Penny Blood Serial Fiction — page 274: what you’re looking at

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

THE PREPARED PITFALL 257 ‘‘ And what is it you do want, Madge? ”’ asked Solomon Patch, for the woman had spoken those last words in a louder tone than the previous part of the sentence, and they had caught the landlord’s ear. ‘‘ I do really think she has lost her wits,’’ he observed aside to three or four customers of the Billy Goat, who were lounging and tippling at the bar-counter. “Not a bit of it!’’ said Madge Somers, sternly, for her keen ears had caught the observation. ‘* But you ask me what it is that I want to find out? Well, I have come here this evening to set every one who is in the habit of frequent- ing the place on the alert to discover what I do want. Are there many people in the tap-room yonder? ”’ ‘“Some dozen or so,” replied Solomon, ‘“‘ and I tell you who’s amongst them, an old pal of mine that I haven’t seen for many a day, Bob Shakerly.’’ ‘The resurrection man,’ observed Madge Somers. ‘Well, I don’t think he does much in that way now,” remarked Solomon; ‘“’cos why, he finds it more to his account to cut up ’osses for sassage-meat and what not. Howsumever, he’s found his way down to the Goat this evening to smoke his pipe and take his rum and water, and there the old fellow is in the tap-room, as cosy as can be.”’ ‘“ Just come along with me, Solomon,” said Madge, ‘‘and you also,’ she continued, addressing herself to the loungers about the bar. ‘“ What on earth is she going to do now? ” asked Solomon of himself, as Madge herself led the way into the public room, where the usual number of ill-looking fellows and half- tipsy women were pursuing their orgy, old Bob Shakerly being one of the company. “ Why, here’s Madge Somers,” said Tony Wilkins, “‘ and she looks as wild as if she was a witch.” ‘“ Witch indeed! ’’ she echoed. ‘‘ I am not witch enough to find out something that I want to discover, or, rather, I have not succeeded yet; but I will offer a prize and set all you folks on the alert, and see whether that will be produc- tive of any good result.” _As she thus spoke, she took from beneath her garments a greasy pocketbook, and opening it, drew forth a number of bank-notes. These she counted, keeping some in her hand and putting the rest back into the pocketbook, her EORVICLOOO® CS (S(O)