The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 292: what you’re looking at

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

THE BURKER 261 The ill-favoured man whom we introduced at the beginning of this chapter was named Barnes, but was more familiarly called Barney by his intimates, and sometimes he was spoken of, though never addressed to his face, as Barney the Burker; it having been suspected that some years previously to the time of which we are writing he had been connected with the diabolical gang whose wholesale murders produced consternation throughout the country. But as we have just hinted, it was by no means safe to throw out the imputation to Barnes’s face, for the savage vindic- tiveness of his character and his implacable ferocity would have at once prompted him to inflict a terrible chastise- ment on whomsoever he might regard as giving him offence. Relaxing his pace, as we have said, when he drew near the gold-beater’s house, he flung his looks hastily around, evidently to assure himself that he was not observed, and then he made a sudden dive under the low arch which led into the alley by the side of the chapel. This alley had an opening at the farther extremity, communicating with a small vacant space behind the chapel, and which was separated by a low wall from the yard at the rear of the Smedleys’ house. Over this wall Barney the Burker at once clambered, and alighting in the yard, he without ceremony entered the dwelling by the back door. Though it was dark within, he evidently knew the premises well, for he imme- diately began to descend a flight of steps, and thus reached an underground place, which being behind the kitchen might be described as the scullery. Here a light burned upon a small deal table, at which the Smedleys and Mrs. Webber were seated, with bottles and glasses before them. A massive door on one side communicated with a cellar, and another door led into the front kitchen, It may possibly be wondered wherefore the. Smedleys and the old woman were enjoying themselves on the present occasion in so damp, gloomy, and dungeon-like a place as the scullery, where there was no grate, and consequently no fire, and this too being the cold winter season. But they had business of a particular nature to discuss, and a particular visitor to receive. They did not therefore choose to sit in the parlour, lest passers-by should peep in through the crevices of the shutters, or stand to listen to what was being said; and as there was an iron grating over the front kitchen EORMICLIOOKS (E(O)