evening at furthest, unless kept by the weather, I
will say, ' Oh, Jane ! how fervently I press you and
our little ones to my heart.'

" Adieu ! — Take body and soul ; for you are at
once my heaven and earth; — that is all I ask of
both.

"E. Ei^. W— .

*' S. is at Pisa, and will write to-night to me."

The last entry in Williams's Journal is dated
July 4, 1822, Leghorn.

" Processions of priests and religiosi have been
for several days past praying for rain : but the gods
are either angry, or nature too powerful."

The affair of the dragoon alluded to in Williams's
letter, as connected with the Gambas was this : —
As Byron and his companions were returning to



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYEON. 113

Pisa on horseback, the road being blocked up by
the party, — a serjeant-major on duty in their rear
trotted his horse through the cavalcade. One of
the awkward literary squad, — a resolute bore, but
timid rider, — was nearly spilt, from his nag shying.
To divert the jeers from his own bad riding, he
appealed pathetically to Byron, saying : —
" Shall we endure this man's insolence ? "
Byron said : — " No, we will bring him to an
accoimt ; " and instantly galloped after the dra-
goon into Pisa, his party following. The guard
at the gate turned out with drawn swords, but
could not stop them. Some of the servants of
Byron and the Gambas were idling on the steps of
his palace ; getting a glimpse of the row, one of them
armed himself with a stable -fork, rushed at the
dragoon as he passed Byron's palace, and wounded
him severely in the side. This scene was acted
in broad daylight on the Lung' Amo, the most
public place in the city, scores of people looking
on ! yet the police, with their host of spies and
backed by the power of a despotic government,
could never ascertain who struck the blow.

Not liking to meddle with the Poet, they impri-



lU RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

soned two of his servants, and exiled the family of
Count Gamba. Byron chose to follow them. Such
is the hatred of the Italians to their rulers and all
who have authority over them, that the blind
beggars at the corners of the streets, — no others are
permitted to beg in Tuscany, — hearing that the
English were without arms, sidled up to some of
them, adroitly putting into their hands formidable
stilettos, which they had concealed in the sleeves
of their ragged gaberdines.

Shelley wrote me the following note about the
dragoon.

My dear T.

Gamba is with me, and we are drawing up a

paper demanded of us by the police. Mary tells me

that you have an account from Lord Byron of the

affair, and we wish to see it before ours is concluded.

The man is severely wounded in the side, and his

life is supposed to be in danger from the weapon

having grazed the liver. It were as well if you

could come here, as we shall decide on no statement

without you.

Ever yours truly,

Shelley.



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYKOK 115

Mrs. SlieUe}^ writing an account of the row, says :
" Madame G. and I happened to be in the
carriage, ten paces behind, and saw the whole.
Taaffe kept at a safe distance during the fray, but
fearing the consequence, he wrote such a report that
Lord Byron quarrelled with him ; and what between
insolence and abject humility he has kept himself
in hot water, when, in fact, he had nothing to fear. "
On Monday, the 8th of July, 1822, I went with
Shelley to his bankers, and then to a store. It was
past one p.m. when we went on board our respective
boats, — Shelley and Williams to return to their
home in the Gulf of Spezzia ; I in the ' Bolivar,'
to accompany them into the offing. When we were
under weigh, the guard-boat boarded us to over-
haul our papers. I had not got my port clearance,
the captain of the port having refused to give it
to the mate, as I had often gone out without. The
officer of the Health Office consequently threatened
me with forty days' quarantine. It was hopeless
to think of detaining my friends. Williams had
been for days fretting and fuming to be off; they
had no time to spare, it was past two o'clock, and
there was very little wind.

I 2



116 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

Sullenly and reluctantly I re-anchored, furled
my sails, and with a ship's glass watched the pro-
gress of my friends' boat. My Genoese mate ob-
served, — " They should have sailed this morning at
three or four a.m., instead of three, p.m. They are
standing too much in shore ; the current will set
them there."

I said, " They will soon have the land-breez6."

" May -be," continued the mate, " she will soon
have too much breeze ; that gaff top -sail is foolish
in a boat with no deck and no sailor on board."
Then pointing to the S.W., "Loak at those black
lines and the dirty rags hanging on them out of the
sky — they are a warning ; look at the smoke on the
water; the devil is brewing mischief."

