“The most notorious among the ‘knackers,’ of the gang, who had earned the right of bearing the title of his calling as a surname, was ‘The Knacker’—Peter Rosseau, the knacker, of the hamlet of Guendreville.
“In the garden of his house, which stood almost alone, was a subterranean passage, the origin of which was unknown.
“It was, however, supposed to be the secret outlet of some abbey, or feudal castle, long since destroyed.
“Near the edge of a dark, thick wood, intersected by capacious winding paths known only to the inhabitants around, this subterranean passage, a hundred feet in length, and thirty feet wide, solidly vaulted, extended unsuspected under a thick covering of earth.
The door, concealed by brambles, opened to the south, opposite the yard gate, so that it could be perceived only with great difficulty.
“Within it was fastened by a heavy iron bar let into the solid wall, and by a very strong lock, invisible on the outside.
“A staircase of sixteen steps led down into this vault.
“At the bottom was a very large chimney, which would contain a dozen persons, planned so as to facilitate the escape of those who might be surprised in the vault.
“This chimney, furnished with enormous pot-hooks, was filled with vast boilers on days devoted to great feasts.
“And its flue, large enough to allow a man to climb through, passed up into the mound of earth above, where it was concealed by thickly clustered thorns and bushes.