by John Marshall

“ The opposite side of the narrowest part of the ditch was one entire bed of brambles, and in the midst of these we were obliged to leap. Hunter, Mansell, and myself got over tolerably well; but when Whitehurst made the attempt, stiff with wet and cold, and the bank giving way, from his great weight, he jumped into the water: it was with difficulty he could be extricated, and not without being dragged through the brambles, by which he was severely scratched. We lay ourselves down in the centre of this swampy thicket. ”

“ The sail was no sooner up than the vessel sprang off, as if participating in our impatience, and glorying in our deliverance: such, however, is the uncertainty and vanity of all human projects, that at the very moment when we believed ourselves in the arms of liberty, and our feelings were worked up to the highest pitch of exultation, a violent shock suddenly arrested our progress. ”

“ They told us the noise was occasioned by the fall of a knapsack, which Mansell, unable to carry down the rope, had given to Whitehurst, from whom it slipped, and falling upon a hollow sounding bridge, between two lofty ramparts, echoed through the arched passage, with sufficient effect to excite alarm. ”

“ Had the bars been taken away escape would have been impossible; there not being sufficient line for descending into the ditch. We then proceeded through another arched passage, with the intention of undermining the second door, but to our great surprise and joy, we found it unlocked. We now got down, crossed the ditch upon the ‘garde fous,’ landed in the upper citadel, proceeded to the north-cast curtain, fixed the stake, and fastened the rope. As I was getting down, with my chest against the edge of the parapet, the stake gave way. ”

“ We quitted the high-road, and drew towards a rising ground, there to wait the dawn of day, in the hope of retreating to some neighbouring copse; no sooner had we laid ourselves upon the ground, than sleep overcame us. Our intention was, if no wood could be seen, to go to an adjoining ploughed field, and there scratch a hole in which we could hide ourselves from a distant view. Upon awakening from a short slumber, we reconnoitred around, and found our position to be near a fortification; being well acquainted with such places, we approached, in the hope of finding an asylum. ”

“ I have since heard, that the first intimation of our departure at Valenciennes was at dawn of day, when, on opening the north gate, the rope was seen suspended from the parapet. The roll to muster was instantly beaten, and the alarm given to the neighbouring peasantry by the firing of guns. The midshipmen, on whom suspicion first fell, were hurried into ranks, half-dressed; and when the names of the absentees were called over, some one tauntingly replied, ‘Parti pour l’Angleterre; – This tone of triumph considerably exasperated the gens-d’armes, and inflamed the zeal of our pursuers ”

“ Whitehurst and myself being ready to cut the other hawser, and hoist the sail. Hunter went to the helm, when he found the rudder was not shipped, but lying on the poop. We instantly ran aft, and got it over the stern; but the vessel pitched so heavily, that it was not possible to ship the lower pintle. We were now apprehensive of the total failure of the attempt; for to go to sea without a rudder would have been madness, and being nearly under the battery, we were in momentary expectation of being fired into. ”

“ But to proceed: – we were totally unacquainted with the country; an examination of the maps pointed out the place of our retreat to be the fortification of Tournay: the fallen ruins were the bed upon which fatigue and a confidence of security, procured us a sound and refreshing sleep. At three p.m. we enjoyed our dinner, notvithstanding the want of beverage; for, upon examining the knapsacks, the flasks were found broken. Whitehurst, having lost his hat in descending the first rampart, was occupied in manufacturing a cap from the skirts of his coat. ”

“ Midway between Bruges and Blankenberg, Mr. Boys and his companions found a warm friend in Madame Deriske, landlady of the Raie-de-Chat, a solitary public house; by whom they were long concealed, and ultimately enabled to escape. During the time they enjoyed her protection, Mr. Boys made no less than thirteen trips to the coast, hoping to procure a vessel of some kind; but always without success. ”

“ Whitehurst and Mansell immediately ran up; and, as we had previously resolved never to be taken by equal numbers, each seized his pepper and his knife, in preparation for fight or flight, replying, in a haughty tone of defiance, ‘What is that to you? be careful how you interrupt military men:’ then whispering, loud enough for them to hear, ‘la bayonette;’ upon which they dropt astern, though still keeping near us ”

“ We first went into the back-yard, and, assisted by Rochfort, who was now convalescent, but not sufficiently strong to join the party, got over the wall, passed through the garden and palisades, crossed the road, and climbed silently upon our hands and knees up the bank at the back of the north guard-room – lying perfectly still as the sentinels approached, and as they receded again advancing, until we reached the parapet over the gateway leading to the upper citadel. Here the breast-work, over which we had to creep, was about five feet high, and fourteen thick ”

“ We jumped up, and drew back towards the bridge, intending, if possible, to steal past the gens-d’armes, and slip down the piles into the canal; but the noise subsiding, we stood still, fancying we heard the footsteps of a body of men. ”

“ Whitehurst, who was sitting by it, snatched hold of the rope, and Mansell of his coat, whilst I endeavoured to grasp the grass, by which I was saved from a fall of about fifty feet. Fortunately, there was a solitary tree in the citadel, from which we cut a second stake; and the rope being doubly secured, we all got down safe with our knapsacks, except Whitehurst, who, when about two-thirds of the way, from placing his feet against the rampart, and not letting them slip so fast as his hands, got himself in nearly a horizontal position ”

“ We ran along the hills towards Blankenberg for about a hundred yards, when, mistaking a broad ditch for a road, I fell in, but scrambled out on the opposite side. Mansell, who was close at my heels, thinking that I had jumped in on purpose, followed; this obliged the others to jump also. Having regained the Raie-de-Chat, we related the heart-rending disaster to Madame Derikre. ”

“ I then went to several of the most steady quarter-masters and other petty officers, without success. Whether they doubted the possibility of escape, or were deterred by the recollection of the barbarous murders at Bitche, I cannot say: for it was known, that when the commandant of that place had gained intimation of an intended attempt, he suffered the fugitives to reach a certain point, where the gens-d’armes were concealed, ready to rush in, and murder them. Two sailors, named Marshall and Cox, fell victims to this refined system of republican discipline. ”

“ The wind was fresh and squally from the W.N.W., with a good deal of swell; the moon, although only three days after the full, was so obscured by dark clouds, that the night was very favorable for our purpose. The vessel was moored by five hawsers; two a-head, and three a-stern: it was arranged, that Whitehurst and Mansell should throw overboard the latter. Hunter and myself the former ”

“ Captain Samuel Chambers; and on the 8th July, 1814, promoted from that vessel to the command of the Dunira, 18. Shortly after joining the Arachne, and whilst attached to the Walcheren expedition, he had the good fortune to be instrumental in affecting the escape from an hostile shore of his friends Ricketts and Rochfort. His narrative, written in the West Indies, in 1810, cannot fail to leave on the mind of the reader a strong impression of admiration at the energy, patience, and perseverance of the author. ”

“ We sincerely hope “that the plan will be taken up with that spirit, to which its superior claims, in a national point of view, so fully entitle it.” [4]
↑ Two iron bars, one above the other, suspended by chains on each side of the bridge, when down, serving the purpose of hand-rails. ↑ A man engaged by the landlady of the Raie-de-Chat to assist them in their escape. ↑ Mr. Mansell was then about to visit Bruges, disguised as a girl, and did not again join his fellow fugitives. ”