various adventures — my companions — i prepare to escape — change of cell
to make the reader understand how i managed to escape from a place like the leads, i must explain the nature of the locality.
the leads, used for the confinement of state prisoners, are in fact the lofts of the ducal palace, and take their name from the large plates of lead with which the roof is covered. one can only reach them through the gates of the palace, the prison buildings, or by the bridge of which i have spoken called the bridge of sighs. it is impossible to reach the cells without passing through the hall where the state inquisitors hold their meetings, and their secretary has the sole charge of the key, which he only gives to the gaoler for a short time in the early morning whilst he is attending to the prisoners. this is done at day-break, because otherwise the guards as they came and went would be in the way of those who have to do with the council of ten, as the council meets every day in a hall called the bussola, which the guards have to cross every time they go to the leads.
the prisons are under the roof on two sides of the palace; three to the west (mine being among the number) and four to the east. on the west the roof looks into the court of the palace, and on the east straight on to the canal called rio di palazzo. on this side the cells are well lighted, and one can stand up straight, which is not the case in the prison where i was, which was distinguished by the name of ‘trave’, on account of the enormous beam which deprived me of light. the floor of my cell was directly over the ceiling of the inquisitors’ hall, where they commonly met only at night after the sitting of the council of ten of which the whole three are members.
as i knew my ground and the habits of the inquisitors perfectly well, the only way to escape — the only way at least which i deemed likely to succeed — was to make a hole in the floor of my cell; but to do this tools must be obtained — a difficult task in a place where all communication with the outside world was forbidden, where neither letters nor visits were allowed. to bribe a guard a good deal of money would be necessary, and i had none. and supposing that the gaoler and his two guards allowed themselves to be strangled — for my hands were my only weapons — there was always a third guard on duty at the door of the passage, which he locked and would not open till his fellow who wished to pass through gave him the password. in spite of all these difficulties my only thought was how to escape, and as boethius gave me no hints on this point i read him no more, and as i was certain that the difficulty was only to be solved by stress of thinking i centered all my thoughts on this one object.
it has always been my opinion that when a man sets himself determinedly to do something, and thinks of nought but his design, he must succeed despite all difficulties in his path: such an one may make himself pope or grand vizier, he may overturn an ancient line of kings — provided that he knows how to seize on his opportunity, and be a man of wit and pertinacity. to succeed one must count on being fortunate and despise all ill success, but it is a most difficult operation.
towards the middle of november, lawrence told me that messer-grande had a prisoner in his hands whom the new secretary, businello, had ordered to be placed in the worst cell, and who consequently was going to share mine. he told me that on the secretary’s reminding him that i looked upon it as a favour to be left alone, he answered that i had grown wiser in the four months of my imprisonment. i was not sorry to hear the news or that there was a new secretary. this m. pierre businello was a worthy man whom i knew at paris. he afterwards went to london as ambassador of the republic.
in the afternoon i heard the noise of the bolts, and presently lawrence and two guards entered leading in a young man who was weeping bitterly; and after taking off his handcuffs they shut him up with me, and went out without saying a word. i was lying on my bed, and he could not see me. i was amused at his astonishment. being, fortunately for himself, seven or eight inches shorter than i, he was able to stand upright, and he began to inspect my arm-chair, which he doubtless thought was meant for his own use. glancing at the ledge above the grating he saw boethius, took it up, opened it, and put it down with a kind of passion, probably because being in latin it was of no use to him. continuing his inspection of the cell he went to the left, and groping about was much surprised to find clothes. he approached the recess, and stretching out his hand he touched me, and immediately begged my pardon in a respectful manner. i asked him to sit down and we were friends.
“who are you?” said i.
“i am maggiorin, of vicenza. my father, who was a coachman, kept me at school till i was eleven, by which time i had learnt to read and write; i was afterwards apprenticed to a barber, where i learnt my business thoroughly. after that i became valet to the count of x——. i had been in the service of the nobleman for two years when his daughter came from the convent. it was my duty to do her hair, and by degrees i fell in love with her, and inspired her with a reciprocal passion. after having sworn a thousand times to exist only for one another, we gave ourselves up to the task of shewing each other marks of our affection, the result of which was that the state of the young countess discovered all. an old and devoted servant was the first to find out our connection and the condition of my mistress, and she told her that she felt in duty bound to tell her father, but my sweetheart succeeded in making her promise to be silent, saying that in the course of the week she herself would tell him through her confessor. she informed me of all this, and instead of going to confession we prepared for flight. she had laid hands on a good sum of money and some diamonds which had belonged to her mother, and we were to set out for milan to-night. but to-day the count called me after dinner, and giving me a letter, he told me to start at once and to deliver it with my own hand to the person to whom it was addressed at venice. he spoke to me so kindly and quietly that i had not the slightest suspicion of the fate in store for me. i went to get my cloak, said good-bye to my little wife, telling her that i should soon return. seeing deeper below the surface than i, and perchance having a presentiment of my misfortune, she was sick at heart. i came here in hot haste, and took care to deliver the fatal letter. they made me wait for an answer, and in the mean time i went to an inn; but as i came out i was arrested and put in the guard-room, where i was kept till they brought me here. i suppose, sir, i might consider the young countess as my wife?”
“you make a mistake.”
“but nature ——”
“nature, when a man listens to her and nothing else, takes him from one folly to another, till she puts him under the leads.”
“i am under the leads, then, am i?”
“as i am.”
