THE BOND OF FRIENDSHIP
"Milenko," said Uros, "have you the least idea how people that are in
love feel?"
Milenko arched his eyebrows and smiled.
"No, not exactly, for I've never been spoony myself." Then, after
pondering for a moment, he added: "I should think it's like being
slightly sea-sick; don't you?"
Uros looked amused. He thought over the simile for a while, then
said:
"Well, perhaps you are not quite wrong."
"But why do you ask? You are surely not in love, are you?"
Uros sighed. "Well, that's what I don't exactly know; only I feel
just a trifle squeamish. I'm upset; my head is muddled."
"And you are afraid it's love?"
Uros made a sign of assent.
"It's not nice, is it?"
"No."
"And you'd like to get out of it?" asked Milenko.
"Yes."
"Well, then, take a deep plunge. Make love to her heart and soul, as
if you were going to marry her to-morrow. Then, I daresay, you'll
soon get over it. You see, the worst thing with sea-sickness is to
mope, to nurse yourself, and fancy every now and then that you are
going to throw up. It's better to be sick like a dog for a day or
two, as we were, and then it's all over. I think it must be the same
thing with love."
"I daresay you are right, but----"
"But what?"
"I can't follow your advice."
"Why not?"
"Because--because----" and thereupon he began to scratch his head. "I
can't make love to her."
"Can't make love to a girl?"
"No; for, you see, she's not a girl."
Milenko opened his eyes and stared.
"Who is she?" he asked.
Uros looked gloomy. He hesitated for an instant; then he whispered:
"Milena!"
Milenko started back.
"Not Milena Radonic?"
Uros nodded gravely.
"You are right," said Milenko seriously; "you can't make love to a
married woman. It's a crime, first of all; then you might get her
into trouble, and find yourself some day or other in a mess."
"You are right."
The two friends were silent for a moment; then Milenko, thinking to
have caught the dilemma by its horns, said:
"Wouldn't it be the same thing if you made love to some other pretty
damsel?"
Uros shook his head doubtfully.
"Darinka, our neighbour Ivo's daughter, is a very nice girl."
"Very."
"Well, don't you think you might fall in love with her?" asked
Milenko, coaxingly.
"No, I don't think I could."
"Then there is Liepa, for instance; she is as lovely as her name;
moreover, I think she looks a little like Milena."
"No; no woman has such beautiful eyes. Why, the first time I saw
Milena, I felt her glances scorching me; they sank into my flesh,"
and he heaved a deep sigh.
There was another pause; both the friends were musing.
"Well, then, I'll tell you what," said Milenko, after a while; "we'll
just go off to sea again. It's a pity, but it can't be helped."
"And the harvest?"
"They'll have to manage without us; that's all."
After having discussed the subject over and over again, it was agreed
that they were to sail as soon as they could find a decent vessel
that could take them both. In the meanwhile, Uros promised to avoid
Milena as much as possible, which was, indeed, no easy matter.
The day of Milena Zwillievic's marriage had, indeed, been a Black
Friday to her. First, she knew that she was being sold to pay her
father's debts; secondly, Radonic was old enough to be her father.
Added to all this, he was a heavy, rough, uncouth kind of a fellow,
the terror of all seamen, and, as he treated his crew as if they had
been slaves, no man ever sailed with him if he could possibly get
another berth.
Two or three days after the wedding, Radonic brought his girlish
bride to live with his mother, the veriest old shrewish skinflint
that could be imagined. She disliked her daughter-in-law before she
knew her; she hated her the first moment she saw her. Milena was
handsome and penniless, two heinous sins in her eyes, for she herself
had been ugly and rich. She could not forgive her son for having
made such a silly marriage at his age, and not a day passed without
her telling him that he was an old fool.
During the first months poor Milena was to be pitied, and, what was
worse, everybody pitied her. She never ate a morsel of bread without
hearing her mother-in-law's taunts. If she cried, she was bullied by
the one, cuffed by the other.
A month after the wedding, Radonic, however, went off with his ship,
and shortly afterwards his vixen of a mother died, and Milena was
then left sole mistress of the house. Her life, though lonesome, was
no more a burden to her, as it had hitherto been, only, having
nothing to do the whole day, time lay heavy on her hands.
Handsome and young as she was, with a slight inborn tendency to
flirtation; living, moreover, quite alone; many a young man had tried
to make love to her; but, their intentions being too manifest, all,
hitherto, had been repulsed. On seeing Uros, however, she felt for
him what she had, as yet, never felt for any man, for her husband
less than anybody else.
