Black Bess; or, The Knight of the Road — A Tale of the Good Old Times — page 4: what you’re looking at

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

a cat OR Le III E 2 se P See Oso o p BLUESKIN: A ROMANCE. ete ete Oy sin — ee pT ER OO eS AE i NN TE the hour of three-quarters past cleven. he pleasant, care not. But you shall care! Yes, as snrely a3 there is musical sounds arose distinctly on the nigkt air, for at | a Heaven above me, [ wii mate you eare! [ e.var it! that hour, a hundred and fifty years ago, Loudon was and I will keep my oath!” eomparatively silent. | A sudden and piercing gust of wind swept dw».r the All the shops in Wych-street—for it was there the | street at this moment, and Jack was fain to draw his person stood who had given utterance to such terrible | scanty clothing still closer around his person. words—hac been long since closed, and the taoroughfare Then the inany eburches in the old sleeving ety pealed was dark and dcserted. forth tie hour of midnight. There was, however, just light enough to reveal a| One after another did the clocks commence striking, shadowy figure, and the house at which he levelled bis/and it was full five minutes before the last chime died imprecations. away. It was a common-looking old-fashioned structure, en-| “So late!” ejaculated Jack. “Iwill begone. It is tirely built of wood. folly to stay here and imprecate a senseless buiiding ! The casements were small, and each story of the louse | Would that I could see you once again, John Roots, for, overhung the other. if you held open to me your door in peace, I feel that I A signboard reached over the shop-door and wiudow. | could forget the past, and enter. Enter and be saved!” It was black, and had some hungry-looking wiite} These last words were uttered in a sad, half-repentant letters painted upon it. : tone, and there is no question that if a hand had been They stood out boldly from the background, and read | jelg out to him, he would have suffered himself to be led as follows :— in the right direction. “ Topm~ Roots, CARPENTER AND JOINER.” But it was not so to be. From one or two of the other honses in the street a} Scarcely had the words left his hips, than one of the faint beam of light issned from some of the upver win- windows of the house in which John Roots dwelt was dows, but the house we have specified, as well as those | thrown violently open. on either side of it, was in profound darkness. There| It swung back against the wall with a loud crash. was not the dimmest ray to show that they were in-| A face was projected from it. habited. It looked strangely forbidding in that darksome street. But, hark! The strange figure in the roadway, as; “John Roots!” exclaimed Jack, involuntarily, as he he looks up at the dark and silent habitation, speaks recognised the countenance of his master. again. A harsh, disagreeable, grating voice now spoke. His voice has a solemn and sepulchral tone as he utters} “Oh! it’s you, you young scoundrel, is it? What do that whieh may be construed into a warning. you mean, you gallows whelp? Tl have you put in jail, I “ Beware! John Roots, beware! for the day of reckon-| will! Didn't 1 tell you never to come near my house mg will surely come! It is I—Jack Sheppard—your ill-| again, you thief? What do yon mean by coming and treated apprentice, who speaks—who curses you from the | standing in the street at twelve o’clock at night, and bottom of his heart, yet bids you beware! You have driven | cursing me in that styler? Take that!” me from your house into the streets, peuniless—a beggar!} John Roots threw some heavy object from the window Beware ofthe result! My disposition is, as you say, an evil ; at his apprentice. _ one! Granted that itis! But you, as my spiritual as well | Jack saw it coming, and he ducked his head. as worldly master, should have tried to make me better! It passed him by a hair’s breadth. How have youdone so? Ha!ha! How haveyoudoneso?| In his rage, and seeing nothing else at hand, Jack’s You have reviled me—degraded me—treated me like a dog! , master had seized the looking-glass that was on his table, Was that the way to improve what you are pleased to and hurled it at Sheppard’s head. call an evil disposition? No, John Roots, you know itis| It came down with a terrific smash on to the stones, not—but the way to make bad worse! You have succeeded, , and broke into a thousand pieces. aud will succeed, no doubt; but, if you do, then I say} They flew about in every direction. again, Beware! beware! for, sooner or later, the hour will} | The angry passions which had a home in Jack’s heart, arrive when you will have to answer for your treatment | flamed up like a torch. of me! And then, when that time comes, tremble andj He drew himself once more up to his full height. beware! You have made me an outcast, have dmven me The foam of passion was on his hips. into the path of crime, and the consequences of your; ‘‘John Roots!” he said, in wild, screaming tones, Cm~ee TO ST oe Pir great actions be upon your own head!” “listen to me! You have called me a thief! Heaven He paused, breathless and exhausted from the violence | knows_1 am not one yet, but I know not how soon I may of his emotions. be! Once more I curse you! Curse you from the bottom Ife had drawn himself to his full height, and looked | of my heart! _You shall yet live to repent your treatment around him defiantly, and if any one had been near enough | of me, for F will have my revenge upon you : to observe his countenance, they would have seen upon it} ‘‘ Ha—ha!” au expression of deep determination. “You may laugh, John Roots, yon may laugh, and Jack Sheppard was at this period just over twenty | affect to despise what I say! The day will come when years of age. you will wish you had rather thrust your hand into a Ile was short, and very slightly made; indeed, he ‘s{ furnace than treated me as you have! My father died at best deseribed by the word diminutive. Tyburn, | know full well! But I was a child then, unable But, thin and fragile as he at first sight looked, a second | even to speak! How, then, eould I help what he did? glance would show he was of that wiry sort whieh is | Could I control his actions P? Why should the stigma of his endowed with great bodily strength and uncommon powers | guilt be fixed upon my character? It has done so, John of endurance. Roots! It has done so! No one knows that better than your- His head was small and bullet-shaped. self! When, I wonder, did you let slip an opportunity His features were delicate and regular, but marred by | of taunting me with it ? Even when we were in the presence the sharp cunning look which they invariably bore. of those whose good wishes and sympathies I was anxious It would seem by his manner that ke anticipated what | to obtainP Never, John Roots, never! Itis that which he had said would call forth some notice from the house | has always preyed upon my mind, and could I help it of Mr. Roots, but it did not ; all remained just as it was | doing so? It is that which has soured my temper, before. filled my breast with angry passions, and made me sullen ; We ground his teeth with disappointmen', and morose! It is your fault, and I eurse you for it? No doubt he would have felt it to be a solace if he could | curse youa thousand times! Well, full well, you know have returned his master some of the abuse, which, that Iam innocent of the theft which you, in the malevo- according to his account he had heaped upon him. | lence of your heart, accased me of! I would have scorned But though there was no one to listen to him, he spunc; | to have taken anything of yours! {am not guilty, John the angry passions that were tumulting in his breast would , Roots, but, through your representations, many delieve | not suffer him to continue s)Jeut. am! For all this, as well as for your conduct on this Ha! he! you sleep now—sieep soundly! What care | night, will I take a terrible and bitter vengeance ' , | ‘Ee ie the io boy who was delivered into your keeping P| “‘ Begone, villain,” shouted Mr. Roots, as suun as ne tothing! a tl LS ee ee gE ~e. en OR EN OC EN Sete Pipa “pre eet tien =e GE =P Qu ete = te WO epee Sea «ee A. > \)) c= eee) ee, ee ee TS sy SSD af gS i a” ge OSS” yt : CS, GEE NG Were we. Be 0, CEP Sy e may beg, starve, steal, anything! You| had a chance of making himself heard; for the rapidity / awe ews ee CONMICMOOOKS.EO () An