Black Bess; or, The Knight of the Road — A Tale of the Good Old Times — page 45: what you’re looking at

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

Co ween peerereerner e_commerce ee a {SP Tp ey BLUESKIN: A ROMANCE. | a a aa ee, = 4.3 a ee trampling of many feet told him that the servants were already on the scent. | ‘€Confound it,” said Blueskin, as he picked up the bag and ran across the yard with it in ‘6 direction of the wall where the rope-ladder was hanging. ‘ Confound it! This is one of the most troublesome jobs I have ever had in my t life. Look sharp, or our retreat will be cut off, after all.” Jack increased his speed, and there was gcod reason | that he shonla do so, for lights were flashing about in all directions. ; Very fortunately the ladder was not far off, and they reached it in a few seconds. Now, Jack, up with you. Quick! Iwill follow.” *¢ And the swag ?”’ “Vit see to that. I will tie it to the bottom of the ladder, and draw it up after me.” * Capital! You would have found it rather difficult to carry up with you.” It was easy enough toclimb up the ladder while Blueskin held it steady, and Jack was soon on the top of the wall. While he was going up, Blueskin had tied the bag to the last round of the ladder. Then he himself mounted it, and seating himself astride the wall, commenced to haul up the booty. But at this moment the servants reached the wall, and one man, who looked Itke a gamekeeper, or something of that kind, had a double-barrelled gun in his hand. ‘“Come down there,” he shouted, raising his piece and covering our friends with it, “ Come down, or by heaven Vl blow you both to atoms!” Before he had finished his speech though, Blueskin had drawn up the ladder ard lowered it on the other side. ° © Qyer the wall, Jact:, and hang by your hands,” he cried, as he himself shpped down the ladder, “and then follow me.” Jack did as he was bid, and then arose the report of the un. : Its discharge was harmless. Before the echo had died away, Blueskin was standing at the foot of the ladder, and he was directly afterwards rejoined by Sheppard. Stil they were far from safe. The plunder though was all mght, and so as he con- sidered himself the stronger, Blueskin picked it up, and set off at such a run, that Shepherd had as mnch as he could do to keep up with him. After going at this pace for about a hundred and fifty yards, he slackened speed and looked back. No signs of pursuit could be seen, so they went on at an easier rate. The horse which they had left in the lane fully justified Blake’s assurance that he would nut stray away. In fact, he was on the identical same spot. The bag of plate was thrown into the cart by Blueskin, who mounted and took the reins, while Jack scrambled in after him. The horse was rcfreshed by his halt and banquet in the Jane, and, without any incitemcut, went along at a fast trot that got over tho round in a most surprising manner. As they turned tho corncs of the Edgwsre-road into Oxford-strect they saw before them, on the eastern horizon, the Sirst faint flush of coming e2y. But still, in the opposite anarter of the heavens, the moon shone with a brillancy as yct uncimmed. ToJack’s surprise, instead of making direct for the stables in Long-acre, Blueskin turned off towards Westminster. ‘Where are you going ?” Jack asked. ** To Jouathan’s crib in the Horseferry, where he keeps the swag.” CHAPTER XXIX. RETURNS TO QUILT ARNOLD, WHO WAS LEFT BY WILD IN THE VAULTS BENEATH TOTTENHAM CILURCTI. _ Nanr-an-riour after Jonathan mounted his horse and rode off towards London, Quilt Arnold began to exhibit some symptoms of returning animation. f Me moved slightly, and a faint groan came from 4is Ips. ‘ The two kicks w!..ca Jonathan administered had de- ranged his anatomy a little. It was pain, doubtless, that brought him back to life. At first he was very confused. Cg ry er RENE Ba TIE TE He felt a terrible aching pain every time he drew his breath or attempted to move. Quite at aloss, too, he for some moments tried to recollect where he was and what had happened. Ee opened his eyes and his confusion increased. ¥e could see nothing. for a moment 2 horrible idea entered his mind, and he felt his blood grow suddenly cold in his veins, while he turnec heartsick with apprehension. ‘te fancied he was blind. “he agony he endured while that the ught had posses. sion of him was intense indeed. And i$ is not at all to be wondered at that he sheuld be seized with suck a conceit, for so wlack was all around that: he could perceive no more difference when he had his eyes open than he could when he had them closed. He remained still, and strove to think. ie recollect what was the last events that had happened to him. But so excited and nervous had he become that memory for a time eluded him. Gradually, however, came back to him the remembrance of all that had occurred ou that to him night of horrors, up to the point where Jonathan uttered his frightful yell and let fall the lantern. After that he could remember nothing except Wild had shipped from his hold, and that he had, in a devious, uncertain kind of way, endeavoured to find the outlet to the vault. “That is it,” he thought, when he had reached this point in his recollections. ‘‘I—I am not blind! but in the vault with the dead.” And now, when the conviction that he was not blind, and that his inability to see arose only from the fact that there was no means by which a ray of light could enter to dispel the darkness, he grew more composed. With much pain and difficulty he raised himself toa sitting posture. Then so great an accession of pain came over him, that if his back had not happened to lean against the wall, he must have fallen back on the floor of their vault. But this pain was produced only by change of posture, and in a little while its intensity abated. Like most others of his profession Quilt never filed to carry about with him a ready means of procuring a ght, and now the first thing he did was to feel in his pockcts for matches. These he produced, as well as ao small pieec of wax candle. ‘The atmosphere in the vault was of so humid a cha- racter, that it was only after a severe struggle that the candle caught light at all, and then the flame was weak and sickly. But Quilt’s eyes had become so accustomed to the dark - ness, that to hin the feeble ght was quite sufficient to illuminate the vault. He raised himself to his feet, and then found the aeute paiu in his ribs had greatly subsided. “W-where’s Jonathan ?”’ he asked, as he glared about him, and held the candle so as to make it pretty equally diffuse its rays over the entire vault. ‘‘ Where’s Jona- than P”’ But, of course, no Jonathan was to beseen. At that moment he was half-way on his road to his own house in Newgate-street. Quilt had not yct noticed the cofiin. That was 2 little surprise in reserve for hin. Presently, however, his eyes fell upon the ghastly and loathsome object. In his agitation it isa great wonder he did not drop his ight. But though it shook about a great deal in his grasp 1t did not fall. “Good heavens!”? he said, ‘‘what horrible work has Wild been at here! Surely he must he a fiend, for who but a fiend would mangle a corpse thus? What earthly object could he have had, I wonder % From these words of Quilt Arnold the reader will per- ecive he had fallen into a mistake, for upon secing ‘he disfigured body he very naturally concluded 2t must be some of his master’s handiwork. : The more he looked, though, the less provable this supposition seemed, and then again he asked hinseli where Jonathan was, and how he came to leave bim 4 the vault ? 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