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bunnThere are lots of excellent Cornish legends of course, but I particularly like this one.
I'd heard about the leaky limpet shell and having to bail out Dozmary pool, but I hadnt' realised just how elaborate the story was, with Jan Tregeagle being posed so many thankless tasks one after the other. I particularly like the mental image of his ghost trying to dive into the chapel at Roch Rock through the stained glass, and getting stuck with his bottom sticking out for the demons to torment.
I also like the fact that he's a relatively recent figure historically, and yet the clergy of Cornwall have been repeatedly faced with the problem of posing him new eternal torments. One feels the Diocese of Truro probably has a file on the man with a 'torments to try next' section.
I love the idea of the ghost giving evidence against himself, and then the court deciding that although he's quite wicked, it's a bit extreme to damn the man to hell, after all. Much more humane to give him a leaky limpet shell and a lake to bail, or put him on the beach to spin ropes from sand. OK, it might not be much fun in the winter but in the summer it's probably quite a pleasant task. :-D
I'd heard about the leaky limpet shell and having to bail out Dozmary pool, but I hadnt' realised just how elaborate the story was, with Jan Tregeagle being posed so many thankless tasks one after the other. I particularly like the mental image of his ghost trying to dive into the chapel at Roch Rock through the stained glass, and getting stuck with his bottom sticking out for the demons to torment.
I also like the fact that he's a relatively recent figure historically, and yet the clergy of Cornwall have been repeatedly faced with the problem of posing him new eternal torments. One feels the Diocese of Truro probably has a file on the man with a 'torments to try next' section.
I love the idea of the ghost giving evidence against himself, and then the court deciding that although he's quite wicked, it's a bit extreme to damn the man to hell, after all. Much more humane to give him a leaky limpet shell and a lake to bail, or put him on the beach to spin ropes from sand. OK, it might not be much fun in the winter but in the summer it's probably quite a pleasant task. :-D