She tried not to think of Uros, and the more she tried the more his
image was before her eyes; so the whole of the live-long day she did
nothing else but think of him. She decided to avoid him, and still
--perhaps it was the devil that tempted her, but, somehow or other,
she herself could not explain how it happened--she was always either
at the door or at the window at the time he passed, and then what
could she do but nod in a friendly way to him?
If she went to pay his mother a visit, she would hurry away before he
came home, and then she was always unlucky enough to meet him on her
way. Could she do less than stop and ask him how he was; besides,
after all, he was but a boy, and she was a married woman.
Soon she began to surmise that Uros was in love with her; then she
thought herself foolish to believe such a thing, and she rated
herself for being vain. And then, again, she thought: "If he cares
for me more than he ought, it is but a foolish infatuation, of which
he will soon get rid when he goes again to sea." Thereupon she heaved
a deep sigh, and a heaviness came over her heart, at which she almost
confessed to herself that she did love that boy.
Milena, after the conversation Uros had had with his friend, seeing
herself shunned, felt nettled and sorry. At the same time she was
glad to see that he did not care for her, and then her heart yearned
all the more for him.
But if he shunned her, was it a sign that he did not care for her?
she asked herself.
Puzzled, as she was, she wanted to find out the truth, merely out of
curiosity, and nothing more.
Thus it came to pass that, standing one day on her doorstep, she
beckoned to the young man, as soon as she saw him, to come up to
her. It was a bold thing to do, nor did she do so without a certain
trepidation.
"Uros," said she to him, "come here; I have something to ask you."
"What is it?" said the young man, looking down rather shyly.
"You that have travelled far and wide, can you tell me who speaks all
the languages of this world?"
"Who speaks all the languages of this world?" echoed Uros, lifting up
his eyes, astonished, and then lowering them, feeling Milena's
glances parch up his blood.
"Who can it be?" said he, puzzled.
He tried to think, but his poor head was muddled, and his heart was
beating just as if it would burst. He had never been good at
guessing, but now it was worse than ever.
"I've heard of people speaking three, four, and five languages, but
I've never heard of anyone speaking more than five."
"What! You've been in foreign countries," quoth she, smiling archly,
and displaying her pearly teeth, "and still you cannot answer my
question?"
"I cannot, indeed. There was a man who said he spoke twenty-five
languages, but, of course, he was a humbug. First, there are not
twenty-five languages in the world, and then he couldn't even speak
Slav."
"Well, well; think over it till to-morrow."
"And then?"
"Perhaps you'll be able to guess."
"But if I don't?"
"Well, I shall not eat you up as the dragon, that Marko Kraglievic
killed, used to do, if people couldn't answer the questions he put
them."
"And you'll tell me?" Thereupon he lifted up his eyes yearningly
towards her.
"Perhaps," she replied, blushing, "but then, you must promise not to
ask Milenko."
"I promise."
She stretched forth her hand. He pressed it lingeringly.
"Nor anybody else?"
"No."
"Then I'll tell you to-morrow."
He bade her good-bye, and went off with a heavy heart; she saw him
disappear with a sigh.
That whole day Uros thought a little of the riddle, and a great deal
of Milena's sparkling eyes; moreover, he felt the pressure of her
soft hand upon his palm. But the more he pondered over her question,
the more confused his brain grew, so he gave up thinking of the
riddle, and continued thinking of the young woman. On the morrow his
excitement increased, as the time of hearing the answer drew near.
Milena, as usual, was on the watch for him, leaning on the door-post,
looking more beautiful than ever. As soon as he saw her, he hurried
up to her without being called.
"Well," said she, with a nervous smile, "have you guessed?"
"No."
"Oh, you silly fellow! Who speaks all the languages of the world?"
"It's useless to ask me; I don't know."
"What will you give me if I tell you?" said she, in a low,
fluttering voice, and with a visible effort.
He would willingly have made her a present, but he did not know what
she would like, and, as he looked up into her eyes to guess, he felt
his blood rising all up to his head.
"Do you want me to bring you something from abroad--a looking-glass
from Venice, or a coral necklace from Naples?"
No, she did not want anything from abroad.
"Then a silk scarf?"
"No, I was only joking. I'll tell you for nothing. Why, who but the
echo speaks all the languages of this world?"
"Dear me, how stupid not to have thought of it. Tell me, do you think
me very stupid?"
Milena smiled. She did think him rather dull, but not in the way he
meant.
