CHAPTER X. A PLOT DISCOVERED.
The conversation between Gervaise and his fellow slave was interruptedby the arrival at the side of the quay of a party of knights. Silenceinstantly fell upon the slaves; all straightened themselves up to theoars, and prepared for a start. Among the knights who took their placeson the poop Gervaise saw with amusement his friend Ralph. He had no fearof a recognition, for the darkly stained skin and the black hair had socompletely altered him that when he had looked at himself in a mirror,after the application of the dye, he was surprised to find that he wouldnot have known it to be his own face. Ralph was in command of the party,which consisted of young knights who had but recently arrived at Rhodes;and as it was the first time he had been appointed as instructor,Gervaise saw that he was greatly pleased at what he rightly regarded aspromotion.
The galley at once pushed off from the wharf, and rowed out of theport. The work was hard; but as the slaves were not pressed to anyextraordinary exertions, Gervaise did not find it excessive. Hecongratulated himself, however, that the stain was, as he had beenassured, indelible, save by time, for after a few minutes' exercise hewas bathed in perspiration. As the galley had been taken out only thatinstruction might be given to the young knights, the work was frequentlybroken.
Sometimes they went ahead at full speed for a few hundred yards, as ifto chase an adversary; then they would swerve aside, the slaves on oneside rowing, while those on the other backed, so as to make a rapidturn. Then she lay for a minute or two immovable, and then backed water,or turned to avoid the attack of an imaginary foe. Then for an hour shelay quiet, while the knights, divesting themselves of their mantles andarmour, worked one of the guns on the poop, aiming at a floatingbarrel moored for the purpose a mile out at sea. At eleven o'clock theyreturned to the port. Bread and water were served out to the slaves, andthey were then permitted to lie down and sleep, the galley being mooredunder the shadow of the wall.
At four o'clock another party of knights came down, and the work wassimilar to that which had been performed in the morning. At seveno'clock the slaves were taken back to their barracks.
"Well, what do you think of your work?" one of the slaves askedGervaise, as they ate their evening meal.
"It would not be so bad if it was all like that."
"No. But I can tell you that when you have to row from sunrise tosunset, with perhaps but one or two pauses for a few minutes, it isa different thing altogether, especially if the galley is carryingdespatches, and speed is necessary. Then you get so worn out andexhausted, that you can scarce move an oar through the water, until youare wakened up by a smart as if a red hot iron had been laid across yourshoulders. It is terrible work then. The whip cracks every minute acrosssome one's back; you are blinded by exhaustion and rage, and you feelthat you would give the world if you could but burst your chain, rush onyour taskmasters, and strike, if only one blow, before you are killed."
"It must be terrible," Gervaise said. "And do you never get loose, andfall upon them?"
The man shook his head.
"The chains are too strong, and the watch too vigilant," he said. "SinceI came here I have heard tales of crews having freed themselves in thenight, and fallen upon the Christians, but for my part I do not believein them. I have thought, as I suppose every one of us has thought, howsuch a thing could be done; but as far as I know no one has hit on aplan yet. Now and then men have managed to become possessed of a file,and have, by long and patient work, sawn through a chain, and have,when a galley has been lying near our own shore, sprung overboardand escaped; but for every attempt that succeeds there must be twentyfailures, for the chains are frequently examined, and woe be to the manwho is found to have been tampering with his. But as to a whole ganggetting free at once, it is altogether impossible, unless the key ofthe pad locks could be stolen from an overseer, or the man bribed intoaiding us."
"And that, I suppose, is impossible?" Gervaise said.
"Certainly, impossible for us who have no money to bribe them with, buteasy enough if any one outside, with ample means, were to set about it.These overseers are, many of them, sons of Turkish mothers, and haveno sympathy, save that caused by interest, with one parent more thananother. Of course, they are brought up Christians, and taught to holdMoslems in abhorrence, but I think many of them, if they had their freechoice, would cross to the mainland. Here they have no chance of everbeing aught but what they are--overseers of slaves, or small prisonofficials. They are despised by these haughty knights, and hated by us,while were they to reach the mainland and adopt their mothers' religion,everything would be open to them. All followers of the Prophet havean equal chance, and one may be a soldier today, a bey tomorrow, anda pasha a year hence, if he be brave, or astute, or capable in any waybeyond his fellows. Men like these warders would be sure to make theirway.
