prisoners. The cuirassiers followed us at a distance of twenty yards,
conversing with each other, and O'Brien observed that it was amazingly
genteel of the French governor to provide us with two servants in such
handsome liveries. The evening of the second day we arrived at Toulon,
and as soon as we entered the gates, we were delivered into the custody
of an officer with a very sinister cast of countenance, who, after some
conversation with the cuirassiers, told us in a surly tone that our
parole was at an end, and gave us in charge of a corporal's guard, with
directions to conduct us to the prison near the Arsenal. We presented
the cuirassiers with four dollars each, for their civility, and were
then hurried away to our place of captivity. I observed to O'Brien, that
I was afraid that we must now bid farewell to anything like pleasure.
"You're right there, Peter," replied he: "but there's a certain jewel
called Hope, that somebody found at the bottom of his chest, when it was
clean empty, and so we must not lose sight of it, but try and escape as
soon as we can; but the less we talk about it the better." In a few
minutes we arrived at our destination: the door was opened, ourselves
and our bundles (for we had only selected a few things for our march,
the colonel promising to forward the remainder as soon as we wrote to
inform him to which depot we were consigned), were rudely shoved in; and
as the doors again closed, and the heavy bolts were shot, I felt a
creeping, chilly sensation pass through my whole body.

As soon as we could see--for although the prison was not very dark, yet
so suddenly thrown in, after the glare of a bright sunshiny day, at
first we could distinguish nothing--we found ourselves in company with
about thirty English sailors. Most of them were sitting down on the
pavement, or on boxes, or bundles containing their clothes that they had
secured, conversing with each other, or playing at cards or draughts.
Our entrance appeared to excite little attention; after having raised
their eyes to indulge their curiosity, they continued their pursuits. I
have often thought what a feeling of selfishness appeared to pervade the
whole of them. At the time I was shocked, as I expected immediate
sympathy and commiseration; but afterwards I was not surprised. Many of
these poor fellows had been months in the prison, and a short
confinement will produce that indifference to the misfortunes of others,
which I then o