variably fixed his attention. I then cut through the link, and closed up the vacancy with bread.My hands I could always draw out, especially after illness had consumed the flesh off my bones.— Half a year had elapsed before I had recovered suf ficient strength to undertake anew labours like the past.

Necessity at length taught me the means of driving Bruckhausen from my dungeon, and of inducing him to commit his office to another. I learnt his olfactory nerves were somewhat delicate, and whenever I heard the doors unbar, I took care to. make a stir in my night table. This made him give back, and at length he would come no farther than the door. Such are the hard expedients of a poor unhappy prisoner.

One day he came, bloated with pride, just after a courier had brought the news of victory-and spoke of the Austrians, and the august person of the empress queen with so much virulence, that at last, enraged almost to madness, I snatched the sword of an officer from its sheath, and certainly should have ended him had he not made a hasty retreat. From that day forward he durst no more come without guards to examine the dungeon.Two men always preceded him with their bayonets fixed, and their pieces presented, behind whom he stood at the door. This was another fortunate incident, as I dreaded only his examination.

An order came that I should be prevented sleeping, and that the centinels should call, and wake me every quarter of an hour, which dreadful order was immediately executed.

With whom these orders originated, unexampled in the history even of tyranny, I shall not venture

to say. The major, who was my friend, advised me to persist in not answering. I followed his advice, and it produced this good effect, that we mutually forced each other to a capitulation-they restored my bed, and I was obliged to reply.

A friend, whom I will never name, by the aid of one of the lieutenants, secretly visited me, and supplied me with six hundred ducats. The same friend, in the year 1763, paid four thousand florins to the imperial envoy, baron Riedt, at Berlin, for the furthering of my freedom, as I shall presently more fully shew. Thus I had

once more money.

I night fill a volume with incidents attending two other efforts to escape, but I will not weary the reader's patience with too much repetition. I shall merely give an abstract of both.

When I had once more gained the officers, I made a new attempt at mining my way out. Not wanting for implements, my chain and the flooring were soon cut through, and all were so carefully replaced, I was under no fear of examination. I here found my concealed money, pistols, and other necessaries, but till I had rid myself of some hundred weight of sand, it was impossible to proceed. For this purpose I made two different openings in the floor: out of the real hole I threw a great quantity of sand into my prison, after which I closed it with all possible care. I then worked at the second with so much noise that I was certain they must hear me without. About midnight the doors began to thunder, and in they came, detecting me as I intended they should. None of them could conceive why I should wish to break out under the door, where there was a triple guard to pass. The centinels remained, and in the morning prisoners were sent to wheel away the sand. The whole was walled up and boarded, and my fetters were renewed. They laughed at the ridiculousness of my undertaking, but punished me by depriving me of my light and bed, which however in a fortnight were both restored. Of the other hole, out of which most of the earth had been thrown no one was aware. The major and lieutenant were too much my friends to remark they had removed thrice the quantity of sand the false

opening could contain. They supposed this strange attempt having failed, it would be my last-and Bruckhausen grew negligent.

Ink was not allowed me, I therefore pricked my finger, suffered the blood to trickle into the pot, and when coagulated, warmed it again into my hand, throwing away the fibrous parts that would not liquify; by this means I procured a succedaneum for ink, both to write

and draw.

I waited my coming fate with a mind more at ease than that of many a prince in his palace. My dawn of hope daily grew more bright. The newspapers they brought me foretold approaching peace, on which all my dependence was placed, and I passed eighteen months calmly, and without further attempts.

I endeavoured to persuade another officer to aid my escape, but in vain; no second Schell was to be found. The will consented, but the heart recoiled.

I therefore opened my old hole, and my friends assisted me all in their power further to disembarrass myself of sand. My money melted away, but they provided me with tools, gun-powder, and a good sword. I had remained so long quiet that my flooring was no more examined.

