Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 186: what you’re looking at

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

— i — —— ES TTS A LL A wo e—-—_-. ‘“ No escape,” he muttered, “no escape but death ! and I,. who have slain two, have not the courage to kill myself! Why do the words of Jack ring in my ears—‘ The rope is spun—the gallows reared—and the executioner awaits his victim!’ Shall he claim me? Shall I be made the sport of a cruel, unfeeling crowd? Shall I die upon a scaffold, with a rope around my neck ? No—a thousand times,no! This knife——no— no ; [ cannot—cannot slay myself ! ”’ His head dropped till his chin rested on his bosom, and hot tears gushed to his eyes. They were not tears of remorse, but of bitter disappointment. But he dashed them away with his hand, and again sprang to his feet, “T will escape,’’ he cried, in a hissing whisper. “They shall not detain me here. I will rend these bars asunder, if 1 tear my flesh from the _ bones to accomplish the task.” Placing his knee again upon the chair, he fixed the knife between his teeth, and grasping one of the bars in both hands, exerted all. his strength to force it from its socket. . As well might he have tried to move thie prison from its base. Again and again he made the effort, but all to no avail. The perspiration poured off his face in huge drops, and he bit his lip till it bled. “Foiled again! foiled again! ’’ he muttered, as he paused, exhausted from his futile labours ; “and the gallows must—will have its due... But no! there is yet one hope—one. I cannot force the bars, but I may remove one with this knife. Allis quiet. I will try—lI will try ; and if that fail, then heaven have mercy on me!”’ He forced the point of the knife into the lead, which had been run round the bottom: of the bar to secure it into the stone, and as he did so the door of the cell was flung open, and the form of the young warder sprang into the gloomy apartment. | Richard turned like an enraged tiger at bay. ‘* Trying to escape?” said the man. “It’s no use. Come down from there.”’ “Never!” cried Richard, all the passions of his nature aroused. “I will leave this accursed place ere night. Keep back! There is blood enough upon my hands already.” The man drew a pistol from his pocket and levelled it at the murderer. | “1 must perform my duty,” he said. down, and give me that knife.’’ “To its hilt in your heart,” said Richard, raising it above his head, and making a spring towards the young man. The warder saw his danger and the desperate nature of Clavering, and, pulling the trigger of his weapon, fired. The fall of a heavy body mingled with the report, and, as the smoke rose upwards to the roof of the cell, Richard Clavering, still grasping the knife in his hand, lay bleeding at the feet of the jailer. The man shuddered as he gazed down upon the white, upturned, and distorted face of the mur- derer who was making frantic but ineffectual efforts to rise, ‘ Foi—foiled again!” gasped Richard, as he ‘Come SPRING-HEEL’D JACK: THE TBRROR OF LONDON. writhed in agony, and the red blood dyed his Raise me up—I shirt-front ; ‘‘foiled again! am choking !” The warder placed the pistol upon the table and dropped on one knee beside the wounded man. — The jailer’s face was now as white as his. victim’s, and his limbs trembled as he stretched | out his hands to raise the head of Richard. “Foiled again!” gasped Olavering, as the young, man raised him to a sitting position, ‘“‘'Youhave prevented my escape, but cheated the | hangman. Youhavekilledme.” “The fault was your own,” said theman, “TT have only done my duty.” | = “Then take your reward,” cried Claveri aiming .a blow, at the man’s knife. | : Fortunately for the jailer, he saw the act in time, and, releasing his hold of Clavering, the murderer fell ,back instantly, and the weapon struck only at the air. | oo. The next moment it was torn from his weakened grasp by. the jailer, and hurled to the other side of the cell. ae The look which Richard fixed upon the man | was something truly appalling. So fearfully bitter in its hatred and malignity . was it that the man drew back in horror, ‘‘ Foiled again!” gasped the wretch. ‘‘ Yes, foiled again; but I, too, shall foil others in -turn—the .crowd—the hangman—the gallows. ‘Ha! ha! ha!. I have. foiled them. | Ha! ha! ha! Water—I choke. Water—give me wa’’—— He turned.his head rapidly over the floor of the cell as the jailer sprang to the pitcher of water he had placed there in the morning, and several of the officials, alarmed by the report of the pistol, hurried into the apartment. t ta taol ten ka eee No questions were needed to explain what cause had brought them there, Tee The chair placed upon the table beneath the window told all, and they turned their gaze upon the prostrate and bleeding man. to whose lips the jailer held the pitcher, ~ | The cool liquid revived him, and by an effort Richard raised himself upon his elbow and glared upon those now assembled with. a wild and unnatural stare. _. | RIA “Ha! hal ha!” he laughed. come to bear, me. to.execution, but you can’t— you can’t. the crowd wait, and.the hangman stamp with rage... You are foiled now—you”—— _ His further. utterance was stopped by blood gushing from his, mouth and nostrils, and his head. again fell back upon the floor of the cell. — The jailer raised him, and ‘wiped the sangui- nary fluid from his lips, and, after a pause, he gasped, while his eyes rolled wildly round the. cell— | | “See—see! She is there! Hide me from her. Yes, she is my wife, and I killed her. Look how she glares upon me with her white, bloodless face. Keep her back—keep her back ! Do not let her touch me. Her cold hand presses — my throat—I cannot breathe. Take her off— Mercy—Jess—Jessie! Mer-—mer — I—I choke. —oh ! 9 —— His head rolled back on to the shoulder of the — co G| 0 ee) ay 6 Mm) ® throat with the cn from side to side _ “You have — I have cheated the gallows. Let — wa ny, a. a oe, ~ a .