cecil stark and william burnham walked side by side in their exercise yard and discussed the affairs of the world. while the american prisoners toiled like moles underground, great events marked the time. the allies were in paris; napoleon had abdicated and, for a moment, the war with france was ended. the peace of paris had been accomplished, and europe took breath. yet liberty's glorious reveille woke the french at prince town to more grief than joy.
"i can find it in me to be truly sorry for them," said stark. "they have starved and frozen and suffered for an ideal cause and the ideal is shattered. they trusted bonaparte as our people trust god; and now the idol they adored is fallen, and the master they hate is lifted up again."
"men from plymouth presented them with their old national flag and advised them to wear the white cockade," answered burnham; "but every mother's son of 'em sticks to the tricolour and has pinned the bourbon favour to his dog!"
"they cry out that elba is too small to hold the spirit of napoleon. perhaps they are right. time will show that," said stark.
"their wives and children will soften their griefs when they get home."
"doubtless. and their common sense, so soon as the first smart of failure is past. war teaches men to look twice into the claims of kings."
burnham did not immediately reply. then he said—
"i've noticed a change in you since that awful experience when miller perished. you seem—forgive me—less patriotic-minded than of yore."
"i have wider interests than of yore. i get important private letters."
"from home?"
"no—from friends in this country. to be frank, i have now a personal stake in life that i lacked until recently. we cannot live to the state only. we must also live to ourselves."
"do those interests of self and state clash then?"
"as to that, my lad—why, mind your own business," replied stark. his tone was amiable, but burnham knew the subject could not be reopened.
presently others joined them and conversation turned to the subterranean works.
a shaft, whose adit was carefully concealed, now sank upon the tunnel under prison no. 6. the mouth was narrow, but within it space had been dug for four men to work abreast. a grand difficulty was the disposal of the excavated earth; and ingenious methods had been taken to get rid of it. a stream, which ran through each prison yard at the rate of four miles an hour, carried away many tons of fine dirt, while much was mixed with lime, plastered over the prison walls and then whitewashed. a large cavity discovered under prison no. 5 proved also of great service, and many tons of surplus soil had been cast into it. now, as their passage crept yard by yard nearer to the outer walls, the workers suffered for want of air; but means to eject the azotic gas were devised; a system of lighted lamps answered this purpose; and to lovey lee fell the task of smuggling large quantities of oil into the war prison.
the leaders spoke with hope and enthusiasm. a week or less would see the completion of the tunnel, and already plans were being developed for the great exodus.
burnham, fresh from his conversation with stark, found david leverett at his elbow; whereupon he discussed his recent rebuff with the sailor.
"stark was wont to be open as daylight. but now there's a bitterness about the man, and his mind wanders. to-day he confessed to other interests than our common interests. and at such a critical time!"
"you can't trust any human in this world," said leverett. "i tell you there's not a doodle inside these walls—narry a yankee or britisher—who hevn't got his figure. man's built so; so's god. you can't even get into heaven for nought. 'tis a question of price. only hell lets you in free."
"you don't mean——?"
"i don't mean nothing. 'tis dangerous ter mean anything in this place, when you've always got unseen eyes watching you, like a hawk watches a sparrow. but let the highest amongst us be watched as well as the lowest—that's all. no treason in that. i hevn't got any ill-will against cecil stark, though i know you was always jealous of him. he's a good boss, and i trust him as much as i trust anybody else. but liberty's sweeter than love of man or country; and money with liberty would tempt the angels i reckon, if they found themselves in this place. money and liberty's all the world can give a man."
"what's money to him? he's made of money."
"so much the more might he want ter be free ter spend it. he's not the sort to stop home nights anyhow."
"for that matter, there's money for all since the french departed. their offices fall to our men now. the prisoners are making fifty pounds a week or more—apart from home allowances."
"yes, an' that tarnal miser, lovey lee, pouches half of it," grumbled leverett. "talk about money! if i'm first through the rat-hole, i'd like ter get my four fingers on ter her windpipe and strangle her by inches. that's the payment she deserves!"
"we shall be through in four or five days. knapps sends in word that since they got a recruit—lovey lee's grandson—their rate of progress has increased. 'tis the letters that john lee gets to stark that make him so unrestful, i believe."
"stark could give 'em the slip for that matter," said leverett. "scores of yankees as can speak the lingo have given up the names of frenchmen and gone out. i'd hev done it myself if i could parley-voo."
"yes," admitted burnham. "he's a good scholar. he could go to-morrow; but if he did he would be a coward and a knave. he knows that it is his duty to stop and see this thing through."
"'duty'! well, i haven't got much more use for duty myself," replied the other. "life's short, and there's nobody on earth or in heaven cares for me but david leverett."
"stark happens to have bigger ideas than you," answered burnham coldly.
"'tis easy for the rich ter hev big ideas; but they ain't no good to the likes of you and me."
william burnham resented these sentiments and turned on his heel; while leverett addressed mr. cuffee, who passed at the moment, and, in default of a better listener, grumbled to him.
"devil take the hot-heads; and devil take the hindermost! 'tis every man for himself in this world, so far as i've seen. and when all's done, and we're free—what? how's five thousand unarmed men ter get ter tor quay and take ship ter france? we want a fleet o' vessels! they'll send the sojers after us, and they'll lick up and overtake us and cut us ter ribbons—that's what they'll do. 'twould be truest kindness ter stop the whole thing."
