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." CHAPTER CXXXVIII. CAEN WOOD AND HAMPSTEAD IN THE OLD TIMES. In such discourse as this, the precious pair beguiled the way to
Highgate, from which they proposed crossing to Hampstead. Notwithstanding the liberal potations that they had taken at the
Alderman's house; and notwithstanding the brandy that had since been
discussed, they neither of them felt any the worse for the imbibition. Probably, the active exercise they took carried off all bad effects. But, certainly, when they reached Highgate, both Todd and Lupin were
hungry. "Let us turn into the Old Gate-House Tavern," said Lupin. "Don't you think a more obscure place," suggested Todd, "would be better
for us, as we do not by any means court popularity?" "No; there is more safety in a large place like the Gate House, where
plenty of guests are coming and going continually, than in a little bit
of a public-house where we should be looked at, and scrutinised from top
to toe, from the moment we went in to the moment we came out." "Very good," said Todd. "I think you reason well enough upon the point,
and I give in to your better judgment completely. Ah! my good friend, I
really don't know what I should have done at all without you." "Been hanged!" said Lupin. Todd gave a shudder, which was a tolerably convincing proof of how fully
he agreed in what Mr. Lupin said; and then they went into the Old
Gate-House Tavern, at Highgate, where they had a very plentiful
breakfast; and by getting into a corner of the room, in which they sat,
they did not attract any observation beyond the mere casual regards of
the visitors to the house. Before they left though, Todd had the horror of hearing a great
confusion of voices in the passage, and in a few moments one of the
waiters came into the room, quite bursting with his news. "Gentlemen," he said, "the notorious Todd, and a man named Lupin, who
was a murderer likewise, have escaped from Newgate!" "Escaped?" said Lupin. "You don't say so?" "Dear me, when?" said Todd. "Last night, gentlemen, last night; and--coming--coming!" The waiter was compelled to leave the room, as a bell rung violently. "Let us go," said Todd. "Yes, I think, now that the news has reached here, it will be wise to do
so." "Come along, then." Todd rose in a moment; but Lupin in a whisper strictly cautioned him not
to show any symptoms of hurry or alarm; and he was so far master of
himself to see the necessity of such a caution, so that they both got
safely out of the Gate-House Tavern, and took the route to Hampstead by
Swains Lane, without having anything said to them. "This is an escape indeed," said Todd. "Yes," said Lupin, "you may depend that in a very little time there will
be some officers at the Gate-House; but if we can get to the wood within
the next half hour, I think we are safe enough. What do you think?" "I think that if our safety depends upon getting into Caen Wood in
half-an-hour, we ought to be there in half the time." "Do you? Then come on for a run." "Oh, dear," said Todd. "I am all aches and pains, and not at all fit for
running; but I suppose I must. Don't go very fast, Mr. Lupin, or I shall
never be able to keep up with you." "Then you go first and run as fast as you can without greatly
distressing yourself, and I will adopt my speed to yours." "That will be better," said Todd. Off they both set down Swains Lane, and as the first part of that
well-known thoroughfare from Highgate to Hampstead goes down hill, they
got on speedily with very little exertion; but when the foot of the
little slope was reached it was quite another thing, and Todd was fast
subsiding into a walk, when Lupin cried to him--

"We are pursued!" At these words, Todd fell flat in the roadway. "Up--up!" said Lupin, "there is a turn in the lane just ahead of us, and
when we reach that we must get over the hedge and hide. I don't know
that they are actually after us, but there are horsemen in the lane
coming from Highgate." Todd got up as far as his hands and knees, and then, as his ears were
close to the ground, he said--

"We are lost, for I can hear horsemen coming from the other direction
too." "The deuce you can!" Mr. Lupin stooped to listen, and in a moment he was assured of the fact. He seized Mr. Todd by the collar, saying--

"Now, Todd, if you want to escape, rouse yourself and follow me; but if
you don't care about it, say so at once, and I will look after my own
safety." "Care about it?" cried Todd, "what else do you suppose I care about in
all the world?" "Come on, then." "Here I am. Oh, yes I'm coming on--as quick as you like now, Lupin. The
dread of capture banishes all fatigue. I can now run like a hunted
hare." "There is no occasion," said Lupin. "This way. We must hide now; speed
would do us but little good against horsemen.--This way." Lupin ran on until he got to the turn of the lane, which hid the
horsemen from Highgate effectually from their view; and as the mounted
party coming from the direction of Hampstead had not got so far as to
appear, he thought it was just the place to halt at. "Now, Todd," he said, "we must get over the hedge here, and our only
chance of safety, if these men are really on the look-out for us, is to
hide in the meadow." Without waiting for Todd to make any remark upon the very doubtful means
of escape presented, Lupin scrambled through the hedge. Todd then
followed him, and the first care of Lupin's was to arrange the twigs
that had been displaced in the hedge by their passage through it, so
that there should not appear to be any gap at all there.