Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 274: what you’re looking at

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

A — _ , — ‘ 276 — ~_—~s— CC CC OF! eee cried Lorain, furiously, and stamping his foot as he gave utterance to the words. “No doubt but he will be the second of the rascal I am going to fight; and if he is, (ll pick a quarrel with him,and shoot him. Yes, sir, shoot him dead! *’ ) | “But you forget Mr. Brown may shoot you first,” said the lawyer, coolly. ‘‘ How then ? ” ‘} Why, then ” stammered Lorain. ‘‘ Well, that fs awkward, ain’t it? I ought to have sought the fellow who calls himself Richard Clavering, and goaded him on to a meeting— that is how I should have acted. But he shan’t have it!” “You cannot prevent him—you cannot defy the law. Besides, if Mr. Brown shoots you, it won't matter who enjoys the titles and estates —at least, not to you.” » ‘*And so you think I shall lose them ?”’ said Lorain, becoming more calm. ‘His claim is a good one—a very good one. Proofs abundant—evidence plain—-convince any jury, unless ”’= Ee ‘* Unless what ?”” ‘They are rebutted by stronger proof on the other side—and that, I think, is impossible.” ‘* Curses on it all!” ‘“Mr,. Lorain, you should strive to curb that violent temper of yours. One day it will lead to your ruin,’ said the lawyer. ‘* Already it has placed your life in danger.” ‘““T don’t care. For if I have to sive up my wealth, Pd as soon die as live,” said Lorain, bitterly. A few moments after, they separated. It was late in the evening when Jack sat smoking a cigar in the hotel he had named, when one of the servants of the establishment placed a note in his hand, informing him that the bearer waited an answer. Jack opened the paper, and a smile broke over his face as he perused the lines written therein. Slowly folding the note up, he said— ‘‘ Tell the person who brought this that I will not fail ‘to be at the place at the time named.” The man hurried to perform his errand, and Jack, placing the letter in his pocket, lolled back in his chair, and puffed away at his cigar, watch- ing the blue wreaths of smoke as. they curled up- wards towards the ceiling. “So the fellow is in earnest,” he muttered to himself. ‘‘He intends to make my heart a receptacle for a bullet, if he can. I thought that when he cooled down he would think better of it. Well, I must go, though [ do not like the idea of killing a fellow-creature, or being slain myself. Perhaps it will come to nothing, after all, and so much the better if it does not. However, I must be up early; so I will just drop a note to Richard, to request him to meet me here at six in the morning, and then get to bed. No games to-night, for the head must be cool, and the hand steady when engaged in such businessasthis. He insists uponmy promise being kept of divulging who lam. He feels it lesshonour to fight Mi. Brown, perhaps, than he would to slay the — Spring-heeled Jack; though, to my thinking, it is as great a crime to murder —_——_ — a a ae ees SPRING-HEEL’ D JACK: THE TERROR OF LONDON. one man as another. lLet’s hope the affair will end in bluster and smoke—without fire and lead. Butif it must be, why, it must. I shall not flinch.” Jack flung the end of his cigar into a spittoon and taking a sheet of paper, hurriedly scribbled #note to Richard, which he despatched by the hotel messenger, and then retired for the night, after desiring to be called at the early hour of five o’clock, much to the surprise, if not abso- lute disgust, of the person to whom the request was mace. Da Punctual to thehour stated in the note, Richard Clavering was ushered into the chamber of our hero, whom he found attired for a journey. After the ordinary salutations had passed, Jack told his young friend that the object of his sending for him so early was to accompany him a couple of miles to meet a person who wished to have the honour of slaying Spring-heeled Jack. | Of course, the young man’s surprise was oniy equalled by his fears for our hero’s safety ; but Jack treated the matter lightly, and, after a little conversation, the two sallied out of the hotel, and took their way westward. Three-quarters of an hour’s walk brought them to the spot selected by Lorain —a field lying back some distance from the high-road, and sheltered from observation by a tall, thick-set hedge. Here they found Lorain awaiting them in the company of a gentleman about his own age, who advanced to meet Jack as he entered the enclosure, and who demanded to know if any apology would be tendered by him to his friend. Jack’s reply was a scornful laugh, and a re- quest that the preliminaries might be arranged as quickly as possible, as he had business to attend to, and was anxious to shoot his man, without any delay, and have the trifling business disposed of at once. a Lorain’s cheeks paled when he learned how his friend had been received by the man he had challenged, and bitterly cursed himself for haying insisted upon the duel, He had never thought that Jack would be at the spot. But, finding his mistake, he began to think how best to save himself from the consequences of his rash temper. He had soon resolved how to act. He determined not to wait for the signal to fire, but to aim at his opponent the moment he had taken up his position. The preliminaries being arranged, each was led to his corner, and then Jack, slipping on his mask, turned to inform Lorain that he was Spring-heeled Jack, if it was any gratifica- tion for him to know it, when that worthy levelled his weapon, and placed his finger on the trigger. | ) As he pressed it, the sight of the mask caused him so much and so sudden a surprise, that he started back—thus bringing the barrel of» his pistol up, and the ball flew several yards above the head of our hero. 4 In amoment Jackrealized the other’streachery, and, bounding forward, he seized him by the throat, and laid the barrel of his weapon against Lorain’s brow. | 900 (E(e) Nic (S.com