"They cannot have gathered much during their service, therefore theoffer of a large sum of money would find plenty among them eager to earnit. But, you see, they are but the inferiors. On our voyages on boardthe galley, the knights inspect our fetters twice a day, and the keysare kept in the commander's cabin. For an hour or two, when we are noton a long passage, the padlocks are unfastened, in order that we mayjump over and bathe, and exercise our limbs; but at this time theknights are always on guard, and as we are without arms we arealtogether powerless. It is the same thing here. The senior warders, whoall belong to the Order, although of an inferior grade, come round, asyou have seen, to examine our fetters, and themselves lock and bar thedoors. If one or two of these could be corrupted, escape would be easyenough."
"But is it impossible to do this?" Gervaise asked eagerly. "My fatherhas money, and would I know be ready, if I could communicate with him,to pay a handsome sum, if sure that it would result in my obtaining myfreedom."
The man nodded significantly.
"There may be other means of doing it," he said. "Perhaps it will not belong before you hear of it. You seem a stout fellow, and full of spirit,but, as yet, anything that may be going on is known but to a few, andwill go no further until the time comes that all may be told. I thinknot so badly of men of our faith as to believe that any one would betraythe secret for the sake of obtaining his own freedom and a big reward;but secrets, when known by many, are apt to leak out. A muttered word ortwo in sleep, or the ravings of one down with fever, might afford groundfor suspicion, and torture would soon do the rest. I myself know nothingof the secret, but I do know that there is something going on which, ifsuccessful, will give us our freedom. I am content to know no more untilthe time comes; but there are few, save those engaged in the matter,that know as much as this, and you can see that it is better it shouldbe so. Look at that man opposite; he has been here fifteen years; heseldom speaks; he does his work, but it is as a brute beast--despair haswell nigh turned him into one. Think you that if such a man as that wereto know that there is hope, he would not be so changed that even thedullest would observe it? I see you are a brisk young fellow, and I sayto you, keep up your courage. The time is nearer than you think when youwill be free from these accursed shackles."
Each morning, as he went out to work with his gang, Gervaise saw theservant from the auberge standing near; but he made no sign. He wassatisfied that his suspicions had been justified, and that he was notleading this life in vain, but he thought it better to wait until theweek passed, and he was taken away to have his colour renewed, than tomake a sign that might possibly rouse the suspicions of his comrades. Onthe eighth morning, when the door of the room was unlocked, the overseersaid--"Number 36, you will remain here. You are wanted for other work."
After the gang had left the prison, the overseer returned.
"I am to take you up to the English auberge. The knight who handedyou over to me when you landed, told me that you might be wanted as aservitor; and as it is he who has sent down, it may be that a vacancyhas occurred. If so, you are in luck, for the servitors have a vastlybetter time of it than the galley slaves, and the English auberge hasthe best
reputation in that respect. Come along with me."
The English auberge was one of the most handsome of the buildingsstanding in the great street of the Knights. Its architecture was Gothicin its character, and, although the langue was one of the smallest ofthose represented at Rhodes, it vied with any of them in the splendourof its appointments. Sir John Boswell was standing in the interiorcourtyard.
"Wait here for a few minutes," he said to the overseer. "The bailiffwill himself question the slave as to his accomplishments; but I fancyhe will not be considered of sufficient age for the post that is vacant.However, if this should not be so, I shall no doubt find a post to fithim ere long, for he seems a smart young fellow, and, what is better, awilling one, and bears himself well under his misfortunes."
Then he motioned to Gervaise to follow him to the bailiff's apartments.
"Well, Sir Gervaise," Sir John Kendall exclaimed, as the door closedbehind him, "have you found aught to justify this cruel penance you haveundertaken?"
"As to the penance, Sir John, it has been nothing unsupportable. Theexercise is hard enough, but none too hard for one in good health andstrength, and, save for the filth of the chamber in which we are shutup at night, and the foul state of the rushes on which we lie, Ishould have naught to complain of. No, I have as yet heard nothing of asurety--and yet enough to show me that my suspicions were justified, andthat there is a plot of some sort on foot," and he related to the twoknights the conversation he had had with the galley slave.
