by G. A. Henty
CHAPTER XII
PLANNING A RESCUE
"Even Horace was obliged to admit, when he with Zaimes and their guidehad walked round the barracks, that he saw no chance whatever of beingable to get the prisoners out by force. The barracks consisted of anold castle, a portion of which was, as the shoemaker told them, nowused as a military prison; and round this at some distance ran astrong wall some fifteen feet high, loopholed for musketry. The troopswere lodged in huts between this wall and the castle.
"There you see," the guide said, "what I said was true. You could notget a bird out of that place, much less a man."
"That is so," Zaimes agreed. "Well, what cannot be done, cannot.However, we will talk it over this evening at your house. Now let uswalk about and view the city. Truly it is a fine one."
Few towns, indeed, have a finer situation than Adalia, standing as itdoes at the head of a noble bay, a great portion of which is fringedwith lofty and precipitous cliffs. The town, which at that timecontained some ten thousand inhabitants, stands on ground slopingupwards from the sea in terraces rising one above another. It wassurrounded by a ditch and a double wall of massive construction, withsquare towers every fifty yards. Beyond the walls stretched gardensand groves of orange, lemon, and mulberry trees. Ten mosques withtheir domes and minarets reared themselves above the houses, and therewere several churches belonging to the Christian population, whichwas, the guide told them, about two thousand in number, the greatproportion of whom spoke only the Turkish language. "I can talkequally well in both, for it is but fifty years since my fathersettled here, and we always talked Greek in the family as long as helived. Now I always speak Turkish; it is safer, and does not remindthe Turks continually that we are of Greek race."
"Where does the pasha reside?" Horace asked presently.
"I will show you his place; it is at the lower corner of the northwall. His gardens stretch down to the wall by the water, and anotherhigh wall on this side separates them from the town."
Passing through several streets they arrived opposite the residence ofthe pasha of the sanjak of Tekeh, of which Adalia is the chief town.The residence itself stood at the angle of the two walls dividing thegarden from the town. It was a massive building. Some soldiers sat onbenches at either side of the gate that opened into the court-yard,and townspeople and officials passed in and out.
"The public offices are in the court-yard," the guide said. "Thepasha's private dwelling and his harem lie behind it."
"I suppose we can walk in?"
"Certainly," the guide said; and they passed through the gates intothe court-yard. On one side was a guard-room, stables, and otheroffices; on the other were the rooms of the secretaries and officialsand that in which the pasha transacted business and received visitors.The portion of the house facing the gates was blank on the basementstory, except that a door faced the gateway. Above were a line ofwindows, all closed with jalousies. "That is the dwelling-house,"their guide said. "I believe all the apartments of the family face thegarden. Those windows you see there are only those of the apartmentsof the servants and slaves."
After leaving the pasha's they walked down to the bottom of the town,where two gates with strong flanking powers opened upon the port,which was smaller than Horace had expected to find it. However, he wasglad to see that there were several craft anchored in the roadstead,some near the port, some at a distance, showing that vessels did notcome in unless for shelter in bad weather or to discharge heavycargoes. Whatever the craft, then, in which the crew of the schoonermight arrive, it would not attract attention by anchoring outside theport, as arranged. They returned with their guide to his house and hada meal there. Zaimes was profoundly discouraged. He saw no prospectwhatever of rescuing his brother or the other prisoners, and thestrength of the walls and the guns that were mounted upon them--a stepwhich, the host told him, had been taken a few months before to defendthe town against the Greek fleet, should it make its appearancethere--showed that there was no prospect of the Turks being alarmed bythe appearance or threats of a craft like the schooner.
"It seems altogether hopeless," Zaimes said to the Greek.
The latter shook his head, "I can see no possible way," he replied."If it had been an ordinary prisoner in the jail it could be managedwithout difficulty. I could have got one of our countrymen of someinfluence to have approached the prison officers, or I myself couldhave worked with the warders; a small sum of money would have done it.But now it seems to me hopeless, and even if we stop the messenger andgain another eight days while the pasha sends again to Smyrna, weshould only run some risk and gain nothing."
Zaimes assented mournfully.
"You had better make the man a present, Zaimes," Horace said when theywere alone for a minute after the meal was finished. "Tell him that itseems to us to be hopeless, and that we shall probably go right away;but that if, thinking it over, we can hit upon any possible plan wewill be back again this evening and sleep here."
Zaimes carried out the suggestion, gave their host a gold coin, andsaid that they saw no use in staying longer, but would think it overin every way and might return that evening.
"If you go outside the town you must be back by sunset," the man said;"the gates are closed at that hour."
"We will not forget, but I do not think you will see us again."
