An Unsolved Victorian-Era Riddle #

In which I propose a solution.

I came across this riddle, purportedly by Bishop Samuel Wilberforce, but it seems that attribution is in error:

I’m the sweetest of voices in orchestra heard,
But yet in an orchestra never have been.
I’m a bird of fine plumage, but less like a bird
Nothing ever in Nature was seen.
Touching earth I expire; in water I die;
Though I do progress, I can run, swim and fly.
Darkness destroys me, and light is my death;
And I can't keep alive without stopping my breath.
If my name can’t be guessed by a boy or a man,
By a woman or girl it certainly can.

Some proposed answers:

I sort of get "Whale" and "Angel" (assuming those definitions are real), but I don't get the others, so I'd like to propose a different solution: "The HMS Kestrel".

The ship did exist in Wilberforce's time (in case he did write the riddle): it was launched in 1856 when Wilberforce was 51 (he died in 1873, aged 68) and it was sold in 1866 after seeing some action in the 1850s and 1860s.

My analysis:

I’m the sweetest of voices in orchestra heard,
But yet in an orchestra never have been.

"Kestrel" is a play on the prominent sound ("sweetest sound") in "Orchestra," but the ship was never in an orchestra.

I’m a bird of fine plumage, but less like a bird
Nothing ever in Nature was seen.

A kestrel is "the common name give to several species of predatory birds," so its a "bird of fine plumage". A ship looks nothing like a bird.

Touching earth I expire; in water I die; Though I do progress, I can run, swim and fly.

The HMS Kestrel was a Clown-class gunboat which had a wood hull, steam power, and sails. They were often used for shallow water bombardment.

The dangers of running aground ("touching earth") and sinking ("in water") were real (see next item). The "run" of the steam engine helped "swim" (in water) while the sails let it "fly" (by air).

Darkness destroys me, and light is my death;
And I can't keep alive without stopping my breath.

Bit of a stretch, but with ChatGPT's help: Night operations ("darkness") and being discovered by the enemy ("light") were both operational hazards. Indeed, the HMS Kestrel was part of the second Battle of Taku Forts:

The attack was a bloody shambles, and it was clear that retreat was the only alternative to complete annihilation. Lee had grounded, and Kestrel had sunk halfway to its funnels in the Hai’s brown waters. Cormorant was a loss, and the shattered Plover was grounded and abandoned. The Kestrel was later recovered, but the other three were written off as total losses.

To avoid detection, perhaps the ship had to turn off the loud steam engine ("stopping my breath").

If my name can’t be guessed by a boy or a man,
By a woman or girl it certainly can.

A kestrel is a predatory bird which Victorians considered a masculine trait, but birds, more generally, were largely associated with feminity.

# logic, puzzle