"You see how good I am. I tell you for nothing. Now, if you had put
me a riddle, and I could not have answered, you surely would have
asked"--here there was a catch in her voice--"a kiss from me."
Uros blushed as red as a damask-rose; he tried to speak, but did not
know what to say.
"Oh! don't say no; you men are all alike."
The young man looked up at her with an entreating look, then down
again; still he did not speak. Milena remained silent, as if waiting
for an answer; she fidgeted and twisted the fringe of her apron round
her fingers, then she heaved a deep sigh. After a few minutes' pause:
"Do you know any riddles?" she asked.
"Oh, yes! I know several."
"Well, then, tell me one."
Uros thought for a while; he would have liked to ask her a very
difficult one, but the thought of the kiss he might have for it, gave
him a strong nervous pain at the back of his head.
"Well," said he, after a few moments' cogitation--"Who turns out of
his house every day, and never leaves his house?"
She looked at him for a while with parted lips and eyes all beaming
with smiles; nay, there was mischief lurking in her very dimples as
she said:
"Why, the snail, you silly boy; everybody knows that hackneyed
riddle." Then with the prettiest little _moue_: "It was not worth
while leaving your country to come back with such a slight stock of
knowledge. I hope you were not expecting a kiss for the answer?"
Uros was rather nettled by her teazing; he would fain have given her
a smart answer, but he could find none on the spur of the moment.
Besides, the sight of those two lips, as fresh and as juicy as the
pulp of a blood-red cherry, made him lose the little wit he otherwise
might have had; so he replied:
"And if I had?"
"You would have been disappointed; I don't give kisses for nothing."
"But you do give kisses?" he asked, faltering.
"When they are worth giving," in an undertone.
Uros looked up shyly, then he began to scratch his head, and tried to
think of something tremendously difficult.
"Well, do you know that one and no other?" she asked, laughing.
All at once Uros' face brightened up.
"What is it that makes men bald?" and he looked up at her
enquiringly.
Had he had a little more guile, he might, perhaps, have seen that
this riddle of his was likewise not quite unknown to her; but he saw
nothing save her pomegranate lips.
"Oh," said Milena, "their naughtiness, I daresay!"
"No, that's not it."
"Then, I suppose, it's their wit."
"Why?"
"They say that women have long hair and little wit, so I imagine that
men have little hair and much wit."
"If that's the case, then, I've too much hair. But you haven't
guessed."
"Then come to-morrow, and, perhaps I'll be able to tell you."
"But you'll not ask anybody?"
She again stretched out her hand to him. As he kept squeezing and
patting her hand:
"Shall I tell you?" he asked, with almost hungry eyes.
"And exact the penalty?"
Uros smiled faintly.
"Now, that is not fair; I gave you a whole day to think over it."
"Well, I'll wait till to-morrow; only----"
"Only, what?"
"Don't try to guess."
He said this below his breath, as if frightened at his own boldness.
On the morrow he again waited impatiently for the moment to come when
he could go and see Milena. The hour arrived; Uros passed and
repassed by the house, but she was not to be seen. He durst not go
and knock at her door--nay, he was almost glad that she did not
expect him; it was much better so.
He little knew that he was being closely watched by her, through one
of the crannies in the window-shutters. When, at last, he was about
to go off, Milena appeared on the threshold. With a beating heart the
youth turned round on his heels and went up to her. With much
trepidation he looked up into her face.
"Does she, or does she not, know?" he kept asking himself; "and if
she does, am I to ask her for a kiss?" At that moment he almost
wished she had guessed the riddle, for he remembered his friend's
words: "It was a crime to make love to a married woman."
"Oh, Uros, I'm like you! I can't guess. I've tried and tried, but
it's useless."
There was a want of sincerity in the tone of her voice, that made it
sound affected, and she was speaking as quickly as possible to bring
out everything at a gush. After a slight interruption, she went on:
"Do tell me quickly, I'm so curious to know. What is it that makes
men bald?"
"It's strange that you can't guess, you that are so very clever," he
said, in a faltering voice.
"What, you don't believe me?" she asked, pouting her lips in a pretty,
babyish fashion.
Uros stood looking at her without answering; in his nervousness he
was quivering from head to foot, undecided whether he was to kiss her
or not.
"Oh, I see, you don't want to tell me; you are afraid I'll not keep
my promise!"
"I can ask to be paid beforehand; give me a kiss first, and I'll tell
you afterwards."
Having got it out he heaved a deep sigh of relief, for he was glad it
was over.
"Here, in the street?" she asked, with a forced smile.
