“I hear thee babbling to the vale
Of sunshine and of flowers,
But unto me thou bring'st a tale
Of visionary hours.”
Wordsworth.
One discovery mentioned at the close of the preceding chapter was of
great moment in the eyes of Deerslayer and his friend. In the first
place, there was the danger, almost the certainty, that Hutter and Hurry
would make a fresh attempt on this camp, should they awake and ascertain
its position. Then there was the increased risk of landing to bring off
Hist; and there were the general uncertainty and additional hazards that
must follow from the circumstance that their enemies had begun to change
their positions. As the Delaware was aware that the hour was near when
he ought to repair to the rendezvous, he no longer thought of trophies
torn from his foes, and one of the first things arranged between him and
his associate was to permit the two others to sleep on, lest they should
disturb the execution of their plans by substituting some of their own.
The ark moved slowly, and it would have taken fully a quarter of an hour
to reach the point, at the rate at which they were going, thus affording
time for a little forethought. The Indians, in the wish to conceal their
fire from those who were thought to be still in the castle, had placed
it so near the southern side of the point as to render it extremely
difficult to shut it in by the bushes, though Deerslayer varied the
direction of the scow both to the right and to the left, in the hope of
being able to effect that object.
“There's one advantage, Judith, in finding that fire so near the water,”
he said, while executing these little manoeuvres, “since it shows
the Mingos believe we are in the hut, and our coming on 'em from this
quarter will be an unlooked for event. But it's lucky Harry March and
your father are asleep, else we should have 'em prowling after scalps
ag'in. Ha! there--the bushes are beginning to shut in the fire--and now
it can't be seen at all!”
Deerslayer waited a little to make certain that he had at last
gained the desired position, when he gave the signal agreed on, and
Chingachgook let go the grapnel and lowered the sail.
The situation in which the ark now lay had its advantages and its
disadvantages. The fire had been hid by sheering towards the shore, and
the latter was nearer, perhaps, than was desirable. Still, the water
was known to be very deep further off in the lake, and anchoring in deep
water, under the circumstances in which the party was placed, was to
be avoided, if possible. It was also believed no raft could be within
miles; and though the trees in the darkness appeared almost to overhang
the scow, it would not be easy to get off to her without using a boat.
The intense darkness that prevailed so close in with the forest, too,
served as an effectual screen, and so long as care was had not to make a
noise, there was little or no danger of being detected. All these things
Deerslayer pointed out to Judith, instructing her as to the course she
was to follow in the event of an alarm; for it was thought to the last
degree inexpedient to arouse the sleepers, unless it might be in the
greatest emergency.
“And now, Judith, as we understand one another, it is time the Sarpent
and I had taken to the canoe,” the hunter concluded. “The star has not
risen yet, it's true, but it soon must, though none of us are likely
to be any the wiser for it to-night, on account of the clouds. Howsever,
Hist has a ready mind, and she's one of them that doesn't always need to
have a thing afore her, to see it. I'll warrant you she'll not be either
two minutes or two feet out of the way, unless them jealous vagabonds,
the Mingos, have taken the alarm, and put her as a stool-pigeon to
catch us, or have hid her away, in order to prepare her mind for a Huron
instead of a Mohican husband.”
“Deerslayer,” interrupted the girl, earnestly; “this is a most dangerous
service; why do you go on it, at all?”
“Anan!--Why you know, gal, we go to bring off Hist, the Sarpent's
betrothed--the maid he means to marry, as soon as we get back to the
tribe.”
“That is all right for the Indian--but you do not mean to marry
Hist--you are not betrothed, and why should two risk their lives and
liberties, to do that which one can just as well perform?”
“Ah--now I understand you, Judith--yes, now I begin to take the idee.
