readiness for the first gale that should blow from either west or
south. Léontine 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
Dick 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
Léontine 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 Dick, whence they were to
descend from the window by a rope into the fosse that surrounded the
prison; fortunately, this ditch was dry, and Léontine 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 Léontine, who assured
Paul and Dick that she would manage the sentry if they would be ready
at the right moment to assist 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 shore, 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 Dick 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, Dick," 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 Dick. "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 Dick; "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, Dick," 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."
[Illustration: 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 passage 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 Dick, 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 Léontine 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 Léontine," 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 Léontine; "I have already arranged everything
this morning. Fortune has favored us; François 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 François; 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, Dick Stone puffed violently at
his pipe, and was almost concealed by his own smoke, when Léontine
continued:
"He is a sad fellow, and has given me much trouble, but I shall pay him
out to-night. Look here, Dick," 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 François 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 Léontine, "you must promise not to hurt him, for François is
a good fellow, and is very fond of me."
"Only let me get hold of him," cried Dick Stone.
"Will you?" replied Léontine; "then the enterprise ceases at the very
beginning. You shall not escape unless you swear that no harm shall
befall François."
"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 Léontine, 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, Léontine, no harm shall touch him."
"Mind you seize the right man," said the gay Léontine, "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, Léontine;
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 Léontine; "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.
Léontine now hurried her preparations, while the day passed wearily
away to those who were awaiting the hour of their deliverance.
Paul and Dick 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 Dick. "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, Dick, 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 passed 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 Léontine, softly entered
the room, carrying their shoes strapped to their belts, as had been
directed by Paul.
No time was lost in useless greeting; but the severed bar of the window
was at once made use of as a lever to remove the heavy stones, and in
less than ten minutes an aperture was made sufficiently large for an
exit.
Paul now fastened the rope that had been concealed in his mattress to
the center of the iron bar; then, lowering the other end from the
window until it reached the fosse, he fixed the bar across the base, so
that it was secured on either side by the masonry.
All was now ready, and, lest they should be disturbed, Dick Stone,
having received the key from Léontine, locked the door on the inside.
Paul went first. It was with some difficulty that he squeezed his broad
shoulders through the narrow opening; but once without the wall he
nimbly lowered himself to the bottom, a depth of about sixty feet.
In a much shorter time than might be supposed the active sailors had
succeeded in reaching the bottom of the fosse, without having made the
slightest noise. The wind blew louder than before; there was no moon,
and merely a faint light was given at intervals by the stars that every
now and then peeped from between the driving clouds.
Carefully leading the way, Paul crossed the broad fosse, and felt with
his hand the opposite wall, against which he expected to find the rope
that was to have been arranged by Léontine. He was followed noiselessly
by the crew for about twenty yards, when he suddenly halted as he
caught the dangling rope.
With extreme care Paul now climbed, hand over hand, to the top, having
previously whispered to Dick Stone to hold the end of the rope, and to
ascend when he should give a jerk as a signal of safety.
Arrived at the top, on the soft green turf at the edge of the moat,
Paul lay flat upon the ground, and listened. He could see nothing,
therefore he knew that he could not be seen; but he fancied that he
could hear a suppressed voice in the direction of the sentry. He gave a
slight jerk to the rope, and presently Dick Stone arrived, and crept to
Paul's side, quickly followed by all the others. They all remained flat
upon the grass, which, being about a foot in height, effectually
concealed them in the darkness of the night. Paul now crept forward
upon his hands and knees, followed in the same manner by Dick Stone;
the other men had received orders to jump up and join them immediately
upon hearing the signal, "A friend."
In a few minutes Paul was within a dozen yards of the sentry; and as he
and Dick then lay flat upon the earth they could faintly distinguish
two figures standing close together, and in intervals between the gusts
they could hear voices.
We will return to Léontine.
