

                             James Fenimore Cooper

                                The Pioneers or

                         The Sources of the Susquehanna

                               A Descriptive Tale

 »Extremes of habits, manners, time and space,
 Brought close together, here stood face to face,
 And gave at once a contrast to the view,
 That other lands and ages never knew.«
                                          Paulding, The Backwoodsman, II, 571-4.
 
                                       To
                               Jacob Sutherland,
                            of Blenheim, Schoharie,
                                    Esquire.
 
The length of our friendship would be a sufficient reason for prefixing your
name to these pages; but your residence so near the scene of the tale, and your
familiarity with much of the character and kind of life that I have attempted to
describe, render it more peculiarly proper. You, at least, dear Sutherland, will
not receive this dedication as a cold compliment, but as an evidence of the
feeling that makes me,
War mly and truly,
Your friend,
-- --.
 

                                    Preface

                       To Mr. Charles Wiley, Bookseller.
 
Every man is, more or less, the sport of accident; nor do I know that authors
are at all exempted from this humiliating influence. This is the third of my
novels, and it depends on two very uncertain contingencies, whether it will not
be the last; - the one being the public opinion, and the other mine own humour.
The first book was written, because I was told that I could not write a grave
tale; so, to prove that the world did not know me, I wrote one that was so grave
nobody would read it; wherein I think that I had much the best of the argument.
The second was written to see if I could not overcome this neglect of the
reading world. How far I have succeeded, Mr. Charles Wiley, must ever remain a
secret between ourselves. The third has been written, exclusively, to please
myself; so it would be no wonder if it displeased every body else; for what two
ever thought alike, on a subject of the imagination!
    I should think criticism to be the perfection of human acquirements, did
there not exist this discrepancy in taste. Just as I have made up my mind to
adopt the very sagacious hints of one learned Reviewer, a pamphlet is put into
my hands, containing the remarks of another, who condemns all that his rival
praises, and praises all that his rival condemns. There I am, left like an ass
between two locks of hay; so that I have determined to relinquish my animate
nature, and remain stationary, like a lock of hay between two asses.
    It is now a long time, say the wise ones, since the world has been told all
that is new and novel. But the Reviewers (the cunning wights!) have adopted an
ingenious expedient, to give a freshness to the most trite idea. They clothe it
in a language so obscure and metaphysical, that the reader is not about to
comprehend their pages without some labour. This is called a great range of
thought; and not improperly, as I can testify; for, in my own case, I have
frequently ranged the universe of ideas, and come back again in as perfect
ignorance of their meaning as when I set out. It is delightful, to see the
literati of a circulating library get hold of one of these difficult periods!
Their praise of the performance is exactly commensurate with its obscurity.
Every body knows that to seem wise is the first requisite in a great man.
    A common word in the mouths of all Reviewers, readers of magazines, and
young ladies, when speaking of novels, is keeping; and yet there are but few who
attach the same meaning to it. I belong, myself, to the old school, in this
particular, and think that it applies more to the subject in hand, than to any
use of terms, or of cant expressions. As a man might just as well be out of the
world as out of keeping, I have endeavoured to confine myself, in this tale,
strictly to its observance. This is a formidable curb to the imagination, as,
doubtless, the reader will very soon discover; but under its influence I have
come to the conclusion, that the writer of a tale, who takes the earth for the
scene of his story, is in some degree bound to respect human nature. Therefore I
would advise any one, who may take up this book, with the expectation of meeting
gods and goddesses, spooks or witches, or of feeling that strong excitement that
is produced by battles and murders, to throw it aside at once, for no such
interest will be found in any of its pages.
    I have already said, that it was mine own humour that suggested this tale;
but it is a humour that is deeply connected with feeling. Happier periods, more
interesting events, and, possibly, more beautiful scenes, might have been
selected, to exemplify my subject; but none of either that would be so dear to
me. I wish, therefore, to be judged more by what I have done, than by my sins of
omission. I have introduced one battle, but it is not of the most Homeric kind.
As for murders, the population of a new country will not admit of such a waste
of human life. There might possibly have been one or two hangings, to the
manifest advantage of the settlement; but then it would have been out of keeping
with the humane laws of this compassionate country.
    The Pioneers is now before the world, Mr. Wiley, and I shall look to you for
the only true account of its reception. The critics may write as obscurely as
they please, and look much wiser than they are; the papers may puff or abuse, as
their changeful humours dictate; but if you meet me with a smiling face, I shall
at once know that all is essentially well.
    If you should ever have occasion for a preface, I beg you will let me hear
from you, in reply.
    Yours, truly,
    
                                                                     The Author.
New-York, January 1st, 1823.
 

                                  Introduction

As this work professes, in its title page, to be a descriptive tale, they who
will take the trouble to read it, may be glad to know how much of its contents
is literal fact, and how much is intended to represent a general picture. The
author is very sensible, that had he confined himself to the latter, always the
most effective, as it is the most valuable mode of conveying knowledge of this
nature, he would have made a far better book. But, in commencing to describe
scenes, and perhaps he may add characters, that were so familiar to his own
youth, there was a constant temptation to delineate that which he had known
rather than that which he might have imagined. This rigid adhesion to truth, an
indispensable requisite in history and travels, destroys the charm of fiction,
for all that is necessary to be conveyed to the mind by the latter had better be
done by delineations of principles and of characters in their classes, than by a
too fastidious attention to originals.
    New-York having but one county of Otsego, and the Susquehannah but one
proper source, there can be no mistake as to the site of the Tale. The history
of this district of Country, so far as it is connected with civilized man, is
soon told.
    Otsego, in common with most of the interior of the Province of New-York, was
included in the county of Albany, previously to the war of the separation. It
then became, in a subsequent division of territory, a part of Montgomery; and,
finally, having obtained a sufficient population of its own, it was set apart as
a county by itself, shortly after the peace of 1783. It lies among those low
spurs of the Alleganies which cover the midland counties of New-York, and it is
a little east of a meridional line drawn through the centre of the state. As the
waters of New-York either flow southerly into the Atlantic, or northerly into
Ontario and its outlet, Otsego Lake, being the source of the Susquehannah, is,
of necessity, among its highest lands. The face of the country, the climate as
it was found by the whites, and the manners of the settlers, are described with
a minuteness for which the author has no other apology than the force of his own
recollections.
    Otsego is said to be a word compounded of Ot, a place of meeting, and Sego,
or Sago, the ordinary term of salutation, used by the Indians of this region.
There is a tradition which says, that the neighbouring tribes were accustomed to
meet on the banks of the lake, to make their treaties, and otherwise to
strengthen their alliances, and which refers the name to this practice. As the
Indian Agent of New-York had a log dwelling at the foot of the lake, however, it
is not impossible that the appellation grew out of the meetings that were held
at his Council Fires. The war drove off the agent, in common with the other
officers of the crown, and his rude dwelling was soon abandoned. The author
remembers it, a few years later, reduced to the humble office of a smoke-house.
    In 1779, an expedition was sent against the hostile Indians who dwelt, about
a hundred miles west of Otsego, on the banks of the Cayuga. The whole country
was then a wilderness, and it was necessary to transport the baggage of the
troops, by means of the rivers, a devious but practicable route. One brigade
ascended the Mohawk, until it reached the point nearest to the sources of the
Susquehannah, whence it cut a lane through the forest to the head of the Otsego.
The boats and baggage were carried over this portage, and the troops proceeded
to the other extremity of the lake, where they disembarked and encamped. The
Susquehannah, a narrow though rapid stream at its source, was much filled with
flood wood, or fallen trees, and the troops adopted a novel expedient to
facilitate their passage. The Otsego is about nine miles in length, varying in
breadth, from half a mile to a mile and a half. The water is of great depth,
limpid, and supplied from a thousand springs. At its foot, the banks are rather
less than thirty feet high, the remainder of its margin being in mountains,
intervals, and points. The outlet, or the Susquehannah, flows through a gorge,
in the low banks just mentioned, which may have a width of two hundred feet.
This gorge was dammed, and the waters of the lake collected. The Susquehannah
was converted into a rill. When all was ready, the troops embarked, the dam was
knocked away, the Otsego poured out its torrent, and the boats went merrily down
with the current.
    Gen. James Clinton, the brother of George Clinton, then Governor of
New-York, and the father of De Witt Clinton, who died Governor of the same state
in 1827, commanded the brigade employed on this duty. During the stay of the
troops at the foot of the Otsego, a soldier was shot for desertion. The grave of
this unfortunate man was the first place of human interment that the author ever
beheld, as the smokehouse was the first ruin! The swivel, alluded to in this
work, was buried, and abandoned by the troops, on this occasion, and it was
subsequently found in digging the cellars of the author's paternal residence.
    Soon after the close of the war, Washington, accompanied by many
distinguished men, visited the scene of this tale, it is said with a view to
examine the facilities for opening a communication by water, with other points
of the Country. He staid but a few hours.
    In 1785, the author's father, who had an interest in extensive tracts of
land in this wilderness, arrived with a party of Surveyors. The manner in which
the scene met his eye is described by Judge Temple. At the commencement of the
following year, the settlement began, and from that time to this, the county has
continued to flourish. It is a singular feature in American life, that, at the
beginning of this century, when the proprietor of the estate, had occasion for
settlers, on a new settlement and in a remote county, he was enabled to draw
them from among the increase of the former colony.
    Although the settlement of this part of Otsego a little preceded the birth
of the author, it was not sufficiently advanced to render it desirable that an
event, so important to himself, should take place in the wilderness. Perhaps his
mother had a reasonable distrust of the practice of Dr. Todd, who must then have
been in the novitiate of his experimental acquirements. Be that as it may, the
author was brought an infant into this valley and all his first impressions were
here obtained. He has inhabited it, ever since, at intervals, and he thinks he
can answer for the faithfulness of the picture he has drawn.
    Otsego has now become one of the most populous districts of New-York. It
sends forth its emigrants like any other old region, and it is pregnant with
industry and enterprise. Its manufactures are prosperous, and, it is worthy of
remark, that one of the most ingenious machines known in European art, is
derived from the keen ingenuity which is exercised in this remote region.
    In order to prevent mistake, it may be well to say that the incidents of
this tale are purely a fiction. The literal facts are chiefly connected with the
natural and artificial objects, and the customs of the inhabitants. Thus the
Academy, and Court house, and gaol, and inn, and most similar things are
tolerably exact. They have all, long since, given place to other buildings of a
more pretending character. There is also some liberty taken with the truth in
the description of the principal dwelling: the real building had no firstly and
lastly. It was of bricks and not of stones, and its roof exhibited none of the
peculiar beauties of the composite order. It was erected in an age too primitive
for that ambitious school of architecture. But the author indulged his
recollections freely, when he had fairly entered the door. Here all is literal,
even to the severed arm of Wolfe and the urn which held the ashes of Queen Dido.
1
    The author has elsewhere said that the character of the Leather Stocking is
a creation, rendered probable by such auxiliaries as were necessary to produce
that effect. Had he drawn still more upon fancy, the lovers of fiction would not
have so much cause for their objections to his work. Still the picture would not
have been in the least true, without some substitutes for most of the other
personages. The great Proprietor resident on his lands, and giving his name to
instead of receiving it from his estates, as in Europe, is common over the whole
of New York. The physician, with his theory rather obtained than corrected by
experiments on the human constitution, the pious, self-denying, laborious, and
ill paid missionary, the half-educated, litigious, envious and disreputable
lawyer with his counterpoise, a brother of the profession of better origin and
of better character, the shiftless, bargaining, discontented seller of his
betterments, the plausible carpenter, and most of the others are more familiar
to all who have ever dwelt in a new Country.
    From circumstances, which, after this introduction, will be obvious to all,
the author has had more pleasure in writing The Pioneers, than the book will
probably ever give any of its readers. He is quite aware of its numerous faults,
some of which he has endeavoured to repair in this edition, but as he has, in
intention at least, done his full share in amusing the world, he trusts to its
good nature for overlooking this attempt to please himself.
 
Paris, March, 1832.
 

                                   Chapter I

 »See, Winter comes, to rule the varied year,
 Sullen and sad, with all his rising train;
 Vapours, and clouds, and storms -«
                                            Thomson, The Seasons, »Winter,« 1-3.
 
