The Mysteries of the Court of London Vol. 4 — page 178: what you’re looking at

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

a a a pr yA gE A A a a ea NIE ONE EEE EE, eee, oe yy EE A , ee, CT Sg a A a T=, <a TS a fo a I TR EI re A, se REN pomiempeees te oy seenreans aaa aes _— 2-2 6 , THE MYSTERIES OF THE COUBT. dark upon the subject. As for "the two ladies whom Malpas and Curzon really intended to have earried GH on that occasion, who could they be if not two of the Miss Owens? While thus pursuing nis réfections, our hero reached the vieiuage of the lakes and diamissing the hackney-coach, he walked down to the bank of that inland sea. It was now near eleven o'clock : the night was tolerably clear above, for the moon was shining: but a mist hung upos the water and the surrounding shore, involviug all the features of the lake in obscurity. Advancing along the margin of the water, Loftus presently reached an old jetty which was the index of the very spot for which he was searching, in pursuance of the hint Ke had re- ceived from Maravelli. The gloom was now deep- ening—the mist from the lake increasing in density and spreading eo rapidiy*all around and high above, that the pure azure of the heaven was veiled and the moon was at leigth only seen dimly like a pale lamp that is extinguishing. Jocelyn paused near the jetty aud listened: but no sound save the rippling of the waters met hisear. For upwards of ten minutes did he remain, leaning against one of the huge piles of the jetty, won- dering to himself whether Kobolt and his men would come thither that night. At %ngth, finding that no onc approached, he thought that he would return to Maravelli’s and seek them on the follow- ‘ing night at the public-House where they were ac- customed to meet, and which the physician had propesed to indicate to him. But just as he was about to quit the spot where he had been standing, he heard. tie sounds of approaching footsteps and at once passed untierneath the jetty. Three men soon emerged from the deepening gloom, carry- ing some ominous-looking implements ofer their shoulders; and Jocelyn at once felt convinoed these were the individuals whom he sought. But wishing to make sure, he remained silent and mo- tionless where he was to watch their proceedings. Speaking but little, and this little in a flash language utterly incomprehensible to our hero, the three men went to’work without loss of time. Mounting the pier, they threw in their dragging- implements,—for such was the tackle they had brought upon their shoulders;—and after s@vergl ineffectual hauls, an ejaculation of satisfaction broke from the lipe vf one of them. Jocelyn, at no loss to conjecture the meaning of the ory, peeped forth ; and as at that very moment a sudden breeze—almost amounting to asquall—swept oven the lake, causing the mist to part asunder as it were, the moon broke forth in the full power of its light, and the silvery beams fell upon the face of & corpse which the fishers of men were dragging to the surface of the water. Our hero recoiled from the ghastly spectacle ; and at the same instant a terrible imprecation burst from the three men. The corpse had broken away from their tackle, the squall having suddenly produced a strong current round the pier-head. Jocelyn now showed himeelf, and called to the three men to come down, Starting at the appear- ance of our hero, they at first seemed to hesitate : but when, in the French language, he declared that he was alone and that he had no hostile in. tent, the fellows hastily descended from the %op of the piles. “208"; i ieee a i Pere Ee 165 “ Who the deuce are you?” demanded the fore- most, who was decidedly entitled to carry off the palm of villanous looks from his companions, vile as their appearance also was. “Are you qa spy? do you mean suicide? or are you a s!ecp- walker ?” the calmness of true coprage. “Then what do you here, young mano ” de. manded the ill-looking fellow. “J am in search of a person bane Kohpit,” said Jocelyn boldly. it may be that I can help you to an ioterview with him; but all depends on your answer to the ques- tions I have just put.” “ My object fs by no mgans a hostile one,” said Jocelyn, “but will put many louis into Kobolt'’s pocket. One word more—Dr. Maravelli gave me the hint that I should find Kobolt here; and now you may as well adinit that you are the man.” The fellow looked slowly around, plunging his depths of the mist, which had now closed over the 4ake again, to ascertain whether there were any policemen on the watch at a distance. then, evidently satisfied on this head, he observed, * Well, | am Kobolt: and these,” two compauious came inore forward, “are Her- nani and Walden.” * Which names,” said Jocelyn, as the two vil- lanous-looking countenances were now a8 com- pletely disclosed to his view as that of the fure- most individual, “ were likewise mentioned to me by Dr. Maravelli.” “ Well, we have no reason to doubt your good faith,” said Kobolt, fixing his eyes piercingly upon our hero. “You are a gdod-lookiag youth, and | scarcely seem capable of treachery. Come, let us stand beneath the jetty. It is ufeless to ran a risk of being seeu. But you are an Englishman— eh? Well, lL thought so bysthe look of you; and T am all the better pleased, because we pick up an ove§;ional job from Enghshmen, and have expe- rienced moreover that they pay well.” Thus speaking, Kobolt passed underneath fhe jgtty, accompanied by his two confederates and followed by Jocelyn. And now they were en- veloped in almost total darkness, so that they could indeed converse without fear of observation, should any ene approach along the border of the lake. Loftus eutertained no apprehension on find- ing himself in this lunely spot and in the deep obscurity, along with such desperate men: for in the first place fear was unknown to him; and se- conily he knew full well that if they wished to make away with him, they could as easiJy do it by the side of the jetty as under it. “You have just observed that you sometimes find employment from English persons,” said Juce- lyon. “Perhaps you remember that about three wecks ago you were engaged to carry off two ladies from a certain villa?” “ Yes,” exclaimed Kobolt: “a villa in the neizh- bourhvod here. But you were not one of the gen- tlemen who hired us ?” that he was not one of them. He's a pretties \ ‘Tam none of all these,” said our hero, with “Ah!” was the man’s ejaculation : “do you | ! want him fot good or for evil--to do him a mis- | chief or to make his services available? because ; eyes with keen and straining penetration into the | he added, as his | “No,” observed Hernanithe Italian: “ I'll swear - - —~ ECOMNIE OG O) cS) CO