Penny Blood Serial Fiction — page 33: what you’re looking at

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

16 REYNOLDS’ WORKS had caught their glance. One circumstance Deveril now observed, — which was, that the parcel the soubrette carried in her hand when at the cottage had disappeared. ‘“ Now what is to be done, sir?”’ asked Deveril, so soon as the Cannibal had taken his departure. ‘“ Hasten you to the hut, and bid the peasant repair with all possible speed to Gainsborough, or else to the nearest county magistrate, that information may be given.” ‘“ And you will remain here? ”’ asked Deveril. ‘Yes, certainly,” rejoined Mr. Gunthorpe. ‘‘ We must take care that the bodies of these unfortunate women are not touched until the authorities have seen them.” | ‘But if the murderers should return, you might not be safe? Suffer me to wait here and keep watch, while you repair to the cottage.” ‘No such thing, Wiliam! Do as I bid you. Begone at once!’’ and Mr. Gunthorpe spoke in a very peremptery manner. Deveril accordingly offered no further remonstrance, but hastened back to the cottage, which was about a mile dis- tant. The inmates were just shutting up the place in prepa- — ration for retiring to rest, but they were not as yet in bed. Deveril knocked loudly and impatiently with his clenched hand at the door, and when it was opened, his pale counte- nance and horrified looks at once showed that something dreadful had occurred. His tale was quickly told, and it naturally produced consternation and dismay on the part of the old woman, her son, and daughter. The man himself, as soon as he had regained his self-possession, at once de- clared his readiness to hasten to Gainsborough with what- soever message Deveril thought it right to send, and our hero accordingly bade him use all possible despatch and inform the local constabulary of what had occurred. The peasant set off on his errand, and William Deveril hastened to rejoin Mr. Gunthorpe, whom he found pacing to and fro on the bank of the river close by the spot where the murdered women lay stretched. Two hours elapsed, during which Mr. Gunthorpe and our hero remained upon the scene of the awful crime that had been perpetrated. But little was the conversation that passed between them; their feelings were too highly wrought — too full of horror and consternation — to enable them to Gomichbooks (E(0)