The Delta independent., 1895-12-11

in unsealing Laport's lips and had al
ready got from him some intimations
of the political gang which had at
tempted to use him. He then narrated
a story of his own invention which
was SO ingeniously fabricated that the
governor was deeply interested and
himself proposed that Kent should
stay until he had got the whole of it
and this Kent at last consented to do,
merely remarking: ''I'd keep the fell
low in that cell till get it, if 1 were
you. The confinement gals him and
have no doubt he will sooner or later
give away the whole matter in order
to get back to the workshop. Keep
him locked up twenty-four hours
longer"
The next day there was another
interview. The moment Kent was
alone with the prisoner, he asked:
'Did you get the stone out?"
Laport took from his breast where it
had been concealed under his wooden
shirt, small folded packet. Kent
took it, fingered it moment, and put
1t in his hip pocket The two men then
went to the dark corner of the cell ard
Laport, getting down on his knees,
showed him that he had loosened one
of the small fagstones in the flooring.
Kent looked closely at the work, saw
that no one could perceive the differ
ence in the seams unless he brought a
light to it and merely said: Good"
Then the two men sat down on the
edge of the iron bed.
Kent had brought with him circular
steel cutting saw which fitted into the
case of his gold watch. The brace and
other appliances he took from differ
ent parts of his person, and Laport,
with the instant divination Of a me-
chanician, fitted them together. They
were slender and apparently fragile,
but had been made by a surgical
instrument manufacturer, and were of
the finest material. Laport examined
them with unconcealed admiration.
Kent, however, did not allow him to
waste the fraction Of a minute. "Put
1t away at once" he said. Laport
touched the fiat stone with his foot on
one corner; it tipped at the pressure;
he inserted his finger and, lifting it up.
placed the implements in the space be-
meath. He also received from Kent
little coil of steel wire. 1T is to let
you down from the window to the
laundry roof" he said. Every inch Of
it has been tested up to five hundred
pounds. But all this mechanical assist
ance is of no sort of avail if you fail to
follow out my schedule of time and
scrupulously fit every move to my
arranged programme. You will cut
the bar tomorrow while the engine in
the laundry is running. How long do
you calculate it will take you?"
"1f it is an iron bar, l can do it in
two hours with that saw"
"Very good. You arc to leave a seq
ment of iron to hold it in its place and
rub the rust into the fresh cut. You are
to get out the window on Saturday
morning at exactly half-past two to
the minute. I will bring you to-mor-
row a tiny duplicate watch set to one I
have myself, and little box of wax
matches. will also bring you n pair
OF kid gloves padded, so that you can
use the loops in the wire without cut
ting your hands. You must be at the
far angle in tho wall exactly ten min
utes later and you will find the other
wire thrown over for you. 1t will not
do to have it there before and you are
to pull it after you when you are on
the other side. One other thing: You
must manage in some way to set the
bar back in its place. No one will look
into your cell till five o'clock from the
wicket in the door, but the absence of
the bar might be detected by the patrol
on the wall. He carries O bull's-eye.
Can you do that?"
"Ycs," said Lapcrt, "if I have any
toothold on the wire ana you can bring