Chapter 12: In Mocenigo's Power.
It was fully an hour before Polani was recalled to the council chamber.He saw at once, by the flushed and angry faces of some of the council,that the debate had been a hot one. At this he was not surprised, forhe knew that the friends and connections of Ruggiero Mocenigo wouldvehemently oppose the suggestion he had made.
The doge announced the decision.
"The council thank you for your suggestion, Signor Polani, and haveresolved, by a majority, to confer upon Messer Francisco Hammond thehigh honour of placing his name upon the list of the citizens ofVenice, without requiring from him the oaths of allegiance to thestate. As such an honour has never before been conferred, save uponpersonages of the highest rank, it will be a proof of the gratitudewhich Venice feels towards one who has done her such distinguishedservice. The decree to that effect will be published tomorrow."
The merchant retired, highly gratified. The honour was a great andsignal one, and the material advantages considerable. The fact thatFrancis was a foreigner had been the sole obstacle which had presenteditself to him, in associating him with his business, for it wouldprevent Francis from trading personally with any of the countries inwhich Venetian citizens enjoyed special advantages.
Francis was immensely gratified, when he heard from the merchant of thehonour to be conferred upon him. It was of all others the reward hewould have selected, had a free choice been given him, but it was sogreat and unusual an honour, that he could indeed scarcely credit itwhen the merchant told him the result of his interviews with thecouncil. The difficulty which his being a foreigner would throw in theway of his career as a merchant in Eastern waters, had been frequentlyin his mind, and would, he foresaw, greatly lessen his usefulness, butthat he should be able to obtain naturalization, without renouncing hisallegiance to England, he had never even hoped.
"It is a very high honour, doubtless," Polani said, "but no whit higherthan you deserve. Besides, after all, it costs Venice nothing, andmoney is scarce at present. At any rate, I can congratulate myself aswell as you, for I foresaw many difficulties in our way. Although theships carrying the Venetian flag could enter the ports of all countriestrading with us, you would personally be liable to arrest, at any time,on being denounced as not being a native of Venice, which you assuredlywould be by my rivals in trade."
The next day a bulletin was published, giving the substance of Pisani'sdespatch, and announcing that, in token of the gratitude of therepublic for the great service he had rendered, Messer Hammond would beat once granted the freedom of Venice, and his name inserted on thelist of her citizens.
During these two days the delight of Venice at the news of the victoryhad been extreme. The houses had been decorated with flags, and thebells of all the churches had peeled out joyously. Crowds assembledround the Polani Palace, and insisted upon Francis making hisappearance, when they greeted him with tremendous shouts of applause.Upon the evening of the second day he said to Polani:
"Have you any ship fit for sea, signor, because if so, I pray you tosend me away, no matter where. I cannot stand this. Since the decreewas published, this morning, I have not had a moment's peace, and it istoo absurd, when I did no more than any sailor on board the ship. If itwent on, I should very soon be heartily sorry I ever interfered onbehalf of the admiral."
The merchant smiled.
"I have half promised to take you with me to the reception at thePersanis' this evening, and have had a dozen requests of a similarnature for every night this week and next."
"Then, if you have no ship ready, signor, I will charter a fishingboat, engage a couple of men, and go off for a fortnight. By the end ofthat time something fresh will have happened."
"I can send you off, if you really wish it, Francisco, the first thingtomorrow morning. I am despatching a small craft with a message to myagent in Corfu, and with letters for my daughters. They will bedelighted to see you, and indeed, I shall be glad to know that you arewith them, until I can wind up several affairs which I have in hand,and join them myself. She is fast, and you should be at Corfu ineight-and-forty hours after sailing."
Francis gladly embraced the offer, and started the next morning. Thevessel was a small one, designed either to sail or row. Her crewconsisted of twenty men, who rowed sixteen sweeps when the wind waslight or unfavourable. She was an open boat, except that she was deckedat each end, a small cabin being formed aft for the captain, and anypassengers there might be on board, while the crew stowed themselves inthe little forecastle.
When the boat was halfway across, a sail was seen approaching, and thecaptain recognized her as one of Polani's vessels.
"In that case," Francis said, "we may as well direct our course so asto pass them within hailing distance. When you approach them, hoist thePolani flag, and signal to them to lay to."
This was done, and the two craft brought up within thirty yards of eachother. The captain appeared at the side of the vessel, and doffed hiscap when he recognized Francis.
"Have you any news from the East?" the latter asked.