There was a sea-fog, in which Shelley's boat was
soon after enveloped, and we saw nothing more of
her.

Although the sun was obscured by mists, it was
oppressively sultry. There was not a breath of air
in the harbour. The heaviness of the atmosphere
and an unwonted stillness benumbed my senses. I
went down into the cabin and sank into a slumber.
I was roused up by a noise over-head and went on



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYROK 117

deck. The men were getting up a chain cable to let go
another anchor. There was a general stir amongst
the shipping; shifting berths, getting down yards
and masts, veering out cables, hauling in of hawsers,
letting go anchors, hailing from the ships and
quays, boats sculling rapidly to and fro. It was
almost dark, although only half-past six o'clock.
The sea was of the colour, and looked as solid and
smooth as a sheet of lead, and covered with an oily
scum. Gusts of wind swept over without ruffling it,
and big drops of rain fell on its surface, rebounding,
as if they could not penetrate it. There was a com-
motion in the air, made up of many threatening
sounds, coming upon us from the sea. Fishing-
craft and coasting-vessels under bare poles rushed
by us in shoals, running foul of the ships in the
harbour. As yet the din and hubbub was that made
by men, but their shrill pipings were suddenly
silenced by the crashing voice of a thunder squall
that burst right over our heads. For some time no
other sounds were to be heard than the thunder,
wind, and rain. When the fury of the storm, which
did not last for more than twenty minutes, had
abated, and the horizon was in some degree cleared,



118 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

I looked to seaward anxiously, in the hope of
descrying Shelley's boat, amongst the many small
craft scattered about. I watched every speck that
loomed on the horizon, thinking that they would
have borne up on their return to the port, as all
the other boats that had gone out in the same
direction had done.

I sent our Genoese mate on board some of the
returning craft to make inquiries, but they all pro-
fessed not to have seen the English boat. So re-
morselessly are the quarantine laws enforced in Italy,
that, when at sea, if you render assistance to a vessel
in distress, or rescue a drowning stranger, on re-
turning to port you are condemned to a long and
rigorous quarantine of fourteen or more days. The
consequence is, should one vessel see another in
peril, or even run it down by accident, she
hastens on her course, and by general accord, not
a word is said or reported on the subject. But to
resume my tale. I did not leave the ' Bolivar '
until dark. During the night it was gusty and
showery, and the lightning flashed along the coast :
at daylight I returned on board, and resumed my
examinations of the crews of the various boats which



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON. 1]9

had returned to the port during the night. They
either knew nothing, or would say nothing. My
Genoese, with the quick eye of a sailor, pointed out,
on board a fishing-boat, an English-made oar, that
he thought he had seen in Shelley's boat, but the
entire crew swore by all the saints in the calendar
that this was not so. Another day was passed in
horrid suspense. On the morning of the third day I
rode to Pisa. Byron had returned to the Lanfranchi
Palace. I hoped to find a letter from the Yilla
Magni: there was none. I told my fears to Hunt, and
then went upstairs to Byron. When I told him, his lip
quivered, and his voice faltered as he questioned me.
I sent a courier to Leghorn to despatch the ' Bolivar,'
to cruise along the coast, whilst I mounted my
horse and rode in the same direction. I also de-
spatched a courier along the coast to go as far as
Nice. On my arrival at Via Keggio I heard that a
punt, a water-keg, and some bottles had been found
on the beach. These things I recognised as having
been in Shelley's boat when he left Leghorn.
Nothing more was found for seven or eight days,
during which time of painful suspense I patrolled
the coast with the coast-guard, stimulating them to



120 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

keep a good look-out by the promise of a reward.
It was not until many days after this that my worst
fears were confirmed. Two bodies were found on
the shore, — one near Via Keggio, which I went and
examined. The face and hands, and parts of the
body not protected by the dress, were fleshless.
The tall slight figure, the jacket, the volume of
Sophocles in one pocket, and Keats's poems in
the other, doubled back, as if the reader, in the
act of reading, had hastily thrust it awayj were
all too familiar to me to leave a doubt on my
mind that this mutilated corpse was any other than
SheUey's. The other body was washed on shore
three miles distant from Shelley's, near the tower of
Migliarino, at the Bocca Lericcio. I went there at
once. Tliis corpse was much more mutilated; it
had no other covering than, — the shreds of a shirt,
and that partly drawn over the head, as if the
wearer had been in the act of taking it off, — a black
silk handkerchief, tied sailor-fashion round the
neck, — socks, — and one boot, indicating also that
he had attempted to strip. The flesh, sinews, and
muscles hung about in rags, like the shirt, exposing
the ribs and bones. I had brought with me from



