Across the Spanish Main - Harry Collingwood (best novels for beginners TXT) 📗
- Author: Harry Collingwood
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“For your first line to lower down to me, unravel your hose or under-jerkin, or any garment you can spare without it being noticed. This will give you a long, thin line, to the end of which you must secure a light weight to prevent it from blowing about. Now, until to-night, farewell! I shall be there at midnight exactly, and you must be quite ready. Make no mistake, for this is your only chance, and any mistake will mean the loss of my life as well as your own.”
This ended the letter, and Roger immediately took it from Harry’s hand, and concealed it, with the first missive, in the lining of his jerkin.
“Now, Harry,” said he, “we must act at once; for, as the fellow says, there is no time to lose, and it will take us all the time we have left before darkness sets in to unravel a garment to form our line. He will send us up several files, he says in the letter. Now, if we can put those two stools one on top of the other we shall both be able to stand on them and work together; which is a fortunate thing, as it will take us a long time to cut those bars, so thick are they. I hope the noise will not be heard through the walls, and draw the attention of our jailers; but we must be as silent as we can, and risk the rest. I am more glad than ever now that we closed up that spy-hole, for, had we not done so, we should certainly have been discovered already. Now, Harry, we had best begin on this under-jerkin of mine; the absence of that will not be noticed if I keep my doublet buttoned well up and over. You begin at one end and I will start at the other corner, so that, if we are pressed for time, we can break the threads off and join yours and mine together, and have twice the length we should get otherwise.”
Roger stripped his jerkin off, replaced his doublet, and both set to work. By this time the daylight had nearly gone, but, as fortune would have it, a full moon rode high in the sky, and one shaft of light filtered in through the barred window. The court below, however, was in darkness, as the walls were so high that the moonbeams never struck lower than about half-way down them. In this small patch of light, then, the two lads worked for their lives.
When they began their task they considered that about three hours would suffice to complete the work. As time passed, however, it seemed to them as though their fingers were made of lead, so slow did they appear to move, to the lads’ excited imagination. Yard by yard the silk became unravelled, and was rolled carefully round Roger’s finger, so that, when the time came, there might be no hitch in paying it out.
Every yard that they unravelled seemed to take them an hour in the process, and so occupied were they that it was some few moments before they became aware that at least two small pebbles had been thrown through the window, and then they only noticed it because one of the stones happened to fall directly upon the remnant of the garment upon which they were employed.
“Roger, Roger, there he is,” whispered Harry in great excitement. “Quick, quick! unwind that silk from your finger, and— Where can we find anything to tie on the end for a weight?” he added.
Roger unwound the silk as fast as he knew how, and Harry desperately searched every nook and cranny of the cell for something to secure to the end.
“I have it,” said Roger in a low tone, as he finished unwinding the silk and coiled it carefully on the stone table, so that it might run free without being entangled. “I have it. We will secure your knife to the end, Harry; it will bear that weight, I should say, and we can haul it up again when the stouter line is attached.”
“Very well,” answered Harry, producing the article in question, which was soon tied firmly to the end of the unravelled silk.
The two stools were then dragged to the window, and on these Roger mounted, whilst Harry handed up the knife with the silk tied to it.
“God grant that the line may bear the weight!” said Roger to himself, as he took the apparatus from Harry.
Then he leant forward and extended his arm so far that any person standing below would be able to see it in the moonlight, although the person himself in the courtyard would be hidden in the shadow cast by the high walls of the prison. He allowed his hand to remain for a few moments, shining white in the moonlight, in order to signify to the man below that he was in readiness, and was prepared to let down the line. As if in answer, another small pebble came clattering against the wall just below the grating, and Roger’s heart stood still for a moment with deadly fear, lest any unwelcome listener might be about.
But there was no sign of such being the case, and the lad lowered carefully away until he felt the knife touch the ground.
A few seconds later he felt a gentle vibration of the silk, as the man below fastened something to it, and then came three light pulls on the line. Roger rightly took this for a signal to haul up, and immediately did so.
He hauled away with the utmost care, for he knew that his very life depended upon it, and when he had hauled in his own line he found attached to it a cord of stouter proportions, and capable of sustaining a very much heavier burden.
