Penny Dreadfuls, 1923 · page 54 of 116
The Taking of Helen by John Masefield — page 54: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page 42 of "The Taking of Helen" This is a page of running prose from a Victorian penny dreadful serial. The text describes characters (including Paris and Nireus) fleeing pursuit through ruined buildings and courtyards. They encounter a young woman beating mats outside a house, who sings a cynical verse about men's infidelity. When she turns and sees them, Nireus decides to trust her. The narrative focuses on evasion, danger, and a chance encounter that may prove significant to the plot.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
42 THE TAKING OF HELEN His voice compelled her in spite of Paris. They hurried down the hill, followed a path through the thicket, crossed a nearly dry gully by a bridge, came to a rotting gate, pushed through it and looked about them. “This is coming right into the trap,” Paris said. They had entered a court or yard of ruined stables and byres; fowls were picking about it; there was a look of ill-luck on it. ‘They had hardly entered before some troopers rode down the hill just outside the thicket within fifty yards of them. WNireus hurried the truants forward into another, larger yard, at the back of a big low ruinous house, where a stout young woman was beating mats upon a line outside a door. Her back was toward them, and what with her beating and her snatches of song, she did not hear them. One, two, three, four, (she sang) Love — no — man — more. Eight, seven, six, five, Men promise, till they wive, But seven, eight, nine, ten, Little love in man then. As she paused for breath she heard them upon the paving and turned. She was a frank young woman with merry eyes and the look of a jolly boy. Nireus made up his mind instantly to trust her. He held up his hand and she looked at him pretty hard. Many GOMmicdooksreco