The Freemason's Daughter: A Novel — page 247: what you’re looking at

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

240 THE FREEMASONS DAUGHTER. more. ‘The friend I should peremptorily have refused permission to see him. Of course, I yield to the magistrate.” The sneer which accompanied the last word was not unnoticed by the two masons, but they thought it better to pass 1t without observation ; for, after all, the speaker might be in the right, and the letter they had so strangely recerved the result of some hallucination of the writer’s wandering brain. Crab, seeing that they made no reply, and pretty well confident that the Doctor and Barnes had taken the necessary precaution, rang the bell ; it was answered by one of the keepers. ‘As soon as Barnes is disengaged, send him to me.” The man bowed and withdrew. “Of course you can have no objection to tell me upon what ground a suspicion, which is levelled no less at my moral character than my professional reputation, rests—I have a right to demand that justice at your hands.” “There you must excuse us,” replied Mr. Mordaunt; ‘‘ sufficient to say that the mason has a means of com- munication with his brethren of which the world httle dreams.” ‘“‘ Has he?” thought Crab; “if once I get over this difficulty, ’'l] place him where he shall see no messenger, unless Satan comes to his assistance.” ‘‘ Added to which,” observed Mr. Keeting, “at ecomnuicloooks CO mn