Near the centre of the State of New-York lies an extensive district of country,
whose surface is a succession of hills and dales, or, to speak with greater
deference to geographical definitions, of mountains and valleys. It is among
these hills that the Delaware takes its rise; and flowing from the limpid lakes
and thousand springs of this region, the numerous sources of the Susquehanna
meander through the valleys, until, uniting their streams, they form one of the
proudest rivers of the United States. The mountains are generally arable to the
tops, although instances are not wanting, where the sides are jutted with rocks,
that aid greatly in giving to the country that romantic and picturesque
character which it so eminently possesses. The vales are narrow, rich, and
cultivated; with a stream uniformly winding through each. Beautiful and thriving
villages are found interspersed along the margins of the small lakes, or
situated at those points of the streams which are favourable to manufacturing;
and neat and comfortable farms, with every indication of wealth about them, are
scattered profusely through the vales, and even to the mountain tops. Roads
diverge in every direction, from the even and graceful bottoms of the valleys,
to the most rugged and intricate passes of the hills. Academies, and minor
edifices of learning, meet the eye of the stranger, at every few miles, as he
winds his way through this uneven territory; and places for the worship of God,
abound with that frequency which characterises a moral and reflecting people,
and with that variety of exterior and canonical government which flows from
unfettered liberty of conscience. In short, the whole district is hourly
exhibiting how much can be done, in even a rugged country, and with a severe
climate, under the dominion of mild laws, and where every man feels a direct
interest in the prosperity of a commonwealth, of which he knows himself to form
a part. The expedients of the pioneers who first broke ground in the settlement
of this country, are succeeded by the permanent improvements of the yeoman, who
intends to leave his remains to moulder under the sod which he tills, or,
perhaps, of the son, who, born in the land, piously wishes to linger around the
grave of his father. - Only forty years2 have passed since this territory was a
wilderness.
    Very soon after the establishment of the independence of the States by the
peace of 1783, the enterprise of their citizens was directed to a development of
the natural advantages of their widely extended dominions. Before the war of the
revolution, the inhabited parts of the colony of New-York were limited to less
than a tenth of its possessions. A narrow belt of country, extending for a short
distance on either side of the Hudson, with a similar occupation of fifty miles
on the banks of the Mohawk, together with the islands of Nassau and Staten, and
a few insulated settlements on chosen land along the margins of streams,
composed the country, which was then inhabited by less than two hundred thousand
souls. Within the short period we have mentioned, the population has spread
itself over five degrees of latitude and seven of longitude, and has swelled to
a million and a half of inhabitants3, who are maintained in abundance, and can
look forward to ages before the evil day must arrive, when their possessions
shall become unequal to their wants.
    Our tale begins in 1793, about seven years after the commencement of one of
the earliest of those settlements, which have conduced to effect that magical
change in the power and condition of the state, to which we have alluded.
    It was near the setting of the sun, on a clear, cold day in December, when a
sleigh was moving slowly up one of the mountains in the district we have
described. The day had been fine for the season, and but two or three large
clouds, whose colour seemed brightened by the light reflected from the mass of
snow that covered the earth, floated in a sky of the purest blue. The road wound
along the brow of a precipice, and on one side was upheld by a foundation of
logs, piled one upon the other, while a narrow excavation in the mountain, in
the opposite direction, had made a passage of sufficient width for the ordinary
travelling of that day. But logs, excavation, and every thing that did not reach
several feet above the earth, lay alike buried beneath the snow. A single track,
barely wide enough to receive the sleigh4, denoted the route of the highway, and
this was sunk nearly two feet below the surrounding surface. In the vale, which
lay at a distance of several hundred feet lower, there was what in the language
of the country was called a clearing, and all the usual improvements of a new
settlement: these even extended up the hill to the point where the road turned
short and ran across the level land, which lay on the summit of the mountain;
but the summit itself remained in forest. There was a glittering in the
atmosphere, as if it were filled with innumerable shining particles, and the
noble bay horses that drew the sleigh were covered, in many parts, with a coat
of hoar frost. The vapour from their nostrils was seen to issue like smoke; and
every object in the view, as well as every arrangement of the travellers,
denoted the depth of a winter in the mountains. The harness, which was of a deep
dull black, differing from the glossy varnishing of the present day, was
ornamented with enormous plates and buckles of brass, that shone like gold in
those transient beams of the sun, which found their way obliquely through the
tops of the trees. Huge saddles, studded with nails, and fitted with cloths that
served as blankets to the shoulders of the animals, supported four high,
square-topped turrets, through which the stout reins led from the mouths of the
horses to the hands of the driver, who was a negro, of apparently twenty years
of age. His face, which nature had coloured with a glistening black, was now
mottled with the cold, and his large shining eyes filled with tears; a tribute
to its power, that the keen frosts of those regions always extracted from one of
his African origin. Still there was a smiling expression of good humour in his
happy countenance, that was created by the thoughts of home, and a Christmas
fire-side, with its Christmas frolics. The sleigh was one of those large,
comfortable, old-fashioned conveyances, which would admit a whole family within
its bosom, but which now contained only two passengers besides the driver. The
colour of its outside was of a modest green, and that of its inside a fiery red.
The latter was intended to convey the idea of heat in that cold climate. Large
buffalo skins, trimmed around the edges with red cloth, cut into festoons,
covered the back of the sleigh, and were spread over its bottom, and drawn up
around the feet of the travellers - one of whom was a man of middle age, and the
other a female, just entering upon womanhood. The former was of a large stature;
but the precautions he had taken to guard against the cold, left but little of
his person exposed to view. A great-coat, that was abundantly ornamented by a
profusion of furs, enveloped the whole of his figure, excepting the head, which
was covered with a cap of marten skins, lined with morocco, the sides of which
were made to fall, if necessary, and were now drawn close over the ears, and
fastened beneath his chin with a black ribbon. The top of the cap was surmounted
with the tail of the animal whose skin had furnished the rest of the materials,
which fell back, not ungracefully, a few inches behind the head. From beneath
this masque were to be seen part of a fine manly face, and particularly a pair
of expressive, large blue eyes, that promised extraordinary intellect, covert
humour, and great benevolence. The form of his companion was literally hid
beneath the garments she wore. There were furs and silks peeping from under a
large camblet cloak, with a thick flannel lining, that, by its cut and size, was
evidently intended for a masculine wearer. A huge hood of black silk, that was
quilted with down, concealed the whole of her head, except at a small opening in
front for breath, through which occasionally sparkled a pair of animated
jet-black eyes.
    Both the father and daughter (for such was the connexion between the two
travellers) were too much occupied with their reflections to break a stillness,
that received little or no interruption from the easy gliding of the sleigh, by
the sound of their voices. The former was thinking of the wife that had held
this their only child to her bosom, when, four years before, she had reluctantly
consented to relinquish the society of her daughter, in order that the latter
might enjoy the advantages of an education, which the city of New York could
only offer at that period. A few months afterwards death had deprived him of the
remaining companion of his solitude; but still he had enough of real regard for
his child, not to bring her into the comparative wilderness in which he dwelt,
until the full period had expired, to which he had limited her juvenile labours.
The reflections of the daughter were less melancholy, and mingled with a pleased
astonishment at the novel scenery she met at every turn in the road.
    The mountain on which they were journeying was covered with pines, that rose
without a branch some seventy or eighty feet, and which frequently doubled that
height, by the addition of the tops. Through the innumerable vistas that opened
beneath the lofty trees the eye could penetrate, until it was met by a distant
inequality in the ground, or was stopped by a view of the summit of the mountain
which lay on the opposite side of the valley to which they were hastening. The
dark trunks of the trees, rose from the pure white of the snow, in regularly
formed shafts, until, at a great height, their branches shot forth horizontal
limbs, that were covered with the meagre foliage of an evergreen, affording a
melancholy contrast to the torpor of nature below. To the travellers there
seemed to be no wind; but these pines waved majestically at their topmost
boughs, sending forth a dull, plaintive sound, that was quite in consonance with
the rest of the melancholy scene.
    The sleigh had glided for some distance along the even surface, and the gaze
of the female was bent in inquisitive, and, perhaps, timid glances, into the
recesses of the forest, when a loud and continued howling was heard, pealing
under the long arches of the woods, like the cry of a numerous pack of hounds.
The instant the sound reached the ears of the gentleman, he cried aloud to the
black -
    »Hold up, Aggy; there is old Hector; I should know his bay among ten
thousand. The Leather-stocking has put his hounds into the hills this clear day,
and they have started their game. There is a deer-track a few rods ahead; - and
now, Bess, if thou canst muster courage enough to stand fire, I will give thee a
saddle for thy Christmas dinner.«
    The black drew up, with a cheerful grin upon his chilled features, and began
thrashing his arms together, in order to restore the circulation to his fingers,
while the speaker stood erect, and, throwing aside his outer covering, stepped
from the sleigh upon a bank of snow, which sustained his weight without
yielding.
    In a few moments the speaker succeeded in extricating a double-barrelled
fowling piece from amongst a multitude of trunks and bandboxes. After throwing
aside the thick mittens which had encased his hands, that now appeared in a pair
of leather gloves tipped with fur, he examined his priming, and was about to
move forward, when the light bounding noise of an animal plunging through the
woods was heard, and a fine buck darted into the path, a short distance ahead of
him. The appearance of the animal was sudden, and his flight inconceivably
rapid; but the traveller appeared to be too keen a sportsman to be disconcerted
by either. As it came first into view he raised the fowling piece to his
shoulder, and, with a practised eye and steady hand, drew a trigger. The deer
dashed forward undaunted, and apparently unhurt. Without lowering his piece, the
traveller turned its muzzle towards his victim, and fired again. Neither
discharge, however, seemed to have taken effect.
    The whole scene had passed with a rapidity that confused the female, who was
unconsciously rejoicing in the escape of the buck, as he rather darted like a
meteor, than ran across the road, when a sharp, quick sound struck her ear,
quite different from the full, round reports of her father's gun, but still
sufficiently distinct to be known as the concussion produced by fire-arms. At
the same instant that she heard this unexpected report, the buck sprang from the
snow, to a great height in the air, and directly a second discharge, similar in
sound to the first, followed, when the animal came to the earth, falling
headlong, and rolling over on the crust with its own velocity. A loud shout was
given by the unseen marksman, and a couple of men instantly appeared from behind
the trunks of two of the pines, where they had evidently placed themselves in
expectation of the passage of the deer.
    »Ha! Natty, had I known you were in ambush, I should not have fired,« cried
the traveller, moving towards the spot where the deer lay - near to which he was
followed by the delighted black, with his sleigh; »but the sound of old Hector
was too exhilarating to be quiet; though I hardly think I struck him either.«
    »No - no - Judge,« returned the hunter, with an inward chuckle, and with
that look of exultation, that indicates a consciousness of superior skill; »you
burnt your powder, only to warm your nose this cold evening. Did ye think to
stop a full grown buck, with Hector and the slut open upon him, within sound,
with that pop-gun in your hand? There's plenty of pheasants amongst the swamps;
and the snow birds are flying round your own door, where you may feed them with
crumbs, and shoot them at pleasure, any day; but if you're for a buck, or a
little bear's meat, Judge, you'll have to take the long rifle, with a greased
wadding, or you'll waste more powder than you'll fill stomachs, I'm thinking.«
    As the speaker concluded he drew his bare hand across the bottom of his
nose, and again opened his enormous mouth with a kind of inward laugh.
    »The gun scatters well, Natty, and it has killed a deer before now,« said
the traveller, smiling good humouredly. »One barrel was charged with buck shot;
but the other was loaded for birds only. - Here are two hurts; one through the
neck, and the other directly through the heart. It is by no means certain,
Natty, but I gave him one of the two.«
    »Let who will kill him,« said the hunter, rather surlily, »I suppose the
cretur is to be eaten.« So saying, he drew a large knife from a leathern sheath,
which was stuck through his girdle or sash, and cut the throat of the animal.
»If there is two balls through the deer, I would ask if there wasn't't two rifles
fired - besides, who ever saw such a ragged hole from a smooth-bore, as this
through the neck? - and you will own yourself, Judge, that the buck fell at the
last shot, which was sent from a truer and a younger hand, than your'n or mine
'ither; but for my part, although I am a poor man, I can live without the
venison, but I don't love to give up my lawful dues in a free country. - Though,
for the matter of that, might often makes right here, as well as in the old
country, for what I can see.«
    An air of sullen dissatisfaction pervaded the manner of the hunter during
the whole of this speech; yet he thought it prudent to utter the close of the
sentence in such an under tone, as to leave nothing audible but the grumbling
sounds of his voice.
    »Nay, Natty,« rejoined the traveller, with undisturbed good humour, »it is
for the honour that I contend. A few dollars will pay for the venison; but what
will requite me for the lost honour of a buck's tail in my cap? Think, Natty,
how I should triumph over that quizzing dog, Dick Jones, who has failed seven
