Penny Dreadfuls, 1923 · page 60 of 116
The Taking of Helen by John Masefield — page 60: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page Analysis: Running Prose from "The Taking of Helen" This is a page of running prose—dialogue and narrative from what appears to be a Victorian penny dreadful serialized story titled "The Taking of Helen" (visible at page top, page 48). The text depicts a fugitive (apparently named Nireus) hiding in an old ruin while soldiers search the countryside. A local girl has sheltered him, claiming he is her sister to the soldiers. The passage shows soldiers returning hours later with an officer and a boy witness who can identify the fugitives, suggesting imminent danger and discovery.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
AS THE TAKING OF HELEN “they will search like the north wind. Will they find them then ?”’ “There is no place to hide them in this old ruin.”’ ‘Is there any other place?” | “No. Everybody is searching all over the vga side. J cannot think how you escaped to come here.” ‘Do you live here?”’ c¢ Yes.”’ “There was a man calling you, just before the sol- diers came.”’ | “That is Steer. He tends the cows above. I do not know how he missed seeing you.” ‘You have been a rare friend tous. Isay, the gods bless you.”’ The girl tossed her head. ‘T’ve told the soldiers that you are my sister.” “You should not have done that,” she said. ‘My brothers are dead; all here know that.”’ “Whose house is this?”’ “The old lady’s. She is never about till evening, though : she sleeps.” ‘“Has she no husband ?”’ “Yes, The Sightless; but he is away. He is often away. Go back to the gully now; it is safer.” Some hours later, Nireus heard horse-hoofs return- ing to the house. It was the same squad of men, but this time they were under an officer, who had with him the boy who had seen them in the wood. They dis- ECORNICLOOKS»eO