the poor young man shed some bitter tears. he was a well-made lad, open, honest, and amorous beyond words. i secretly pardoned the countess, and condemned the count for exposing his daughter to such temptation. a shepherd who shuts up the wolf in the fold should not complain if his flock be devoured. in all his tears and lamentations he thought not of himself but always of his sweetheart. he thought that the gaoler would return and bring him some food and a bed; but i undeceived him, and offered him a share of what i had. his heart, however, was too full for him to eat. in the evening i gave him my mattress, on which he passed the night, for though he looked neat and clean enough i did not care to have him to sleep with me, dreading the results of a lover’s dreams. he neither understood how wrongly he had acted, nor how the count was constrained to punish him publicly as a cloak to the honour of his daughter and his house. the next day he was given a mattress and a dinner to the value of fifteen sous, which the tribunal had assigned to him, either as a favour or a charity, for the word justice would not be appropriate in speaking of this terrible body. i told the gaoler that my dinner would suffice for the two of us, and that he could employ the young man’s allowance in saying masses in his usual manner. he agreed willingly, and having told him that he was lucky to be in my company, he said that we could walk in the garret for half an hour. i found this walk an excellent thing for my health and my plan of escape, which, however, i could not carry out for eleven months afterwards. at the end of this resort of rats, i saw a number of old pieces of furniture thrown on the ground to the right and left of two great chests, and in front of a large pile of papers sewn up into separate volumes. i helped myself to a dozen of them for the sake of the reading, and i found them to be accounts of trials, and very diverting; for i was allowed to read these papers, which had once contained such secrets. i found some curious replies to the judges’ questions respecting the seduction of maidens, gallantries carried a little too far by persons employed in girls’ schools, facts relating to confessors who had abused their penitents, schoolmasters convicted of pederasty with their pupils, and guardians who had seduced their wards. some of the papers dating two or three centuries back, in which the style and the manners illustrated gave me considerable entertainment. among the pieces of furniture on the floor i saw a warming-pan, a kettle, a fire-shovel, a pair of tongs, some old candle-sticks, some earthenware pots, and even a syringe. from this i concluded that some prisoner of distinction had been allowed to make use of these articles. but what interested me most was a straight iron bar as thick as my thumb, and about a foot and a half long. however, i left everything as it was, as my plans had not been sufficiently ripened by time for me to appropriate any object in particular.
one day towards the end of the month my companion was taken away, and lawrence told me that he had been condemned to the prisons known as the fours, which are within the same walls as the ordinary prisons, but belong to the state inquisitors. those confined in them have the privilege of being able to call the gaoler when they like. the prisons are gloomy, but there is an oil lamp in the midst which gives the necessary light, and there is no fear of fire as everything is made of marble. i heard, a long time after, that the unfortunate maggiorin was there for five years, and was afterwards sent to cerigo for ten. i do not know whether he ever came from there. he had kept me good company, and this i discovered as soon as he was gone, for in a few days i became as melancholy as before. fortunately, i was still allowed my walk in the garret, and i began to examine its contents with more minuteness. one of the chests was full of fine paper, pieces of cardboard, uncut pens, and clews of pack thread; the other was fastened down. a piece of polished black marble, an inch thick, six inches long, and three broad, attracted my attention, and i possessed myself of it without knowing what i was going to do with it, and i secreted it in my cell, covering it up with my shirts.
a week after maggiorin had gone, lawrence told me that in all probability i should soon get another companion. this fellow lawrence, who at bottom was a mere gabbling fool, began to get uneasy at my never asking him any questions. this fondness for gossip was not altogether appropriate to his office, but where is one to find beings absolutely vile? there are such persons, but happily they are few and far between, and are not to be sought for in the lower orders. thus my gaoler found himself unable to hold his tongue, and thought that the reason i asked no questions must be that i thought him incapable of answering them; and feeling hurt at this, and wishing to prove to me that i made a mistake, he began to gossip without being solicited.
“i believe you will often have visitors,” said he, “as the other six cells have each two prisoners, who are not likely to be sent to the fours.” i made him no reply, but he went on, in a few seconds, “they send to the fours all sorts of people after they have been sentenced, though they know nothing of that. the prisoners whom i have charge of under the leads are like yourself, persons of note, and are only guilty of deeds of which the inquisitive must know nothing. if you knew, sir, what sort of people shared your fate, you would be astonished, it’s true that you are called a man of parts; but you will pardon me. . . . you know that all men of parts are treated well here. you take me, i see. fifty sous a day, that’s something. they give three livres to a citizen, four to a gentleman, and eight to a foreign count. i ought to know, i think, as everything goes through my hands.”
he then commenced to sing his own praises, which consisted of negative clauses.
“i’m no thief, nor traitor, nor greedy, nor malicious, nor brutal, as all my predecessors were, and when i have drunk a pint over and above i am all the better for it. if my father had sent me to school i should have learnt to read and write, and i might be messer-grande to-day, but that’s not my fault. m. andre diedo has a high opinion of me. my wife, who cooks for you every day, and is only twenty- four, goes to see him when she will, and he will have her come in without ceremony, even if he be in bed, and that’s more than he’ll do for a senator. i promise you you will be always having the new- comers in your cell, but never for any length of time, for as soon as the secretary has got what he wants to know from them, he sends them to their place — to the fours, to some fort, or to the levant; and if they be foreigners they are sent across the frontier, for our government does not hold itself master of the subjects of other princes, if they be not in its service. the clemency of the court is beyond compare; there’s not another in the world that treats its prisoners so well. they say it’s cruel to disallow writing and visitors; but that’s foolish, for what are writing and company but waste of time? you will tell me that you have nothing to do, but we can’t say as much.”
such was, almost word for word, the first harangue with which the fellow honoured me, and i must say i found it amusing. i saw that if the man had been less of a fool he would most certainly have been more of a scoundrel.
the next day brought me a new messmate, who was treated as maggiorin had been, and i thus found it necessary to buy another ivory spoon, for as the newcomers were given nothing on the first day of their imprisonment i had to do all the honours of the cell.
my new mate made me a low bow, for my beard, now four inches long, was still more imposing than my figure. lawrence often lent me scissors to cut my nails, but he was forbidden, under pain of very heavy punishment, to let me touch my beard. i knew not the reason of this order, but i ended by becoming used to my beard as one gets used to everything.
the new-comer was a man of about fifty, approaching my size, a little bent, thin, with a large mouth, and very bad teeth. he had small grey eyes hidden under thick eyebrows of a red colour, which made him look like an owl; and this picture was set off by a small black wig, which exhaled a disagreeable odour of oil, and by a dress of coarse grey cloth. he accepted my offer of dinner, but was reserved, and said not a word the whole day, and i was also silent, thinking he would soon recover the use of his tongue, as he did the next day.
early in the morning he was given a bed and a bag full of linen. the gaoler asked him, as he had asked me, what he would have for dinner, and for money to pay for it.
“i have no money.”
“what! a moneyed man like you have no money?”
“i haven’t a sou.”
“very good; in that case i will get you some army biscuit and water, according to instructions.”
he went out, and returned directly afterwards with a pound and a half of biscuit, and a pitcher, which he set before the prisoner, and then went away.
left alone with this phantom i heard a sigh, and my pity made me break the silence.
