For the construction of their apparatus they had recourse to an
ingenious artificer in copper and other metals, whose child the
Brahmin had been instrumental in curing of a chronic disease, and in
whose fidelity as well as good will they could securely rely.
"The coppersmith agreed to undertake the work we wanted done, for a
moderate compensation, but we did not think it prudent to inform him
of our object, which he supposed was to make some philosophical
experiment. It was forthwith arranged that he should occasionally
visit the Hermit, to receive instructions, as if for the purpose of
asking medical advice. During this interval my mind was absorbed with
our project; and when in company, I was so thoughtful and abstracted,
that it has since seemed strange to me that Sing Fou's suspicions that
I was planning my escape were not more excited. At length, by dint of
great exertion, in about three months every thing was in readiness,
and we determined on the following night to set out on our perilous
expedition.
"The machine in which we proposed to embark, was a copper vessel, that
would have been an exact cube of six feet, if the corners and edges
had not been rounded off. It had an opening large enough to receive
our bodies, which was closed by double sliding pannels, with quilted
cloth between them. When these were properly adjusted, the machine was
perfectly air-tight, and strong enough, by means of iron bars running
alternately inside and out, to resist the pressure of the atmosphere,
when the machine should be exhausted of its air, as we took the
precaution to prove by the aid of an air pump.
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