The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 193: what you’re looking at

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

166 REYNOLDS’ WORKS , “The new master,’ replied the negress, alluding to Sir Edgar Beverley, “ or, rather, that gentleman, the lawver, who spoke for him last night, ordered me to leave the house, but I could not; where was I to go? Besides, I hoped that I should be forgiven, so I concealed myself in this room, where I remained all day without a morsel of food. I went down-stairs just now to the pantry to get some; I came up again, but scarcely had I been five minutes in the chamber, when the door opened suddenly — I had forgotten to lock it as I intended to do — and some one rushed in. The light went out so quickly that I could not see who it was, and I thought I had better stay quiet until whoever it might be should fall asleep. I fancied that you slept, sir, and was going to leave the chamber with as little noise as possible —”’ “ Well, well, I know the rest,’ observed Christian, and then for a few moments he deliberated with himself what he should do, but remembering that it was impossible to turn a woman out of the house at that hour of the night, — indeed, being incapable of such an act of cruelty, no matter how well it might suit her deserts, — he was about to tell her to seek another apartment, when the thought struck him that her secret presence in the mansion despite of Mr. Andrews’ peremptory order to quit it might have some ulterior motive beyond that which she had alleged. He therefore said, “You tell me you had nowhere to go? How long had you been employed in the late Sir John Steward’s service? ”’ ‘‘ About seven years,”’ replied the woman, and we should observe that she spoke in broken English and execrable grammar, but we do not feel disposed to give any verbal representation of her diction. ‘‘ Your duties, if I guess aright,” said our hero, “‘ can have been but little creditable to yourself, considering the master whom you served, and such duties are always well remu- nerated. You must therefore have amassed gold, and yet you will endeavour to make me believe that you are completely pauperized, without the means of providing yourself with a lodging. How do you account for this inconsistency? ”’ ‘““T do not altogether understand you,’ said the negress. ‘‘T am a stranger in your country — ”’ ‘“‘ A stranger indeed, and you have been seven years in Sir John Steward’s service!’’ exclaimed Christian, —‘‘ a time sufficient to render you familiar enough with the meaning ECORNICLIOOKS (E(0)