The Gift of the Sailor: The String of Pearls & Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street — page 274: what you’re looking at

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

on, having but one idea at the moment, and that was to leave the garden, but she could not find the gate, and Ben ran after her as well as he could, calling— “Miss A. W.—Miss A. W., where are you a-going? Don’t you go yet. I’ll take care of you and see you all right, you know, or perhaps you’d like to take a wherry here at the Temple stairs, and go to the Tower, and see the animals fed?” “Yes, no—that is, anything,” replied Arabella. “I will go home now, I am so very—very wretched!” 33 “What, wretched? Here, Colonel thingamy, she says she “Tf you dare!” said Arabella, as she placed her hand upon the arm of Ben. “If you dare!” “Lor’!” said Ben, as he looked down from his altitude upon the frail and beautiful young creature. “Lor’! easy does it!” The voice of Ben, however, had brought both the colonel and Sir Richard Blunt to the spot. During that brief time that had elapsed since the colonel had last spoken to Arabella, Sir Richard had told him of the perilous position of Johanna, and the look of anxiety upon his face was most marked. Arabella heard him say— “Make use of me in any way you please, Sir Richard, regard my safety or even my life as nothing compared to her preservation.” Arabella knew what he meant. “Ben,” she said, “will you come with me, and see me a part of my way home?” “Yes, my dear, to be sure. Then you won’t come and see the creturs fed to-day, I supposes?” “No, no.” “Very well. Easy does it. Come along, my dear—come along. Lord love you! I’ll take care of you. I should only like to see anybody look at you while you are with me, my duck. Bless your little bits of twinkling eyes!” “Thank you—thank you.” “Lor’! its enough to make a fellow go mad in love, to see such creturs as you, my dear; but whenever I thinks of such things, I says to myself—I’ ll just pop in and see Mother Oakley, and that soon puts it all out of my head, I can tell you.” “Indeed?” “Yes. You should go in at feeding time some day, and see her a-coming it strong with fried ingins—” “Fried what?” “Ingins—ingins; round things. Ingions—ah! that’s it.” “Onions?” “Very like—very like. But come on, my dear—come on. Easy does it! Always remember that whenever you gets into any fix. Easy does it!” Did Arabella think the colonel would run after her and say something? Yes she did; but he came not. Did she think he would be loath to part with her upon such terms as they had seemed to part? Yes, yes. Surely he could not let her go without some kinder, softer, word that he had last spoken to her? But he did. He only watched her with his eyes; and when Sir Richard Blunt, who, it would appear, knew something of the colonel’s feelings, said to him— “All right, I suppose, Colonel Jeffery—” He only shook his head. “What, anything amiss?” “She has rejected me!” “Oh, is that all?” “All? And enough too.” “Phoo! She was sure to do that. Don’t you know the old adage, that— “Woman’s nay still stands for nought.” Why, man, No comes as naturally to the tip of a young girls tongue when she means Yes, as Don’t when she expects to be kissed. I tell you, she loves you. She adores the very ground you walk on.” “And yet she taunted me with my passion for Johanna, and called me a second-hand lover.” “Did she, though? Ha! ha! ha! ha! Upon my life that was good—was it not?” Q0ODO0GOOO CORniclooo S CO)