Black Bess; or, The Knight of the Road — A Tale of the Good Old Times — page 351: what you’re looking at

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

BLUESKIN: A ROMANCE. 349 do next, nor was snything decided upon, but Jack and Blueskin instantly and unanimously decided that their best course waa to get out of the house as quickly as pos- sible, lest if they lingered Jonathan Wild should take such measures 8s to make it impossible for them to do so with- out fulling into his hands. But though they came to this resolution there were many obstacles to the achievanoe of it. Of course, our friends had no idea of what kind of house aoe were in, nor of who inhabited it. é either oould they tell whether it was a privato resi- dence or a shop, though they conjectured the latter, in consequence of the merchandize which they had eseen stowed away in the cellar. They did not stop to speculate, however, but taking a hasty glance, endeavoured to decide which was the front of the house and which the back. Keeping in view the direction they had come, they found that, if their calculations were correct, a turn to the left, after resehing the top of the stairs, would lead them to the front door. Accordingly they proceeded in this direction, and to their great satisfaction they found they were quite right. They came to a door, and opened it with the aid of a sxeleton key. This done, they passed through it, and found themselves in what was evidently and unquestionably a ahop. Drapery goods were ranged on shelves all round it. But bestowing only a basty glance on these, our three pucaees with beating hearts, bent their stepa to the shop oor. As the reader must be aware, people when securing their premises at night, although they take every precau- tion calculated to prevent the entrance of any one, still they very rarely trouble themselves to prevent any one leaving. So thie shop door, which was provided with a compli- ened series of fastenings, was easily undone from the side. One by one, Jack Sheppard noiselessly removed them, until at length he had nothing to do but to lift a latch and fling the door open. © Having reached this point, however, he hesitated. To have thrown the door open and emerged at once would have been unwise. Somehow or other their pursuers were very tardy. What was the meaning of it. Was that a part of Jonathan’s plan ? Perhaps 80, for he was a scheming, long-hended man, and nothing pleased him so much ae to lull bis iptended victime into a sense of false security, and then euddenly , pounce npon them. Or waa the delay occasioned by the difficulty they found in following the fugitives? These are questions to which time alone can furnish a reply. Te hae taken us some time to relate the proceedings of the three fugitives, but then we have described them in Jn reality, however, they occupied a much ehorter space of time than it haa taken us to relate them. But yet, for all that, one would have thought that Jonathan’a men, having beeu once fairly on their track, had had time to come up with them, or at all events to make some demonstration of their proximity. But all was still. ‘ee CHAPTER CCXXXTX. BLUESKIN, JACK SHEPPARD, AND EDGWORTH BESS HAVE TO BUN THROUGH LONDON STREETS FOR THEIR LIVES, AND 60, with these considerations weighing with full im. portance on hia mind, Jack Sheppard stood like a statue with the latch of the door in his hand. One step and he should ouce more be in the open street. But what if be should find lying in wait for him outside the door several of Wild’s men P It waa not at all unlikely. And go he waited and listened. His two companions in misfortune fully understood him, and they both maintained motionless attitndes, scarcely even allowing themselves te breathe. From without there came no sound. Rut anddenly from within there arose a terrifio orash. Jonathan’s men were in the house. There was no longer time for hesitation. If any men wera lying in ambush they would have to run the risk of that. Slowly—cautiously—noiselessly—for his presence of mind never deserted him in the least degree—Jack Shep- pard raised the latch, aud pulled open the door. When he had got it open to the extent of about an inch he paused again, and looked through the crevice. othing, however, but the dim outlines of the buildings on the opposite side of the atreet, rendered dimly distin- guishable by the first faint sickly raye of early dawn, met his gaze. From thia he gathered confidence, and threw the door open etal! further. Then passed out. Hig heart beat quickly aa he crossed the threshold, but no attempt was made to capture lim. He was instantly followed by Blueskin and Edgworth Bess, and then the three fugitives stood onca again beneath the sky, and felt the cool air of heaven breuthe upon them. A sigh of relief came from their lips, and they felt thankful that so far they had eluded their powerful and much-dreaded enemy. But what were they to do? Friendlesa and homeless they stood in the silent atreet. There waa nowhere for them to go. The handa of all the world were raised against them. How were they to hupe to continue 80 unequal a contest, or, at any rate, hope for victory ? Every chance seemed against them, aud yet so tenacious is the human mind of hope, that in this dire extremity of their fortunes, and when things looked ao black against them that they could not possibly look blacker, hope did not desert the breasts of either of our friende. On the contrary, the fact of their having achieved so much in aafety, seemed to inspire them with confidence to dare the rest. Who would have thought that they would have been successful in getting free and unmolested into the open air? and yet they had done so. It was only for a second that they paused in the street 1rresolutely. They were aware how dangerous that spot was to them, and that the sooner they could get to a distance from it unperceived, the better it would be for them. It was Blueskin who first spoke, for he was first recognised their exact situation. ‘Quick, Jack!” he said. ‘“ Follow me, and take care of Edgworth Bess. I will lead the way, and I hope, ere long, we ehall find a place of refuge in which we can remain until the vigour of the pursuit after us has abated.” As he spoke these words, Blueskin darted off, and Jack and his companion hastened after him at the best spead they could make, for they were apprehensive that they should lose sight of him in the darkness. Blueskin turned round every corner he came to, taking care, of course, to preserve one direction, and not to double upon his ateps. Thia was a proceeding eminently calculated to make pursuit after them a matter of great difficulty. Before they had gone far, however, they were unlucky enough to encounter a watchman. ; Running hastily round the corner of a street at which hia box was placed, Blueskin ran against it with full force. He did not see the obstacle in his path until it was too late to prevent himself from coming into collision with It. But yet he did not knock the box over, as he assuredly would have done if he had not diminished his speed a little ; though perhaps, could he but have known It, the best thing he could have done would have been to push it over. ¢ But he prevented this catastrophe. The fact was, the auperannuated old pauper, who was supposed to guard the houses on his beat from all harm, waa very comfortably asleep inside his box when Blueskin came in contact with it. the one who Now, if it had gone over on to its face at once, it is clear that the watchman would have been disabled en- tirely, and could not have given our frienda any farther trouble. Sy ed COmiIcboooks 5}