sides of the rent, the scene at Lydford Bridge is not so terrific as it
would have been, had a little more light been let in upon the abyss,
just sufficient to produce a _darkness visible_. As it is, however,
the chasm cannot be regarded without shuddering; nor will the stoutest
heart meditate unappalled upon the dreadful anecdotes connected with the
spot."[4]

Scenes of this description frequently give rise to marvellous stories;
and Lydford Bridge has furnished many themes for the gossip's tongue.
It is related, that a London rider was benighted on this road, in a
heavy storm, and, wishing to get to some place of shelter, spurred
his horse forward with more than common speed. The tempest had been
tremendous during the night; and in the morning the rider was informed
that Lydford Bridge had been swept away with the current. He shuddered
to reflect on his narrow escape; his horse having cleared the chasm by
a great sudden leap in the middle of his course, though the occasion of
his making it at the time was unknown.

Two or three persons have chosen this spot for self-destruction; and in
a moment of desperation, have dashed themselves from the bridge into the
murky chasm.


[1] Dartmoor appears the head-quarters of dreariness and desolation,
forming a mountain tract of nearly 80,000 acres in extent,
strewed with granite boulders and fragments of rocks, and
appearing to set cultivation at defiance.--_Brande's Outline
of Geology_.

[2] John Britton and E.W. Brayley: in the Beauties of England and