She had not failed in any of her arrangements. The unsuspecting
François had fallen into her snare, and, delighted with the
assignation, he had run great risk in the hope of securing the love of
the charming Léontine. He had borrowed for her a comrade's uniform and
arms; and thus accoutred as a soldier, she had met him at the appointed
hour. They were now standing together by the edge of the moat, and
Léontine had listened to his warm declarations of affection. François
was enraptured; for more than a year he had vainly sought to win her
love. As the belle of the village, Léontine had many admirers; a
certain lieutenant was reported to be a favored suitor; thus what
chance was there for a private such as François? True or false, the
jealous heart of François had believed these reports, and he had
yielded to despair. Judge of his transport when, within the last few
hours, he had been led to hope; and now, when he had nearly given her
up as lost, he almost held her in his arms. Alas! for military
discipline when beauty leads the attack! François thought of nothing
but his love. There was a railing by the edge of the moat, against
which Léontine had rested her musket; the unwary sentry did the same;
and the two weapons leaned peacefully side by side, as the soldier,
intoxicated by his love, suddenly caught her round the waist with both
arms and pressed his lips to her cheek. At this moment the dull clang
of the prison clock struck the half hour. Struggling in his embrace,
Léontine exclaimed: "Oh, if I could call 'a friend!'"
At the same instant with both her hands she slipped into his mouth a
wooden instrument called a gag, that was used to silence uproarious
prisoners. The signal, "A friend," had been given in a loud voice, as
though in reply to the usual challenge, and before the unlucky François
could relieve himself from the gag he was caught from behind in the
tremendous grasp of Paul's arms, while Dick Stone by mistake rushed
upon Léontine; a vigorous smack on the face from her delicate hand
immediately undeceived him.
"Take that musket," whispered Léontine, quickly, "and come along."
At the same time she seized the remaining musket, while Paul pinioned
the arms of their prisoner with his handkerchief, and threatened him
with instant death should he resist.
No time was lost. Paul threw the sentry over his shoulder as though he
had been a lamb, and the whole party hurried after Léontine, who had
led the way to the beach.
This affair had been managed so dexterously and quietly that no sound
had been heard except the reply, "A friend," that was the preconcerted
signal of attack; but upon arrival at the beach the rattling of the
shingle as the large party hurried toward the boat threatened to
attract a dangerous attention.
A large number of boats were drawn up upon the beach, but Léontine,
without a moment's hesitation, led Paul and his party to one that had
the oars already arranged; and the powerful crew, seizing it by the bow
and the stern, ran it along the steep incline and launched it through
the waves.
Not a word had been spoken, but there was a sound of many feet as the
crew jumped into the boat that could not be mistaken. Paul laid his
struggling burden upon the beach, and Léontine, before she leaped into
the boat, whispered in the captive's ear:
"François, if you give the alarm I'll never love you again." With this
coquettish adieu she followed Paul and Dick Stone, who were the last of
the party.
"Steer straight for the 'Polly,' and give way, my lads! for there's no
time to lose," said Paul, who had taken his position in the bow of the
boat with Dick Stone, both of whom were armed with muskets, while two
men with sword-bayonets were ready to follow them.
"Make a rush on board," said Paul, "and knock down everybody without
asking questions; then seize the arms from the rack and chest."
The water was deep in the rocky bay; thus the "Polly" was moored to a
buoy little more than two hundred yards from shore; a light was visible
on board, and the lanterns of the corvette were also burning about
fifty paces distant, where she lay moored by stem and stern.
They now pulled swiftly but silently toward the lugger. Paul's heart
bounded with hope, while Dick Stone, as cool as ice, but determined
upon the event, waited for the command. They neared the vessel. "What
boat's that?" was the sudden challenge from the lugger's deck, as their
boat came within a couple of oars' length. "A friend!" shouted Léontine
in French, and almost in the same instant a man in the bow of the boat
caught hold of the mizzen shrouds of the lugger with his boat-hook, and
held on.
Paul seized a rope, and in one bound he was upon the lugger's deck,
while Dick Stone followed like his shadow. To knock down the first man
with a double-handed thrust with the barrel of his musket was the work
of a moment, at the same instant Dick struck and felled a Frenchman who
had rushed to the arm-chest. A shot was now fired by one of the French
crew, and several men made a dash at the arm-rack, but Paul was there
before them, and with the butt end of his musket he struck down the
leader of the party.