He advanced up to her and she retreated into the house. He was
obliged to follow her now, almost in spite of himself; moreover, he
could hardly drag himself after her, for he had, all at once, got to
be as heavy as lead.
As soon as they were both within the house, she closed the door, and
leant her back against it. Then there was an awkward pause of some
minutes, for neither of them knew what to do, or what to say. She
took courage, however, and looking at him lovingly:
"Now tell me, will you?" said she.
As she uttered these words they clasped each other's hands, whilst
their eyes uttered what their lips durst not express; then, as Uros
stood there in front of Milena, he felt as if she was drawing him on,
and the walls of the room began to spin round and round.
"Why, it is the loss of hair that makes people bald," he muttered in
a hot, feverish whisper, the panting tone of which evidently meant--
"Milena, I love you; have pity on me."
She said something about being very stupid, but he could not quite
understand what it was; he only felt the swaying motion and the
powerful attraction she had over him.
"I suppose you must have your reward now," she said, with a faint
voice.
The youth felt his face all aglow; the blood was rushing from his
heart to his head with a whirring sound. His dizziness increased.
Did she put out her lips towards his as she said this? He could
hardly remember. All that remained clear to him afterwards was, that
he had clasped her in his arms, and strained her to his chest with
all the might of his muscles. Had he stood there with his lips
pressed upon hers for a very long time? He really did not know; it
might have been moments, it might have been hours, for he had lost
all idea as to the duration of time.
From that day, Uros was always hovering in the neighbourhood of
Radonic's house; he was to be found lurking thereabout morning, noon
and night. Milenko took him to task about it, but he soon found out
that if "hunger has no eyes," lovers, likewise, have no ears, and
also that "he who holds his tongue often teaches best." As for Uros,
his friend's reproaches were not half so keen as those he made to
himself; but love had a thousand sophistries to still the voice of
conscience.
Not long after the eventful day of the riddle, Marko Radonic returned
unexpectedly to Budua, his ship having to undergo some slight
repairs.
For a few days, Milenko managed to keep Uros and Milena apart, but,
young as they were, love soon prevailed over prudence. They therefore
began to meet in by-lanes and out-of-the-way places, especially
during those hours when the husband was busy at the building yard. At
first they were very careful, but the reiteration of the same act
rendered them more heedless.
Uros was seen again and again at Milena's door when the husband was
not at home. People began to suspect, to talk; the subject was
whispered mysteriously from ear to ear; it soon spread about the town
like wild-fire.
A month after Radonic had returned, he was one evening at the inn,
drinking and chatting with some old cronies about ships, cargoes and
freights. In the midst of the conversation, an old _guzlar_ passing
thereby, stepped in to have a draught of wine. Upon seeing the bard,
every man rose and, by way of greeting, offered him his glass to have
a sip.
"Give us a song, Vuk; it is years since I heard the sound of your
voice," said Radonic.
The bard complied willingly; he went up to a _guzla_ hanging on the
wall, and took it down. He then sat on a stool, placed his instrument
between his legs, and began to scrape its single gut-string with the
monochord bow; this prelude served to give an intonation to his
voice, and scan the verses he was about to sing. He thought a while,
and then--his face brightening up--he commenced the ballad of "Marko
Kraglievic and Janko of Sebinje."
We Slavs are so fond of music and poetry, that we will remain for
hours listening to one of our bards, forgetting even hunger in our
delight. No sooner was the shrill sound of Vuk's voice heard than
every noise was hushed, hardly a man lifted his glass up to his
mouth. Even the passers-by walked softly or lingered about the door
to catch some snatches of the poet's song.
The ballad, however, was a short one, and as soon as the bard had
finished, the strong Dalmatian wine went round again, and at every
cup the company waxed merrier, more tender-hearted, more gushing; a
few even grew sentimental and lachrymose.
Wine, however, brought out all the harshness of Radonic's character,
and the more he drank the more brutal he grew; at such moments it
seemed as if all the world was his crew, and that he had a right to
bully even his betters, and say disagreeable things to everybody; his
excuse was that he couldn't help it--it was stronger than himself.
"_Bogme!_" he exclaimed, turning to one of his friends; "I should
have liked to see your wife, Tripko, with Marko Kraglievic. Ah, poor
Tripko!"
"Why my wife more than yours?"
"Oh, my wife knows of what wood my stick is made; you only tickle
yours!"
Tripko shrugged his shoulders, and added:
"Every woman is not as sharp as Janko of Sebinje's wife, but most of
them are as honest."
"That means to say that you think your wife is honest," said Radonic,
chuckling. "Poor Tripko!"
