Ivan the Terrible; or, Dark Deeds of Night — page 112: what you’re looking at

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

108 IVAN THE boat keeled over in an instant; the sail was snapped into a thousand ribbons, Luckless Joe was carried overboard ! “Help! help!” shouted Harry and Darby, in horror. | ‘‘ He’s over! he’s over! It’s all up with him !” roared Bob. ‘¢ He’s disappeared !” “No, Isee him! Isee him!” shouted Harry. “ Let’s save him.” “We can’t, sir. Stick to your oars, or we are lost |” “ But I will save him !’’ said Harry, rising. Seizing the end of a large coil of thin rope that lay in the boat, he lashéd it round his body, and plunged into the boiling tide before any one could recover from their astonishment and amazement. “That’s two!” growled Briny Bob; “ better one should sink than two. Joe always was unlucky !” Among the white and seething waters Luckless Joe had disappeared, but Harry Percy, like a duck, plunged after him. The boat was tossing about in the storm, and it was as much as Briny Bob could do to steer it as it rushed along. In a few moments a faint shout was heard. > “The rope’s tight—he is saved !” cried Darby. In a few seconds more the lightning flashed, and discovered Harry Percy manfully buffetting the waves with Luckless Joe tigbt locked in his arms, “Saved! saved!” roared Darby in a tremor of delight. © “True, true ; but next moment we shall all be in the water if you don’t mind,” said Briny Bob. “Come, lend a hand, and let’s pull ’em in,” Darby did not want any second telling, for he tugged man- fully at the rope, and soon had the delight to see his young master, panting and breathless, paddling by the side of the boat. But while all this was transpiring, the little craft sped on its way towards the opposite shore at a terrific pace; nor in the excitement of rescuing Harry and Luckless Joe did either Darby or Briny Bob take heed how near they were to the shore, / While engaged, therefore, in dragging them into the little craft again, the boat bumped heavily on the sand. In an instant, though not forewarned, Briny Bob jumped into the boiling surf up to his arm-pits, and dragged thé boat far up the sand, assisted as he was by heavy waves that fre- quently rolled on the sandy bank. “Saved! saved!’ roared Bob, who, perceiving that the boat would not drift away, dashed into the surf again, breast high, and helped Darby with his young master and Luckless oe. ; This, however, was soon accomplished. Harry and Joe lay breathless and panting on the shore, while Bob and Darby tugged and pulled at the boat until it was safe and dry upon the sands. “Well, this have been a stormy night,” said Bob, when they had landed Will Winter and little Frank upon the shore, “‘ this have been a stormy night, and no mistake. I told you all it would be, so don’t thank me for your ducking any on ye; it’s sacks none on ye ain’t lying at the bottom of the river, 2 can tell ye.” “What are you quailing about, you ugly, lazy elf?” said a rough-looking man, who, unseen, had approached the party. ‘‘ Eh, what’s that?” said Bob, somewhat startled, and sud- denly turning his head, “' Ah, you may well look surprised, Master Bob !” ‘Old Skinflint, by all that’s precious!” said Bob, recog- nizing his master; ‘how the devil did he get here, I wonder ?” ‘“No, but it’s how the devil did yow get here?” said the master, with a rough oath. ‘‘ How dare you venture out in my boat such a night as this?” ‘Who are you ?” said Darby, now approaching and tucking up his sleeves, ready, as usual, for any mischief. * Who am I?” “Yes, who are you? You talk as loudly as if you were the king of all England,” ‘Do I?—ha, ha! No Idon’t; but you must know that the boat on the beach is mine, and that youth there, Briny Bob, TERRIBLE. is my lawful apprentice. “How dare you risk my boat out on such a night as this? Why, even JZ have been obliged to land here out of the storm.” ‘«‘ He has done a noble action, sir,” said Harry Percy, now addressing old Skinflint. : , “ Doing a noble action, has he? ha, ha! Putting money in his pocket unknown to me; that’s it I suppose.” ‘“‘No, sir. He has refused all pay; but if you demand pay- ment, J am ready and able to give you any amount.” ““T wish you’d let me give him a spank on the nose iy growled Darby. : . : “Yes, or me either, if I only dared !” said Bob, with a sigh, ““He’s been t® London to see the execution, and now comes home blind drunk.” “ Take care what you're a sayin’ of, young ‘un, or perhaps. yowll get hung, one o’ these fine mornings, for speaking of your kind master in a most disrespectful manner. The Lon- don Apprentices won’t do much more harm now that their President is swung up. Served him right, too.” “Served him right? Who says that, lies |’? said Harry Percy, foaming-with passion. “Ties? Young man, do you know who you're a pratin’ to? I'll let you know I’m a free waterman on this river, and I say it did serve him right, the Su MRCONTEEED Didn’t he kill his master, good Michael, the cloth-worker ?” ‘‘ No, he did not.” ‘“ But I say he did !” said old Skinflint, swaying to and fro from the effects of drinking. ‘‘ Didn’t I see him hung my- self, this very day? and didn’t Blue-Jacket and his band of rascals try to rescue him? Ah, it was a good trick not to let any o’ them vile Apprentices know aught about it. It was done snug and quiet.” ‘So quiet, my friend, that he is here now.” “ What, here?” said the old waterman, staring around him ag if he expected to see a ghost. ‘‘ What, him here?” “Yes, here!” said Harry, in triumph, pointing to the pros- trate body of Will Winter in triumph. ‘‘ He’s here, and lives and breathes. We rescued him from the gallows twice. Look for yourself.” “The devil!” gasped the old waterman, in pale fright. “The devil, you say—chains and all!” ‘‘ Not the devil, old ’un, exactly,” said Darby, delighted at the old waterman’s looks of amazement. ‘‘ Not the devil exactly, old ’un, but when he fully recovers, he’ll prove the very devil to all those who had a hand in the execution, mind ye, or my name ain’t Darby.” “Why, so it is, as I’m a sinner !” still mused the astonished old man. ‘‘ Chains and all!” \ , “I’m glad you are looking at those chains so attentively,” said Harry, “ because then you’ll know them again.” “‘ What do ye mean, young man?” said the old waterman. “You don’t mean any harm to me, does yer ?” *“No, we do not, except on one condition, old ’un,” said Darby, walking up to him in a very pompous manner. “ And what is the condition you young ’un’s want, then ?” “That you will not breathe a word to any one of what you have seen to-night,” said Harry, ‘‘ for know ye, old man, these very chains they hung Will Winter in shall encase the carcas of some one of Ivan the Terrible’s Band.’ ! ‘“‘ Tvan the Terrible?” said the old waterman, with looks of surprise. ‘ Do ye know him, then ?” ‘We do ; andere a short week has passed over his wicked head, he or his followers will have their reward.” “You are now talking like a child,” the old waterman laughed, “ you don’t know him as I do, or ye wouldn’t talk Osan: of a terrible man that can callin hundreds to his aid,” “ We know him, and his power both,” said Harry, “yea, more than he or any one imagines, We know that he is the scourge of the Thames, and has scores of followers on the coast ready to follow him anywhere,” . ‘“Indeed!—ha, ha! You seem very wise, young ’un ; but let me tell you that ere you attempt anything with Ivan and his friends, you must be prepared to meet him two to one.” “ Thanks for nothing, old ‘un,” said Darby ; “ but if you'll take my werry humble advice, you'll keep your opinions to yourself for we knows more about you than you does comichooksrecom