“don’t sigh, sir, you shall share my dinner. but i think you have made a great mistake in coming here without money.”
“i have some, but it does not do to let those harpies know of it:”
“and so you condemn yourself to bread and water. truly a wise proceeding! do you know the reason of your imprisonment?”
“yes, sir, and i will endeavour in a few words to inform you of it.”
“my name is squaldo nobili. my father was a countryman who had me taught reading and writing, and at his death left me his cottage and the small patch of ground belonging to it. i lived in friuli, about a day’s journey from the marshes of udine. as a torrent called corno often damaged my little property, i determined to sell it and to set up in venice, which i did ten years ago. i brought with me eight thousand livres in fair sequins, and knowing that in this happy commonwealth all men enjoyed the blessings of liberty, i believed that by utilizing my capital i might make a little income, and i began to lend money, on security. relying on my thrift, my judgment, and my, knowledge of the world, i chose this business in preference to all others. i rented a small house in the neighbourhood of the royal canal, and having furnished it i lived there in comfort by myself; and in the course of two years i found i had made a profit of ten thousand livres, though i had expended two thousand on household expenses as i wished to live in comfort. in this fashion i saw myself in a fair way of making a respectable fortune in time; but one, day, having lent a jew two sequins upon some books, i found one amongst them called “la sagesse,” by charron. it was then i found out how good a thing it is to be able to read, for this book, which you, sir, may not have read, contains all that a man need know — purging him of all the prejudices of his childhood. with charron good-bye to hell and all the empty terrors of a future life; one’s eyes are opened, one knows the way to bliss, one becomes wise indeed. do you, sir, get this book, and pay no heed to those foolish persons who would tell you this treasure is not to be approached.”
this curious discourse made me know my man. as to charron, i had read the book though i did not know it had been translated into italian. the author who was a great admirer of montaigne thought to surpass his model, but toiled in vain. he is not much read despite the prohibition to read his works, which should have given them some popularity. he had the impudence to give his book the title of one of solomon’s treatises — a circumstance which does not say much for his modesty. my companion went on as follows:
“set free by charron from any scruples i still might have, and from those false ideas so hard to rid one’s self of, i pushed my business in such sort, that at the end of six years i could lay my hand on ten thousand sequins. there is no need for you to be astonished at that, as in this wealthy city gambling, debauchery, and idleness set all the world awry and in continual need of money; so do the wise gather what the fool drops.
“three years ago a certain count seriman came and asked me to take from him five hundred sequins, to put them in my business, and to give him half profits. all he asked for was an obligation in which i promised to return him the whole sum on demand. at the end of a year i sent him seventy-five sequins, which made fifteen per cent. on his money; he gave me a receipt for it, but was ill pleased. he was wrong, for i was in no need of money, and had not used his for business purposes. at the end of the second year, out of pure generosity, i sent him the same amount; but we came to a quarrel and he demanded the return of the five hundred sequins. ‘certainly,’ i said, ‘but i must deduct the hundred and fifty you have already received.’ enraged at this he served me with a writ for the payment of the whole sum. a clever lawyer undertook my defence and was able to gain me two years. three months ago i was spoken to as to an agreement, and i refused to hear of it, but fearing violence i went to the abbe justiniani, the spanish ambassador’s secretary, and for a small sum he let me a house in the precincts of the embassy, where one is safe from surprises. i was quite willing to let count seriman have his money, but i claimed a reduction of a hundred sequins on account of the costs of the lawsuit. a week ago the lawyers on both sides came to me. i shewed them a purse of two hundred and fifty sequins, and told them they might take it, but not a penny more. they went away without saying a word, both wearing an ill-pleased air, of which i took no notice. three days ago the abbe justiniani told me that the ambassador had thought fit to give permission to the state inquisitors to send their men at once to my house to make search therein. i thought the thing impossible under the shelter of a foreign ambassador, and instead of taking the usual precautions, i waited the approach of the men-at-arms, only putting my money in a place of safety. at daybreak messer-grande came to the house, and asked me for three hundred and fifty sequins, and on my telling him that i hadn’t a farthing he seized me, and here i am.”
i shuddered, less at having such an infamous companion than at his evidently considering me as his equal, for if he had thought of me in any other light he would certainly not have told me this long tale, doubtless in the belief that i should take his part. in all the folly about charron with which he tormented me in the three days we were together, i found by bitter experience the truth of the italian proverb: ‘guardati da colui che non ha letto che un libro solo’. by reading the work of the misguided priest he had become an atheist, and of this he made his boast all the day long. in the afternoon lawrence came to tell him to come and speak with the secretary. he dressed himself hastily, and instead of his own shoes he took mine without my seeing him. he came back in half an hour in tears, and took out of his shoes two purses containing three hundred and fifty sequins, and, the gaoler going before, he went to take them to the secretary. a few moments afterwards he returned, and taking his cloak went away. lawrence told me that he had been set at liberty. i thought, and with good reason, that, to make him acknowledge his debt and pay it, the secretary had threatened him with the torture; and if it were only used in similar cases, i, who detest the principle of torture, would be the first to proclaim its utility.
on new year’s day, 1733, i received my presents. lawrence brought me a dressing-gown lined with foxskin, a coverlet of wadded silk, and a bear-skin bag for me to put my legs in, which i welcomed gladly, for the coldness was unbearable as the heat in august. lawrence told me that i might spend to the amount of six sequins a month, that i might have what books i liked, and take in the newspaper, and that this present came from m. de bragadin. i asked him for a pencil, and i wrote upon a scrap of paper: “i am grateful for the kindness of the tribunal and the goodness of m. de bragadin.”
the man who would know what were my feelings at all this must have been in a similar situation to my own. in the first gush of feeling i forgave my oppressors, and was on the point of giving up the idea of escape; so easily shall you move a man that you have brought low and overwhelmed with misfortune. lawrence told me that m. de bragadin had come before the three inquisitors, and that on his knees, and with tears in his eyes, he had entreated them to let him give me this mark of his affection if i were still in the land of the living; the inquisitors were moved, and were not able to refuse his request.
i wrote down without delay the names of the books i wanted.
one fine morning, as i was walking in the garret, my eyes fell on the iron bar i have mentioned, and i saw that it might very easily be made into a defensive or offensive weapon. i took possession of it, and having hidden it under my dressing-gown i conveyed it into my cell. as soon as i was alone, i took the piece of black marble, and i found that i had to my hand an excellent whetstone; for by rubbing the bar with the stone i obtained a very good edge.