"By St. George!" the bailiff said, "you have indeed been justified inyour surmises, and I am glad that I attached sufficient importance toyour suspicions to let you undertake this strange enterprise. What thinkyou, Sir John Boswell?"
"I think with you, that Sir Gervaise has fully justified his insistencein this matter, which I own I considered to be hare brained folly. Whatis to be done next, Sir Gervaise?"
"That is what I have been turning over in my mind. You see, I may havelittle warning of what is going to take place. I may not hear of ituntil we are locked up for the night and the affair is on the point oftaking place, and it will, of course, be most needful that I shall beable to communicate with you speedily."
"That, of course, is of vital importance," the bailiff said. "But how isit to be managed?"
"That is what I cannot exactly see, Sir John. An armed guard remains inour room all night. But, in the first place, he might be himself in theplot, and if not, the slaves would almost certainly overpower him andkill him, as a preliminary to the work of knocking off their chains."
"Is there a window to the room? At least, of course there is a window,but is it within your reach?"
"There are six small loopholes--one on each side of the door, and two ineach of the side walls; they are but four inches across and three feetin length, and there are two crossbars to each; they are four feet fromthe floor."
"At any rate, they are large enough for your arm to pass through, SirGervaise, and you might drop a strip of cloth out."
"Certainly I could, Sir John. I could easily hide a piece of whitecotton a yard or so long in my clothes, scanty as these are, and couldcertainly manage, unobserved, to drop it outside the window."
"Then the rest is for us to contrive, Boswell. We must have some oneposted in the yard of the prison, with instructions to go every tenminutes throughout the night to see if a strip of white cotton has beendropped out. When he finds it he must go at once to William Neave, thegovernor. He is a sturdy Englishman, and there is no fear of his havingbeen bribed to turn traitor; but it were well to take no one intoour confidence. I think we cannot do better than employ Ahmet on thisbusiness, as he already knows that Sir Gervaise is masquerading there.We will have William Neave up here presently. Tell him that for certainreasons we wish Ahmet to pass the night for the present in the prison,and arrange with him on what excuse we can best bestow him there withoutexciting suspicion. At any rate, Sir Gervaise, that is our affair."
He went to a closet and took out a white mantle, tore a strip off thebottom, and gave it to Gervaise.
"It would be best not to keep you here any longer," he said, "so renewyour stain while I speak. As soon as you learn the details of the plot,you will drop this out from the loophole on the right hand side of thedoor; that is to say, the one on your right, standing inside. If theaffair is not to come off at once, it were best for you to proceed asbefore. Ahmet will be outside when you go out with your gang, and onyour nodding to him we will make some excuse to take you away on yourreturn. I say this because if you see that the affair, whatever it is,is not imminent, you might think it better to remain with them longer,so as to learn their plans more fully, instead of having the thing put astop to at once."
"I understand, Sir John; but, as I have said, I do not think we shouldall be told until the blow is ready to be struck, as they would beafraid that some one might inform against them, if time and opportunitywere granted them."
"I think so too, Sir Gervaise. This afternoon we will call upon thegrand master, for we have no means of knowing how serious or howextended this plot may be; it may include only the crew of a singlegalley, and, on the other hand, the whole of the slaves may beimplicated in it. It is evident, therefore, that the matter is tooserious to be kept any longer from his knowledge."
Three more days passed. On the third evening, after the allowance ofbroth and bread had been consumed, and the door was closed and lockedupon them for the night, three or four of the galley slaves, aftertalking eagerly together, beckoned to the others to gather round themat the end of the room farthest from the door. Two of them took up armsfull of the bedding, and stuffed it into the side windows. Gervaisesaw, in the dim light, a look of intense excitement on the faces of theslaves. It had been vaguely known among them that a plot was in hand,although but few had been admitted into the confidence of the leaders.Hitherto all had feared that it concerned only a small number, butthe preparations now made to insure that they should not be overheard,showed that, whatever the plan might be, all were to share in it.