"Even if our people don't arrive this evening, Zaimes, I think it willbe just as well not to go back into the town," Horace said as theyissued out through the gates into the country. "I don't say for amoment that the man is not honest, but it is just as well not to puttemptation in his way. He knows that we are friends of the prisoners,and he, no doubt, guesses that we belong to the craft that capturedthe polacca that was wrecked. No doubt he would not openly betray us;that would bring him into discredit with all the Christians in thetown. But a few words whispered to some Turk, and an agreement toshare any reward that may be given for our capture, would answer thepurpose just as well. I don't say he would do it, you know, but itwould be just as well not to run the risk."
On issuing from the gate, Horace saw that there was a narrow roadrunning between a deep dry ditch at the foot of the city walls and theoutlying gardens and orchards.
"This will be our shortest way down to the water, Zaimes, let usfollow it."
The Greek turned without question. When they had gone half-way downbetween the gate and the bottom of the hill, Horace stopped. "Now, letus have a good look at this place. On the other side of that wall isthe garden of the pasha's house. I counted the number of steps up fromthe house to the cross-road leading to the gateway, and I have countedthem coming down again; we are about fifty yards below the upper wallof the garden."
"I daresay it is so," Zaimes replied listlessly.
"This ditch is about ten feet deep, and from the bottom of the ditchto the top of that first wall is from five-and-twenty to thirty;between that wall and the higher one inside it is about fifteen feet;and the inner wall is about fifteen feet higher than the outer one;those square towers form junctions between the two walls. Now, we maybe quite sure that there are no sentries either on the wall or on thesquare towers. I don't suppose there are sentries anywhere except inthe batteries on the water-face, but there certainly won't be here,for they would command a view down into the pasha's garden; so we mayquite conclude that except for the trouble of scaling the walls thereis nothing to prevent our getting over. A couple of rope-ladders andone or two twenty-foot planks with bits nailed across them to give afoothold would take us on to the inner wall; then we should needanother long ladder to get down into the garden. That would be aboutthirty-five feet, I should say."
"Yes, I see all that," Zaimes, whose face had again become animated ashe listened, agreed; "but what would be the good of getting into thepasha's garden?"
"No good at all, if we were by ourselves, Zaimes, but with Martyn andtwenty men from the schooner a good deal of good, I should say. Wehave only got to make a sudden rush into the house, which will, ofcourse, be open to the
garden, seize the pasha, and carry him and someof his wives and children off to the craft that our fellows come in,and then on to the schooner. Then we can send ashore to say thatunless the prisoners are sent off in a boat to us by twelve o'clock inthe day we shall hang the pasha. Maybe when we get hold of the pashathere will be no occasion to carry him and his women off; the merethreat of it might be enough. We can tell him that it will be painfulto us to have to hoist them up to the top of the wall in sacks, butthat we shall be obliged to do it unless he signs an order for theprisoners' release, and sends it off at once by an officer to thejail. A handsome bribe that will enable him to make his peace with hissuperior at Smyrna may help to quicken his perception."
Zaimes seized Horace's hand with fervour, shook it wildly, clasped hishands on his breast, raised them to heaven, and poured forth a streamof exclamations of delight. The quiet habits of many years had beenthrown to the winds in a moment, and the excitable Greek nature burstthrough all restraints. "You have given me new life," he exclaimed assoon as he had calmed down a little. "Just now there did not seem evena shadow of hope. Now there is a chance that once again I may clasp mybrother in my arms. Your plan is difficult, it is dangerous, and yetwe may succeed. It is a desperate undertaking, but what is that? Iwould give my life for my brother, and your sailors would all risktheirs for their comrades."
"Let us sit down here quietly for a few minutes, Zaimes, and take agood look at these walls. It is evident by the look of this road thatit is very little used, and even if anyone did come up they would onlythink that we had been working in the orange groves behind us and weretaking a quiet smoke. It is lucky that there is a moon to-night; itwould be an awfully difficult job to get over those walls and into aplace we know nothing of if it were a dark night. There will be nodifficulty in throwing up a grapnel and getting on to the first wall.The greatest difficulty will be in crossing from that one to the onebehind it. Of course with a regular gangway it would be easy enough,but we should not be able to get materials for making one. However,with a couple of stout spars put up a foot apart with ropes betweenthem a foot from each other so as to make ratlings, we could get up,though it wouldn't be a very easy job passing women down. Still, Ihope it won't come to that. I should think if we capture the pasha andhis children, if he has any--and I suppose with half-a-dozen wives hewill be sure to have some--we might leave the women alone, though, ofcourse, we should threaten to take them. But I'll tell you what weshall want, and that is a man who can speak Turkish well, so as toexplain exactly to the pasha the fix he is in."
"Yes, we shall want such a man," Zaimes agreed.
