The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 164: what you’re looking at

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

A GLANCE AT THE PAST 141 sullenly. ‘‘ We have done a few things together, and you have always been fair and straightforward enough, there’s no denying that; and now, what next? ”’ ‘“ You will believe me, then, if I make you a certain promise? ”’ said Madge, interrogatively. ‘¢ Yes, I think I may,” replied Chiffin, ‘‘ for we all know you are a strange kind of a creature, and there’s some of the folks down at Sol Patch’s really fancies you are a witch. I don’t mean no offence, Madge — ”’ ‘ Witches need not have recourse to the means I adopt for a living,’ rejoined the woman, abruptly. “ But about this promise of mine. Ii I tell you that to-morrow evening at nine o’clock I will bring you a hundred pounds to the Billy Goat, or anywhere else you choose to appoint, will you be satisfied for the loss of your booty this night? And I think you ought to be,” she added, ere he had time to answer, “for it will be a hundred pounds earned by you without risk, whereas if this work had been done to-night there would have been risk, although everything was so nicely arranged to make all traces disappear.”’ ‘“¢ Well, if 1 was sure of having the blunt to-morrow night,”’ said Chiffin, slowly suffering himself to be pacified, ‘ I shouldn’t care much about that young fellow being allowed to walk clean off under my very nose, as one may say.” 3 ‘Then you shall have the hundred pounds to-morrow night, Chiffin,”’ said Madge Somers, with the confidence of one who knows that the promise will be fulfilled. ‘‘ And now you will tell me,’’ asked the Cannibal, ‘‘ what the deuce all this means, why you dropped the candle and called out, why you pushed me from the room and banged the door as a signal that I wasn’t wanted, and why you let the young chap escape at all.”’ ‘“‘ Did you not see that he opened his eyes all in a moment, just as we were bending over the bed? ”’ asked Madge. “No, that I didn’t,’ replied Chiffin, gruffly, ‘* and if he did open his eyes like that, then all I can say is, I can’t believe mine, because it seemed to me that he was asleep as sound as a rock.”’ “ Well, then,” rejoined Madge, doggedly, ‘‘ I can tell you that he did. I was closest to him and I saw him open his eyes.” GOMmiiGcodoo a <S (C(O)