They were both
securely locked up in one of the rooms or cells of the old palace or
castle of Francois I., which was then, and perhaps is still, used as
the state prison of Havre de Grace. This fortalice chiefly consists of
a battlemented round tower, supported by strong bastions, and
pierced, here and there, by small windows, strongly barred. The foot
of the tower is bathed by the sea, which, as Willis afterwards
remarked, was not only a favor granted to the tower, but likewise an
obligation conferred upon themselves.
When the Pilot's purchase had been completely refitted, stores
shipped, papers obtained, and every requisite made for the outward
voyage, the departure of the three adventurers was announced, and a
crowd assembled on shore to see their ship leave the harbor. She was
towed out to the roads, where she lay tranquilly mirrored in the sea,
ready to start the moment her commander stepped on board. Neither
Fritz nor Jack, however, had yet completed their preparations. For the
moment, therefore, the vessel was left in charge of some French
seamen, whom Willis, however, had taken care to engage only for a
short period.
Somewhere about a week after this, Fritz and Jack, in a small boat,
painted perfectly black and manned by four stout rowers, with muffled
oars, were lurking about the fortalice already mentioned.
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