The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 162: what you’re looking at

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

CHAPTER XVIII THE CHAIN OF EVIDENCE In the meantime the chief magistrate at Bow Street had been much surprised by the perusal of a certain letter which “ was delivered to him by the usher of the court the moment his worship took his seat upon the bench. The letter, which was anonymous and written in a pretty female hand, con- tained a statement so remarkable that the magistrate knew not precisely how to deal with the case. But after a little consideration, he retired into the private room, and sum- moned thither the head constable to deliberate over the matter. “Crawley,” said the magistrate to the individual who thus filled the post which Mr. Peter Grumley’s mysterious disappearance had left vacant some months previously, “what do you think of this? ”’ The head constable perused the letter which the magis- trate placed in his hand, and, after nearly a minute’s pro- found reflection, he said, ‘‘ I am quite puzzled, your worship.” “What sort of a character is borne by the person re- ferred to therein?’ demanded the magistrate. ‘““Gay, and not overparticular, your worship,’ was the reply; “‘ used to be much patronized by the upper classes, ‘specially the lords and gentlemen. But I don’t think — that is, I can scarcely fancy — there’s any truth in this piece of information.”’ ‘“And yet it is singular — very singular,’’ observed the magistrate. “If a responsible person had come forward to give private information of such a character, we should at once act upon it and issue a search-warrant. But this anony- mous missive, perhaps intended after all as a piece of fun or wickedness — ”’ BP 136 EONMENIOOKS m