"Come, come," quoth a friend, trying to mend matters, "do not spit in
the air, Radonic Marko, lest the spittle fall back on your face."
"What do you mean by that?" asked Radonic, who, like all jokers,
could never take a jest himself.
"I? nothing; only I advise you to be more careful how you trifle with
another man's wife--that's a ticklish subject."
"Oh, Tripko's wife!" said he, disparagingly.
"Radonic Marko, sweep before your own door, _bogati_!" replied
Tripko, scornfully.
"Sweep before my door--sweep before my door, did you say?" and he
snatched up the earthen mug to hurl it at his friend's head, but the
by-standers pinioned his arm.
"I did, and I repeat it, _bogati_!"
"And you mean that there's dirt before my house?" asked Radonic,
scowling.
"More than before mine, surely."
"Come, Tripko, are you going to quarrel about a joke?" said one of
his friends.
"My wife is no joking matter."
"No, no," continued Radonic, "but he who has the itch scratches
himself."
"Then scratch yourself, Marko, for surely you must itch when you're
not at home."
"Hum!" said the host, "when asses joke it surely rains."
Then he went up to the _guzlar_, and begged him to give them a song.
"Let it be something lively and merry," said he, "something they can
all join in."
The bard thereupon scraped his _guzla_, silence was re-established,
and he began to sing the following _zdravica_:
"Wine that bubbles says to man:
Drink, oh! drink me when you can;
For I never pass away,
You albeit last but a day;
I am therefore made for you,
And I love men brave and true;
Then remember, I am thine;
Drink, oh! drink the flowing wine!"
As not one of them cared to see the quarrel continue, and end,
perhaps, in bloodshed, they all began to sing the drinking-song; the
wine flowed, the glasses jingled together in a friendly way, and, for
the nonce, peace prevailed.
Just then, Milenko--unperceived by everybody except the landlord
--happened to come in, and the host, taking him aside, said to him:
"Markovic Milenko, tell your friend, Uros, not to be seen fooling
about with Milena, for people have long tongues, and will talk; and,
above all, do not let him be found lurking near Radonic's house
to-night, for it might cost him his life."
"What! has anybody been slandering him?"
"Slandering is not the word; enough, tell him that Radonic Marko is
not a man to be trifled with."
Milenko thanked the innkeeper, and, fearing lest his friend might be
getting into mischief, went at once in search of him.
As Radonic was about to begin the discussion again, the host stopped
him.
"You had better wait for an explanation till to-morrow, for when our
heads are fuddled we, like old Marija, do not see the things exactly
as they are.
"What old Marija?" asked one of the men.
"Don't you know the story of old Marija? Why, I thought everyone knew
it."
"No; let's hear it."
Well, Marija was an old tippler, who was never known to be in her
senses.
One morning she rose early, and, as usual, went into the wood to
gather a bundle of sticks. Presently she was seen running back as if
Old Nick was at her heels. Panting, and scared out of her wits, she
dropped on a bench outside the inn. As soon as she could speak, she
begged for a little glass of brandy.
The people crowded around her and asked her what had happened.
"No sooner had I left the roadside and got into the wood," she said,
"I bent down to gather some sticks, when, lo and behold! fifty wild
cats, as big as bears, with bristling hair, glaring eyes and sharp
claws, suddenly jumped out from behind the bushes. Holy Virgin! what
a fright I got, and see how scratched and torn I was by those
brutes."
"Come, come, Marija," said the innkeeper; "you must have seen
double--you know you often do. How many cats were there?"
"Well, I don't say there were exactly fifty, for I didn't count them;
but as true as God is in heaven there were twenty-five."
"Don't exaggerate, Marija--don't exaggerate; there are not
twenty-five cats in the whole village."
"Well, if there were not twenty-five, may the devil take me; surely
there were fifteen?"
"Pooh! Marija, have another little drop, just to get over your
fright, and then you'll confess that there were not fifteen."
Marija drained down another glass, and said:
"May a thunderbolt strike me dead this very moment but five wild cats
pounced upon me all at once."
"Come, Marija, now that you are in your senses, don't exaggerate.
Tell us how many wild cats there were."
"Well, I'll take my oath that, as I bent down, a ray of sunlight was
pouring through the branches, and I saw something tremendously big
moving through the bushes; perhaps it was a cat."
"Or a hare, running away," said the innkeeper.
"Perhaps it was, for in my fright I instantly ran away too."
