I Forbid the Banns! — page 26: what you’re looking at

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

16 “7 FORBID THE BANNS!” Howard the last scenes in the life of a common friend named Captain Timothy O’Connor—he was reported to be of Irish extraction—who had been suffering from chronic alcoholism and had unfortunately died when on the voyage to South Africa to join his regiment. It cannot be denied that the captain was fully employed. ‘Yes, my dear,’’ he was saying, passing his hand over the curls of the little girl, “it was a curious position fora man like myself, who cannot boast of being brave, to be placed in. But when I found that I could not run away, | made up my mind to sell my life dearly. I was at the maintop of the bark when those yellow ruffans scrambled on board. ‘There were, I should say, three hundred of them, more or less, all armed to the teeth. I took a steady aim with my revolver, and their chief was seen to throw up his arms as he fell back to the water. His lieutenant rushed forward to break in the door of the deck house where I had locked my passengers. Once again I took aim; the ball passed through his chest and, striking the brass handle of the door, knocked down an enormous Malay who had found an ax and was in the act of I beg your pardon, Miss Joyce? Oh, yes, I would strongly advise you not to go to an hotel in the Minories for the sake of being near the Tower. I am sure your friends live further west, and they can take you there any day. And so, my dear, the fight went on for some hours, not one of the savages having the least idea that the shots were coming from the maintop. They were being thinned down a bit toward the sunset, and what a sunset it was! But there was a single cloud. It sickened me, my child, for it was just the color of blood, and I have always been absurdly sensitive in these matters. The ghastly faces of the hundred and fifty—more or less— Malays that were lying on the deck, just as I am this minute—that is, I mean I really cannot agree with you, Mrs. Howard; I don't Gomichbookssco