The Sun.
London, England, 1865-10-18 00:00:00

The Legend of the Bucklyn Shaig.

You know, Miss Rose, tho bend in the road as you go
up to the casao from the Blackdean-road. When you have
passed the park lodge a little way you come to some
groups of trees, rather cios3 together. It is not an avenue
now, but it looks as if it had been some time or other, only
several of the tries are missing, and there is a pond close
to the side of the road, with a round is:and in it.

Well, the story goes that long ago there was a very
wicked Lord Clifford, who lived at Raymond Castle, for in
th 0.7,0 days the castle and the hall both belonged to the
same person.

This wicked Lord Clifford had murdered la's wife, and
buried her somewhere in the castle. He led a bad life, aid
drank hard, and oppressed the poor. One day a holy Fran-
ciscan came to Lord Clifford to ask an alms. The baron
was going out hunt'ng. He wore a broad hunting-belt,
with a great gold buck-le, and he had very fierce dogs, for
he was gong to hunt the wolf in the great forest under the
hil'. The friar asked for alms for his house and for the
poor of the neighbour:ng hamlet, and he upbra:ded Lord
Ciifford for his cruelty to the widow and the orphan. He
was a bold man that barefooted friar, but he said what he
said for loy3 of God and our Lady. Tho wicked baron got
very angry, and swore at the friar, and, as the friar would
not be silent, ho struck him with his great hunting whip
on the mouth, and the blood flowed. Then he called to
his savage dogs, and they flew at the friar. They gnaw
mad at the sight of blood, and they tore the friar down on
the ground, and there he lay half dead. But as Lord Clif-
ford was riding off the friar called out, " Lord Clifford, Lord
Clifford, I forgive thee; but the Evil Ono will ride with
thee to-night, and hold by the buckle of thy belt."
Lord Clifford called off his hounds, and they followed
the hunt through all the day, but when evening came Lord
Clifford was missing. The huntsmen and thd guests heard
screams far off in the forest, but ho never came back.
Only all through the night they heard the sound of a horse
galloping, as if backwards and forwards, just along that
piece of the road opposite the small pond with the island.
The horse never reached the castle, but went up and down
the same distance along the road, as if the rider never
could find his way home. And they do say that some-
times the labourers, returning home at night, have seen a
horse at full gallop—there sits on him a man pale and
horrid, and holding on behind, with his arms round his
waist, is the devil, for all the world like a very shaggy
wolf, and the peasants .call it the Bucklyn Shaig; and I
have been told that occasionally when some persons, who
had not a very clear conscience (for I cannot believe it
would happen to be a good man), have been riding
down that part of the road, Bucklyn Shaig, who seems
always to haunt the place, will jump up behind
the unhappy man and throw his arms round his
waist, as he is seen to do round the phantom
Lord Clifford, and so will ride with him, whether he will or
no, till he passes out of the shade of the trees again into
the open road and over the brook; and then the devil leaps
down and jumps over the fence in the shape of a black cat.
And the story goes, that when Bucklyn Shaig is seen, it is
always a sign that some great crime has been committed up
at the castle, or that a great misfortune is about to happen
to the House of Clifford.—From the new novel, entitled
" The Bucklyn Shaig," just published by Bentley, and
written by the Hon. Mrs. Alfred Montgomery.