It flashed
upon him that the lane divided the imperial gardens and that the walls
were built out into the water in order to prevent intrusion. One end of
the boat's chain was shackled to a ring-bolt in the bows, and the other
was made fast to the ring in the wall by one of those rude iron
padlocks which had been used in Asia since the times of Alexander.
Gilbert had heard wonderful tales of the gardens at Constantinople, and
he resented the idea of being so near them and yet so effectually
excluded. He tried to wrench the boat's chain from the bows, and,
failing, he tried to force the lock, but the iron was solid and the
lock was good; moreover, the chain was too short to allow the skiff to
float to the end of the wall, if he had launched it. The idea of seeing
into the garden became a determination as soon as he found that there
were serious obstacles in the way, and by the time he had persuaded
himself that the boat could not help him he would have readily risked
life and limb for his fancy. A few moments' reflection showed him,
however, that there need be no great danger in the undertaking, for the
defence had a weak point. The foundations on which the walls stood were
above water by several inches and were wide enough to give him a
foothold if he could only keep himself upright against the flat
surface. The latter difficulty could easily be overcome by using one of
the oars from the boat, and he began to attempt the passage at once,
cautiously putting one foot before the other and steadying himself with
the oar against the opposite wall.
Pages:
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187