Page:Narrative of a captivity and adventures in France and Flanders between the years 1803 and 1809.djvu/206

 consequent punishment attendant on failure, would fall solely on myself. With this view of the measure, on the night of the 31st of March, so soon as Hunter relieved me in watch, at the door, and we were ready to return to the woods, I communicated to him my plans, adding, that if they neither saw, nor heard from me the next day, they might rest assured, I had fallen into the hands of the enemy, and might then act for themselves. He in vain endeavoured to shake my determination, but, as I was convinced of the feasibility of the project, and had taken my resolution, we shook hands, and parted. After making the necessary arrangements with Madame Derikre, I lay down in the stable, with my friend Fox at the door, who seemed to watch with increased vigilance, as if aware of the importance of his trust. My bed, in this solitary cell, was certainly not one of roses, for, independently of the anxiety arising from the fear of surprise, I at first felt something like compunction, at not having previously consulted my companions; nor was I with