Of the Ghostly Chase
beheld by the Earl of Surrey and the
Duke of Richmond in
Windsor Forest.
On that same night, and just as the
castle clock was on the stroke of twelve, the Earl
of Surrey and the Duke of Richmond issued from the
upper gate, and took their way towards Herne’s
Oak. The moon was shining brightly, and its beams
silvered the foliage of the noble trees with which
the park was studded. The youthful friends soon
reached the blasted tree; but nothing was to be seen
near it, and all looked so tranquil, so free from
malignant influence, that the Duke of Richmond could
not help laughing at his companion, telling him that
the supposed vision must have been the offspring of
his over-excited fancy. Angry at being thus doubted,
the earl walked off, and plunged into the haunted
dell. The duke followed, but though they paused
for some time beneath the gnarled oak-tree, the spirit
did not appear.
“And thus ends the adventure
of Herne the Hunter!” laughed the duke, as they
emerged from the brake. “By my halidom,
Surrey, I am grievously disappointed. You must
have mistaken some large stag, caught by its antlers
in the branches of the oak-tree, for the demon.”
“I have told you precisely what
occurred,” replied Surrey angrily. “Ha!
there he is look! look!”
And he pointed to a weird figure,
mounted on a steed as weird-looking as itself, galloping
through the trees with extraordinary swiftness, at
a little distance from them. This ghostly rider
wore the antlered helmet described by Surrey, and
seemed to be habited in a garb of deer-skins.
Before him flew a large owl, and a couple of great
black dogs ran beside him. Staring in speechless
wonder at the sight, the two youths watched the mysterious
being scour a glade brightly illumined by the moon,
until, reaching the pales marking the confines of the
Home Park, he leaped them and disappeared.
“What think you of that?”
cried Surrey, as soon as he had recovered from his
surprise, glancing triumphantly at the duke. “Was
that the offspring of my fancy?”
“It was a marvellous sight,
truly!” exclaimed Richmond. “Would
we had our steeds to follow him.”
“We can follow him on foot,”
replied the earl “he is evidently
gone into the forest.”
And they set off at a quick pace in
the direction taken by the ghostly rider. Clambering
the park pales, they crossed the road leading to Old
Windsor, and entered that part of the forest which,
in more recent times, has been enclosed and allotted
to the grounds of Frogmore. Tracking a long vista,
they came to a thick dell, overgrown with large oaks,
at the bottom of which lay a small pool. Fleeter
than his companion, and therefore somewhat in advance
of him, the Earl of Surrey, as he approached this
dell, perceived the spectral huntsman and his dogs
standing at the edge of the water. The earl instantly
shouted to him, and the horseman turning his head,
shook his hand menacingly, while the hounds glared
fiercely at the intruder, and displayed their fangs,
but did not bark. As Surrey, however, despite
this caution, continued to advance, the huntsman took
a strangely shaped horn that hung by his side, and
placing it to his lips, flames and thick smoke presently
issued from it, and before the vapour had cleared off,
he and his dogs had disappeared.. The witnesses
of this marvellous spectacle crossed themselves reverently,
and descended to the brink of the pool; but the numerous
footprints of deer, that came there to drink, prevented
them from distinguishing any marks of the steed of
the ghostly hunter.
“Shall we return, Surrey?” asked the duke.
“No,” replied the earl.
“I am persuaded we shall see the mysterious
huntsman again. You can return, if you think proper.
I will go on.”
“Nay, I will not leave you,” rejoined
Richmond.
And they set off again at the same
quick pace as before. Mounting a hill covered
with noble beeches and elms, a magnificent view of
the castle burst upon them, towering over the groves
they had tracked, and looking almost like the work
of enchantment. Charmed with the view, the young
men continued to contemplate it for some time.
They then struck off on the right, and ascended still
higher, until they came to a beautiful grove of beeches
cresting the hill where the equestrian statue of George
the Third is now placed. Skirting this grove,
they disturbed a herd of deer, which started up, and
darted into the valley below.
At the foot of two fine beech-trees
lay another small pool, and Surrey almost expected
to see the spectral huntsman beside it.
From this spot they could discern
the whole of the valley beyond, and they scanned it
in the hope of perceiving the object of their search.
Though not comparable to the view on the nearer side,
the prospect was nevertheless exceedingly beautiful.
Long vistas and glades stretched out before them,
while in the far distance might be seen glittering
in the moonbeams the lake or mere which in later days
has received the name of Virginia Water.
While they were gazing at this scene,
a figure habited like a keeper of the forest suddenly
emerged from the trees at the lower end of one of
the glades. Persuaded that this person had some
mysterious connection with the ghostly huntsman, the
earl determined to follow him, and hastily mentioning
his suspicions and design to Richmond, he hurried
down the hill. But before he accomplished the
descent, the keeper was gone.
At length, however, on looking about,
they perceived him mounting the rising ground on the
left, and immediately started after him, taking care
to keep out of sight. The policy of this course
was soon apparent. Supposing himself no longer
pursued, the keeper relaxed his pace, and the others
got nearer to him.
In this way both parties went on,
the keeper still hurrying forward, every now and then
turning his head to see whether any one was on his
track, until he came to a road cut through the trees
that brought him to the edge of a descent leading
to the lake. Just at this moment a cloud passed
over the moon, burying all in comparative obscurity.
The watchers, however, could perceive the keeper approach
an ancient beech-tree of enormous growth, and strike
it thrice with the short hunting-spear which he held
in his grasp.
The signal remaining unanswered, he
quitted the tree, and shaped his course along the
side of a hill on the right. Keeping under the
shelter of the thicket on the top of the same hill,
Surrey and Richmond followed, and saw him direct his
steps towards another beech-tree of almost double
the girth of that he had just visited. Arrived
at this mighty tree, he struck it with his spear,
while a large owl, seated on a leafless branch, began
to hoot; a bat circled the tree; and two large snakes,
glistening in the moonlight, glided from its roots.
As the tree was stricken for the third time, the same
weird figure that the watchers had seen ride along
the Home Park burst from its riften trunk, and addressed
its summoner in tones apparently menacing and imperious,
but whose import was lost upon the listeners.
The curiosity of the beholders was roused to the highest
pitch, but an undefinable awe prevented them from
rushing forward.
Suddenly the demon hunter waved a
pike with which he was armed, and uttered a peculiar
cry, resembling the hooting of an owl. At this
sound, and as if by magic, a couple of steeds, accompanied
by the two hounds, started from the brake. In
an instant the demon huntsman vaulted upon the hack
of the horse nearest to him, and the keeper almost
as quickly mounted the other. The pair then galloped
off through the glen, the owl flying before them,
and the hounds coursing by their side.
The two friends gazed at each other,
for some time, in speechless wonder. Taking heart,
they then descended to the haunted tree, but could
perceive no traces of the strange being by whom it
had been recently tenanted. After a while they
retraced their course towards the castle, hoping they
might once more encounter the wild huntsman. Nor
were they disappointed. As they crossed a glen,
a noble stag darted by. Close at its heels came
the two black hounds, and after them the riders hurrying
forward at a furious pace, their steeds appearing to
breathe forth flame and smoke.
In an instant the huntsmen and hounds
were gone, and the trampling of the horses died away
in the distance. Soon afterwards a low sound,
like the winding of a horn, broke upon the ear, and
the listeners had no doubt that the buck was brought
down. They hurried in the direction of the sound,
but though the view was wholly unobstructed for a
considerable distance, they could see nothing either
of horsemen, hounds, or deer.