said my companion at last
with a sigh, "unless we patiently cut a way through with your knife; one
cutting, while the other keeps on throwing the chips out of the window
so that they cannot be seen."

"But we shall make a big hole," I objected, "and the first time that
Jarette comes in he will see it, and put us somewhere else."

"Of course. It looks very hopeless, my lad."

"You see we want holes, sir, so that we could take out one board from
top to bottom quite whole, and put it back just as it was."

"Yes; but how are we to do that without tools?"

"I thought doctors always had a lot of tools," I said; "knives and saws
and choppers for operations."

"Ah!" he ejaculated. "My head has not come right yet after that injury.
Why, look here, lad!"

He went to a drawer fitted into a chest, and drew it open to take out a
mahogany case in which, lying on blue velvet, were some of the things I
had named--knives, and a couple of saws, beside other instruments whose
purpose I did not grasp.

"We draw the line at choppers, Dale," he said, smiling; "and I suppose I
ought not to devote my choice instruments to such a duty, but I think
these will do."

"Splendidly!" I cried in delight, as I quite gloated over the bright
steel saw. "Why, with one of those I can get a whole board out in an
hour or two."

"Without being heard?"

"I didn't think of that," I said. "Let's see what noise it would make."

"No," said Mr Frewen, quietly. "We must wait till night; and it will
be a very much longer task than you think, because we shall have to work
so slowly."

"Wait till night!" I cried impatiently.

He nodded, and the dreary, slow way in which the rest of that day passed
was terrible. It was as if the sun would never set; but Mr Frewen was
right. There were two interruptions to expect--the coming of the man
who would bring us our evening meal, a sort of tea-dinner-supper, and
possibly a visit from Jarette to fetch Mr Frewen to see the captain.

The man came with our comfortless, unsatisfactory meal, at which I
grumbled, but which Mr Frewen said was far better than ordinary prison
fare; and just at dark, as he had suggested, we were startled by the
sudden rattling at the fastening of our door.

Then Jarette appeared, and signed imperiously to Mr Frewen to follow
him.

My companion frowned, but he rose and followed; not to obey Jarette, as
he afterwards said, but to go and attend upon the captain.

I rose to go