times already this season, and has only brought in one wood-chuck and a few grey
squirrels.«
    »Ah? the game is becoming hard to find, indeed, Judge, with your clearings
and betterments,« said the old hunter, with a kind of compelled resignation.
»The time has been, when I have shot thirteen deer, without counting the fa'ns,
standing in the door of my own hut; - and for bear's meat, if one wanted a ham
or so, he had only to watch a-nights, and he could shoot one by moonlight,
through the cracks of the logs; no fear of his over-sleeping himself, n'ither,
for the howling of the wolves was sartin to keep his eyes open. There's old
Hector,« - patting with affection a tall hound, of black and yellow spots, with
white belly and legs, that just then came in on the scent, accompanied by the
slut he had mentioned; »see where the wolves bit his throat, the night I druve
them from the venison that was smoking on the chimbly top - that dog is more to
be trusted than many a Christian man; for he never forgets a friend, and loves
the hand that gives him bread.«
    There was a peculiarity in the manner of the hunter, that attracted the
notice of the young female, who had been a close and interested observer of his
appearance and equipments, from the moment he came into view. He was tall, and
so meagre as to make him seem above even the six feet that he actually stood in
his stockings. On his head, which was thinly covered with lank, sandy hair, he
wore a cap made of fox-skin, resembling in shape the one we have already
described, although much inferior in finish and ornaments. His face was skinny,
and thin almost to emaciation; but yet it bore no signs of disease; - on the
contrary, it had every indication of the most robust and enduring health. The
cold and the exposure had, together, given it a colour of uniform red; his grey
eyes were glancing under a pair of shaggy brows, that overhung them in long
hairs of grey mingled with their natural hue; his scraggy neck was bare, and
burnt to the same tint with his face; though a small part of a shirt collar,
made of the country check, was to be seen above the over-dress he wore. A kind
of coat, made of dressed deer-skin, with the hair on, was belted close to his
lank body, by a girdle of coloured worsted. On his feet were deer-skin
moccasins, ornamented with porcupines' quills, after the manner of the Indians,
and his limbs were guarded with long leggings of the same material as the
moccasins, which, gartering over the knees of his tarnished buck-skin breeches,
had obtained for him, among the settlers, the nick name of Leather-stocking.
Over his left shoulder was slung a belt of deer-skin, from which depended an
enormous ox horn, so thinly scraped, as to discover the powder it contained. The
larger end was fitted ingeniously and securely with a wooden bottom, and the
other was stopped tight by a little plug. A leathern pouch hung before him, from
which, as he concluded his last speech, he took a small measure, and, filling it
accurately with powder, he commenced re-loading the rifle, which, as its butt
rested on the snow before him, reached nearly to the top of his fox-skin cap.
    The traveller had been closely examining the wounds during these movements,
and now, without heeding the ill humour of the hunter's manner, he exclaimed -
    »I would fain establish a right, Natty, to the honour of this death; and
surely if the hit in the neck be mine, it is enough; for the shot in the heart
was unnecessary - what we call an act of supererogation, Leather-stocking.«
    »You may call it by what larned name you please, Judge,« said the hunter,
throwing his rifle across his left arm, and knocking up a brass lid in the
breech, from which he took a small piece of greased leather, and wrapping a ball
in it, forced them down by main strength on the powder, where he continued to
pound them while speaking. »It's far easier to call names, than to shoot a buck
on the spring; but the cretur come by his end from a younger hand than 'ither
your'n or mine, as I said before.«
    »What say you, my friend,« cried the traveller, turning pleasantly to
Natty's companion; »shall we toss up this dollar for the honour, and you keep
the silver if you lose - what say you, friend?«
    »That I killed the deer,« answered the young man, with a little haughtiness,
as he leaned on another long rifle, similar to that of Natty's.
    »Here are two to one, indeed,« replied the Judge, with a smile; »I am
out-voted - over-ruled, as we say on the bench. There is Aggy, he can't vote,
being a slave; and Bess is a minor - so I must even make the best of it. But
you'll sell me the venison; and the deuce is in it, but I make a good story
about its death.«
    »The meat is none of mine to sell,« said Leather-stocking, adopting a little
of his companion's hauteur; »for my part, I have known animals travel days with
shots in the neck, and I'm none of them who'll rob a man of his rightful dues.«
    »You are tenacious of your rights, this cold evening, Natty,« returned the
Judge, with unconquerable good nature; »but what say you, young man, will three
dollars pay you for the buck?«
    »First let us determine the question of right to the satisfaction of us
both,« said the youth, firmly but respectfully, and with a pronunciation and
language vastly superior to his appearance; »with how many shot did you load
your gun?«
    »With five, sir,« said the Judge, a little struck with the other's manner;
»are they not enough to slay a buck like this?«
    »One would do it; but,« moving to the tree from behind which he had
appeared, »you know, sir, you fired in this direction - here are four of the
bullets in the tree.«
    The Judge examined the fresh marks in the bark of the pine, and, shaking his
head, said, with a laugh -
    »You are making out the case against yourself, my young advocate - where is
the fifth?«
    »Here,« said the youth, throwing aside the rough over-coat that he wore, and
exhibiting a hole in his under garment, through which large drops of blood were
oozing.
    »Good God!« exclaimed the Judge, with horror; »have I been trifling here
about an empty distinction, and a fellow creature suffering from my hands
without a murmur? But hasten - quick - get into my sleigh - it is but a mile to
the village, where surgical aid can be obtained; - all shall be done at my
expense, and thou shalt live with me until thy wound is healed - aye, and for
ever afterwards.«
    »I thank you for your good intention, but I must decline your offer. I have
a friend who would be uneasy were he to hear that I am hurt and away from him.
The injury is but slight, and the bullet has missed the bones; but I believe,
sir, you will now admit my title to the venison.«
    »Admit it!« repeated the agitated Judge; »I here give thee a right to shoot
deer, or bears, or any thing thou pleasest in my woods, forever.
Leather-stocking is the only other man that I have granted the same privilege
to; and the time is coming when it will be of value. But I buy your deer - here,
this bill will pay thee, both for thy shot and my own.«
    The old hunter gathered his tall person up into an air of pride, during this
dialogue, but he waited until the other had done speaking.
    »There's them living who say, that Nathaniel Bumppo's right to shoot on
these hills, is of older date than Marmaduke Temple's right to forbid him,« he
said. »But if there's a law about it at all, though who ever heard of a law,
that a man should'nt kill deer where he pleased! - but if there is a law at all,
it should be to keep people from the use of smooth-bores. A body never knows
where his lead will fly, when he pulls the trigger of one of them uncertain
fire-arms.«
    Without attending to the soliloquy of Natty, the youth bowed his head
silently to the offer of the bank note, and replied -
    »Excuse me; I have need of the venison.«
    »But this will buy you many deer,« said the Judge; »take it I entreat you,«
and lowering his voice to a whisper, he added - »it is for a hundred dollars.«
    For an instant only, the youth seemed to hesitate, and then, blushing even
through the high colour that the cold had given to his cheeks, as if with inward
shame at his own weakness, he again declined the offer.
    During this scene the female arose, and, regardless of the cold air, she
threw back the hood which concealed her features, and now spoke, with great
earnestness -
    »Surely, surely - young man - sir - you would not pain my father so much, as
to have him think that he leaves a fellow creature in this wilderness, whom his
own hand has injured. I entreat you will go with us, and receive medical aid.«
    Whether his wound became more painful, or there was something irresistible
in the voice and manner of the fair pleader for her father's feelings, we know
not, but the distance of the young man's manner was sensibly softened by this
appeal, and he stood, in apparent doubt, as if reluctant to comply with, and yet
unwilling to refuse her request. The Judge, for such being his office, must, in
future, be his title, watched, with no little interest, the display of this
singular contention in the feelings of the youth, and advancing, kindly took his
hand, and, as he pulled him gently towards the sleigh, urged him to enter it.
    »There is no human aid nearer than Templeton,« he said, »and the hut of
Natty is full three miles from this; - come - come, my young friend, go with us,
and let the new doctor look to this shoulder of thine. Here is Natty will take
the tidings of thy welfare to thy friend; and should'st thou require it, thou
shalt return home in the morning.«
    The young man succeeded in extricating his hand from the warm grasp of the
Judge, but he continued to gaze on the face of the female, who, regardless of
the cold, was still standing with her fine features exposed, which expressed
feelings that eloquently seconded the request of her father. Leather-stocking
stood, in the mean time, leaning upon his long rifle, with his head turned a
little to one side, as if engaged in sagacious musing; when, having apparently
satisfied his doubts, by revolving the subject in his mind, he broke silence -
    »It may be best to go, lad, after all; for if the shot hangs under the skin,
my hand is getting too old to be cutting into human flesh, as I once used to
could. Though some thirty years agone, in the old war, when I was out under Sir
William, I travelled seventy miles alone in the howling wilderness, with a rifle
bullet in my thigh, and then cut it out with my own jack-knife. Old Indian John
knows the time well. I met him with a party of the Delawares, on the trail of
the Iroquois, who had been down and taken five scalps on the Schoharie. But I
made a mark on the red-skin that I'll warrant he carried to his grave. I took
him on his posterum, saving the lady's presence, as he got up from the amboosh,
and rattled three buck shot into his naked hide, so close, that you might have
laid a broad joe upon them all -« here Natty stretched out his long neck, and
straightened his body, as he opened his mouth, which exposed a single tusk of
yellow bone, while his eyes, his face, even his whole frame, seemed to laugh,
although no sound was emitted, except a kind of thick hissing, as he inhaled his
breath in quavers. »I had lost my bullet mould in crossing the Oneida outlet,
and had to make shift with the buck shot; but the rifle was true, and didn't
scatter like your two legged thing there, Judge, which don't do, I find, to hunt
in company with.«
    Natty's apology to the delicacy of the young lady was unnecessary, for,
while he was speaking, she was too much employed in helping her father to remove
certain articles of baggage to hear him. Unable to resist the kind urgency of
the travellers any longer, the youth, though still with an unaccountable
reluctance, suffered himself to be persuaded to enter the sleigh. The black with
the aid of his master threw the buck across the baggage, and entering the
vehicle themselves, the Judge invited the hunter to do so likewise.
    »No - no -« said the old man, shaking his head; »I have work to do at home
this Christmas eve - drive on with the boy, and let your doctor look to the
shoulder; though if he will only cut out the shot, I have yarbs that will heal
the wound quicker than all his foreign 'intments.« He turned and was about to
move off, when, suddenly recollecting himself, he again faced the party, and
added - »If you see any thing of Indian John about the foot of the lake, you had
better take him with you, and let him lend the doctor a hand; for, old as he is,
he is curous at cuts and bruises, and it's likelier than not he'll be in with
brooms to sweep your Christmas ha'arths.«
    »Stop - stop,« cried the youth, catching the arm of the black as he prepared
to urge his horses forward; »Natty - you need say nothing of the shot, nor of
where I am going - remember, Natty, as you love me.«
    »Trust old Leather-stocking,« returned the hunter, significantly; »he has'nt
lived fifty years in the wilderness, and not larnt from the savages how to hold
his tongue - trust to me, lad; and remember old Indian John.«
    »And, Natty,« said the youth, eagerly, still holding the black by the arm,
»I will just get the shot extracted, and bring you up, to-night, a quarter of
the buck, for the Christmas dinner.«
    He was interrupted by the hunter, who held up his finger with an expressive
gesture for silence. He then moved softly along the margin of the road, keeping
his eyes steadfastly fixed on the branches of a pine. When he had obtained such
a position as he wished, he stopped, and cocking his rifle, threw one leg far
behind him, and stretching his left arm to its utmost extent along the barrel of
his piece, he began slowly to raise its muzzle in a line with the straight trunk
of the tree. The eyes of the group in the sleigh naturally preceded the movement
of the rifle, and they soon discovered the object of Natty's aim. On a small
dead branch of the pine, which, at the distance of seventy feet from the ground,
shot out horizontally, immediately beneath the living members of the tree, sat a
bird, that in the vulgar language of the country, was indiscriminately called a
pheasant or a partridge. In size, it was but little smaller than a common
barn-yard fowl. The baying of the dogs, and the conversation that had passed
near the root of the tree on which it was perched, had alarmed the bird, which
was now drawn up near the body of the pine, with a head and neck so erect, as to
form nearly a straight line with its legs. As soon as the rifle bore on the
victim, Natty drew his trigger, and the partridge fell from its height with a
force that buried it in the snow.
    »Lie down, you old villain,« exclaimed Leather-stocking, shaking his ramrod
at Hector as he bounded towards the foot of the tree, »lie down, I say.« The dog
obeyed, and Natty proceeded with great rapidity, though with the nicest
accuracy, to reload his piece. When this was ended, he took up his game, and
showing it to the party without a head, he cried - »Here is a tit bit for an old
man's Christmas - never mind the venison, boy, and remember Indian John; his
yarbs are better than all the foreign 'intments. Here, Judge,« holding up the
bird again, »do you think a smooth-bore would pick game off their roost, and not
ruffle a feather?« The old man gave another of his remarkable laughs, which
partook so largely of exultation, mirth, and irony, and shaking his head, he
turned, with his rifle at a trail, and moved into the forest with steps that
were between a walk and a trot. At each movement he made, his body lowered
several inches, his knees yielding with an inclination inward; but as the sleigh
turned at a bend in the road, the youth cast his eyes in quest of his old
companion, and he saw that he was already nearly concealed by the trunks of the
trees, while his dogs were following quietly in his footsteps, occasionally
scenting the deer track, that they seemed to know instinctively was now of no
farther use to them. Another jerk was given to the sleigh, and Leather-stocking
was hid from view.
 

