Marion Marlowe's Christmas Eve, or, The Treachery of a Factory Inspector — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

a a? 2 _ bacco juice; MY QUEEN. about something; but Marion did not have time to realize what it was, before one of them came toward her in a threatening man- ner. “Vell, vat do you vant?’ broken English. Marion «nerved herself to answer him po- he asked, in litely : “T am only waiting for Miss French, the factory inspector.” The man apparently understood only her last words. “Oh |_so—der vactory inspegdor! Der fine, fresh vactory inspegdor! Ve are ferry elat to see you, my tear; ve haf peen lookin’ for you!” he exclaimed, with apparent exul- tation. Then he turned to the rest and shout-’ ed a few words in a foreign language, which was as Greek to Marion. In an instant the throng had completely surrounded her, all of them talking at once and glaring at her fiercely. “You vas der nice vomans vat tooked tree of my girl avay from me last veek!” ex- claimed one; “tree of my best hands, and shust pecause dey hat no health certificate!” “She is ein ropper!’ shouted another, as ~ he shook his dirty fist in Marion’s face. “Oh—vat fine close she vears!’” said a cross-eyed little Jew, coming close to her and clutching her dress-skirt in his filthy fingers. “See vat fine close she vares, and she von't let us make der brice of a loaf of pread for our fambilies—ch, vat a fine laty!” Marion turned her flashing eyes upon them in utter disgust and disdain. “How dare you touch me °” she demanded. _ “Take your hands off of me this instant!” said another, whose beard was smeared with to- “So—so—not so fast, my fine laty!” “ve vant to see more of you. Don’t be so up-startish.” Marion turned toward the door, but a half | dozen of them stood in her way with their se @ a, Be 4 hands outstretched. a 21 “Tet me pass, you blackguards!” she de- manded, “Let. me out this instant!” “Led you owid? A fine laty like you? Not mooch; ve vant you; ve haf a pill to set- You must stay vid us for some ve lof you so tle mit you. my tear inspegdor ; mooch!” said the fellow, furiously. Marion’s beautiful face was crimson now, and her big, gray eyes flashed fire as she time, faced her tormentors. CHAPTER X. IN THE HANDS OF RUFFIANS. A perfect howl of appreciation greeted this last speech, but Marion had grown desperate in her fearful position. As she faced them her eyes seemed to emit flashes of fire, and, for a moment, the vilest wretch among them stared in actual admira- De ai Then.a vicious-looking fellow made a sud- As his dirty hand Marion struck him den spring to her side. clutched her shoulder, ' fairly and squarely. The fellow reeled backward into a fellow workman’s arms, and this seemed the signal to the rest for a general outbreaking. One of the brutes tore her fur cape from her shoulders, while another snatched at her watch, and for a moment it seemed to Marion that she was but a feather in their clutches. At that instant the door opened and Miss French entered the room. There was a fiend- ish glow in her eyes as she caught sight of Marion. The men all turned to see who had entered, and in that second Marion sprang forward and seized a heavy pair of shears that were lying on a table. Just then the inspector’s voice rang out across the room. “Thats the one! the trouble!” She’s been making all she cried, “Give it Only don’t quite kill her!’ sharply. to her, men! COmmicoooks. conn