The String of Pearls; or, The Barber of Fleet Street

# The String of Pearls; or, The Sailor's Gift — A Romance of Peculiar Interest

This 1850 penny dreadful serialization concerns Sweeney Todd, a Fleet Street barber during the reign of George III. The author claims Todd was a historical figure whose crimes appear in criminal records, though Todd's original shop was destroyed by fire. Todd is depicted as an odd-looking, long-limbed barber with unkempt hair, an unsettling laugh, and a squint. He employs an apprentice named Tobias Ragg, a boy of weak intellect, whom he threatens with violence should he reveal shop secrets.

The opening narrative introduces a sailor who has come to Todd's shop intending to be shaved. The man carries a string of pearls—a gift intended for Johanna, the sweetheart of his deceased shipmate Mark Ingestrie. The sailor's dog behaves suspiciously toward Todd, who insists the animal wait outside. Todd dismisses his apprentice on an errand, then turns his attentions to the customer, suggesting a sinister purpose beneath his barber's trade.