The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1833-02-19


was this all Casting hs looks towards
the windows Of his dungeon, he counted
bur FIVE ! Here was 40 deception aud
he WAS now convinced there had been
none the day before. But what did ali
this portend ! Into what strange and
mysterious den had he been cast.
IL was evident there mast be some se-
cret machinery in the walls by which a
person could enter. He inspected them
closely. They appeared to him one
solid and compact mass Of iron oil join
ed, If joined they were, with such nice
art, that no mark Of division was per-
ceptible. Again and again, he surveyed
thom-and the floor--and the roof--and
the range of visionary windows, AS he
was now almost tempted to consider
them he could discover nothing, alb
solutely nothing, to relieve his doubts
or satify his curiosity. Sometimes he
fancied that altogether the dungeon had
more contracted appearancc-that it
looked smaller, but this he ascribed to
fancy, and the impression naturally pro-
tluced upon his mind by the undeniable
disappearance of two of the windows.
With intense anxiety Vivenzio looked
forward to the retarn of night and as 1t
approached, he resolved that no treacher-
Gus sleep should again betray him. In
stead of seeking his bed of straw, he
continued to walk up and down his dun
geon ill daylight, straining his eyes in
every direction through the darkness, to
watch for any appearances that might
explain these mysteries. While thus en-
gagged, and as nearly as he could Judge,
(by the time that afterwards elapsed be-
fore the morning came in) about two o.
clock, there was a slight tremulous mo-
ton of the floors. He stopped. The
motion lasted nearly minute but it
was so extremely gentle, that he almost
doubted whether it was real, or only
imaginary. He listened. Not u sound
could be 20 heard. Presently, however,
he foir u rusi, ui s Sc!a Sc!a air blow upon him
and dashing towards tile quarter whence
it seemed TO proceed he stumbled over
something which he Judged to be the
water ever. The rush of cold air was
no longer perceptlble and as Vivenzio
stretched out his hands, he found him.
self close to the walls. He remained
motionless for considerable time hut
nothing occurred during the remainder
of the night to excite his attention,
though he continued to watch with una
bated vigilence.
The first approaches of the morning
were visible through the grated windows
breaking with faint divisions of light,
the darkness that still pervaded every
other part, long before Vivenzio was en-
abled to distinguish any object in lis
dungeon. Instinctively and fearfnlly he
turnedhis eyes, hot and inhamed with
watching, towards shom. There -wcfe-
FouR ! he could see only four but 1t
might be that some intervening object
prevented the fifth from becoming per-
ceptible and he waited impatiently 20
ascertain If it were SO. As the light
strengthened, however, and penetrated
every corner of the cell other objects of
amazemcnt struck his sight. On the
ground lay the broken fragments of the
pitcher he had used the day before, and
mt q small distance from them, nearer to
the wall, stood the one hc had noticed
the first night. 1t was filled with water
and beside il was his food. He was now
certain, that, by some mechanical con-
trivance, an opening was obtained
through the iron wall, and that through
this opening the current of air had found
entrance. But how noiseless For
had feather almost waved at the time
lie must hare heard it.-Again he exam
ined that part Of the wall (; but both to
sight and touch it appeared one even
aud uniform surlace, while to repeated
and violent blows, there was no reverb
Grating sound indictive of hollowness.
This pcrplexing mystery had for n
time withdrawn his thoughts from the
windows, but now, directing his eyes a.
gain towards them, he saw that the
fifth had disappeared in the same man
ner as the preceding ,wo, without the
least distinguishable aIteration-of exter-
nal appearances. The remaining four
looked as the seven had originally look
ed |; that is, occupying, at irregular dis
tanees, the top Of the wall on that side
of the dungeon. The tai. folding door,
too, still seemed 10 stand beneath, in
the centre of these four, as it had at
first stood in the centre of the seyen.---
But he could no longer doubt, what, on
the preceding day, ho fanciod might be
the effect Of visual deception. The dun
geon Das smaller. The roof had low
ered--and the opposite ends had con-
tracted the intermediate distance by a
space equal, he thought, to that over
which the three windows had extended.
! He was bewildcred in vain i'm aginations
. account for these things. Some