The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 21: what you’re looking at

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

SL a eet a a EO Ne a -SS RARESDarePUEAANERSEnseE® cee TRE wtSTERIM. want: because I have seen enough to convinse me _ rupted by thrusting hie heed forth from the wia- that he is favourably inclined towards the bafonet— | dow to see if she yelluw coach was in sight,—he sald, and there's no saying how he may find means of , “J euppese you.are constables feum Aylesbury?” pending him notice of what’s going on, should we fail in capturing the villain to-night.® they went in company with Page, whose sense of duty towards society was wonderfully sharpened by the reward offered for the apprehension of Sir Richard Stamford. Close by there was a hdckpey-coach stand : and the commercial traveller walked straight up to the waterman, and put a crown into his hand, saying, “ My good fellow, » gentleman in a cloak took a vehicle here a few minutes ago—] am sure he did: now, where did he order the driver to take him ?” “All right, sir—Edgeware Road,” replied the waterman, joyfully pocketting the welcome gift. “Twas a yalier jarvey———" “ Look alive, then!” interrupted the active Mr. Page, as he sprang iato a coach the door of which he hastily opened himse!f; and the constables hav- ing tambied in after him, he exclaimed, * Edge- ware Road—and a guinea for the jarvey if he catches up the other vehicle.” This exciting promise was instantaneously com- municated to the driver by the waterman, who in equally succinct terms gave such information es enabled that functionary to comprehend which goach it was that was now to be pursued: and away weat the equipage at a rattling pace. “ i¢ wasn't a bad dadge of mine tocommence in- at the ooach-stanad,” observed Mr. Page to che constables, as they roiled along towards Oxfard Street: “for may I be hanged if I knew what direo- tiom she fugitive took when he quitted the hotel.” “Qh! then be was at the George—eb ?” ex- claimed one of ihe constabl@,; and tarniug to his comrade, he said, “So you see our information was right, Bill, arter all. But how was it, air,”’ he con- tinued, again addressing himself to Page, “that you didn't coliar him, if eo be you twigged him there?” “I can agsure you that my palms liched to olatch him,” replied the commercial traveller: “but I wasn't certain that he wasreally the man, aud I was feasfui of getting myself into a serape by seising the wrong one. Assault, battery, false imprisonment, defamation, gad all that sort of thing, you know, kept rising up in my mind and resizaluing my. arm.” “Lord bless ye, air, if we was to.be ou'y half so partickier as that, we should never do.no bisness,” said the constable: “should us, Bill Sneesby 2” « You're about right, Mr. Grint,” responded the individual thus blandly appealed to. “ Our vay is to knook folks down fust and take ‘em up arterwards. If so be we've nailed the right uns, thca there's no harm done: but ifso be we've got the wrong sow by the ear, we apologises—and there's an end 00’t.” * And suppose that ia this last case,” observed Mr. Page, “the innocent persons whom you've treated so roughly, don’t choose to be satisfied with an excuse ?” “Then we locks ‘em up for interfering with us in the execution of our dooty,” was Grint’s promps reply. * Ah! I understand,” exclaimed the commeseial traveller, whose opiniva of the morality ofthe two eoastables was nut imp: oved by this avewals: wish- ing, the refure, to change the conversation,-- which we should observe, he hud himself frequently inter» “ Just eo, sir,” replied Grint: “and on coming up to tows fast now, we happened to meet a friend of ° “All right,” returned the ‘officers: snd-away cur’n wot lives at Aylesbury anf had been in Low- don for the last w-ek or s0. Well, we gat into taik together—and then we had summat to driak--and it was nat’ral enough that me and my partner here should tell him all about Sir Richard, ‘cos he hadn't heard a word.on it afore: as how should he? aesing that it on’y happened last night, and a matter af forty mile awey from tewn. Well, sir, after he'd recovered hie-self a ‘bit-—for he was struck quite ray es ohe may eay-—he says, says he, ‘ Mr. Grint, if ever I eee Sir Richard Stamford in ali my fe, I saw him euly @ few minutes before I met you. Hs was in his cloak; and he turned into thé George and Bine Boar, Holborn.'—This was quite enough for Bill Sneeeby and me; and it was fortunate we hadn’t told our Aylesbury friend about ‘the re- ward—or else he'd have wanted to go sheers———” “Here we are at the Edgeware Road!" suddenly cried Page: then thrasting hie head out of the window, he exclaimed to the driver, “ Pach along, my man— don’t your horee-flesh! Do you see anything of the yellow coach yet?” “ Nothing, sit,” was the reply. Page still kept his head out of the windows and he strained his eyes to the utmost as he looked up the road. The night was moon-lit, the ota maa was of silvery clearness, and all was bright with the sheen of the frost—so that he eould distingeish objects ata considerable distance. Suddenly the coachman uttered an cfacalation. [ and at the same inagant the commercial -traveiler caught sight of a vehicle a quarter of a mile a-head. “That's it, sir!” exclaimed the driver. © There— it’s crossing over from one side of the road to the ‘other — most likely on account of the @int- stonee———" “I see—I see!” interrupted Page, who at that moment got a glimpee of the yellow side and wheels of the coach. “Pash along, my fine fellow! You'll earn your guinea yet!” “ And us the hundred pound reward, sir,” added Mr. Grint, in a tone of satisfaction as lively as it was in his stolid nature to render it. “'Why—they’re a stopping, air!" ejaculated th: driver. “I s’pose they're a- waiting for us to cow. up with ’em—” “No sach thiug!” cried Page, who was hangin - half way out of the window, and straining his eye. to the full extent of their visual powers: “ tl - villain bas just jumped out of ths coach——~yes— ‘tis he, by heaven !” “A tall man in a cloak, sir?” exolaimed th: driver, without turning his head, but whipping bi. horses furious] y. “Yes—to be sure!” cried Page. “I saw hiv as plain as possible: he cut across the road——u,- those honses on the left there——" “ And now the yalier jarvey is tarning round *.:' eoms beck-again,” said Mr. Gript, who wae gazin.: from the other window. This last pieces. of information was perfectly truc ; and:in a couple of minutes the twe vebicies mc: The one containing the constables aud Page.pulle : up—and the yellow coach fellewed the exaunupl . Out sprang the commercial travciier frum we SO, ECOMICOOOKS ©) CO