You think as Hist is the Sarpent's betrothed, as they call it, and not
mine, it's altogether his affair; and as one man can paddle a canoe he
ought to be left to go after his gal alone! But you forget this is our
ar'n'd here on the lake, and it would not tell well to forget an ar'n'd
just as the pinch came. Then, if love does count for so much with some
people, particularly with young women, fri'ndship counts for something,
too, with other some. I dares to say, the Delaware can paddle a canoe
by himself, and can bring off Hist by himself, and perhaps he would like
that quite as well, as to have me with him; but he couldn't sarcumvent
sarcumventions, or stir up an ambushment, or fight with the savages, and
get his sweetheart at the same time, as well by himself as if he had
a fri'nd with him to depend on, even if that fri'nd is no better than
myself. No--no--Judith, you wouldn't desert one that counted on you, at
such a moment, and you can't, in reason, expect me to do it.”
“I fear--I believe you are right, Deerslayer, and yet I wish you were
not to go! Promise me one thing, at least, and that is, not to trust
yourself among the savages, or to do anything more than to save the
girl. That will be enough for once, and with that you ought to be
satisfied.”
“Lord bless you! gal; one would think it was Hetty that's talking, and
not the quick-witted and wonderful Judith Hutter! But fright makes the
wise silly, and the strong weak. Yes, I've seen proofs of that, time
and ag'in! Well, it's kind and softhearted in you, Judith, to feel this
consarn for a fellow creatur', and I shall always say that you are kind
and of true feelings, let them that envy your good looks tell as many
idle stories of you as they may.”
“Deerslayer!” hastily said the girl, interrupting him, though nearly
choked by her own emotions; “do you believe all you hear about a poor,
motherless girl? Is the foul tongue of Hurry Harry to blast my life?”
“Not it, Judith--not it. I've told Hurry it wasn't manful to backbite
them he couldn't win by fair means; and that even an Indian is always
tender, touching a young woman's good name.”
“If I had a brother, he wouldn't dare to do it!” exclaimed Judith, with
eyes flashing fire. “But, finding me without any protector but an old
man, whose ears are getting to be as dull as his feelings, he has his
way as he pleases!”
“Not exactly that, Judith; no, not exactly that, neither! No man,
brother or stranger, would stand by and see as fair a gal as yourself
hunted down, without saying a word in her behalf. Hurry's in 'arnest in
wanting to make you his wife, and the little he does let out ag'in you,
comes more from jealousy, like, than from any thing else. Smile on him
when he awakes, and squeeze his hand only half as hard as you squeezed
mine a bit ago, and my life on it, the poor fellow will forget every
thing but your comeliness. Hot words don't always come from the heart,
but oftener from the stomach than anywhere else. Try him, Judith, when
he awakes, and see the virtue of a smile.”
Deerslayer laughed, in his own manner, as he concluded, and then he
intimated to the patient-looking, but really impatient Chingachgook, his
readiness to proceed. As the young man entered the canoe, the girl stood
immovable as stone, lost in the musings that the language and manner
of the other were likely to produce. The simplicity of the hunter had
completely put her at fault; for, in her narrow sphere, Judith was an
expert manager of the other sex; though in the present instance she was
far more actuated by impulses, in all she had said and done, than by
calculation. We shall not deny that some of Judith's reflections were
bitter, though the sequel of the tale must be referred to, in order to
explain how merited, or how keen were her sufferings.
Chingachgook and his pale-face friend set forth on their hazardous and
delicate enterprise, with a coolness and method that would have done
credit to men who were on their twentieth, instead of being on their
first, war-path. As suited his relation to the pretty fugitive, in whose
service they were engaged, the Indian took his place in the head of
the canoe; while Deerslayer guided its movements in the stern. By this
arrangement, the former would be the first to land, and of course,
the first to meet his mistress. The latter had taken his post without
comment, but in secret influenced by the reflection that one who had so
much at stake as the Indian, might not possibly guide the canoe with the
same steadiness and intelligence, as another who had more command of his
feelings. From the instant they left the side of the ark, the movements
of the two adventurers were like the manoeuvres of highly-drilled
soldiers, who, for the first time were called on to meet the enemy in
the field. As yet, Chingachgook had never fired a shot in anger, and the
debut of his companion in warfare is known to the reader. It is true,
the Indian had been hanging about his enemy's camp for a few hours, on
his first arrival, and he had even once entered it, as related in the
last chapter, but no consequences had followed either experiment.
