ting as spies; so you keep
your real name to yourself. If it got to the ears of the governor he
might find out what prison you escaped from and what you were in for,
and if you were a political you would either be sent back there, or put
with the politicals here, so keep it to yourself."

"Shall I give you my watch?"

"Yes, I think you had better. It would be of no good to anyone who took
it as long as he was in here, but he would be able to sell it when he
went to live outside. I will take care of it for you. I have got a safe
where I keep the money and things locked.

"We have got to work, and pretty hard, but I tell you we are a good bit
better off than they are in the prisons of Russia. We have got plenty to
eat, though I cannot say much for its niceness; anyhow we are a long way
better fed than the soldiers who look after us; but here comes the
food."

A warder brought in a huge tray upon which were placed bowls of a sort
of soup, while two others brought baskets piled up with huge chunks of
black bread. Mikail took from a cupboard a spoon, and gave it to
Godfrey. "You keep this for yourself," he said; "we don't have knives
and forks, and do not want them."

"Is this a day's allowance of bread?" Godfrey asked, as he took hold of
one of the lumps.

"No. You get as much as that in the morning. Our allowance is four
pounds a day, two in the morning and two in the evening. The evening
bread generally lasts for evening and morning soup, and we take the
morning bread away with us to eat in the middle of the day."

Godfrey sat down on the edge of the bed bench and ate his supper. As he
looked at the men more carefully he saw that there were greater
differences between them than he had at first noticed. Some of them he
judged to have been gentlemen, and he afterwards found that there were
three or four who had been officers in the army, but sentenced for grave
military crimes. There were half a dozen in for forgery or embezzlement,
and over thirty for murder. Some among the prisoners were Tartars. These
were all in for murder or robbery with violence.

"Where am I to sleep?" he presently asked Mikail.

"I sleep in that corner next to the wall. Put your bag next to mine.
They are not so likely to play tricks with you then."

Godfrey was not sorry to lay himself down on the boards. There was no
attempt at undressing on the part of any of the convicts. He would have
thought the bed a very hard one a few months sin