The String of Pearls; or, The Barber of Fleet Street — page 232: what you’re looking at

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

| 994 | THE STRING OF PEARLS. Saree that imparted much loveliness to her countenance. She had, too, about her face all the charm of childish beauty, which bespoke her so young as to have lost little of that springtide grace, which, alas! is so fleeting. Add to all this a manner so timid, so gentle, and so retiring, that she seemed to be an inhabi- tant of some quieter world than this, and you have Minna Gray, who had crept into the boyish heart of poor Tobias, before your eyes. ‘‘ What a gentle quiet looking little creature,” said the captain. ‘‘She is indeed ; and what a contrast !” ‘Between her and Mrs. Ragg, you mean? It does indeed look like an elephant escorting a fawn. But Mrs. Ragg has her good qualities.” ‘«* She has, and they are numerous. She is honest and candid as the day, and almost the only fault that can be laid to her charge is her garrulity.” ‘‘ How do you mean to proceed ?” “Why, Rathbone, I mean to condescend to do what, under any other circum- stances, would be most unjustifiab!e—that is, listen to the conversation of Mrs, Ragg with Minna Gray; I do so with the concurrence of the old lady, who itz to lead her to speak of Tobias, and it is solely for the purpose of judging if she really loves the boy, and making a proper report to the surgeon, that I do so.”’ ‘You are right enough, Jeffery ; the end in this case, at all events, sanctifies the means, however defective such a system of philosophy may be as a general | thing. May I likewise be an auditor 2” | was going to ask you to so far oblige me, for I shall then have the ad- vantage of your opinion; so you will do me a favour.” There was a small pantry called a butler’s pantry close to the kitchen, into which Mrs. Ragg had taken Minna Gray. <A door opened from this pantry into the kitchen, and another on to the landing at the foot of the kitchen stairs. Now Mrs. Ragg was to take care that the door opening to the kitchen should be just ajar, and the colonel and his friend could get into the pantry by the other mode of entrance. Colonel Jeffery was a gentleman in the fullest sense of the term, and he kept no useless bloated menials about him, so the butlers pantry had no butler to interfere with him, the colonel, in his own house. In the course of a few minutes Jeffery and Rathbone were in the pantry, from whence they could both see and hear what passed in the kitchen. To be sure there was a certain air of restraint about Mrs. Ragg at the thought that her master was listening to what passed, and that lady had a propensity to use hard words, of the meaning of which she was in the most delightful state of ignorance; but as it was to Minna Gray's conversation that the colonel wanted | to listen, these little peculiarities of Mrs. Ragg upon the occasion did not much matter. Of course, Minna thought she had no other auditors than her old friend. Mrs. Rage was quite busy over the tea. ) ‘‘Well, my dear,” she said to Minna, * this is a world we live in.” Mrs. Ragg, no doubt, intended this as a discursive sort of remark that might open any conversation very well, and lead to anything, and she was not disap- pointed, for it seemed to give to the young girl courage to utter that which was strugeling to her lips. ‘‘ Mrs.—Mrs. Ragg,”’ she began, hesitatingly. “© Yes. My dear, let me fill your cup.” ‘‘Thank you; but I was going to say——” ‘‘A little more sugar ?’’ *‘No, no. But I cannot place a morsel in my lips, Mrs. Ragg, or think or speak to you of anything else, until you have told me if you have heard any news of poor—poor——”’ ‘‘ Tobias?”’ “ Yes——yes—yes Minna Gray placed her two little hands upon her face and burst into tears. Mrs. Ragg made a snuffling sort of noise that, no doubt, was highly sympa- thetic, and after a pause of a few moments’ duration, Minna gathered courage to speak again. SS eS ret z =~ ~ > ~ = © os BRAS “. a een to — =A ai a ae a! eas =n we Ay a 6: w=: — —eekae oo ae ee 2 —— === ee pee ee — —o re eee et Sa pee Papa 5 ce ee ao te = Retr Ne ot an So i H i MW t if j i) f \ | Ly f i He ' an ‘ wile ' } ht t ‘ i We 5 H Ye | | hat ey a ah bf aa Blak 1 Bigipe ' ee na hi! ye Li ait Boe ae a Ay in] | 9 og a nial A a a ‘i Wa Ta i i | ih} ee ay Mee ay i na ray eo a Th) ee eae f i | } le f qe He} Bike ily Le Hit €.} Bite the Bi | ia | aint {| a) Hi a i Tt j i I Pit | iat | i j al Bley * a f Hick} th its | ; a Hy it 4 SSS SS Serre Ser rear p99 comicbooks.com