Black Bess; or, The Knight of the Road — A Tale of the Good Old Times — page 199: what you’re looking at

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

BLUESKIN: A ROMANCE. } At the expiry of that interval, however, the door | Tt looked as though it had originally been a carving. itself was gradually pushed open. The hinge creaked shghtly. But this was disregarded. | Presently the door was opened far enough for a head to be projected hetween its edge and the jamb into the | room. It was an old man’s head. | : The hair, long and straggling, was a grizzly gray. His skin was puckered up into many deep wrinkles. _ For only a moment did the head apnear, and then it was withdrawn again, but that moment sufficed for the deeply-set eagle eyes within to take a survey of the whole apartment. Blueskin slumbered. His attitude and stertorous breathing at once pro- claimed that fact. ae. The head reappeared, and, after hstening again to make sure all was well, the old man crept into the chamber. He assumed a strange crouching attitude, and his head shook tremulously on side to side as though afflicted with some palsical complaint. . Then, Eben round, he beckoned with his finger to some one without. The summons was obeyed. A woman entered. It was the landlady. CHAPTER CXXXVI. THE LANDLADY OF THE LODGING-HOUSE AND THE OLD MAN COME TO A VERY BAD END INDEED. THE faint light which struggled through the thick curtain drawn across the window distinctly revealed the countenances of these two persons. No human eye was there to look upon and note the ex. pression which they wore. — Had there been, unless, indeed, their nerves were iron, they would have shuddered with horror as they saw it. Stamped upon each, in the most legible characters, was the word, murder! . That was their awful errand to that silent room. The money which they supposed Blucskin to have about him was doubtless the incentive to the horrid deed. | Money, indeed, was the god they both worshiped witha fervour and a zeal that would in former times, directed toa different object, have caused their bones to be canonized, and their names revered as saints. The old man made a gesture to the old woman, which she immediately comprehended. _ She reclosed the door, and stooping down, slipped a bolt into its socket. Despite the care with which this operation was per- formed, she could not help it making a slight sound, which caused them, like guilty creatures as they were, to start violently. But it would have required a ten times louder noise than that was to have aroused Blueskin from his heavy sleep. : Satisfied that no alarm had been given, the pals crawled towards the bed. . The dimensions of the room were limite?, so it was quickly reached. The slumberer’s position was one in every way suited to the consummation of their purpose. He lay upon his back, his limbs stretched out to their full length, and his head thrown back, leaving the neck naked and exposed. But this attitude served also to show the muscular development of their guest, and to show them how formidable an antagonist he would be, unless they took him at unawares. The contrast between him and the two wretches by whom his life was menaced was great indeed. Of the two the old man appeared to be the strongest, but what the woman lacked in strength was more than ~ eompensated for by coolness of nerve. - And now, having reached the bed, they did not hesitate a single moment, From some place in the breast of her clothing ,,._ hideous old woman drew forth 2 knife. The haft was white, and the blade long, sharp, and glit- tering. | knife, and ground down to its present dagger-like shape. 4 siesPing it firmly by the hilt, she raised it above her | Head, | With her other hand she felt for the slumberer’s heart. This was the point at which she aimed. It might have been previous experience that had taught her that that was the surest and quickest way of robbing one of life. The old man stood by quietly—his turn had not come to take part in these diabolical and murderous proceedings. The precious landlady, having found her mark, now | brought the knife down with full force and suddenness upon Blueskin’s breast. But a result ensued for which she was quite unprepared. The point of the weapon, instead of sinking into soft flesh, as she expected, struck against some hard substance like iron or steel. She uttered a how! of agony, and let the knife fall from her bruised fingers. A terrible ery also burst from Blueskin’s lips, for, of course, this had awakened him. He had laid down with his hanger drawn and handy to his grasp. Seizing it, therefore—although when he did so he could not be said to be thoroughly awake—he sprang to his feet, : Yelling for mercy, the old man sank down upon his nees. But the landlady rushed to the door, and made a frantic attenipt to leave the room. “Stop!” said Blueskin, as with his left hand he drew a pistol from his belt and held it at arm’s length. “ Stop, or I fire.” His accents were so full of determination that the woman, perforce, obeyed. “Now,” he continued, “explain this this moment! Make the least movement, either to attack me or to escape, and I will slay you without mercy. It is fortunate I wore over my heart a piece of highly-tempered steel. It has been the means of saving my life upon more than one occasion. Now, then, what was the meaning of this attack upon my life P” ** Mercy—mercy !” “I will show noue if you do not speak at once.” ‘* Spare our lives, good sir! Spare our lives!” “ What right have you to make such a prayer? But all will depend upon your answer. Do you hear me? Was it to rob me that you wished to take my life ? ” “* Yo-s, sir, Mercy—mercy !” “* No one set you on P” ** No—no, sir, no.” The idea appeared to hold momentary possession of Blueskin’s mind that some one had instigated them to murder him, but a moment’s thought told him that it was an absurd one. Avarice—the sin that has prompted the commission of more sins than aught else—was the sole motive that had actuated the poor wretches before him. He knew not what other people there might be in the house ready and willing to render them assistance, and in his weak state he would easily be overpowered by numbers; and so it was his best policy to get out of the house as quickly as possible. But he was unwilling to do so without inflicting some punishment upon those who had in so base a manner attempted to take his life, though, haviug asked for mercy, he did not like to slay them in cold blood, though, had he done so, it would have been no more than they deserved. He glanced round him for something that would suit his purpose, but, save the bedclothes, he saw nothing. He determined to make one of the sheets available. By dint of the most terrible threats, he compelled the two abject beings to stand close to each other. Then, stripping the clothes off the bed, he twisted the top sheet into a kind of rope, and with this he bound them tightly to each other in such a fashion that neither could move in the least. This done, he doubled one of the blankets and put it over their heads, securing it in that position by means of the other sheet, twisted up in the same manner as the former one. When this was done, they were, to all intents and pur. poses, quite helpless. But he bad not done with them yet. 197" CloOOOKS (SO) (SO) 5}