Roving Jack, The Pirate Hunter — page 201: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

<<) CL eee ROVING JACK, THE PIRATE HUNTER. 22] Thus fortunate, and able to move about with facility, he hastened to the doors of his dungeon. These were doubled, and formed of stout oak. Without, was an open space or front'cell, contain- ing a window, and likewise shut by double doors, Jack Sheppard seeing the clinching of the nails by which the lock was fastened, conceived at once that no very large piece of wood need be cut. His conjecture turned out in the end to be correct. . Setting to work vigorously with a knife he had secreted, he cut through the wood to find its thickness. It proved to be only an inch. Possessed of this knowledge, he found it was now possible to open all four entrances. This would be a labour of some hours, He might be disturbed before its completion. Hope revived in his bosom, and he deferred his project till the following night. To prevent detection it was now necessary to re- place his fetters. Groping about, the link that had flown off was found and hid. Jack Sheppard, as in the case of the knife, had hitherto had the good fortune to escape examina- tion, as the possibility of ridding himself of his bonds was in no wise suspected, He now tied together the separated links ; but when he again tried to force his had into the ring, it was so swelled, that every effort to replace it was fruitless. The whole night was employed upon the rivet, but in vain. Noon was the hour of visitation, and danger and preservative caution obliged him to attempt forcing his hand into the handcuff. ‘After excruciating torture, necessity. Everything had the appearance of order, and the warders entered and examined the dungeon. After their departure, Jack Sheppard found it impossible to again free his right hand while it continued swelled. He therefore remained quiet for several days. On the forth night he was so far recovered as to be able to disencumber himself of his irons. Taking his knife, he began his labour. In half an hour the first of the double doors flew open. The next was a very different task. The lock wag soon cut round, but it opened out- wards, Therefore, no other means were left but to cut the whole away above the bar that crossed it, By incessant and incredible labour, this was done as the sweat dropped or literally flowed from the body of the captive, and his lacerated fingers were clotted with his own warm blood. But he beheld the road to freedom before him, At the bright vista, his hopes grew stronger, and his efforts were redoubled. The first of the next double doors was then at- tacked, which, turning inward, was as soon con- quered as the previous one, The fourth was now gained ; but had to be cut away as the second had been. His strength here began to fail him. Both hands were raw, Resting awhile, he began again, and made a cut afoot long. Suddenly the knife snapped, and the broken blade fell to the ground. «Cursed chance,” exclaimed the captive, “this is the end of all my hopes.’’ he effected this Dispirited, mad with pain, and wet with blood, Jack Sheppard returned to his cell. As he laid on its rude pallet, his soul sighed again for freedom, and the bright beams of liberty again shone upon his path. Reclining, he devised a plan that would forestall every obstacle, and anticipated measures by which he could overcome them all, The first was to climb the chimney, in spite of its many bars and gratings. These he managed to remove by using the iron leg of his flap table. ; The iron he pointed by rubbing the metal on the oor. This most painful and troublesome of his labours he accomplished ; though, in reaching the top of the chimney, he was entirely covered, and almost choked with the soot. Not having the means of placing guards on his knees and elbows, they were so excoriated that the blood ran down on his legs and hands, The roof gained, Jack Sheppard looked over the parapet, and found that he had to make a descent of at least sixty feet, while the cord which he had taken from his bedding amounted to but half the required length, Consequently, he would have a very heavy fall. The attempt was too hazardous, as from the great altitude he might be disabled, and of a necessity once more become a prisoner. He groped his way for some distance in the hope of finding a portion of the building on which he could alight with more safety, At length he came to the spot facing the gover- nor’s garden. The night was extremely dark and cold, the snow heayily descending, while ever and anon the flash of some distant light from the building would dis- close to his view the arms and accoutrements of the sentinels who paced their rounds on the boarded rampart, glistening and vanishing in the momentary blaze. Arrived at the point above-named, Jack Sheppard discovered in close contiguity a tree of considerable size. This tree, at a glance, he conceived would break his fall, and allow him to reach the ground in safety. As quick as the thought, he lowered his rope and descended to the full tension. Balancing himself with the cord on a stone pro- jection, he gave a sudden leap into the tree. Its branches received him, and by their means also he was enabled to descend into the garden beneath. Crossing the paths he arrived shortly at the exterior wall. Beneath the shelter of the wooden gallery at the summit, he went to work steadily to remove some of the stone-work to form an egress. This he accomplished with a pointed iron bar he had removed from the chimney by which he had escaped. He contrived to remove the granite blocks one by one, and in the end, succeeded in making a hole sufficiently wide to creep through. This undertaking was completed in a very short time, for the cuief of the rounds, provided with lights, inspectcd the spot every hour, and conceal- ment would be impossible. As Jack Sheppard passed into the aperture, he felt the road to freedom was now Open. To his dismay he found that he had a moat to cross, and another stone barrier to pierce. The water was six feet broad and four deep at COmiicloooks.€oO