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON. 121

Shelley's house a boot of Williams's, and this
exactly matched the one the corpse had on. That,
and the handkerchief, satisfied me that it was the
body of Shelley's comrade. Williams was the
only one of the three who could swim, and it
is probable he was the last survivor. It is
likewise possible, as he had a watch and money,
and was better dressed than the others, that
his body might have been plundered when found.
Shelley always declared that in case of wreck
he would vanish instantly, and not imperil
valuable lives by permitting others to aid in
saving his, which he looked upon as valueless. It
was not until three weeks after the wreck of the
boat that a third body was found — four miles from
the other two. This I concluded to be that of
the sailor boy, Charles Vivian, although it was a
mere skeleton, and impossible to be identified. It
was buried in the sand, above the reach of the
waves. I mounted my horse, and rode to the Gulf
of Spezzia, put up my horse, and walked until I
caught sight of the lone house on the sea-shore
in which Shelley and Williams had dwelt, and
where their vddows stiU lived. Hitherto in my



122 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

frequent visits — ^in the absence of direct evidence
to the contrary. I had buoyed up their spirits by
maintainiQg that it was not impossible but that the
friends still lived; now I had to extinguish the
last hope of these forlorn women. I had ridden
fast, to prevent any ruder messenger from bursting
in upon them. As I stood on the threshold of
their house, the bearer, or rather confirmer, of news
which would rack every fibre of their quivering
frames to the utmost, I paused, and, looking at
the sea, my memory reverted to our joyous parting
only a few days before.

The two families, then, had all been in the
verandah, overhanging a sea so clear and calm that
every star was reflected on the water, as if it
had been a mirror; the young mothers singing
some merry tune, with the accompaniment of a
guitar. Shelley's shrill laugh — I heard it still —
rang in my ears, with Williams's friendly hail, the
general huona notte of all the joyous party, and the
earnest entreaty to me to return as soon as pos-
sible, and not to forget the commissions they had
severally given me. I was in a small boat
beneath them, slowly rowing myself on board



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON". 123

the ' Bolivar,' at anchor in the bay, loath to
part from what I verily believed to have been at
that time the most united, and happiest, set of
human beings in the whole world. And now by
the blow of an idle puff of wind the scene was
changed. Such is human happiness.

My reverie was broken by a shriek from the
nurse Caterina, as, crossing the hall, she saw
me in the doorway. After asking her a few
questions, I went up the stairs, and, unannounced,
entered the room. I neither spoke, nor did they
question me. Mrs. Shelley's large grey eyes were
fixed on my face. I turned away. Unable to
bear this horrid silence, with a convulsive effort
she exclaimed —

" Is there no hope ? "

I did not answer, but left the room, and sent the
servant with the children to them. The next day I
prevailed on them to return with me to Pisa.
The misery of that night and the journey of the
next day, and of many days and nights that
followed, I can neither describe nor forget. It was
ultimately determined by those most interested, that
SheUey's remains should be removed from where



12i RECOLLECTIONS OF THE

they lay, and conveyed to Eome, to be interred near
the bodies of his child, and of his friend Keats, with
a suitable monument, and that Williams's remains
should be taken to England. To do this, in their
then far advanced state of decomposition, and to
obviate the obstacles offered by the quarantine laws,
the ancient custom of burning and reducing the body
to ashes was suggested. I wrote to our minister
at Florence, Dawkins, on the subject, and soli-
cited his friendly intercession with the Lucchese
and Florentine governments, that I might be fur-
nished with authority to accomplish our purpose.
The following was his answer : —

Dear Sir,

An order was sent yesterday from hence to the
Governor of Via Eeggio, to deliver up the remains of
Mr. Shelley to you, or any person empowered by
you to receive them.

I said they were to be removed to Leghorn
for interment, but that need not bind you. If they
go by sea, the governor will give you the papers
necessary to insure their admittance elsewhere. If
they travel by land, they must be accompanied by



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON. 125

a guard as far as the frontier, — a precaution always
taken to prevent the possibility of infection. Quick-
lime has been thrown into the graves, as is usual in
similar cases.

