The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 395: what you’re looking at

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

$84 THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. khan. He had some idea of playing the part of | some neighbouring spring. But scarcely had he howling mendicant by himself: bat beholding a | advanced a dozen yards from the dilepidated edi- couple of Peons proceeding through the street, he | fice, when he beheld the unmistakable form of the thonght of the tortures—and he quitted the town. | squint-eyed Gossoon approaching. It was with a For several hours he wandéred through the | sudden yell of rage that the Burker bounded to- country, reckless in which direction he proceeded | wards his late companion: but the latter, with a -——having no fixed aim—but wondering what would | malignant grin, drew forth a sharp poniard from become of himself. At he reached a pile | beneath his garments; and holding its point to- of ruins, which seemed to be the remains of | wards the Burker, seemed to say, “Come on if some ancient temple. He remembered the ruined | you dare!” temple he had seen in the jungle; and his blood| The Englishman stopped short, scowling hor- ran cold at the recollection of how he had there | ribly: the Gossoon burst out into a leugh, which beheld snakes coiling all over the black marble | only irritated the Englishman more than ever, if image. He therefore hesitated to enter amidst | possible, against him; eo that at all risks he wae these ruins,—although the beams of the meridian | on the very point of springing at the treacherous sun were pouring down with all their burning heat | dervish, when this individual suddenly tossed his upon him. He was faint and exheusted with | wallet towards him. The Burker picked it ap; hunger, with weariness, and with the intolerable | and as he opened it, his hand first of all eneoan- sultriness of the day : he therefore at last mustered | tered a flask. This he at once applied to his lips ; up courage sufficient to penetrate into the ruins. | and the potent alcohol he imbibed tended to Amidst huge blocks of granite did the English- | appease his rage somewhat and improve his man work his way—over prostrate pillars and | humour. He glanced at the Gossoon, who was now erumbling columns did he step—until he at length | grinning, nodding, and wagging his head, and found himself inside as much as remained of the | squinting more horribly than ever with his right edifice iteelf. He perceived one large image upon | eye. a pedestal, and another lying amidet the rank grass | The wallet contained some tempting provisions ; which grew where a pavement of stone or marble | and the Burker was already commencing a ravenous once had been. attack upon them, when the Gossoon spoke some- As he was proceeding cautiously, the Burker’s | thing and made him a sign to repair to the ruins foot kicked against something amidst the grass; | of the temple. The Burker hesitated and looked and it being of a very hard substance, he had no | suspicious: but the Hindoo replaced his dagger fear that it was any coiled-up reptile. He stooped | beneath his garments, and made sigus of amity down, and felt about upon the spot:—his hand en- | and peace. The Burker thought that after all countered an iron ring fastened to the middle of a | the Gossoon could entertain no murderous inten- stone about two feet square. Thioking that the | tion towards him ; for if eo, he might have already circumstance was worth while to be farther inves. ! carried it into effect while he was i ing the tigated —and having ideas of buried treasures | wallot; and therefore he no longer hesitated to floating through his mind—the Englishman began | return into’ the temple. There they sat down to remove the long grass which grew all about the | together, eating and drinking just as if their atone; and when he had torn up the rank herbage by the roots, he found that the stone was eet in the midst of surrounding pavement, upon which a surface of earth had accumulated sufficient to pro- duce and nourish the grass which he had thus cleared. He now endeavoured to raise the stone : but vain were his attempts. Exhausted thereby, companionship had never once been interrupted by the perfidy of the Hindoo; and when the meal was concladed, the Gossoon rose and began to examine the interior of the ruins, evidently with the air of a man who beheld them for the first time. The Burker meanwhile was wondering whether his companion still had the bags of rupees he desisted—and began to console himeelf for his failure in a fashion somewhat similar to that of the fox with respect to the grapes in the fable. He muttered between his lips that the stone with the ring doubtless covered the mouth of a well, and that any idea of a buried treasure was idle and ridiculous. of Hindostanee with which he was acquainted, he The exceeding sultrinese of the sun compelled | gave the Gossoon to understand that it was he the Burker to remain within the shade afforded by | himself who had torn up the grass, bat that he the ruined temple. He was faint with hunger | had vainly endeavoured to lift the stone. The and parched with thirst: he resolved at the ap. | Gossoon attempted the task ; but appeared equally proach of evening to quit his present quarters, | unable to perform it. He then took his dagger, and appeal to the charity of some dweller at any | and with the point endeavoured to work away neighbouring cottage for food and a night’s rest. | the cement which united the stone to the sar- Perbaps through the man’s mind floated the idea | rounding ones. While he was thus occupied, en of enriching himself once more by means similar | idea entered into the Barker's bead. He’ thought to those which had temporarily put him in posses- | that he might seize the opportunity of gratifying sion of a bag of rupees: for crime is horribly sug- | his vengeance, and recovering possession of his gestive, oven on the part of those who by their | bag of rupees, with the Gossoon’s treasure like- own misdeeds would appear to stand in need of no | wise, all at the same time. His eye settled upon such hints at all. a fragment of masonry which lay conveniently In a short time the thirst of the Burker grew | near, and which was of dimensions suitable to be ao intolerable that he wus compelled to issue forth | wielded for his murderous purpose,—whea the from the ruined temple in the hope of finding Gossoon, suddenly etarting up from the work in about him; and if so, how he could tarn the tables and become the despoiler. All of a sadden an ejaculation esoaped the lips of the dervish :— he had discovered the stone with the iron ring ! The Burker now approached the spot; and partly by signs, partly by means of the few words COMIC DOG ee a ee (CO