The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 261: what you’re looking at

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248 TIVE ance of a few soldiers. The New Police were not in existence in those days; and little or no aid was to be expected from the parish constables or night-watchmen : the master was therefore com- pelled to rely upon such resources and means of defence as he had at his command upon the spot, until the soldiery should arrive. But no sooner had the maniacs done their work in the kitchen, the bread-store, and the buttery, than Melmoth bade them seize upon the imple- ments which those offices contained, and which constituted weapons of a more formidable charac- ter than the fire-irons and broom-handles of the enemy. Thus, when the liberated lunatics sprang up the staircase brandishing roasting-spits, chop- pers, mallets, and carving-knives, the paupers with the master at their head all took to flight in a moment ;—and, giving vent to cries of triumph and yells of frenetic joy, the madmen impulsively fullowed Melmoth who had now become their leader. The hall was in their possession: the front door led into the street—and the path to liberty thus lay open and undisputed before them. But Mel- moth was anxious to take his children with him: for, even in the wild whirl of his present thoughts and the terrible excitement under which he was labouring, he had leisure and the clearness of intellect sufficient to comprehend that from this time forth he must expect to be hunted by the blood-hounds of justice, and he might never find another opportunity of holding communication with those who were nearest and dearest to him. For an instant he hesitated what course to adopt: the next moment his resolve was taken ;—and rushing up the staircase leading from the hall to- wards the infirmary, he bade the maniacs follow him. Those instincts and impulses which the voice of an angel could not bave appeased nor tranquillised, were still easy to direct into any par- ticular channel,—as the torrent, which no mortal arm can stay, will nevertheless pour into the canals that are dug to receive its foaming volume and drain the land which it would otherwise inundate. Thus, as man’s ingenuity may turn the course of a flood which he is utterly powerless to stop, so did the influence of Melmoth guide the movements of the maniacs whose progress and whose fury he could not possibly have checked even had he been 60 disposed. Up the stairs they rushed—uttering frightful yells and giving vent to diabolical menaces,— | brandishing their terrible weapons with ferocious gestures—their eyes glaring wildly— their lips covered with blood-speckled foam. Doors were banged and barricaded all along the passages; and from the interior of the rooms the shrieks of frightened women burst forth. But the lunatic party, headed by its frenzied leader, paused not to attack those chambers: up the flights of stairs they all sped—and into the infirmary they burst as if it were a roaring, raging torrent, dashing open the duor with an irresistible power. The invalids gave vent to cries of terror—the dranken nurse fell down in a fit—and Melmoth’s children were startled from the sleep in which they had been plunged. Instantaneously recognising their father, their first impulse was to spring forth and fly into his arms: but when they saw that he held an enormous steel chopper in his hand and. a a i ES NSS ammD, « MYSTERTER, that he was backed by half-a-dozen ferocious-look. ing men all armed in a formidable style, they huddled together with mingled cries, and lamen- tations, and prayers. There was not a moment to lose ;—for Melmoth knew full well that some kind of succour must presently arrive to aid the governor of the workhouse in restoring order. He therefore commanded his children to rise— put on their clothing—and follow him. Yielding to the voice of paternal authority, they hastened to obey, but with cruel fear and visible trembling: and despite of the reassuring words which he now breathed rapidly in their ears, as he assisted them in re- suming their apparel, they contemplated him with a terror and a grief that lacerated his very heart. Two or three minutes were thus expended ;— and during that brief interval the maniacs ran- sacked a cupboard in which a few pots of jam and some bottles, each containing a smal! allow- ance of Port wine, were kept for the use of the in- valids, These things were disposed of in a trice ; —and then the lunatics, inflamed by the wine, began to dance and caper about the room in a style that would have been grotesque enough, were not the presence of these unfortunate wretches so eminently alarming. They however attempted no injury towards the occupants of the infirmary ;— and when Melmoth’s children were ready to take their departure, they obeyed in a moment the sigrial which their leader gave them to withdraw. Down the stairs did the party rush once more,— Melmoth holding his little girl by the hand, and his two sons following close behind him. No mo- lestation was experienced—no opposition presented itself. Indeed, the path was as clear for the for- midable band as if they were the only inmatés of the workhouse: for the master and his able-bodied paupers did not dare show themselves again—and the soldiery had not as yet had time to arrive from the Tower. The hall was gained—the front door thrown open —and then, simultaneously flinging away their weapons, as if an instinctive feeling suddenly prompted them to act with cau- tion in order to secure their freedom, the lunatics rushed into the street. Darting away in different directions, they disappeared in a few moments ;— and Melmoth, thus rid of their terrible companion- ship, plunged into the maze of dark .and narrow streets in the vicinage of the old workhouse. Taking up the little girl in his arms, he bade the two boys keep close behind him ;—and as they sped along, the kind and consoling words which the unfortunate man addressed to his motheriess chil- dren, reassured them completely, and made their poor hearts rejoice that they were thus restored to the care of their father. ‘CHAPTER CLKXXXV. TREACHERY. Ir was about nine o'clock on the same evening that witnessed the exciting occurrences at White- chapel Workhouse; and the scene now shifts to Paradise Villas. In the front parlour of their residence Octavia and Pauline Clarendon were seated, in company with Mr. and Mrs. Page. The curtains were drawn—the lights were burning upon the table— (CO (C DOO (CO