‘I ask you again,’ thundered the doctor,
’are you, on your solemn oaths, able to identify
that boy?’
Brittles looked doubtfully at Mr. Giles; Mr. Giles
looked doubtfully at Brittles; the constable put his
hand behind his ear, to catch the reply; the two women
and the tinker leaned forward to listen; the doctor
glanced keenly round; when a ring was heard at the
gate, and at the same moment, the sound of wheels.
‘It’s the runners!’ cried Brittles,
to all appearance much relieved.
‘The what?’ exclaimed the doctor, aghast
in his turn.
‘The Bow Street officers, sir,’ replied
Brittles, taking up a candle; ’me and Mr. Giles
sent for ’em this morning.’
‘What?’ cried the doctor.
‘Yes,’ replied Brittles; ’I sent
a message up by the coachman, and I only wonder they
weren’t here before, sir.’
’You did, did you? Then confound your—slow
coaches down here; that’s all,’ said the
doctor, walking away.
INVOLVES A CRITICAL POSITION
‘Who’s that?’ inquired Brittles,
opening the door a little way, with the chain up,
and peeping out, shading the candle with his hand.
‘Open the door,’ replied a man outside;
’it’s the officers from Bow Street, as
was sent to to-day.’
Much comforted by this assurance, Brittles opened
the door to its full width, and confronted a portly
man in a great-coat; who walked in, without saying
anything more, and wiped his shoes on the mat, as
coolly as if he lived there.
‘Just send somebody out to relieve my mate,
will you, young man?’ said the officer; ’he’s
in the gig, a-minding the prad. Have you got
a coach ’us here, that you could put it up in,
for five or ten minutes?’
Brittles replying in the affirmative, and pointing
out the building, the portly man stepped back to the
garden-gate, and helped his companion to put up the
gig: while Brittles lighted them, in a state
of great admiration. This done, they returned
to the house, and, being shown into a parlour, took
off their great-coats and hats, and showed like what
they were.
The man who had knocked at the door, was a stout personage
of middle height, aged about fifty: with shiny
black hair, cropped pretty close; half-whiskers, a
round face, and sharp eyes. The other was a
red-headed, bony man, in top-boots; with a rather
ill-favoured countenance, and a turned-up sinister-looking
nose.
‘Tell your governor that Blathers and Duff is
here, will you?’ said the stouter man, smoothing
down his hair, and laying a pair of handcuffs on the
table. ’Oh! Good-evening, master.
Can I have a word or two with you in private, if
you please?’
This was addressed to Mr. Losberne, who now made his
appearance; that gentleman, motioning Brittles to
retire, brought in the two ladies, and shut the door.
‘This is the lady of the house,’ said
Mr. Losberne, motioning towards Mrs. Maylie.
