The Child of Waterloo, or, The Horrors of the Battle-Field — page 82: what you’re looking at

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

THE CHILD OF WATERLOO. 79 Ah, well; that shows the difference there is between peo- le; I think o’ nothing else. Howsomdever, don’t tejl me. for "m dreadful tired, and don't want the trouble of listening at ail to nothink.” ‘*T have no wish to tell you. Ali I want of you is that you wil) tell me where to find you when I want you to contirm by your evidence the statement which I shall fully make.” ‘“*Where shall I be? Oh, let me see, J shall be in Farmer Lake’s pea-field fast asleep, I hope. “You'll find me there.” 7 ee But a pea-field is rather an awkward place to find you in, om. ‘* Well, then, Pll get down by old Jacob Green’s three new hay-stacks, You'll find me somewhere thereabout and no mis- ake.” ** Very good.” ‘*Oh, dear me! Oh, for that blessed wheelbarrow as I men- tioned, and some fellow as didn’t mind trouble now to wheel me about continually wherever I wanted al! for to go to.” Tom left Jim with a lounging pace, which the latter looked after with some such feelings of curiosity as a man would look at some curious specimen of natural history with which he was tolerably familiar, but yet which could never cease to interest im. “Well,” he said, ‘‘ I wonder that fellow don’t find it a deal too much trouble to live. Eating and drinking must be quite a toil tohim. Isuppose, some day or other he will lay himself down and starve because it will be too much trouble to get up again. Well, well; we are not all made alike, and Troubled Tom, I dare say, thinks people who take a deal of trouble are very great fools indeed for their pains.” Upon the whole, though, Jem was well enough pleased with his night’s adventure, although it had come to no practical re- sult. It, however, proved several things: first. it unquestion- ably proved to his own mind that the individual who had be- haved with so much audacity was the murderer of the young traveler. Secondly, it went far to prove that that unprincipled scoundrel lingered in the neighborhood for some object or an: other which was concealed in mystery; but by so doing he, of course, afforded a much better chance of his capture. Thus did Jem strive to hearten himself up to a continual prosecution of that inquiry which was to be in its results of so much importance to him, and every new fact concerning which air sure to place his innocence in a still stronger light than efore. Being innocent, anything that came forward in the shape of truthful evidence was certain to tell for him, and hence the un- dertaking he bad commenced promised to become eventually gratifying in its results. The morning was now beginning to show itself in all its beauty, and a glorious one it was—a morning which seemed as if it came on purpose to cheer the heart of that wrongfully sus- pected man, and to convince him that there was a Heaven of comicbooks. com