Now, it was certain that an important result was to be effected, or a
mortifying failure was to ensue. The rescue, or the continued captivity
of Hist, depended on the enterprise. In a word, it was virtually the
maiden expedition of these two ambitious young forest soldiers; and
while one of them set forth impelled by sentiments that usually carry
men so far, both had all their feelings of pride and manhood enlisted in
their success.
Instead of steering in a direct line to the point, then distant from the
ark less than a quarter of a mile, Deerslayer laid the head of his
canoe diagonally towards the centre of the lake, with a view to obtain
a position from which he might approach the shore, having his enemies
in his front only. The spot where Hetty had landed, and where Hist had
promised to meet them, moreover, was on the upper side of the projection
rather than on the lower; and to reach it would have required the two
adventurers to double nearly the whole point, close in with the shore,
had not this preliminary step been taken. So well was the necessity for
this measure understood, that Chingachgook quietly paddled on, although
it was adopted without consulting him, and apparently was taking him in
a direction nearly opposite to that one might think he most wished to
go. A few minutes sufficed, however, to carry the canoe the necessary
distance, when both the young men ceased paddling as it were by
instinctive consent, and the boat became stationary. The darkness
increased rather than diminished, but it was still possible, from the
place where the adventurers lay, to distinguish the outlines of the
mountains. In vain did the Delaware turn his head eastward, to catch a
glimpse of the promised star; for, notwithstanding the clouds broke
a little near the horizon in that quarter of the heavens, the curtain
continued so far drawn as effectually to conceal all behind it. In
front, as was known by the formation of land above and behind it, lay
the point, at the distance of about a thousand feet. No signs of the
castle could be seen, nor could any movement in that quarter of the lake
reach the ear. The latter circumstance might have been equally owing to
the distance, which was several miles, or to the fact that nothing was
in motion. As for the ark, though scarcely farther from the canoe than
the point, it lay so completely buried in the shadows of the shore, that
it would not have been visible even had there been many degrees more of
light than actually existed.
The adventurers now held a conference in low voices, consulting together
as to the probable time. Deerslayer thought it wanted yet some minutes
to the rising of the star, while the impatience of the chief caused him
to fancy the night further advanced, and to believe that his betrothed
was already waiting his appearance on the shore. As might have been
expected, the opinion of the latter prevailed, and his friend disposed
himself to steer for the place of rendezvous. The utmost skill and
precaution now became necessary in the management of the canoe. The
paddles were lifted and returned to the water in a noiseless manner;
and when within a hundred yards of the beach, Chingachgook took in his,
altogether laying his hand on his rifle in its stead. As they got still
more within the belt of darkness that girded the woods, it was seen
that they were steering too far north, and the course was altered
accordingly. The canoe now seemed to move by instinct, so cautious and
deliberate were all its motions. Still it continued to advance, until
its bows grated on the gravel of the beach, at the precise spot where
Hetty had landed, and whence her voice had issued, the previous night,
as the ark was passing. There was, as usual, a narrow strand, but bushes
fringed the woods, and in most places overhung the water.
Chingachgook stepped upon the beach, and cautiously examined it for some
distance on each side of the canoe. In order to do this, he was often
obliged to wade to his knees in the lake, but no Hist rewarded his
search. When he returned, he found his friend also on the shore. They
next conferred in whispers, the Indian apprehending that they must have
mistaken the place of rendezvous. But Deerslayer thought it was probable
they had mistaken the hour. While he was yet speaking, he grasped the
arm of the Delaware, caused him to turn his head in the direction of
the lake, and pointed towards the summits of the eastern mountains.
The clouds had broken a little, apparently behind rather than above the
hills, and the evening star was glittering among the branches of a pine.
This was every way a flattering omen, and the young men leaned on their
rifles, listening intently for the sound of approaching footsteps.
