Penny Dreadfuls, 1923 · page 53 of 116
The Taking of Helen by John Masefield — page 53: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a page of running prose from "The Taking of Helen," a narrative poem or dramatic text presented in verse form. The passage depicts characters Paris, Nireus, and Helen hiding on a hillside after being spotted by a boy. They debate whether to flee or hide as horses approach from a nearby shrine, with Paris declaring he will openly wear Helen "like my crown" and Nireus urging them toward an evergreen thicket for concealment. The text treats the classical abduction narrative as sensational drama with tension and dialogue-driven action typical of Victorian penny dreadful serialization.
📄 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 4] thickish scrub on a hillside and talked in low voices, and heard not a sound; but when Nireus looked to one side, he saw a little boy watching them. He was a starved-looking little boy with a mean and eager face. He slunk away when he saw that he was seen, but he cast a shrewd look back and then ran. “We had better consult with Helen,’’ Paris said. _ Danger and love had brightened Helen’s eyes. She wooed the wild things there with crumbs of bread. A goldfinch and a squirrel with small cries Reached little claws to her and took and fed. ‘““We have been seen here,’”’ Nireus said. ‘‘We must either hide or fly; which shall it be?”’ ‘““Where can we hide, whither can we fly ?”’ “T say get under cover, somewhere near here, until dark, and then push on, over the rocks on the shore, to my ship,’ Nireus said. “T will do nothing under cover,’ Parissaid. ‘Ihave taken the King’s wife and will wear her like my crown.”’ “TListen,’’ Nireus said. “There are horses coming from the direction of the shrine. They are soldiers. That is armour jingling.”’ “Tt is not armour,’ Paris said. “It is a farmer’s harness. Nireus seems to be in a state of terror. We must act calmly, Nireus, as well as proudly. We will go quietly down to the ship.” ‘“Helen,’’ Nireus said, “by everything you love come down to that thicket of evergreens.”’ GOMIIcdoo cS) (C(O)