"Thanks be to Allah, the All Powerful," one of the men began, "my lipsare unsealed, and I can tell you the great news that our hour for escapefrom bondage is at hand! We need not fear the warder there," he went on,as several eyes were turned apprehensively towards the guard, who, withhis spear beside him, was leaning carelessly against the wall at thefarther end, looking through the window into the courtyard; "he iswith us. You must know that for the last two months an agent fromConstantinople has been on the Island, and has been engaged in arrangingthis affair. Two of our taskmasters belonging to the Order have beenbribed by large sums of money, and several of the overseers, who arehalf of our blood, have eagerly embraced the prospect of returningto their mothers' country, and of avowing openly their belief in ourreligion. These, again, have bought over many of the guards, oursincluded, and tonight all will be ready for action. Those not of ourparty will be killed without ceremony. Duplicate keys have been made ofall the padlocks of the fetters; the guards who are with us have eachone of them, the others will have been slipped into the hands of one manin each gang as they returned tonight from work. The overseers who arein the plot will, at midnight, go quietly round and unlock the doors,and remove the bars from the outside. We have, therefore, only toovercome the eight or ten men who patrol the prison; and as we shallhave the arms of the guards, some thirty in number, we shall make quickwork of them.
"The two guards at the outside gates must, of course, be killed.Duplicates of the keys have been made, and will be hidden in a spotknown to some of our party, close to the gate. Thus we have but to issueout and rush down, in a body, to the port. I and another are to take thearms of our guard, and two others are told off in each room to do thesame. That will give us sixty armed men. We shall make very short workof the guards at the gate leading into the port. Then twenty of us areto run along the mole to Fort St. Nicholas, twenty to the Tower of St.Michael, and twenty to that of St. John. There will be, at the most, butthree or four men keeping watch
at each fort, and thus we shall have inour possession the three forts commanding the entrance to the harbour.There are, as you know, six galleys manned by crews from our prisonthere. The crew of each galley will embark upon it, and man the oars;the rest will divide themselves among the galleys. Before starting, weshall seize and set fire to all other galleys and ships in the port. Thegangs in four of the rooms have been told off specially for this duty.Before firing them, they are to take out such provisions as they mayfind, and transport them to the galleys. We who take the forts areprovided with hammers and long nails, to drive down the vent holes ofthe cannon; when we have done this, we are to wait until one of thegalleys fetches us off. Ten minutes should be ample time for all thereis to be done, and even if the alarm is given at once, we shall beaway long before the knights can be aroused from sleep, buckle on theirarmour, and get down to the port."
Exclamations of delight and approbation burst from his hearers.
"Then it is only we of this prison who are in the plot?" one said.
"Yes. In the first place, it would have been too dangerous to attempt tofree all. In the second, the galleys would not carry them; we shall beclosely packed as it is, for there are over a thousand here. I hear thatthere was a talk of freeing all, and that we, instead of embarking atfirst, should make for the other prisons, burst open the doors, andrescue the others; but by the time we could do so the knights wouldbe all in arms, and our enterprise would fail altogether, for as but asmall proportion of us can obtain weapons, we could not hope to overcomethem. Were it not for the strong wall that separates their quarter fromthe town, we might make straight for their houses and slay them beforethe alarm could be given. As it is, that would be impossible, andtherefore the plan will be carried out as I have told you. The loss ofall their galleys and of over one thousand slaves will be a heavy blowfor them. Great pains have been taken to prevent confusion when we reachthe port. The men in each room have been instructed as to the galleys onwhich they are to embark. As for you, you know precisely what is to bedone; you will simply take your places, and then wait until all are onboard. No galley is to push out from the wharf until the last man ofthose employed in burning the ships has returned, with the provisionsfound in them. Then the order will be given by the man who has arrangedall this, and the six galleys will put out together.
"One is to row to each of the forts to carry off the party that willhave been engaged in silencing its cannon. Our galley is to row to St.Nicholas, and take off the twenty men I shall lead there. There is nopossibility of failure. Everything has, you see, been arranged. One ofthe overseers who is in the plot walked by my side as we returned fromthe port, and gave me the instructions, and all the others will havebeen told in the same way, or else by the guards in charge of them."The gang now broke up into little groups, talking excitedly over theunlooked for news, and exulting over the speedy advent of liberty.Gervaise strolled carelessly to the window, and dropped out the whitestrip of stuff. It was now quite dark, and there was no fear of any oneobserving the movement. Then he joined the others. After an hour anda half had passed he heard footsteps approaching the door. There was apause; then the outside bars were taken down, and a key turned in thelock. A deep silence fell on the slaves. Then a voice called, "Number36!"