                                   Chapter II

 »All places that the eye of Heaven visits,
 Are to a wise man ports and happy havens: -
 Think not the king did banish thee;
 But thou the king. -«
                                               Richard II, I.iii.275-76, 279-80.
 
An Ancestor of Marmaduke Temple had, about one hundred and twenty years before
the commencement of our tale, come to the colony of Pennsylvania, a friend and
co-religionist of its great patron. Old Marmaduke, for this formidable prenomen
was a kind of appellative to the race, brought with him to that asylum of the
persecuted, an abundance of the good things of this life. He became the master
of many thousands of acres of uninhabited territory, and the supporter of many a
score of dependants. He lived greatly respected for his piety, and not a little
distinguished as a sectary; was entrusted by his associates with many important
political stations; and died, just in time to escape the knowledge of his own
poverty. It was his lot to share the fortune of most of those, who brought
wealth with them into the new settlements of the middle colonies.
    The consequence of an emigrant into these provinces was generally to be
ascertained by the number of his white servants or dependants, and the nature of
the public situations that he held. Taking this rule as a guide, the ancestor of
our Judge must have been a man of no little note.
    It is, however, a subject of curious inquiry at the present day, to look
into the brief records of that early period, and observe how regular, and with
few exceptions how inevitable, were the gradations, on the one hand, of the
masters to poverty, and on the other, of their servants to wealth. Accustomed to
ease, and unequal to the struggles incident to an infant society, the affluent
emigrant was barely enabled to maintain his own rank, by the weight of his
personal superiority and acquirements; but the moment that his head was laid in
the grave, his indolent, and comparatively uneducated offspring, were compelled
to yield precedency to the more active energies of a class, whose exertions had
been stimulated by necessity. This is a very common course of things, even in
the present state of the Union; but it was peculiarly the fortunes of the two
extremes of society, in the peaceful and unenterprising colonies of Pennsylvania
and New-Jersey.
    The posterity of Marmaduke did not escape the common lot of those, who
depend rather on their hereditary possessions than on their own powers; and in
the third generation, they had descended to a point, below which, in this happy
country, it is barely possible for honesty, intellect, and sobriety, to fall.
The same pride of family, that had, by its self-satisfied indolence, conduced to
aid their fall, now became a principle to stimulate them to endeavour to rise
again. The feeling, from being morbid, was changed to a healthful and active
desire to emulate the character, the condition, and, peradventure, the wealth,
of their ancestors also. It was the father of our new acquaintance, the Judge,
who first began to re-ascend in the scale of society; and in this undertaking he
was not a little assisted by a marriage, which aided in furnishing the means of
educating his only son, in a rather better manner than the low state of the
common schools in Pennsylvania could promise; or than had been the practice in
the family, for the two or three preceding generations.
    At the school where the reviving prosperity of his father was enabled to
maintain him, young Marmaduke formed an intimacy with a youth, whose years were
about equal to his own. This was a fortunate connexion for our Judge, and paved
the way to most of his future elevation in life.
    There was not only great wealth, but high court interest, amongst the
connexions of Edward Effingham. They were one of the few families, then resident
in the colonies, who thought it a degradation to its members, to descend to the
pursuits of commerce; and who never emerged from the privacy of domestic life,
unless to preside in the councils of the colony, or to bear arms in her defence.
The latter had, from youth, been the only employment of Edward's father.
Military rank, under the crown of Great Britain, was attained with much longer
probation, and by much more toilsome services, sixty years ago, than at the
present time. Years were passed, without murmuring, in the subordinate grades of
the service; and those soldiers who were stationed in the colonies, felt, when
they obtained the command of a company, that they were entitled to receive the
greatest deference from the peaceful occupants of the soil. Any one of our
readers, who has occasion to cross the Niagara, may easily observe, not only the
self-importance, but the real estimation enjoyed by the humblest representative
of the Crown, even in that polar region of royal sunshine. Such, and at no very
distant period, was the respect paid to the military in these States, where now,
happily, no symbol of war is ever seen, unless at the free and fearless voice of
their people. When therefore, the father of Marmaduke's friend, after forty
years' service, retired with the rank of Major, maintaining in his domestic
establishment a comparative splendour, he became a man of the first
consideration in his native colony - which was that of New-York. He had served
with fidelity and courage, and, having been, according to the custom of the
provinces, entrusted with commands much superior to those to which he was
entitled by rank, with reputation also. When Major Effingham yielded to the
claims of age, he retired with dignity, refusing his half-pay or any other
compensation for services, that he felt he could no longer perform. The ministry
proffered various civil offices, which yielded not only honour but profit; but
he declined them all, with the chivalrous independence and loyalty, that had
marked his character through life. The veteran soon caused this act of patriotic
disinterestedness, to be followed by another of private munificence, that,
however little it accorded with prudence, was in perfect conformity with the
simple integrity of his own views. The friend of Marmaduke was his only child;
and to this son, on his marriage with a lady to whom the father was particularly
partial, the Major gave a complete conveyance of his whole estate, consisting of
moneys in the funds, a town and country residence, sundry valuable farms in the
old parts of the colony, and large tracts of wild land in the new; - in this
manner throwing himself upon the filial piety of his child for his own future
maintenance. Major Effingham, in declining the liberal offers of the British
ministry, had subjected himself to the suspicion of having attained his dotage,
by all those who throng the avenues to court patronage, even in the remotest
corners of that vast empire; but, when he thus voluntarily stripped himself of his
great personal wealth, the remainder of the community seemed instinctively to
adopt the conclusion also, that he had reached a second childhood. This may
explain the fact of his importance rapidly declining; and, if privacy was his
object, the veteran had soon a free indulgence of his wishes. Whatever views the
world might entertain of this act of the Major, to himself and to his child, it
seemed no more than a natural gift by a father, of those immunities which he
could no longer enjoy or improve, to a son, who was formed, both by nature and
education, to do both. The younger Effingham did not object to the amount of the
donation; for he felt, that while his parent reserved a moral control over his
actions, he was relieving himself from a fatiguing burden; such, indeed, was
the confidence existing between them, that to neither did it seem any thing
more, than removing money from one pocket to another.
    One of the first acts of the young man, on coming into possession of his
wealth, was to seek his early friend, with a view to offer any assistance, that
it was now in his power to bestow.
    The death of Marmaduke's father, and the consequent division of his small
estate, rendered such an offer extremely acceptable to the young Pennsylvanian:
he felt his own powers, and saw, not only the excellencies, but the foibles, in
the character of his friend. Effingham was by nature indolent, confiding, and at
times impetuous and indiscreet; but Marmaduke was uniformly equable,
penetrating, and full of activity and enterprise. To the latter, therefore, the
assistance, or rather connexion, that was proffered to him, seemed to produce a
mutual advantage. It was cheerfully accepted, and the arrangement of its
conditions was easily completed. A mercantile house was established in the
metropolis of Pennsylvania, with the avails of Mr. Effingham's personal
property; all, or nearly all, of which was put into the possession of Temple,
who was the only ostensible proprietor in the concern, while in secret, the
other was entitled to an equal participation in the profits. This connexion was
thus kept private for two reasons; one of which, in the freedom of their
intercourse, was frankly avowed to Marmaduke, while the other continued
profoundly hid in the bosom of his friend. The last was nothing more than pride.
To the descendant of a line of soldiers, commerce, even in that indirect manner,
seemed a degrading pursuit; - but an insuperable obstacle to the disclosure
existed in the prejudices of his father.
    We have already said that Major Effingham had served as a soldier, with
reputation. On one occasion, while in command on the western frontier of
Pennsylvania, against a league of the French and Indians, not only his glory,
but the safety of himself and his troops were jeoparded, by the peaceful policy
of that colony. To the soldier, this was an unpardonable offence. He was
fighting in their defence - he knew that the mild principles of this little
nation of practical christians, would be disregarded by their subtle and
malignant enemies; and he felt the injury the more deeply, because he saw that
the avowed object of the colonists, in withholding their succours, would only
have a tendency to expose his command, without preserving the peace. The soldier
succeeded, after a desperate conflict, in extricating himself with a handful of
his men, from their murderous enemy; but he never forgave the people who had
exposed him to a danger, which they left him to combat alone. It was in vain to
tell him, that they had no agency in his being placed on their frontier at all;
it was evidently for their benefit that he had been so placed, and it was their
religious duty, so the Major always expressed it, »it was their religious duty
to have supported him.«
    At no time was the old soldier an admirer of the peaceful disciples of Fox.
Their disciplined habits, both of mind and body, had endowed them with great
physical perfection, and the eye of the veteran was apt to scan the fair
proportions and athletic frames of the colonists, with a look that seemed to
utter volumes of contempt for their moral imbecility. He was also a little
addicted to the expression of a belief, that, where there was so great an
observance of the externals of religion, there could not be much of the
substance. - It is not our task to explain what is, or what ought to be, the
substance of christianity, but merely to record in this place the opinions of
Major Effingham.
    Knowing the sentiments of the father, in relation to this people, it was no
wonder that the son hesitated to avow his connexion with, nay, even his
dependence on the integrity of, a quaker.
    It has been said that Marmaduke deduced his origin from the cotemporaries
and friends of Penn. His father had married without the pale of the church to
which he belonged, and had, in this manner, forfeited some of the privileges
which would have descended to his offspring. Still, as young Marmaduke was
educated in a colony and society, where even the ordinary intercourse between
friends, was tinctured with the aspect of this mild religion, his habits and
language were somewhat marked by its peculiarities. His own marriage at a future
day with a lady without, not only the pale, but the influence of this sect of
religionists, had a tendency, it is true, to weaken his early impressions; still
he retained them, in some degree, to the hour of his death, and was observed
uniformly, when much interested or agitated, to speak in the language of his
youth - But this is anticipating our tale.
    When Marmaduke first became the partner of young Effingham, he was quite the
quaker in externals; and it was too dangerous an experiment for the son to think
of encountering the prejudices of the father on this subject. The connexion,
therefore, remained a profound secret to all but those who were interested in
it.
    For a few years, Marmaduke directed the commercial operations of his house
with a prudence and sagacity, that afforded rich returns. He married the lady we
have mentioned, who was the mother of Elizabeth, and the visits of his friend
were becoming more frequent. There was a speedy prospect of removing the veil
from their intercourse, as its advantages became each hour more apparent to Mr.
Effingham, when the troubles that preceded the war of the revolution, extended
themselves to an alarming degree.
    Educated in the most dependent loyalty, Mr. Effingham had, from the
commencement of the disputes between the colonists and the crown, warmly
maintained, what he believed to be, the just prerogatives of his prince; while,
on the other hand, the clear head and independent mind of Temple had induced him
to espouse the cause of the people. Both might have been influenced by early
impressions; for, if the son of the loyal and gallant soldier bowed in implicit
obedience to the will of his sovereign, the descendant of the persecuted
follower of Penn, looked back, with a little bitterness, to the unmerited wrongs
that had been heaped upon his ancestors.
    This difference in opinion had long been a subject of amicable dispute
between them, but, latterly, the contest was getting to be too important to
admit of trivial discussions on the part of Marmaduke, whose acute discernment
was already catching faint glimmerings of the important events that were in
embryo. The sparks of dissension soon kindled into a blaze; and the colonies,
or, rather, as they quickly declared themselves, THE STATES, became a scene of
strife and bloodshed for years.
    A short time before the battle of Lexington, Mr. Effingham, already a
widower, transmitted to Marmaduke for safe keeping, all his valuable effects and
papers; and left the colony without his father. The war had, however, scarcely
commenced in earnest, when he re-appeared in New-York, wearing the livery of his
king, and in a short time, he took the field at the head of a provincial corps.
In the mean time, Marmaduke had completely committed himself in the cause, as it
was then called, of the rebellion: of course all intercourse between the friends
ceased - on the part of Col. Effingham, it was unsought, and on that of
Marmaduke, there was a cautious reserve. It soon became necessary for the latter
to abandon the capital of Philadelphia; but he had taken the precaution to
remove the whole of his effects, beyond the reach of the royal forces, including
the papers of his friend also. There he continued serving his country during the
struggle, in various civil capacities, and always with dignity and usefulness.
While, however, he discharged his functions with credit and fidelity, Marmaduke
never seemed to lose sight of his own interests; for, when the estates of the
adherents of the crown fell under the hammer, by the acts of confiscation, he
appeared in New-York, and became the purchaser of extensive possessions, at,
comparatively, low prices.
    It is true that Marmaduke, by thus purchasing estates that had been wrested
by violence from others, rendered himself obnoxious to the censures of that
sect, which, at the same time that it discards its children from a full
participation in the family union, seems ever unwilling to abandon them entirely
to the world. But either his success, or the frequency of the transgression in
others, soon wiped off this slight stain from his character; and although there
were a few, who, dissatisfied with their own fortunes, or conscious of their own
demerits, would make dark hints concerning the sudden prosperity of the
unportioned quaker, yet his services, and possibly his wealth, soon drove the
recollection of these vague conjectures from men's minds.
    When the war ended, and the independence of the states was acknowledged, Mr.
Temple turned his attention from the pursuit of commerce, which was then
fluctuating and uncertain, to the settlement of those tracts of land which he
had purchased. Aided by a good deal of money, and directed by the suggestions of
a strong and practical reason, his enterprise throve to a degree, that the
climate and rugged face of the country which he selected, would seem to forbid.
His property increased in a tenfold ratio, and he was already ranked among the
most wealthy and important of his countrymen. To inherit this wealth he had but
one child - the daughter whom we have introduced to the reader, and whom he was
now conveying from school, to preside, over a household that had too long wanted
a mistress.
    When the district in which his estates lay, had become sufficiently populous
to be set off as a county, Mr. Temple had, according to the custom of the new
settlements, been selected to fill its highest judicial station. This might make
a Templar smile, but in addition to the apology of necessity, there is ever a
dignity in talents and experience, that is commonly sufficient, in any station,
for the protection of its possessor; and Marmaduke, more fortunate in his native
clearness of mind, than the judge of king Charles, not only decided right, but
was generally able to give a very good reason for it. At all events, such was
the universal practice of the country and the times; and Judge Temple, so far
from ranking among the lowest of his judicial cotemporaries in the courts of the
new counties, felt himself, and was unanimously acknowledged to be, among the
first.
    We shall here close this brief explanation of the history and character of
some of our personages, leaving them in future to speak and act for themselves.
 

                                  Chapter III

 »All that thou see'st, is nature's handy work:
 Those rocks, that upward throw their mossy brows,
 Like castled pinnacles of elder times!
 These venerable stems, that slowly rock
 Their tow'ring branches in the wintry gale!
 That field of frost, which glitters in the sun,
 Mocking the whiteness of a marble breast! -
 Yet man can mar such works with his rude taste,
 Like some sad spoiler of a virgin's fame.«
                                                                            Duo.
 