"But little, signor. A few Genoese pirates are among the islands, andare reported to have made some captures, but I have seen none. There isnothing new from Constantinople. No fresh attempt has been made by theemperor to recapture Tenedos."
"Did you touch at Corfu on your way back?"
"I left there yesterday, signor. A strange craft has been reported ashaving been seen on the coast. She carries no flag, but from herappearance she is judged to be a Moor."
"But we are at peace with the Moors," Francis said, "and it is yearssince they ventured on any depredations, excepting on their ownwaters."
"That is so, signor, and I only tell you what was the report at Corfu.She appeared to be a swift craft, rowing a great many oars. Hermovements certainly seem mysterious, as she has several times appearedoff the coast. Two vessels which sailed from Cyprus, and were to havetouched at Corfu, had not arrived there when I left, and they say thatseveral others are overdue. I do not say that has anything to do withthe strange galley, but it is the general opinion in Corfu that it hassomething to do with it, and I am the bearer of letters from thegovernor to the seignory, praying that two or three war ships may atonce be sent down to the island."
"It looks strange, certainly," Francis said; "but I cannot believe thatany Moorish pirates would be so daring as to come up into Venetianwaters."
"I should not have thought so either, signor; but it may be that,knowing there is war between Venice and Genoa, and that the stategalleys of the republics, instead of being scattered over the seas, arenow collected in fleets, and thinking only of fighting each other, theymight consider it a good opportunity for picking prizes."
"It is a good opportunity, certainly," Francis said; "but they wouldknow that Venice would, sooner or later, reckon with them; and woulddemand a four-fold indemnity for any losses her merchants may havesuffered.
"However, I will not detain you longer. Will you tell Signor Polanithat you met us, and that we were making good progress, and hoped toreach Corfu some time tomorrow?"
"This is a curious thing about this galley," the captain of the boatsaid to Francis, as the men again dipped their oars into the water, andthe boat once more proceeded on the way.
"It is much more likely to be a Genoese pirate than a Moor," Francissaid. "They may have purposely altered their rig a little, in order todeceive vessels who may sight them. It is very many years since anyMoorish craft have been bold enough to commit acts of piracy on thisside of Sicily. However, we must hope that we shall not fall in withher, and if we see anything answering to her description we will giveit a wide berth. Besides, it is hardly likely they would interfere withso small a craft as ours, for they would be sure we should be carryingno cargo of any great value."
"Twenty Christian slaves would fetch money among the Moors," thecaptain said. "Let us hope we shall see nothing of them; for we shouldhave no chance of resistance against such a craft, and she would go twofeet to our one."
The next morning Francis was aroused by a hurried summons from thecaptain. Half awake, and wondering what could be the cause of the call,for the boat lay motionless on the water, he hurried out from thelittle cabin. Day had just broken, the sky was aglow with ruddy lightin the east.
"Look there, signor!" the captain said, pointing to the south. "Thewatch made them out a quarter of an hour since, but, thinking nothingof it, they did not call me. What do you think of that?"
Two vessels were lying in close proximity to each other, at a distanceof about two miles from the boat. One of them was a large trader, theother was a long galley rigged quite differently to those of eitherVenice or Genoa.
"That is the craft they were speaking of," the captain said. "There isno mistaking her. She may be an Egyptian or a Moor, but certainly shecomes from the African coast."
"Or is got up in African fashion," Francis said. "She may be, as weagreed yesterday, a Genoese masquerading in that fashion, in order tobe able to approach our traders without their suspicions being aroused.She looks as if she has made a captive of that vessel. I imagine shemust have come up to her late yesterday evening, and has been at workall night stripping her. I hope she is too busy to attend to us."
The sail had been lowered the instant the captain caught sight of thevessels, for there was scarcely enough wind to fill it, and the menwere now rowing steadily.
"I do not think she could have taken much of her cargo out. She is verydeep in the water."
"Very deep," Francis agreed. "She seems to me to be deeper than she didthree minutes ago."
"She is a great deal deeper than when we first caught sight of her,"one of the sailors said. "She stood much higher in the water than thegalley did, and now, if anything, the galley stands highest."
"See!" the captain exclaimed suddenly, "the galley is rowing her oarson the port bow, and bringing her head round. She has noticed us, andis going to chase us! We have seen too much.
"Row, men--it is for life! If they overtake us it is a question betweendeath, and slavery among the Moors."
A sudden exclamation from one of the men caused the captain to glanceround again at the galley. She was alone now on the water--the traderhad sunk!
