Penny Blood Serial Fiction — page 31: what you’re looking at

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

14 REYNOLDS’ WORKS up out of the bed of the river against some of the windows, and there’s a thundering big bough that goes right bang across one of them windows, and it’s as easy climbing up that tree as if it was a ladder. You ain’t the thinnest person in the world, sir, but you can manage this here business with no more bother than if you was walking up-stairs. There’s a precious sight nastier tree than that to climb, I can tell you, gentlemen, — a leafless one that they some- times set up at the debtors’ door of Newgate,’’ and the Cannibal again sent forth that low, deep chuckle which was horrible to hear. “Come, a truce to this jesting,”’ said Mr. Gunthorpe, sternly. During the above colloquy the two gentlemen and Chiffin had been walking hastily in the direction of the castle. At the very moment that those last words had issued in a tone of rebuke from Mr. Gunthorpe’s lips, the report of a pistol from a little distance reached their ears. This was followed by a shriek in a female voice, and quick as thought, a second report of a pistol was heard. Then all was still. ‘Good God, what is that? ” cried Mr. Gunthorpe. An ejaculation likewise burst from Deveril’s lips, and the two gentlemen, accompanied by Chifhin, rushed along the bank of the river in the same direction they were already pursuing, namely, toward the castle, for it was in that same direction whence the pistol-shots and the scream had emanated. In a few minutes they beheld something dark lying across the pathway ahead; another minute, and they distinctly perceived that there were two objects. The next minute brought them up to the spot, where, to the unspeakable horror and dismay of Mr. Gunthorpe and Deveril, and to the astonishment of Chiffin, they beheld the forms of two females stretched upon the ground. ‘‘'The same we saw at the cottage,’ ejaculated Mr. Gun- thorpe, as soon as he could recover the power of speech, while Deveril, stooping down, pronounced life to be extinct in both. The countenance of the unfortunate Emily Archer was dreadfully disfigured, the pistol-bullet having evidently penetrated her forehead, shattering all the upper part of her head. The soubrette had been killed by a ball penetrating Gomichoo cS (E(o)