“Hillo, he’s written it in red ink! How the devil did that happen? My ink was black. No matter, it seems he’s cleverer than we thought; he’s got some things concealed on his person yet, I fancy, although we searched him twice. No matter, let’s see what he says. “What does this ‘D—w—g’ mean?” thought Capt. Jack, as he puzzled himself over the note. “There is some mystery here, or why say ‘by our solemn oath’? Perhaps he belongs to some secret band, who knows? It was well I opened it, or perhaps I might have fallen into a trap! “‘My former note explains all,’ does it? What other note has he written then, I wonder? How could he write unknown to the prison officers, eh? “Ha, ha, Mr. Phillip Redgill, I begin to smell a rat,” thought Capt. Jack. “He has made friends with some one in the prison, no doubt; that cross-eyed turnkey, I shouldn’t wonder. Oh, if I catch the rascals up to any kind of tricks to thwart me in my plans, I’ll have them all hung, that I will. “‘This night decides my fate,’ eh? Quite right there, Mr. Phillip; quite correct, and no mistake. ‘But I must be careful.’ Yes, Capt. Jack, you must be very careful of yourself in dealing with this tricky customer, for it strikes me that this Capt. Gingles may be some powerful friend of his, and an enemy to me. “What shall I do. “Shall I take the note myself, or let one of the ‘dozen’ do it? No, I must take it myself, for if this Gingles gives the money, ten to one my men would bolt off with it.” For several hours Capt. Jack didn’t know how to act in the matter. He didn’t want to trust any of his men with such a large sum as £1,000. For if he had done so, and they for a miracle proved honest, he would have had to divide the spoil with them all. This was a consideration that Capt. Jack did not at all relish. “No, no,” said he, “I must stick to this little sum myself, and if I get it, why, Phillip Redgill may be assisted to escape without trial at all, and the trial will be sure to fall on the sleepy gaolers, for we _must_ hang somebody.” Time was flying, however, and something must be done in the matter. It was now ten o’clock, and yet he was undecided how to act. He was sauntering along the dark streets, when he accidentally came across one of his own men. “Hello, captain! is that you?” “Why, Ben, my lad, how are you? I’ve not seen you for three or four days. You seem rather ‘mellow.’” “Yes, captain, ‘mellow’ is the word. I _am_ rather ‘mellow’, if it comes to that, and I like it.” “So it seems. You seem to be pretty well off for money, Ben.” “Yes, captain, I’ve made a little this last day or two.” “How was that?” “Why, seeing that the dozen haven’t had anything to do, not a single job on hand for this last month, I thought I’d do a little bit of business for myself on the extreme quiet, for our trade has been as flat as ditch water of late.” “True, Ben; and money is very tight.”