THE MURDER AT CAEN WOOD, HAMPSTEAD.
It would be quite impossible to describe the effect that was produced
upon Lupin and Sweeney Todd, by this heroic conduct on the part of the
young lady, from whom they did not in the least expect any such active
resistance to their proceedings.
Lupin was constitutionally, by far the greater coward of the two, and
when he saw the bright barrel of the pistol in such startling and
unexpected contiguity to his head, he at once stepped back, and missing
his footing, fell down the stairs to the landing-place immediately below
that flight.
Todd thought that there would be just a chance of dashing in upon the
young lady and disarming her of her pistols; but now that both of them
were levelled at him, and she began to cry out "Help! help! thieves!"
again, louder than before, he reluctantly abandoned the idea, and
turning, he bounded down the staircase.
The young lady leant over the stair-head and fired one of the pistols
after him, which so accelerated the movements of Todd, that he tumbled
right over Mr. Lupin, and fell down all the way to the hall with Lupin
after him.
Under any other circumstances than the dangerous and exciting ones in
which they were in, no doubt they would both of them have been too much
hurt to do anything but lie on their backs in the hall; but the feeling
that if they were taken it would be to death, was sufficient to rouse
them, and they both scrambled to their feet.
Lupin got the street-door open, and dashed out closely followed by Todd.
A watchman tried to stop them, but him they felled with a blow, and then
off went Lupin down a cross-street, that led him into Old-street Road,
and with Todd at his heels, who was very faint.
"Stop, stop!" panted Todd, "stop!"
"What for?" said Lupin.
"I cannot run so fast. Are you hurt? Oh, that I had a knife at that
girl's throat!"
Lupin paused, and held by a post at the corner of a street, and swore
dreadfully, as he too panted a little for breath, although he was by no
means so much used-up as Todd was. But then Lupin was a younger man, and
much lighter on his feet, than our old friend of murdering notoriety.
"Oh, dear," said Todd. "What's to be done now?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing, did you say? But, my dear friend, something must be done. We
have positively wasted half the night, and we are without money, and
half dead. I am covered with bruises from head to foot by the fall down
the staircase, and it will be daylight in another half hour or so at the
utmost."
"Ah," said Lupin, "we must breakfast somewhere, I'm thinking, my
friend."
"And so am I."
"Well, well, we have made certainly a mess of our adventure at the
alderman's; but it can't be helped now. The idea, only to think of it
now, Todd, of you and I, two such men as we are, and as the world
refutes us to be, being beaten back, and, you may say, thrown down two
pair of stairs, by a girl of sixteen or thereabouts."
Todd growled out some malediction.
"It was the will of Providence," said Lupin. "But who is this? Stand
aside, Todd, and let this old gentleman pass on. We may as well not be
seen and described by any one."
"Do you think he may likely have enough about him," whispered Todd, "to
pay our expenses for the day?"
"A lucky thought. It is more than likely that he has. Knock him down and
rob him, Todd. There's not a soul in sight. Give him one of the knocks
you used to give the poor devils you made the pies of, you know."
"Be quiet," said Todd, "I am amazed that a man of your profound sense
and sagacity, should give ear to such idle rumours about me! I am really
both shocked and surprised, Mr. Lupin!"
"Amen!" said Lupin. "You rob the old man, and we won't quarrel about any
such nonsense, Todd. Here he comes, grinning like an old polecat. What
business has a man of that age out at such a time as this?"
"None," said Todd, "except to provide us with a little money."
Todd cast a keen glance around him, and was convinced that the report of
Mr. Lupin that no one was in sight was quite correct, so he stepped up
to the old man, and said--
"Good morning, sir."
"Thieves! thieves!" cried the old man, and began to run, but Todd put
out one of his long legs and tripped him up. Then pouncing upon him, he
extracted a well-filled purse from his pocket, and holding it up to
Lupin, he said--
"This will do?"
"Rather," replied Lupin. "Come on."
Off set Lupin again on a run, rather to the discomfiture of Todd, who
had not had such a scampering about for a long time indeed; but yet he
felt the necessity of getting as soon as possible out of the immediate
vicinity of the old man whom they had just robbed, so they did not stop
until they got right away on the northern side of Finsbury Square.
That side of the ancient square of Finsbury was not built then; and
beyond it, where there is now such a squalid and uninviting
neighbourhood, there was nothing but fields.
"Now," said Lupin. "Let us look at the purse!"
"Here it is," said Todd.
"It's very light!"
The fact was, that notwithstanding the speed at which he was compelled
to run to keep up with Lupin, or rather to keep a few paces only behind
him, Todd had contrived to abstract the better part of the contents from
the purse, and to pocket them; for the story with which he had tickled
the ears of Lupin of his having any money concealed in Caen Wood,
Hampstead, was a mere delusion, got up for the purpose of making him,
Lupin, more than commonly solicitous concerning his, Todd's, safety in
the escape from Newgate.
"Yes," replied Todd, "it is light, but such as it is it may be of some
service to us. Take it, Mr. Lupin, and you can be the treasurer: you
know I can trust to you."
"Implicitly," said Lupin, as turning out the contents of the purse into
his hand, he said--"Here are four guineas and a half, and about six or
seven shillings in loose silver."
"Better than nothing," said Todd, with a look of great philosophy. "Our
first care now is to get a breakfast."
"I don't know," said Lupin. "I took quite enough at the alderman's to
last me some time. I should say, get out of London as quickly as we
possibly can; and when we are at Caen Wood, we can, at our ease,
consider what course we will feel inclined to take with our money in our
pockets."
"A couple of thousands," said Todd.