"Very well, Zaimes, then I think you had better go back to our friendat once. Even if he did mean treachery, he would have taken no stepsyet, as he won't expect us back till the evening if we come at all.Tell him that you want a service of him in which he will run nopersonal danger--for you know we can dress him up in some of ourthings, and put a bit of black cloth as a mask half over his face--andthat he will be paid twenty pieces of gold for a night's work. Thatwill be a fortune to him."
"That will be the best plan," Zaimes said. "Where shall we meet you?"
"I will go down the hill to the bottom to see what sort of a roadthere is along the sea, and I will wait there for you. If the road isexposed to the view of the sentries on the batteries at the sea wallwe must make our way through the orchards to this point; if not, wewill move along there."
"Do you think that Captain Martyn is sure to be here this evening?"
"He is quite certain to be. He knows that every hour is of importance,and he will get hold of some craft or other early this morning even ifhe has to go into a fishing port to get it."
Zaimes retraced his steps up the hill, while Horace sauntered downuntil he came out on to the road leading to the port along the shore.A good many small houses were scattered along by its side, and somefishing-boats drawn up on the beach. At the angle of the wall therewas a battery. Three guns pointed along the road and the Turkishsentry was leaning against the parapet by the side of them.
"We shall have to make our way through the orchards," he said tohimself. "There will be no getting along this road with the moon up.The sentry would notice us a quarter of a mile away. Besides, thetramp of so many feet would be certain to bring people to their doors.And we must come early if we can, so as to catch the pasha before hegoes to bed."
In half an hour Zaimes and the cobbler came up.
"It is agreed," the former said in English; "twenty pounds will makehim what he considers rich, and he declares he is ready to run anyrisk for a single night's work in order to gain it. I think he is anhonest fellow. I watched him closely when I went in, and if he had anythought whatever of betraying us, I think I should have seen it in hisface."
It was now four o'clock in the afternoon, and they soon made out asmall brigantine anchored a quarter of a mile out, and about a mileand a half along the shore.
"I expect that is her," Horace said. "She has only just come in, forthere are some men upon the yards stowing away the sails, and that isjust the position we agreed she should take up."
When they had gone a mile farther they could see that she had smallred and white flags at her mast-head. When they got opposite to herthey went down to the water's edge. Horace waved a white handkerchieffor a moment and then sat down. A minute later the boat towing behindthe brigantine was hauled up. Two men got into her and rowed leisurelyto the shore. They were dressed as Turkish sailors, but Horacerecognized them as they came close as two of the crew. They steppedin at once, and the boat rowed out again.
"Have you any news of Mr. Miller and the others, Mr. Horace," one ofthem said, "if I might make so bold as to ask?"
"Certainly you may. They are in prison, and there is no possibility ofgetting them out with the strength we have got; it would need three orfour hundred men at least. But we have another plan, which we hopewill be successful."
"You will find the captain down in the cabin with your father, Mr.Horace. Everyone is keeping below except three or four of our chaps,who are got up, like us, in the clothes of the crew of the craft."
"Come along, Zaimes," Horace said as he stepped on board. "You hadbetter come with me. This man is going to help us, Davidson, so makehim as comfortable as you can till Zaimes comes out again."
Horace found his father, Martyn, and the doctor in the little cabin.He was heartily welcomed back, and eagerly questioned as to his news.He first told them of the impossibility of doing anything to effectthe rescue of the prisoners, guarded as they were; and then explainedthe position of the pasha's house and garden, and his own plan.
"Well, it is a bold scheme, Horace, but I should think it mightsucceed," Martyn said when he concluded. "We ought certainly to beable to get hold of the pasha before an alarm is given, and if we dowe might manage to make terms with him without the women knowinganything about it. That would be a great point, if it could bemanaged, for if they begin screaming they will bring the whole townupon us. You say there is one door from that part of the house intothe court-yard on the other side, and of course there is acommunication from the public rooms into the house. The first thing todo when we get in will be to post a couple of men at each of thesedoors to prevent anyone from running out and giving them the alarm.After that we can tackle the pasha quietly. As you say, though we maythreaten, there would be no getting women up over those walls; theywould have to be slung up like bales, and if the alarm were given weshould have the town upon us before we had half finished the job. Wecould bundle the pasha off, tied up if he would not walk, and take adozen children if there are as many, for the sailors could carry themif they were small; if not, they could be gagged and made to walk witha pistol at their heads; but with women, and especially Turkish women,it would be an awful business. Many of them are fat, and some of themI suppose would faint. If we can get the pasha himself and some of hischildren that will be enough; but as you say, I expect he will give inwhen he finds himself in our hands, and we tell him that we are g
oingto carry him and his whole family off. Your idea of a bribe inaddition is a very good one. Of course, as you say, if we were surethe men at Smyrna would send an order for them to be sent to him, weshould be all right, for we could attack their guard at some lonelyspot along the road; but the betting is ten to one that he orders themto be hung at once, and if the pasha here writes in return describinghow he has been obliged to give them up, and sending a handsomepresent, he will hear nothing more about it. What time do you think wehad better start, Horace?"
