Penny Dreadfuls, 1916 · page 238 of 400
Tom Anderson, Dare-Devil: A Young Virginian in the Revolution — page 238: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a page of running prose from a Victorian penny dreadful serial. The narrative depicts a tense encounter between Sir Aeneas and a paroled American prisoner of war named Troupe de Berrien Anderson, set during what appears to be the American Revolution. Sir Aeneas experiences jealous rage upon spotting a rose in the prisoner's buttonhole—the same flower a woman had worn moments before. The page reproduces the full text of Anderson's parole document, dated December 1780, in which he swears to remain near Haddrell's Point and avoid aiding the enemy, before Anderson makes a remark about the Prison Commissioner.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
220 Tom ANDERSON, DarE-DEVIL “One minute, if you pleathe,” lisped the baronet. The other paused. Somehow, Sir A‘neas took little sat- isfaction in the discovery that the young fellow was a gentleman. “Devilish fine-looking and distingué,” he ad- mitted to himself. But what a pang of jealous rage stirred him when he perceived in the button-hole of this Rebel’s coat, the rose which, a few minutes ago, the beauty had worn in her bosom. The two stood staring at each other, in the hot light of that fatal moon. “You are a paroled prisoner?’’ A bow. “Your name and rank?” “Are here,’ extending a paper. Sir A‘neas turned the written page about in the moon- light. “Thith ith your parole?” kts. The words, legible enough in that moonlight, are here transcribed :— ‘“T do hereby acknowledge myself to be a prisoner of war, upon my parole, to His Excellency Sir Henry Clinton; and that I am thereby engaged, until I shall be exchanged, or otherwise released therefrom, to remain at the barracks at Haddrell’s Point, or within six miles thereof without passing any rivers, creeks, or arm of the sea; and that I shall not in the meantime do, or cause to be done, anything prejudicial to the success of His Majesty’s arms, or have intercourse or hold correspondence with his enemies; and that, upon a sum- mons from His Excellency or other persons having authority thereto, I will surrender myself to him, or them, at such time and place as I shall hereafter be required. Witness my hand, this day of Dec., 1780.”’ TROUPE DE BERRIEN ANDERSON, Captain McIntosh’s army. “Witness, C. H. Simmons. I do hereby certify that the above is a true copy of the parole this day signed by Major Stuart, Com. of Prisoners.” And now the prisoner, Troupe de Berrien Anderson, remarked: — “The Prison Commissioner, Major Stuart, has allowed ECONMMICOOOKSa(e©) m