my interest roused in this work in which i was but an apprentice, and in the fashion in which i seemed likely to become possessed of an instrument totally prohibited under the leads, impelled, perhaps, also by my vanity to make a weapon without any of the necessary tools, and incited by my very difficulties (for i worked away till dark without anything to hold my whetstone except my left hand, and without a drop of oil to soften the iron), i made up my mind to persevere in my difficult task. my saliva served me in the stead of oil, and i toiled eight days to produce eight edges terminating in a sharp point, the edges being an inch and a half in length. my bar thus sharpened formed an eight-sided dagger, and would have done justice to a first-rate cutler. no one can imagine the toil and trouble i had to bear, nor the patience required to finish this difficult task without any other tools than a loose piece of stone. i put myself, in fact, to a kind of torture unknown to the tyrants of all ages. my right arm had become so stiff that i could hardly move it; the palm of my hand was covered with a large scar, the result of the numerous blisters caused by the hardness and the length of the work. no one would guess the sufferings i underwent to bring my work to completion.
proud of what i had done, without thinking what use i could make of my weapon, my first care was to hide it in such a manner as would defy a minute search. after thinking over a thousand plans, to all of which there was some objection, i cast my eyes on my arm-chair, and there i contrived to hide it so as to be secure from all suspicion. thus did providence aid me to contrive a wonderful and almost inconceivable plan of escape. i confess to a feeling of vanity, not because i eventually succeeded — for i owed something to good luck — but because i was brave enough to undertake such a scheme in spite of the difficulties which might have ruined my plans and prevented my ever attaining liberty.
after thinking for three or four days as to what i should do with the bar i had made into an edged tool, as thick as a walking-stick and twenty inches long, i determined that the best plan would be to make a hole in the floor under my bed.
i was sure that the room below my cell was no other than the one in which i had seen m. cavalli. i knew that this room was opened every morning, and i felt persuaded that, after i had made my hole, i could easily let myself down with my sheets, which i would make into a rope and fasten to my bed. once there, i would hide under the table of the court, and in the morning, when the door was opened, i could escape and get to a place of safety before anyone could follow me. i thought it possible that a sentry might be placed in the hall, but my short pike ought to soon rid me of him. the floor might be of double or even of triple thickness, and this thought puzzled me; for in that case how was i to prevent the guard sweeping out the room throughout the two months my work might last. if i forbade them to do so, i might rouse suspicion; all the more as, to free myself of the fleas, i had requested them to sweep out the cell every day, and in sweeping they would soon discover what i was about. i must find some way out of this difficulty.
i began by forbidding them to sweep, without giving any reason. a week after, lawrence asked me why i did so. i told him because of the dust which might make me cough violently and give me some fatal injury.
“i will make them water the floor,” said he.
“that would be worse, lawrence, for the damp might cause a plethora.”
in this manner i obtained a week’s respite, but at the end of that. time the lout gave orders that my cell should be swept. he had the bed carried out into the garret, and on pretence of having the sweeping done with greater care, he lighted a candle. this let me know that the rascal was suspicious of something; but i was crafty enough to take no notice of him, and so far from giving up my plea, i only thought how i could put it on good train. next morning i pricked my finger and covered my handkerchief with the blood, and then awaited lawrence in bed. as soon as he came i told him that i had coughed so violently as to break a blood-vessel, which had made me bring up all the blood he saw. “get me a doctor.” the doctor came, ordered me to be bled, and wrote me a prescription. i told him it was lawrence’s fault, as he had persisted in having the room swept. the doctor blamed him for doing so, and just as if i had asked him he told us of a young man who had died from the same cause, and said that there was nothing more dangerous than breathing in dust. lawrence called all the gods to witness that he had only had the room swept for my sake, and promised it should not happen again. i laughed to myself, for the doctor could not have played his part better if i had given him the word. the guards who were there were delighted, and said they would take care only to sweep the cells of those prisoners who had angered them.
when the doctor was gone, lawrence begged my pardon, and assured me that all the other prisoners were in good health although their cells were swept out regularly.
“but what the doctor says is worth considering,” said he, “and i shall tell them all about it, for i look upon them as my children.”
the blood-letting did me good, as it made me sleep, and relieved me of the spasms with which i was sometimes troubled. i had regained my appetite and was getting back my strength every day, but the time to set about my work was not yet come; it was still too cold, and i could not hold the bar for any length of time without my hand becoming stiff. my scheme required much thought. i had to exercise boldness and foresight to rid myself of troubles which chance might bring to pass or which i could foresee. the situation of a man who had to act as i had, is an unhappy one, but in risking all for all half its bitterness vanishes.
the long nights of winter distressed me, for i had to pass nineteen mortal hours in darkness; and on the cloudy days, which are common enough at venice, the light i had was not sufficient for me to be able to read. without any distractions i fell back on the idea of my escape, and a man who always thinks on one subject is in danger of becoming a monomaniac. a wretched kitchen-lamp would have made me happy, but how am i to get such a thing? o blessed prerogative of thought! how happy was i when i thought i had found a way to possess myself of such a treasure! to make such a lamp i required a vase, wicks, oil, a flint and steel, tinder, and matches. a porringer would do for the vase, and i had one which was used for cooking eggs in butter. pretending that the common oil did not agree with me, i got them to buy me lucca oil for my salad, and my cotton counterpane would furnish me with wicks. i then said i had the toothache, and asked lawrence to get me a pumice-stone, but as he did not know what i meant i told him that a musket-flint would do as well if it were soaked in vinegar for a day, and, then being applied to the tooth the pain would be eased. lawrence told me that the vinegar i had was excellent, and that i could soak the stone myself, and he gave me three or four flints he had in his pocket. all i had to do was to get some sulphur and tinder, and the procuring of these two articles set all my wits to work. at last fortune came to my assistance.
i had suffered from a kind of rash, which as it came off had left some red spots on my arms, and occasionally caused me some irritation. i told lawrence to ask the doctor for a cure, and the next day he brought me a piece of paper which the secretary had seen, and on which the doctor had written, “regulate the food for a day, and the skin will be cured by four ounces of oil of sweet almonds or an ointment of flour of sulphur, but this local application is hazardous.”
