The Child of Waterloo, or, The Horrors of the Battle-Field — page 146: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE CHILD OF WATERLOO. 148 had forced the door open, yet did not seem to be aware it really was open, and the first intimation they had of it was by some- thing unusually white attracting the attention of one, in the way we have described. Such men are usually superstitious, and when they, saw a figure all in white, with a countenance ghastly pale, standing in the attitude of bending forward with what appeared to them to be supernatural lustrous eyes, they were paralyzed, and for several minutes could not withdraw their gaze from hers. Suddenly one jumped up; the spell that bound the other was broken, and they both dashed out of the room. along the pasrage, and were speedily in the street, and coursing along the town as if a whole legion of devils were after them. However, Mabel was unable to withdraw that painful gaze which was fixed on an object so terrifying as that which lay be- fore her. The first thing of which she was sensible was a strong light before her. She heard some one speak; but who it was or what was said, she knew not; but then the spell was broken. She looked up and saw the mendicant standing by her in an inquir- ing attitude, looking alternately at her and the dead body that lay surrounded by a pool of blood. ‘*'What means this ?” he said, pointing to the body. ‘‘Murder! murder!” exclaimed Mabel, in almost shrieking accents. ‘* Hush! hush! not so loud. Who has done this?” ‘‘Murder— oh, God! oh, God!—murder!” “‘T see that; but you needn’t trouble yourself about itso much. ‘Who has been here to do it, and how came they here at all; and bow came this door opened, and you safe?” Mabel made no reply; her eyes were withdrawn from the hor- rifying spectacle where they had been so long fixed; she was in no hurry to encounter it again, and she hid her face in her hands to shut out the very sight of that which had caused her more misery and anguish of heart than she had ever yet felt. The mendicant now stooped to examine the body, and was about to speak, when a loud and rapid knock commenced at the street door that reverberated fearfully through the house, and caused him te start to his feet. CHAPTER XXVIII. YOUNG Morton, as may well be supposed, from the interest he had already seemed to take in the elderly gentleman, to whom he had, by good fortune, been enabled to be of s0 much service, did not forget the engagement he had made with him to pay him a visit, and hear from him some fromised particulars of the causes of his apparent dejection, as well as his presence in London. That there was some sort of mystery connected with him appeared past a doubt: indeed he had himself quite admitted as much, and although far—very far—from being ordinarily dis- posed to interfere in the affairs of other people, Henry could comicbooks. com