The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1895-04-04

VVEN he finally suo-
NIX Bsi< ceeded, are IA
<,hN A. AMI nous in the an
MN,'%IG33EhMHEV nails Of prison es-
"D.1e4ggs sg capes. The baron
was an officer Of
the bodyguard Of Frederick the Great
and had a cousin of the same name,
chief Of the noted corps Of Pandours
in the service Of Austria, country with
which Frederick was eternally at war.
The cousin and a love affair got the bar
on into trouble, and that in those days
meant prison. He loved Princess Ame-
liza, sister of the brusque old king, a very
presumptuous passion for an obscure
officer. Then his cousin Pandours one
day, on a raid, captured his horses.
Next day the horses came back under a
flag of truce with a note to the effect
that ''Trenck the Austrian is not at
war with Trenok the Prussian." Soon
afterward the baron sent an innocent
and friendly note to the Pandour chief
tain, and forged reply, compromising
in it's tone, found it's way among his
effects, for which he was arrested and
placed in durance in the castle of Glatz.
His imprisonment was made light, but
he had the indiscretion Of youth and
wrote a very naughty letter to the king.
After waiting five months without
receiving reply, his post in the guards
having been given to another, he deter
mined to get free. Being we'll supplied
xvitI, ,,,orov bo ,,o1o Fri or, Io tho
officers, who arranged plan of escape.
Feelings of pity led him to embrace in
the plan a fellow officer under a ten
years sentence, and at the last moment
the wretch betrayed the secret. Trenck
was thereafter moro closely guarded,
but soon made another attempt, the de-
tails Of which he narrated in FULL my
window looked toward the city and was
90 feet from the ground, in the tower
Of the citadel, out Of which dared not
get before finding place Of refuge in
the city. This an officer procured for
me- I then notched my penknife and
sawed through three iron bars, but this
mode was too tedious, it being neces-
sary to cut through eight bars before I
could pass. Another officer, therefore,
procured me file, which was obliged
to use with caution, lest I should be
heard by the sentinels. Having ended
this labor, I cut my leather portman-
teau into thongs, sewed them end to
end, added the sheets of my bed and de-
scended safely. 1t rained, the night was
dark, and all seemed fortunate, but I
had to wade through meats filled with
mud before I could enter the city,
circumstance had never once consid-
cred. l sank up to my knees, and after
long struggling to extricate myself I
was obliged to call the sentinel and ask
him to go and tell the governor that I
was stuck fast in tho moat My misfor-
tune was the greater on this occasion,
as the governor Of Glatz then was Gen.
eral Fouquet, one Of the cruelest of
men. My father had wounded him in a
duel, and my cousin, the Austrian
Trenck, had taken his baggage in battle
and had also laid the country Of Glatz
under contribution. Therefore he was
an enemy to the very name of Trenck.
Nor did he lose any opportunity to give
proof OF it, especially on this occasion,
when he left me standing in the miro
till noon, the sport Of the soldiers. i
was then drawn out, half dead, only to
be shut up the whole day without water
to wash myself. I remained in this
plight till the next day. My imprison-
ment now became intolerable. I had
still 80 louis d'ors in my purse that had
not been taken from me, and these aft
erward did me good SERVICE"
Eight days had not elapsed since the
fruitless attempt to escape when an
event happened which appears incredi-
BILE, but really proves that adventurous
and even rash daring will render the
most improbable undertakings possible
An officer visited Trenok's cell one day
andindulged in cruel taunts, which made
the blood of the helpless man boil. He
spoke of the attempts to escape as a
crime and declared that q traitor to his
country must await the grace and par
don Of the king. ''At that" said
Trenck, II snatohed his sword from his
side, sprang out Of the door, tumbled
the sentinel from the top to the bottom
OF the stairs, passed the men who hap
pened to be drawn before the door to re-
lieve the guard, attacked them sword in
hand, wounded four Of them, made way
through the rest, sprang over the ram
part, and, sword in hand, leaped this
astonishing height without the least in
jury. I also leaped the second wall with
safety and good fortune. None Of the
guards pieces was loaded, they dare not
leap after me, and in order to pursue
must go around through the tower and
gate Of the citadel, so that had good
start. A sentinel in narrow passage,
however, endeavored to stop my flight,
but parried his bayonet and wounded
him in the face. A second sentinel
meantime ran from the outworks to
seize me from behind, and to avoid him
made spring at the palisades. Un-
luckily my foot got stuck, and the SEN
tinel seized it and held me by it until
his comrades came up and dragged me
back to prison. Had T more carefully
jumped the palisades might have gain
ed the mountains and fled into Bohemia.
That good fortune which had attended
= y.