Tom and Archy in prison—Their trick on the gaoler—Soldiers appear—Taken from prison—Meet Colonel O’Regan—Marched through the town—Prisoners going to execution—Distant cannonading heard—The firing-party—Death of Colonel O’Regan—The midshipmen try to help him—Carried back to prison—They and Stella liberated by Murray.
We must return to the night when Gerald Desmond and Needham made their escape from the prison.
As soon as they were gone, Tom Rogers and Archy Gordon set to work on the bar, and by hauling and pulling gradually worked it back into its former position. They then stuck on the rust as before, and swept the windows clear of the filings and remaining bits of rust, which might have betrayed them.
“Now, Miss O’Regan, do lie down and take some rest,” said Tom, ever thoughtful of others. “You need it much already, and you cannot tell what fatigue you may have shortly to go through. I have hopes that before long we shall get out of prison, and in the meantime it will puzzle the gaoler to know how our friends have escaped, unless he happens to hit upon this bar, and that I hope he will not do.”
Tom and Archy returned to their own room.
“The longer the gaolers remain ignorant of the escape of Desmond and Needham the better,” observed Tom. “I think that I can contrive to rig up two figures which may help to do so. Fortunately, Needham has left his red handkerchief behind him, that must serve as his night-cap. I will make the head of straw, and cover it with my handkerchief, the body we must form by heaping up the straw and then throwing a rug over it. Now, Archy, your handkerchief must serve as Desmond’s head, and we will put your cap on the top of it.”
Gordon, of course, agreed to the proposal. They set to work at once and as far as the pale light of the moon, which came through tie windows, could enable them to judge, they were well satisfied with their performance. They then laid down to sleep with clear consciences, on their own somewhat diminished heaps of straw.
The gaoler who brought their breakfast seldom did more than put it in at the door, being satisfied with a glance round the room at its four inmates. He looked in, as was his custom, the following morning, and seeing two figures in the dark corners of the room, supposed that the seaman and one of the midshipmen were indulging in a longer sleep than usual. Tom and Archy put their hands to their heads, and shook them, as much as to say that their friends were suffering from head-ache. This seemed to satisfy the gaoler, who departed, much to the satisfaction of the midshipmen, without making a closer inspection.
“At all events, it shows that our friends have not been caught, or we should have had the room searched,” observed Tom. “I hope that they have found the Consulate, and if so, we shall probably be liberated before the day is over. I wish, however, we could hear something about the colonel, for the sake of his poor daughter.”
The midshipmen naturally had got very weary at being so long shut up. Their spirits, however, now rose at the thoughts of their speedy liberation, and they made a hearty meal off their somewhat coarse fare.