Voices they often heard, and mingled with them were the suppressed cries
of children, and the low but sweet laugh of Indian women. As the
native Americans are habitually cautious, and seldom break out in loud
conversation, the adventurers knew by these facts that they must be
very near the encampment. It was easy to perceive that there was a fire
within the woods, by the manner in which some of the upper branches of
the trees were illuminated, but it was not possible, where they stood,
to ascertain exactly how near it was to themselves. Once or twice, it
seemed as if stragglers from around the fire were approaching the place
of rendezvous; but these sounds were either altogether illusion, or
those who had drawn near returned again without coming to the shore. A
quarter of an hour was passed in this state of intense expectation and
anxiety, when Deerslayer proposed that they should circle the point in
the canoe; and by getting a position close in, where the camp could be
seen, reconnoitre the Indians, and thus enable themselves to form some
plausible conjectures for the non-appearance of Hist. The Delaware,
however, resolutely refused to quit the spot, reasonably enough offering
as a reason the disappointment of the girl, should she arrive in his
absence. Deerslayer felt for his friend's concern, and offered to make
the circuit of the point by himself, leaving the latter concealed in the
bushes to await the occurrence of any fortunate event that might favour
his views. With this understanding, then, the parties separated.
As soon as Deerslayer was at his post again, in the stern of the canoe,
he left the shore with the same precautions, and in the same noiseless
manner, as he had approached it. On this occasion he did not go far from
the land, the bushes affording a sufficient cover, by keeping as close
in as possible. Indeed, it would not have been easy to devise any means
more favourable to reconnoitering round an Indian camp, than those
afforded by the actual state of things. The formation of the point
permitted the place to be circled on three of its sides, and the
progress of the boat was so noiseless as to remove any apprehensions
from an alarm through sound. The most practised and guarded foot might
stir a bunch of leaves, or snap a dried stick in the dark, but a bark
canoe could be made to float over the surface of smooth water, almost
with the instinctive readiness, and certainly with the noiseless
movements of an aquatic bird.
Deerslayer had got nearly in a line between the camp and the ark before
he caught a glimpse of the fire. This came upon him suddenly, and a
little unexpectedly, at first causing an alarm, lest he had incautiously
ventured within the circle of light it cast. But perceiving at a second
glance that he was certainly safe from detection, so long as the Indians
kept near the centre of the illumination, he brought the canoe to
a state of rest in the most favourable position he could find, and
commenced his observations.
We have written much, but in vain, concerning this extraordinary being,
if the reader requires now to be told, that, untutored as he was in the
learning of the world, and simple as he ever showed himself to be in all
matters touching the subtleties of conventional taste, he was a man
of strong, native, poetical feeling. He loved the woods for their
freshness, their sublime solitudes, their vastness, and the impress
that they everywhere bore of the divine hand of their creator. He seldom
moved through them, without pausing to dwell on some peculiar beauty
that gave him pleasure, though seldom attempting to investigate the
causes; and never did a day pass without his communing in spirit, and
this, too, without the aid of forms or language, with the infinite
source of all he saw, felt, and beheld. Thus constituted, in a moral
sense, and of a steadiness that no danger could appall, or any crisis
disturb, it is not surprising that the hunter felt a pleasure at looking
on the scene he now beheld, that momentarily caused him to forget the
object of his visit. This will more fully appear when we describe it.
The canoe lay in front of a natural vista, not only through the bushes
that lined the shore, but of the trees also, that afforded a clear view
of the camp. It was by means of this same opening that the light had
been first seen from the ark. In consequence of their recent change
of ground, the Indians had not yet retired to their huts, but had been
delayed by their preparations, which included lodging as well as food.
A large fire had been made, as much to answer the purpose of torches as
for the use of their simple cookery; and at this precise moment it was
blazing high and bright, having recently received a large supply of
dried brush. The effect was to illuminate the arches of the forest, and
to render the whole area occupied by the camp as light as if hundreds of
tapers were burning. Most of the toil had ceased, and even the hungriest
child had satisfied its appetite. In a word, the time was that moment of
relaxation and general indolence which is apt to succeed a hearty
meal, and when the labours of the day have ended. The hunters and
the fishermen had been totally successful; and food, that one great
requisite of savage life, being abundant, every other care appeared to
have subsided in the sense of enjoyment dependent on this all-important
fact.
Deerslayer saw at a glance that many of the warriors were absent.
