The Child of Waterloo, or, The Horrors of the Battle-Field — page 169: what you’re looking at

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

166 THE CHILD OF WATERLOO, who answered in the affirmative upon the officer inquiring if Mrs. Jenkins were within. Mabel and the officer were shown into a remarkably dirty parlor, each of the windows of which was decorated with a placard, announcing, ‘'Furnished Apartments:” and in a few moments Mrs. Jenkins made her appearance. It was early in the day, and, consequently, Mrs. Jenkins was a melancholy spectacle of faded finery. She dressed always upon the show and ornamental principle, so that the gaudy trappings, which had become too dingy to go out in, were used as the home attire, until sufficient leisure arose for the more elaborate and satisfac- tory manifestations of the toilet. ‘““Oh! Mr. Long,” she said, ‘‘ how do you do?” ‘*'Very well, thank you, ma’am. This young lady is a friend of mine, ma’am, from the country. I cannot accommodate her at my house, and she wants a home for a few days only. Can you do it, Mrs. Jenkins ?” ‘* Well, let me seo. The back room, second floor, is out of town, and the front attic taiks of going.” ‘¢ Anywhere that is clean and comfortable will do. The young lady is not at all fastidious, and you look to me, if you please, for the money.” “‘Oh, I am quite sure, Mr. Long, that with any friend of yours, that all is right. I think the second floor back will be the thing. “Very good, Mrs. Jenkins, I will call to-morrow or next day, if you please; and here, Miss Morton, is some money.” He handed a small sum to Mabel, whom he had previously recommended not to take Mrs. Jenkins, or anybody else into her confidence with regard to who or what she was; but tirat if she were challenged with the fact, just to admit that she was the person who, no doubt, next day, would figure at some length in the police reports of the morning papers. But Mabel was in no great danger of being found out in this way; for Mrs. Jenkins very rarely saw a newspaper at all, and when she did, it was one borrowed from a neighboring public- house, and which was usually about a week old. When Mr. Long was gone, which was almost immediately after he had made the arrangement for Mabel remaining, Mrs. Jenkins said, very graciously: ‘‘ How do you mean to manage. miss ?” ‘‘ Manage ?” said Mabel, “in what respect, madam ?” ‘¢Oh, as to the meals, and all that sort of thing.” ‘‘T really am so completely ignorant of London, and so unac- customed to do anything of the sort, that I am afraid I shall be very much at a loss.” ‘Well, then, in course, the best way will be to let me buy in for you whatever you want, give you a little bill when you go away, you know, so that you will have no trouble at all.” ‘¢T should be much obliged by your taking so much trouble,” said Mabel, ‘‘ and, probably, I should have requested you to do so, but that I dreaded imposing upon your goodness.” ‘‘Ob, don’t mention that, When I pop out, you know, for comicbooks. com