Some little time elapsed ere Marmaduke Temple was sufficiently recovered from
his agitation, to scan the person of his new companion. He now observed, that he
was a youth of some two or three and twenty years of age; and rather above the
middle height. Further observation was prevented by the rough over-coat, which
was belted close to his form by a worsted sash, much like the one worn by the
old hunter. The eyes of the Judge, after resting a moment on the figure of the
stranger, were raised to a scrutiny of his countenance. There had been a look of
care, visible in the features of the youth, when he first entered the sleigh,
that had not only attracted the notice of Elizabeth, but which she had been much
puzzled to interpret. His anxiety seemed the strongest when he was enjoining his
old companion to secrecy; and even when he had decided, and was, rather
passively, suffering himself to be conveyed to the village, the expression of
his eyes by no means indicated any great degree of self-satisfaction at the
step. But the lines of an uncommonly prepossessing countenance were gradually
becoming composed; and he now sat silent, and apparently musing. The Judge gazed
at him for some time with earnestness, and then smiling, as if at his own
forgetfulness, he said -
    »I believe, my young friend, that terror has driven you from my recollection
- your face is very familiar, and yet for the honour of a score of bucks'-tails
in my cap, I could not tell your name.«
    »I came into the county but three weeks since,« returned the youth coldly,
»and, I understand you have been absent twice that time.«
    »It will be five to-morrow. Yet your face is one that I have seen; though it
would not be strange, such has been my affright, should I see thee in thy
winding-sheet, walking by my bedside, to-night. What say'st thou, Bess? Am I
compos mentis or not? - Fit to charge a grand jury, or, what is just now of more
pressing necessity, able to do the honours of a Christmas-eve, in the hall of
Templeton?«
    »More able to do either, my dear father,« said a playful voice from under
the ample enclosures of the hood, »than to kill deer with a smooth-bore.« A
short pause followed; and the same voice, but in a different accent continued -
»We shall have good reasons for our thanksgiving to-night, on more accounts than
one.«
    The horses soon reached a point, where they seemed to know by instinct that
the journey was nearly ended, and, bearing on the bits, as they tossed their
heads, they rapidly drew the sleigh over the level land, which lay on the top of
the mountain, and soon came to the point where the road descended suddenly, but
circuitously, into the valley.
    The Judge was roused from his reflections, when he saw the four columns of
smoke, which floated above his own chimneys. As house, village, and valley burst
on his sight, he exclaimed cheerfully to his daughter -
    »See, Bess, there is thy resting-place for life! And thine too, young man,
if thou wilt consent to dwell with us.«
    The eyes of his auditors involuntarily met; and if the colour, that gathered
over the face of Elizabeth, was contradicted by the cold expression of her eye,
the ambiguous smile that again played about the lips of the stranger, seemed
equally to deny the probability of his consenting to form one of this family
group. The scene was one, however, which might easily warm a heart less given to
philanthropy than that of Marmaduke Temple.
    The side of the mountain, on which our travellers were journeying, though
not absolutely perpendicular, was so steep as to render great care necessary in
descending the rude and narrow path, which, in that early day, wound along the
precipices. The Negro reined in his impatient steeds, and time was given
Elizabeth to dwell on a scene which was so rapidly altering under the hands of
man, that it only resembled, in its outlines, the picture she had so often
studied, with delight, in childhood. Immediately beneath them lay a seeming
plain, glittering, without inequality, and buried in mountains. The latter were
precipitous, especially on the side of the plain, and chiefly in forest. Here
and there the hills fell away in long, low points, and broke the sameness of the
outline; or setting to the long and wide field of snow, which, without house,
tree, fence, or any other fixture, resembled so much spotless cloud settled to
the earth. A few dark and moving spots were, however, visible on the even
surface, which the eye of Elizabeth knew to be so many sleighs going their
several ways, to or from the village. On the western border of the plain, the
mountains, though equally high, were less precipitous, and as they receded,
opened into irregular valleys and glens, or were formed into terraces and
hollows that admitted of cultivation. Although the evergreens still held
dominion over many of the hills that rose on this side of the valley, yet the
undulating outlines of the distant mountains, covered with forests of beech and
maple, gave a relief to the eye, and the promise of a kinder soil. Occasionally,
spots of white were discoverable amidst the forests of the opposite hills, which
announced, by the smoke that curled over the tops of the trees, the habitations
of man, and the commencement of agriculture. These spots were, sometimes, by the
aid of united labour, enlarged into what were called settlements; but more
frequently were small and insulated; though so rapid were the changes, and so
persevering the labours of those who had cast their fortunes on the success of
the enterprise, that it was not difficult for the imagination of Elizabeth to
conceive they were enlarging under her eye, while she was gazing, in mute
wonder, at the alterations that a few short years had made in the aspect of the
country. The points on the western side of this remarkable plain, on which no
plant had taken root, were both larger and more numerous than those on its
eastern, and one in particular thrust itself forward in such a manner, as to
form beautifully curved bays of snow on either side. On its extreme end an oak
stretched forward, as if to overshadow, with its branches, a spot which its
roots were forbidden to enter. It had released itself from the thraldom, that a
growth of centuries had imposed on the branches of the surrounding forest trees,
and threw its gnarled and fantastic arms abroad, in the wildness of liberty. A
dark spot of a few acres in extent at the southern extremity of this beautiful
flat, and immediately under the feet of our travellers, alone showed, by its
rippling surface, and the vapours which exhaled from it, that what at first might
seem a plain, was one of the mountain lakes, locked in the frosts of winter. A
narrow current rushed impetuously from its bosom at the open place we have
mentioned, and was to be traced, for miles, as it wound its way towards the
south through the real valley, by its borders of hemlock and pine, and by the
vapour which arose from its warmer surface into the chill atmosphere of the
hills. The banks of this lovely basin, at its outlet, or southern end, were
steep but not high, and in that direction the land continued, far as the eye
could reach, a narrow but graceful valley, along which the settlers had
scattered their humble habitations, with a profusion that bespoke the quality of
the soil, and the comparative facilities of intercourse. Immediately on the bank
of the lake and at its foot, stood the village of Templeton. It consisted of
some fifty buildings, including those of every description, chiefly built of
wood, and which, in their architecture, bore no great marks of taste, but which
also, by the unfinished appearance of most of the dwellings, indicated the hasty
manner of their construction. To the eye, they presented a variety of colours. A
few were white in both front and rear, but more bore that expensive colour on
their fronts only, while their economical but ambitious owners had covered the
remaining sides of the edifices, with a dingy red. One or two were slowly
assuming the russet of age; while the uncovered beams that were to be seen
through the broken windows of their second stories, showed, that either the
taste, or the vanity of their proprietors, had led them to undertake a task,
which they were unable to accomplish. The whole were grouped in a manner that
aped the streets of a city, and were evidently so arranged, by the directions of
one, who looked to the wants of posterity, rather than to the convenience of the
present incumbents. Some three or four of the better sort of buildings, in
addition to the uniformity of their colour, were fitted with green blinds,
which, at that season at least, were rather strangely contrasted to the chill
aspect of the lake, the mountains, the forests, and the wide fields of snow.
Before the doors of these pretending dwellings, were placed a few saplings
either without branches, or possessing only the feeble shoots of one or two
summers' growth, that looked not unlike tall grenadiers on post, near the
threshold of princes. In truth, the occupants of these favoured habitations were
the nobles of Templeton, as Marmaduke was its king. They were the dwellings of
two young men who were cunning in the law; an equal number of that class who
chaffered to the wants of the community, under the title of store-keepers; and a
disciple of Æsculapius, who, for a novelty, brought more subjects into the world
than he sent out of it. In the midst of this incongruous group of dwellings,
rose the mansion of the Judge, towering above all its neighbours. It stood in
the centre of an enclosure of several acres, which were covered with
fruit-trees. Some of the latter had been left by the Indians, and began already
to assume the moss and inclination of age, therein forming a very marked
contrast to the infant plantations that peer'd over most of the picketed fences
of the village. In addition to this show of cultivation, were two rows of young
Lombardy poplars, a tree but lately introduced into America, formally lining
either side of a path-way, which led from a gate, that opened on the principal
street, to the front door of the building. The house itself had been built
entirely under the superintendence of a certain Mr. Richard Jones, whom we have
already mentioned, and who, from his cleverness in small matters, and an entire
willingness to exert his talents, added to the circumstance of their being
sisters' children, ordinarily superintended all the minor concerns of Marmaduke
Temple. Richard was fond of saying, that this child of his invention, consisted
of nothing more nor less, than what should form the ground work of every
clergyman's discourse; viz. a firstly, and a lastly. He had commenced his
labours in the first year of their residence, by erecting a tall, gaunt edifice
of wood, with its gable towards the highway. In this shelter, for it was little
more, the family resided three years. By the end of that period, Richard had
completed his design. He had availed himself, in this heavy undertaking, of the
experience of a certain wandering, eastern mechanic, who, by exhibiting a few
soiled plates of English architecture, and talking learnedly of friezes,
entablatures, and particularly of the composite order, had obtained a very undue
influence over Richard's taste, in every thing that pertained to that branch of
the fine arts. Not that Mr. Jones did not affect to consider Hiram Doolittle a
perfect empyric in his profession; being in the constant habit of listening to
his treatises on architecture, with a kind of indulgent smile, yet, either from
an inability to oppose them by any thing plausible from his own stores of
learning, or from secret admiration, Richard generally submitted to the
arguments of his co-adjutor. Together, they had not only erected a dwelling for
Marmaduke, but they had given a fashion to the architecture of the whole county.
The composite order, Mr. Doolittle would contend, was an order composed of many
others, and was intended to be the most useful of all, for it admitted into its
construction such alterations, as convenience or circumstances might require. To
this proposition, Richard usually assented; and when rival geniuses, who
monopolise not only all the reputation, but most of the money of a
neighbourhood, are of a mind, it is not uncommon to see them lead the fashion,
even in graver matters. In the present instance, as we have already hinted, the
castle, as Judge Temple's dwelling was termed in common parlance, came to be the
model, in some one or other of its numerous excellencies, for every aspiring
edifice within twenty miles of it.
    The house itself, or the lastly, was of stone; large, square, and far from
uncomfortable. These were four requisites, on which Marmaduke had insisted with
a little more than his ordinary pertinacity. But every thing else was peaceably
assigned to Richard and his associate. These worthies found the material a
little too solid for the tools of their workmen, which, in general, were
employed on a substance no harder than the white pine of the adjacent mountains,
a wood so proverbially soft, that it is commonly chosen by the hunters for
pillows. But for this awkward dilemma, it is probable that the ambitious tastes
of our two architects would have left us much more to do in the way of
description. Driven from the faces of the house by the obduracy of the material,
they took refuge in the porch and on the roof. The former, it was decided,
should be severely classical, and the latter a rare specimen of the merits of
the composite order.
    A roof, Richard contended, was a part of the edifice that the ancients
always endeavoured to conceal, it being an excrescence in architecture that was
only to be tolerated on account of its usefulness. Besides, as he wittily added,
a chief merit in a dwelling was to present a front, on whichever side it might
happen to be seen; for as it was exposed to all eyes in all weathers, there
should be no weak flank, for envy or unneighbourly criticism to assail. It was,
therefore, decided, that the roof should be flat, and with four faces. To this
arrangement, Marmaduke objected the heavy snows that lay for months, frequently
covering the earth to a depth of three or four feet. Happily, the facilities of
the composite order presented themselves to effect a compromise, and the rafters
were lengthened, so as to give a descent that should carry off the frozen
element. But unluckily, some mistake was made in the admeasurement of these
material parts of the fabric, and as one of the greatest recommendations of
Hiram, was his ability to work by the square rule, no opportunity was found of
discovering the effect, until the massive timbers were raised, on the four walls
of the building. Then, indeed, it was soon seen, that, in defiance of all rule,
the roof was by far the most conspicuous part of the whole edifice. Richard and
his associate consoled themselves with the belief, that the covering would aid
in concealing this unnatural elevation; but every shingle that was laid only
multiplied objects to look at. Richard essayed to remedy the evil with paint,
and four different colours were laid on by his own hands. The first, was a
sky-blue, in the vain expectation that the eye might be cheated into the belief,
it was the heavens themselves that hung so imposingly over Marmaduke's dwelling:
the second was, what he called, a cloud-colour, being nothing more nor less than
an imitation of smoke: the third was what Richard termed an invisible green, an
experiment that did not succeed against a back-ground of sky. Abandoning the
attempt to conceal, our architects drew upon their invention for means to
ornament the offensive shingles. After much deliberation, and two or three
essays by moonlight, Richard ended the affair by boldly covering the whole
beneath a colour that he christened sunshine, a cheap way, as he assured his
cousin, the Judge, of always keeping fair weather over his head. The platform,
as well as the eaves of the house, were surmounted by gaudily painted railings,
and the genius of Hiram was exerted in the fabrication of divers urns and
mouldings, that were scattered profusely around this part of their labours.
Richard had originally a cunning expedient, by which the chimneys were intended
to be so low, and so situated, as to resemble ornaments on the balustrades; but
comfort required that the chimneys should rise with the roof, in order that the
smoke might be carried off, and they thus became four extremely conspicuous
objects in the view.
    As this roof was much the most important architectural undertaking in which
Mr. Jones was ever engaged, his failure produced a correspondent degree of
mortification. At first, he whispered among his acquaintances, that it proceeded
from ignorance of the square rule on the part of Hiram, but as his eye became
gradually accustomed to the object, he grew better satisfied with his labours,
and instead of apologizing for the defects, he commenced praising the beauties
of the mansion house. He soon found hearers; and, as wealth and comfort are at
all times attractive, it was, as has been said, made a model for imitation on a
small scale. In less than two years from its erection, he had the pleasure of
standing on the elevated platform, and of looking down on three humble imitators
of its beauty. - Thus it is ever with fashion, which even renders the faults of
the great, subjects of admiration.
    Marmaduke bore this deformity in his dwelling with great good nature, and
soon contrived, by his own improvements, to give an air of respectability and
comfort to his place of residence; still there was much of incongruity, even
immediately about the mansion-house. Although poplars had been brought from
Europe to ornament the grounds, and willows and other trees were gradually
springing up nigh the dwelling, yet many a pile of snow betrayed the presence of
the stump of a pine; and even, in one or two instances, unsightly remnants of
trees that had been partly destroyed by fire, were seen rearing their black,
glistening columns twenty or thirty feet above the pure white of the snow.
These, which in the language of the country are termed stubbs, abounded in the
open fields adjacent to the village, and were accompanied, occasionally, by the
ruin of a pine or a hemlock that had been stripped of its bark, and which waved
in melancholy grandeur its naked limbs to the blast, a skeleton of its former
glory. But these and many other unpleasant additions to the view were unseen by
the delighted Elizabeth, who, as the horses moved down the side of the mountain,
saw only in gross, the cluster of houses that lay like a map at her feet; the
fifty smokes that were curling from the valley to the clouds; the frozen lake,
as it lay embedded in mountains of evergreen, with the long shadows of the pines
on its white surface, lengthening in the setting sun; the dark ribband of water,
that gushed from the outlet, and was winding its way towards the distant
Chesapeake - the altered, though still remembered, scenes of her childhood.
    Five years had wrought greater changes, than a century would produce in
countries, where time and labour have given permanency to the works of man. To
the young hunter and the Judge the scene had less novelty; though none ever
emerge from the dark forests of that mountain, and witness the glorious scenery
of that beauteous valley, as it bursts unexpectedly upon them, without a feeling
of delight. The former cast one admiring glance from north to south, and sunk
his face, again, beneath the folds of his coat; while the latter contemplated,
with philanthropic pleasure, the prospect of affluence and comfort, that was
expanding around him; the result of his own enterprise, and, much of it, the
fruits of his own industry.
    The cheerful sound of sleigh bells, however, attracted the attention of the
whole party, as they came jingling up the sides of the mountain, at a rate that
announced a powerful team and a hard driver. The bushes which lined the highway
interrupted the view, and the two sleighs were close upon each other before
either was seen.
 

                                   Chapter IV

 »How now? whose mare's dead? what's the matter?«
                                                         2 Henry IV, II.i.43-44.
 
