over the sick lady. He looked very serious, all
on a sudden, at the sight of her; and put his
hand on her heart.
My mistress stared hard in Mr. Goodricke's
face. “Not dead!†says she, whispering, and
turning all of a tremble from head to foot.
“Yes,†says the doctor, very quiet and
grave. “Dead. I was afraid it would happen
suddenly, when I examined her heart yesterday.â€
My mistress stepped back from the
bedside, while he was speaking, and trembled
and trembled again. “Dead!†she whispers to
herself; “dead so suddenly! dead so soon!
What will the Count say?†Mr. Goodricke
advised her to go down stairs, and quiet herself
a little. “You have been sitting up all night,â€
says he; “and your nerves are shaken. This
person,†says he, meaning me, “this person will stay
in the room, till I can send for the necessary
assistance.†My mistress did as he told
her. “I must prepare the Count,†she says.
“I must carefully prepare the Count.†And
so she left us, shaking from head to foot, and
went out.
“Your master is a foreigner,†says Mr. Goodricke,
when my mistress had left us. “Does he
understand about registering the death?†“I
can't rightly tell, sir,†says I; “but I should
think not.†The doctor considered a minute;
and then, says he, “I don't usually do such
things,†says he, “but it may save the family
trouble in this case, if I register the death
myself. I shall pass the district office in half an
hour's time; and I can easily look in. Mention,
if you please, that I will do so.†“Yes, sir,â€
says I, “with thanks, I'm sure, for your kindness
in thinking of it.†“You don't mind staying
here, till I can send you the proper person?â€
says he. “No, sir,†says I; “I'll stay with
the poor lady, till then. I suppose nothing
more could be done, sir, than was done?†says
I. “No,†says he; “nothing; she must have
suffered sadly before ever I saw her: the case
was hopeless when I was called in.†“Ah, dear me!
we all come to it, sooner or later, don't we,
sir?" says I. He gave no answer to that; he
didn't seem to care about talking. He said,
“Good day,†and went out.
I stopped by the bedside from that time, till
the time when Mr. Goodricke sent the person
in, as he had promised. She was, by name,
Jane Gould. I considered her to be a respectable-
looking woman. She made no remark, except
to say that she understood what was wanted
of her, and that she had winded a many of them
in her time.
How master bore the news, when he first
heard it, is more than I can tell; not having
been present. When I did see him, he looked
awfully overcome by it, to be sure. He sat quiet
in a corner, with his fat hands hanging over his
thick knees, and his head down, and his eyes
looking at nothing. He seemed not so much
sorry, as scared and dazed like, by what had
happened. My mistress managed all that was
to be done about the funeral. It must have
cost a sight of money: the coffin, in particular,
being most beautiful. The dead lady's husband
was away, as we heard, in foreign parts. But
my mistress (being her aunt) settled it with her
friends in the country (Cumberland, I think)
that she should be buried there, in the same
grave along with her mother. Everything was
done handsomely, in respect of the funeral, I say
again; and master went down to attend the
burying in the country himself. He looked
grand in his deep mourning, with his big solemn
face, and his slow walk, and his broad hatband—
that he did!
In conclusion, I have to say, in answer to
questions put to me,
(1) That neither I nor my fellow-servant
ever saw my master give Lady Glyde any
medicine himself.
(2) That he was never, to my knowledge and
belief, left alone in the room with Lady Glyde.
(3) That I am not able to say what caused
the sudden fright, which my mistress informed
me had seized the lady on her first coming into
the house. The cause was never explained,
either to me or to my fellow-servant.
The above statement has been read over in
my presence. I have nothing to add to it, or to
take away from it. I say, on my oath as a
Christian woman, This is the truth.
(Signed) Hester Pinhorn, Her + Mark.
THE NARRATIVE OF THE DOCTOR.
“To The Registrar of the Sub-District in
which the under-mentioned Death took place.—
I hereby certify that I attended Lady Glyde,
aged Twenty-one last Birthday; that I last saw
her, on the 28th July, 1850; that she died on
the same day at No. 5, Forest-road, St. John's
Wood; and that the cause of her death was
Signed,CAUSE OF
DEATH.DURATION OF
DISEASE.Aneurism. Not known.
Alfred Goodricke.
Prof. Title. M.R.C.S. Eng. L.S.A.
Address. 12, Croydon St. John's Wood.
THE NARRATIVE OF JANE GOULD.
I WAS the person sent in by Mr. Goodricke, to
do what was right and needful by the remains of
a lady, who had died at the house named in the
certificate which precedes this. I found the body
in charge of the servant, Hester Pinhorn. I
remained with it, and prepared it, at the proper
time, for the grave. It was laid in the coffin,
in my presence; and I afterwards saw the coffin
screwed down, previous to its removal. When
that had been done, and not before, I received
what was due to me, and left the house. I refer
persons who may wish to investigate my
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