Flying Dutchman

( The ), a phantom ship, seen in stormy weather off the Cape of Good Hope, and thought to forebode ill luck. The legend is that it was a ve el laden with precious metal, gained by murder and piracy on the high seas. In punishment, the plague broke out among the crew; no port would admit them, and the ship must sail the seas till doomsday. Another legend is, that a Dutch captain, homeward-bound, driven back by continued storms off the Cape, swore that he would double the Cape if he sailed till the day of doom. Taken at his word, he must now sail the seas forever.—Captain Marryat, The Phantom Ship . Richard Wagner’s opera, Der Fliegende Holländer , adds a loftier motive to the legend. The doomed captain cannot find rest until some woman consents to share his fate. Elsa, moved by pity, makes the sacrifice and saves him from perdition.