efully examined the prisoners and finding nothing
to excite his suspicions, he departed tolerably satisfied.

As soon as he was certain he should be disturbed no more, Jack set to
work, and with the aid of the file in less than an hour had freed
himself from his fetters. With Bess's assistance he then climbed up to
the window, which, as has just been stated, was secured by iron bars of
great thickness crossed by a stout beam of oak. The very sight of these
impediments, would have appalled a less courageous spirit than
Sheppard's--but nothing could daunt him. To work then he went, and with
wonderful industry filed off two of the iron bars. Just as he completed
this operation, the file broke. The oaken beam, nine inches in
thickness, was now the sole but most formidable obstacle to his flight.
With his gimblet he contrived to bore a number of holes so close
together that at last one end of the bar, being completely pierced
through, yielded; and pursuing the same with the other extremity, it
fell out altogether.

This last operation was so fatiguing, that for a short time he was
obliged to pause to recover the use of his fingers. He then descended;
and having induced Bess to take off some part of her clothing, he tore
the gown and petticoat into shreds and twisted them into a sort of rope
which he fastened to the lower bars of the window. With some difficulty
he contrived to raise her to the window, and with still greater
difficulty to squeeze her through it--her bulk being much greater than
his own. He then made a sort of running noose, passed it over her body,
and taking firmly hold of the bars, prepared to guide her descent. But
Bess could scarcely summon resolution enough to hazard the experiment;
and it was only on Jack's urgent intreaties, and even threats, that she
could be prevailed on to trust herself to the frail tenure of the rope
he had prepared. At length, however, she threw herself off; and Jack
carefully guiding the rope she landed in safety.

The next moment he was by her side.

But the great point was still unaccomplished. They had escaped from the
New Prison, it is true; but the wall of Clerkenwell Bridewell, by which
that jail was formerly surrounded, and which was more than twenty feet
high, and protected by formidable and bristling _chevaux de frise_,
remained to be scaled. Jack, however, had an expedient for mastering
this difficulty. He ventured to the great gates, and by inserting his
gimblets i