Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 92: what you’re looking at

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

|——- =_=———_ —_——— 86 She walked down the stairs and tapped at Duppy’s door. “ Mr. Duppy! Mr. Duppy!” | The old man was too excited to retire to rest, and had dressed himself. He did not hear her voice, but he saw her form through the partially open door, and he rose and confronted her, “* Mr. Duppy.” “Yes, ma’am.” ** Please to walk into the parlour, sir.” Tom Bedford had placed the key in the lock, and there was no difficulty for the old maid to surmount in obtaining an entrance. 5 Duppy followed her with his candlestick in his and. ‘* Please to be seated, Mr. Duppy.” Mr. Duppy complied, after placing the candle- stick on the table. “This has been a sad piece of business, Mr. _ Duppy.” ‘Very sad, ma’am.” ) ““Come a little nearer, Mr. Duppy ; you will hear better.” Mr. Duppy did as requested, looking rather bashful, and certainly much surprised. “Mr. Duppy, I’m a lost woman,” said Miss Frump, ‘ unless ” She paused and looked round at him, and then dropped her eyes to the floor. “Unless what, ma’am ? ” ‘* You will save me.” “ Me, Miss Frump ?” > “ You, Mr. Duppy !” **T do not understand you.” “Not?” ‘* Indeed, no!” ‘Can you forget what has passed but a short time since ?” “T wish it never had happened.” ‘So dol; but” —— She looked down again. “But,” she simpered, ‘but, Mr. Duppy, the world is so cruel.” ‘Very, ma’am.” “It will say that you and I have overstepped the bounds of prudence. It has said so.” ‘lt tells a lie, ma’am. You know there was nothing wrong between us. know that I didn’t do any wrong—I should have known it if I did.” ‘f But will the world believe ” —— ‘I don’t care what the world says,” * But you are aman.” | “‘T’m old enough to be one.” “T am a woman. You know that I am a woman, Mr. Duppy.” “ Well, I suppose you are; ma’am,” * Yes, Mr. Duppy. A man is forgiven by the cruel world if he errs, either by mistake or desi on, But a woman—oh ! Mr. Duppy, for her there is but one escape from its sheers—but one—only one |” ‘* And what’s that, ma’am ?” ‘f Can you ask ? ” Miss Frump’s hand rested on his arm, and her eyes were turned upon his face. ** Poison ? ” ** No, sir.” * Drowning ?” a ok SPRING-HEEL’D JACK: THE TERROR OF LONDON. » You ought to} D * No, sir.” “ Cutting her throat ?” ‘* None of those.” ue “Then I can’t tell of any other remedy,” said - Duppy. | You can’t ?” “No!” ‘¢ Shall I whisper it to you? “T’m rather deaf. You'd loud.” ‘“‘ Marriage.” Duppy started. “Yes, marriage. 93 better speak - out When a maiden is suspected of wrong she can only silence the cruel taunts of | a cold, unfeeling world, by undergoing that cere- mony with the man with whom she is suspected | of having gone too far.” “Damn it, ma'am, you maiden, do you ? ” “Mr. Duppy, do you doubt it ?”’ ‘“‘ And you nearly sixty?” ‘* No, only fifty—only fifty.” ) + “Then you are about the oldest maiden I know,” said Duppy. 7 | “Oh, doubt not my honour because cruel fate flung me into your arms! Oh, sir,if y could have seen my heart—if you could have felt its throbs !”’ | ‘Well, ma’am, I felt most damably an- noyed.” . “ Hurt, Mr. Duppy, you mean 2?” ' te “No; you didn’t hurt me exactly—only tore my shirt-front, and hugged me round the neck till you nearly choked me; that’s all, ma'am,” “Mr. Duppy.” She shifted her chair so close to his own now don’t call yourself a that her .skirts covered the old gentleman’s knees, ‘Well, ma’am ?” ‘© Do you know, I’ve been thinking.” “What, ma’am ? ” : “'That—that ”—— ‘Go on, ma’am—go on,” “ Shall I speak ?”’ ‘* Not unless you like, certainly,” pm _ “I know a maiden may be blamed for speak- — ing. so plainly, but circumstances alter cases, Mr. up a2 . . ‘* Very naturally sometimes, ma’am.” Fe ‘‘Then the circumstances of this fatal night— | I say fatal, because to you and I they areso— make me forget the natural coyness of my dispo- sition, and speak out boldly. Oh, sir, as I sail before, there is but one way to silence the slan- derous tongues that will spread what has trans- pired to-night from one end of London to the | other.” a ‘‘ By marriage, didn’t you say ?” “Yes ; that is the only means.” ‘Then you had better get married.” *‘T think go,” Ja “If you can get anyone to have you,” said the old gentleman. | one “Anybody, Mr. Duppy? There is but one— | one who can stop the breath of slander.” a ‘* And who’s that, ma’am, if I may be so bold 2” said Duppy. {eg “ Who ?”’ ‘* Yes, who?” slain sine dimeenanee emg nD ogee EE a eo a T] icboo com (S.com