The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 87: what you’re looking at

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

THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY. 73 N' ZG! ys Ly Ne ; i) tee a! all ’ | ae. mate, look sharp! Don’t let him speak a word;, and don’t so much as look round if you hear the door open, for you'll know it’s me coming back. In short, don’t give him an instant’s advantage.” ‘Never you be afeard,” responded Jack Pepper- corn: and the cold blade again touched the throat of the prostrate prisoner. ' Tim Gaffney quitted the room as cautiovsly as he had entered it—descended the stairs —and stole towards the library. For an instant he thought that he heard the creaking of a footstep behind him: he stopped short—all was still— and he advanced. The moonbeams, penetrating through the holes in, the shutters, guided him to the table between the windows; and he was just on the very point of putting the key into the lock, when he was suddenly seized from behind aud hurled upon the floor, with one strong hand. He’s a knowing old file, this..| cudgel, with which the victor threatened to beat out his brains if he dared attempt the slightest resistance. The incident happened so suddenly, and Tim Gaffney was taken so’ completely unawares, that, he was seized as it were with a consternation and dismay, so that he did not even so much‘as en- deavour to clutch one of his pistols. His con- queror—whom we may as well at once state to have been: Stephen Ashborne—had all his own senses completely about him ; and suspecting that: a burglar would be well armed, he laid down his ‘cudgel for a moment and -passed his hand rapidly over the fellow’s upper garments. He felt the ‘pistols with which Gaffney was furnished; and hastily snatching one forth, he declared he would beat in the fellow’s brains if he dared offer any resistance. He got hold of the other pistol; and thus having Tim Gaffney completely in his power, grasping his throat and the other brandishing a | he felt in his nockets to ascertain if he had any No. 10.—Tsae Youne DvucHEss. oO SS COMO Ne EL SO a Colin