hat the stone was
ours and we had found it in England. When Mr. Aldobrand laughed again,
and held the jewel up once more: were such pebbles, he asked, found on
the shore by every squalid fisherman? And the great diamond flashed as
he put it back into his purse, and cried to me, 'Am I not queen of all
the diamonds of the world? Must I house with this base rascal?' but I
was powerless now to help.

After Aldobrand, the serving-men gave witness, telling how they had
trapped us in the act, red-handed: and as for this jewel, they had seen
their master handle it any time in these six months past.

But Elzevir was galled to the quick with all their falsehoods, and burst
out again, that they were liars and the jewel ours; till a jailer who
stood by struck him on the mouth and cut his lip, to silence him.

The process was soon finished, and the judge in his red robes stood up
and sentenced us to the galleys for life; bidding us admire the mercy
of the law to Outlanders, for had we been but Dutchmen, we should sure
have hanged.

Then they took and marched us out of court, as well as we could walk for
fetters, and Elzevir with a bleeding mouth. But as we passed the place
where Aldobrand sat, he bows to me and says in English, 'Your servant,
Mr. Trenchard. I wish you a good day, Sir John Trenchard--of Moonfleet,
in Dorset.' The jailer paused a moment, hearing Aldobrand speak to us
though not understanding what he said, so I had time to answer him:

'Good day, Sir Aldobrand, Liar, and Thief; and may the diamond bring you
evil in this present life, and damnation in that which is to come.'

So we parted from him, and at that same time departed from our liberty
and from all joys of life.

We were fettered together with other prisoners in droves of six, our
wrists manacled to a long bar, but I was put into a different gang from
Elzevir. Thus we marched a ten days' journey into the country to a place
called Ymeguen, where a royal fortress was building. That was a weary
march for me, for 'twas January, with wet and miry roads, and I had
little enough clothes upon my back to keep off rain and cold. On either
side rode guards on horseback, with loaded flint-locks across the
saddlebow, and long whips in their hands with which they let fly at any
laggard; though 'twas hard enough for men to walk where the mud was over
the horses' fetlocks. I had no chance to speak to Elzevir all the
journey, and indeed spoke nothing at all, for those t