The least perceptible gleam of gray light was shining in the eastern
sky; the stars were twinkling clear and large, with hardly diminished
brightness, when, from the door of a house, in the midst of wild woods
and beautiful savannas, came forth two men, and took their way across
a patch of half-cultivated land before the door. The dwelling itself
was an odd-looking construction, but not altogether unpleasant to the
eye. The principal building was a long range on the ground floor,
constructed of masses of very white stone, neatly hewn and joined
together, while above, what seemed a single room, with two windows
unglazed, towered above the rest, with a flat roof. All the way along
the front ran a little balcony, supported by rough trunks of trees,
and decorated with the wild vine; while, along the edges of the walks,
which had been carefully laid out through the cultivated patch I have
spoken of, were little trellises of lath and twig, partially covered
with an immense variety of climbing plants. The whole had an air of
comfort, and neatness, and security, as it were, which spread, like an
emanation of the social spirit, into the scene around, and took from
it that appearance of desolation which Dudley felt so much in his own
wilder, though more beautiful, habitation.
For about five miles Norries walked on by the side of his guest of the
preceding night; and then they came to the edge of a low melancholy
lake, in the midst of the thickest part of the scrub, as the low woods
are called, in which the dark blue hues of a heavy dawning sky were
reflected, varied with lines of light, as the rising sun caught upon
the edges of the dull clouds. Three large snowy white birds were
hovering over the surface of the gloomy waters; and through a break in
the woods beyond, a dull orange hue marked the horizon where the day
was appearing.
The canoe was found where they had left it on the preceding evening;
and as they got into the frail bark, Norries remarked, "It will save
you fifteen miles of heavy march, for the tarn is very narrow here;
but on foot you would have to take the whole way round, which makes
the distance well nigh sixty miles, to the foot of Mount Gambier from
my house, I have never been there myself, but so the scoundrel Brady
told me."
"Not so far, I think," replied Dudley; "but I trust, Mr. Norries, you
will come up to my lonely dwelling ere long; for sad and desolate as a
residence there was before, it will be even more so now. My own fate
was a dark shadow, but I still had confidence in human nature. I
thought it capable of crimes, undoubtedly, committed under strong
temptation or sudden passions; but the black page in man's character
which you have opened to me, has made me feel sadder than ever. It is
another confidence gone, Mr. Norries, and that is always painful."
"We grow grave as we grow old," answered Norries, paddling his canoe
with no mean skill, "because we lose the delusions which fill youth
with smiles; but do we not grow wiser too, sir? Nevertheless, do not
let the discovery of some things in the world, which you did not know,
induce you to judge too harshly because you had before judged too
leniently. It is in the just appreciation of men and things that lies
the wisdom which gives no merriment but much tranquillity. I have
learned some hard lessons lately, Mr. Dudley as well as yourself; but
they have not made me misanthropical. I have found that there are
worse men in the world, feebler men in the world--deeper crime, and
deeper folly, than I thought; but at the same time, I have found
devotion more high and pure, honesty more incorruptible, and wisdom in
simplicity, more beautiful than even my enthusiasm had ever figured.
It is as wrong to undervalue as to overvalue men, to hope too little
from them as to expect too much; but, for you, brighter days
undoubtedly will come, and with them hopes and enthusiasms, which
revive, like flowers refreshed by dew, as soon as the sun of success
arises. I am too old for such things, but I hope I have found peace."
"I trust that it may be so in your case," replied Dudley, "but I will
indulge no hopes in my own. They have branded me with the name of
felon; can they ever wipe out that stain? They have severed ties which
can hardly be knit again. Even now, I know not the extent of the evil;
and from my experience of life, I am inclined to believe that human
hope, even in despair, so much outstrips probability, that when ills
of any kind are to be suffered and endured, they are sure to be much
greater than foresight reckoned upon."
"It is a heavy view of life, indeed," answered Norries; "but yet I
hope you will find yourself mistaken. No one can tell, however; and as
I have been deluded myself by others, I will take no share in
deluding."
At this point the conversation dropped for the time, and was not
resumed again till they were nearing that shore of the lake which was
next to Mount Gambier. There Norries left his guest upon the bank,
adding a few more cautions and instructions in regard to the
productions, climate, and inhabitants of New Holland; and wishing him
heartily good bye, turned his canoe, and rowed, or paddled, towards
the other side of the lake.