His acquaintance Rivenoak, however, was present, being seated in the
foreground of a picture that Salvator Rosa would have delighted to draw,
his swarthy features illuminated as much by pleasure as by the torchlike
flame, while he showed another of the tribe one of the elephants that
had caused so much sensation among his people. A boy was looking over
his shoulder, in dull curiosity, completing the group. More in the
background eight or ten warriors lay half recumbent on the ground, or
sat with their backs reclining against trees, so many types of indolent
repose. Their arms were near them all, sometimes leaning against the
same trees as themselves, or were lying across their bodies in careless
preparation. But the group that most attracted the attention of
Deerslayer was that composed of the women and children. All the females
appeared to be collected together, and, almost as a matter of course,
their young were near them. The former laughed and chatted in their
rebuked and quiet manner, though one who knew the habits of the people
might have detected that everything was not going on in its usual train.
Most of the young women seemed to be light-hearted enough; but one old
hag was seated apart with a watchful soured aspect, which the hunter at
once knew betokened that some duty of an unpleasant character had been
assigned her by the chiefs. What that duty was, he had no means of
knowing; but he felt satisfied it must be in some measure connected with
her own sex, the aged among the women generally being chosen for such
offices and no other.
As a matter of course, Deerslayer looked eagerly and anxiously for the
form of Hist. She was nowhere visible though the light penetrated to
considerable distances in all directions around the fire. Once or twice
he started, as he thought he recognized her laugh; but his ears were
deceived by the soft melody that is so common to the Indian female
voice. At length the old woman spoke loud and angrily, and then he
caught a glimpse of one or two dark figures in the background of trees,
which turned as if obedient to the rebuke, and walked more within the
circle of the light. A young warrior's form first came fairly into
view; then followed two youthful females, one of whom proved to be the
Delaware girl. Deerslayer now comprehended it all. Hist was watched,
possibly by her young companion, certainly by the old woman. The youth
was probably some suitor of either her or her companion; but even his
discretion was distrusted under the influence of his admiration. The
known vicinity of those who might be supposed to be her friends, and the
arrival of a strange red man on the lake had induced more than the usual
care, and the girl had not been able to slip away from those who watched
her in order to keep her appointment. Deerslayer traced her uneasiness
by her attempting once or twice to look up through the branches of the
trees, as if endeavouring to get glimpses of the star she had herself
named as the sign for meeting. All was vain, however, and after
strolling about the camp a little longer, in affected indifference, the
two girls quitted their male escort, and took seats among their own sex.
As soon as this was done, the old sentinel changed her place to one
more agreeable to herself, a certain proof that she had hitherto been
exclusively on watch.
Deerslayer now felt greatly at a loss how to proceed. He well knew
that Chingachgook could never be persuaded to return to the ark without
making some desperate effort for the recovery of his mistress, and his
own generous feelings well disposed him to aid in such an undertaking.
He thought he saw the signs of an intention among the females to retire
for the night; and should he remain, and the fire continue to give out
its light, he might discover the particular hut or arbour under which
Hist reposed; a circumstance that would be of infinite use in their
future proceedings. Should he remain, however, much longer where he was,
there was great danger that the impatience of his friend would drive him
into some act of imprudence. At each instant, indeed, he expected to see
the swarthy form of the Delaware appearing in the background, like the
tiger prowling around the fold. Taking all things into consideration,
therefore, he came to the conclusion it would be better to rejoin his
friend, and endeavour to temper his impetuosity by some of his own
coolness and discretion. It required but a minute or two to put this
plan in execution, the canoe returning to the strand some ten or fifteen
minutes after it had left it.
Contrary to his expectations, perhaps, Deerslayer found the Indian at
his post, from which he had not stirred, fearful that his betrothed
might arrive during his absence. A conference followed, in which
Chingachgook was made acquainted with the state of things in the camp.
When Hist named the point as the place of meeting, it was with the
expectation of making her escape from the old position, and of repairing
to a spot that she expected to find without any occupants; but the
sudden change of localities had disconcerted all her plans. A much
greater degree of vigilance than had been previously required was now
necessary; and the circumstance that an aged woman was on watch also
denoted some special grounds of alarm. All these considerations, and
many more that will readily suggest themselves to the reader, were
briefly discussed before the young men came to any decision. The
occasion, however, being one that required acts instead of words, the
course to be pursued was soon chosen.