With respect to the removal of the other corpse,
I can tell you nothing till I hear from Florence. I
applied for the order as soon as I received jour
letter, and I expect an answer to my letter by to-
morrow's post.

I am. very sensible of Lord Byron's kindness,
and should have called upon him when I passed
through Pisa, had he been anybody but Lord Byron.
Do not mention trouble ; I am here to take as much
as my countrymen think proper to give me; and
all I ask in return is fair play and good humour,
which I am sure I shall always find in the S. S. S.
Believe me, dear sir.

Yours very faithfully,

W. Dawkins.

Such were his subsequent influence and energy,
that he ultimately overcame all the obstacles and
repugnance of the Italians to sanction such an
unprecedented proceeding in their territories.



126 RECOLLECTIONS OF THE



CHAPTEK XII.



All things that we love and cherish,
Like ourselves, must fade and perish ;
Such is our rude mortal lot,
Love itself would, did they not.

Shelley.

I GOT a furnace made at Leghorn, of iron -bars
and strong sheet-iron, supported on a stand, and
laid in a stock of fuel, and such things as were
said to be used by Shelley's much loved Hellenes
on their funeral pyres.

On the 13th of August, 1822, I went on board
the ' Bolivar,' with an English acquaintance, having
written to Byron and Hunt to say I would send
them word when everything was ready, as they
wished to be present. I had previously engaged
two large feluccas, with drags and tackling, to go
before, and endeavour to find the place where
Shelley's boat had foundered ; the captain of one
of the feluccas having asserted that he was out in
the fatal squall, and had seen Shelley's boat go



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON. ,127

down off Via Keggio, with all sail set. With light
and fitful breezes we were eleven hours reaching our
destination — the tower of Migliarino, at the Bocca
Lericcio, in the Tuscan States, There was a
village there, and about two miles from that place
Williams was buried. So I anchored, landed,
called on the officer in command, a major, and
told him my object in coming, of which he was
already apprised by his own government. He
assured me I should have every aid from him. As
it was too late in the day to commence operations,
we went to the only inn in the place, and I wrote
to Byron to be with us next day at noon. The
major sent my letter to Pisa by a dragoon, and made
arrangements for the next day. In the morning he
was with us early, and gave me a note from Byron,
to say he would join us as near noon as he could.
At ten we went on board the commandant's boat,
with a squad of soldiers in working dresses, armed
with mattocks and spades, an officer of the quaran-
tine service, and some of his crew. They had their
peculiar tools, so fashioned as to do their work with-
out coming into personal contact with things that
might be infectious — long handled tongs, nippers,



128 RECOLLECTIONS OP THE

poles with iroii hooks and spikes, and divers others
that gave one a lively idea of the implements of
torture devised by the holy inquisitors. Thus
freighted, we started, my own boat following with
the furnace, and the things I had brought from
Leghorn. We pulled along the shore for some
distance, and landed at a line of strong posts and
railings which projected into the sea — forming the
boundary dividing the Tuscan and Lucchese States.
We walked along the shore to the grave, where Byron
and Hunt soon joined us : they, too, had an officer
and soldiers from the tower of Migliarino, an officer
of the Health Office, and some dismounted dragoons,
so we were surrounded by soldiers, but they kept
the ground clear, and readily lent their aid. There
was a considerable gathering of spectators from the
neighbourhood, and many ladies richly dressed
were amongst them. The spot where the body lay
was marked by the gnarled root of a pine tree.

A rude hut, built of young pine-tree stems, and
wattled with their branches, to keep the sun and
rain out, and thatched with reeds, stood on the
beach to shelter the look-out man on duty. A few
yards from this was the grave, which we commenced



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYROK 129

opening — the Gulf of Spezzia and Leghorn at equal
distances of twenty-two miles from us. As to fuel
I might have saved myself the trouble of bringing
any, for there was an ample supply of broken spars
and planks cast on the shore from wrecks, besides
the fallen and decaying timber in a stunted pine
forest close at hand. The soldiers collected fuel
whilst I erected the furnace, and then the men of
the Health Office set to work, shovelling away the
sand which covered the body, while we gathered
round, watching anxiously. The first indication of
their having found the body, was the appearance of
the end of a black silk handkerchief — I grubbed this
out with a stick, for we were not allowed to touch
anything with our hands — then some shreds of
linen were met with, and a boot with the bone of the
leg and the foot in it. On the removal of a layer of
brushwood, all that now remained of my lost friend
was exposed — a shapeless mass of bones and flesh.
The limbs separated from the trunk on being touched.
" Is that a human body ? " exclaimed Byron ;
" why it 's more like the carcase of a sheep, or any
other animal, than a man : this is a satire on our
pride and folly."