“never mind the danger,” said i to lawrence; “buy me the ointment, or rather get me the sulphur, as i have some butter by me, and i can make it up myself. have you any matches? give me a few.”
he found some in his pockets, and he gave me them.
what a small thing brings comfort in distress! but in my place these matches were no small thing, but rather a great treasure.
i had puzzled my head for several hours as to what substitute i could find for tinder — the only thing i still lacked, and which i could not ask for under any pretense whatsoever — when i remembered that i had told the tailor to put some under the armpits of my coat to prevent the perspiration spoiling the stuff. the coat, quite new, was before me, and my heart began to beat, but supposing the tailor had not put it in! thus i hung between hope and fear. i had only to take a step to know all; but such a step would have been decisive, and i dared not take it. at last i drew nigh, and feeling myself unworthy of such mercies i fell on my knees and fervently prayed of god that the tailor might not have forgotten the tinder. after this heartfelt prayer i took my coat, unsewed it, and found-the tinder! my joy knew no bounds. i naturally gave thanks to god, since it was with confidence in him that i took courage and searched my coat, and i returned thanks to him with all my heart.
i now had all the necessary materials, and i soon made myself a lamp. let the reader imagine my joy at having in a manner made light in the midst of darkness, and it was no less sweet because against the orders of my infamous oppressors. now there was no more night for me, and also no more salad, for though i was very fond of it the need of keeping the oil to give light caused me to make this sacrifice without it costing me many pangs. i fixed upon the first monday in lent to begin the difficult work of breaking through the floor, for i suspected that in the tumult of the carnival i might have some visitors, and i was in the right.
at noon, on quinquagesima sunday, i heard the noise of the bolts, and presently lawrence entered, followed by a thick-set man whom i recognized as the jew, gabriel schalon, known for lending money to young men.
we knew each other, so exchanged compliments. his company was by no means agreeable to me, but my opinion was not asked. he began by congratulating me on having the pleasure of his society; and by way of answer i offered him to share my dinner, but he refused, saying he would only take a little soup, and would keep his appetite for a better supper at his own house.
“when?”
“this evening. you heard when i asked for my bed he told me that we would talk about that to-morrow. that means plainly that i shall have no need of it. and do you think it likely that a man like me would be left without anything to eat?”
“that was my experience.”
“possibly, but between ourselves our cases are somewhat different; and without going any farther into that question, the inquisitors have made a mistake in arresting me, and they will be in some trouble, i am certain, as to how to atone for doing so.”
“they will possibly give you a pension. a man of your importance has to be conciliated.”
“true, there’s not a broker on the exchange more useful than myself, and the five sages have often profited by the advice i have given them. my detention is a curious incident, which, perchance, will be of service to you.”
“indeed. how, may i ask?”
“i will get you out of here in a month’s time. i know to whom to speak and what way to do it:”
“i reckon on you, then.”
“you may do so.”
this knave and fool together believed himself to be somebody. he volunteered to inform me as to what was being said of me in the town, but as he only related the idle tales of men as ignorant as himself, he wearied me, and to escape listening to him i took up a book. the fellow had the impudence to ask me not to read, as he was very fond of talking, but henceforth he talked only to himself. i did not dare to light my lamp before this creature, and as night drew on he decided on accepting some bread and cyprus wine, and he was afterwards obliged to do as best he could with my mattress, which was now the common bed of all new-comers.
in the morning he had a bed and some food from his own house. i was burdened with this wretched fellow for two months, for before condemning him to the fours the secretary had several interviews with him to bring to light his knaveries, and to oblige him to cancel a goodly number of illegal agreements. he confessed to me himself that he had bought of m. domenico micheli the right to moneys which could not belong to the buyer till after the father of the seller was dead. “it’s true,” said he, “that he agreed to give me fifty per cent., but you must consider that if he died before his father i should lose all.” at last, seeing that my cursed fellow did not go, i determined to light my lamp again after having made him promise to observe secrecy. he only kept his promise while he was with me, as lawrence knew all about it, but luckily he attached no importance to the fact.
this unwelcome guest was a true burden to me, as he not only prevented me from working for my escape but also from reading. he was troublesome, ignorant, superstitious, a braggart, cowardly, and sometimes like a madman. he would have had me cry, since fear made him weep, and he said over and over again that this imprisonment would ruin his reputation. on this count i reassured him with a sarcasm he did not understand. i told him that his reputation was too well known to suffer anything from this little misfortune, and he took that for a compliment. he would not confess to being a miser, but i made him admit that if the inquisitors would give him a hundred sequins for every day of his imprisonment he would gladly pass the rest of his life under the leads.
he was a talmudist, like all modern jews, and he tried to make me believe that he was very devout; but i once extracted a smile of approbation from him by telling him that he would forswear moses if the pope would make him a cardinal. as the son of a rabbi he was learned in all the ceremonies of his religion, but like most men he considered the essence of a religion to lie in its discipline and outward forms.
this jew, who was extremely fat, passed three-quarters of his life in bed; and though he often dozed in the daytime, he was annoyed at not being able to sleep at night — all the more as he saw that i slept excellently. he once took it into his head to wake me up as i was enjoying my sleep.
“what do you want?” said i; “waking me up with a start like this.”
“my dear fellow, i can’t sleep a wink. have compassion on me and let us have a little talk.”
“you scoundrel! you act thus and you dare to call yourself my friend! i know your lack of sleep torments you, but if you again deprive me of the only blessing i enjoy i will arise and strangle you.”
i uttered these words in a kind of transport.
“forgive me, for mercy’s sake! and be sure that i will not trouble you again.”
it is possible that i should not have strangled him, but i was very much tempted to do so. a prisoner who is happy enough to sleep soundly, all the while he sleeps is no longer a captive, and feels no more the weight of his chains. he ought to look upon the wretch who awakens him as a guard who deprives him of his liberty, and makes him feel his misery once more, since, awakening, he feels all his former woes. furthermore, the sleeping prisoner often dreams that he is free again, in like manner as the wretch dying of hunger sees himself in dreams seated at a sumptuous feast.
i congratulated myself on not having commenced my great work before he came, especially as he required that the room should be swept out. the first time he asked for it to be dote, the guards made me laugh by saying that it would kill me. however, he insisted; and i had my revenge by pretending to be ill, but from interested motives i made no further opposition.
on the wednesday in holy week lawrence told us that the secretary would make us the customary visit in the afternoon, the object being to give peace to them that would receive the sacrament at easter, and also to know if they had anything to say against the gaoler. “so, gentlemen,” said lawrence, “if you have any complaints to make of me make them. dress yourselves fully, as is customary.” i told lawrence to get me a confessor for the day.
i put myself into full dress, and the jew followed my example, taking leave of me in advance, so sure was he that the secretary would set him free on hearing what he had to say. “my presentiment,” said he, “is of the same kind as i have had before, and i have never been deceived.”
