The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 31: what you’re looking at

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

14 THE COURT OF LONDON are quite falling into the snare. Well, Mr. Sampson, she’s coming up to you to-night; and so I managed to get away for a couple of hours, on some excuse, just to give you this warning. But if you want again to know why I do it, it is because I hate the Hangman, I hate Nell Gibson also. She has called me a witch, and he has called mea beldam; and she threatened to leave Mother Young’s establishment if I didn’t hold my tongue, and he tossed me a shilling, a beggarly shilling, as if I was a beggar. And so for all this,’’ shrieked forth the hag, raising her voice in a horrible excitement, ‘“T want revenge, I want revenge, and now I shall get it!” The thrilling, querulous tone to which her accents had risen soon merged into a cough so sharp and convulsing that it almost seemed to shatter the old witch to pieces; and a horrible spectacle was she with her toothless jaws wagging, her head shaking, and the scalding rheum pouring out of her bleared eyes. “ Ah! I could let you into a many secrets if I chose about the Hangman, and Nell Gibson, and all the rest of the precious gang,’’ continued the hag, “‘ and I will do it soon, too, for they’ve all took to bullying and baiting me just because I am a poor old woman that will be eighty-nine come next Febiverry. But here’s one thing I’ll tell you, Mr. Sampson, but pray mind and never say that you heard anything from my lips, or that I peached against them folks — ” ' “Oh, that is an understood thing between you and me,”’ exclaimed Sampson. ‘‘ Proceed, Mrs. Franklin, with what you were about to tell me.”’ “Well, sir,’ she resumed, ‘“ from a conversation that I overheard it seems that it was the Hangman’s party which caused the fire at some baronet’s t’other night — ” ‘“ Ah! Sir Douglas Huntingdon’s, you mean,”’ interjected Sampson. ‘‘ But how was that? ” “Why,” returned the old hag, “ the fellows got into the stable with the intention of breaking into the other part of the house; but somehow or another their lantern broke, and the light falling on some hay or straw set the whole place into a blaze. Ha! ha! all their wickedness shall come out soon: I’ll unmask them, the villains, I will!’ she cried, again exalting her voice into a querulous thrill. ‘ But I can’t stay any longer now. I must get back as soon as Gomicbdooks (E(0)