The
other day I picked up a free little book entitled True Tiny Tales of Terror.
In this pocket-sized book – about eighty odd pages - I found horror stories as short as two
sentences and most no longer than two or three paragraphs. The subject of the
book includes horror or terror stories on family life, strange deaths, mature meat
and drink, deadly remedies and vile murders.
I don’t know what I expected, but I was certainly surprised
to see among these ‘terror/horror’ stories a name I recognized.
It was none other than Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Yes, that
artist/author whom we studied back in our high school year. And I still
remember the poem The Blessed Damozel who, while blessedly in heaven, is not
wholly satisfied, and is pining for the one left behind.
But back to the terror... Two years after Rossetti and Elizabeth
exchanged their wedding vows, she died of an overdose – which is another way of
saying she chose to end her life.
In his grief – and possibly guilt as well – Rossetti made the
sacrifice of burying with her a book of poems he had created while they were
living together as husband and wife.
Years go by, and Rossetti is beginning to be recognized as
the wonderful poet that he is. So much so that he is being invited to get
published. Rummaging among his poems, he realizes there are not enough of them.
And remembers all those great poems that are buried with Elizabeth; and how he
could do with them.
So, as you would have guessed by now, he decided to dig up his
wife’s grave and get those poems.
Easier said than done.
In the old, old days, you might have got couple of hefty
friends to visit the cemetery while nobody was looking and Bob’s your uncle.
In the more civilised world you have to go through more than
a few legalities to convince them of your need.
One can only imagine the raised eyebrows at Mr. Rossetti explanation.
After some toeing and froing, the body was exhumed. And the
poems were rescued. Needless to say, the pages were somewhat putrid and difficult
to decipher, and needed a lot of tender, loving care before they were ready for
the publisher.
Once published his work was so well received that the book
was republished half a dozen times.