“i congratulate you, but don’t reckon without your host.” he did not understand what i meant.
in course of time the secretary came, and as soon as the cell-door was opened the jew ran out and threw himself at his feet on both knees, i heard for five minutes nothing but his tears and complaints, for the secretary said not one word. he came back, and lawrence told me to go out. with a beard of eight months’ growth, and a dress made for love-making in august, i must have presented a somewhat curious appearance. much to my disgust i shivered with cold, and was afraid that the secretary would think i was trembling with fear. as i was obliged to bend low to come out of my hole, my bow was ready made, and drawing myself up, i looked at him calmly without affecting any unseasonable hardihood, and waited for him to speak. the secretary also kept silence, so that we stood facing each other like a pair of statues. at the end of two minutes, the secretary, seeing that i said nothing, gave me a slight bow, and went away. i re-entered my cell, and taking off my clothes in haste, got into bed to get warm again. the jew was astonished at my not having spoken to the secretary, although my silence had cried more loudly than his cowardly complaints. a prisoner of my kind has no business to open his mouth before his judge, except to answer questions. on maundy thursday a jesuit came to confess me, and on holy saturday a priest of st. mark’s came to administer to me the holy communion. my confession appearing rather too laconic to the sweet son of ignatius he thought good to remonstrate with me before giving me his absolution.
“do you pray to god?” he said.
“from the morning unto the evening, and from the evening unto the morning, for, placed as i am, all that i feel — my anxiety, my grief, all the wanderings of my mind — can be but a prayer in the eyes of the divine wisdom which alone sees my heart.”
the jesuit smiled slightly and replied by a discourse rather metaphysical than moral, which did not at all tally with my views. i should have confuted him on every point if he had not astonished me by a prophecy he made. “since it is from us,” said he, “that you learnt what you know of religion, practise it in our fashion, pray like us, and know that you will only come out of this place on the day of the saint whose name you bear.” so saying he gave me absolution, and left me. this man left the strongest possible impression on my mind. i did my best, but i could not rid myself of it. i proceeded to pass in review all the saints in the calendar.
the jesuit was the director of m. flaminio corner, an old senator, and then a state inquisitor. this statesman was a famous man of letters, a great politician, highly religious, and author of several pious and ascetic works written in latin. his reputation was spotless.
on being informed that i should be set free on the feast-day of my patron saint, and thinking that my informant ought to know for certain what he told me, i felt glad to have a patron-saint. “but which is it?” i asked myself. “it cannot be st. james of compostella, whose name i bear, for it was on the feast-day of that saint that messer-grande burst open my door.” i took the almanac and looking for the saints’ days nearest at hand i found st. george — a saint of some note, but of whom i had never thought. i then devoted myself to st. mark, whose feast fell on the twenty-fifth of the month, and whose protection as a venetian i might justly claim. to him, then, i addressed my vows, but all in vain, for his feast came round and still i was in prison. then i took myself to st. james, the brother of christ, who comes before st. philip, but again in the wrong. i tried st. anthony, who, if the tale told at padua be true, worked thirteen miracles a day. he worked none for me. thus i passed from one to the other, and by degrees i got to hope in the protection of the saints just as one hopes for anything one desires, but does not expect to come to pass; and i finished up by hoping only in my saint bar, and in the strength of my arms. nevertheless the promise of the jesuit came to pass, since i escaped from the leads on all hallows day; and it is certain that if i had a patron-saint, he must be looked for in their number since they are all honoured on that day.
a fortnight after easter i was delivered from my troublesome israelite, and the poor devil instead of being sent back to his home had to spend two years in the fours, and on his gaining his freedom he went and set up in trieste, where he ended his days.
no sooner was i again alone than i set zealously about my work. i had to make haste for fear of some new visitor, who, like the jew, might insist on the cell being swept. i began by drawing back my bed, and after lighting my lamp i lay down on my belly, my pike in my hand, with a napkin close by in which to gather the fragments of board as i scooped them out. my task was to destroy the board by dint of driving into it the point of my tool. at first the pieces i got away were not much larger than grains of wheat, but they soon increased in size.
the board was made of deal, and was sixteen inches broad. i began to pierce it at its juncture with another board, and as there were no nails or clamps my work was simple. after six hours’ toil i tied up the napkin, and put it on one side to empty it the following day behind the pile of papers in the garret. the fragments were four or five times larger in bulk than the hole from whence they came. i put back my bed in its place, and on emptying the napkin the next morning i took care so to dispose the fragments that they should not be seen.
having broken through the first board, which i found to be two inches thick, i was stopped by a second which i judged to be as thick as the first. tormented by the fear of new visitors i redoubled my efforts, and in three weeks i had pierced the three boards of which the floor was composed; and then i thought that all was lost, for i found i had to pierce a bed of small pieces of marble known at venice as terrazzo marmorin. this forms the usual floor of venetian houses of all kinds, except the cottages, for even the high nobility prefer the terrazzo to the finest boarded floor. i was thunderstruck to find that my bar made no impression on this composition; but, nevertheless, i was not altogether discouraged and cast down. i remembered hannibal, who, according to livy, opened up a passage through the alps by breaking the rocks with axes and other instruments, having previously softened them with vinegar. i thought that hannibal had succeeded not by aceto, but aceta, which in the latin of padua might well be the same as ascia; and who can guarantee the text to be free from the blunders of the copyist? all the same, i poured into the hole a bottle of strong vinegar i had by me, and in the morning, either because of the vinegar or because i, refreshed and rested, put more strength and patience into the work, i saw that i should overcome this new difficulty; for i had not to break the pieces of marble, but only to pulverize with the end of my bar the cement which kept them together. i soon perceived that the greatest difficulty was on the surface, and in four days the whole mosaic was destroyed without the point of my pike being at all damaged.