The men, whom wine rendered merry, laughed heartily, and the
innkeeper added:
"You see, we are all of us, at times, like old Marija."
As they were about to part, Radonic asked the man who had told him
not to spit in the wind what he and all the others had meant by their
innuendoes.
"Oh, nothing at all! were you not joking yourself?"
Still, by dint of much pressing, he got this man to tell him that
Uros Bellacic, Milos' son, had been seen flirting with Milena. "Of
course, this Uros is only a boy; still," added he, "Milena herself is
young, very young, and you--now, it is no use mincing the matter
--well, you are old, and therefore I, as a friend, advise you to be
more careful how you talk about other men's wives, for, some day or
other, you might find the laughers are against you."
Thereupon the two men parted.
Radonic now, for the first time in his life, understood what jealousy
was. He felt, in fact, that he had touched hell, and that he had got
burnt. Alas! his countrymen were right in thinking that Gehenna could
not be worse.
As he walked on, the darkness of the night and his loneliness
increased the bitterness of his thoughts. He that hitherto had felt a
pleasure in disparaging every woman, was getting to be the
laughing-stock of the town, the butt of every man's jokes.
Meanwhile, Milenko had gone in quest of his friend, his mind full of
gloomy forebodings. Passing by Radonic's cottage, he stopped and
looked round. The night was dark, and everything had a weird and
ghastly look. The leaves shivered and lisped ominously. Was it a bat
that flitted by him?
Straining his eyes, he thought he saw something darker than the night
itself move near one of the windows of the house, then crouch down
and disappear. Had his senses got so keen that he had seen that
shadow, or was it only a vision of his over-heated imagination?
He walked a few steps onward; then he stopped, and began to whistle
in a low, peculiar way. Their fathers had been wont to call each
other like that; and the two young men had sworn to each other that
whatever happened to them in their lifetime they would always obey
the call of that whistle. All dangers were to be overcome, all feuds
to be forgotten at that sound. They had sworn it on the image of St.
George.
Milenko knew that if his friend was thereabouts he would not tarry a
single moment to come to him. In fact, a moment afterwards Uros was
at his side.
Milenko explained his errand in as few words as possible.
"Thank you," said Uros. "I'll go and tell Milena what has happened,
so that she may be on her guard."
"But Radonic might be here at any moment."
"I'll be back in a twinkling."
"Anyhow, if you hear my whistle sneak off at once, and run for your
life."
"All right."
Uros disappeared; Milenko remained leaning against the bole of a
tree. He could hardly be seen at the distance of some steps. Snatches
of songs were now heard from afar; it was the drinking-song Vuk had
been singing. The drunkards were returning home. Soon after this he
heard the noise of steps coming on the road. Keeping a sharp
look-out, his keen eyes recognised Radonic's stalwart though clumsy
frame. He at once whistled to his friend, first in a low tone, then
louder and louder, as he came out from his hiding-place and walked on
to meet the enraged husband, and stop him on his way. Uros in the
meanwhile took to his heels.
"_Dobro vetchir_, Radonic Marko," said Milenko to him. "How are you?"
"And who are you, so glib with your tongue?" answered Radonic, in a
surly tone.
"What, do you not know the children of the place?"
"Children, nowadays, spring up like poisonous mushrooms after a wet
night. How is one to know them?"
"Well, I am Milenko Markovic, Janko's son."
"Ah, I thought so," replied Radonic fiercely, clasping the haft of
his knife. "Then what business have you to come prowling about my
house, making me the laughing-stock of the whole place. But you'll
not do so long."
Suiting the action to the words, he lifted up his knife and made a
rush at the young man.
Though Milenko was on his guard, and though the hand of the
half-drunken man was not quite steady, still it was firm and swift
enough in its movements for mischief's sake; and so he not only
wounded the young man slightly on his arm, but, the knife being
very sharp, it cut through all his clothes and scratched him, enough
to make him bleed, somewhere about the left breast. Had the blade but
gone an inch or two deeper, death most likely would have been
instantaneous.
Milenko, quick as lightning, darted unexpectedly upon Radonic,
grasped the knife from his hand, knocked him down, and, after a
little scuffle, held him fast. Although Marko was a powerfully-built
man, still he was heavy and clumsy, slow and awkward in his
movements; and now, half-drunk as he was, it seemed as if his huge
body was no match for this lithe and nimble youth.
When at last Radonic was fully overpowered, "Look here," said
Milenko, "you fully deserve to have this blade thrust into your
heart, for it almost went into mine. Now, tell me, what have I done
that you should come against me in this murderous way? You say that I
have been prowling about your house; but are you quite sure? And even
if I had, is it a reason to take away my life? Are you a beast or a
man?"
