第59章

"I want another melon," he said, "as good as that you me last night.""Dey all de same, sah.First-rate melyons dose; just melt away in your mouf like honey."He held up one of the melons, and Vincent placed in his hands the coppers in payment.Between two of them he bad placed the little note.Dan's bands closed quickly on the coins, and dropping them into his pocket he addressed the next customer, while Vincent sauntered away again.This time the melon was a whole one, and Vincent divided it with a couple of other prisoners for the fruit was too large for one person to consume, being quite as large as a man's head.

The next day another melon was bought, but this time Vincent did not open it in public.Examining it closely, he perceived that it had been cut through the middle, and no doubt contained a portion of the rope.He hesitated as to his next step.If he took the melon up to his room he would be sure to find some men there, and would be naturally called upon to divide the fruit; and yet there was nowhere else he could hide it.For a long time he sat with his back to the wall and the melon beside him, abusing himself for his folly in not having told Dan to send the rope in small lengths that he could hide about him.The place where he had sat down was one of the quietest in the yard, but men were constantly strolling up and down.He determined at last that the only possible plan was in the first place to throw his coat over his melon, to tuck it up underneath it, then to get hold of one end of the ball of rope that it doubtless contained and to endeavor to wind it round his body without being observed.It was a risky business, and he would gladly have tossed the melon over the wall had he dared to do so;for if he were detected, not only would he be punished with much more severe imprisonment, but Dan might be arrested and punished most severely.

Unfortunately the weather was by no means hot, and it would look strange to take off his coat, besides, if he did so, how could he coil the rope round him without being observed? So that idea was abandoned.He got up and walked to an angle in the wall, and there sat down again, concealng the melon as well as he could between him and the wall when any one happened to come near him.He pulled the halves apart and found, as he had suspected, it was but a shell, the whole of the fruit having been scooped out.

But he gave an exclamation of pleasure on seeing that instead, as be feared, of a large ball of rope being inside, the interior was filled with neatly-made hanks, each containing several yards of thin but strong rope, together with a bank of strong string.

Unbuttoning his coat, he thrust them in; then he took the melon rind and broke it into very small pieces and threw them about.He then went up to his room and thrust the hanks, unobserved, one by one among the straw which, covered by an army blanket, constituted his bed.To-morrow, no doubt, Dan would supply him somehow with a turn-screw.On going down to the gate next day he found that the negro bad changed his commodity, and that this time his basket contained very large and fine cucumbers.These were selling briskly, and Vincent saw that Dan was looking round anxiously, and that an expression of relief came over his face as he perceived him.He had, indeed, but eight or ten cucumbers left.

"Cucumbers to-day, sah? Berry fine cucumbers-first-rate cucumbers dese.""They look rather over-ripe," Vincent said.

"Not a bit, sah; dey just ripe.Dis berry fine one-ten cents dis.""You are putting up your prices, darkey, and are making a fortune out of us," Vincent said as he took the cucumber, which was a very large and straight one.He had no difficulty with this, as with the melon; a sharp twist broke it in two as be reached the corner he had used the day previously.It had been out in half, one end hal been scooped out for the reception of the handle of the turn-screw, and the metal been driven in to the head in the other half.Hiding it under his jacket, he felt that he was now prepared for escape.

He now asked himself whether be should go alone or take one or more of his comrades into his confidence, and finally determined to give a young Virginian officer named Geary, with whom he had been specially friendly during his imprisonment, and Jackson, a chance of escape.He did not like the latter, but be thought that after the reconciliation that had taken place between them it was only right to take him rather than a stranger.Drawing them aside, then, he told them that he had arranged a mode of escape; it was impossible that all could avail themselves of it, but that they were welcome to accompany him.They thanked him heartily for the offer, and, when he explained the manner in which be intended to make off, agreed to try their fortune with him.

"I propose," he said, "as soon as we are fairly beyond the prison, we separate, and each try to gain the frontier as best he can.The fact that three prisoners have escaped will soon be known all over the country, and there would be no chance whatever for us if we kept together.I will tell my boy to have three disguises ready; and when we once put aside our uniforms I see no reason why, traveling separately, suspicion should fall upon us; we ought to have no difficulty until at any rate we arrive near the border, and there must be plenty of points where we can cross without going anywhere near the Federal camps." The others at once agreed that the chances of making their way separately were much greater than if together.This being arranged, Vincent passed a note next day to Dan, telling him to have three disguises in readiness, and to be at the foot of the western wall, halfway along, at twelve o'clock on the first wet night.A string would be thrown over, with a knife fastened to it.He was to pull on the string till the rope came into his band, and to hold that tight until they were over.Vincent chose this spot because it was equally removed from the sentry-boxes at the corners of the yard, and because there was a stone seat in the yard to which one end of the rope could be attached.