Penny Dreadfuls, 1923 · page 37 of 116
The Taking of Helen by John Masefield — page 37: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page Analysis This is a page of running prose from what appears to be a serialized Victorian adventure narrative titled "The Taking of Helen" (page 25). The text describes a character named Nireus searching for someone called Paris in the darkness. Finding abandoned horses, Nireus drives a chariot along a track and is stopped by soldiers emerging from trees, who challenge him and question his identity and purpose. The narrative involves apparent classical or mythological names (Nireus, Paris, Helen, Symé) in a sensational adventure context typical of penny dreadfuls.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE TAKING OF HELEN 25 but the night dark with the change of morning. There were no tracks that he could read, no guide, nothing to go by. The runaways had been there and had left the horses deliberately, with time to think of the horses, since here was one of them covered with. a cloak. They had come so far without disaster, but how long before had they come there, and where were they now? “Paris,” he called, “ Paris !”’ There was no answer, yet Nireus felt that Paris must be there, since how could he have gone on in the dark, with Helen, without horses? ‘Paris,’ he called again. ‘“‘Are you there, Paris? I am Nireus.”’ Having no answer, he climbed into the chariot and drove on along the track, which was littered with stones among which sage had sprouted; the horses crushed the sage till the air was full of the smell. He went on thus for a mile or more. Then suddenly the track darkened ahead to a clump of trees, the horses whinnied and were challenged, a light shone, soldiers came out from the trees on both sides of the track and stopped his chariot. ‘‘Is this the way to Green Havens?”’ Nireus asked. | “You’re an islander by your speech,” an officer said, “who are you?”’ “T am Nireus of Symé.” “What brings you here at this time of night?” “T have been with friends, and am driving back to GOMIIGIOO <S (C(O)