"Well, when you have done preaching, either let me go or kill me; but
stop talking," said Radonic, sullenly.
"I'll leave you as soon as I have done. First you must know that I
have hardly ever spoken to your wife. May God strike me blind if I
have! As for prowling about your house--well, half-an-hour ago I was
at the inn."
"You were at the inn?" asked Radonic, incredulously.
"Yes; you were all singing a _zdravica_."
"I was singing?"
"No; at least, I think not. You were, if I remember rightly, talking
with Livic. I only looked in. Uros Bellacic, another poisonous
mushroom, was with me."
Just then it came to Radonic's head that this Uros, the son of Milos,
was the young man who had been flirting with his wife.
"So your friend Uros was with you?"
"Of course he was, and from there I accompanied him to his house,
where I left him. Now, I was going home, and the nearest way was by
your house. Had I, instead, been making love to your wife, I should
not have come up to you in a friendly way, as I did. I should have
hidden behind some tree, or skulked away out of sight. Anyhow, your
wife is young and pretty; it is but right you should be jealous."
Milenko thereupon stretched out his hand to help the prostrate man to
rise.
The bully, thoroughly ashamed of himself, got up moodily enough,
ruminating over all the young man had said, understanding, however,
that he had been too rash, and had thus bungled the whole affair. He
made up his mind, however, to keep a sharp look-out.
"And now," continued Milenko, chuckling inwardly over his long-winded
speeches, made only to give his friend full time to be off, "as your
wife is perhaps in bed, let me come in and bandage up my arm, which is
bleeding; it is useless for me to go home and waken up my father and
mother, or frighten them for such a trifle. I might, it is true, go
to Uros, but it is not worth while making an ado for a scratch like
this, and have the whole town gossiping about your wife, for who will
believe that the whole affair is as absurd as it really is?"
Radonic now felt sure that he had made a mistake, for, if this youth
had been trying to make love to Milena, he would not have asked to be
brought unexpectedly before the woman whose house he had just left.
"Very well," replied he, gruffly, "come along."
Having reached the cottage, he opened the door noiselessly, stepped
in as lightly as he could, and beckoned to Milenko to follow him.
Utter darkness reigned within the house. Radonic took out his flint
and struck a light. He was glad to see that his wife was not only in
bed, but fast asleep.
He helped the young man to take off his clothes, all stained with
blood; then he carefully washed his wounds, dressed them with some
aromatic plants whose healing virtues were well known. After this he
poured out a bumper of wine and pledged Milenko's health, as a sign
of perfect reconciliation, saying:
"I have shed your innocent blood; mine henceforth is at your
disposal."
With these words he took leave of him.
Though it was late, Milenko, far from returning home, hastened to his
friend to tell him what had happened, and put him on his guard from
attempting to see Milena again.
His advice, though good, was, however, superfluous, for Milena, far
from being asleep, had heard all that had taken place, and, as her
husband kept a strict watch over her, she remained indoors for several
days.
When the incident came to the ears of either parent--though they
never knew exactly the rights of the whole affair, and they only
thought that it was one of Radonic's mad freaks of jealousy--both
Bellacic and Markovic thought it better to send their sons to sea as
soon as possible.
"Having sown their wild oats," said Milos, "they can come back home
and settle into the humdrum ways of married life."
"Besides," quoth Janko, "in big waters are big fish caught. The
shipping trade is very prosperous just now; freights are high; so
after some years of a seafaring life they may put aside a good round
sum."
"Well," replied Milos, "the best thing would be to set them up in
life; let us buy for them a share of some brig, and they, with their
earnings, may in a few years buy up the whole ship and trade for
themselves."
The vintage--very plentiful that year--was now over; the olive-trees,
which had been well whipped on St. Paul's Day, had yielded an
unexpected crop, so that the land, to use the Biblical pithy
expression, was overflowing, if not with milk and honey, at least
with wine and oil. The earth, having given forth its last fruits, was
now resting from its labours, but the young men, though they had
nothing more to do on shore, still lingered at Budua, no share of any
decent vessel having been found for them.
At last the captain of a brigantine, a certain Giuliani, wishing to
retire from business in some years, agreed to take them on a trial
trip with him, and then, if he liked them and saw that they could
manage the vessel by themselves, to sell them half of his ship
afterwards.
All the terms of the contract having been settled, it was agreed that
the two young men should sail in about a fortnight's time, when the
cargo had all been taken on board.