"Do you take the helm, signor," the captain said. "All hands will helpat the oars."
Some of the oars were double banked, and beneath the strength of thetwenty men, the boat moved fast through the water. The galley was nowrowing all her oars, and in full pursuit. For a quarter of an hour nota word was spoken. Every man on board was doing his utmost. Francis hadglanced backwards several times, and at the end of a quarter of anhour, he could see that the distance between the boat and her pursuerhad distinctly lessened.
"Is she gaining on us?" the captain asked, for the cabin in the sternhid the galley from the sight of the oarsmen.
"She is gaining," Francis said quietly, "but not rapidly. Row steadily,my lads, and do not despair. When they find how slowly they gain, theymay give up the chase and think us not worth the trouble.
"Jacopo," he said to an old sailor who was rowing in the bow, and whoalready was getting exhausted from the exertion, "do you lay in youroar and come aft. I will take your place."
At the end of an hour the galley was little more than a quarter of amile away.
"We had better stop," the captain said. "We have no chance of gettingaway, and the longer the chase the more furious they will be. What doyou think, signor?"
"I agree with you," Francis replied. "We have done all that we could.There is no use in rowing longer."
The oars fell motionless in the water, and a few minutes later the longgalley came rushing up by their side.
"A fine row you have given us, you dogs!" a man shouted angrily as shecame alongside. "If you haven't something on board that will pay us forthe chase we have had, it will be the worse for you. What boat isthat?"
"It is the Naxos, and belongs to Messer Polani of Venice. We are boundto Corfu, and bear letters from the padrone to his agent there. We haveno cargo on board."
"The letters, perhaps, may be worth more than any cargo such a boatwould carry. So come on board, and let us see what the excellent Polanisays to his agent. Now, make haste all of you, or it will be the worsefor you."
It was useless hesitating. The captain, Francis, and the crew steppedon board the galley.
"Just look round her," the captain said to one of his sailors. "Ifthere is anything worth taking, take it, and then knock a hole in herbottom with your axe."
Francis, as he stepped on board the galley, looked round at the crew.They were not Genoese, as he had expected, but a mixture of ruffiansfrom all the ports in the Mediterranean, as he saw at once by theircostumes. Some were Greeks from the islands, some Smyrniots, Moors, andSpaniards; but the Moors predominated, nearly half the crew belongingto that race.
Then he looked at the captain, who was eagerly perusing the documentsthe captain had handed him. As his eye fell upon him, Francis started,for he recognized at once the man whose designs he had twice thwarted,Ruggiero Mocenigo, and felt that he was in deadly peril.
After reading the merchant's communication to his agent, Ruggieroopened the letter addressed to Maria. He had read but a few lines whenhe suddenly looked up, and then, with an expression of savage pleasurein his face, stepped up to Francis.
"So, Messer Hammond, the good Polani sends you to stay for a while withhis daughters! Truly, when I set out in chase this morning of thatwretched rowboat, I little deemed that she carried a prize that Ivalued more than a loaded caravel! It is to you I owe it that I am anexile, instead of being the honoured son-in-law of the wealthy Polani.It was your accursed interference that brought all my misfortunes uponme; but thank Heaven my vengeance has come at last!
"Take them all below," he said, turning to his men. "Put the heaviestirons you have got on this fellow, and fasten them with staples intothe deck.
"You thought I was going to hang you, or throw you overboard," he wenton, turning to Francis. "Do not flatter yourself that your death willbe so easy a one--you shall suffer a thousand torments before you die!"
Francis had not spoken a word since Ruggiero first turned to him, buthad stood with a tranquil and almost contemptuous expression upon hisface; but every nerve and muscle of his body were strained, and inreadiness to spring into action. He had expected that Ruggiero would atonce attack him, and was determined to leap upon him, and to sell hislife as dearly as possible.
The sailors seized Francis and his companions, and thrust them downinto the hold, which was already crowded with upwards of a hundredcaptives. He was chained with heavy manacles. In obedience toRuggiero's orders, staples were driven through the links of his chaindeep into the deck, so that he was forced to remain in a sitting orlying posture. The captain of the Naxos came and sat beside him.
"Who is this pirate captain, Messer Francisco, who thus knows and hasan enmity against you? By his speech he is surely a Venetian. And yet,how comes a Venetian in command of a pirate?"