"Exactly so. I move that we strike across the fields now at once, and
make for Highgate and Hampstead, so that at each step we shall be
leaving some danger behind us."
"Agreed," said Todd. "Come on! For my part I should like very much to
find a conveyance of some sort; but that, I suppose, is impossible."
"Quite! Besides, on foot we are much less likely to be recognised and
described. Come on, Todd; you ought to be able to walk to Hampstead,
surely, after the little trifling exercise that you have had only."
"Trifling, do you call it?" said Todd, making one of his most hideous
faces. "Trifling! I have not a bone in my body that don't ache.
Trifling? I am one mass of bruises from top to toe, and I never, in all
my life, felt so exhausted; but yet the love of life and of liberty will
lend me strength; so, come on; I will go on to Hampstead, and I will
reach it, my friend, unless I drop by the way."
"Well spoke," said Lupin.
They now pursued a course which led them rapidly by the back of the City
Road, and through the now well-populated district called Hoxton; and
keeping on in that way they crossed the high-road near to Stamford Hill,
and soon began to get a good view of the heights of Highgate and
Hampstead in the distance.
"Brandy," said Todd, "brandy!"
"Why, what's the matter?"
"My good friend, I can't get on without some brandy. I am rather used to
a little stimulant at times, so I must have it. Then we have no risk now
to run by going into a public-house."
"I don't know that, Todd. But if you can't do without, some brandy you
must have. To be sure, we are in luck's way, so far, that we are
provided with hats and coats from the alderman's hall, and, therefore,
people cannot have a description of us. The first quiet little hotel we
come to, Todd, I promise you that I will not object to our stopping at,
so that you may have your drop."
"Yes," said Todd, "that will do. My good friend, it is the only thing
that keeps me up. When I used to feel a little down in spirits I poured
some other spirits down, and then I get up again."
"Exactly. Here we are, at an old roadside house called the Adam and Eve,
which will be the very thing. They may take you for Adam and me for Cain
or Abel.--Come along."
They halted at the door of the little public-house, but upon going in
they found the landlord and landlady bargaining with a man who was
hawking something, and the following words came upon the startled ears
of Todd.
"Only threepence, sir, I assure you, and the most exact likeness of
Sweeney Todd, the murderer; taken while he was on his trial at the Old
Bailey. You will see what a look he has, and the artist has been most
successful in the squint: and only threepence."
"He will be hanged on Monday, of course?" said the publican's wife.
"Oh yes, ma'am, in course, and there's expected such a crowd as never
was known at the execution."
"No doubt of it. Well, I'll give twopence."
"And a drop of ale," said the publican.
"Here you are, master, you shall have it. A capital likeness. If you was
only now to catch a sight of the original Todd, you'd know him in a
moment by the look of this picture, particularly the squint."
"Come in," whispered Lupin to Todd.
"Oh no--no--I don't want the brandy now."
"But I do. Your speaking about it, has got me into the mind of wanting
some now; so come on and let us have it, my friend, at once. Why, you
are not afraid that the portrait is too good a likeness, are you?"
"Oh dear, I don't know," said Todd. "I believe I have a remarkable nose,
and rather an engaging look about the eyes.--Come along."
"A quartern of the best brandy," said Lupin.
Todd felt that now the safest thing he could do, was to brave the matter
out, as anything in the shape of a retreat would be much worse than
actually making an appearance at the bar of the public-house; and then
it was truly ridiculous to see the manner in which Todd strove to alter
the cast of his features, by protruding one lip, and putting on what he
thought as a kind of satisfied smirking smile, extremely difficult,
indeed, for his usual expression of face.
There was only one slight comfort he felt, and that was in the
circumstance that the news of their escape from Newgate had not yet
reached that place.
"A nice, bracing morning, gentlemen," said the publican.
"Very, by the goodness of providence," said Lupin.
"Amen!" said Todd.
"I have just, gentlemen, been buying a portrait of the execrable Todd;
and if either of you have happened to see him in London, perhaps you can
tell me if it is at all like the villain. We frighten our children now,
if they misbehave themselves at all, and tell them that Todd is coming
to make them into pies, and then they are as quiet as possible. Ha! ha!"
"How funny," said Todd,
"Well," said Lupin, as he looked at the twopenny portrait of Todd, with
a pretended critical air, "I don't think it's like him at all. I saw him
at Newgate; and my friend here, is more like him than this picture."
"You don't say so, sir?" said the landlord.
"He! he!" laughed Todd--"ho! ho!"
How he wished at that moment that he could have taken Lupin by the
throat and strangled him!
The brandy was duly discussed, and Lupin having paid for it out of the
contents of the old gentleman's purse, took a courteous adieu of the
landlord, and with Todd left the house.
"Gracious goodness!" exclaimed Todd, "how could you dream of saying what
you did about me at the bar?"
"My good friend, that was for the express purpose of drowning suspicion
for you. I saw the landlady staring at you most fixedly, and so I said
it on purpose, for fear she should really begin to think you could be no
other than Todd the murderer--the execrable Todd, with whom they
frighten the children."
"Oh, well," said Todd, "don't say anything more about it. I am quite
satisfied. Indeed, I am more than satisfied, my dear friend."
"I thought you would be, when you come to think--"
"Oh, dear, yes."
"You may depend, Todd, that the greatest safety always runs alongside of
the greatest danger; and that when you think that your fortunes are at
the lowest, you may not unfrequently be upon the point of a highly
favourable change: and it's all by the goodness of Providence."
"Bother you!" said Todd. "I do believe, if you were to live for a
hundred years, you would not forget your chapel experience."
"Perhaps not; but I made a good bit of money that way, taking one thing
with another, Mr. Todd."