"What is it?" replied Gervaise, without raising himself from his seat onthe bedding. "I have done my share of work today, and earned my night'ssleep."
"It is a knight from the English auberge; he has come to fetch you. Itseems that you are to go there as a servitor."
"What a cursed fortune," Gervaise muttered, in Turkish, "just when aroad to freedom is open! I have a good mind to say I am ill, and cannotgo till the morning."
"No, no!" one of the others exclaimed. "They would only drag you out,and when they saw that there was naught the matter with you, wouldsuspect that there must be some reason why you did not want to go,when, as every one knows, the position of the servitors is in every waypreferable to ours."
"Now then, why are you delaying?" a voice said sharply, and a warderentered with a lighted torch. "Get up, you lazy hound! It will be worsefor you if I have to speak again."
"I am coming," Gervaise grumbled. "I was just asleep."
He rose, as if reluctantly, and went forward. The warder gave him anangry push, followed him out, and locked and barred the door after him.
"I suppose this is the right man?" Sir John Boswell said.
"This is Number 36, Sir Knight, the same who was taken over to yourauberge the other day," and he held the light close to Gervaise's face.
"Yes, that is the man. Follow me," he added, in Turkish. The gate ofthe courtyard was unbarred, and they passed out unquestioned. Sir Johnstrolled on ahead. Gervaise followed him a pace or two behind. Not untilthey had passed through the gate of the castle did Sir John turn.
"I have not spoken to you," he said, "as we may have been watched. Keepyour news until we reach the auberge."
Upon entering it they went up at once to Sir John Kendall's apartments.
"Well, Sir Gervaise, the strip of cotton was brought to us safely. Whatis your news?"
"It is very serious, Sir John, and I have been in terrible anxiety sinceI dropped it out, lest it should not come to hand in time. As it is,you have till midnight to make your preparations." He then repeated thestatement made by the galley slave.
"By my faith," Sir John Kendall exclaimed, "this is a pretty plotindeed! And had it succeeded, as it certainly would have done but foryour vigilance, it would have been a heavy blow to us. The burning ofall our galleys would have crippled us sorely, and the loss of overa thousand slaves would have been a serious one indeed, when we sourgently require them for completing our defences. Get rid of thoseclothes at once, Sir Gervaise, and don your own. We must go straightto the grand master. You will find your clothes and armour in the nextroom. I had them taken there as soon as your token was brought me."
In a few minutes Gervaise returned in his usual attire, and with hisarmour buckled on. The two knights were already in their coats ofmail, and leaving the auberge they went to the grand master's palace.A servitor had already been sent to D'Aubusson to inform him that theywere coming, and he advanced to meet them as they entered.
"Welcome, Sir Gervaise!" he said. "Whether your news be good or bad,whether you have found that it is a general rising of the slaves thatis intended, or a plot by which a handful of slaves may seize a boatand escape, the gratitude of the Order is no less due to you for thehardships and humiliations you have undergone on its behalf."
"It concerns but one prison: that of St. Pelagius."
"The largest of them," the grand master put in.
"The whole of the slaves there are to be liberated at twelve o'clocktonight, are to seize the three water towers and to spike the guns, toburn all the shipping in the harbour, to make off with six galleys, anddestroy the rest."
"By St. John!" D'Aubusson exclaimed, "this is indeed a serious matter.But tell me all about it. There must be treachery indeed at work forsuch a scheme to be carried out."
Gervaise now told him all the details he had learned.
