Journeys Through Bookland Volume Iv Part 12

"I know an Englishman who wears a French girl's picture in his heart,"

said d.i.c.k, who, with a sly wink at Paul as a preface, thus made his first bold advance. "A what?" inquired Leontine.

"A poor devil," replied d.i.c.k, "who doesn't care how long he's shut up in a French prison with such a pretty little Mounseer for a jailer."

"Ha! ha! you English know how to pay compliments," answered Leontine, who knew just sufficient English to understand d.i.c.k's attempt at French.

"Yes, we're considered a very purlite people," replied d.i.c.k, "and we have a purlite custom when we go to prison of shaking hands with the jailer and kissing the hand of his pretty daughter." As d.i.c.k said these words he first grasped the hand of the jailer, and then raised to his lips, redolent of tobacco, the hand of Leontine; at the same time he whispered, "Don't forget that I have a secret."

Far from being disconcerted at d.i.c.k's politeness, Leontine naively remarked, "You can't tell a secret before three persons; but we shall have plenty of opportunities, for you may pay us a longer visit than may be agreeable."

d.i.c.k in reply to this remark suddenly a.s.sumed one of his most mysterious expressions, and winking one eye at Leontine, he placed his forefinger upon his lips as though to enjoin silence, and whispered in her ear, "Make an opportunity: the secret's about your brother."

More than two months had pa.s.sed wearily in the French prison, during which both Paul and d.i.c.k Stone had been buoyed up in inaction by the hope of carrying into execution a plan for their escape. The only view from the prison windows was the sea, and the street and beach in the foreground. The "Polly" still lay at anchor in the same spot, as some difficulty had arisen between Captain Dupuis and the captain of the corvette that had to be settled in the law courts.

In the meantime both Paul and d.i.c.k Stone had not only become great friends of the jailer, Jean Diore, and his daughter, but d.i.c.k had quickly found an opportunity to disclose his secret, which succeeded in winning the heart of the enterprising Leontine. d.i.c.k had made a declaration of love, and to prove his sincerity he proposed that he should conduct her direct to her brother in the English prison, whose release should be effected by an exchange; and he had persuaded her that, if she should aid in the escape of Paul and the entire crew of the "Polly," there would be no difficulty in obtaining her brother's release when the facts should become known to the English authorities.

Paul had added his persuasions to those of d.i.c.k Stone; he had excited the sister's warmest feelings by painting the joys he would feel in rescuing her brother from a miserable existence, and he had gained her sympathy by a description of the misery and suspense that his own wife must be suffering in her ignorance of all that had befallen him.

Leontine was won. She was brave as a lion, and, her determination once formed, she was prepared to act without flinching.

Many times d.i.c.k Stone had lighted his pipe, and puffed and considered as he took counsel with Paul on the plan that the latter had proposed.

All was agreed upon.

Paul had thus arranged the attempt at escape. All was to be in readiness for the first gale that should blow from either west or south. Leontine had provided him with a couple of large files and a small crowbar about two feet long, which she had purchased in the village with money supplied by Paul; these she had introduced to his room by secreting them beneath her clothes.

At various times she had purchased large supplies of string twine in skeins, which to avoid suspicion she had described as required for making nets; these she had also introduced daily, until sufficient had been collected for the manufacture of ropes, at which both Paul and d.i.c.k Stone worked incessantly during the night, and which they concealed in the daytime within their mattresses, by cutting a hole beneath. Whenever the time should arrive it had been arranged that Leontine was to procure the keys of the cells in which the crew of the "Polly" were confined, and she was to convey the prisoners at night into the apartment occupied by Paul and d.i.c.k, whence they were to descend from the window by a rope into the fosse that surrounded the prison; fortunately, this ditch was dry, and Leontine was to fix a stake into the ground about the fosse, from which she was to suspend a knotted rope after dark, to enable the prisoners to ascend upon the opposite side.

The great difficulty would be in avoiding the sentry, who was always on guard within fifty paces of the spot where they would be forced to descend, and whence they must afterward ascend from the ditch. The affair was to be left entirely in the hands of Leontine, who a.s.sured Paul and d.i.c.k that she would manage the sentry if they would be ready at the right moment to a.s.sist her. When freed from the prison, they were to make a rush to the beach, seize the first boat, of which many were always at hand, and board and capture the "Polly"; once on board the trusty lugger, in a westerly or southerly gale, and Paul knew that nothing could overtake her.

