The Steam-Packet: A Tale of the River and the Ocean — page 218: what you’re looking at

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

mandi mi: + Ny yk Naa THE STEAM PACKET. 16] conscience made cowards of Captain Pentonville and Mr. Buckram the momentithe gendarmes met their eyes. To effect an immediate;escape from the back window of the house, and secure a hasty retreat into the country, was the work of only a few minutes on the part of our two heroes ;—and thus was the Great Duck rid of three respectable, and honourable guests, all within the.same hour, and all having adopted the same singular method of effecting egress from the establishment. It was not until Captain Pentonville and Mr. Buckram were out of sight of the village, that they relaxed their speed; and, in the elegant phraseology of the latter gentleman, ‘‘took it more ecollyca It then ~ struck the captain for the first time that the gendarmes might. have merely intended a little domiciliary visit on behalf of the Polish invalid, and that their arrival had nothing to do with himself and, his compa- nion.. Prudence had, however, been consulted in the precipitation of their flight; and eget there were room for any—at having left the inn without first obtaining a coat of the landlerd, were now useless. ‘< What’s the move now?” demanded Buckram. ‘All our plans seem to fail; and as for wandering about with this infernal flannel sack dangling about my heels, I can’t stand it any longer. I really think we ought to toss up who’s to wear your coat, and who’s to sport this doliman, as you call it.” It is impossible to say what answer Captain Pentonville would have returned to this very just and equitable proposition, for scarcely was it uttered, when he and his companion found themselves confronted by a gendarme on horseback. The captain stared upon him in stupid astonishment ; and the tailor turned as pale as death. © “Your passports, gentlemen! ”’ cried the gendarme, who -immedi- ately suspected that the two travellers could scarcely be ‘‘ honest men and true,” from the circumstance of one being so singularly attired, ‘ and both manifesting such evident signs of alarm at this encounter. ‘‘ We left them behind us,” said the captain, after a few moments’ hesitation. “Where 2?” demanded the gendarme. _ “T tell you what it is,” cried the captain, taking a few Napoleons from his pocket, and tendering them to the police-officer; ‘‘ we are English gentlemen, travellig for amusement; and we have neglected to provide ourselves with passports. It’s all right, I can assure you: here—accept this little present—and———”’ ‘“‘Do English gentlemen wander about in flannel dressing-gowns 2”? asked the gendarme, alighting from his horse. ‘‘ No—no! That won't do forme! You are evidently suspected persons; so put up M KBR {$-24 [-4Yos Ks.