"About nine o'clock, I should say. It will take us a good hour gettingfrom here and scaling the walls. It is not likely the pasha will beturning in before eleven, but it is as well to give a good margin."
"I should recommend you not to go, Mr. Beveridge," Martyn said. "Youare not accustomed to climb rope-ladders. It is a job that is only fitfor sailors."
"I do not think I should be of much use," Mr. Beveridge replied. "If Idid, I would go gladly; but after the hindrance I was to you all atCyprus, I will take your advice and stay here."
"I will leave a couple of men with you."
"No, Captain Martyn, you may want every man. Zaimes will remain withme. If you were going to attack the prison no doubt he would wish tobe there and help to rescue his brother; but as it is, someone muststay here as we have eight prisoners down in the hold, and as he is nomore accustomed to climbing ropes than I am, it is better that heshould remain here."
"Very well, sir, then I will see about getting the things we shallwant made."
The crew were at once set to work to prepare the ladders.
"We had better not make regular rope-ladders," Martyn said. "They arewell enough for us; but if we have to get people over the wall, we hadbetter put in wooden rungs."
Accordingly some spare oars were sawn up into lengths, and with theseand four ropes, two ladders each forty feet long were manufactured.Then two spars twenty-five feet long were chosen. Cross-pieces werenailed to these a foot apart, and a long piece of canvas was nailedunder this gangway, so that, as Martyn said, if any of the captivesmade a false step in going across it, they would not fall through. Asingle block was fastened to a grapnel, and a long rope attached forgetting up the ladder to the top of the first wall. All this was butan hour's work for twenty men. The doctor had been asked whether hewould prefer staying on board or going with the party. He decided uponstaying.
"If you were going to fight I would certainly go with you, Martyn; butI am no more accustomed to climbing up ropes than Mr. Beveridge is,and I should only be in your way, so I will stay with him and Zaimesand keep watch on board."
"I think that is the best plan, doctor. It is sailors' work. We shallhave trouble as it is in hoisting that fellow Horace brought on boardover the walls."
The cobbler had turned pale with fright when Zaimes explained to himthat they were going to take the pasha a prisoner, and that he wouldbe wanted to interpret to him, and he protested that nothing couldtempt him to undertake such a business.
"Nonsense, man!" Zaimes said. "You will run no more risks than theothers. Look at them laughing and joking. They don't look like men whoare about to embark on a perilous expedition. However, I promised youtwenty pounds, but if you do your work well and speak out boldly andfirmly what you are told, you shall have another five."
"It is a big sum for a poor man," the cobbler replied. "I will do it,but I won't answer for speaking out loud and bold; my teeth chatter atthe very thought of it. If he should ever recognize me again, he wouldchop me up into mince meat."
"How can he recognize you? You can either fasten a piece of blackcloth over your face, or what will do just as well, get a cork andburn it, and rub it over your face till you are as black as coal. Yourown brother wouldn't know you then, and the pasha will have enough tothink about without staring at you."
"I like that better than the cloth," the man said. "If there is ascuffle the black cloth may come off."
"We will rig you up in the clothes of one of the sailors here. You canput them on over your own if you like, and then you will have nothingto do but to throw them away, wash your face, and walk boldly into thetown in the morning."
The brigantine had two boats. These were, as soon as it became dark,lowered, and a quarter before nine the landing party mustered. The menhad already torn up some blankets and old sail-cloth, and wrapped themround their cutlasses and muskets so as to deaden the sound shouldthese strike against the wall. The guns were not loaded, but each mancarried thirty rounds of ammunition and a brace of pistols, which wereto be loaded as soon as they got down into the garden, Martyn,however, giving the strictest orders that whatever happened not a shotwas to be fired without his permission.
"I do not think it is likely that we shall meet with any resistance,lads," he said before they stepped down into the boats. "If there is,knock them down with your fists; or if there is anything serious, useyour cutlasses. Mr. Horace will place the four men told off for thedoors, at their posts. These will follow him through the houseregardless of anything that is going on around. Everything dependsupon our preventing anyone from leaving the house and giving thealarm. I shall myself post men at all the lower windows before weenter. Their duty will be to prevent anyone from coming out into thegarden. If there is yelling or shrieking in the garden it will alarmthe town. As long as they only shriek in the house there is no fear ofits being heard. Now you each know what you have got to do. As toscaling the wall, this must be done as quietly as if you were makingsail on board a smart frigate."