"So two of the Order, though but of the inferior grade, are in theplot?" the grand master said; "and several of the overseers? One of thevillains is, of course, the man you saw this Greek talking with. Wemust get hold of the other if we can. As to the slaves, now that we havewarning, there is an end of the matter, though without such warning theywould surely have succeeded, for the plans are well laid, and they wouldhave been at sea before we could have gathered in any force at the port.If it were not that it would cost the lives of many of the warders andof the prison guards, I should say we ought to take post outside thegate, for we should then catch the traitors who are to accompany them.As it is, we must be beforehand with them. A hundred men will be morethan ample for our purpose. Do you take fifty of your knights, Sir JohnKendall, and I will draw fifty of those of Auvergne. At eleven o'clockwe will meet at the gate leading down into the town, and will march tothe privat
e entrance of the governor's house. I will go in first with afew of you, tell him what we have discovered, and post guards to preventany one from leaving his house. Then, having admitted the others, wewill go quietly out and place a party at each door of the overseers'house, with orders to seize any who may come out. The rest, in smallparties, will then go round the prison, and, entering each room, showthe slaves that their plot has been discovered. This we must do to savethe lives of the guards who may be faithful to their trust. As to thehigher officials engaged in the affair, we must obtain their names fromthe overseers or slaves. It is not likely that the two traitors willquit their houses, as they will leave the matter in the hands of theoverseers, who, as you say, intend to first open the doors, and then toaccompany the slaves in their escape. Do not warn the knights until itis nearly time to start, Sir John. The less stir made the better, for noone can say whether they may not have suborned some of the servitors tosend instant news of any unusual movements in any of the auberges."
At half past ten Sir John Kendall went round among the knights and badefifty of them arm themselves quietly, and proceed, one by one, down tothe gate, and there await orders. Up to this time Gervaise had remainedin the bailiff's room, so as to avoid the questioning that would takeplace, and he went down to the gate with the bailiff and Sir JohnBoswell.
The knights assembled rapidly. None were aware of the reason for whichthey had been called out at such an hour, and there was a buzz of talkand conjecture until Sir John Kendall arrived. He was followed by fourof the servants, who at once lighted the torches they carried, whenhe proceeded to go through the roll, and found that the muster wascomplete. Many of the knights had gazed in some surprise at Gervaise,whose dark complexion altogether concealed his identity, and it wassupposed that he must be some newly arrived knight, though none hadheard that any ship had entered the harbour that day.
Two or three minutes later fifty knights of the langue of Auvergnecame down, headed by the grand master himself, whose appearance greatlyheightened the surprise of the English knights. The torches were nowextinguished, the gate thrown open, and the party descended into thetown. Gervaise had purposely fallen in by the side of Harcourt.
"You are but newly arrived, Sir Knight?" the latter said, as they movedoff.
"Not so very newly, Ralph," Gervaise replied.
"What! is it you, Gervaise?" Harcourt exclaimed, with a start ofsurprise. "Why, I did not know you, though I looked hard at you in thetorch light. What have you done with yourself? Where have you been? Doyou know what all this is about?"
"I cannot tell you now, Ralph. You must be content to know that I havebeen in prison, and working in the galleys."
"The saints defend us! Why, what on earth had you done to entail suchpunishment as that? It is an outrage. The grand master and the councilhave the right to expel a knight from the Order after due trial andinvestigation, but not to condemn him to such penalties as the galleys.It is an outrage upon the whole Order, and I would say so to the grandmaster himself."
"There was no outrage in it, Ralph. Wait until you hear the whole story.That I have not disgraced you, you may judge from the fact that I am inthe armour and mantle of the Order, and that, as you saw, I came downwith Sir John Kendall himself."
There were no people about in the streets, though the lights stillburned on a few of the roofs. For a short distance the knights marcheddown towards the port, and then turned down a street to the right. Aftera few minutes' marching they halted under a high wall which all knew tobe that of the prison of St. Pelagius. Six knights were posted at themain entrance, with orders that none should be allowed to leave theprison, and that any persons who came up to the gate were to be at onceseized and made prisoners.
The rest marched on to a small door leading into the governor's house.Here they were halted, and told to wait till called in; six knights ofEngland, and as many of Auvergne, being told off to accompany the grandmaster and Sir John Kendall. A note had been sent to the governor,informing him that the grand master intended to visit the prison ateleven o'clock, but that the matter was to be kept an absolute secret;and that the governor himself was to be down at the gate to admit him.