The String of Pearls (1850), p. 470

"Hilloa! who's at home?"
"Who's there?" said Mrs. Oakley.
"It's John Smith," cried Lupin. "I am an offier of the police. Has anybody anything to say to me here? They tell me in the court that some odd noises were heard in the night."
"I don't know anything about it," said Mrs. Oakley, "but if you will come in and wait until Mr. Lupin comes in, he may like to see you."
"Oh, no, no, no! It's no matter. Good morning, ma'am."
Down stairs went Lupin, thinking he had acted the officer to perfection, and and making no doubt in the world but that he had thoroughly deceived Mrs.
Oakley, who he was now quite satisfied knew absolutely nothing about the murder.
In the course of a couple of minutes, Mr. Lupin in his own character came gliding in.
"I am afraid I have kept you waiting, sister Oakley."
"Oh, not at all, but there has been a man there who says his name is Smith, and he—"
"I met him! I met him! It is all right. He heard something going on in the next house, I suppose, and mistook it for this. Pray cook the eggs to your liking, sister Oakley, and help yourself to anything. Don't be particular, sister Oakley, but make yourself at home."
"I will, reverend sir, I will."
Mrs. Oakley was really playing her part very well, but she fancied each moment that the murderer would see something in her manner to give him a suspicion that she knew too much for his safety.
She was wrong though, for upon the contrary, Mr. Lupin felt quite satisfied that the secret of his guilt was confined to his own breast.
"I pray you, sister Oakley/' he said, "to eat freely of my humble fare, and after breakfast we will have a prayer."
It seemed to Mrs. Oakley, now that she had awakened to a sense of the awful hypocrisy of Mr. Lupin, something very horrible for him to talk of having a prayer; but she took care not to show what she felt in that particular.
"How kind and good of you," she said.
"Ay, truly, sister Oakley, I am kind and good, and yet there are envious folks in the world, who I dare say would not hesitate to give even me a bad name."
"Impossible, surely."
"I would it were, I would it were, my dear sister Oakley, I would it were impossible."
"It seems to me, reverend sir, as though it would not be in the power of poor human nature to praise you too much ; but it is time that I should think
of going home now, if you please."
"Well, sister, if you must go home among the heathens and the Philistines, I will not hinder you ; but with the hope of seeing you soon again, I will now offer up a prayer.''
It was truly sickening even to Mrs. Oakley, whose feelings the reader will think could not be very fine, to see such an arch hypocrite offering up a prayer to that Deity whom he must so bitterly have offended by his awful crimes.
But Mr. Lupin cut the prayer tolerably short, and then giving to Mrs. Oakley what he called the kiss of peace, and to which, loathsome as it was from him, she felt herself forced to submit, he bade her good day.
And now, indeed, she began to entertain a sanguine hope, that she would be released from his company, and she should soon be in a condition to denounce him to justice -for the awful crime which she had seen him commit. She could not possibly avoid a slight feeling of satisfaction to appear upon her face.
"You seem pleased," said Lupin.
"I am, reverend sir."
"May I ask what at?"