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[Craig Romig]

The place i work has a story of a black snake living upstairs where the winter sleeping rooms r at.  We r gone most of the summer.  But we come back to the main shop two times a season. Anyway a story was told that a black snake lived up there. Big deal. They only eat mice and rats. The truth i found out this year. Was that a winter worker put a black hose on top of the dark top step. To maybe keep the summer workers from going upstairs.

This snake prank story has been told as a true snake for the last  3 yrs now.  Although untrue.  The story really didnt work  to solve the problem. Thats why u cant believe stories sometimes. They have reasons behind them. Or the person telling the story. Wasnt told the true story to begin with.

But the telling of a real snake vs the real truth. Reminds me alot of stories that r relayed by others. To try and state stories as a fact. Such as the kilts story.  As well as im not sure i believe other islander stories  such as ghosts or spirits..

Anyway getting a true story takes more than one source sometimes. .

[Craig Romig]

Such as emily saying 10 bodies on the reef. No way could that have been. In that period of time that would have elasped. Those bones would have been swept away by the surf.  She didnt see the bones her father told her about the story. Was that just to keep her away from that area.

As well as the spirit story. Was that a way of keeping others away from that point on the island?

[Martin X. Moleski, SJ]

Such as emily saying 10 bodies on the reef. No way could that have been. In that period of time that would have elasped. Those bones would have been swept away by the surf.  She didnt see the bones her father told her about the story. Was that just to keep her away from that area?

Could have been garbling in transmission of the truth that eleven men were lost in the wreck of the Norwich City.  It seems to me that it would be easy to reduce 11 to 10 and to conflate the truth of their deaths with the finding of some bones.

[JNev]

It would be a dull world without snake stories and superstitions.

[Tim Collins]

It would be a dull world without snake stories and superstitions.

Oh I'm not so sure of that. Ireland and the Irish aren't particularly dull, after all, who doesn't like Guinness?

[Steve Schlutt]

Here's a modern Snake Story-- 
My wife is TERRIFIED of Toads & Frogs.  We live in the country in Michigan, and there are plenty of these creatures around during the season.  She would return home late evening just after dusk, and the toads would love sitting up on our driveway, probably because is was damp and warm.  And she would just SCREAM!  It happened a lot, 2-3 times each week for awhile.  I'd have to go outside prior to her return and clear the deck, so to speak.  A couple of years ago, I bought some rubber snakes and lined our driveway with them.  Guess what?  We haven't seen a toad on our driveway since.  We bought a few more last year, and now we have 12-15 rubber snakes around our house and driveway.  Works like a charm!  The only downside is that deliverymen and visitors sometimes see them and have a moment of panic until they realize that they're fake.   

[Craig Romig]

Great responces to all.

Keeping kids away from danger or death spots is a good thing any parent would try to do. Not telling a child the real reason they shouldnt visit a certain place on the island. Ie a damaged structure or dead bodies on other parts of the island. The stories that may have been used may have given the children a better reason not to go to these areas.

[Craig Romig]

Thinking this. And considering kawana point. I can see where maybe seeing a spirt may or may not have been a scare story. If a true spirt could it have been of the islands unsettled dead spirits. If just a ghost story. Could nearby been the actual spot of the passing of one or more castaways.

Weather or not these castaways visited other parts of the island.

[Craig Romig]

Although finding nothing more than shoe parts isnt much proof. Those could have been washed to that point in a storm.