"That man is Ruggiero Mocenigo--the same who twice attempted to carryoff Messer Polani's daughters. The second time he succeeded, and wouldhave been tried for the offence by the state had he not, aided by aband of Paduans, escaped from the keeping of his guard."
"Of course I heard of it, signor. I was away at sea at the time, but Iheard how you came up at the moment when the padrone's gondoliers hadbeen overcome, and rescued his daughters. And this is that villainMocenigo, a disgrace to his name and family!"
"Remember the name, captain, and tell it to each of your men, so thatif they ever escape from this slavery, into which, no doubt, he intendsto sell you, they may tell it in Venice that Ruggiero Mocenigo is apirate, and an ally of the Moors. As for me, there is, I think, butsmall chance of escape; but at any rate, if you ever reach Venice, youwill be able to tell the padrone how it was that we never arrived atCorfu, and how I fell into the hands of his old enemy. Still, I do notdespair that I may carry the message myself. There is many a slipbetween th
e cup and the lip, and Mocenigo may have cause, yet, toregret that he did not make an end of me as soon as he got me into hishands."
"It may be so," the captain said, "and indeed I cannot think that sobrave a young gentleman is destined to die, miserably, at the hands ofsuch a scoundrel as this man has shown himself to be. As for death, didit come but speedily and sharply, I would far sooner die than live aMoorish slave. Santa Maria, how they will wonder at home, when the daysgo on, and the Naxos does not return, and how at last they will give upall hope, thinking that she has gone down in a sudden squall, and neverdreaming that we are sold as slaves to the Moors by a countryman!"
"Keep up your heart, captain. Be sure that when the war with Genoa isover, Venice will take the matter in hand. As you know, a vessel hasalready carried tidings thither of the depredation of a Moorishcruiser, and she will take vengeance on the Moors, and may even forcethem to liberate the captives they have taken; and besides, you may besure that the padrone, when he hears of the Moorish galley, and findswe never reached Corfu although the weather continued fine, will guessthat we have fallen into her hands, and will never rest till he findswhere we have been taken, and will ransom those who survive at whateverprice they may put upon them."
"He will do his best, I know. He is a good master to serve. But once aprisoner among the Moors, the hope of one's ever being heard of againis slight. Sometimes, of course, men have been ransomed; but most, as Ihave heard, can never be found by their friends, however ready they maybe to pay any ransom that might be asked. It just depends whether theyare sold to a Moor living in a seaport or not. If they are, there wouldbe no great difficulty in hearing of them, but if they are sold intothe interior, no inquiries are ever likely to discover them."
"You must hope for the best," Francis said. "Chances of escape mayoccur, and I have heard that Christian captives, who have beenreleased, say that the Moors are for the most part kind masters."
"I have heard so, too," the captain said; "and anyhow, I would ratherbe a Moorish slave than lie in a Genoese dungeon. The Genoese are notlike us. When we take prisoners we treat them fairly and honourably,while they treat their prisoners worse than dogs. I wish I could dosomething for you, Messer Francisco. Your case is a deal worse thanours.
"Listen, they are quarrelling up on deck!"
There was indeed a sound of men in hot dispute, a trampling of feet, aclash of steel, and the sound of bodies falling.
"It is not possible that one of our cruisers can have come up, and isboarding the pirate," the captain said, "for no sail was in sight whenwe were brought here. I looked round the last thing before I left thedeck. What can they be fighting about?"
"Likely enough, as to their course. They have probably, from what weheard, taken and sunk several ships, and some may be in favour ofreturning to dispose of their booty, while others may be for cruisinglonger. I only hope that scoundrel Ruggiero is among those we heardfall. They are quiet now, and one party or the other has evidently gotthe best of it. There, they are taking to the oars again."
Several days passed. Sometimes the oars were heard going, but generallythe galley was under sail. The sailors brought down food and water,morning and evening, but paid no other attention to the captives.Francis discussed, with some of the other prisoners, the chances ofmaking a sudden rush on to the deck, and overpowering the crew; but alltheir arms had been taken from them, and the galley, they calculated,contained fully a hundred and fifty men. They noticed, too, when thesailors brought down the food, a party armed and in readiness wereassembled round the hatchway.
At all other times the hatchway was nearly closed, being only leftsufficiently open to allow a certain amount of air to pass down intothe hold, and by the steady tramp of steps, up and down, they knew thattwo sentries were also on guard above. Most of the prisoners were soovercome with the misfortune which had befallen them, and the prospectof a life in hopeless slavery, that they had no spirit to attempt anyenterprise whatever, and there was nothing to do but to wait thetermination of the voyage.