Disposing of the canoe in such a manner that Hist must see it, should
she come to the place of meeting previously to their return, the young
men looked to their arms and prepared to enter the wood. The whole
projection into the lake contained about two acres of land; and the part
that formed the point, and on which the camp was placed, did not compose
a surface of more than half that size. It was principally covered with
oaks, which, as is usual in the American forests, grew to a great height
without throwing out a branch, and then arched in a dense and rich
foliage. Beneath, except the fringe of thick bushes along the shore,
there was very little underbrush; though, in consequence of their shape,
the trees were closer together than is common in regions where the
axe has been freely used, resembling tall, straight, rustic columns,
upholding the usual canopy of leaves. The surface of the land was
tolerably even, but it had a small rise near its centre, which divided
it into a northern and southern half. On the latter, the Hurons had
built their fire, profiting by the formation to conceal it from their
enemies, who, it will be remembered, were supposed to be in the castle,
which bore northerly. A brook also came brawling down the sides of the
adjacent hills, and found its way into the lake on the southern side
of the point. It had cut for itself a deep passage through some of the
higher portions of the ground, and, in later days, when this spot has
become subjected to the uses of civilization, by its windings and shaded
banks, it has become no mean accessory in contributing to the beauty of
the place. This brook lay west of the encampment, and its waters found
their way into the great reservoir of that region on the same side, and
quite near to the spot chosen for the fire. All these peculiarities,
so far as circumstances allowed, had been noted by Deerslayer, and
explained to his friend.
The reader will understand that the little rise in the ground, that lay
behind the Indian encampment, greatly favoured the secret advance of the
two adventurers. It prevented the light of the fire diffusing itself on
the ground directly in the rear, although the land fell away towards the
water, so as to leave what might be termed the left, or eastern flank
of the position unprotected by this covering. We have said unprotected,
though that is not properly the word, since the knoll behind the
huts and the fire offered a cover for those who were now stealthily
approaching, rather than any protection to the Indians. Deerslayer did
not break through the fringe of bushes immediately abreast of the canoe,
which might have brought him too suddenly within the influence of the
light, since the hillock did not extend to the water; but he followed
the beach northerly until he had got nearly on the opposite side of
the tongue of land, which brought him under the shelter of the low
acclivity, and consequently more in the shadow.
As soon as the friends emerged from the bushes, they stopped to
reconnoitre. The fire was still blazing behind the little ridge, casting
its light upward into the tops of the trees, producing an effect that
was more pleasing than advantageous. Still the glare had its uses; for,
while the background was in obscurity, the foreground was in strong
light; exposing the savages and concealing their foes. Profiting by
the latter circumstance, the young men advanced cautiously towards the
ridge, Deerslayer in front, for he insisted on this arrangement, lest
the Delaware should be led by his feelings into some indiscretion. It
required but a moment to reach the foot of the little ascent, and
then commenced the most critical part of the enterprise. Moving with
exceeding caution, and trailing his rifle, both to keep its barrel out
of view, and in readiness for service, the hunter put foot before foot,
until he had got sufficiently high to overlook the summit, his own head
being alone brought into the light. Chingachgook was at his side and
both paused to take another close examination of the camp. In order,
however, to protect themselves against any straggler in the rear, they
placed their bodies against the trunk of an oak, standing on the side
next the fire.
The view that Deerslayer now obtained of the camp was exactly the
reverse of that he had perceived from the water. The dim figures which
he had formerly discovered must have been on the summit of the ridge,
a few feet in advance of the spot where he was now posted. The fire
was still blazing brightly, and around it were seated on logs thirteen
warriors, which accounted for all whom he had seen from the canoe. They
were conversing, with much earnestness among themselves, the image of
the elephant passing from hand to hand. The first burst of savage wonder
had abated, and the question now under discussion was the probable
existence, the history and the habits of so extraordinary an animal. We
have not leisure to record the opinions of these rude men on a subject
so consonant to their lives and experience; but little is hazarded in
saying that they were quite as plausible, and far more ingenious, than
half the conjectures that precede the demonstrations of science. However
much they may have been at fault as to their conclusions and inferences,
it is certain that they discussed the questions with a zealous and most
undivided attention. For the time being all else was forgotten, and our
adventurers could not have approached at a more fortunate instant.
