Black Bess; or, the Knight of the Road — page 247: what you’re looking at

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

: -! . ‘gay, immediately. | should wait there for the costumier, and thea eefze upon . ox a ~ es , a = ( > ae : ei ad ~ % _ ant : +e yg eS ; % ‘ ry ap : . on ad a : Ag? a at p »* } > wes a . 34 oe ita A Ped Le Sein S nit o * ~+> ‘ : ig o> oe? a, . 9 et y wad . ¢ * i | = oad fr ate ~ - mY — ‘ ; * <2 “7p | AY — ei PE te x ; : - ; " * = * , would uf necessity be created, and the police station was! Yet vainly and spasmodically clutching, he rolled down o near that the officers would be upon him, as one might } antil he was brought up with great force and suddenness (er Py fe stone parapet, which most unquestionably saved 18 life. Luckity, he struck against it feet foremost, and beyond a sharp shock and a slight pain, he felt none the worse foz the accident. Brae Yet a moment elapsed before he could fully persuade Bx himaelf that he was really saved. Fee Attracted by the noise evidently coming from below in ae the street, he cautiously raised himself from the gutter. | Then, prompted by an irrepressible impulse, he bent The old costumier began to ascend the staircase, and as he did so Dick went back step by step higher uP until he reached the doorway through which he emerged. Here he paused again in doubt, wonderizg whether he him and overpower him. A second reflection toll tho highwayman that this course could produce no beneficial result, though it might enable him to wreak some punishment on the perfidious | his head forward so as to look over the edge of the old man. parapet. pena He felt, however, that to escape quickly was the cnief| To his surprise, he found that quite a crowd of peoplo thing, and a plan of operations suggesting itself to him | had collected, surrounding the costumier’s door. 3 just then, he turned round, and with rapid steps ascended By that mysterious means which puzzles everybody, the second flight of stairs, all those persons present had got to learn what was the He heard the old costumier enter the room, for so | matter. wrapped up was he in the consideration of the iniquity | Dick was satisfied with one hasty glance; then he he was about to perpetrate, that he failed to hear the slight | shrank back, for there was just the possibility that one of noise Dick made in ascending. those below looking up might discern his head, in which By whom the house was tenanted Dick had not the | case a fresh alarm would be raised. slightest idea. , When Dick began again to crawl alcng the roofs, he A dim light coming from some unknown source enabled | became sensible of the fact that he had bruised himself | him to find his way tolerably well up the steep, old- | dreadfully in many places, and when he moved his limbs ~ as fashioned staircase, until at length he reached the top. he suffered considerable pain, which kept increasing each F While ascending the last flight, his hands had been | moment. re tes, busily groping in his pockets for the materials wherewith | But his progress was now attended with a much greater to produce a light; therefore, without any loss of time, he | amount of caution than at first, so, after all, the slight managed to ignite one of those small pieces of wax | accident he met with was a fortunate event, inasmuch as candle which once before that night had been of such | it taught him the absolute necessity for caution, | service to him. In thus scrambling over the roofs, Dick had no settled ips The dim light it afforded was, nevertheless, sufficient | idea further than that he might perhaps be able to gain an to light up the narrow, confined space in which he | entrance to some house or other at some distance, and so stood. _ descend to the street unperceived. He found that, as he had fully expected, he had reached} A thousand difficulties were in the way of this course; the top of the house, and was standing on a small square | yet he crept on and on, though his pace grew slower in landing-place. - consequence of the pain in all his joints. Looking up, he saw in the roof one of those small} At last, with a sigh of disappointment, he stopped and Square openings covered with a trap door, with which | looked despairingly around. ; almost every house in London is provided, to serveasa}| Just in front of him was a division between the house- means of escape in case of fire. : tops, not very wide, butits great height made the abyss A second glance showed him a short ladder lying ciese | look perfectly alarming. against the wall. That he could easily leap such a distanee, Dick knew To seize it was the work of a moment, and while he | very well; but then he was bruised and shaken, and he was placing it in the necessary position, he heard that a | shrank back with that dread which everyone experiences great uproar was taking place in the lower part of the} upon suddenly finding themselvesin such a situation. house. He looked back as though with the intention of retreat- “Never mind,” he muttered, as he ascended the ladder | ing, but just then he heard many voices talking loudly, rapidly, “I ielieve that I have yet got time.” and directly afterwards a man crawled out of the trap- 5 He stopped at the top and drew back the bolts, door from which he had go lately emergod. e The trap-door was then quickly placed aside, and he Clearly the officers had found some way of reaching the eae found himself with the fresh air blowing down ugon him. | roof independently of the ladder which Dick had so catre- aioe The candle was at this moment extinguished. fully removed. This did not matter, for he had no longer any occasion They had also provided themselves with torches, which for its use. cest a bright, ruddy glare around for a considerable “T can’t fasten the door,” Dick muttered, ‘‘and so put | distance. a stop to their progress in that way, but I willdraw up} “It must be,” said Dick, as he gathered himself up the ladder, and that will make it more difficult for them | slowly—“it is my only chance. If I make the effort all to reach me.” will be well; but I question whether any of the officers He suited the action to the word, and sent the ladder | will be bold enough to follow me.” sliding down over the tiles until it stopped short in the He stepped up as he spoke on to the edge of the stone tter. parapet, which was not more than a foot wide. He then began to look carefully around him, so as to} In doing so, he could not avoid glancing down fo the make sure of taking the best route across the housetops, | ground below, andas he did so such a sensation of dizzi- i for, of course, his safety depended upon the course hs | ness came over him that he almost lost his balance. ee chose. Between four and five feet distant from him was | Descending at length, he crawled slowly upon the tiles | another parapet, similar in every respect to the one upon ~ until he reached the centre ridge. which he stood. As he was passing over this, a tile, upon which sve toot ‘This he would have to clear so as to drop upon tho ~ rested, was dislodged from its position, and so suddenly | roof beyond. and unexpectedly that before he could save himsgif or To taks such a leap was terrible indeed. | even make an effort to do so, he was slipping at a fearful | ‘Truly was ita leap for life, and one only to be taken rate down the sloping roof. i. by a man whose only chance of safety lay in doing He struggled violently, and strove to arrest his Gesceat La ; by grasping at the edges of the tiles. Dick prepared himself for the effort as best he sould. But these did not afford him snfficient koid to enable He gave one spring into the air, striving to forget that him to stay nis speed in the least ? he was standing on the top of a high house, endeavoring Down he went, and such a shtddering norrer took } to chest his fancy into the belief that he was only on the possession of him that he was unable to turn his eyes | ievel ground. and lookin the direction in which he was fajling. ‘ He alighted on the etone coping opposite. His heart ceased to beat, and a mist seemed to spread fis footing was insscure; he tottered and struggled for itself before his eyes. } ® batance. JOOKS. GoM c.) - | Eom