At the end of six days there was a bustle on deck, and the chain of theanchor was heard to run out. Two or three hours afterwards the hatchwaywas taken off. When the rest had ascended, two men came below withhammers, and drew the staples which fastened Francis to the deck.
On going up, he was at first so blinded with the glare of thesunshine--after six days in almost total darkness--that he could scarcesee where he was. The ship was lying at anchor in a bay. The shoreswere low, and a group of houses stood abreast of where the ship wasanchored. By their appearance Francis saw at once that he was on thecoast of Africa, or of some island near it.
The prisoners were ordered to descend into the boats which layalongside, some sailors taking their places with them. Ruggiero was notat first to be seen, but just as Francis was preparing to take hisplace in the boat, he came out from the cabin. One of his arms was in asling, and his head bandaged.
"Take special care of that prisoner," he said to the men. "Do not takeoff his chains, and place a sentinel at the door of the place of hisconfinement. I would rather lose my share of all the spoil we havetaken, than he should escape me!"
The shackles had been removed from the rest of the captives, and onlanding they were driven into some huts which stood a little apart fromthe village. Francis was thrust into a small chamber with five or sixcompanions. The next morning the other prisoners were called out, andFrancis was left alone by himself all day. On their return in theevening, they told him that all the prisoners had been employed inassisting to get out the cargo, with which the vessel was crammed, andin carrying it to a large storehouse in the village.
"They must have taken a rich booty, indeed," said one of the prisoners,who had already told Francis that he was the captain of the vessel theyhad seen founder. "I could tell pretty well what all the bales contain,by the manner of packing, and I should say that there were the pick ofthe cargoes of a dozen ships there. All of us here belong to threeships, except those taken with you; but from the talk of the sailors, Iheard that they had already sent off two batches of captives, byanother ship which was cruising in company of them. I also learned thatthe quarrel, which took place just after you were captured, arose fromthe fact that the captain wished a party to land, to carry off twowomen from somewhere in the island of Corfu; but the crew insisted onfirst returning with the booty, urging, that if surprised by a Venetiangalley, they might lose all the result of their toil. This was theopinion of the majority, although a few sided with the captain, beinginduced to do so by the fact that he offered to give up all his shareof the booty, if they would do so.
"The captain lost his temper and drew his sword, but he and his partywere quickly overpowered. He has kept to his cabin ever since,suffering, they say, more from rage than from his wounds. However, itseems that as soon as we and the cargo have been sold, they are tostart for Corfu to carry out the enterprise. We are on an island notvery far from Tunis, and a fast-rowing boat started early this morningto the merchants with whom they deal, for it seems that a certainamount of secrecy is observed, in order that if any complaints are madeby Venice, the Moorish authorities may disclaim all knowledge of thematter."
Two days later the prisoners captured were again led out, their guardstelling them that the merchants who had been expected had arrived.Giuseppi, who had hitherto borne up bravely, was in an agony of griefat being separated from Francis. He threw himself upon the ground,wept, tore his hair, and besought the guards to let him share hismaster's fate, whatever that might be. He declared that he would killhimself were they separated; and the guards would have been obliged touse force, had not Francis begged Giuseppi not to struggle againstfate, but to go quietly, promising again and again that, if he himselfregained his freedom, he would not rest until Giuseppi was also set atliberty. At last the lad yielded, and suffered himself to be led away,in a heartbroken state, by the guards.
None of the captives returned to the hut, and Francis now turned hiswhole thoughts to freeing himself from
his chains. He had alreadyrevolved in his mind every possible mode of escape. He had tried thestrong iron bars of the window, but found that they were so rigidlyfixed and embedded in the stonework, that there was no hope of escapein this way; and even could he have got through the window, the weightof his shackles would have crippled him.
He was fastened with two chains, each about two feet six inches long,going from the wrist of the right hand to the left ankle, and from theleft hand to the right ankle. Thus he was unable to stand quiteupright, and anything like rapid movement was almost impossible. Thebottom of the window came within four feet of the ground, and it wasonly by standing on one leg, and lifting the other as high as he could,that he was able to grasp one of the bars to try its strength.
The news he had heard from his fellow prisoner almost maddened him, andhe thought far less of his own fate, than of that of the girls, whowould be living in their quiet country retreat in ignorance of danger,until suddenly seized by Mocenigo and his band of pirates.
