Spring-Heel'd Jack, The Terror of London — page 245: what you’re looking at

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

SPRING-HEEL’D JACK: THE TERROR OF LONDON. CHAPTER LXXXV. THE DRUNKEN WATCHMAN, AND HOW JACK SERVED HIM. Having reached the centre of the road, the watchman steadied himself, and, looking up at the wrong window, exclaimed— ‘“Come down here, and I'll take you up. What do you mean by interfering with me in “Past twelve o’clock, and a moonlight night !”’| the execution of my duty ? Call me a liar, will Such were the words which emanated from | you? tell me I’m drunk! I'll lock you up, you the mouth of a tall man, about fifty years of| scoundrel, for disturbing the peace of the neigh- age, attired in a great coat, ornamented with | bourhood. Hallo! Where the devil has he gone ? - large pearl buttons, and a short cape, knee-| Ain’t that the window ? Why, there’s nobody breeches, striped worsted hose, and fastened by strap and buckle. shoes | there. Never mind, [ll be even with him, that’s | A billy-cock hat | all. Burns a rushlight, does he? Whatright has graced his head, which was fast becoming bald | anybody to havea light but me. Lights ought on the top, and in his left hand he held a) not to be allowed at night, for fear of setting the lantern, which he swung to and fro, as if to ‘house on fire. No one ought to have a light but keep time with the words he uttered. His gait was far from steady, and instead of to side of the pathway, and occasionally striking the toe of his shoe against a stone, uttered an exclamation, and ran on two or three steps m a stooping position. “Past twelve night ! ”’ In this he was wrong, for the hour of three had struck, and a drizzling raim-was falling—a rain which the sensible costume of the watch- man could well bid defiance to, but which, fall- ing upon the garments as worn in the present day, would have penetrated them in a very short space of time. Not a star was visible—thick black clouds hung overhead ; and, as for the moon, if it shone at all,it was only in the confused imagination of the guardian of the night. The light of the lantern flashed its rays in his eyes as he staggered along, with his head bent low; and this circumstance might have led him to believe that it was the moon’s beams which lit up his sleepy face. “ What’s the time, watchman ?” suddenly ex- claimed a voice above him, as a night-capped head protruded from an open window of the second storey of the house he was passing. ‘““What’s the time?” The watchman looked up, but in the opposite direction to that where his questioner awaited an answer, and replied— | “Past twelve o’clock, and a moonlight night ! ” «“Zounds! What are “you talking about! It’s pouring of rain, and black as pitch.” “ Bh?—eh 2—what!” eried the watchman, holding his head back, and, losing his balance, rolling against the wall of the house. “ Rain! Black as pitch! Why, so it does rain, I de- clare; but the moon is shining as bright as day.” uy tell you what, old Kimber, you're drunk!” exclaimed the man, putting his night-capped head still further out of the window. “ You're a pretty watchman, ain’t you? My wife says it’s past three, and she stuck a pin in the rush- light, so she knows the time. You're drunk, I say, and ought to be ashamed of yourself.” Down went. the window with a bang, as the white mystery disappeared; and Kimber staggered off the kerbstone, on which he had balanced himself a moment, into the roadway. o'clock, and a moonlight ‘a watchman, who knows how to take care of it. 'Eh! why there’s two lights burning in my walking in a straight line, he swerved from side lantern, by jingo! Who put t other candle there? Tl swear Tl only lit one. Somebody’s been playing a lark with me, while I took a nap in my box for five minutes. Yes, that’s it, that’s it ! and I only wish 1 knew whoit was. ” Staggering out of the road on to the pathway again, he litted the lantern up, and placed the right forefinger on the piece of curled tin to open it. 3 ‘“ Wilful waste makes woeful want,” he mut- tered. “ I don’t want two lights to see to do my duty by, so I'll blow one out.”’ He opened the door of the lantern after two or three ineffectual attempts, and stood looking at. the roll of tallow within it, in unfeigned sur- rise. ; “Eh! what? Why, dang me if there ain’t only one candlenow! Where the devil’s the other gone to?” And he looked down at his feet, to see if it had fallen out on his opening the lantern door. Of course, his search was unavailing, and he had to shut the lantern quickly to prevent the light being extinguished by the wind, which was blowing pretty freely, and hurling the small drops of rain along before it, as it swept down the street. But no sooner had Kimber closed the lantern than to his confused vision there again appeared two lights. Well! this beats all I ever did see, and I’ve lived fifty years in the world come next Michael- mas,” said the man. ‘ There’s something wrone somewhere, to-night. The moon was shining splendid a minute ago, and putting the light of the lantern into the shade—now the lantern’s put the moon out—and one minute I’ve got one candle, and the next, two. Yes, there’s two lights there—nobody can say different. One —two—yes two, or else I am drunk.” He held the lantern up before his face, and vazed for some time upon the glass, a pro- ceeding which eventually caused his eyes to fill with water. Raising his hand to hisright eye, which natu- rally closed as that member approached it, when lo! there appeared but one light again in the lantern. The hand was dropped, the closed eye opened wide, and agai two lights appeared, burning brilliantly. | Kimber became more and more confused, if ~ | GOMIGDOO “S 247 ——_—— (E()