APPENDIX to the CHRONICLE. 009 



have ranked among the first favour- 

 ites of the Muses; insteiui of which; 

 the candid and unprejudiced must 

 acknowledge that her poetic fame 

 cannot long survive the remem- 

 brance of her friends, and the par- 

 tiahty of her personal admirers. — 

 That a mind formed like miss Se- 

 ward's should be more liable to act 

 from the impulse of feeling, than 

 from the steady dictates of reason 

 and principle, cannot be matter of 

 surprise. A woman independent 

 in fortune, and fascinating in man- 

 ners, is more likely to be surround- 

 ed by flatterers than friends ; and 

 if the blandishments of the former 

 found too easy an admission to her 

 heart, it is a weakness which she 

 shared with nine-tenths of the hu- 

 man race. And perhaps those who 

 lamented the readiness with which 

 she admitted the specious and de- 

 signing to her friendship, will allow 

 that placed in her situation, few 

 women would have conducted them- 

 selves with greater circumspection. 



On Sunday the 26th of March, 

 aged 21 years, miss Shuckburgh, 

 daughter of sir Stewkley Shuck- 

 burgh, baronet, of Shuckburgh- 

 Park. Thefollowingarethecircum- 

 stances relating to the very roelan- 

 cholydeath of this truly amiableand 

 accomplished young lady : — Lieut. 

 Sharp, of the Bedfordshire militia, 

 with the other officers of that regi- 

 ment, quartered at Daventry, fre- 

 quently visitedat Shuckburgh Park, 

 during which visits, Mr. Sharp 

 formed or professed to have formed 

 an attachment for miss Shuckburgh. 

 As soon as the baronet perceived 

 that Mr. Sharp's attentions to miss 

 Shuckburgh wore the appearance 

 of particularity, he inquired into his 

 character and connections, andfind- 



VoL LI. 



ing neither such as he approved, he 

 communicated the intelligence he 

 had received respecting them to his 

 daughter, and immediately desired 

 Mr. Sharp to discontinue his visits 

 at the park, as he would no longer 

 bereceivedthere. Miss Shuckburgh 

 also wrote to him to the same effect, 

 and desired him to return her let- 

 ters. From that moment he seems 

 to have conceived the dreadful idea 

 of destroying her and himself, for 

 his answer to her was, " You shall 

 have your letters, and I will have 

 revenge — revenge is sweet, and re- 

 venge arising from disappointed love 

 is most inveterate." Defeated in his 

 hopes of obtaining the object of 

 his wishes, he by excessive drinkino^ 

 worked himself up to the highest 

 pitch of frenzy, during which he 

 meditated the horrid deed which he 

 afterwards perpetrated. As an in- 

 terchange of letters was to take 

 place, it was agreed between them, 

 that they should be left in a sum- 

 mer-house a short distance from the 

 mansion. About half past seven 

 o'clock in the morning, miss Shuck- 

 burgh was observed by the butler 

 to go out of the house with a par- 

 cel of letters in her hand, which 

 excited his curiosity, and induced 

 him to watch her. She went towards 

 the summer-house, and he took a 

 circuitous way to the same spot.— 

 As soon as he got to the door he 

 heard two voices, and the first words 

 which he distinctly heard were 

 those of miss Shuckburgh saying. 

 No — no — no, in answer, as he sup- 

 posed, to a proposal of elopement, 

 A pistol was immediately fired and 

 one fell — the butler was about to 

 open the door, when in the space 

 of two seconds another pistol was 

 fired and the other fell ; the butler 

 2 R then 



