Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 285: what you’re looking at

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

a. - - 7 i i - " - SPRING-HEEL’D JACK : THE TERROR OF LONDON. Seow =" eee ——— ———— OO — ll aR RRP LLL _ “I seldom travel without a flask of brandy,”|} and she had hooked her fish,” said the old said Jack, placing his hand in bis pocket, and drawing forth a leather bottle. "Take a good pull out of this. Jt will save you from catching wcold?’», * Gai > it will be. house, off she’ll pop to the big box in the back re. - — ~~ eer! wee ee ee The old man’s eyes twinkled, as he grasped the flask. ' “Tf there’s anything I take a pleasure in besides angling, it’s brandy,’’ he said. “Oh! you are partial to it, are you?” “Very; but my wife won’t let me have it.” _ _ © Perhaps you indulge too deeply ?” said Jack, with a mischievous twinkle of the eye. No, sir, it’s not that, it’s” “What ?” asked Jack, as the other hesitated. ‘Mrs. Tomkins is so fond of it herself, that . she is afraid if I drank it, there wouldn’t be enough for two of us,” said the old man, winking over the flask he placed to his lips. “Oh, that’s it, is it ?” said Jack. “Yes, that’s it. And if she has had a drop this morning, her tongue will go enough to drive a poor devil mad. Only give her an excuse for talking, and when she begins there’s no knowing when she'll stop; a pretty fine excuse she’ll _have now, when she sees me in this pickle. Con- found it! Iwish I could get. in without her seeing me.” : You should not allow her to indulge too freely - in her favourite liquor,” said Jack, ‘‘ if it makes her bad tempered.” “Well, you see, sir, I am passionately fond ot fishing, andshe don’t like it; so, in order to have my way, I let her have hers,” said the old genile- man, confidentially. : 7 “Oh I see,” said Jack. ‘‘ So, by mutual con- sent, vou humour each other’s failing.” “That's it. I enjoy my passion, and she hers, and things run smoothly enough, unless some- thing upsets her.” ‘¢ And you fear she will be upset now ?” - “Tm sure of it.’’ - ™ Perhaps not.” “ But she will.. Why, bless you, 1 know what She’ll see me coming towards the parlour, just behind the screen where she keeps her bottle of brandy, take a good swig to nerve her for a rumpus, and then—oh, then, you should hear her !” ‘Tt would afford me much pleasure to ”’-—— -» “Not if you had as much of it as I have,” in- terrupted Mr. Tomkins, quickly. “T was about to observe, but you interrupted me, that it would afford me much pleasure to save you from the expected scolding, not that it would be gratifying .to me to hear this lady’s voluble tongue.” ) | “T-wish you could, but I tell you what, sir, I don’t believe it is in the power of any living man to do it.” “She must’be a perfect virago, then.’ “ She is worse than that, sir.”’ | “}id you know her temper before you married her, Mr. Tomkins?” said Jack. “Whataquestion!” | | ‘Well, I must confess itis a rude one,” said our hero. . "As if any woman Mm the world ever showed her true temper till after the bait had taken, gentleman, wiping the moisture and mud from his shirt-frill with his wet pocket-handkerchief. .“ ‘Then you were deceived in her, Mr. Tom- kins?” » ‘* T was caught—hooked as clean as that jack. Confound him ! ”’ And the old gentleman looked mournfully at his bitten finger, which the voracious fish had fastened its sharp teeth into. noe - “ Well, I suppose you have pretty well got used to it by this time?’ observed Jack, after a pause. ‘“ Used to it, oh yes; but that makes it none the more pleasant, does it ?’’ _ “© Certainly not.” ‘| have been used to it for quite six years now—yes, six years,’ saig the garrulous old gentleman. ‘ It’s as near about that time: as possible.” ~“ Then you had many years of uninterrupted happiness ?”’ said Jack, playfully tapping his boot with the squire’s riding whip. ‘“ Not with the present Mrs. Tomlzins.” “Oh! [ see. She is your second wife?” “No; she is my third.” ‘“‘ The others were not such scolds ?”’ ‘““ Bless you, no. They were angels, sir— angels of tempers. Never said a word against my passion for anpling. Never objected to my killing a cat now and then, so that I could have a good stock of gentles whenever I required them. Never said the fish. | caught were stink- ing, and they could not think how I could make such a fool of myself by standing all day on the bank of stream watching the float bobbing up and down as this one does. Never threatened to break my rod over my shoulders, or wished I might hang myself with my line. No, sir, they used to praise me for my patience; but times is altered now, sir, very much altered, indeed.” And Mr. Tomkins raised the flask again to his lips, and drowned the sigh that swelled his chest, in a deep draught of the fiery liquid. “ Ah, sir! it’s a bad thing to have a scolding wife,” he continued, handing back the flask to Jack, with a look of the most comical grief ; ‘and you would say so, too, if you knew her as well as I do; and yet no one could tell by her looks what a passionate temper she has got. Why, if you was to see her now, coming along, you'd take her to be the most amiable creature inthe world. But see her at home, and ’’—— “ Mr. Tomkins ! Mr. Tomkins ! ” cried a voice, in the distance. Mr. Tomkins was packing up his fishing-tackle, as the voice fell upon the ears of Jack, and, with a look of utter dismay on his face, he dropped the rod to the ground, and. turned in the direction whence the sound had come, exclaim-. Bie Phage went Hat ‘ at’s her! that’s her! ‘‘Mrs. Tomkins, do you mean ?”’ said Jack. “Ves sir, my wife. She'll see me! Oh, dear! there will be a row.” “Then I had better be off,” said Jack. ‘No, no, don’t! Do stay, there’s a good fellow,” cried the old gentleman, in a pleading tone. “Really, t cannot longer intrude,” ——— ee a a A ce et —_——-=> a ==Comicboo