Being no stranger to misfortune, Mr Headstone had every reason to believe that - notwithstanding his innocence of the crime with which he had been charged - his sojourn within the walls of Newgate Prison was likely to be a lengthy one. Indeed, it was a remarkable feature of the place that every individual was incarcerated under similar conditions of misunderstanding, and that if only these irregularities could be corrected by the proper application of the instruments of law then the entire population would be set at liberty at once.
The number of cells within the prison never being equal to the numbers of inmates wishing to occupy them, Mr Headstone was obliged to share his accommodation with two other gentleman, one of whom had been falsely charged with poisoning his wife on the expectation of coming into her fortune upon her decease; the other being in the unfortunate position of having a countenance that was the exact likeness of a notorious horse thief, who had lately been observed in the execution of his trade by three independent witnesses. Mr Headstone had been languishing in his room for several days, occasionally engaging with these two worthies in conversation of a most instructive nature, when a message came for him to report to the warden's office, where a visitor awaited him. No doubt the reader is eager to learn - as the pedagogue was - the identity of this individual and his purpose, and it is regrettable that this curiosity must remain unsatisfied until our next communication.
Mr Charles Dickens
