A Historical Anecdote Of A Boy Who Was Lost At Stettin
(Described by Lucas Mützell in Friedeborn Part II, p. 109ff)
One Friday evening of the year 1576, a ten year old boy in Stettin by the name of Carsten Schöckell, whose parents lived in Kolberg, was lost and only returned the next Sunday evening. This boy had been staying with his mother’s sister, who was a washerwoman at the wharf as well as the housekeeper of Peter Malchow.
When many distinguished and honest people questioned the boy how he had vanished and where he had been, the boy sighed and reported with great clarity that he had gone out of the door. Then something like a cloud soon surrounded him. An old man then carried him away and finally brought him to a dark place where there was a lot of grunting as if there had been a large herd of pigs.
When the boy asked the old one what kind of place this was, the latter answered that they were undertakers, and that this was the place where the souls of the godless were waiting for God’s stern judgment and eternal wrath. Then the old one brought him to a very terrible place where there were many chairs which stood within fiery flames, and black dogs were tied up with glowing chains. Fire came out of their throats, and they snarled at the boy in an abominable manner as if they wanted to tear him apart. Then the boy uttered the words: “The dogs growl at me!” But then the old one calmed the boy and told him not to be afraid, for no harm would befall him.
When the boy had recovered from the fright, he once again asked what kind of place this was. But the old one replied that the dogs were evil spirits who had been bound with fiery chains, and they were unable to do more than what God had conceded and permitted to them. But it was intended that all godless and unjust judges would sit on the fiery chairs, and this was the place where the godless would be tortured by all the devils for all eternity.
Afterwards, the old man in turn brought him to an exceedingly merry and beautiful place. And the boy said that it was impossible for him to describe the splendor of this place, but everything was like sunshine and bright light, and there was inexpressible joy, and everyone who had been there had worn white shirts and sung “Gloria, Gloria!” out of joy. Then the boy asked whether this was Heaven? But he answered: “No, this is a kind of antechamber to Heaven where the God-fearing souls wait for Judgement Day and for God’s glorious and merry future. And this is not comparable to the eternal joys of Heaven in any way.” Then the boy prayed that he might stay here. But the old one said that no human could stay here if they had not died yet. However, eventually he would return to this place.
After all this had occurred as elaborated above, the boy returned on the third evening to the front of the door of the woman he had stayed with. After she berated him and asked him where he had been, he said: “Oh mother,” — for this is how he called her — “do not beat me, for I have been to strange places”. Then he told her of everything as elaborated above.
Furthermore he reported with great sighing that he could say much of future plagues and misfortune, but he was not permitted to reveal these. And if people knew about the great disaster which would occur in a few years, it would be impossible for any human to be merry. But when several distinguished people asked him to report what he knew, and promised him a new set of clothing if he did, he replied that even if it were possible to give him all the possessions in the world, he would not say anything — for he would not fare well if he did so. He merely stated that people should pray diligently. Then they asked him whether it was pestilence or war, he answered: “Yes, pestilence, war”, but he was not permitted to say everything.
Then he was furthermore asked if he had received the order to give some advice to the preachers regarding their teachings. He said: “No, you have good preachers who teach you God’s word correctly. If only people would repent and pray!” Then he was asked if he prayed as well, and he spoke: “Should I not pray? I plead day and night that I shall return to the splendid place where I have been!” But the boy sighed and spoke of such things not in the manner of a boy of ten years, but like an old, wise man with a great mind.
But a short time later, when he was supposed to carry away pieces of cloth, he walked into the nearest house and asked the women there if she could bring the basket with the cloth to his mother. For he claimed that he felt strange, and then he went out of the house again.
As the woman knew that he had been lost once before, she quickly followed him. But she lost sight of him, and thus he had become lost again. And it should be assumed that he had been taken away and brought to the splendid place where he had been. These things have been reported to me, Lucas Mützell, by numerous credible and distinguished people who had spoken with the boy. Furthermore, I had been in Stettin while these incidents took place. I have spoken to the woman with whom he had stayed with at the time myself. I would also have spoken to the boy directly if he had not been taken away the second time. But I had written down everything, and as I have rediscovered it now among my writings, I wanted to publish it as a warning and to make these matters known in this evil, dangerous time.
Source: Grässe - Sagenbuch des preussischen Staats - Zweiter Band, p. 428ff