Before starting, however, these youths, who loved each other
tenderly, made up their minds to become kith-and-kin to each other
--that is to say, brothers by adoption, or _pobratim_.
As St. Nicholas--the patron saint of the opposite town of Bari, on
the Italian shores of the Adriatic--is one of the most revered saints
of the Slavs and the protector of sailors, his feast, which was
celebrated just a week before their departure, was chosen for the day
of this august ceremony.
On the morning of that memorable day, the two young men, dressed, not
in their simple sailor-like attire, but in the gorgeous and
picturesque Buduan costume--one of the most manly and elegant dresses
as yet devised by human fancy--with damaskened silver-gilt pistols
and daggers to match, the hafts of which were all studded with round
bits of coral, dark chalcedonies and blood-red carnelians. These had
been the weapons of their great-grandfathers, and they showed by
their costliness that they were no mean upstarts, dating only from
yesterday, but of a good old stock of warriors.
Thus decked out, and not in borrowed plumes, they wended their way to
the cathedral, where a special Mass was to be said for them. Each of
them was accompanied by a kind of sponsor or best man, and followed
by all their relations, as well as by a number of friends.
Having entered the crowded church--for such a ceremony is not often
seen--Uros and Milenko went straight to the High Altar, and, bending
down on one knee, they crossed themselves with much devotion. Then,
taking off all their weapons, they laid them down on their right-hand
side, and lighted their huge tapers. The best men, who stood
immediately behind, and the relations, lit their wax candles, just as
if it had been the ritualistic pomp of marriage; thereupon they all
knelt down till the priest had finished chanting the liturgy, and,
after offering up the Holy Sacrament, Mass came to an end. This part
of the service being over, the priest came up to them, saying:
"Why and wherefore come ye here?"
"We wish to become brothers."
"And why do you wish to become brothers?"
"Out of love," quoth Uros, who was the elder of the two by a few
months.
"But do you know, my children, what you really ask; have you
considered that this bond is a life-long one, and that, formed here
within the House of God, it can never be broken. Are you prepared to
swear that, in whatever circumstance of life you may be placed, the
friendship that binds you to-day will never be rent asunder?"
"We are."
"Can you take your oath to love and help each other as brothers
should, the whole of your lifetime?"
"We can."
"Well, then, swear before God and man to love each other with real
brotherly affection; swear never to be at variance, never to forsake
each other."
The oath was solemnly taken. After this the priest administered them
the Communion--though no more mixed up with a drop of their own
blood; he gave them the pax to kiss, whilst the thurible-bearers were
swinging their huge silver censers, which sent forth a cloudlet of
fragrant smoke. The two friends were almost hid from the view of the
gazing crowd, for, the _pobratim_ being rich, neither frankincense
nor myrrh had been spared. Then the priest, in his richest stole,
placed both his hands above their heads, and uttered a lengthy prayer
to God to bless them.
The ceremony having come to an end, the _pobratim_ rose and kissed
each other repeatedly. They were then embraced by their sponsors and
relations, and congratulated by their friends. As they reached the
church door, they were greeted by the shouts of "_Zivio!_" from all
their friends, who, in sign of joy, fired off their pistols. They
replied to their courtesy in the same fashion, and so the din that
ensued was deafening.
Holding hands, they crossed the crowd, that parted to let them pass.
Thus they both bent their steps towards Markovic's house, for, as he
lived nearer the church than Bellacic did, he was the giver of the
first feast in honour of the _pobratim_.
Upon entering the house, the young men kissed each other again; then
forthwith Uros kissed Janko Markovic, calling him father, whilst
Milenko greeted Uros' parents in the same way.
Afterwards presents were exchanged by the _pobratim_, then each
member of either family had some gift in store for their
newly-acquired kinsman, so that before the day was over they had
quite a little store of pipes and gold-embroidered tobacco pouches.
Dinner being now ready, they all sat down to a copious, if not a very
dainty meal; and the priest, who just before had asked a blessing
upon the friends, was the most honoured of all the guests.
They ate heartily, and many toasts were drunk in honour of the two
young men, and those that could made speeches in rhyme to them.
The feast was interrupted by the _Kolo_--a young man performing
sundry evolutions with a decanter of wine upon his head, looking all
the while as clumsy as Heine's famous bear, Atta Troll.
Then they began again to eat and drink, and filled themselves up in
such a way that they could hardly move from the table any more, so
that by the time St. Nicholas' Day came to an end, the hosts and
almost all the guests were snoring in happy oblivion.