White Lady from Susanna Gould to Madam Gould. On 19th March, 1729, Peter Truscott, Gent., of Lew Trenchard, son of the rector, John Truscott, married Susanna, daughter of Henry Gould of Lew Trenchard and Elizabeth his wife. There had been differences between the squire and the rector, political, I believe, as Henry was a strong Jacobite and Truscott was a Whig. Henry Gould strongly disliked the idea of this marriage, and it was probably due to trouble consequent on this that Susanna on her way back from the church to the house dropped down dead—in her bridal white—and was buried on March 23rd. She had been forgotten, and the spectral form was transferred to Old Madam, who had no real claim to be seen in white.
When Parson Elford was too feeble to come over to Lew, he engaged one Caddy Thomas to be his curate. He lived at the old rectory that was no better than a cottage, with a man called Adams and his wife in the kitchen to manage for him. He had a pupil with whom he was often quarrelling and came to blows. One day Adams heard screams of rage and blows in the library, and rushed in to find that Caddy Thomas had knocked the pupil down, and had him on the ground, and was pounding his head with his clasp-knife handle. Adams threw himself between them, wrenched the curate away and locked him into the study, carried off the pupil, locked him into his bedroom, went to the stables, saddled two horses and then brought forth the pupil, mounted him on one horse, mounted himself on the other, and rode away with him to his relatives. I heard the story from the son of old Adams, who has been in my service, a most faithful and conscientious and loyal servant.
Judge what was the spiritual condition of the place.
I regret to mention the loss of our parish-stocks. I am of opinion that the last place in Devon, perhaps in England, where they were employed was in Lew parish.
There was in our choir at one time a youth whose Christian name was Samuel. He had a very curly head of hair, of which he was vastly proud, and which he anointed with oil and bergamot every Lord's Day, so that it perfumed the whole music gallery. There was also in the parish and in the choir a mischievous lad named Roberts, who was fond of playing practical jokes. One Sunday, at the moment in the afternoon service when the prayer
