Rose Mortimer; Or, The Ballet-Girl's Revenge — page 29: what you’re looking at

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

‘THE BALLET-GIRL’S REVENGE. 23 8 ee ee ee Ee eee Ee Ee ee ** No—no,’’ said the man. ‘I cannot.’’ ‘On my knees I beg it. If you have a sister, think of her —”’ ‘‘Damnation!’’ cried the man angrily. ‘TI tell you,no! Were you to supplicate for hours, I could not do it.’’ , Hope, which for a few moments had revived in her bosem, sank again, Her distress and despair could no longer find utter- ance in words, but she twined her beautiful white Pas about the man and looked beseechingly into his ace. For a moment he paused,seemingly irresolute; then, with a savage oath, he pushed her from him with such force that she sank heavily on the floor. He turned aside ashamed. When Rose raised her head she saw that his back was towards her. She saw, moreover, that the door was still open. Possessed of a sudden hope of making her escape, she sprang to her feet, and almost before he had time to turn his head had disappeared through the door- way. With a savage yell he darted after her. On quitting the room she, in her confusion, turned to the left instead of the right. She did not perceive her mistake until too late. To retrace her steps was but to run into the arms of her pursuer. Her only chance was to keep on. A staircase terminated the passage, and up this she ran, the man gaining rapidly upon her. Up, up she went, knowing not whither it might lead. On, on came her pursuer, calling to her in vain to stop. But the stairs could not go on for ever. She reached the uppermost storcy of the house. What could she do? She had but a moment for deliberation. The door of a room stood open, and into it she darted, but what protection could it afford her ? None! it was a bare meagre unfurnished attic. One chance alone remained—the window! It stood open, and outside ran a narrow parapet. Without pausing she stepped upon it, and hurried along the narrow ledge. Her pursuer entered: the room as she did so, and uttered a cry of horror, for he deemed it impossible for her to escape a dreadful death. He expected she would fall, to be dashed in pieces on the pavement below, and his fear was not without foundation. The ledge was little more than eight inches wide ! Fearing to follow, he leant from the window in terror, for, debased ruffian as he was, he was not wholly bad, and he sincerely pitied the poor girl, though he dared not further her escape. In him many natures mingled, and had he been left to himself the good might have gained the ascen- dancy, but, unfortunately, he had not the moral courage to flee from temptation. The foe which had obscured the streets a few bours - before had entirely cleared off when Rose made her escape on to the roof. The moon, moreover, shone bright and clear over London, and by its light the pursuer saw his victim flitting along the parapet to what seemed certain destruction, ‘‘ Stop! stop!” he cried, ‘‘ you arerushing to a dreadful death! come back !”’ Rose answered not a word. Quickly she passed onward. The house from which the poor girl was endeavour- ‘ing to make her escape was one ofa long row. From the other houses in the row, however, it dif- fered materially. It was a storey higher, and projected a little more into the street ; consequently, when Rose arrived at the end of the narrow ledge she saw that she must either return and be made a prisoner by the minions of the profligate count or attempt a gymnastic feat which was difficult in the extreme, and which she could hardly hope to accomplish. To effect her escape she would haye to crawl along for some distance upon the slates, and then drop a con- siderable distance upon a tiled roof, which was so sloping as to give her bnt-little chance of being able to retain her footing when she reached it. She did not hesitate for a moment. Any fate was preferable to the one she might expect Should she fall into the clutches of the count. She knew no mercy was to be expected at his hands. Her pursuer, who had feared to follow her along the parapet, had stretched himself as far as possible out from the window, expecting every moment to see her fall into the street below, but yet intently watching her movements. That she would attempt to escape by dropping on to the lower roof never entered his head. The plan seemed too impracticable. It was certain death, he thought. The danger was extreme, but Rose determined to brave if. Anything rather than the fate for which the count destined her. When the man saw her commence to crawl slowly and carefully along the slated roof, he uttered a cry of horror. To call to her, to warn her, was of no use. She was too far from him to hear him, unless he raised his voice so that it would be audible to any passer-by in the street below. He watched her till a stack of chimneys hid her from his sight. For some moments he remained breathless, expect- ing every instant to hear the shriek of despair an- nouncing her fall. He waited, but he heard it not. The suspense became intolerable. The beauty and innocence of poor Rose had not been without its effect upon him. Her peril roused the nobler sentiments in his nature. Snatching up a coil of rope, and hanging it loosely alout his neck, he crept through the window. Then, upon his hands and knees, he crawled along the ledge. It was a dangerous undertaking. One moment’s loss of confidence, one second’s giddiness, and he might be dashed to pieces on the pavement. Still he persevered. He had changed his boots for a pair of slippers, when he had entered the house. Now throwing these off, his stockinged feet lent him increased security in his perilous enterprise. Looking steadily before him, he crawled on and on till he reached the corner. Then he paused and looked around for the object of his pursuit. She was nowhere to be seen! Had she found some other method of making her escape ? Puzzled, he waited, and scanned the roof carefully. Then, by the bright moonlight, he saw at some dis- tance from him the poor girl in the act of dropping from the higher to the lower roof. She had gone further up, in order that, should she miss her footing, she might have a better chance of recovering it. The tiles upon which she was about to drop were at such an acute angle that it seemed all but impossi- ble that she could retain her balance upon them. COnnIGlOolks CO