Dudley walked on, with his gun under his arm, while the glorious light
of the rising sun spread broad over the whole scene. The morning air
was fresh, and he felt invigorated by repose and society; but still
his mind was sadly depressed, and his eyes were more frequently bent
upon the ground than raised to the woody scene around him, or to the
glorious sky above. At length, however, about four hours before noon,
he paused for a moment in the midst of a wide savannah, surrounded on
every side by magnificent trees, to gaze at the park-like appearance
of the landscape, which had reminded him strongly, as had been the
case with Brady, of some of the most beautiful parts of his native
land. The memories that it called up were sweet, but a well of
bitterness sprang up in the past, turning the whole cup of life to
gall.
As he looked around, with a slow and contemplative gaze, he fancied he
saw a dim, shadowy figure creeping quietly along amidst the tall bolls
of the trees on the edge of the wide meadow. If his eyes did not
deceive him, it was the form of a tall man, stealing through the
second or third row of cedars, which were there very thick; but though
he watched intently, he could not catch another glance of it, and he
could only guess that it was one of the natives, who, on seeing a
white man, had plunged into the deeper parts of the scrub, or had
hidden himself behind some tree or bush. He knew that the aborigines
were fierce and cunning, especially the Milmendura, who were said to
frequent that neighbourhood; but he was well armed, and did not feel
much apprehension, for he had heard that the greater part of the tribe
were down at the Coorong, a great salt inlet of the sea, many miles
distant, or at the lakes in the same neighbourhood. With one or two,
he thought, if he should meet them, he could cope easily, at least on
open ground; and he consequently walked on without any appearance of
suspicion, though he kept his eyes upon the scrub, as if looking for
game. The cedars were succeeded by a large patch of tall stringy bark
trees, having no brushwood beneath them, and there he twice more
caught a sight of the dim figure, flitting along, almost step by step,
as he advanced, and then sheltering itself behind one of the large
trunks. He had now no doubt that it was that of a man watching him,
which certainly was not altogether pleasant, especially as the dark
colour of the native's skin so much resembled, in the shade, the
objects amongst which he was moving, that it was with very great
difficulty he was distinguished at all.
When Dudley arrived at the spot where the savannah ended, he chose a
passage through a more open part of the belt of woodland which
separated it from a still larger extent of grazing ground, and kept a
keen watch upon his right, that he might not be attacked unprepared.
He saw nothing, and heard nothing, however, for five or six hundred
yards, till he was just issuing forth again into the meadows beyond,
and had his eye upon the top of Mount Gambier, seen over the wavy
outline of the scrub; but then a cry was heard, more like the sudden
yelp of a dog when hurt, than any sound produced by a human throat,
and something came whizzing through the trees towards him. The natural
impulse was to jump aside at once; but before he could do it, a long
and apparently heavy spear descended within two yards of him, burying
its sharp point deep in the ground, and quivering as it stood nearly
erect, like a young tree newly planted.
Dudley instantly cocked both barrels of his gun, and looked towards
the spot whence the missile came. But nothing was to be seen but the
trunks of the trees, with here and there a little patch of underwood.
No moving thing was within sight, but the branches gently agitated by
the fresh morning air. Pulling the spear out of the ground, the
wanderer carried it away with him as well as his gun, and walking
quickly on, got as fast as possible into the open ground again, which
now lay before him, unbroken for an extent of nearly three miles. A
wood of tall trees was prolonged upon his right; and on his left was a
piece of uneven bushy land, between the meadow and a sterile tract
stretching to the sea-shore; but between the two covers, the space of
open meadow ground, with nothing but a solitary tree starting up here
and there, varied in breadth from a mile to a mile and a half, so
that, by keeping a middle course, he was out of reach of spear or
arrow sent from beneath the trees. He walked on, then, quietly looking
around him, indeed, from time to time, but displaying no sign of fear
or haste; and more than once he thought he caught sight of a native in
the wood, who did not venture to come out into the open meadow.