"marse stark he lead de way. he wiser den us."
"you think so—and the rest likewise. but i say this snarl is beyond his powers ter loose, and we're going the wrong way about it."
"you no blame marse stark?"
"i duz then. he ought ter know, if he's so tarnation wise, that it can't fall out right."
sam cuffee shook his head.
"if you fink marse stark ebber make a mistake in him life, you no fren' ob mine no more," he said.
elsewhere the subject of these criticisms was fighting with mingled interests, and found himself torn in half between the prisoner at fox tor farm and the prisoners at prince town. escape was now easy enough for any intelligent man; and with each draft of french prisoners many americans had got clear off by giving up the names of the dead; but in stark's opinion, the fortunes of the plot were his fortunes. daily the difficulties increased, and as larger numbers of prisoners became familiar with the secret, the chances of treachery grew. a week or less must see the tunnel bored; but meantime the temptation to desert his post was terrible. through john lee, stark had learned of the catastrophe at fox tor farm, and now understood that secret means were afoot greatly to hasten grace's marriage with peter norcot. the american also knew clearly that, while a prisoner in body, grace malherb was free in heart, and that she loved him. his soul longed with a frantic desire to reach her side and save her. by night he dreamed wild dreams of rescue; in sleep he saw himself conveying his love to france, wedding her there, and returning to england again that he might face her father's fury; but with day his obligations to his countrymen banished this picture. to desert the cause now was impossible, for his escape would awake sleeping authority and unsettle those he left behind him. every hour new problems had to be met and solved. rumours of disaffection reached him often. in this predicament he did not trust himself to think of what he might do, had it not been for the presence of john lee. the vital matter of grace's escape rested with john, and even now, as stark tramped the prison yard, he scanned the grille, impatient to see his friend. for upon the preceding night grace had been rescued from her home and now hid in lee's safe keeping until stark himself was free.
as for john, no personal hopes and ambitions longer remained in his mind. never keen, they had waned utterly with his life's sole joy. now he stood for nothing but the happiness of grace malherb, her safety and her welfare. she alone acted as an incentive and made his life continue to possess attraction. for her he entered into the plot of the americans; for her he toiled beside james knapps to hasten the ends of cecil stark; for her he now ran countless personal risks and came safely out of them, helped by his very indifference to danger.
upon the day that was to have seen grace married to the wool-stapler, lee appeared among the spectators at the barriers, and pulled some small coins from his pocket as stark approached with one or two trinkets of prison manufacture.
"all's well," he said shortly. "i brought her safely off. even now norcot must be cooling his heels at widecombe church; for when they discovered this morning that she had escaped 'em, there was no time to communicate with him."
"she is unhurt? no harm befell her?"
"to earth she came like a pretty dove, and by sun-up she was safe. she's not far off neither."
"to think of another doing these things that should have been my blessed privilege!"
"d'you grudge me that much?"
"no, no, jack; but consider—her lover. yes—i'm that now, thank god."
"this was what i could do for her and you could not. she is out of danger now, and will be for a week—not longer."
"in less time than that my work here is done and we shall be free," answered stark. "then 'tis my turn; then i must——"
"the tunnel will be through in less than four days—perhaps three," interrupted john. "knapps works eighteen hours a day and i do my stint. he's made of iron. by night we get rid of the soil; by day we work while my grandmother keeps guard. when the time comes, we shall knock out the side of the cottage so that the open door shall be as large as possible."
with difficulty stark brought his mind back to this great matter.
"she—yes—the exit must be as wide as you can make it. we are planning the final stroke. at best it will take some hours, however good our method and discipline. the danger of alarm is manifest—also the danger of false alarm and panic."
"you deserve to succeed. you have great authority over men."
"my obligations cease when i take my turn with my fellows and come through the tunnel. it is each man for himself then. but i have given my word to depart no other way. then! how shall i pay you for all i owe you, jack?"
"name that no more. you cannot. she will pay me. her future happiness is my payment."
"and her future will rest with me. 'tis a solemn thought for one so little worthy of such a trust. shall you see her to-day?"
"every day until you are free and beside her."
"my purpose is to get to dartmouth and hire a vessel that will take us to france. i have heard all about the place, and believe that a little ship can lie hid at some appointed spot where the trees hang over the river."
"such spots abound. i might see to that. when once you and your countrymen are free, her hiding-place must be left instantly, for another will come to it."
a shadow of lover's jealousy clouded stark's face; but it was gone in an instant.
"if we get successfully out of this, you and you only must be thanked for all. i lag behind you every way. but i'll do my share, jack, when i get opportunity."
"no fear of that. to-morrow i may beg a mount at holne and get to dartmouth. but, to be frank, 'tis more vital that i should watch over her than do any other thing just now. if norcot lays hands upon me, all may go wrong. he'll know right well that i've a hand in this."
"then think first and only of her, and guard your own safety before everything, for her sake."
a mat of dyed grass and a little box of coloured wood passed between them, while lee handed a coin back through the bars.
"her letter is under a false bottom in the box," said stark; then he turned to some friends and lee went his way. in his mind was a great desire to visit dartmouth and complete these secret plans. yet the awful danger to grace if misfortune overtook him and kept him from returning, made him hesitate to incur other risks than those already run.
