The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 228: what you’re looking at

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

THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. by making his appearance before Madame Ange- | For upwards of half an hour did the maid- lique in the middle of the night, extort from her terrors a far larger booty than he might perhaps succeed in obtaining from his own unassisted re- searches in the room. The sound of the back-door closing, and then the light trip of footsteps ascending the stairs, left the Burker no farther discretion in the affair. He comprehended that the phetty servant-maid had returned, and that she was most probably seeking ber cristreee’s chamber to prepare it for the night: 90 he accordingly slipped at once under the couch. The girl entered, and was for some time busied in the chamber,— the Barker being in readiness to spring forth and seize her by the throat if she should by any chance happen to look under the bed. Little suspected the pretty maid that danger was so imminent; and it was perhaps fortunate for her that she did not plunge her eyes into the ruffian’s place of am- Sush. 2 No. 80.—Fourtm Sxrizs. servant remain in that chamber—more, as it would seem, for the purpose of whiling away the time than for the completion of any actual work which she had to do; because this latter might have been compressed into a third of that space. Jane was a lively, bappy girl, and sang to herself during the interval she remained there—unconscious as the bird upon the bough that the concealed, ooiled-up reptile was in readiness to spring forth. At length she quitted the room, taking the light with her ; and the Burker thought to himself that as he bad remained there secure so long, it would per- hape be better worth hie while to tarry until Ma- dame Angelique should come up to the chamber— when, after sleep had fallen upon her eyes, he might steal forth, he might awaken ber, and he might compel her to surrender up all the money and valuables she bad in the house. By this plao, too, he would seoure himeclf a safe egress in the comicibooks.conm