A large lumber-sleigh, drawn by four horses, was soon seen dashing through the
leafless bushes, which fringed the road. The leaders were of gray, and the
pole-horses of a jet black. Bells, innumerable, were suspended from every part
of the harness, where one of the tinkling balls could be placed, while the rapid
movement of the equipage, in defiance of the steep ascent, announced the desire
of the driver to ring them to the utmost. The first glance at this singular
arrangement acquainted the Judge with the character of those in the sleigh. It
contained four male figures. On one of those stools that are used at writing
desks, lashed firmly to the sides of the vehicle, was seated a little man,
enveloped in a great coat fringed with fur, in such a manner that no part of him
was visible excepting a face, of an unvarying red colour. There was an habitual
upward look about the head of this gentleman, as if dissatisfied with its
natural proximity to the earth, and the expression of his countenance was that
of busy care. He was the charioteer, and he guided the mettled animals along the
precipice, with a fearless eye, and a steady hand. Immediately behind him, with
his face toward the other two, was a tall figure, to whose appearance not even
the duplicate over-coats which he wore, aided by the corner of a horse blanket,
could give the appearance of strength. His face was protruding from beneath a
woollen night-cap, and when he turned to the vehicle of Marmaduke as the sleighs
approached each other, it seemed formed by nature to cut the atmosphere with the
least possible resistance. The eyes alone appeared to create an obstacle, for
from either side of his forehead their light, blue, glassy balls projected. The
sallow of his countenance was too permanent to be affected even by the intense
cold of the evening. Opposite to this personage, sat a solid, short, and square
figure. No part of his form was to be discovered, through his over dress, but a
face that was illuminated by a pair of black eyes, that gave the lie to every
demure feature in his countenance. - A fair, jolly wig furnished a neat and
rounded outline to his visage, and he, as well as the other two, wore
marten-skin caps. The fourth, was a meek-looking, long-visaged man, without any
other protection from the cold than that which was furnished by a black surtout,
made with some little formality, but which was rather thread bare and rusty. He
wore a hat of extremely decent proportions, though frequent brushing had quite
destroyed its nap. His face was pale, and withal a little melancholy, or what
might be termed of a studious complexion. The air had given it, just now, a
slight and somewhat feverish flush. The character of his whole appearance,
especially contrasted to the air of humour in his next companion, was that of
habitual mental care. No sooner had the two sleighs approached within speaking
distance, than the driver of this fantastic equipage shouted aloud -
    »Draw up in the quarry - draw up, thou king of the Greeks; draw into the
quarry, Agamemnon, or I shall never be able to pass you. Welcome home, cousin
'duke - welcome, welcome, black-eyed Bess. Thou seest, Marmaduke, that I have
taken the field with an assorted cargo, to do thee honour. Monsieur Le Quoi has
come out with only one cap; Old Fritz would not stay to finish the bottle; and
Mr. Grant has got to put the lastly to his sermon, yet. Even all the horses
would come - by-the-by, Judge, I must sell the blacks for you, immediately; they
interfere, and the nigh one is a bad goer in double harness. I can get rid of
them to -«
    »Sell what thou wilt, Dickon,« interrupted the cheerful voice of the Judge,
»so that thou leavest me my daughter and my lands. Ah! Fritz, my old friend,
this is a kind compliment, indeed, for seventy to pay to five and forty.
Monsieur Le Quoi, I am your servant. Mr. Grant,« lifting his cap, »I feel
indebted to your attention. Gentlemen, I make you acquainted with my child.
Yours are names with which she is very familiar.«
    »Velcome, velcome, Tchooge,« said the elder of the party, with a strong
German accent. »Miss Petsy vilt owe me a kiss.«
    »And cheerfully will I pay it, my good sir,« cried the soft voice of
Elizabeth; which sounded in the clear air of the hills, like tones of silver,
amid the loud cries of Richard. »I have always a kiss for my old friend, Major
Hartmann.«
    By this time the gentleman in the front seat, who had been addressed as
Monsieur Le Quoi, had arisen with some difficulty, owing to the impediment of
his over coats, and steadying himself by placing one hand on the stool of the
charioteer, with the other, he removed his cap, and bowing politely to the
Judge, and profoundly to Elizabeth, he paid his compliments.
    »Cover thy poll, Gaul, cover thy poll,« cried the driver, who was Mr.
Richard Jones; »cover thy poll, or the frost will pluck out the remnant of thy
locks. Had the hairs on the head of Absalom been as scarce as thine, he might
have been living to this day.« The jokes of Richard never failed of exciting
risibility, for he uniformly did honour to his own wit; and he enjoyed a hearty
laugh on the present occasion, while Mr. Le Quoi resumed his seat with a polite
reciprocation in his mirth. The clergyman, for such was the office of Mr. Grant,
modestly, though quite affectionately, exchanged his greetings with the
travellers also, when Richard prepared to turn the heads of his horses
homewards.
    It was in the quarry alone that he could effect this object, without
ascending to the summit of the mountain. A very considerable excavation had been
made in the side of the hill, at the point where Richard had succeeded in
stopping the sleighs, from which the stones used for building in the village,
were ordinarily quarried, and in which he now attempted to turn his team.
Passing itself, was a task of difficulty, and frequently of danger, in that
narrow road; but Richard had to meet the additional risk of turning his
four-in-hand. The black civilly volunteered his services to take off the
leaders, and the Judge very earnestly seconded the measure, with his advice.
Richard treated both proposals with great disdain -
    »Why, and wherefore, cousin 'duke,« he exclaimed a little angrily; »the
horses are gentle as lambs. You know that I broke the leaders myself, and the
pole-horses are too near my whip to be restive. Here is Mr. Le Quoi, now, who
must know something about driving, because he has rode out so often with me; I
will leave it to Mr. Le Quoi whether there is any danger.«
    It was not in the nature of the Frenchman to disappoint expectations so
confidently formed; although he sat looking down the precipice which fronted
him, as Richard turned his leaders into the quarry, with a pair of eyes that
stood out like those of lobsters. The German's muscles were unmoved, but his
quick sight scanned each movement. Mr. Grant placed his hands on the side of the
sleigh, in preparation for a spring, but moral timidity deterred him from taking
the leap, that bodily apprehension strongly urged him to attempt.
    Richard, by a sudden application of the whip, succeeded in forcing the
leaders into the snow bank that covered the quarry; but the instant that the
impatient animals suffered by the crust, through which they broke at each step,
they positively refused to move an inch further in that direction. On the
contrary, finding that the cries and blows of their driver, were redoubled at
this juncture, the leaders backed upon the pole-horses, who, in their turn,
backed the sleigh. Only a single log lay above the pile which upheld the road,
on the side toward the valley, and this was now buried in the snow. The sleigh
was easily forced across so slight an impediment, and before Richard became
conscious of his danger, one half of the vehicle was projected over a precipice,
which fell, perpendicularly, more than a hundred feet. The Frenchman, who, by
his position, had a full view of their threatened flight, instinctively threw
his body as far forward as possible, and cried, »Ah! Mon cher monsieur Deeck!
mon Dieu! que faites vous!«
    »Donner and blitzen, Richart,« exclaimed the veteran German, looking over
the side of the sleigh with unusual emotion, »put you will preak ter sleigh and
kilt ter horses.«
    »Good Mr. Jones,« said the clergyman, »be prudent, good sir - be careful.«
    »Get up, obstinate devils,« cried Richard, catching a bird's-eye view of his
situation, and, in his eagerness to move forward, kicking the stool on which he
sat, - »Get up, I say - Cousin 'duke, I shall have to sell the grays too; they
are the worst broken horses - Mr. Le Quaw!« Richard was too much agitated to
regard his pronunciation, of which he was commonly a little vain, »Monsieur Le
Quaw, pray get off my leg; you hold my leg so tight that it's no wonder the
horses back.«
    »Merciful Providence!« exclaimed the Judge, »they will be all killed!«
    Elizabeth gave a piercing shriek, and the black of Agamemnon's face changed
to a muddy white.
    At this critical moment, the young hunter, who, during the salutations of
the parties, had sat in rather sullen silence, sprang from the sleigh of
Marmaduke to the heads of the refractory leaders. The horses, who were yet
suffering under the injudicious and somewhat random blows of Richard, were
dancing up and down with that ominous movement, that threatens a sudden and
uncontrollable start, still pressing backward. The youth gave the leaders a
powerful jerk, and they plunged aside, and re-entered the road in the position
in which they were first halted. The sleigh was whirled from its dangerous
position, and upset with the runners outwards. The German and the divine, were
thrown rather unceremoniously into the highway, but without danger to their
bones. Richard appeared in the air, describing the segment of a circle, of which
the reins were the radii, and landed at the distance of some fifteen feet, in
that snow bank which the horses had dreaded, right end uppermost. Here, as he
instinctively grasped the reins, as drowning men seize at straws, he admirably
served the purpose of an anchor. The Frenchman, who was on his legs in the act
of springing from the sleigh, took an aerial flight also, much in the attitude
which boys assume when they play leap-frog, and flying off in a tangent to the
curvature of his course, came into the snow bank head foremost, where he
remained, exhibiting two lathy legs on high, like scare-crows waving in a corn
field. Major Hartmann, whose self-possession had been admirably preserved during
the whole evolution, was the first of the party that gained his feet and his
voice.
    »Ter deyvel, Richart,« he exclaimed, in a voice half serious, half comical,
»Put you unloat your sleigh very hantily.«
    It may be doubtful, whether the attitude in which Mr. Grant continued for an
instant after his overthrow, was the one into which he had been thrown, or was
assumed, in humbling himself before the power that he reverenced, in
thanksgiving at his escape. When he rose from his knees, he began to gaze about
him, with anxious looks, after the welfare of his companions, while every joint
in his body trembled with nervous agitation. There was some confusion in the
faculties of Mr. Jones, also; but as the mist gradually cleared from before his
eyes, he saw that all was safe, and with an air of great self-satisfaction, he
cried, »well - that was neatly saved, any how - It was a lucky thought in me to
hold on the reins, or the fiery devils would have been over the mountain by this
time. How well I recovered myself, 'duke; another moment would have been too
late - But I knew just the spot where to touch the off-leader; that blow under
his right flank, and the sudden jerk I gave the rein, brought them round quite
in rule, I must own myself.«
    The spectators, from immemorial usage, have a right to laugh at the
casualties of a sleigh-ride; and the Judge was no sooner certain that no harm
was done, than he made full use of the privilege.
    »Thou jerk! thou recover thyself, Dickon!« he said; »but for that brave lad
yonder, thou and thy horses, or rather mine, would have been dashed to pieces -
But where is Monsieur Le Quoi?«
    »Oh! mon cher Juge! Mon ami!« cried a smothered voice, »praise be God I
live; vill-a you, Mister Agamemnon, be pleas come down ici, and help-a me on my
leg?«
    The divine and the negro seized the incarcerated Gaul by his legs, and
extricated him from a snow-bank of three feet in depth, whence his voice had
sounded as from the tombs. The thoughts of Mr. Le Quoi, immediately on his
liberation, were not extremely collected; and when he reached the light, he
threw his eyes upwards, in order to examine the distance he had fallen. His good
humour returned however, with a knowledge of his safety, though it was some
little time before he clearly comprehended the case.
    »What, monsieur,« said Richard, who was busily assisting the black in taking
off the leaders; »are you there? I thought I saw you flying towards the top of
the mountain just now.«
    »Praise be God, I no fly down into de lake,« returned the Frenchman, with a
visage that was divided between pain, occasioned by a few large scratches that
he had received in forcing his head through the crust, and the look of
complaisance that seemed natural to his pliable features; »ah! mon cher Mister
Deeck, vat you shall do next? - dere be noting you no try.«
    »The next thing, I trust, will be to learn to drive,« said the Judge, who
had busied himself in throwing the buck, together with several other articles of
baggage, from his own sleigh into the snow; »here are seats for you all,
gentlemen; the evening grows piercingly cold, and the hour approaches for the
service of Mr. Grant: we will leave friend Jones to repair the damages, with the
assistance of Agamemnon, and hasten to a warm fire. Here, Dickon, are a few
articles of Bess's trumpery, that you can throw into your sleigh when ready, and
there is also a deer of my taking, that I will thank you to bring - Aggy!
remember there will be a visit from Santaclaus5 to-night.«
    The black grinned, conscious of the bribe that was offered him for silence
on the subject of the deer, while Richard, without, in the least, waiting for
the termination of his cousin's speech, began his reply -
    »Learn to drive, sayest thou, cousin 'duke? Is there a man in the county who
knows more of horse-flesh than myself? Who broke in the filly, that no one else
dare mount; though your coachman did pretend that he had tamed her before I took
her in hand, but any body could see that he lied - he was a great liar, that
John - what's that, a buck?« - Richard abandoned the horses, and ran to the spot
where Marmaduke had thrown the deer; »It is a buck! I am amazed! Yes, here are
two holes in him; he has fired both barrels, and hit him each time. Ecod! how
Marmaduke will brag! he is a prodigious bragger about any small matter like this
now; well, to think that 'duke has killed a buck before christmas! There will be
no such thing as living with him - they are both bad shots though, mere chance -
mere chance; - now, I never fired twice at a cloven hoof in my life; - it is hit
or miss with me - dead or runaway: - had it been a bear, or a wild-cat, a man
might have wanted both barrels. Here! you Aggy! how far off was the Judge when
this buck was shot?«
    »Eh! Massa Richard, may be a ten rod,« cried the black, bending under one of
the horses, with the pretence of fastening a buckle, but in reality to conceal
the grin that opened a mouth from ear to ear.
    »Ten rod!« echoed the other; »why, Aggy, the deer I killed last winter was
at twenty - yes! if any thing it was nearer thirty than twenty. I wouldn't shoot
at a deer at ten rod: besides, you may remember, Aggy, I only fired once.«
    »Yes, Massa Richard, I 'member 'em! Natty Bumppo fire t'oder gun. You know,
sir, all 'e folk say, Natty kill 'em.«
    »The folks lie, you black devil!« exclaimed Richard in great heat. »I have
not shot even a gray squirrel these four years, to which that old rascal has not
laid claim, or some one else for him. This is a damn'd envious world that we
live in - people are always for dividing the credit of a thing, in order to
bring down merit to their own level. Now they have a story about the Patent6,
that Hiram Doolittle helped to plan the steeple to St. Paul's; when Hiram knows
that it is entirely mine; a little taken from a print of its namesake in London,
I own; but essentially, as to all points of genius, my own.«
    »I don't know where he come from,« said the black, losing every mark of
humour in an expression of admiration, »but eb'ry body say, he wonnerful
hansome.«
    »And well they may say so, Aggy,« cried Richard, leaving the buck, and
walking up to the negro with the air of a man who has new interest awakened
within him. »I think I may say, without bragging, that it is the handsomest and
the most scientific country church in America. I know that the Connecticut
settlers talk about their Wethersfield meeting-house: but I never believe more
than half what they say, they are such unconscionable braggers. Just as you have
got a thing done, if they see it likely to be successful they are always for
interfering, and then it is ten to one but they lay claim to half, or even all
of the credit. You may remember, Aggy, when I painted the sign of the bold
dragoon for Capt. Hollister, there was that fellow, who was about town laying
brick dust on the houses, came one day and offered to mix what I call the
streaky black, for the tail and mane, and then, because it looks like horse
hair, he tells every body that the sign was painted by himself and Squire Jones.
If Marmaduke don't send that fellow off the Patent, he may ornament his village
with his own hands, for me.« Here Richard paused a moment, and cleared his
throat by a loud hem, while the negro, who was all this time busily engaged in
preparing the sleigh, proceeded with his work in respectful silence. Owing to
the religious scruples of the Judge, Aggy was the servant of Richard, who had
his services for a time7, and who, of course, commanded a legal claim to the
respect of the young negro. But when any dispute between his lawful and his real
master occurred, the black felt too much deference for both to express any
opinion. In the mean while, Richard continued watching the negro as he fastened
buckle after buckle, until, stealing a look of consciousness toward the other,
he continued, »Now, if that young man, who was in your sleigh, is a real
Connecticut settler, he will be telling every body how he saved my horses, when,
if he had let them alone for half-a-minute longer, I would have brought them in
much better, without upsetting, with the whip and rein - it spoils a horse to
give him his head. I should not wonder if I had to sell the whole team, just for
that one jerk he gave them.« Richard paused, and hemmed, for his conscience
smote him a little, for censuring a man who had just saved his life - »who is
the lad, Aggy - I don't remember to have seen him before?«
    The black recollected the hint about Santaclaus, and while he briefly
explained how they had taken up the person in question on the top of the
mountain, he forbore to add any thing concerning the accident of the wound, only
saying, that he believed the youth was a stranger. It was so usual for men of
the first rank to take into their sleighs any one they found toiling through the
snow, that Richard was perfectly satisfied with this explanation. He heard Aggy,
with great attention, and then remarked, »Well, if the lad has not been spoiled
by the people in Templeton, he may be a modest young man, and as he certainly
meant well, I shall take some notice of him, - perhaps he is land-hunting - I
say, Aggy - may be he is out hunting?«
    »Eh! yes, massa Richard,« said the black, a little confused; for as Richard
did all the flogging, he stood in great terror of his master, in the main -
»yes, sir, I b'lieve he be.«
    »Had he a pack and an axe?«
    »No, sir, only he rifle.«
    »Rifle!« exclaimed Richard, observing the confusion of the negro, which now
amounted to terror. »By Jove! he kill'd the deer - I knew that Marmaduke
couldn't kill a buck on the jump - How was it, Aggy; tell me all about it, and
I'll roast 'duke quicker than he can roast his saddle - How was it, Aggy? the
lad shot the buck, and the Judge bought it, ha! and he is taking the youth down
to get the pay?«
    The pleasure of this discovery had put Richard in such a good humour, that
the negro's fears in some measure vanished, and he remembered the stocking of
Santaclaus. After a gulp or two he made out to reply.
    »You forgit a two shot, Sir.«
    »Don't lie, you black rascal,« cried Richard, stepping on the snow bank to
measure the distance from his lash to the negro's back; »speak truth, or I
trounce you.« While speaking, the stock was slowly rising in Richard's right
hand, and the lash drawing through his left, in the scientific manner with which
drummers apply the cat, and Agamemnon, after turning each side of himself
towards his master, and finding both equally unwilling to remain there, fairly
gave in. In a very few words he made his master acquainted with the truth, at
the same time earnestly conjuring Richard to protect him from the displeasure of
the Judge.
    »I'll do it, boy, I'll do it,« cried the other, rubbing his hands with
delight; »say nothing, but leave me to manage 'duke - I have a great mind to
leave the deer on the hill, and to make the fellow send for his own carcass: but
no, I will let Marmaduke tell a few bouncers about it before I come out upon him
- Come, hurry in, Aggy, I must help to dress the lad's wound; this Yankee8
Doctor knows nothing of surgery - I had to hold old Milligan's leg for him,
while he cut it off.« Richard was now seated on the stool again, and the black
taking the hind seat, the steeds were put in motion towards home. As they dashed
down the hill, on a fast trot, the driver occasionally turned his face to Aggy,
and continued speaking; for, notwithstanding their recent rupture, the most
perfect cordiality was again existing between them. »This goes to prove that I
turned the horses with the reins, for no man who is shot in the right shoulder,
can have strength enough to bring round such obstinate devils - I knew I did it
from the first; but I did not want to multiply words with Marmaduke about it -
Will you bite? you villain! - hip, boys, hip - Old Natty too, that is the best
of it - Well, well - 'duke will say no more about my deer - and the Judge fired
both barrels, and hit nothing but a poor lad, who was behind a pine tree - I
must help that quack to take out the buck shot for the poor fellow.« In this
manner Richard descended the mountain; the bells ringing and his tongue going,
until they entered the village, when the whole attention of the driver was
devoted to a display of his horsemanship, to the admiration of all the gaping
women and children, who thronged the windows, to witness the arrival of their
landlord and his daughter.
 

