The Letter-Bag of Lady Elizabeth Spencer-Stanhope — Volume 1
History
The Letter-Bag of Lady Elizabeth Spencer-Stanhope — Volume 1
Great Britain -- Social life and customs -- 19th century; Spencer-Stanhope, Elizabeth Wilhelmina Coke, Lady, 1795-1873
About ten years ago a friend of his was riding thro' a long and gloomy
wood in one of the inland counties. As he came to the most intricate
part, suddenly his horse made a dead pause, pricked up his ears,
snorted, and when spurred, refused to proceed, his eyes all the time
upon one spot on the ground. On looking towards this place, conceive
the gentleman's horror at beholding a woman's body weltering in blood
and a dog licking the wounds. The traveller stood for some minutes
petrified with horror, his eyes rivetted on the body, when all at once
the dog, perceiving him, set off full speed thro' the thickest part of
the wood.
He was resolved to pursue the animal, and instantly spurring his
horse, he followed it through most intricate and unfrequented roads
for about ten miles, when he saw it enter a miserable house in a
little village. The traveller put up his horse, and entering the same
house, desired they would bring him something to drink. There were
three ill-looking fellows sitting round a table, under which the dog
had lain down. The traveller's object was now to find out to whom the
dog belonged, he tried every means, in vain, for about an hour, when,
seizing hold of the poker he, under some trivial pretext, gave the dog
a violent blow on the head, upon which one of the men with an oath
asked him why he did this. The gentleman with much presence of mind,
turned the poker promptly against the man who asked the question, and
having overpowered him in a pretended quarrel, discovered in his
pocket a bag of gold. The rest I do not know, but the man was hanged
for the murder in Oxfordshire or Warwickshire about ten years ago. Is
it not a curious story?
Mr Fawkes thinks it would be a fine subject for a picture--the awful
gloominess of the wood, the dead body, the dog licking the wounds, the
horror of the horse, and the man's countenance as he sat contemplating
the scene--he thinks might be wonderfully portrayed on canvas.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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