The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1914-02-26

4
mangled German words, and the sniff
fling mixed with grandiloquence o
one of the guards finally he grew dar
ing and initiated the governors su
perior officer who had visited the
prison six months ago and had seen
Francois among the others. Francois
with his body bent out, and a fat wad
die, and an improvised eye-glass and a
pursy short-breathed manner, spoke OF
the governor severely, putting at him
between sentences, reproving him,
among other things, for having pris.
oners dine with him.
And the governor roared with de-
light, for this man was his rival and it
did his soul good to see him made
ridiculous. He roared, and drank to
the imitation, and the imitation re-
buked his levity throatily, till the gov
| ernor roared and drank again and
shouted for more. And Francois, ex-
cited, eXhilarated, did more; and still
the governor drank as he acted. And
the vaudeville went on. So that when
the guard came at eleven the count
was lying across the sofa, too tipsy to
get to bed alone, and Francois had to
wait, pretending to be heavy with vine
himself, while the two soldiers put the
governor to bed.
At last he was taken upstairs be-
tween them, leaning on them Imply;
at last his door changed shut; he lis
tened to the footsteps of the two dying
away down the stone hall, down the
staircase; then swiftly he drew out
the file and the letters from his mat
tress; he hid the papers, wrapped
tight in their oilskin cover, in his coat
lining; he set to work with the file to
finish iron bars already three-quarters
filed through. That was done and
with fingers that seemed to work as
fast, as intelligently as his brain, he
tore the bedclothes into stout strips
and tied them together with square
knots which would not slip, and tied
knots in the line at intervals of few
feet which might keep a mans fingers
from slipping. He had to guess how
long the rope must be, but the bed
clothes were all used and the rope was
many yards-it must serve. He put
the file, with two candle ends which
he had saved, in his pocket; he made
one end of the strip fast to an un-
touched iron bar of his window; he
weighted the other end, then he looked
about a moment, half to see if all of
his small resources had been remem-
bered, half in glance of farewell to
a place where he had passed hours
never to be forgotten.
With that he vaulted to the window.
ledge and took the first knot in firm
grip and let himself out into the dark
still night. His feet hung in the air,
his hand slid fast-fast-down that |
poor ladder of torn stuff; the die was |
cast; he was going to things unknown;
he had taken a desperate chance and |
might not go back. And he slipped |
down, down, from knot to knot. Sud |
denly he came to the last knot; he had |
fastened bit of wood there so that |
he might know when he got to the |
end. What was this? 1t certainly was
the last knot; the bit Of wood scraped
his hand as he held it; but his feet did
not touch ground.
There he hung, swaying in black
ness, not knowing how far he might
be above the earth, not knowing what
to do. Only a moment, for instantly
he knew that in any case he could not
go back, If he would, up that slight
swinging rope; he must drop, what
ever happened. He bent his knees
ready for the fall and let go. With a
shock he landed and rolled. bruised
and out of breath, but not injured; he
looked up and in the dimness saw the
ast knot with it's bit of wood swing
ng in air twelve feet or so from the
ground.
But he had no time given him to
consider this point, for at that Sec
md, at the far END of the closed yard
4 door opened, blaze of light poured
)ut, and a squad of six soldiers stepped
rom the castle, torches in the hands
If the foremost. Francois dropped,
into the shadows against
he wall, but his heart grew sick as he
'ealized the futility of this. The SOL
diers were coming straight toward
lim.
With that, a CLEAN on brighter sur
ace than the ground met his sight, be-
ow the level of the ground. His eyes,
the darkness, made out a
great butt of water, sunken by the
'astle wall. Instantly he slid into it,
Up to his neck. 1t was not quite full,
md his head did not show in the
shadows of the inside. The blaze of
he torches swept close, brighter, as
shivering in the cold water,
glued himself to the dark side; the
'laze of the torches waved, shadowy,
gigantic, across the water and the cas-
lie wall; he heard the soldiers speak
n short deep words; it was like an
vii dream, and it slipped past, torch
Is and dark-swinging shadows and
leavy tread of men and stern voices,
ike a dream. The heavy door shut,
he lights were gone, everything was
till.
More dead than alive, Francois
ripped from the water-butt. The
lardest part of his nights job, the
'art that needed all his strength of
'ody and brain, was Immediately be-
ore him, and he stood nerveless, with
clicking teeth, as limp as the tradition
Il drowned rat. A moment he stood
o utterly discouraged, without conf
lence, without hope. Then with his
lips he framed words, words
amiliar to him for years, and with
hat, in shock, he felt strength and