The aisle down which Sir Richard had slowly paced was rather a long one,
and he had walked down it some half-dozen times, in deep thought, and
waiting for Crotchet. There was no reason on earth why he should not
come up it again, and so expose himself to the deadly aim of Todd. He did commence the walk up it. If he had taken twenty steps he would
have been a dead man; but chance, or providence--it is not for us to say
which--had it otherwise. After going about ten paces, he turned abruptly
to the left, and made his way down a long narrow passage between the
pews to the opening that led down to the vaults, where Crotchet was
pursuing his inquiries. Todd was foiled. He drew back with a deep sigh. "He is saved!" he said. "He is saved! It is not to be!" Quite unconscious of the serious danger he had so narrowly escaped, Sir
Richard went to the mouth of the opening to the vaults, and called out--

"Crotchet! Crotchet!" "Here you is, sir," replied Crotchet; "I was just coming. It's all
right. The old wagabone hasn't done nothing, sir, to spread the fire out
of his own blessed premises, as I can see. The church isn't in danger,
sir, I take it." "Very good, Crotchet; then we need not remain here any longer. I cannot,
for the life of me, think what has become of our man that we left in
Todd's house. In all the riot and racket of the fire, no one seems to be
at all aware of what has become of him. Is he a steady sort of a man,
Crotchet?" "Why yes, Sir Richard, he is. But if the truth must be told, he has got
the fault of many. He is fond of the--"

Here Crotchet went through expressively the pantomime of placing a glass
to his lips and draining it off, after which he rubbed his stomach, as
much as to say--"Isn't it nice!" "I understand, Crotchet: he drinks." "Rather, Sir Richard." "Ah, that is the case of all--or of nearly all--men in his class of
life. I should not wonder now, at all, if he has not been taking a glass
of something, in consequence of feeling lonely, and so set fire to the
old house." CHAPTER CLIII. TODD ASTONISHES THE BEADLE, AND ESCAPES PROM ST. DUNSTAN'S. "Oh!" groaned Todd to himself. "Oh, if I had but shot the villain before
the other one came up from the vaults, and all would have been well; but
I cannot shoot them both at once. It is not often that I lose anything
by procrastination, but I have now--Oh, yes, I have now! It is
maddening!--It is quite maddening! and I could find in my own heart
almost to turn this pistol against my own life, only that I hope yet to
live a little while for vengeance." A smart tap came against the church door. "Open the door, Crotchet," said Sir Richard. "We are alone in the church
now, for the beadle was too careful of himself to remain after he found
that there was some little danger." "Oh, sir," said Crotchet, with an expression of disgust in his face,
"beadles is humbugs, sir; and this beadle of St. Dunstan's is the very
worst of the worst of beadles. Didn't you notice, sir, what an old
humbug he was before, when we was a-coming here on the hunt about Todd
and that beautiful creature Mrs. Lovett? Then, sir, we found out what
sort of a beadle that was. I rather think I despises beadles, sir; I
does, your worship." Tap came the knock at the church door again. "You forget, Crotchet," said Sir Richard, pointing to the door. "Lor, yer worship, so I did. I begs his blessed pardon whosomever it is. Come in. There's nobody but the right sort here, whoever it is. Hilloa! it's our friend, Green." "Ah, Green, are you looking for me?" said Sir Richard. "I was, sir." "Then you have news. What is it?" "Todd is in the neighbourhood, sir, or was an hour or two ago, I am well
assured." "Todd?" "Yes, sir. He was in his own house. A man came to the door of it to see
the person minding it, and the door was opened a little way, and Todd
tried to pull him in, and would have pulled him in, but his neckcloth
gave way, and then the fire broke out directly after. The man has been
in too great a fright till just a little while ago to venture into the
street again." "You have seen him?" "I have, sir." "Bring him here, Green." Green immediately left the church, and Mr. Crotchet set up a long and
melancholy whistle. "In my heart I thought this might be," said Sir Richard, "and yet having
no evidence to justify the suggestion of my fancy, I did not like to
nurse the idea. Todd in this neighbourhood--Todd in his own house! Oh,
what a chance!" "Your worship," said Crotchet, shaking his head and speaking slowly,
with an appearance of great wisdom. "Your worship, it's mostly always
the case. There's a special providence that always brings back folks as
has done a murder back again to the place where they has done it; and
the next time I'm on the lay for a cove as has done a slaughtering job,
I shall sit myself down, yer worship, in the room where he did it and
wait for him. It's a special thing of Providence, it is, sir, I feel as
sure as though I did it myself, as isn't Providence at all, but just
Crotchet, and no sort of mistake." "You are right, Crotchet, as far as examples go. We will only just
listen to what this man that Green has gone for has got to say, and then
we will be off and do our best." "Yes, yer worship, we will; and here he is." Green, the officer, now brought into the church the very man with whom
Todd had had the little adventure at the door of his shop; and
notwithstanding the time that had elapsed since that little incident,
the man was still in a state of terror, which was quite manifest in
every feature of his face. "Why, what's the matter with you?" said Crotchet, as he dealt the man a
blow on the back that nearly took all his breath away. "You look as
scared as if you had just seen a ghost, old fellow, that you do." "It was worse than a ghost." Sir Richard Blunt stepped up to the man, and said--

"Do you know me? I am Sir Richard Blunt the magistrate." "Oh, yes, sir, I know you." "Answer me then, clearly and distinctly, for much may depend upon it. Who was it opened the door of Todd's house for you, and strove, as I
hear, to drag you into it?" "Sweeney Todd, sir." "Are you quite sure? Do you know him well by sight?" "Oh, yes, sir, I could swear it." "And you thought it very natural that he should be there, and if anybody
there had so laid hold of you in the dark, you would, of course, at once
have naturally concluded that it must be Todd?" "Oh, dear no, sir, I hadn't an idea that it could be him, sir; and if I
hadn't seen his face, that I know quite well, I couldn't possibly have
believed it to be him." "That is enough. I will not trouble you any further. I am much obliged
to you for your information." "You are very welcome, Sir Richard; and I do hope you may catch the
rascal soon. I shall never forget his having hold of me, for the longest
day I have to live."