Such was the plan agreed upon, and everything had been carefully prepared and in readiness for some days, but the favorable weather had not yet arrived. Daily and hourly Paul looked from the grated windows upon his beloved "Polly," which lay still at anchor idle in the bay, about fifty yards from the French corvette.

At length, as early one morning he as usual looked out from his prison, he saw a boat pulling from the sh.o.r.e, followed quickly by several others conveying cargo, and steering for the "Polly;" the bustle upon the deck, and the refitting of ropes and rigging, plainly discernible from the prison window, left no doubt upon Paul's mind that the "Polly"

was about to leave the harbor, and perhaps be lost to him forever.

At this painful sight d.i.c.k lighted his pipe, and smoked with violence until the tobacco was half consumed, when suddenly, in a fit of excitement that was quite unusual, he hastily put his adviser in his pocket, and seizing a file from beneath his mattress he immediately commenced work upon the bottom of an iron bar that protected the narrow window.

"That's right, d.i.c.k," said Paul; "now or never! The clouds are hurrying up from the sou'-west, and I think it's coming on to blow; as old Mother Lee says, 'Luck comes from the sou-west'; so bear a hand, and give me the file when you get tired."

As Paul had observed, the scud was flying rapidly across the sky from the right quarter, and both men worked hard alternately, and in an hour they had divided the thick iron bar close to the base.

"Now for the top," said d.i.c.k. "We'll soon cut it through, although it's harder work, as we can't put our weight to the file."

"Never mind the file," said Paul, who now grasped the severed bar in his iron hands; "with such a purchase I could wrench the bar asunder.

Something shall give way," he said, as with the force of Samson he exerted every muscle, and wrenched the bar from its loosened base. The stone in which it was fixed first crumbled at the joint, and then suddenly cracked, and Paul fell sprawling on his back with the bar in his hands, while a heavy fragment of stone fell upon the floor.

"Take care, captain," said d.i.c.k; "gently with the stones. We shall alarm the jailer if we make so much noise. Why, you've settled the job in one pull!"

"Here, d.i.c.k," continued Paul, as he sprung from the floor, "take the bar while I move a stone from the side with the crow. We won't take it right out, lest the jailer should notice it if he comes with the breakfast; but we'll loosen it so that we can remove it quickly when necessary, as the window is too narrow for our shoulders."

[Ill.u.s.tration: HE WRENCHED THE BAR ASUNDER]

Paul then inserted the thin edge of the crowbar, and by gently working it backward and forward, he removed the stones and enlarged the aperture sufficiently to admit the pa.s.sage of a man; he then replaced the stones, together with the bar, and so arranged the window that no one would have observed any disturbance unless by a close inspection.

Hardly had they completed their work when footsteps were heard without, succeeded by the turning of the key in the creaking lock of their door.

In an instant d.i.c.k, who had lighted his pipe, leaned upon the window- sill and looked steadily out of the window; at the same time he puffed such dense clouds of smoke as would have effectually screened any.

damage that had been done by the work of the crowbar.

The door opened, and fortunately Leontine appeared instead of her father. She brought the breakfast.

"Quick!" she exclaimed, "there is no time to lose. The wind has changed, and people say we shall have a gale from the sou'-west. The 'Polly' is to sail to-morrow. Captain Dupuis has loaded her, and he will himself depart in the morning should the wind be fair. You must all get ready for the work," continued the determined girl, as her large eyes flashed with energy.

"We have not been idle, my pretty Leontine," said Paul, as he exhibited their morning's work, "but we now depend upon you. It will be quite dark at eight o'clock. You must have the rope ready secured to this small crowbar, driven into the earth on the other side of the fosse; the bar is sharp and heavy; it will make no noise if you can manage to strike it into the ground in exactly the same spot three or four times, and simply hang this loop upon it, pressed close down to the base." At the same time he gave her the bar, and a rope coiled, about twenty feet in length. Paul continued. "You must also be punctual in bringing the other prisoners here at half-past eight, and tell them to take their shoes off and to tie them round their waists. But how about the sentry?" asked Paul.

"Don't be afraid," said Leontine; "I have already arranged everything this morning. Fortune has favored us; Francois is to be on guard to- night; the guard is relieved at eight o'clock, at which time he will come on duty, therefore we have nothing to fear for some hours. I will manage Francois; leave him to me. He is an old lover of mine, and I have appointed to meet him to-night."

