The Argosy — page 393: what you’re looking at

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

372 The Village Blacksmith. be the feeling which ruled her mind, as she had recourse to her smelling-salts. ‘“My name is William Freeman, and I came down here three weeks or so ago, because I heard there was a good job to be done here,” said Freeman. ‘What was it?” asked Mr. Deedes. ‘‘T heard there were some valuable diamonds to be had at Wood- ford Rectory ; so I thought they might as well be mine as anyone else’s, and I came down after them. I wasn’t in a hurry, for I wanted to do the thing neatly and get off to America with the diamonds ; but I was rather short of money, so one day I stopped a young lady I afterwards heard was Miss Tempest, and tried to steal her watch. I should have done it too but for her dog, which, if it had not been for her would have killed me. Well, she let me off, like the kind lady she is. She did me a good turn that day, and I have come here to do her a good turn to-day, if I get seven years for it.” Here the witness paused and wiped his face with a red cotton handkerchief; and the Archdeacon, who had heard from Captain Raleigh that Freeman had turned Queen’s evidence, leant forward in his seat and strained every nerve to hear what was said, evidently feeling intensely excited. “You won't get that if you return the jewels,” said Mr. Deedes. ‘TI have not got them to return, sir.” **Didn’t you accomplish the job you were so good as to come down here for, then?” “I did and I didn’t. It was like this: I got to know the groom, Mark Brown, and I persuaded him to help me to get the diamonds. I agreed to give him twenty pounds if he would hand the diamonds to me from the dressing-room window on Easter Tuesday.” “© And did he agree to do it?” “Yes. He was to hand me the case with the jewels soon after eleven o’clock at night if his mistress, who was gone to a party, didn’t wear them ; if she did he was to do it later, after she came home and was asleep; but I was to be under the window by eleven o’clock, and I was to leave the twenty pounds in the old hollow tree by the canal after I had got the diamonds.” ‘* Did you do so?” ‘No, because I did not get the diamonds.” ‘“‘ Flow was that? Did Mark Brown repent of his bargain ?” “YT can’t say. All I know is, I was outside the window at eleven, and in a mortal fright lest the mastiff should break loose.” ‘© And what happened ?” Soon after eleven I saw a light in the room, and then Mark opened the window and asked if I was there. I answered yes, and told him to be quick, for I heard wheels, and then he disappeared for a moment or two and returned with the jewel-case, which he dropped out of the window to me as the carriage drove up to the comicbooks.com