                                   Chapter V

 »Nathaniel's coat, sir, was not fully made,
 And Gabriel's pumps were all unfinish'd i' th' heel;
 There was no link to colour Peter's hat,
 And Walter's dagger was not come from sheathing:
 There were none fine, but Adam, Ralph and Gregory.«
                                           The Taming of the Shrew, IV.i.132-36.
 
After winding along the side of the mountain, the road, on reaching the gentle
declivity which lay at the base of the hill, turned at a right angle to its
former course, and shot down an inclined plane, directly into the village of
Templeton. The rapid little stream that we have already mentioned, was crossed
by a bridge of hewn timber, which manifested, by its rude construction, and the
unnecessary size of its framework, both the value of labour, and the abundance
of materials. This little torrent, whose dark waters gushed over the limestones
that lined its bottom, was nothing less than one of the many sources of the
Susquehanna; a river, to which the Atlantic herself, has extended an arm in
welcome. It was at this point, that the powerful team of Mr. Jones, brought him
up to the more sober steeds of our travellers. A small hill was risen, and
Elizabeth found herself, at once, amid the incongruous dwellings of the village.
The street was of the ordinary width, notwithstanding the eye might embrace in
one view, thousands, and tens of thousands of acres, that were yet tenanted only
by the beasts of the forest. But such had been the will of her father, and such
had also met the wishes of his followers. To them, the road, that made the most
rapid approaches to the condition of the old, or, as they expressed it, the down
countries, was the most pleasant; and surely nothing could look more like
civilization, than a city, even if it lay in a wilderness! The width of the
street, for so it was called, might have been one hundred feet; but the track
for the sleighs was much more limited. On either side of the highway, were piled
huge heaps of logs that were daily increasing rather than diminishing in size,
notwithstanding the enormous fires that might be seen through every window.
    The last object at which Elizabeth gazed when they renewed their journey,
after the reconnoitre with Richard, was the sun, as it expanded in the refraction
of the horizon, and over whose disk, the dark umbrage of a pine was stealing,
while it slowly sunk behind the western hills. But its setting rays darted along
the openings of the mountain she was on, and lighted the shining covering of the
birches, until their smooth and glossy coats, nearly rivalled the mountain-sides
in colour. The outline of each dark pine was delineated far in the depths of the
forest; and the rocks, too smooth and too perpendicular to retain the snow that
had fallen, brightened, as if smiling at the leave-taking of the luminary. But
at each step, as they descended, Elizabeth observed that they were leaving the
day behind them. Even the heartless, but bright rays of a December sun, were
missed, as they glided into the cold gloom of the valley. Along the summits of
the mountains in the eastern range, it is true, the light still lingered,
receding step by step from the earth into the clouds that were gathering, with
the evening mist, about the limited horizon; but the frozen lake lay without a
shadow on its bosom; the dwellings were becoming already gloomy and indistinct;
and the woodcutters were shouldering their axes, and preparing to enjoy,
throughout the long evening before them, the comforts of those exhilarating
fires that their labour had been supplying with fuel. They paused only to gaze
at the passing sleighs, to lift their caps to Marmaduke, to exchange familiar
nods with Richard, and each disappeared in his dwelling. The paper curtains
dropped behind our travellers in every window, shutting from the air even the
fire-light of the cheerful apartments; and when the horses of her father turned,
with a rapid whirl, into the open gate of the mansion-house, and nothing stood
before her but the cold, dreary stone-walls of the building, as she approached
them through an avenue of young and leafless poplars, Elizabeth felt as if all
the loveliness of the mountain-view had vanished like the fancies of a dream.
Marmaduke had retained so much of his early habits as to reject the use of
bells, but the equipage of Mr. Jones came dashing through the gate after them,
sending its jingling sounds through every cranny of the building, and in a
moment the dwelling was in an uproar.
    On a stone platform, of rather small proportions, considering the size of
the building, Richard and Hiram had, conjointly, reared four little columns of
wood, which in their turn supported the shingled roofs of the portico - this was
the name that Mr. Jones had thought proper to give to a very plain, covered,
entrance. The ascent to the platform was by five or six stone steps, somewhat
hastily laid together, and which the frost had already begun to move from their
symmetrical positions. But the evils of a cold climate, and a superficial
construction, did not end here. As the steps lowered, the platform necessarily
fell also, and the foundations actually left the superstructure suspended in the
air, leaving an open space of a foot between the base of the pillars and the
stones on which they had originally been placed. It was lucky for the whole
fabric, that the carpenter, who did the manual part of the labour, had fastened
the canopy of this classic entrance so firmly to the side of the house, that,
when the base deserted the superstructure in the manner we have described, and
the pillars, for the want of a foundation, were no longer of service to support
the roof, the roof was able to uphold the pillars. Here was indeed an
unfortunate gap left in the ornamental part of Richard's column; but, like the
window in Aladdin's palace, it seemed only left in order to prove the fertility
of its master's resources. The composite order again offered its advantages, and
a second edition of the base was given, as the booksellers say, with additions
and improvements. It was necessarily larger, and it was properly ornamented with
mouldings; still the steps continued to yield, and, at the moment when Elizabeth
returned to her father's door, a few rough wedges were driven under the pillars
to keep them steady, and to prevent their weight from separating them from the
pediment which they ought to have supported.
    From the great door, which opened into the porch, emerged two or three
female domestics, and one male. The latter was bare-headed, but evidently more
dressed than usual, and on the whole, was of so singular a formation and attire,
as to deserve a more minute description. He was about five feet in height, of a
square and athletic frame, with a pair of shoulders that would have fitted a
grenadier. His low stature was rendered the more striking by a bend forward that
he was in the habit of assuming, for no apparent reason, unless it might be to
give greater freedom to his arms, in a particularly sweeping swing, that they
constantly practised when their master was in motion. His face was long, of a
fair complexion, burnt to a fiery red; with a snub nose, cocked into an
inveterate pug; a mouth of enormous dimensions, filled with fine teeth; and a
pair of blue eyes, that seemed to look about them, on surrounding objects, with
habitual contempt. His head composed full one fourth of his whole length, and
the queue that depended from its rear occupied another. He wore a coat of very
light drab cloth, with buttons as large as dollars, bearing the impression of a
foul anchor. The skirts were extremely long, reaching quite to the calf, and
were broad in proportion. Beneath, there were a vest and breeches of red plush,
somewhat worn and soiled. He had shoes with large buckles, and stockings of blue
and white stripes.
    This odd-looking figure reported himself to be a native of the county of
Cornwall, in the island of Great Britain. His boyhood had passed in the
neighbourhood of the tin mines, and his youth, as the cabin-boy of a smuggler,
between Falmouth and Guernsey. From this trade he had been impressed into the
service of his king, and, for the want of a better, had been taken into the
cabin, first as a servant, and finally as steward to the captain. Here he
acquired the art of making chowder, lobskous, and one or two other sea-dishes,
and, as he was fond of saying, had an opportunity of seeing the world. With the
exception of one or two out-ports in France, and an occasional visit to
Portsmouth, Plymouth, and Deal, he had in reality seen no more of mankind,
however, than if he had been riding a donkey in one of his native mines. But,
being discharged from the navy at the peace of '83, he declared, that, as he had
seen all the civilized parts of the earth, he was inclined to make a trip to the
wilds of America. We will not trace him in his brief wanderings, under the
influence of that spirit of emigration, that sometimes induces a dapper Cockney
to quit his home, and lands him, before the sound of Bow-bells is out of his
ears, within the roar of the cataract of Niagara, but shall only add, that, at a
very early day, even before Elizabeth had been sent to school, he had found his
way into the family of Marmaduke Temple, where, owing to a combination of
qualities that will be developed in the course of the tale, he held, under Mr.
Jones, the office of majordomo. The name of this worthy was Benjamin Penguillan,
according to his own pronunciation; but, owing to a marvellous tale that he was
in the habit of relating, concerning the length of time he had to labour to keep
his ship from sinking after Rodney's victory, he had universally acquired the
nickname of Ben Pump.
    By the side of Benjamin, and pressing forward as if a little jealous of her
station, stood a middle-aged woman, dressed in calico, rather violently
contrasted in colour, with a tall, meagre, shapeless figure, sharp features, and
a somewhat acute expression of her physiognomy. Her teeth were mostly gone, and
what did remain were of a light yellow. The skin of her nose was drawn tightly
over the member, to hang in large wrinkles in her cheeks and about her mouth.
She took snuff in such quantities, as to create the impression, that she owed
the saffron of her lips and the adjacent parts, to this circumstance; but it was
the unvarying colour of her whole face. She presided over the female part of the
domestic arrangements, in the capacity of housekeeper, was a spinster, and bore
the name of Remarkable Pettibone. To Elizabeth she was an entire stranger,
having been introduced into the family since the death of her mother.
    In addition to these, were three or four subordinate menials, mostly black,
some appearing at the principal door, and some running from the end of the
building, where stood the entrance to the cellar-kitchen.
    Besides these, there was a general rush from Richard's kennel, accompanied
with every canine tone, from the howl of the wolf-dog to the petulant bark of
the terrier. The master received their boisterous salutations with a variety of
imitations from his own throat, when the dogs, probably from shame at being
outdone, ceased their outcry. One stately, powerful mastiff, who wore around his
neck a brass collar, with M.T. engraved in large letters on the rim, alone was
silent. He walked majestically, amid the confusion, to the side of the Judge,
where, receiving a kind pat or two, he turned to Elizabeth, who even stooped to
kiss him, as she called him kindly by the name of Old Brave. The animal seemed
to know her, as she ascended the steps, supported by Monsieur Le Quoi and her
father, in order to protect her from falling on the ice, with which they were
covered. He looked wistfully after her figure, and when the door closed on the
whole party, he laid himself in a kennel that was placed nigh by, as if
conscious that the house contained something of additional value to guard.
    Elizabeth followed her father, who paused a moment to whisper a message to
one of his domestics, into a large hall, that was dimly lighted by two candles,
placed in high, old-fashioned, brass candlesticks. The door closed, and the
party were at once removed from an atmosphere that was nearly at zero, to one of
sixty degrees above. In the centre of the hall stood an enormous stove, the
sides of which appeared to be quivering with heat; from which a large, straight
pipe, leading through the ceiling above, carried off the smoke. An iron basin,
containing water, was placed on this furnace, for such only it could be called,
in order to preserve a proper humidity in the apartment. The room was carpeted,
and furnished with convenient, substantial furniture; some of which was brought
from the city, and the remainder having been manufactured by the mechanics of
Templeton. There was a sideboard of mahogany, inlaid with ivory, and bearing
enormous handles of glittering brass, and groaning under the piles of silver
plate. Near it stood a set of prodigious tables, made of the wild cherry, to
imitate the imported wood of the sideboard, but plain, and without ornament of
any kind. Opposite to these stood a smaller table, formed from a lighter
coloured wood, through the grains of which the wavy lines of the curled-maple of
the mountains were beautifully undulating. Near to this, in a corner, stood a
heavy, old-fashioned, brass-faced clock, encased in a high box, of the dark hue
of the black-walnut from the seashore. An enormous settee, or sofa, covered with
light chintz, stretched along the walls for near twenty feet on one side of the
hall, and chairs of wood, painted a light yellow, with black lines that were
drawn by no very steady hand, were ranged opposite, and in the intervals between
the other pieces of furniture. A Fahrenheit's thermometer, in a mahogany case,
and with a barometer annexed, was hung against the wall, at some little distance
from the stove, which Benjamin consulted, every half-hour, with prodigious
exactitude. Two small glass chandeliers were suspended at equal distances
between the stove and the outer doors, one of which opened at each end of the
hall, and gilt lustres were affixed to the frame-work of the numerous side
doors, that led from the apartment. Some little display in architecture had been
made in constructing these frames and casings, which were surmounted with
pediments, that bore each a little pedestal in its centre. On these pedestals
were small busts in blacked plaster of Paris. The style of the pedestals, as
well as the selection of the busts, were all due to the taste of Mr. Jones. On
one stood Homer, a most striking likeness, Richard affirmed, »as any one might
see, for it was blind.« Another bore the image of a smooth visaged gentleman,
with a pointed beard, whom he called Shakespeare. A third ornament, was an urn,
which, from its shape, Richard was accustomed to say, intended to represent
itself as holding the ashes of Dido. A fourth was certainly old Franklin, in his
cap and spectacles. A fifth as surely bore the dignified composure of the face
of Washington. A sixth was a non-descript, representing »a man with a
shirt-collar open,« to use the language of Richard, »with a laurel on his head;
- it was Julius Cæsar or Dr. Faustus; there were good reasons for believing
either.«
    The walls were hung with a dark, lead-coloured English paper, that
represented Britannia weeping over the tomb of Wolfe. The hero himself stood at
a little distance from the mourning goddess, and at the edge of the paper. Each
width contained the figure, with the slight exception of one arm of the General,
which ran over on to the next piece, so that when Richard essayed, with his own
hands, to put together this delicate outline, some difficulties occurred, that
prevented a nice conjunction, and Britannia had reason to lament, in addition to
the loss of her favourite's life, numberless cruel amputations of his right arm.
    The luckless cause of these unnatural divisions now announced his presence
in the hall by a loud crack of his whip.
    »Why, Benjamin! you Ben Pump! is this the manner in which you receive the
heiress?« he cried. »Excuse him, cousin Elizabeth. The arrangements were too
intricate to be trusted to every one; but now I am here, things will go on
better. Come, light up, Mr. Penguillan, light up, light up, and let us see one
another's faces. Well, 'duke, I have brought home your deer; what is to be done
with it, ha?«
    »By the Lord, Squire,« commenced Benjamin in reply, first giving his mouth a
wipe with the back of his hand, »if this here thing had been ordered sum'at
earlier in the day, it might have been got up, d'ye see, to your liking. I had
mustered all hands, and was exercising candles, when you hove in sight; but when
the women heard your bells, they started an end, as if they were riding the
boatswain's, colt; and, if-so-be there is that man in the house, who can bring
up a parcel of women when they have got headway on them, until they've run out
the end of their rope, his name is not Benjamin Pump. But Miss Betsy here, must
have altered more than a privateer in disguise, since she has got on her woman's
duds, if she will take offence with an old fellow, for the small matter of
lighting a few candles.«
    Elizabeth and her father continued silent, for both experienced the same
sensation on entering the hall. The former had resided one year in the building
before she left home for school, and the figure of its lamented mistress was
missed by both husband and child.
    But candles had been placed in the chandeliers and lustres, and the
attendants were so far recovered from surprise as to recollect their use: the
oversight was immediately remedied, and in a minute the apartment was in a blaze
of light.
    The slight melancholy of our heroine and her father was banished by this
brilliant interruption, and the whole party began to lay aside the numberless
garments they had worn in the air.
    During this operation, Richard kept up a desultory dialogue with the
different domestics, occasionally throwing out a remark to the Judge concerning
the deer; but as his conversation at such moments was much like an accompaniment
on a piano, a thing that is heard without being attended to, we will not
undertake the task of recording his diffuse discourse.
    The instant that Remarkable Pettibone had executed her portion of the labour
in illuminating, she returned to a position near Elizabeth, with the apparent
motive of receiving the clothes that the other threw aside, but in reality to
examine, with an air of curiosity - not unmixed with jealousy, - the appearance
of the lady who was to supplant her in the administration of their domestic
economy. The housekeeper felt a little appalled, when, after cloaks, coats,
shawls and socks had been taken off in succession, the large black hood was
removed, and the dark ringlets, shining like the raven's wing, fell from her
head, and left the sweet but commanding features of the young lady exposed to
view. Nothing could be fairer and more spotless than the forehead of Elizabeth,
and preserve the appearance of life and health. Her nose would have been called
Grecian, but for a softly rounded swell, that gave in character to the feature
what it lost in beauty. Her mouth, at first sight, seemed only made for love,
but the instant that its muscles moved, every expression that womanly dignity
could utter, played around it, with the flexibility of female grace. It spoke
not only to the ear, but to the eye. So much, added to a form of exquisite
proportions, rather full and rounded for her years, and of the tallest medium
height, she inherited from her mother. Even the colour of her eye, the arched
brows, and the long silken lashes, came from the same source; but its expression
was her father's. Inert and composed, it was soft, benevolent, and attractive;
but it could be roused, and that without much difficulty. At such moments it was
still beautiful, though it was a little severe. As the last shawl fell aside,
and she stood, dressed in a rich blue riding-habit, that fitted her form with
the nicest exactness; her cheeks burning with roses, that bloomed the richer for
the heat of the hall, and her eyes slightly suffused with moisture, that
rendered their ordinary beauty more dazzling, and with every feature of her
speaking countenance illuminated by the lights that flared around her,
Remarkable felt that her own power had ended.
    The business of unrobing had been simultaneous. Marmaduke appeared in a suit
of plain neat black; Monsieur Le Quoi, in a coat of snuff-colour, covering a
vest of embroidery, with breeches, and silk stockings, and buckles - that were
commonly thought to be of paste. Major Hartmann wore a coat of sky-blue, with
large brass buttons, a club wig, and boots; and Mr. Richard Jones had set off
his dapper little form in a frock of bottle-green, with bullet buttons; by one
of which the sides were united over his well-rounded waist, opening above, so as
to show a jacket of red cloth, with an under vest of flannel, faced with green
velvet, and below, so as to exhibit a pair of buckskin breeches, with long,
soiled, white-top boots, and spurs; one of the latter a little bent, from its
recent attacks on the stool.
    When the young lady had extricated herself from her garments, she was at
liberty to gaze about her, and to examine not only the household over which she
was to preside, but also the air and manner in which their domestic arrangements
were conducted. Although there was much incongruity in the furniture and
appearance of the hall, there was nothing mean. The floor was carpeted, even in
its remotest corners. The brass candlesticks, the gilt lustres, and the glass
chandeliers, whatever might be their keeping as to propriety and taste, were
admirably kept as to all the purposes of use and comfort. They were clean, and
glittering in the strong light of the apartment. Compared with the chill aspect
of the December night without, the warmth and brilliancy of the apartment
produced an effect that was not unlike enchantment. Her eye had not time to
detect in detail the little errors, which, in truth, existed, but was glancing
around her in delight, when an object arrested her view, that was in strong
contrast to the smiling faces and neatly attired personages who had thus
assembled to do honour to the heiress of Templeton.
    In a corner of the hall, near the grand entrance, stood the young hunter,
unnoticed, and for the moment apparently forgotten. But even the forgetfulness
of the Judge, which, under the influence of strong emotion, had banished the
recollection of the wound of this stranger, seemed surpassed by the absence of
mind in the youth himself. On entering the apartment he had mechanically lifted
his cap, and exposed a head, covered with hair that rivalled in colour and gloss
the locks of Elizabeth. Nothing could have wrought a greater transformation,
than the single act of removing the rough fox-skin cap. If there was much that
was prepossessing in the countenance of the young hunter, there was something
even noble in the rounded outlines of his head and brow. The very air and manner
with which the member haughtily maintained itself over the coarse, and even wild
attire, in which the rest of his frame was clad, bespoke not only familiarity
with a splendour that in those new settlements was thought to be unequalled, but
something very like contempt also.
    The hand that held the cap, rested lightly on the little ivory-mounted piano
of Elizabeth, with neither rustic restraint, nor obtrusive vulgarity. A single
finger touched the instrument, as if accustomed to dwell on such places. His
other arm was extended to its utmost length, and the hand grasped the barrel of
his long rifle, with something like convulsive energy. The act and the attitude
were both involuntary, and evidently proceeded from a feeling much deeper than
that of vulgar surprise. His appearance, connected as it was with the rough
exterior of his dress, rendered him entirely distinct from the busy group that
were moving across the other end of the long hall, occupied in receiving the
travellers, and exchanging their welcomes; and Elizabeth continued to gaze at
him in wonder. The contraction of the stranger's brows increased, as his eyes
moved slowly from one object to another. For moments the expression of his
countenance was fierce, and then again it seemed to pass away in some painful
emotion. The arm, that was extended, bent, and brought the hand nigh to his
face, when his head dropped upon it, and concealed the wonderfully speaking
lineaments.
    »We forget, dear sir, the strange gentleman,« (for her life Elizabeth could
not call him otherwise,) »whom we have brought here for assistance, and to whom
we owe every attention.«
    All eyes were instantly turned in the direction of those of the speaker, and
the youth, rather proudly, elevated his head again, while he answered -
    »My wound is trifling, and I believe that Judge Temple sent for a physician
the moment we arrived.«
    »Certainly,« said Marmaduke; »I have not forgotten the object of thy visit,
young man, nor the nature of my debt.«
    »Oh!« exclaimed Richard, with something of a waggish leer, »thou owest the
lad for the venison, I suppose, that thou killed, cousin 'duke! Marmaduke!
Marmaduke! That was a marvellous tale of thine about the buck! Here, young man,
are two dollars for the deer, and Judge Temple can do no less than pay the
Doctor. I shall charge you nothing for my services, but you shall not fare the
worse for that. Come, come, 'duke, don't be down-hearted about it; if you missed
the buck, you contrived to shoot this poor fellow through a pine tree. Now I own
that you have beat me; I never did such a thing in all my life.«
    »And I hope never will,« returned the Judge, »if you are to experience the
uneasiness that I have suffered. But be of good cheer, my young friend, the
injury must be small, as thou movest thy arm with apparent freedom.«
    »Don't make the matter worse, 'duke, by pretending to talk about surgery,«
interrupted Mr. Jones, with a contemptuous wave of the hand; »it is a science
that can only be learnt by practice. You know that my grandfather was a doctor,
but you haven't got a drop of medical blood in your veins; these kind of things
run in families. All my family by the father's side had a knack at physic. There
was my uncle that was killed at Brandywine, he died as easy again as any other
man in the regiment, just from knowing how to hold his breath naturally. Few men
know how to breathe, naturally.«
    »I doubt not, Dickon,« returned the Judge, meeting the bright smile, which,
in spite of himself, stole over the stranger's features, »that thy family
thoroughly understood the art of letting life slip through their fingers.«
    Richard heard him quite coolly, and, putting a hand in either pocket of his
surtout, so as to press forward the skirts, began to whistle a tune; but the
desire to reply overcame his philosophy, and with great heat he exclaimed -
    »You may affect to smile, Judge Temple, at hereditary virtues, if you
please; but there is not a man on your Patent who don't know better. - Here,
even this young man, who has never seen any thing but bears, and deer, and
wood-chucks, knows better, than to believe virtues are not transmitted in
families. Don't you, friend?«
    »I believe that vice is not,« said the stranger abruptly, his eye glancing
from the father to the daughter.
    »The Squire is right, Judge,« observed Benjamin, with a knowing nod of his
head towards Richard, that bespoke the cordiality between them. »Now, in the
old-country, the King's Majesty touches for the evil, and that is a disorder
that the greatest doctor in the fleet, or, for the matter of that, Admiral
either, can't cure; only the King's Majesty, or a man that's been hanged. Yes,
the Squire is right, for if-so-be that he wasn't't, how is it that the seventh son
always is a doctor, whether he ships for the cock-pit or not? Now when we fell
in with the mounsheers, under De Grasse, d'ye see, we had aboard of us a doctor«
-
    »Very well, Benjamin,« interrupted Elizabeth, glancing her eyes from the
hunter to Monsieur Le Quoi, who was most politely attending to what fell from
each individual in succession, »you shall tell me of that, and all your
entertaining adventures together; just now, a room must be prepared, in which
the arm of this gentleman can be dressed.«
    »I will attend to that myself, cousin Elizabeth,« observed Richard, somewhat
haughtily. - »The young man shall not suffer, because Marmaduke chooses to be a
little obstinate. Follow me, my friend, and I will examine the hurt myself.«
    »It will be well to wait for the physician,« said the hunter coldly; »he
cannot be distant.«
    Richard paused, and looked at the speaker, a little astonished at the
language, and a good deal appalled at the refusal. He construed the latter into
an act of hostility, and, placing his hands in the pockets again, he walked up
to Mr. Grant, and putting his face close to the countenance of the divine, said
in an under tone -
    »Now mark my words: there will be a story among the settlers, that all our
necks would have been broken, but for that fellow - as if I did not know how to
drive. Why you might have turned the horses yourself, sir; nothing was easier;
it was only pulling hard on the nigh rein, and touching the off flank of the
leader. I hope, my dear sir, you are not at all hurt by the upset the lad gave
us?«
    The reply was interrupted by the entrance of the village physician.
 

