The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 179: what you’re looking at

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162 if they could bribe those people to let them quietly into the house, they would make easy work of the matter. Now you understand all about it,” added Julia, “ and can tell me how to proceed.” Mr. Grumley smoked his pipe for several minutes | in profound silence, looking up all the time in a ' thoughtful manner at the ceiling—just asif its black- | ness could possibly throw a light on the subject of his ruminations. “There's two ways of going to work in this here business,” said the officer at length. “ One is for me and my people to make a regular assault on the pre- mises in Thacker’s Court, and take the whole gang prisoners; or else to separate them first by a strayty- im=———” we A what f* demanded Page. “A stratagem, my good friend—don’t interrupt the constable,” observed Sir Richard Stamford. “ And I prefer the last method,” continued Mr Grumley; “because it will make the thing more surer, Now, ma’am,” he said, turning towards Mrs. Page, “I'll tell ’ee what must be done, You'll go back a little while before twelve, and you'll pitch the raseals such a tale that some of ‘em will set out to way-lay the baronet this very night You must manage to accompany the party that’s chosen to do the business; and some of my men will be on the look out at one end of the street from which Thacker’s Court opens They'll take oare of the party that goes with you. Me and the reset of my people will be hidden close by the court—and when we've seen you and your companions go off, we shall know how to lay our hands on t’others that’s left in the house. Now, do you understand me f* “ Perfectly,” answered Julia. “I think you have decided on the best plan.” “Most assuredly,” exclaimed Sir Richard. * I ahall accompany you, Mr. Grumley.” “ And so shall J,” Mr. Page hastened to observe “ T’ve got my pistols about me on purpose.” “It’s now ten o’clook, ma’an,” said the officer, pulling out from his fob a huge silver watch which certainly was not smaller than a moderate-sised tur- nip and could not have weighed less than a couple of pounds avoirdupois. “TI will depart at once,” observed Julia :—and Mr. Gruniley politely escorted her to the front door of the Police Office. “Now, then, Mobbe!” vociferated the officer at the top of his stentorian voice, as he returned along the passage into the room where he had left Page and the baronet; and, in obedience to this summons, a man of most repulsive exterior made his appearance from another part of the establishment. “Well—what is it?” growled Mobbs, as he en- tered the room. Mr. Grumley gave him a few hasty instructions relative to the taking a posse of constables down into the neighbourhood of Thacker’s Court, and the man- ner in which he was to dispose of them in two par- ties; and the fellow, who seemed to relish the busi- ness, grinned knowingly and withdrew, closing the door behind him. “That's the best man I’ve got under me,” ob- served Mr. Grumley, as soon as Mobbs had disap- el —_— —_ “ Well—one certainly must not judge by outward looks, in that case,” said Mr. Page. “One must be a fool who does,” answered the offi- cer, laconically. “That’s as desperate a chap a nrg ZHE MYSTERIES. you'd wish to meet ina summer day’s walk. He'd think no more of cutting your throat from ear to ear than eatin’ his dinner.” “Then I’d much rather not meet him at all inmy summer rambles,” observed Page, with a cold shud- der. + Ah! but I’m obleeged to employ such fefters,” | continued Grumley. “You heerd talk, may be, ot the man which throwed his wife out of a three pair back and cut his child’s head clean off, some five or six years ago, over the water yonder?” demanded the constable, waving his pipe in the direction of Lambeth. “To be sure I did,” exclaimed Page. “ But what has that to do with your friend Mobbs ?” “Why, bless ye—he’s the wery man,” answered Grumley. “ Your health, Sir Richard—my respects to you, Mr. Page ;”—and he buried his countenance in the pewter-pot. “You don’t mean to say that you’ve got such a miscreant in your service, Mr. Grumley ?” cried the ex-traveller, literally bounding on his seat. “T tell ye you’ve just seen him,” responded the officer, having finished his draught of porter. * There was two flaws in the indictment. One of ’em described the woman as being named Maria, whereas it was Mary; and t’other represented the murder to have been committed in the parish of Lambeth, whereas 'twas showed that half of the house stood in Lambeth and half in Southwark, and that it was in the Southwark half where the business took So the indictment. was quashed—and our friend Mobbs got off ThenI took him into my service, where he’s been ever since.” “But this must be a most extraordinary state of the law whioh allows such a wretch to escape with im- punity on such miserable technicalities,” observed Sir Richard Stamford. “Lord bleas ye,” exclaimed Grumley: “that’s nothink at all. There’s a many chaps gets off twice as easy. Last Seesions I had a feller at the Old Bailey for prigging from his master, who was a ’bak- kinist. The indictment charged him with feloniously stealing twenty pounds of cigars; and everything was as clear against him as possible. But when | Counsellor Sharply guc up for the defence, he de- manded that the cigars should be brought into court. So they was—and they were found to be them kind that has straws in ’em. So the Counsellor orders all the straws to be taken out and has the cigars weighed ; and then they prove to be less than eighteen > — — —_eey -a ——_— ——— a pounds in weight. So he makes a fine speech for three hours and a half, arguing that the prisoner is accused of stealing twenty pounds’ weight of cigars, and not twenty pounds’ weight of cigars and strawa. So the feller gets off” “ And this is really true?” exclaimed Page. ** As true as I’m sitting here,” answered Grumley. “When I was a youngster, I was a sheriff's-officers’ man—what’s called a bum-bailiff One day my master received a writ of ca. sa, to take the body of a genelman who’d died very much in debt, and whose executors wouldn’t pay a mag of his liabilities. Well, my master and me went and stopped the fune- ral just as it was entering Pancras Church, Out jumps the chief executor from the black coach; and he says, says he, ‘ You're welcome to the body: but ¢/f you dare lay hand on coffin or shroud, or anything thal the corpse ts wrapped up in, we'll have our ac- tion against you.'—So my master de‘ermined on | COMNGCBOOKS COMM