He had, on the first day, tried whether it was possible to draw hishand through the iron band round his wrist, but had concluded it couldnot be done, for it was riveted so tightly as to press upon the flesh.Therefore there was no hope of freeing himself in that manner. The onlypossible means, then, would be to cut through the rivet or chain, andfor this a tool would be required.
Suddenly an idea struck him. The guard who brought in his food was aSicilian, and was evidently of a talkative disposition, for he hadseveral times entered into conversation with the captives. In additionto a long knife, he carried a small stiletto in his girdle, and Francisthought that, if he could obtain this, he might possibly free himself.Accordingly, at the hour when he expected his guard to enter, Francisplaced himself at his window, with his face against the bars. When heheard the guard come in, and, as usual, close the door behind him, heturned round and said:
"Who is that damsel there? She is very beautiful, and she passes herefrequently. There she is, just going among those trees."
The guard moved to the window and looked out.
"Do you see her just going round that corner there? Ah! She is gone."
The guard was pressing his face against the bars, to look in thedirection indicated, and Francis, who was already standing on his leftleg, with the right raised so as to give freedom to the hand next tothe man, had no difficulty in drawing the stiletto from its sheath, andslipping it into his trousers.
"You were just too late," he said, "but no doubt you often see her."
"I don't see any beautiful damsels about in this wretched place," theman replied. "I suppose she is the daughter of the head man in thevillage. They say he has some good-looking ones, but he takes prettygood care that they are not about when we are here. I suppose shethought she wouldn't be seen along that path. I will keep a goodlookout for her in future."
"Don't frighten her away," Francis said, laughing. "She is the onepleasant thing I have in the day to look at."
After some more talk the man retired, and Francis examined his prize.It was a thin blade of fine steel, and he at once hid it in the earthwhich formed the floor of the hut.
An hour later the guard opened the door suddenly. It was now dusk, andFrancis was sitting quietly in a corner.
"Bring a light, Thomaso," the guard shouted to his comrade outside. "Itis getting dark in here."
The other brought a torch, and they carefully examined the floor of thecell.
"What is it that you are searching for?" Francis asked.
"I have dropped my dagger somewhere," the man replied. "I can't thinkhow it fell out."
"When did you see it last?"
"Not since dinner time. I know I had it then. I thought possibly Imight have dropped it here, and a dagger is not the sort of playthingone cares about giving to prisoners."
"Chained as I am," Francis said, "a dagger would not be a formidableweapon in my hands."
"No," the man agreed. "It would be useless to you, unless you wanted tostick it into your own ribs."
"I should have to sit down to be able to do even that."
"That is so, lad. It is not for me to question what the captain says, Ijust do as I am told. But I own it does seem hard, keeping a youngfellow like you chained up as if you were a wild beast. If he had gotPisani or Zeno as a prisoner, and wanted to make doubly sure that theywould not escape, it would be all well enough, but for a lad like you,with one man always at the door, and the window barred so that a lioncouldn't break through, I do think it hard to keep you chained likethis; and the worst of it is, we are going to have to stop here to lookafter you till the captain gets back, and that may be three weeks or amonth, who knows!"
"Why don't you keep your mouth shut, Philippo?" the other man growled."It's always talk, talk with you. We are chosen because the captain canrely upon us."
"He can rely upon anyone," Philippo retorted, "who knows that he willget his throat cut if he fails in his duty."
"Well, come along," the other said, "I don't want to be staying hereall night. Your dagger isn't here, that's certain, and as I am offguard at present, I want to be going."
As soon as he was left alone, Francis unearthed the dagger, feelingsure that no fresh visit would be made him that evening. As he hadhoped, his first attempt showed him that the iron of the rivet wassoft, and the keen dagger at once notched off a small piece of theburred end. Again and again he tried, and each time a small piece ofmetal flew off. After each cut he examined the edge of the dagger, butit was well tempered, and seemed entirely unaffected.
He now felt certain that, with patience, he should be able to cut offthe projecting edges of the rivets, and so be able to free his hands.He, therefore, now examined the fastenings at the ankles. These weremore heavy, and on trying them, the iron of the rivet appeared to bemuch harder than that which kept the manacles together. It was,however, now too dark to see what he was doing, and concealing thedagger again, he lay down with a lighter heart than he had from themoment of his capture.
Even if he found that the lower fastenings of the chain defied all hisefforts, he could cut the rivets at the wrists, and so free one end ofeach chain. He could then tie the chains round his legs, and theirweight would not be sufficient to prevent his walking.