The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 180: what you’re looking at

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

Sry p> => THE POCKETBOOK 149 The envelope which had contained this note was not amongst the papers in the pocketbook, and Page was therefore unable to ascertain to whom it was addressed. Two papers only now remained to be examined. One was 2 blank sheet folded in the form of a letter; and al- though Page held it up to the light and scrutinized it in all possible ways, he could not discover even the slightest trace of writing, nor any sign that the paper had ever been written on at all. The last item in the contents of this singular pocketbook was a scrap whereon the ensuing lines were scrawled with a pencil evidently guided by a tremulous hand: ‘Look under the stone in the farthest corner to the right, in the cellar. Use it wisely, Julia—and you will prosper; act rashly — and you will be ruined.” With the perusal of this laconic and mysterious note ended the commercial traveller’s investigation of the pocket- book; and, having locked up the document safely in his trunk, he retired to rest, to dream of the Magsman — Hannah Lightfoot — Sir Richard Stamford — the old man who gave up the ghost in his presence — and, in a word, all the incidents of the last few hours. But when Mr. Page awoke between nine and ten o’clock he became painfully convinced of the fact that he had caught such a severe rheumatism from the dampness of the dungeon where he had been confined as to render him utterly in- capable of rising from his bed. His legs appeared to be completely paralyzed, and his body ached all over, as if he had been soundly thrashed with cudgels. Under these disagreeable circumstances, he was com- pelled to remain in bed and have medical advice without delay, while a messenger was despatched to Wood Street to inform Messrs. Hodson and Morley of his return to his quarters at the George and Blue Boar, and likewise to caution them (if it were yet time) not to send the ransom- money to the Beggar’s Staff. (C(O) AAV Doo (S.C