Penny Dreadfuls, 1865 · page 17 of 204
Rose Mortimer; Or, The Ballet-Girl's Revenge — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page Content Description This is page 9 of a Victorian penny dreadful serial titled *Rose Mortimer; or, The Ballet-Girl's Revenge*. The page features a wood-engraved illustration captioned "[ROSE CARRIED OFF BY COUNT LERNO]" showing a man in formal dress carrying away a woman in a ballet costume near a stage door. Below the illustration runs prose text describing Count Lerno—a mysterious, wealthy, well-bred foreigner of unknown origin who has gained admission to London society through his charm, money, and lavish parties in Piccadilly. The text notes rumors that he profits from cards at these gatherings, and describes a cold December evening when the count sits alone in his luxurious apartments.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ROSE MORTIMER ; OR, THE BALLET-GIRL’S REVENGE. 9 Zed i, s a Hh Z ; ZAifl AY \ Logue - rf WSs = CT ihe MM HT I Gey Hay, VEN ica) HN | il fi pT! } =I 3 aN i) eG: Ml 2 ————SSS=—_"VF| [ROSE CARRIED OFF BY COUNT LERNO. | one knew whence he came, nor, in fact, anything respecting him. He appeared suddenly, and shone brilliantly, like a comet, and speedily obtained admission into the best society. He was handsome and well-bred, besides which he had at his command an apparently inexhaustible supply of money. But a dark mystery hung over his earlier years. He had travelled a great deal, and was supposed to be a foreigner by birth, though what land owned him none but himself knew. On this subject he was ever silent. Now and then he gave charming little bachelor a Yop ey parties at his chambers in Piccadilly, and invitations to them were eagerly sought by those who admired the man that had the best wine and rode the best horses in London. There were not wanting those who declared that the count made a good profit out of those little parties, and that after a night at cards he invariably rose a winner to a large amount. Be that as it may, he had many friends, and those of unquestionable character, who were prepared on every occasion to defend him against the attacks of enemies. It was nearly ten o’clock, one cold wet foggy December evening, when the count sat alone in his luxuriously furnished apartments. comiclbooks COL