Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 213: what you’re looking at

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

— > Te ness again,” thou firmly down with his hands and knees. ‘be found in his heart. SPRING-HEEL’D JACK : THE TERROR OF LONDON. _“ Tiis terror will soon deprive him of conscious-| mounds towards the path, first peering in that oht Jack, as he held the man Jack was mistaken in his surmise. A violent shudder ran through the man’s frame ; 2 fearful spasm passed over his face ; his eyes closed ; his limbs stiffened out, and séareea pulsation existed in his frame. For ‘a moment Jack dreaded lest the fright had deprived him of life, and he almost felt sorry for what he had done. He placed his hand on the man’s chest with no little anxiety. The heart still beat, but very, very low was its throb. Still, it assured our hero that he still lived, and he immediately recommenced the operation of disrobing the body-snatcher. He had little difficulty in this, save when he came to his boots, which were laced up high above the ankles with thick, strong leather laces. But these were off at last. And taking the laces from the boots, Jack proceeded to bind the wrists of the man together with one, and then the ankles with the other, so rendering him powerless to move hand or foot. ‘““Now for the sack,” said Jack, leaving the side of the man, and searching ‘round for the article he desired. Having found it where he had placed it, after taking it from the stone, he opened its mouth, _and raising the feet of the body-snatcher, drew the thick canvas over them, and gradually worked the sack up round the body of the pros- trate man, till Bill’s bare feet touched the bottom ofthe bas. | “He makes a pretty corpse,’ said Jack, look- ing into the pale face of the man ;“ only he wants washing and shaving to make him decent. Truly the face is an index of a man’s mind, for there are few who could look upon this fellow and deny that all the baser passions of nature are to However, let’s cover up his beauty. I’ve seen enough of him.” And so saying, Jack pulled the mouth of the sack over the man’s head, and, gathering it up in his hand, held it there while. he con- sidered what he could tie it with. “1 dare say there is a bit of rope in his eoat-pocket,” said Jack, as he drew that vesture towards him. He was not mistaken, For, on diving his hand into the pocket of the fustian coat, he dis- covered a good stout piece of rope, which he drew forth, and instantly secured the mouth of the sack with. When this was done, Jack paused to survey his work, and a smile of satisfaction passed over his face. | “Tf he comes to, now,” he muttered, “he'll certainly think he is in hisgrave. But I won’t leave him here. Il drag him to the little gate, and then search for his companions ; for I doubt if one of them would be bold enough to enter ; direction, to satisfy himself he was not observed. Having succeeded in getting his burden into the pathway, his course became more easy, and he dragged the insensible man along the little fiags till he reached the gate. Here he laid it down, went through the gate, shaded his eyes with his hands, and looked along the road. His glance failed to encounter any living ob- ject. And, opening the gate, and holding it open with his foot, he dragged the sack and its con- tents through the wicket, and some little dis- tance from the. churchyard. Then he placedit under the hedge, which skirted ° an adjoining piece of ground, took off his mask, wiped the perspiration from his face, removed his cloak, which he folded ‘across his arm, and, taking a cigar from his pocket, applied a light to its end, and then hurriedly walked along the road in the direction whence he had come to the church. : He suspected that it was more than probable that the men who had made their escape would be waiting at the spot where they bad met pre- vious to entering the hallowed precincts of the churchyard, and he kept a sharp look-out as-he took his way along the road. Presently he saw the figure of a man crouch- ing down under the hedge which bounded the garden of the house where he himself had paused to watch the body-snatchers, and he felt sure that it was one of the trio. Appearing not to have seen the man, he kept on at the samg pace, puffing the smoke from his mouth as if quite unconscious of the. presence of a human being save himself. As he passed the man, he said in a sharp tone— “Good night.” ‘“‘T say, governor, will you give usa light ?”’ said Tom, for he it was. “ Certainly,’ said Jack, turning quickly. “You can light your pipe from the end of my cigar.” , “Thank ye, master,” said Tom, taking a little black pipe from his pocket, and holding it so as Jack could place the end of his cigar in the bowl. “* Draw up,” said Jack. The man .commenced sucking away at the clay tube, and as the light from the end of the cigar played upon Tom’s face, Jack saw it was deadly pale. It took the man some time to licht the tobacco, for his hand trembled so violently that he could not hold the pipe still. he effected his purpose, and said— | “Thankee. IL say, you ain’t seen a man in a fustian coat along the road as you came, have ou 2” i “A man in a fustian coat, and « broad- brimmed, low-crownhed hat, and a yellow silk handkerchief round ‘his neck, about as tall as you ?’’ said Jack. But at leneth 215 “Yes, yes, that’s him.” Gathering up the man’s clothes and boots,| “Isaw such a man a few minutes ago.” Jack hurled them into the grave, and then,}| ‘“‘ Where?” taking up the body by the shoulders, he pro-| “Just outside the little wicket that leads into ceeded to drag it along over the srass-grown the churchyard yonder.” : this churchyard again to night.”’ | | eS HANKS SK OKE CREO