Sent to His Death (Continued)
Two women, the narrator Dolly and her friend Bessie, are staying at Poplar Farm while its owner is away. The house has a reputation for being haunted, and on the first night both women are awakened at three in the morning by the sound of low, gasping sobs coming from the corridor outside their locked room. Dolly, despite Bessie's terror, unlocks the door and glimpses a tall white figure that moves hurriedly away into the darkness before she can summon the courage to follow it. She then discovers that the baby in the nursery is crying loudly, and goes to investigate. She finds the baby's nurse, a young widow named Mrs Graham, sitting up in bed in the grip of a vivid nightmare, crying out to someone named Edward, begging him to come back and lamenting that she has sent him to his death. Dolly wakes her gently and soothes her without pressing her for an explanation that night. The following morning Dolly contrives to speak privately with Mrs Graham during the nurse's walk in the shrubbery. After some gentle coaxing, Mrs Graham breaks down and confesses the source of her grief. She and her husband Edward had been married only six months when his employers sent him on business to Ireland. Unable to bear the separation, the couple travelled together, and on the return crossing by small sailing vessel they encountered a violent storm. The women passengers were gathered in a deck cabin, and the men repeatedly looked in to reassure them. Irritated by the repeated opening of the door, which allowed seawater to flood in, Mrs Graham called out to her husband when he appeared for the third or fourth time, telling him sharply to go away and not come back again. He obeyed, and was almost immediately washed overboard by a great wave and never seen again. Mrs Graham has been tormented ever since by the belief that her thoughtless words caused his death. Her infant child subsequently died within days of its birth, and she took the position as wet nurse in the hope that caring for another child would prevent her from losing her mind. Dolly resolves to help the young woman but recognises that she must first consult her husband Dick before taking any practical steps. That night she keeps watch alone while Bessie sleeps, and when she hears footsteps again in the corridor she slips out and follows the white figure to its source. She intercepts it at the end of the passage and finds herself face to face with Mrs Graham, who is walking in her sleep, her hair loose about her shoulders, whispering her dead husband's name and imagining she is searching for him in the dark. Dolly takes her hand and leads her gently back to bed, and Mrs Graham, still asleep, believes herself to be reunited with Edward. The next day Dolly recounts everything to Bessie, who is reluctant to give up the romantic idea of a genuine ghost or to face the inconvenience of finding a new nurse. When Dick arrives to collect Dolly, she urges him to find some means of providing Mrs Graham with better employment and a more cheerful situation. Dick, though sympathetic, points out that they cannot remove another woman's servant against her employer's wishes, and Dolly, knowing he is right, resolves to wait for circumstances to change. A week later a letter arrives from Bessie complaining of various domestic misfortunes, among them the news that Mrs Graham has given notice to leave. Dolly is delighted and begins to plan how she might take the young woman into her own household and help her recover. But reading on, she comes to news that moves her to tears of a very different kind. There has been a commotion in the kitchen at Poplar Farm: Mrs Graham was discovered in a faint, supported by a man who had appeared at the door. When she recovered, it emerged that the man was Edward Graham himself, who had not drowned after all. He had been rescued unconscious by a passing ship, taken to Spain, suffered a long fever with delirium, and upon recovering had worked his passage home and traced his wife to the farm. Dolly, overcome with joy and relief, insists on driving immediately to the farm to offer her congratulations, reflecting that she can feel so keenly for Mrs Graham's happiness because she knows from her own experience with Dick what it is to have one's dearest companion restored.
By Florence Marryat · First published 1873 · Genre: Serial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Victorian Drama · 4,668 words
First lines
I had been dreaming of the ghost, and was conscious in a moment, and sitting up in bed. Whatever I had thought of Bessie's tales before, I believed them now, for I could distinctly hear the low, gasping breath which follows an inordinate fit of sobbing, drawn apparently close to us.
‘What time is it? ' I exclaimed.
What this Textopian page supports
Sent to His Death (Continued) is listed on Textopian as a short story by Florence Marryat, dated 1873 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Florence Marryat
- Date: 1873 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Serial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Victorian Drama, Mystery, Legal Drama
- Length: 4,668 words
- Structure: 1 section, 102 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Sent to His Death (Continued) by Florence Marryat
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
Genres
- Serial Fiction — The title includes '(_continued_)' indicating this is a continuation of a serialized narrative, a common format for Victorian-era publications.
- Crime Fiction — The phrase 'Sent to his Death' suggests a criminal act or judicial punishment, central to crime narratives.
- Victorian Drama — Florence Marryat was a Victorian author known for dramatic narratives exploring social and moral conflicts typical of the era.
- Mystery — The title's ominous phrasing implies an unexplained or suspicious death that may require investigation and revelation.
Tags
Victorian fiction · nineteenth-century literature · sensation fiction · mystery · crime · murder · suspense · melodrama · romance · domestic drama · social class · family secrets