul, and yet quite unaware of the tears that kept pouring
from her eyes. So, on and on, with brief intervals only, all through the
loud and boisterous lamentations of the visitors over her beloved one, far
into the stillness of the night. In one of the interludes, in which she
has removed into an inner room to pray, she suddenly hears a low
murmuring, which is speedily succeeded by a wild cry of horror, and then,
out from the room in which the deceased lies, pour, like some
panic-stricken sheep, the entire crowd of those that have participated in
the Wake. Nothing daunted, Mrs MacCarthy rushes into the apartment they
have quitted, and sees, sitting up on the bed, the light from the candles
casting a most unearthly glare on his features, the body of her son.
Falling on her knees before it and clasping her hands she at once
commences praying; but hearing the word "mother," she springs forward,
and, clutching the figure by the arm, shrieks out:
"Speak, in the name of God and His Saints, speak! Are you alive?"
The pale lips move, and finally exclaim:
"Yes, my mother, alive, but sit down and collect yourself."
And then, to the startled and bewildered mother he, whom she had been
mourning all this time as dead, unfolded the following remarkable tale.
He declared he remembered nothing of the preliminary stages of his
illness, all of which was a blank, and was only cognisant of what was
happening when he found himself in another world, standing in the presence
of his Creator, Who had summoned him for judgment.
"The dreadful pomp of offended omnipotence," he dramatically stated, "was
printed on his brain in characters indelible." What would have happened he
dreaded to think, had it not been for his guardian saint, that holy spirit
his mother had always taught him to pray to, who was standing by his side,
and who pleaded with Him "that one year and one month might be given him
on the earth again, in which he should have the opportunity of doing
penance and atonement."
After a terribly anxious wait, in which his whole fate--his fate for
eternity--hung in the balance, the progress of his kindly intercessor
succeeded, and the Great and Awful Judge pronounced these words:
"Return to that world in which thou hast lived but to outrage the laws of
Him Who made that world and thee. Three years are given thee for
repentance; when these are ended thou shalt again stand here, to be saved
or lost for ever."
Charles saw and heard no more; everything became a void, until he suddenly
became once again conscious of light and found himself lying on the bed.
He told this experience as if it were no dream, but, as he really believed
it to be, an actual reality, and, on his gradually regaining health and
strength, he showed the effect it had had on him by completely changing
his mode of life. Though not altogether shunning his former companions in
folly, he never went to any excess with them, but, on the contrary, often
exercised a restraining influence over them, and so, by degrees, came to
be looked upon as a person of eminent prudence and wisdom.
The years passed by till at last the third anniversary of the wonderful
recovery drew near. As Charles still adhered to his belief that what he
had experienced had been no mere dream or wandering of the mind, but an
actual visit to spirit land, so nervous did his mother become, as the time
drew near for the expiration of the lease of life he declared had been
allotted to him, that she wrote to Mrs Barry, a friend of hers, begging
her to come with her two girls and stay with her for a few days, until, in
fact, the actual day of the third anniversary should have passed.
Unfortunately, Mrs Barry, instead of getting to Spring House, where Mrs
MacCarthy lived, on the Wednesday, the day specified in the invitation,
was not able to commence the journey till the following Friday, and she
then had to leave her eldest daughter behind and bring only the younger
one.
What ultimately happened is very graphically described in a letter from
the younger girl to the elder. In brief it was this: She and her mother
set out in a jaunting-car driven by their man Leary. The recent rains made
the road so heavy that they found it impossible to make other than very
slow progress, and had to put up for the first night at the house of a Mr
Bourke, a friend of theirs, who kept them until late the following day.
Indeed, it was evening when they left his premises, with a good fifteen
miles to cover before they arrived at Spring House.
The weather was variable, at times the moon shone clear and bright, whilst
at others it was covered with thick, black, fast-scudding clouds. The
farther they progressed, the more ominous did the elements become, the
clouds collected in vast masses, the wind grew stronger and stronger, and
presently the rain began to fall. Slow as their progress had been before,
it now became slower; at every step the wheels of their car either plunged
into a deep slough, or sank almost up to the axle in thick mud.
At last, so impossible did it become, that Mrs Barry inquired of Leary how
far they were from Mr Bourke's, the house they had recently left.
"'Tis about ten spades from this to the cross," was the reply, "and we
have then only to turn to the left into the avenue, ma'am."
"Very well, then," answered Mrs Barry, "turn up to Mr Bourke's as soon as
you reach the crossroads."
Mrs Barry had scarcely uttered these words when a shriek, that thrilled
the hearers to the very core of their hearts, burst from the hedge to
their right.
It resembled the cry of a female--if it resembled anything earthly at
all--struck by a sudden and mortal blow, and giving out life in one long,
deep pang of agony.
"Heaven defend us!" exclaimed Mrs Barry. "Go you over the hedge, Leary,
and save that woman, if she is not yet dead."
"Woman!" said Leary, beating the horse violently, while his voice
trembled. "That's no woman; the sooner we get on, ma'am, the better," and
he urged the horse forward.
There was now a heavy spell of darkness as the moon was once again hidden
by the clouds, but, though they could see nothing, they heard screams of
despair and anguish, accompanied by a loud clapping of the hands, just as
if some person on the other side of the hedge was running along in a line
with their horse's head, and keeping pace with them.
When they came to within ten yards of the spot where the avenue branched
off to Mr Bourke's on the left, and the road to Spring House led away to
the right, the moon suddenly reappeared, and they saw, with startling
distinctness, the figure of a tall, thin woman, with uncovered head, and
long hair floating round her shoulders, attired in a kind of cloak or
sheet, standing at the corner of the hedge, just where the road along
which they were driving met that which led to Spring House. She had her
face turned towards them, and, whilst pointing with her left hand in the
direction of Spring House, with her right was beckoning them to hurry. As
they advanced she became more and more agitated, until finally, leaping
into the road in front of them, and still pointing with outstretched arm
in the direction of Spring House, she took up her stand at the entrance to
the Avenue, as if to bar their way, and glared defiantly at them.
"Go on, Leary, in God's name!" exclaimed Mrs Barry.
"'Tis the Banshee," said Leary, "and I could not, for what my life is
worth, go anywhere this blessed night but to Spring House. But I'm afraid
there's something bad going forward, or she would not send us there."
He pressed on towards Spring House, and almost directly afterwards clouds
covered the moon, and the Banshee disappeared; the sound of her clapping,
though continuing for some time, gradually becoming fainter and fainter,
until it finally ceased altogether.
On their arrival at Spring House they learnt that a dreadful tragedy had
just taken place.
A lady, Miss Jane Osborn, who was Charles MacCarthy's ward, was to have
been married to one James Ryan, and on the day preceding the marriage, as
Ryan and Charles MacCarthy were walking together in the grounds of the
latter's house, a strange young woman, hiding in the shrubbery, shot
Charles in mistake for Ryan, who, it seems, had seduced and deserted her.
The wound, which at first appeared trivial, suddenly developed serious
symptoms, and before the sun had gone down on the third anniversary of
his memorable experience with the Unknown, Charles MacCarthy was again
ushered into the presence of his Maker, there to render of himself a
second and a final account.