The females were collected near each other, much as Deerslayer had last
seen them, nearly in a line between the place where he now stood and the
fire. The distance from the oak against which the young men leaned and
the warriors was about thirty yards; the women may have been half that
number of yards nigher. The latter, indeed, were so near as to make the
utmost circumspection, as to motion and noise, indispensable. Although
they conversed in their low, soft voices it was possible, in the
profound stillness of the woods, even to catch passages of the
discourse; and the light-hearted laugh that escaped the girls might
occasionally have reached the canoe. Deerslayer felt the tremolo that
passed through the frame of his friend when the latter first caught the
sweet sounds that issued from the plump, pretty lips of Hist. He even
laid a hand on the shoulder of the Indian, as a sort of admonition to
command himself. As the conversation grew more earnest, each leaned
forward to listen.
“The Hurons have more curious beasts than that,” said one of the girls,
contemptuously, for, like the men, they conversed of the elephant and
his qualities. “The Delawares will think this creature wonderful, but
to-morrow no Huron tongue will talk of it. Our young men will find him if
the animals dare to come near our wigwams!”
This was, in fact, addressed to Wah-ta-Wah, though she who spoke uttered
her words with an assumed diffidence and humility that prevented her
looking at the other.
“The Delawares are so far from letting such creatures come into their
country,” returned Hist, “that no one has even seen their images there!
Their young men would frighten away the images as well as the beasts.”
“The Delaware young men!--the nation is women--even the deer walk when
they hear their hunters coming! Who has ever heard the name of a young
Delaware warrior?”
This was said in good-humour, and with a laugh; but it was also said
bitingly. That Hist so felt it, was apparent by the spirit betrayed in
her answer.
“Who has ever heard the name of a young Delaware?” she repeated
earnestly. “Tamenund, himself, though now as old as the pines on the
hill, or as the eagles in the air, was once young; his name was heard
from the great salt lake to the sweet waters of the west. What is the
family of Uncas? Where is another as great, though the pale-faces have
ploughed up its grates, and trodden on its bones? Do the eagles fly as
high, is the deer as swift or the panther as brave? Is there no young
warrior of that race? Let the Huron maidens open their eyes wider, and
they may see one called Chingachgook, who is as stately as a young ash,
and as tough as the hickory.”
As the girl used her figurative language and told her companions to
“open their eyes, and they would see” the Delaware, Deerslayer thrust
his fingers into the sides of his friend, and indulged in a fit of his
hearty, benevolent laughter. The other smiled; but the language of the
speaker was too flattering, and the tones of her voice too sweet for
him to be led away by any accidental coincidence, however ludicrous. The
speech of Hist produced a retort, and the dispute, though conducted in
good-humour, and without any of the coarse violence of tone and gesture
that often impairs the charms of the sex in what is called civilized
life, grew warm and slightly clamorous. In the midst of this scene,
the Delaware caused his friend to stoop, so as completely to conceal
himself, and then he made a noise so closely resembling the little
chirrup of the smallest species of the American squirrel, that
Deerslayer himself, though he had heard the imitation a hundred times,
actually thought it came from one of the little animals skipping about
over his head. The sound is so familiar in the woods, that none of the
Hurons paid it the least attention. Hist, however, instantly ceased
talking, and sat motionless. Still she had sufficient self-command to
abstain from turning her head. She had heard the signal by which her
lover so often called her from the wigwam to the stolen interview,
and it came over her senses and her heart, as the serenade affects the
maiden in the land of song.
From that moment, Chingachgook felt certain that his presence was known.
