uments, hanging on the walls or ranged on the table.
Of these, although the lads were ignorant of their uses, they
entertained no doubt, whatever, that they were the instruments of
torture of which they had heard--thumb screws, iron gags, the boot,
the rack, and other devilish inventions. They made no reply to the
address, and were taken away, this time, down several winding
stairs to a black and noxious dungeon, far below the general level
of the earth.

No ray of light entered this cell. The walls were damp with
moisture. In the corner the boys discovered, by the sense of
feeling, a small pile of rotten straw; which had, without doubt,
formed the bed of some other unfortunate, who had before tenanted
the prison. Here, at least, they had no fear of being overheard;
but as the ingenuity of the inquisitors was well known, they agreed
to say no word of the hopes they still cherished; but to talk of
other matters, purely personal to themselves. Here, as hour after
hour passed, they strengthened each other in their resolutions, by
an agreement that no torture should wring from them a recantation
of their faith, and by many prayers for strength and support from
above.

Once a day the door opened, and an attendant brought in bread and
water, which he placed in silence on the ground. The second day, as
he did so, he placed a bundle by the side of the bread, and
whispering, "Be prudent. Use these only as the last resource.
Friends are preparing to help you," retired as noiselessly as
usual.

When left in darkness again, the lads seized upon the parcel. It
was large and heavy and, to their great delight, they found that it
contained two daggers and two brace of heavy pistols.

"I wonder," Ned said, in a whisper to Tom, "that our friend does
not contrive to get us passed through the prison. But I suppose
that he finds that only one or two, perhaps, of the attendants are
corruptible; and that our jailor, although he might free us from
this cell, could not pass us through the corridors and out of the
building."

"Let us see," Tom said, "if we can make our way into any cell which
may adjoin this. If it is empty we might, perchance, make our
escape."

All night the boys labored with their daggers, having first tapped
the wall all round, to hear if any difference of sound gave an
intimation that a hollow space was behind. They could not perceive
this; but fancying that, upon the one side, there was some very
slight differen