As he had hoped, his first attempt showed him that the iron of the rivet was soft, and the keen dagger at once notched off a small piece of the burred end.

Again and again he tried, and each time a small piece of metal flew off.

After each cut he examined the edge of the dagger, but it was well tempered, and seemed entirely unaffected.
He now felt certain that, with patience, he should be able to cut off the projecting edges of the rivets, and so be able to free his hands.
He, therefore, now examined the fastenings at the ankles.

These were more heavy, and on trying them, the iron of the rivet appeared to be much harder than that which kept the manacles together.

It was, however, now too dark to see what he was doing, and concealing the dagger again, he lay down with a lighter heart than he had from the moment of his capture.
Even if he found that the lower fastenings of the chain defied all his efforts, he could cut the rivets at the wrists, and so free one end of each chain.