130 KECOLLECTIONS OF THE

I pointed to the letters E. E. W. on the black silk
handkerchief.

Byron looking on, muttered, " The entrails of a
worm hold together longer than the potter's clay,
of which man is made. Hold ! let me see the jaw,"
he added, as they were removing the skull, " I can
recognise any one by the teeth, with whom I have
talked. I always watch the lips and mouth : they
tell what the tongue and eyes try to conceal."

I had a boot of Williams's with me ; it exactly cor-
responded with the one found in the grave. The
remains were removed piecemeal into the furnace.

" Don't repeat this with me," said Byron ; " let
my carcase rot where it falls."

The funereal pyre was now ready ; I applied the
fire, and the materials being dry and resinous
the pine-wood burnt furiously, and drove us back.
It was hot enough before, there was no breath of
air, and the loose sand scorched our feet. As soon
as the flames became clear, and allowed us to
approach, we threw frankincense and salt into the
furnace, and poured a flask of wine and oil over the
body. The Greek oration was omitted, for we had
lost our Hellenic bard. It was rAow so insufferably

/

f



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYROIST. Ul

hot that the officers and soldiers were all seeking

shade.

" Let us try the strength of these waters that

drowned our friends," said Byron, with his usual

audacity. " How far out do you think they were

when their hoat sank ? "

" If you don't wish to be put into the furnace,

you had better not try ; you are not in condition."
He stripped, and went into the water, and so did

I and my companion. Before we got a mile out,
Byron was sick, and persuaded to return to the
shore. My companion, too, was seized with cramp,
and reached the land by my aid. At four o'clock
the funereal pyre burnt low, and when we uncovered
the furnace, nothing remained in it but dark-
coloured ashes, with fragments of the larger bones.
Poles were now put under the red-hot furnace, and
it was gradually cooled in the sea. I gathered
together the human ashes, and placed them in a
small oak-box, bearing an inscription on a brass
plate, screwed it down, and placed it in Byron's
carriage. He returned with Hunt to Pisa, pro-
mising to be with us on the following day at Via
Eeggio. I returned with my party in the same

K 2



132 EECOLLECTIONS OF THE

way we came, and supped and slept at the inn.
On the following morning we went on board the
same boats, with the same things and party, and
rowed down the little river near Via Eeggio to the
sea, pulled along the coast towards Massa, then
landed, and began our preparations as before.

Three white wands had been stuck in the sand to
mark the Poet's grave, but as they were at some
distance from each other, we had to cut a trench
thirty yards in length, in the line of the sticks, to
ascertain the exact spot, and it was nearly an hour
before we came upon the grave.

In the mean time Byron and Leigh Hunt arrived
in the carriage, attended by soldiers, and the
Health Officer, as before. The lonely and grand
scenery that surrounded us so exactly harmonised
■^ith Shelley's genius, that I could imagine his
spirit soaring over us. The sea, with the islands
of Gorgona, Capraji, and Elba, was before us;
old battlemented watch-towers stretched along the
coast, backed by the marble-crested Apennines
glistening in the sun, picturesque from their diver-
sified outlines, and not a human dwelling was in
sight. As I thought of the delight Shelley felt



LAST DAYS OF SHELLEY AND BYRON. 183

in such scenes of loneliness and grandeur whilst
living, I felt we were no better than a herd of
wolves or a pack of wild dogs, in tearing out his
battered and naked body from the pure yellow sand
that lay so lightly over it, to drag him back to the
light of day ; but the dead have no voice, nor had I
power to check the sacrilege — the work went on
silently in the deep and unresisting sand, not a word
was spoken, for the Italians have a touch of sen-
timent, and their feelings are easily excited into
sympathy. Even Byron was silent and thoughtful.
We were startled and drawn together by a dull hollow