As I have before mentioned, I was aroused out of my sleep by a heavy
hand on my shoulder. "Your name is Ernst Verner," said a voice. "You
were born in the Netherlands, and your father was a Netherlander?"
Scarcely having yet gained my senses after being awoke out of my heavy
slumbers, I answered immediately: "Of course. You are perfectly right
in what you say, whoever you are." Directly afterwards I regretted
having thus spoken, but it was too late.
"He acknowledges who he is!" cried the same voice; and by the light of a
lantern which another man held up before my face, I saw that several
armed persons were in the room. "Get up and dress yourself immediately;
you will accompany us!" said the man who had first spoken.
I now too clearly guessed what had happened: I was in the hands of
Alva's officers, and had no means of escape. Jacob had been taken in a
like manner, as was also my servant John, who, however, being an
Englishman, was in less danger than we were.
Immediately we were dressed we were ordered downstairs, where we found
our horses, and, being compelled to mount, we set forth immediately, two
men going before with torches to light us on our way. We proceeded for
some hours in the dark, our guards refusing to give us any information.
We stopped for a short time only for meals, and, after crossing several
ferries, we found ourselves entering a fortified town. Neither Jacob
nor I knew the place; but I guessed from its position that it was Brill,
on the river Meuse. Why we were carried there I could not tell, except,
perchance, that it was considered necessary, in order to keep the
inhabitants in recollection of what they would suffer should they show
any signs of rebellion, that we were there doomed to be sacrificed. It
was not a pleasant thought, yet it seemed too probable. It might have
been considered a more suitable place than Rotterdam for our
imprisonment. Be that as it might, we were conducted to the jail, and
there cast together into a loathsome dungeon, cold and damp, into which
but a single ray of light penetrated. That ray came through a small
grated aperture on one side of the arched roof. Although I had had some
experience of a prison in England, I scarcely thought it possible that
human beings could be confined in a dungeon so horrible as the one in
which we found ourselves. My two companions seemed inclined to give way
to despair.
Honest Jacob, however, thought more of me than of himself.
"And you told me, Master Verner, that you were about to be married to
that sweet young lady, Mistress Aveline; and oh! if they hang you, she
will surely break her heart! My good dame is laid in her grave, that's
one comfort. There is nobody to mourn for me and poor English John
here. They will scarcely kill him--though I do not know; for it seems
to me that the Spaniards and those who serve them have a delight in
destroying their fellow-creatures. They will probably kill us first,
and then bring us to trial."
I felt that it was my duty to try and keep up the courage of my
companions. Fortunately, John could not understand the remarks made by
Jacob. I told him to be of good cheer, and that I hoped we might still
by some means make our escape with our lives. My valise, containing a
large amount of valuables, had been taken by our captors; but I still
retained a considerable portion of jewels about me, besides several
rolls of gold which I had concealed in my dress. This had escaped
observation, our captors being delighted with the rich booty they had
found in the valise, which they probably supposed was all I possessed.
I hoped by bribing our jailer to induce him to help us to escape, or, at
all events, to send off a letter, which might be transmitted to Sir
Thomas Gresham. I told John also, what I knew would be some consolation
to him, that we might possibly be able to procure a larger amount of
provisions than the prison fare, which was likely to be scanty enough.
Before, however, I in any way committed myself by showing that I had any
money in my possession, I determined to try the temper of the jailer.
We were allowed to remain alone for several hours. At length the door
opened, and a ruffianly-looking fellow appeared carrying a jug of water
and a loaf of coarse bread--for coarse it seemed, even by the light of
the dim lantern which he bore in his hand.
"This is but poor fare for prisoners uncondemned," I observed. "Could
you not, friend, obtain us something better?"
"Good enough for men who have only a few days to live," he answered, in
a gruff voice.
"They will not venture to execute Englishmen, or those under English
protection," I answered, in as bold a voice as I could muster; "so you
will not frighten us out of our appetites, friend."
"Caged birds don't often crow as loudly as you do," observed the jailer.
"However, it is as well to enjoy your life while you have it; so I will
not try further to put you out of humour."
Hoping that I had by degrees softened the jailer's feelings I took from
my pocket a single piece of gold, which I placed in his hand. As he
looked at it, his countenance brightened.
"Ah! now we understand each other," he observed. "And what is it you
want me to do for this?"
"To bring us better food," I answered; "and let me know what is going
forward without the walls. The man who would help us to escape would
find it to his advantage; for, although the British Government would
desire to protect us, Duke Alva is occasionally apt to execute his
prisoners first and then to apologise afterwards, when he has found out
that they were guiltless."
"We must not speak against the authorities from whom we take our bread,"
answered the jailer; but he still lingered, willing apparently to hear
what more I had to say. I, however, thought that I had said enough to
show him what were our wishes and intentions. At last he took his
departure, looking far more pleasantly at us than he had done when he
entered. We were left, therefore, alone to discuss our rough fare. As
we had been kept without food for some time, we were glad to eat it,
coarse as it was.
We had no other visitor after this till the next morning. We employed
the time in examining our cell, to ascertain if there was any possible
means of getting out. Jacob said that he had heard of men burrowing
under the walls, others had got out the iron bars in the windows, or
worked their way through a hole which they managed to form in the roof.
But there appeared very little chance of our getting out that way. Our
only hopes lay in the assistance the jailer might afford us. I cannot
say that we slept very pleasantly, for our beds were composed of heaps
of half-rotten straw; and though we could not find any way of getting
out of our dungeon, rats and other vermin found their way in, and
continued running about the floor, and frequently jumping over us during
the dark hours of the night.
The next morning the jailer again made his appearance, with a basket, in
addition to the usual prison fare, containing some white bread and
pastry, and several other articles of food. Without hesitation I paid
the price demanded for it, and then asked him if he had any news.
"Not much," he said. "Three men going to be hung, two to be burned; the
latter for attempting to assist a heretic prisoner to escape, the other,
who had been a priest, for preaching heretical doctrines." He looked at
me very hard as he spoke.
"That may be," I answered. "It is the fortune of war; we must all run
risks if we are to achieve any important object."
"Ay, ay, I see you know the world, young sir," he answered.
I again plied him with questions about the prospect of escaping, but he
only shook his head, repeating: "You would not ask me if you had seen
the poor fellow burned yesterday."
His argument was a powerful one. Though I did not like the thoughts of
bringing the man into such fearful danger, I still could not resist the
temptation of trying to induce him to help us in getting free. "If we
escape, you will escape with us," I observed; "so that the risk will not
be greater to you than to us."