At this moment a loud shrill cry of alarm was heard from the shore.
"_Ha, le sacre François_!" exclaimed Léontine, who had in the meantime
attached the deserted boat to the lugger's stern. "_Ha, le misérable_!"
she cried; "this is a return for my love!"
Two or three shots were now fired by the French crew, but without other
results than to alarm the ship-of-war; the drum beat to quarters,
lights were seen at her ports; a tremendous flash was accompanied by
the report of a cannon as she fired an alarm-gun; this was quickly
answered by a shot from a battery above the town.
The bells of the church and the prison rang wildly as shot after shot
was fired from the battery, and the alarm spread like wild-fire
throughout the port.
In the meantime, while the fight had been hot upon the "Polly's" decks,
Captain Dupuis, who had been asleep when the vessel was first boarded,
now rushed up from the cabin, and meeting Paul he fired a pistol within
a few feet of his chest; fortunately, at that moment Paul was in the
act of raising his musket, and the ball lodged within the tough walnut
stock; the next instant the weapon fell with a crash upon Dupuis's
skull, who reeled backward, and stumbling against the low bulwarks, he
fell overboard and sunk.
Dick Stone, with his musket in one hand that he had not yet discharged,
was now standing at the helm. The English crew had gained the arms from
the rack, and several shots were fired as they drove the French toward
the bows of the lugger, following them up with the bayonet. Many of the
French jumped overboard, calling loudly to the man-of-war for
assistance, and those who were down below were already helpless, as the
companion ladder was guarded by two armed men. The surprise was
complete; Léontine had hauled her boat alongside, and had climbed on
board; the cable was cut, and the sails were let loose; but the danger
had increased. The French crew who had jumped overboard called to the
corvette to fire and sink the lugger. This they had hitherto been
afraid to do, as their own countrymen were on board. A blue light was
now burned upon the decks of the corvette, and distinctly illumined the
scene just as the sails of the "Polly" filled, as her head turned from
the severed cable, and she met the full force of the gale from shore.
In an instant she leaned over, and as the water rippled from her bows
and the boom was slacked off she started like a wild duck frightened
from its nest.
"Hurrah! hurrah! hurrah!" rang three hearty British cheers as the
clipper lugger glided rapidly through the dark water and passed the
terrible broadside of the corvette within fifty or sixty yards. But
hardly had the "Polly" cleared the deadly row of guns, when, a flash!
and the shock seemed to sweep her deck as the dense smoke rolled across
her in the midst of the roar of a twenty-four-pounder fired from the
last gun of the tier.
A terrible crash almost immediately followed the shock, and the painter
or rope that attaches the boat to the stern of the lugger suddenly
dangled loosely in the water, as the shot had dashed the boat to atoms;
fortunately the "Polly" had just passed the fatal line of fire. Another
wild "hurrah!" replied to the unsuccessful gun, as the lugger, released
from the boat's weight, seemed to fly still quicker through the water.
"Take the helm for a moment," said Dick to a sailor by his side, and
running amidships he called upon Paul, "Give a hand, captain, and we'll
get the Long Tom round."
In an instant Paul put his powerful shoulder to the long six-pounder
that worked on a pivot, and together, with joint exertions, they
trained the gun upon the stern windows of the corvette. Dick Stone had
just beforehand lighted his pipe when standing at the helm, and as the
long gun bore upon its object he suddenly pushed Paul upon one side,
and emptied his fiery bowl upon the touch-hole. Bang! went the gun, as
the six-pound shot crashed through the cabin windows of the corvette,
and through the various bulk-heads, raking her from stem to stern.
"Hurrah!" again shouted the crew, who like true British sailors were
ready for any fight without reckoning the odds when the cannon once
began to speak, while Paul and several men sponged and reloaded the
long gun, as the corvette had lowered several boats to give chase.
"Hurrah for the saucy 'Polly!'" shouted Paul, as he and Dick now
trained the gun upon the leading boat; but at that moment they turned
the sharp headland of the rocky island, and both the corvette and her
boats were obscured from their view.