Page:Augusta Seaman--Jacqueline of the carrier pigeons.djvu/61

Rh glad I am that we were fortunate enough to lay in an extra stock of seeds for our pigeons,  or we should soon be reduced to feeding on  them!

“Well, I was in the square before the statehouse this morning, and through listening to and taking part in some of the  gossip there, I learned a few things. In the first place, our good William the Silent cannot possibly raise a sufficient army to  encounter the besieging troops of the Spaniards, that’s plain. Relief must come in some other way, but how, God alone knows! However, our wonderful Prince is wise and resourceful. Let us not despair, but trust him to save us, and do our best to help.

“Jacqueline, I am going to do my part! To-morrow I go to Burgomaster Van der Werf, to offer myself as a ‘jumper.’ Let me  tell thee what that means. The Prince wants a few swift, skillful messengers who will go  out of the gates secretly, in some kind of  disguise, and make their way through the