At this confession, thus boldly made, d.i.c.k Stone puffed violently at his pipe, and was almost concealed by his own smoke, when Leontine continued:

"He is a sad fellow, and has given me much trouble, but I shall pay him out to-night. Look here, d.i.c.k," she continued, "if you are worth having you'll help me quickly to-night, for I shall depend upon you. I have agreed to meet Francois this evening at half-past eight, as I have pretended to accept his love. To avoid detection (as he will be on guard), I am to be disguised as a soldier, and he will send me the clothes and arms to-day. I shall keep my appointment, and engage him in conversation so closely that he will not hear you; but at the last moment you must be ready to rush upon him and secure him, while I endeavor to prevent him from giving an alarm. At the same time,"

continued Leontine, "you must promise not to hurt him, for Francois is a good fellow, and is very fond of me."

"Only let me get hold of him," cried d.i.c.k Stone.

"Will you?" replied Leontine; "then the enterprise ceases at the very beginning. You shall not escape unless you swear that no harm shall befall Francois."

"Do not be afraid," said Paul; but he continued: "It may be a difficult affair if he is a powerful man--what size is he?"

"Oh," replied Leontine, laughing, "a little fellow, about as big as I am. You could soon manage poor Francois; he would be a mere child in the grasp of such a man as yourself."

"All right," said Paul; "then there's no fear of murder; depend upon me, Leontine, no harm shall touch him."

"Mind you seize the right man," said the gay Leontine, "when I give the signal, as I shall be in a soldier's uniform and you may mistake me for Francois. The signal will be 'A friend;' the instant that I give the word, seize and disarm him before he can fire his musket. You will then have two muskets, mine and that of Francois, with which you must take your chance in boarding the 'Polly.'"

"That will do," said Paul; "let me only set foot on the 'Polly's' deck, and I'll soon settle accounts with Monsieur Dupuis. But now," added Paul, "we are agreed upon all points, and we depend upon you, Leontine; do not forget to visit the beach, and see that the oars and a boat- hook, with a sharp ax to cut the cable, are placed in readiness within a large boat, to which you must guide us when we leave the prison."

"Never fear," said Leontine; "I shall not fail in my part, and I shall give the signal as the clock chimes half-past eight; you must be ready on the instant. Here is a letter," continued the girl, as the tears started to her eyes, "that I have written for my father; you must leave it on the table when you escape, and it will explain all; he will then, perhaps, forgive me when he knows that I risk my life for Victor."

Saying which, she left the room and locked the door behind her.

Leontine now hurried her preparations, while the day pa.s.sed wearily away to those who were awaiting the hour of their deliverance.

Paul and d.i.c.k Stone counted the hours as the neighboring church clock struck heavily on the bell.

"We shall run to the cove in twelve hours," said Paul, "if this breeze lasts; it's blowing a gale out at sea, and the 'Polly' 'll fly like a witch on a broomstick."

"We've got to take her first," replied the wary d.i.c.k. "There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip!"

"We are short of weapons, no doubt," said Paul; "but we must take off the sword-bayonets from the muskets, and give them to two of the men. I will be first on board, and knock down Dupuis. Let the men rush to the main-mast and secure the arms from the rack the moment that they reach the deck, while you, d.i.c.k, seize the helm. I will tell off four men to loose the sails and to cut the cable directly that we get on board.

This will leave us ten men to do the fighting. If all goes well we shall find the better part of the French crew down below, and, once in possession of the deck, they will be at our mercy. This gale of wind will start the 'Polly' like a wild duck the instant that the cable is cut, and we shall be round the corner of the island before the corvette can bring her guns to bear upon us. Then, with a dark night and a heavy gale, the 'Polly' can take care of herself."

The day at length pa.s.sed away, and the sun set. The wind roared through the narrow streets of the town, and whistled loudly around the pointed towers of the old prison. "There could not be a better night," said Paul; "the wind roars like a lion, and nothing will be heard by the sentry."

As he was speaking the clock struck eight. As the last tone of the bell died away the lock of the door creaked as the key turned from the outside; and presently, without a sound of footsteps, thirteen strapping fellows, who had been liberated by Leontine, softly entered the room, carrying their shoes strapped to their belts, as had been directed by Paul.