The Skeleton Crew; Or, Wildfire Ned — page 61: what you’re looking at

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

REE — ‘‘How innocent he is,” thought Phillip, when left alone, “and how handsome, too! Well, never mind ; [care not who.snffers so 1 do®tot,. I might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb,” And, as he thought of his intended plans against Charley, he grinned like a hyena, “To-morrow shall decide it,” he said, and smiled at the thought of the pit he would dig into which young Warbeck should fall. CHAPTER XXI, THE WOLF AND THE LAMB—A SGOUNDREL OF ' THE FIRST WATER, UNLUCKILY for himself, it was an evil day when Charley Warbeck first made the acquaintance of Phillip Redgill. : 7 ~ Phillip, as all knew, was a great don about town, and maintained a handsome. suite of rooms, to which the gayest of the gay resorted. His father was a very wealthy man, so all the world said; a great ship owner, and ‘a merchant prince of the good city of London,” To be patronized by the son of such a person poor Charley considered ‘‘a very fine thing.” ““Wasn’t Phillip Redgill one of the sparks. of fashion? Did not fair ee (of doubtful virtue, perhaps) smile bewitchingly upon him? Was he not nodded to by this lord and that.one? Could he not handle a sword with almost any man ?” said Charley, and many others, “And was it not a ‘great thing,’ therefore, to be. known. to, and to be hand and glove with such a person when I am only a chief clerk in the India House, and nought to depend upon but my own advancement and, old Six Richard’s generosity 2” ! i Yes, this was all true; but Charley Warbeck’ little dreamed of 'what'a cool, conscienceless villain Phillip was, and how he gained the money he sported with so lavishly “about town,” as if was called, oa ee It was true that Sir Richard Warbeck’s signature had been forged to-a valuable bill, but how it was done no one could tell. ; “Sa Suspicion had fallen upon Charley, and, in truth, he did sign his uncle’s name to the bill in question, bub was: unconscious of having done so,.and was guiltless. © : wed ‘This singular affair, the first: link,in Charley’s after misery, but not the first in Phillip’s chain of crimes by any means, occurred in this manner, After Charley had been some time intimate (as they should be, Phillip said, on the score of relation- ship) young Redgill gave a party at his lodgings, to which Charley was invited, er. During the ‘evening Phillip wrote-a note to Sir Richard Warbeck, andifolded it in a neat wrapper, after the manner of those days when envelopes were unknown, ~— , “ Here, Charley,”, said he, ‘‘ direct this for me.’ Charley, who had, been drugged by Phillip, directed the note to Sir Richard Warbeck, and nothing more, “That will do,” said Phillip, and he took up the note in .a¢areless manner, while Charley dropped off to sleep. “That will do excellently. If old Sir Richard had written the direction. himself, it, couldn’t have been a better fac simile of his’ own handwriting, for there, are; net. any. two: persons under the sun, who write so much alike as the old knight and Charley. Bravo! it was a clever trick _ of mine ; an excellent thought, by Jove!” — As he said this, chuckling, ‘he took off the cover- f\ THE SKELETON CREW; OR, WILDFIRE NED. —— a —————— ing of the letter, which proved, to be nothing else than.a promissory note for a thousand pounds | ‘All I wanted was this signature,” said Phillip, in high glee. ‘ How neatly I got it, too! — I'll get it discounted among the Jews to-morrow ; it can never be traced to me again,” The bill was passed among the Jews, and Phillip gou the money, In time it became due, when the trick was dis- covered, and Sir Richard refused to pay, Officers had the case in hand. It .came to. Charley’s ears, and although Sir Richard never breathed a suspicion of what. he thought, Captain Jack long suspected him, but could not obtain any positive proof to convict him; unless, as. he often did, enter the witness-box and ‘complete his chain of evidence by. deliberate false swearing, < _ Though many persons laughed at the loss which the Jews suffered in the transaction, the final bill- holder, a long-bearded English Israelite, Moss, by name, swore solemnly never to let. the matter rest; nor did Captain Jack ever lose sight of Charles Warbeck, despite his respectable position and the powerkal Sir Richard, =e: * * * The very next day after Captain Jack’s visit to Phillip’s apartments, Charles Warbeck was sent ont to collect various large sums on account of the India House, of which old Sir Richard was one of the managing directors. ' | He was watched and dogged throughout the whole of the day by a. spy employed by Phillip,.and the, news was brought to him that, Charles had then in his possession a large sum, which, as usual, he was to account for that same.evening., - But on his way back to the India House, Phillip Redgill met him, and, in a careless manner, said he was very short of cash, and begged of Charley to loan him fifty pounds, until the end of the week,.as he was going to a masque ball that night. » Charley had not any such sum, but promised to see what he could do by borrowing, and would see Phillip that night.< | ) phe fom This was agreed to. —FIASY. 2ucl Bunt ere they parted, wine was called for, and the hours flew by rapidly. { at cert ice Quicker ‘than ‘he imagined »the-time. passed at which he was expected at the India House,.;and,; afters cursing his bad luck, he drank again and again’ with Redgill, until at asthe became very much the worse for liquor, and had to be carried. to his lodgings by two chairmen, yet all the while; and through all his drunkenness, taking:great care of the bundle of notes, which he had secreted-in his breast, next to his skin, for fear of theft or accident. It was now nine o’clock at night, andthe two chairmen, being paidjleft«the young man at his own door. H erbs \ ted With all his ingenuity he was unable to use his night-key, and stood fumbling at the dooriacon- siderable time, and swearing not alittle. -: Charles was in a fog.’: The keyhole seemed tobe removed from its accustomed place; for he could not find it: from the unsteady motion of hisshand; the latch-key dropped many, many times, and: it was: doubtful how long he might have remained there, shivering in=the'cold, had not the oft apos- trophizedand obstinate) key fallen. intothe: area, and raised his anger to the highest pitch, “Pll bring some one down to the door,” said he, and commenced knocking at it with great vigour and noise.’ . In a few moments ‘Dame Worthington, thei good MICLOOOKS.EO@