The Young Apprentice; or, The Watch-Words of Old London — page 45: what you’re looking at

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

the mysterious eleven in the workshop, Alicia Leslie suddenly appeared and disappeared through a secret door in the wall. It was towards the point where this door opened that Quelf now made his way. Turning the light of his lantern fully on, be directed the rays towards a part of the wall that was concealed partially by a figure clothed in mail, and a little brass knob was at once visible, This he pressed, and a panel sliding aside, disclosed what seemed to be nothing more than the mouth of some huge cavern, so black and dismal it appeared. A gust of cold air, too, proved how deep was the sbaft—a gust which swept with a chill moan- ing through the workshop, and made even the light of the Jantern flicker dismally. Quelf, however, paid no heed either to the darkness or the gold wind. He evidently knew his way well, and before Harold saw exactly how he entered he was gone, and the panel had slid once more into its place, To the adventurous and brave spirit of the Young Apprentice, this was something exactly suited. His mind was at once made up. He would follow Quelf, and endeavour to find some clue to the extraordinary mystery that enveloped every movement in this house. It was not so easy for him to find the place as it had been for Quelf, for the quaint old work- shop was enveloped in complete darkness except- ing where the pale Moonlight flickered in through the diamond-shaped panes, and cast fantastic shadows on the floor, and upon the old piece of mail, and the finished and half-finished weapons lying about. It was a weird-looking place, and to an imaginative mind jt was easy to people it wi rtrange forma, for up against the walls were the iron cases, which had now long fallen into dis- ure, looking as they stood there so grim and still, as if their dead owners, now invisible, were yct within them, and supporting them by their unseen strength. Then helmets and breast-plates and plumed hata, lined with steel, were piled up against the window, so that the intercepted light fell in strangely grotesque patterns on the brick floor, assuming the semblance of living men, as they flickered and fluttered in the uncertain gleam- ings. Harald, however, paid little heed to this now. He crept across the workshop, and made towards the gpot where he had scen Quelf touch the brags knob. For some time hia search was unsuccessful, for behind the coata of mail all was in perfect darkness, At length, however, hy each of the figures, he disooyered the pressed if. The panel slid back as before, and the cavernous mouth of the shaft was open before him Harold hesitated naturally. He had no light, and there were no means of ascertaining where the steps were leading to the place (wherever it might be) towards which Quelf had procecded. trying the wall behind a knob, and THE YOUNG APPRENTICE; OR, Renner renner ee ee ee ee ne eee eee see nee nee scene ec eer ec erence cece ee a a I a aI a I I EA iE, et LE EI ay TT a ns IE —— S A TORE I B O T T T T TT CEOI CT a ET A ee RT Cb Leaping down, therefore, he felt beneath i m, Just as his hand took hold of the spokes of an iron ladder, he heard a dull murmuring of voices. “It is not so deep as I thought,” murmured Harold, and placing his foot on the first spoke of the ladder, he pushed the panel into its place, and found himself in utter darkness. . He was now committed to his perilous ad- venture. The panel being once closed, he had no means of returning. He must, therefore, advance and brave it all, whatever it was that was before him. He was quite convinced that his master, Frank Leslie, knew nothing of this conspiracy whose members met beneath his house, and his conscience was quite clear from any fear of —~ behaving deceitfally. He was not long in reaching the bottom of the shaft, which seemed so dark and so like a charnel-house, that he suspected it to be a. disused well, Arrived here, he could at first see no means of exit; but after a few moments he perceived a ee of light issuing from a chink in the wall, Approaching this he found himself in the entrance of a winding passage, which, almoat before he knew where he was going, conducted him into a huge subterranean vault. No one who has not seen or read a good de- scription of the Catacombs of Paris can under- stand the complicated shape of this vault or the arrangements made to support the roof. A blaze of light fell dazzlingly upon Harold's eyes as he emerged from the passage, but he was not near the conspirators. There was an immense pile of rubbish, bricks and fallen stone-werk ; and then at the extreme edge of this a succession of lofty pillars anpport- ing a roof which seemed as if it had been the roof of some underground temple of worship, A large fire blazed in the centre of a circle of pillars, and around this fire (which was of wood, and diffused a bright light around) were seated ably men, while a twelfth was addressing em, Quelf, the dwarf, was seated a little apart. ‘ Friends,” continued the cavalier who was speaking when Harold entered the vault; “friends, by some mysterious interferenee, our movements have been thwarted. Those nobles who have sided with Cromwell, have been, as you know, stricken down in the hey-day of their strength, through the faithful and unwearying agent whom we employed. Yet now the work has ceased unaccountably, Nay, more, the agent whom we thought our certain aiid honour- able ally, has been seen in close converse with those who favour the enemy. Under these cir- cumstances, we have to select another person to fill the post, and I have, I believe, found one who is worthy of our confidence.” A cheer followed this announcement. A cheer that chilled Harold's heart. It was like the howl of thirsty blood-hounds. “Yes,” continued the speaker, “ yea, I fancy I have discovered this one; in fact, I know him to be a faithful friend. On more than one oc- EDOOo a lin