The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 95: what you’re looking at

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Jew and Jewess with reproaches for their brutal conduct towards his sister. . “It is useless, my dear Christian,” she said, retaining him forcibly by the arm as they pro- ceeded along the crowded street : “ you would only get yourself into some embarrasement. I implore you to tranquillise your feelings! Alas, I begin to comprehend that the power of money is immense and irresstible in this country. It constitutes colossal strength—while poverty is in iteelf abject weakness. Christian,” said the young girl, after a pause, “is there nothing which suggests iteelf to your mind f”’ “Yes, dear Christina,” he at once responded, as if the very look which his beautiful twin-sister had bent upon him, transfused in an instant to his mind what was passing in her own. “We must go and relieve the dire necessities of that perishing creature. It is fortunate that you heard her address mentioned. Would that we also knew where to find the poor widow, that we might suc- cour her hkewise! Alas, our own resources are now limited enough: but still—but still,” added Christian, with a world of sincere feeling in his looks and his accents, “we must spare for the assistance of our fellow-creatures.”’ The twins were suddenly cheered by the pro- spect of doing good, as well as by having the means to accomplish it, small though their succour might be. They inquired their way to Redcross Street ; and finding the house which Christina had heard mentioned at the Emporium, they ascertained from an old, harsh-featured, sordid-looking woman, who announced herself as the landlady, that there was a young person of the name of Mary Wright! q lodging at the place, but that as she could not pay her rent, and was dying, the workhouse autho- Fities had been applied to that very day. “Let me see her,” said Christina: while Chris- tian hastily whispered to his sister that he would await her in the street The landlad y—thinking by the appearance of the twins that they came for a charitable purpose, and that the arrears of rent due to her would pro- bably be paid—suddenly grew mighty civil ; and she conducted Christina up a dark and dirty stair case to the very top of the house. attic door, she gave the young girl to understand thet this was Mary Wright’s room. Christina entered. The attic was of the emall- est aise, and its appearance of the meanest poverty. Stretched upon s wretched flock mattress, which lay upon the boards in one corner—and covered with the ecantiest bed-clothing, lay a young woman whose years could scarcely yet have numbered one- and-twenty—in the very last stage of consumption. She was pale as a corpee, save and except with regard to a vivid hectic spot which seemed to burn upon either cheek. She was thin—Oh! so thin— it was complete emaciation !—so that it appeared as if merely to raise that wasted, attenuated form, would be to inflict excruciating pain, as the very bones might threaten to penetrate through the ekin—for flesh upen them there was none. The attic wae almost completely denuded of every ne- cessary, and possessed not a single comfort. The dying creature was alone when Christina entered, -——no relative, no nurse, no friendly female to attend upon her! N otwithstanding her fright- fully emaciation— notwithstending the ravages THE MYSTERIES OF TH. which disease had worked upon her countenance— JOURT. there were nevertheless sufficient traces of past beauty to indicate that she must have at one time possessed no ordinary degree of loveliness. Christina gave her to understand that accident had made her acquainted with her condition—and that though her own means were limited (the generous girl said not how limited) she had come to proffer what little assistance she was enabled to afford. Mary Wright was for some time so suf- focated by her emotions that she could not give utterance to a word—and the tears streamed from her eyes. At length she succeeded in expressing her deep gratitude, in a weak dying voice and in broken accents,—declaring that she had never ex- pected to behold a friendly countenance gaze upon her again in this life. Christina learnt from her that about thirty shillings were owing to the landlady; and though the dying young woman proffered not the request in words, yet her plaintively appealing looks seemed to implore our heroine to save her from the threatened removal to the workhouse. This pledge Christina at once gave ; and promising like- wise to return in a few minutes, ahe hastened from the room. The landlady was waiting upon the stairs, watching for Miss Ashton, in order to see what might turn up to her own advantage ;—and Chris- tina at once liquidated from her slender purse the arrears of rent that were due. Then she con. tinued her way down stairs, and rejoined her brother in the street. Christian had been waiting for her about a uarter of an hour; and during this interval a little incident had occurred which he had noticed, and which he presently mentioned to Christina. While walking to and fro in the street, he had beheld a posse of ragged-looking creatures emerge from a narrow dirty gourt. These individuals consisted of a tan dressed like a dilapidated journeyman-carpenter, with a paper cap on his head—a woman having the appearance of the wife of an impoverished artizan—and a whole tribe of children whose rags and tatters scarcely covered their nakedness. At the first apparition of this wretched-looking party, Obristian’s hand wes thrust into his pocket to clutch the first coin which his fingers might happen to encounter, in order to transfer it to the poor family—when something which occurred at the moment, made him drop the coin again in a sort of stupified amasement. “ Now, Bet,” said the man, “mind you look like an honest woman for once jn your life—and turn that gin- air of your's into a precious dotefainess. And you -brate, you !—if you don’t put on as much misery as possible, I sha'n't get enough to pay your parents for the hiring of you. Mind, Bet, the dodge is that we walked all the way from Liverpool and can’t get no work what- somever.” These were the words which had adden revulsion of feeling on the part tzam, and had so suddenly made coin again to the bottom of his once saw that it was a gang of fstrs whom be had besa abou are. did not immediately catch sight of him, when 1 + i nd 2 F i it (SOL (C DOO Col