By the time he had walked to within five or six hundred yards of the
end of the savannah, the sun had gained great power, and the length of
the shadows had diminished considerably. Before him lay some miles of
country, neither exactly wood nor exactly pasture, but undulating, and
broken with a number of scattered trees, and large clumps of mimosas
and cedars, together with thickets of various kinds of shrubs, and
juniper bushes, rising to an unusual height. That there was one enemy
at least near, Dudley had already proof sufficient; and the tract
through which he had to pass before he could reach his mountain
dwelling-place was undoubtedly well fitted for the attack of a subtle
assailant. There were a thousand places, as he well knew--for he was
now entering a country which he had frequently explored--whence a
concealed enemy might hurl one of the tremendous spears of the
country, without exposing himself, even in the least degree. After
short consideration, Dudley resolved to seek a resting-place at a
little rising knoll in the savannah, shaded by two or three mimosas,
and at the distance of fully three hundred yards from the wood, hoping
that, if the savage who had been watching him were alone, he would get
tired of waiting for an opportunity, and leave him to pursue his
journey without farther molestation. He seated himself, then, laying
down his gun and the spear beside him, but not removing the axe from
his belt, as it was there readier to his hand; and, taking some
provisions from his wallet, he began his frugal meal, still keeping a
wary eye upon the country round. He had just finished the portion of
food which he allowed himself, and had drunk half the water contained
in his gourd, when he thought he perceived a curious undulatory
movement in the long dry grass at no great distance. The wind had
fallen away, so that it could not be produced by that cause; and he
felt sure that a snake, let its size be what it might, would have
crept on its way without such evident signs of its progress. Turning
his eye a little to the left, he saw the long grass agitated in a
similar manner; and starting up at once, he cocked his gun again, and
pointed it at one of the spots where the motion was apparent. The act
of rising gave him a better view; and he now distinctly saw several
dark objects moving towards him, whenever the grass was thrown aside a
little as they advanced. He hesitated an instant, unwilling to
sacrifice human life; but knowing that his own must depend upon
decision--for both the spear which had been hurled at him, and the
insidious method of approach now adopted, showed that, if they were
men who were creeping up, they must be enemies--he took his
resolution, and, aiming well, fired at the object which had first
caught his eye.
In an instant, with a wild yell, rose up six or seven tall and
frightful savages, with long curly hair, bedaubed with grease and
ochre. One, the moment he had reached his feet, fell back again amidst
the grass; but the others, poising their spears lightly for an
instant, discharged them all at once at Dudley with an aim fearfully
accurate. The exceedingly brief pause they had made, however, to
direct their missiles, gave him time enough to jump behind the nearest
mimosa. Three spears passed on one side, one on the other, and two
struck the tree, and tore off a large portion of the bark. The
wanderer had but short time for consideration; for after having cast
their spears, the savages rushed on with clubs, and other weapons of
their own construction, shouting and screaming wildly. Snatching up
the spear, of which he had possessed himself, Dudley set his back
against the tree, aiming the second barrel of his gun at a tall,
powerful man, who was the foremost, and seemed to be the commander of
the party. His situation was desperate, indeed, but he determined to
sell his life dearly. His gun made him certain of one of the enemy;
and he calculated that, what between the spear he held and his
hatchet, he might bring down two more; but three still uninjured would
remain, even when this was accomplished; and, unable to throw the
javelin with their force and precision, as soon as his gun was
discharged, each savage had an advantage over him, which must in the
end overpower resistance. The leader of the natives, however, seeing
the barrel of the fowling-piece directed towards himself, and probably
fully aware of its fatal effects, both from what he had seen that day,
and previous knowledge, halted suddenly, and then spoke a few words to
his companions in their own tongue. The effect was instantaneous; the
men separated at once, and running round the clump of trees, with the
second spear which each carried, poised in their hands, prepared once
more to attack from a distance, and from every quarter, so that some
one weapon was sure to take effect.
Seeing that he must die, Dudley, still aiming at the chief, was
dropping his finger on the trigger, when, to his surprise, the man
fell back upon the ground with a loud shriek; and Dudley might have
been tempted to imagine that it was a feint to prevent him from
firing, had he not at the same instant heard the sharp report of a
gun, succeeded instantly by another, while, at the same moment, a
second of the savages sprang high up into the air, dropping his lance
with a fearful yell. A loud cheer from the side of the low bushes
followed instantly; and the assailants, finding themselves assailed by
arms and numbers superior to their own, fled as fast as they could go,
one of them throwing his spear in haste at Dudley before he went, but
only grazing his shoulder slightly, in consequence of a hurried and
ill-directed aim.
Thanking God for his preservation, Dudley turned towards the spot from
whence the cheer he had heard proceeded, and beheld a party of five or
six men advancing from the scrub. One was on foot, but all the rest
were mounted; and Dudley, to his surprise, recognised in the
pedestrian the vigorous form of Norries, whom he had thought full
twenty miles away. The young wanderer advanced at once from under the
mimosas to meet his deliverers; but as he came nearer, the aspect of
one of the horsemen seemed familiar to his sight. Associations sweet
and happy rose up, which he had not suffered to visit him for years.
Hopes undefined and vague, but bright and glorious, swam before his
eyes, and with a beating heart and giddy brain, Dudley stopped unable
to take another step in advance.