P. S. Ethelbold is one of about twenty varients of the name: I chose Athelwold as it was Humes choice in his history and is most familiar.
Tasked Jenner—the old Brit. Museum man who lives down here, the meaning of Plack but he couldn't say and was disturbed in mind as he professes to know every English and Saxon word. Nor had he ever heard of the tradition of Athelwold's death in Hampshire.
I tell plainly enough where it is—Wherwell, a village on the Test, and the Forest of Harewood is close by, on the Andover side. About 2,000 acres of the original Forest remain till now, and the owner, the lord of the manor is Iremonger, and it was one of that family who put up the cross some 80 or 90 years ago at Dead Man's Plack. Probably it means Dead man's place. Elfrida built her monastery at the village where Athelwold's castle had stood, and it continued down to the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. But it was once partly destroyed during the horrible wars of Stephen and Maud. But the stone walls remained intact I suppose after it was burnt, as it continued as a nunnery after the wars. And it exists still—or partly exists and is the dwelling house of the Earls of Lovelace :—the present man is Byron's great grandson I fancy. It is in the histories that Elfrida took the veil there and died there. And some say it is still haunted by her ghost.
I was going to put that in a note at the end—but it would be actionable as you are not allowed to say such things. But it was rather an impressive ghost.
