The fourth and last side of your cell faces on-faces on-stop a minute, now where does it face?" This adjoins the lower part of the governor's apartments, and were we to work our way through, we should only get into some lock-up cellars, where we must necessarily be recaptured. "This one is built against the solid rock, and it would take ten experienced miners, duly furnished with the requisite tools, as many years to perforate it. "That's true," said Dantès "but the corridor you speak of only bounds one side of my cell there are three others-do you know anything of their situation?" My labor is all in vain, for I find that the corridor looks into a courtyard filled with soldiers." I expected, as I told you, to reach the outer wall, pierce through it, and throw myself into the sea I have, however, kept along the corridor on which your chamber opens, instead of going beneath it. "I do that is about the distance that separates your chamber from mine only, unfortunately, I did not curve aright for want of the necessary geometrical instruments to calculate my scale of proportion, instead of taking an ellipsis of forty feet, I made it fifty. "And you say that you dug your way a distance of fifty feet to get here?" "But they believe I am shut up alone here." It frequently occurs in a state prison like this, that persons are stationed outside the doors of the cells purposely to overhear the conversation of the prisoners." "Do not speak so loud, young man-don't speak so loud. "Fifty feet!" responded Dantès, almost terrified. "With one of the clamps of my bedstead and this very tool has sufficed me to hollow out the road by which I came hither, a distance of about fifty feet." "And with what did you contrive to make that?" inquired Dantès. "Well, in the first place, here is my chisel." So saying, he displayed a sharp strong blade, with a handle made of beechwood. "Oh, how I should like to see these products of your industry and patience." "I made myself some and with the exception of a file, I have all that are necessary,-a chisel, pincers, and lever." "Why," exclaimed Dantès, with astonishment, "do you possess any?" "You removed this stone very carelessly but I suppose you had no tools to aid you." "Let us first see," said he, "whether it is possible to remove the traces of my entrance here-our future tranquillity depends upon our jailers being entirely ignorant of it." Advancing to the opening, he stooped and raised the stone easily in spite of its weight then, fitting it into its place, he said,. He thanked him with grateful cordiality for his kindly welcome, although he must at that moment have been suffering bitterly to find another dungeon where he had fondly reckoned on discovering a means of regaining his liberty. He received the enthusiastic greeting of his young acquaintance with evident pleasure, as though his chilled affections were rekindled and invigorated by his contact with one so warm and ardent. The stranger might have numbered sixty or sixty-five years but a certain briskness and appearance of vigor in his movements made it probable that he was aged more from captivity than the course of time. Large drops of perspiration were now standing on his brow, while the garments that hung about him were so ragged that one could only guess at the pattern upon which they had originally been fashioned. His thin face, deeply furrowed by care, and the bold outline of his strongly marked features, betokened a man more accustomed to exercise his mental faculties than his physical strength. He had a deep-set, penetrating eye, almost buried beneath the thick gray eyebrow, and a long (and still black) beard reaching down to his breast. He was a man of small stature, with hair blanched rather by suffering and sorrow than by age. Seizing in his arms the friend so long and ardently desired, Dantès almost carried him towards the window, in order to obtain a better view of his features by the aid of the imperfect light that struggled through the grating.
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