This was effecting much, and he could now hope for a bolder line of
conduct on the part of his mistress than she might dare to adopt under
an uncertainty of his situation. It left no doubt of her endeavouring
to aid him in his effort to release her. Deerslayer arose as soon as
the signal was given, and though he had never held that sweet communion
which is known only to lovers, he was not slow to detect the great
change that had come over the manner of the girl. She still affected to
dispute, though it was no longer with spirit and ingenuity, but what she
said was uttered more as a lure to draw her antagonists on to an easy
conquest, than with any hopes of succeeding herself. Once or twice, it
is true, her native readiness suggested a retort, or an argument that
raised a laugh, and gave her a momentary advantage; but these little
sallies, the offspring of mother-wit, served the better to conceal her
real feelings, and to give to the triumph of the other party a more
natural air than it might have possessed without them. At length the
disputants became wearied, and they rose in a body as if about to
separate. It was now that Hist, for the first time, ventured to turn
her face in the direction whence the signal had come. In doing this,
her movements were natural, but guarded, and she stretched her arm and
yawned, as if overcome with a desire to sleep. The chirrup was again
heard, and the girl felt satisfied as to the position of her lover,
though the strong light in which she herself was placed, and the
comparative darkness in which the adventurers stood, prevented her from
seeing their heads, the only portions of their forms that appeared above
the ridge at all. The tree against which they were posted had a dark
shadow cast upon it by the intervention of an enormous pine that grew
between it and the fire, a circumstance which alone would have rendered
objects within its cloud invisible at any distance. This Deerslayer well
knew, and it was one of the reasons why he had selected this particular
tree.
The moment was near when it became necessary for Hist to act. She was
to sleep in a small hut, or bower, that had been built near where she
stood, and her companion was the aged hag already mentioned. Once within
the hut, with this sleepless old woman stretched across the entrance, as
was her nightly practice, the hope of escape was nearly destroyed, and
she might at any moment be summoned to her bed. Luckily, at this instant
one of the warriors called to the old woman by name, and bade her bring
him water to drink. There was a delicious spring on the northern side of
the point, and the hag took a gourd from a branch and, summoning Hist
to her side, she moved towards the summit of the ridge, intending to
descend and cross the point to the natural fountain. All this was
seen and understood by the adventurers, and they fell back into the
obscurity, concealing their persons by trees, until the two females had
passed them. In walking, Hist was held tightly by the hand. As she moved
by the tree that hid Chingachgook and his friend the former felt for his
tomahawk, with the intention to bury it in the brain of the woman. But
the other saw the hazard of such a measure, since a single scream
might bring all the warriors upon them, and he was averse to the act
on considerations of humanity. His hand, therefore, prevented the blow.
Still as the two moved past, the chirrup was repeated, and the Huron
woman stopped and faced the tree whence the sounds seemed to proceed,
standing, at the moment, within six feet of her enemies. She expressed
her surprise that a squirrel should be in motion at so late an hour, and
said it boded evil. Hist answered that she had heard the same squirrel
three times within the last twenty minutes, and that she supposed it
was waiting to obtain some of the crumbs left from the late supper. This
explanation appeared satisfactory, and they moved towards the spring,
the men following stealthily and closely. The gourd was filled, and the
old woman was hurrying back, her hand still grasping the wrist of the
girl, when she was suddenly seized so violently by the throat as to
cause her to release her captive, and to prevent her making any other
sound than a sort of gurgling, suffocating noise. The Serpent passed his
arm round the waist of his mistress and dashed through the bushes with
her, on the north side of the point. Here he immediately turned along
the beach and ran towards the canoe. A more direct course could have
been taken, but it might have led to a discovery of the place of
embarking.
Deerslayer kept playing on the throat of the old woman like the keys of
an organ, occasionally allowing her to breathe, and then compressing
his fingers again nearly to strangling. The brief intervals for breath,
however, were well improved, and the hag succeeded in letting out a
screech or two that served to alarm the camp. The tramp of the warriors,
as they sprang from the fire, was plainly audible, and at the next
moment three or four of them appeared on the top of the ridge, drawn
against the background of light, resembling the dim shadows of the
phantasmagoria. It was now quite time for the hunter to retreat.
Tripping up the heels of his captive, and giving her throat a parting
squeeze, quite as much in resentment at her indomitable efforts to sound
the alarm as from any policy, he left her on her back, and moved towards
the bushes, his rifle at a poise, and his head over his shoulders, like
a lion at bay.