Dear Alastair
This might be a reference to a Old Louhi, the Witch of
the North in the Finnish epic "The Kalevala" which is
the Finnish national epic, compiled by Elias Lönnrot
(1802-1884) from ancient oral poetry, with the final
version published in 1849. It was translated into
English in 1888 by John Martin Crawford.
Knowing RKs interest in folklore as well as that of
his uncle, I can see that RK may have read the work.
If you think it worth following up this suggestion,
these two websites are worth looking at.
http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/kalevala.htm
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/kveng/index.htm
Yours
David (Page)
--- Alastair Wilson <[log in to unmask]>
wrote: > In preparing the Notes to the text of 'Their
Lawful
> Occasions" for the New Reader's Guide, I am slightly
> baffled by a reference in the verses which head Part
> II of that tale.
> There are two verses, and RK later added an
> intermediate verse and the whole was collected in
> Songs from Books under the title 'The Egg-shell'.
> The verse describes, in poetical and somewhat
> fanciful form, an attack by a torpedo boat on a
> fleet, in a fog.
> I do not understand, though, the allusion to 'The
> Witch of the North'. I imagine that it comes from
> some Victorian children's story, but which? In
> essence, when comparing the poem with 'Their Lawful
> Occasions', the Witch of the North might be taken to
> be the admiral who sent TB 267 out, (and as will be
> shown in the notes to the tale, it would seem that
> when he created "The Right Honourable Lord Gawd
> Almighty Admiral Master Frankie Frobisher, KCB", RK
> had in mind Admiral Sir Harry Stephenson, commanding
> the Channel Squadron in 1898). But why describe the
> admiral (any admiral, come to that,) as "The Witch
> of the North"?
>
> Any ideas, please?
> Alastair Wilson
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