below the pavement i found another plank, but i had expected as much. i concluded that this would be the last; that is the first to be put down when the rooms below were being ceiled. i pierced it with some difficulty, as, the hole being ten inches deep, it had become troublesome to work the pike. a thousand times i commended myself to the mercy of god. those free-thinkers who say that praying is no good do not know what they are talking about; for i know by experience that, having prayed to god, i always felt myself grow stronger, which fact amply proves the usefulness of prayer, whether the renewal of strength come straight from god, or whether it comes only from the trust one has in him.
on the 25th of june, on which day the republic celebrates the wonderful appearance of st. mark under the form of a winged lion in the ducal church, about three o’clock in the afternoon, as i was labouring on my belly at the hole, stark naked, covered with sweat, my lamp beside me. i heard with mortal fear the shriek of a bolt and the noise of the door of the first passage. it was a fearful moment! i blew out my lamp, and leaving my bar in the hole i threw into it the napkin with the shavings it contained, and as swift as lightning i replaced my bed as best i could, and threw myself on it just as the door of my cell opened. if lawrence had come in two seconds sooner he would have caught me. he was about to walk over me, but crying out dolefully i stopped him, and he fell back, saying,
“truly, sir, i pity you, for the air here is as hot as a furnace. get up, and thank god for giving you such good company.”
“come in, my lord, come in,” said he to the poor wretch who followed him. then, without heeding my nakedness, the fellow made the noble gentleman enter, and he seeing me to be naked, sought to avoid me while i vainly tried to find my shirt.
the new-comer thought he was in hell, and cried out,
“where am i? my god! where have i been put? what heat! what a stench! with whom am i?”
lawrence made him go out, and asked me to put on my shirt to go into the garret for a moment. addressing himself to the new prisoner, he said that, having to get a bed and other necessaries, he would leave us in the garret till he came back, and that, in the mean time, the cell would be freed from the bad smell, which was only oil. what a start it gave me as i heard him utter the word “oil.” in my hurry i had forgotten to snuff the wick after blowing it out. as lawrence asked me no questions about it, i concluded that he knew all, and the accursed jew must have betrayed me. i thought myself lucky that he was not able to tell him any more.
from that time the repulsion which i had felt for lawrence disappeared.
after putting on my shirt and dressing-gown, i went out and found my new companion engaged in writing a list of what he wanted the gaoler to get him. as soon as he saw me, he exclaimed, “ah! it’s casanova.” i, too, recognised him as the abbe and count fenarolo, a man of fifty, amiable, rich, and a favourite in society. he embraced me, and when i told him that i should have expected to see anybody in that place rather than him, he could not keep back his tears, which made me weep also.
when we were alone i told him that, as soon as his bed came, i should offer him the recess, begging him at the same time not to accept it. i asked him, also, not to ask to have the cell swept, saying that i would tell him the reason another time. he promised to keep all secrecy in the matter, and said he thought himself fortunate to be placed with me. he said that as no one knew why i was imprisoned, everyone was guessing at it. some said that i was the heresiarch of a new sect; others that madame memmo had persuaded the inquisitors that i had made her sons atheists, and others that antony condulmer, the state inquisitor, had me imprisoned as a disturber of the peace, because i hissed abbe chiari’s plays, and had formed a design to go to padua for the express purpose of killing him.
all these accusations had a certain foundation in fact which gave them an air of truth, but in reality they were all wholly false. i cared too little for religion to trouble myself to found a new one. the sons of madame memmo were full of wit, and more likely to seduce than to be seduced; and master condulmer would have had too much on his hands if he had imprisoned all those who hissed the abbe chiari; and as for this abbe, once a jesuit, i had forgiven him, as the famous father origo, himself formerly a jesuit, had taught me to take my revenge by praising him everywhere, which incited the malicious to vent their satire on the abbe; and thus i was avenged without any trouble to myself.
in the evening they brought a good bed, fine linen, perfumes, an excellent supper, and choice wines. the abbe ate nothing, but i supped for two. when lawrence had wished us good night and had shut us up till the next day, i got out my lamp, which i found to be empty, the napkin having sucked up all the oil. this made me laugh, for as the napkin might very well have caught and set the room on fire, the idea of the confusion which would have ensued excited my hilarity. i imparted the cause of my mirth to my companion, who laughed himself, and then, lighting the lamp, we spent the night in pleasant talk. the history of his imprisonment was as follows:
“yesterday, at three o’clock in the afternoon, madame alessandria, count martinengo, and myself, got into a gondola. we went to padua to see the opera, intending to return to venice afterwards. in the second act my evil genius led me to the gaming-table, where i unfortunately saw count rosenberg, the austrian ambassador, without his mask, and about ten paces from him was madame ruzzini, whose husband is going to vienna to represent the republic. i greeted them both, and was just going away, when the ambassador called out to me, so as to be heard by everyone, ‘you are very fortunate in being able to pay your court to so sweet a lady. at present the personage i represent makes the fairest land in the world no better for me than a galley. tell the lady, i beseech you, that the laws which now prevent me speaking to her will be without force at venice, where i shall go next year, and then i shall declare war against her.’ madame ruzzini, who saw that she was being spoken of, asked me what the count had said, and i told her, word for word. ‘tell him,’ said she, ‘that i accept his declaration of war, and that we shall see who will wage it best.’ i did not think i had committed a crime in reporting her reply, which was after all a mere compliment. after the opera we set out, and got here at midnight. i was going to sleep when a messenger brought me a note ordering me to go to the bussola at one o’clock, signor bussinello, secretary of the council of ten, having something to say to me. astonished at such an order — always of bad omen, and vexed at being obliged to obey, i went at the time appointed, and my lord secretary, without giving me a word, ordered me to be taken here.”
certainly no fault could be less criminal than that which count fenarolo had committed, but one can break certain laws in all innocence without being any the less punishable. i congratulated him on knowing what his crime had been, and told him that he would be set free in a week, and would be requested to spend six months in the bressian. “i can’t think,” said he, “that they will leave me here for a week.” i determined to keep him good company, and to soften the bitterness of his imprisonment, and so well did i sympathize with his position that i forgot all about my own.