My passage was to be ready in case of emergency; I therefore removed the upper planking, broke up the two under beds, cut the boards into chips, and burnt them in my stove. Linen again was brought, sand bags made, and thus successfully proceeded to all but the last operation. Every thing afterward so well closed and concealed, that I had nothing to fear from the narrowest inspection, sufficient of the under flooring being left to support the upper and it appeared doubly nailed, as before, to avoid suspicion, especially as the new come garrison could not know what was the original length of the planks.

I must in this place relate a dreadful accident, which I cannot even now remember without shuddering, and the terror of which has often haunted my very dreams. While mining under the foundation of the ramparts, just as I was going to carry out a sand bag, I struck my foot I

against a stone in the wall above, which fell down and closed up the passage.

After a short time I began to work the sand away from the side, that I might obtain room to turn round. By good fortune there were some feet of empty space, into which I threw the sand as I worked it away; but the small quantity of air soon made it foul, that I a thousand times wished myself dead, and made several attempts to strangle myself. Thirst almost deprived me of my senses, but as often as I put my mouth to the sand I inhaled fresh air. My sufferings were incredible, and I imagine I passed full eight hours in this distraction of horror. My spirits fainted; again I somewhat revived, again I began to labour, but the earth was as high as my chin, and I had no more space into which I might throw the sand, that I might turn round. I made a more desperate effort, drew my body into a ball and turned round: i now faced the stone, which was as wide as the whole passage, but there being an opening at the top I respired fresh air. My next labour was to root away the sand under the stone, so that I might creep over, and by this means arrive in my dungeon.

The morning was advanced: I sat myself down so exhausted that I supposed it was impossible I had time or strength to cover up and conceal my hole. After half an hour's rest, however, my fortitude returned, again I went to work, and scarcely had I ended before the resounding locks and bolts told the approach of my visitors.

They found me pale as death: I complained of the head-ach, and continued some days so much affected by the fatigue I had sustained, that I began to imagine my lungs were impaired. After a time, health and strength returned-but perhaps of all my nights of horror, this was the most horrible. I long repeatedly dreamed I was buried alive in the centre of the earth; and now, though three-and-twenty years are elapsed, my sleep is still haunted by this vision.

After this accident, whenever I worked in my cavity, I hung a knife round my neck, that in case I should be again so inclosed I might shorten my miseries. Over the stone that had fallen were several others that hung fottering, under which I was several hundred times obli ed to creep.

When my passage was ready, so that I could break out when I pleased, I wrote various letters to my friends at Vienna, and also an impassionate memorial to my soyereign. When the militia left Magdeburg and the regulars returned, I took an affectionate leave of my friends who had behaved to me with so much humanity, and so benevolently supplied my wants.

My time hung very heavy-every thing was carefully examined on the change of the garrison. A still stricter scrutiny might occur, and all my projects be discovered. This had nearly been effected by accident, as I shall here relate. I had two years before so tamed a mouse that it would play round me and eat out of my mouth: in this small animal I discovered proofs of intelligence too great to easily gain belief: were I to write them, priests would rail, monks grumble, and such philosophers as supposed man alone endowed with the power of thought, allowing nothing but what they call instinct to animals, would proclaim me a fabulous writer, and my opinions heterodox to what they suppose sound philosophy. Should I live, perhaps I may hereafter publish an essay on this subject, in which this my mouse and a spider will appear as remarkable characters.

This intelligent mouse had nearly been my ruin. I had diverted myself with it during the night; it had been nibbling at my door and capering on a trencher.The centinel happened to hear our amusement, called the officers; they heard also, and added all was not right in my dungeon. At day break my doors resounded--the town-major, a smith and a mason entered strict search was begun-flooring, walls, chains, and my own person were all scrutanised, but in vain. They asked what was the noise they heard; I mentioned the mouse, whistled, and it came and jumped upon my shoulder. Orders were given I should be deprived of its society; I earnestly entreated they would spare its life. The officer on guard gave me his word of honour he would present it to a lady who would treat it with the utmost tenderness.

He took it away, turned it loose in the guard roombut it was tame to me alone, and sought a hiding place. It had fled to my prison door, and at the hour of visita tion ran into my dungeon, immediately testifying its joy