Pelham — Volume 08Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron
History
Pelham — Volume 08
Lytton, Edward Bulwer Lytton, Baron
Adventure stories; English fiction -- 19th century; Great Britain -- History -- 19th century -- Fiction
"'We then mounted, and rode home. We stole up stairs by the back-way--
Thornton's linen and hands were stained with blood. The former he took
off, locked up carefully, and burnt the first opportunity; the latter he
washed; and that the water might not lead to detection, drank it. We then
appeared as if nothing had occurred, and learnt that Mr. Pelham had been
to the house; but as, very fortunately, our out-buildings had been lately
robbed by some idle people, the wife and servants had refused to admit
him. I was thrown into great agitation, and was extremely frightened.
However, as Mr. Pelham had left a message that we were to go to the pond,
Thornton insisted upon our repairing there to avoid suspicion."
Dawson then proceeded to say, that, on their return, as he was still
exceedingly nervous, Thornton insisted on his going to bed. When our
party from Lord Chester's came to the house, Thornton went into Dawson's
room, and made him swallow a large tumbler of brandy; [Note: A common
practice with thieves, who fear the weak nerves of their accomplices.]
this intoxicated him so as to make him less sensible to his dangerous
situation. Afterwards, when the picture was found, which circumstance
Thornton communicated to him, along with that of the threatening letter
sent by Glanville to the deceased, which was discovered in Tyrrell's
pocket-book, Dawson recovered courage; and justice being entirely thrown
on a wrong scent, he managed to pass his examination without suspicion.
He then went to town with Thornton, and constantly attended "the club" to
which Jonson had before introduced him; at first, among his new comrades,
and while the novel flush of the money, he had so fearfully acquired,
lasted, he partially succeeded in stifling his remorse. But the success
of crime is too contrary to nature to continue long; his poor wife, whom,
in spite of her extravagant, and his dissolute habits, he seemed really
to love, fell ill, and died; on her deathbed she revealed the suspicions
she had formed of his crime, and said, that those suspicions had preyed
upon, and finally destroyed her health; this awoke him from the guilty
torpor of his conscience. His share of the money, too, the greater part
of which Thornton had bullied out of him, was gone. He fell, as Job had
said, into despondency and gloom, and often spoke to Thornton so forcibly
of his remorse, and so earnestly of his gnawing and restless desire to
appease his mind, by surrendering himself to justice, that the fears of
that villain grew, at length, so thoroughly alarmed, as to procure his
removal to his present abode.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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