ace and help you to
seize Marat? I am not strong, you know; but I could hold a knife,
and tell him I would kill him if he cried out. I don't think I
could, you know, but he wouldn't know that."

"I am afraid that wouldn't do, Jeanne," Harry said with a slight
smile, shaking his head. "It was a desperate enterprise for two of
us. Besides, it would never do for you to run the risk of being
separated from Virginie. Remember you are father and mother and
elder sister to her now. The next plan I thought of was to try and
get appointed as a warder in the prison, but that seems full of
difficulties, for I know no one who could get me such a berth, and
certainly they would not appoint a fellow at my age unless by some
extraordinary influence. Then I thought if I let out I was English
I might get arrested and lodged in the same prison, and might
help her to get out then. From what I hear, the prisoners are not
separated, but all live together."

"No, no, Harry," Jeanne exclaimed in a tone of sharp pain, "you
must not do that of all things. We have only you, and if you are
once in prison you might never get out again; besides, there are
lots of other prisons, and there is no reason why they should send
you to La Force rather than anywhere else. No, I will never consent
to that plan."

"I thought it seemed too doubtful myself," Harry said. "Of course,
if I knew that they would send me to La Force, I might risk it. I
could hide a file and a steel saw about me, and might cut through
the bars; but, as you say, there is no reason why they should send
me there rather than anywhere else. I would kill that villain who
arrested her--the scoundrel, after being a guest at the chateau!--but
I don't see that would do your sister any good, and would
probably end in my being shut up. The most hopeful plan seems to
me to try and bribe some of the warders. Some of them, no doubt,
would be glad enough to take money if they could see their way to
letting her out without fear of detection."

"But you know we thought of that before, Harry, and agreed it would
be a terrible risk to try it, for the very first man you spoke to
might turn round on you."

"Of course there is a certain risk, Jeanne, anyway. There is no
getting a prisoner out of La Force without running some sort of
risk; the thing is to fix on as safe a plan as we can. However, we
must think it out well before we do try. A failure would be fatal,
and I do not think there is any