the next morning at day-break, lawrence brought coffee and a basket filled with all the requisites for a good dinner. the abbe was astonished, for he could not conceive how anyone could eat at such an early hour. they let us walk for an hour in the garret and then shut us up again, and we saw no more of them throughout the day. the fleas which tormented us made the abbe ask why i did not have the cell swept out. i could not let him think that dirt and untidiness was agreeable to me, or that my skin was any harder than his own, so i told him the whole story, and shewed him what i had done. he was vexed at having as it were forced me to make him my confidant, but he encouraged me to go on, and if possible to finish what i was about that day, as he said he would help me to descend and then would draw up the rope, not wishing to complicate his own difficulties by an escape. i shewed him the model of a contrivance by means of which i could certainly get possession of the sheets which were to be my rope; it was a short stick attached by one end to a long piece of thread. by this stick i intended to attach my rope to the bed, and as the thread hung down to the floor of the room below, as soon as i got there i should pull the thread and the rope would fall down. he tried it, and congratulated me on my invention, as this was a necessary part of my scheme, as otherwise the rope hanging down would have immediately discovered me. my noble companion was convinced that i ought to stop my work, for i might be surprised, having to do several days’ work before finishing the hole which would cost lawrence his life. should the thought of gaining my liberty at the expense of a fellow-creature have made me desist? i should have still persisted if my escape had meant death to the whole body of venetian guards, and even to the inquisitors themselves. can the love of country, all holy though it be, prevail in the heart of the man whose country is oppressing him?
my good humour did not prevent my companion having some bad quarters of an hour. he was in love with madame alessandria, who had been a singer, and was either the mistress or the wife of his friend martinengo; and he should have deemed himself happy, but the happier a lover is, so much the more his unhappiness when he is snatched from the beloved object. he sighed, wept, and declared that he loved a woman in whom all the noble virtues were contained. i compassionated him, and took care not to comfort him by saying that love is a mere trifle — a cold piece of comfort given to lovers by fools, and, moreover, it is not true that love is a mere trifle.
the week i had mentioned as the probable term of his imprisonment passed quickly enough, and i lost my friend, but did not waste my time by mourning for him; he was set free, and i was content. i did not beg him to be discreet, for the least doubt on that score would have wounded his noble spirit. during the week he was with me he only ate soup and fruit, taking a little canary wine. it was i who made good cheer in his stead and greatly to his delight. before he left we swore eternal friendship.
the next day lawrence gave me an account of my money, and on finding that i had a balance of four sequins i gave them to him, telling him it was a present from me to his wife. i did not tell him that it was for the rent of my lamp, but he was free to think so if he chose. again betaking myself to my work, and toiling without cessation, on the 23rd of august i saw it finished. this delay was caused by an inevitable accident. as i was hollowing out the last plank, i put my eye to a little hole, through which i ought to have seen the hall of the inquisitors-in fact, i did see it, but i saw also at one side of the hole a surface about eight inches thick. it was, as i had feared all the time it would be, one of the beams which kept up the ceiling. i was thus compelled to enlarge my hole on the other side, for the beam would have made it so narrow that a man of my size could never have got through. i increased the hole, therefore, by a fourth, working — between fear and hope, for it was possible that the space between two of the beams would not be large enough. after i had finished, a second little hole assured me that god had blessed my labour. i then carefully stopped up the two small holes to prevent anything falling down into the hall, and also lest a ray from my lamp should be perceived, for this would have discovered all and ruined me.
i fixed my escape for the eve of st. augustine’s day, because i knew that the grand council assembled on that feast, and there would consequently be nobody near the room through which i must pass in getting away. this would have been on the twenty-seventh of the month, but a misfortune happened to me on the twenty-fifth which makes me still shudder when i think of it, notwithstanding the years which have passed since then.
precisely at noon i heard the noise of bolts, and i thought i should die; for a violent beating of the heart made me imagine my last hour was come. i fell into my easy chair, and waited. lawrence came into the garret and put his head at the grating, and said, “i give you joy, sir, for the good news i am bringing you.” at first, not being able to think of any other news which could be good to me, i fancied i had been set at liberty, and i trembled, for i knew that the discovery of the hole i had made would have caused my pardon to be recalled.
lawrence came in and told me to follow him.
“wait till i put on my clothes.”
“it’s of no consequence, as you only have to walk from this abominable cell to another, well lighted and quite fresh, with two windows whence you can see half venice, and you can stand upright too.” —— i could bear no more, i felt that i was fainting. “give me the vinegar,” said i, “and go and tell the secretary that i thank the court for this favour, and entreat it to leave me where i am.”
“you make me laugh, sir. have you gone mad? they would take you from hell to put you in heaven, and you would refuse to stir? come, come, the court must be obeyed, pray rise, sir. i will give you my arm, and will have your clothes and your books brought for you.” seeing that resistance was of no avail, i got up, and was much comforted at hearing him give orders for my arm-chair to be brought, for my pike was to follow me, and with it hope. i should have much liked to have been able to take the hole — the object of so much wasted trouble and hope — with me. i may say with truth that, as i came forth from that horrible and doleful place, my spirit remained there.
leaning on lawrence’s shoulder, while he, thinking to cheer me up, cracked his foolish jokes, i passed through two narrow passages, and going down three steps i found myself in a well-lighted hall, at the end of which, on the left-hand side, was a door leading into another passage two feet broad by about twelve long, and in the corner was my new cell. it had a barred window which was opposite to two windows, also barred, which lighted the passage, and thus one had a fine view as far as lido. at that trying moment i did not care much for the view; but later on i found that a sweet and pleasant wind came through the window when it was opened, and tempered the insufferable heat; and this was a true blessing for the poor wretch who had to breathe the sultry prison air, especially in the hot season.
as soon as i got into my new cell lawrence had my arm-chair brought in, and went away, saying that he would have the remainder of my effects brought to me. i sat on my arm-chair as motionless as a statue, waiting for the storm, but not fearing it. what overwhelmed me was the distressing idea that all my pains and contrivances were of no use, nevertheless i felt neither sorry nor repentant for what i had done, and i made myself abstain from thinking of what was going to happen, and thus kept myself calm.
lifting up my soul to god i could not help thinking that this misfortune was a divine punishment for neglecting to escape when all was ready. nevertheless, though i could have escaped three days sooner, i thought my punishment too severe, all the more as i had put off my escape from motives of prudence, which seemed to me worthy of reward, for if i had only consulted my own impatience to be gone i should have risked everything. to controvert the reasons which made me postpone my flight to the 27th of august, a special revelation would have been requisite; and though i had read “mary of agrada” i was not mad enough for that.
