, and that he had on his
person when captured diamonds to an enormous value, which had
disappeared soon after. Sergeants Hayden and Green of the Bow
Street force and Mr. Good of the bank of England sail on the Java
to-morrow to escort Bidwell to London.

So the web was closing in on me. Of my daily sad interviews with my wife
I will say nothing here. But could I have foreseen that this woman, on
whom I had settled a fortune, would have married another soon after my
sentence, I should not have felt so sorrowful on her account. In due
time Green, Hayden and Good arrived, and were introduced to me. I did
not give in, but made, by the aid of my friends, a hard fight to
persuade the Captain-General to suspend the order for my delivery, and
succeeded for a time.

At last, after many delays and many plans, early one May morning I was
taken to the mouth of the harbor. There the boat of the English warship
Vulture was in waiting, and I was formally transferred to the English
Government, and Curtin. Perry, Hayden and Green went on board with me.
Soon after she steamed out of the harbor. Later in the day the Moselle,
the regular passenger steamer to Plymouth and Southampton, came out, and
about ten miles out at sea was met by the Vulture's boat, and I and my
four guardians were transferred to her.

At last I was off for England, and it looked very much as if Justice
would weigh me in her balance after all, the more certainly because I
found my wife on the Moselle. I had secretly resolved never to be taken
back, but intended the first night out of Havana to jump overboard,
possibly with a cork jacket, or something to help to keep me afloat. The
waters of the gulf were warm, there were many passing ships, and I
would take my chance of surviving the night and being picked up. But,
very cleverly, Curtin decided to send my wife with me and treat me like
any other cabin passenger, rightly divining I would not kill her by
committing suicide or going over the side on chances.

I was well treated all the way over, but every night my prayer was that
we might run on an iceberg or go down, so that my wife might be spared
long years of agony and me from the misery and degradation of prison
life.

I had obtained a position in Havana for one of my servants, but Nunn was
returning with me, feeling very badly and most unhappy over the sure
prospect of my future misery. I was pleased to think he had held on to
the money I