The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 131: what you’re looking at

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

| 118 THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. “ Now answer me one more question, boy,” said the officer. “Instead of being a thief yourself, would you like to be a thief-catcher ?” “If you had asked me that question the first thing yesterday morning, sir,” remarked the lad, «“Y should have atonce said‘ No.’ But now—after all you have told me about your own adventures— the advice you have given me—and the interest you have taken in my behalf, I cannot say ‘No’ ao decisively. And yet I don’t exactly like to say ° Yes.’” ‘I am glad you have answered me in that man- ner,” said Larry. “ But inveterately addicted to habits of duplicity and trickery as you are, you cannot put them off all in a moment as you would a rusty garment. You must first direct their use, as it were, into a new channel, so that they may gradually take a new form and shape and expand from low cunning into a loftier astuteness. Such a transition may be effected by placing you out of the career of crime as a practitioner, and placing |. you in its track as a pursuer. Do you comprehend me ?” “ Perfectly,” was the reply. “And for this reason you wish me to become a thief-taker—a pupil of your own ”” “Such is my wish. If you accept my proposal, | p you shall live here with me—fare every day as you have already fared beneath my roof—have plenty of pocket-money and leisure for rational amuse- ments—and in time, if you behave well, become a regular established constable of Bow Street. Now, what say you?” “That I accept your proposal on certain condi- tions,” was the answer. | “ Name your terms,” said Larry. “ First, that you never ask me to do any harm to Dick and Sally Melmoth, whom I look upon as a brother and sister,” observed the Foundling. “ Agreed,” exclaimed Larry. “Go on.” “Secondly, that you avail yourself, when you havo leisure, of your extraordinary skill and keen- ness in ferretting out things, to discover who my parents were or are.” “ Agreed also,” ejaculated the Bow Street officer. “ Go on.” “And thitdly, that you never insist upon my doing anything in a direct manner to injure Daniel Coffin : for though he is rough and brutal at times — indeed, very often—yet as I have lived with him so long ——”* “¥ understand—and I give you credit for the feeling,” said Larry. “I therefore promise nevgr to employ you in a direct manner to do anything that may injure Daniel Coffin.” “TI have no other conditions to name,” observed the Foundlirg. “ Our bargain is therefore complete,” said Larry. “Bat now I want you to give me a proof of your sincerity by answering me one question—and only one question relative to any past transaction in which I believe you to have been en gaged.” “ Speak—and you shall see whether I mean to act straightforward, or not,” replied Jack the Foundiing. “Tell me, then,” said Larry, fixing his eyes with such a peculiar steadfastness and penetration upon the youth that it seemed as if he were determined there should be no escape from the influence of that glance,—“ tell me whether you formed ore of that party of eight who committed the outrage on the Prince of Wales last Monday night ~* “J was,” returned the lad, with a sudden start, the nature of the question being evidently so little anticipated by him. “ But is there any disturbanos to be made abont it?” he inquired anxiously. “Not at all,” answered Larry. “Only I of course know all about it: everything of that kind comes to my ears, either directly or indirectly, as you may readily suppose. It was a curious affair altogether: but I dare say that you yourself do not half comprehend its aim and meaning. One of these days I will tell you all about ig —_—.” “ But was it not, then, for purposes of robbery only ?” inquired the lad. “Not altogether. You and your comrades were detained more than an hour at the house,” observed Larry Sampson, carelessly; “and that was a mach longer time than was necessary to ease the Prince and the Marquis of their property.” “To be sure !” exclaimed the lad, “I did not think of that before. Besides, when I reflect upon the affair—now that you have given me the hint— it would have been easier to do the robbery at the moment the carriage was stopped in the Kew Roed, than take it all the way to Wandsworth for the ] urpose. “‘As a matter of course,” observed Sampson. “But I suppose you got something to drink there —you and the other fellows—and so you did not observe how long you were detained at the house.” “ Why, to tell you the truth,” said the Found- ling, “ when we had taken the carriage into the gate-way of Beechey Manor, four or five of us went out—put our masks in our pocket—and got some drink at the Blue Lion which is only hy yards off.” “ Nothing can be done without drink, it seems,” observed Larry, smiling: then, rising from his chair, he observed, “I have some little business to attend to, this forenoon, Jack; and so I mast leave you till two or three o'clock. Bat here's money for you—and I thought that if you liked to go to the Tower and see the wild beasts, or do something to amuse yourself till dinner-time, it would be as well.” “I would rather remain here, with your permis- sion, and look at your books, sir,” replied the lad. “ Ah! you mean that as a hint to remind me of the promise I made to show you my private memo- randa,” exclaimed the officer, laughing: “but I can’t look them out for you this morning. To: morrow, per! ” “Pray don’t inconvenience yourself, Mr. Samp- son,” said the Foundling. “I shall find plenty of occupation with the books on the shelf there.” “ Be it so,” observed the officer. “And if you want anythiog, Dame Margery will attend to your orders.” Mr. Lawrence Sampson then quitted the room: and proceeding to the private chamber which has already been noticed as his sanctum, he remained there for about a quarter of an hour. On issuing forth again, ho was clad in a disguise so complete that even his most familiar friends would not have knoWn him: and passing out of the dwelling by a back door opening into a court behind, he pursued his way to the Strand where he entered a hackney- cvach, ordering the driver to procced quick to a locality which he named. ElLOOO SSS ee ee |