uction lay in our way, and we were forced to pass our hands over
every inch of the rubbish before daring to advance a single pace.

Not until we were come to the opening between the casks was a word
spoken, and then came an exclamation from Saul:

"Thank God you are come! I was beginning to believe you had been made
prisoners, and I would be left to get out of here unaided, which meant
beyond a peradventure that I would speedily find myself in the clutches
of the Britishers."

"Has Horry attempted to raise any row?" I whispered.

"Beyond speaking now and then to make threats as to what will surely
come to us in the future, he has behaved himself," and Saul stood erect,
stretching his limbs to throw off the cramp which had come upon him. "I
have given him to understand thoroughly well how necessary it is we hold
him prisoner, and to what lengths we are ready to go, therefore I
believe he realizes that it would be taking his life in his hands if he
made any attempt at giving us the slip."

Then Saul would have asked concerning what we had been doing during the
day, and how we counted on making our way to the cabin, but I silenced
him, promising that he should hear of all our movements when it should
be possible for us to hold converse without danger of betraying
ourselves.

Once more little Frenchie took upon himself the command of the party by
literally dragging Horry out from the casks, and saying to me when the
lad was on his feet beside us:

"Help me thrust this in his mouth, for it is not safe to take him
through the streets without being gagged."

To my surprise I found that this little French lad had, without
acquainting me with his purpose, made ready for the venture, thus again
proving his right to act as our captain.

He had at some time while in old Mary's cabin made ready a gag of wood
covered with strips torn from a blanket, and this, much against Horry
Sims's will, we thrust into the fellow's mouth, tying it securely; but
promising that if he followed at his best pace and without making an
attempt to get away, he should soon be relieved from what must have been
in the highest degree painful.

Then we began again to make our way over the rubbish, this time with
greater noise than when Pierre and I had entered, because we could not
direct the young Tory's footsteps as cautiously as our own, and more
than once before we had come to the door did we dislodge a bit of timber
or a fragment of wood, caus