The Sun.
London, England, 1806-04-15 00:00:00

Y,nnsEy.

The ,follOceink'Particulars of the escape of 'a Prisoner from
Wicrie, in France, in the month of Ottoblfr last, having re..
Winn to the a6lual situation of the Friglish Prisoners
in that -Country, He think -it may b interesting. to irur
Readers.
,- - -
-rrii-kiS lisSon, of this Island, was taken prisoner-
on the Coast of Brittany, on, the tith of May, 1803.
He was at first concluded to Lainballe, and after-
: wards to Founrainbleau, where he was allowed the
city. and three leagues.round it for laic 'prison ; War-
not being yet declared, he received no subsistence
from the Government. Having escaped to Paris,
he was stoked' by the Police, and re-concluded to
Foutainbleau, where he was put into close confine-
ment,;- from thence he was brought to Epinal,wherc,
in a short time, there were 1200 English prisoners.
Here' be was
.granted rather more liberty, and was
pretty well situated, when he Was concluded to
Phalzbourg, where he procured the_ place of inter-
,preter to-an hospital, in which were about 50 Eng-
lish prisonerS confined, and very badly-treated. He
remained here until theist of April, 'lBO4-, and wns
afterwards taken to Areidun, at which place there
were nearly 800 prisoners; two-thirds, of WhOm are
detained there contrary 'to the law of nations, only
being in France at the moment of •the dedaration
of -war. HOWever, the 'latter are not closely con-
nor severely treated.; the-y-hac'e the liberty Qf
walking a league from- the town, and are often
'allowed to go 'fartlier"; but permission to go to any
great distance must be .obtained by favour or
money. Those who have fortunes, easily find the
means of procuring motley, and consequently are ••
well received 'by the inhabitants some of the rich
Rive them established a publie theatre, a tennis-
'court, horse-races) .and billiarckables ; but M. Bis-
son did not find his situation agreeable at Verdun;
he had but three sous a day, and a: pound-and a half
of brown bread ; h escaped a second time, but was
again taken and cum:hided to 'Bitche; where many
respedable English are confined-; he succeeded \
again in escaping, and the following iOtis own ac-
count of it :

After 29 Month; of impris'onment,.l6 of which
passed at Bitche; I was put into a cell under ground
for having neglea-ed answering to the tall- of the
30th of 'September last. J found means to escape
the second day, in this manner--In the evening the
gaoler. brought me' waters hiedrd'.i2ot hiS_
lanthorn with hith,) asst was very 4ark;. I stole.out
Softly without, being- 'perceived;.,. and. he barred
the door; thinking me still in: th.edungeon ; but
though I had succeeded in deceiving
,the gaoler, .it
was still necessary to Avoid- a dentine} . and pin
court
..yard ; wstooped ns to 45 pciss!bly
roiilil, and p.;.rceiving,:that, fortunately, the centre
box was empty, I' made. use of, it to climb.on the
rampart, and I endeavoured to get to the ground
by' tile help -of the cavities in the wall : but scarcely '-
bad LatteMpted it, whim a stone roiling from under
my foOt, "I
fell from__ height.of about sixty feet ;
although. stunned and: bruised 'by the fill, 1 had,
however, the gOod fortune ,not: to ,have any. bone
broken ; when a little recovered, I,gained a neigh=
touring' forest, .from whence I hoped to escape, by
the banks of the Rhine; but I had been before so
much exhausted, that overcome with. fatigue, -and
the pain of my ,bruises, I lay' on the ground .and fell
asleep. When I awoke, a ,man in :uniform asked
me who I was and where I was:going?, I told him
tliat I was a French Grenadier, coming from the
hospital, and 'goiug to join my regiment at the other
'side -of the Rh irie. HeloOked at me with a very
incredulous air, 2nd Asked me if I were not Francis
Bissun, who had just escaped from Bitebe? I 'af!
feaed to appear surprised, and haughtily asked him
to permit use, to continue my route. He asked me
many Mord qUestions, which by Chance I answered
rightly, and ' after giving me, some .refreshment, he
politely sheaved me the shortest way to reach the
Rhine ;. L.howeVer, perceived that. he strongly sus.
, pedtes; but that be.was too humane to arrest
me. Lsoort arrived at the Rhine, and in speaking
to a boatman, ,I was surpris'ed to learn that he was
informed of my. flight ; but fortunately he was so
careless, th6t-all,tbe Prisoners 'might have escaped
without his paying any attention: As I conversed
with him, I perceived. two Geni-d'Arrnes; at that
moment I considered myself lost; but, by an tin-
expeded good tbrtime, they passed without taking
any notice bf •me. As, soon as I was 'at the other ,
side of the Rhine, I proceeded to Rastadt, and from
thence to Frankfort, where I received the greatest
hospitality froirr two Germans, and from two of my
countrymen, whom I thete found. I think it. ne-.
cessary also to mention, the,.ciyility of. Mr. Brooke-
Taylor, our 'Envoy, who gave me a passport for
F,nabden ; butrbeing intern:led that the French-. had in
part evacuated-HanoVq, I'prOceeded to HAnaburgh;
where the English Contul levised any pas Sport, and
,from thence I embarked for'England. ,