Indeed, the gate was often left standing open a minute or two while some parley was taking place; for no prisoners were allowed in the court till after the departure of the procession, and no precautions therefore seemed necessary for closing it with special celerity.
This, then, was my hope.

Could I but lie _perdu_ beside the gate till the time of opening, I might in a happy moment slip out.

As if to favour me, a cart of straw intended for the floors of the prison rooms had been admitted into the court the night before, and stood drawn up close to the gate.

It was not difficult to conceal myself at the tail of this, under the straw, and so remain unseen, not only by the carters that entered, but by the turnkey that let them in.

By equal good fortune, the owner of the cart had left his coat and whip and cap behind him, thus giving me just a disguise that suited me best.
The night--it was July then--seemed interminable; and with morning a drenching rain set in that found its way through the straw and soaked me to the skin.