To be on the safe side, he at once secured the end of this second line to a bar of the grating, in case it should slip through his fingers, and handed the silken line to Harry, asking him to re-coil it for use again should it be required. Then he gave three light tugs to the line at his end, as a signal that he was ready for the next operation. Immediately he had done so, the gentle movement of the line began again, and was followed directly afterward by the three signal pulls, but stronger ones this time. Up came the cord, and this time it was evident that there was something quite heavy at the other end. Roger pulled up quickly, and presently a dark bundle made its appearance at the window. He grasped this carefully and handed it to Harry, who placed it upon the cell table.
Then the cord was sent down once more. There was a longer pause this time, and Roger was on the point of pulling up the cord, thinking that their unknown friend had finished his part of the business, when the three pulls came again, and Roger once more hoisted away on the line.
It was not so heavy on this occasion, and on taking it in through the window he found that Harry’s knife and a piece of paper were the only articles that were attached.
He surmised, therefore, that nothing else was to be sent up, and read the missive before sending down the cord again. It was short and to the point this time.
It ran thus:—
“I am writing this in the courtyard below. I have sent up all the necessary tools; so you need not lower the cord again to-night. It rests with you now to cut the bars, and it must be done by midnight to-morrow night or all will be in vain. I shall be here again then, and will send up a rope thick enough to bear your weight. You must climb down this, and I will be at the bottom to receive and guide you to safety. Till to-morrow, farewell!”
When this had been read, it was placed, together with the other two missives, in the lining of Roger’s doublet.
“Now, Harry, lad,” the latter whispered, “quick! let us see what there is in this bundle, and then set to work at once. No sleep to-night, my lad. When next we sleep we shall either be out of the clutches of the Inquisition, or—we shall be sleeping the last long sleep of all!”
On opening the bundle it was found to contain three files, very thin, extremely sharp, and of wonderful temper. There were also two small saws, with handles to them, and a bottle of very thick oil, to make the saws and files cut faster, and also to prevent that harsh, squeaking sound which usually arises when steel cuts against steel.
The two lads, in their eagerness, snatched the tools from the leather bag, and, replacing the stools one above the other, mounted them and began to work swiftly and silently.
“We must remember, Roger,” whispered Harry, “that we shall have to listen very carefully for footsteps coming along that passage, and hide these tools somewhere at the first sound. Of course, if we were seen working here, or if the tools were discovered, we might just as well give up at once, for there would be no hope left.”
“You are right, my friend,” answered Roger. “But I do not intend that anybody shall catch us at this work; nor shall they catch sight of the tools. At the first sound of any person approaching you must jump down for your life, remove the stools, and sit down and pretend to be asleep. I will wrap the tools up quickly in their bag, and slip them into my jerkin. If we are summoned from the cell, and are likely to be searched, I shall endeavour, as we go, to drop the parcel behind the door, where it cannot be seen unless someone enters the cell and deliberately looks behind the door, which is not very likely unless they suspect us of having got hold of any tools. Now remember what I say. No more talk now, Harry; we shall require all our breath for working.”
They slaved away with file and saw, never ceasing work for a moment, until their muscles utterly refused to allow their tired arms to make another movement, and then they rested for a moment to recover. Harry and Roger each worked on a separate bar of the grating, and so equal had been their efforts that each lad’s bar was cut through at the same time.
“There go two nails drawn from our coffins, Roger,” said Harry, and he attacked his second bar with the energy born of deserved success. Roger uttered no word, but saved all his breath, and put every ounce of his strength into his arms, cutting away with file and saw like a very madman.
As the bars were cut out they were laid carefully on the sill in front of them, so as to be at hand for replacement directly any suspicious sound was heard. All night long they worked, and with such a will that soon after daybreak next morning but two bars remained to be cut through. As usual, an hour or two after dawn they heard the click of the trap as their food was placed in the cell; but it startled them only for a moment, for they had not overlooked the fact that their food was due to arrive. Moreover, they knew that the aperture was so small that there was but just room to pass a small platter through it, and that, even if the jailer should attempt to spy on them, the
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