The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1871-11-24


All these things were needed to as
cend the chimney and the platform o
the tower, thence to descend one hun
dred and eighty feet to the moat
and climb up from thence to the para
pet into the Governors garden theI
again to descend to the great QUITE
D1oat, and to climb over the gate o
st Antoine. With all these pHecautionl
one thing was indispensable, and tina
was something no care could secure
and that was q suitable night for i
rain, storm, and darkness lured then
out, and then it grew fine, the sentine
would be sure to see them. and they
would either be shot or dragged bach
to solitary dungeons, there to pine till
| the detested woman died. But ever
for this difficulty La Tude in some de.
gree provided. He calculated thai
| the overflow of the Seine had coIrodeC
the mortar Of the outer wall. and that
it could be perforated with rude GIN.
let he could manufacture from the
screw Of his bedstead, and SO he might,
with iron bars, force a passage into
the outer street. Making. therefore
wrappers for these iron bars, and iu
/ spite Of the water being four feet deeu
in both moats, they resolved to starr
on the evening of February 25, 1855
La Tude, knowing they would gel
soaked in the moats, took with him
the singular ineumbrance of a port
manteau filed with two complete
suits of clothes. Next day, immeii-
! ately after dinner, they fitted up the
rOpe-ladder, and hid it under their
| reds, that it might not be seen by the
turnkey who brought in supper. They
| then fitted up the cEoss-staf ladder,
and made up their other implements
into bundles; and as the officer had
| searched them both that morning they
/ felt safe. They also removed the iron
bars from the chimney, and put them
| into wrappers. They took with them
| a bottle of spirits, in case they
| should have to work in the water.
! The moment had arrived. Directly the
! turnkey, who had brought supper.
! closed the door, La Tude, though hs
| had rheumatism in one arm, began to
climb the chimney, but with no sack
over his head, and no wrappers for
| the elbows and Ioins, such as sweeps
then used. Blinded with SCOT, flayed
st the elbows and knees, black, and
streaming with blood, he emerged at
last. Says III. La Tude, to use his
own words ---
FINALLY I got to the top of the
y 4
| astride, and from thence unwOund a
| ball of pack-thread that had in my
| pocket, and TO the end Of which my
| companion had agreed to fasten the
strongest rope that held my portman-
/ teau; by this means drew it up, and
lowered it on the platfcrm. I return
| ed the rope, TO which my companion
! tied the wooden ladder. I drew-u ND in
| the sane manner, the two iron bars,
and the rest Of my parcels for which
! we had occasion. When I had these,
I again let down my pack-thread to
raise the rope-ladder, drawing up to
| myself the superfuOus length, that by
! the end my companion might mount
| the chimney with more facility than I
| had dont; and at his signal. fastened
it. He ascended with ease; we finished
| drawing up the remainder, and sus-
| pended the whole in such a manner
across the chimney that we deeended
both at Ouce on the platform, serving
| for a cOunterpoise to eabb other.
"TWo horses would not have been
able to remove all our luggage. We
began with rolling up our rope-Iad-
der, which made a coil five feet high
and a foot thick, and we wheeled
this kind of milestone to the tower
of the Treasury, which we thought
most favorable for our descent. We
fastened this ladder securely to a
piece of cannon, and then let it gen
tlya down into the trench. In the
same manner we fastened our block,
passing through it the rope three
hundred end sixty feet long and
when we had moved aside all our
other parcels, tied my thigh se-
To hnE ofT hn
on the ladder, and, in proportion as
out the rope Of 1the-block; but, not
withstsnding this preeaution, every
time l moved my body resembled a
knifedancing in theIair, 80 that, had it
happened by daylight, ola thousand
persons who might have. seen me
reeJiDg, not one but would have Civ
en- me over for lost; yet l arrived
safe and sound in the trench. Imme-
diately my companion lowered to
me my portmanteau, the iron bars,
the wooden ladder, and all our equip
age, which 1 placed in the dry, on a
little rising above the surface of the
water, at the foot of the towers. My
companion. next fastened the rope of
the block, at the other end, above his
knee. and, when he had given me a
signal of his being on the ladder, 1
performed the same man0uve. below
which he had done for me above to
sustain me in the air, and prevent n
fall. Itook the further preCaution to
place the last step under my thighs,
by sitting on it, to spare him the dis
agreeable vibration which l had ex-
perieBced. He got down to me,
though, during the whole time, the
sentinel could not be above thirty
feet from us, walking on the corridor,
as it did not rain which prevented
our mounting thither, to get into the
garden, according to our first plan.
We were therefore obliged to make
use of our iron bars. / took the
gimlet, and carried one of the iron
barssOn my shoulders, and my com
panion theA0ther. Neither did / for
get to pocket the bottle of usque-
baugh; and we proceeded directly to
the wall that parts. the trench of the
Bastile from that of the gate of st.
Antoine, between the garden and the
governors house. There was in this
place small trench, six feet wide, !,
and about the same depth, which
wetted US up to the armpits.
cat the moment that / began with
my gimlet to bore hole between
two stones, to insert our levers, the
majors round passed Ens, with the
great lantern on a long pole, but ten
or twelve feet, at most, over our
heads. To conceal ourselves we
stood up to the chin in water, and
when they were gone soon made
two or three small holes with my
gimlet, and in a short time we got
large stone out. From that instant |
pledge myself to D'AIegrc for our
success, drank a draught on the Occa-
sion, and made him take another.
We then attacked a second and 8