The Nicole is a ghost who torments the honest fishermen of the Bay of Saint-Brieuc and Saint-Malo.
Origin
The Nicole received its name from an officer who commanded a battalion of fishermen conscripts, and who from his intense severity and general reputation as a martinet obtained a bad reputation among the seafaring population.
Behavior
Just when fishermen are about to draw in their nets this mischievous spirit leaps around them, freeing the fish, or he will loosen a boat's anchor so that it will drift on to a sand-bank. He may divide the cable which holds the anchor to the vessel and cause endless trouble.