The Works of George W. M. Reynolds — page 86: what you’re looking at

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

THE NOBLE INTIMATES 69 “Thank you for the hint,’ said the principal croupier, bursting out laughing, and he winked knowingly to his comrades. Le eat “Now let us look at this machine,’’ continued the in- spector, advancing up to the coffee-mull. But the pedestal stood so firm that it seemed to resist all his attempts to move it. He however retreated a pace or two, and, applying his foot with a backward kick, broke it clean off on a level with the floor, so that what had appeared to be a pedestal was in reality nothing more than a hollow tube, or pipe, which passed completely through the flooring and down which the crushed objects went. “Where does your coffee go when you have ground it? ’’ asked the inspector, ironically. ‘“ All the way down into the sewers, for the benefit of the poor devils who search those places,’ coolly answered the croupier. ‘If you want a sample of the coffee, you will have to go down into the sewer to get it, and then there’s the chance of its having been all washed away.”’ “Well, I shall take this with me,” said the inspector, lifting up the mill and the piece of the tube on the top of which it was fixed, “‘ and I shall take all you along with me likewise.”’ ‘““ What does the fellow mean? ” cried Saxondale. ‘‘ Take us with him! What, me, Lord —”’ “Hush. Nonsense!’”’ exclaimed Harold. ‘“ You are Jenkins and [am Mr. Tomkins. So now away to the station- house. We will send and get bail in half an hour.” “ Oh, if that’s all, it will be a capital lark,” cried Saxon- dale, “and to-morrow when we give our names as Jenkins and ‘Tomkins, we shall puzzle the magistrate a bit.’ To be brief, the whole party were marched off to the station-house, which was close at hand, and there the two young noblemen waited while they sent for persons to bail them. Four of Lord Saxondale’s tradesmen were speedily found for the purpose, and soon after midnight the liberated aristocrats were strolling arm in arm down to Covent Garden to pass an hour at a “ free-and-easy ”’ nightly held by a hotel-keeper in that neighbourhood. It was two in the morning when Edmund, most particularly drunk, was helped out of a cab at the door of Saxondale mansion, helped into the house by the hall-porter, helped up to his CONnNICEOOOKS (C(O)