                                   Chapter VI

 »- And about his shelves,
 A beggarly account of empty boxes,
 Green earthen pots, bladders, and musty seeds,
 Remnants of pack-thread, and old cakes of roses,
 Were thinly scattered to make up a show.«
                                                    Romeo and Juliet, V.i.44-48.
 
Doctor Elnathan Todd, for such was the name of the man of physic, was commonly
thought to be, among the settlers, a gentleman of great mental endowments; and
he was assuredly of rare personal proportions. In height he measured, without
his shoes, exactly six feet and four inches. His hands, feet, and knees,
corresponded in every respect with this formidable stature; but every other part
of his frame appeared to have been intended for a man several sizes smaller, if
we except the length of the limbs. His shoulders were square, in one sense at
least, being in a right line from one side to the other; but they were so
narrow, that the long, dangling arms they supported, seemed to issue out of his
back. His neck possessed, in an eminent degree, the property of length to which
we have alluded, and it was topped by a small bullet-head, that exhibited, on
one side, a bush of bristling brown hair, and on the other, a short, twinkling
visage, that appeared to maintain a constant struggle with itself in order to
look wise. He was the youngest son of a farmer in the western part of
Massachusetts, who, being in somewhat easy circumstances, had allowed this boy
to shoot up to the height we have mentioned, without the ordinary interruptions
of field-labour, wood-chopping, and such other toils as were imposed on his
brothers. Elnathan was indebted for this exemption from labour, in some measure,
to his extraordinary growth, which, leaving him pale, inanimate, and listless,
induced his tender mother to pronounce him »a sickly boy, and one that was not
equal to work, but who might arn a living, comfortably enough, by taking to
pleading law, or turning minister, or doctoring, or some sitch-like easy
calling.« Still there was great uncertainty which of these vocations the youth
was best endowed to fill; but, having no other employment, the stripling was
constantly lounging about the homestead, munching green apples, and hunting for
sorrel; when the same sagacious eye, that had brought to light his latent
talents, seized upon this circumstance, as a clue to his future path through the
turmoils of the world. »Elnathan was cut out for a doctor,« she knew, »for he
was for ever digging for yarbs, and tasting all kinds of things that grow'd
about the lots. Then again he had a naateral love for doctor-stuff, for when she
had left the bilious pills out for her man, all nicely covered with maple sugar,
just ready to take, Nathan had come in, and swallowed them, for all the world as
if they were nothing, while Ichabod (her husband) could never get one down
without making sitch desperate faces, that it was awful to look on.«
    This discovery decided the matter. Elnathan, then about fifteen, was, much
like a wild colt, caught and trimmed, by clipping his bushy locks; dressed in a
suit of homespun, died in the butternut bark; furnished with a »New Testament,«
and a »Webster's Spelling-Book,« and sent to school. As the boy was by nature
quite shrewd enough, and had previously, at odd times, laid the foundations of
reading, writing, and arithmetic, he was soon conspicuous in the school for his
learning. The delighted mother had the gratification of hearing, from the lips
of the master, that her son was a »prodigious boy, and far above all his class.«
He also thought that »the youth had a natural love for doctoring, as he had
known him frequently advise the smaller children against eating too much, and
once or twice, when the ignorant little things had persevered in opposition to
Elnathan's advice, he had known her son empty the school-baskets with his own
mouth, to prevent the consequences.«
    Soon after this comfortable declaration from his schoolmaster, the lad was
removed to the house of the village doctor, a gentleman whose early career had
not been unlike that of our hero, where he was to be seen, sometimes watering a
horse, at others watering medicines, blue, yellow and red; then again he might
be noticed, lolling under an apple tree, with Ruddiman's Latin Grammar in his
hand, and a corner of Denman's Midwifery sticking out of a pocket; - for his
instructor held it absurd to teach his pupil how to despatch a patient regularly
from this world, before he knew how to bring him into it.
    This kind of life continued for a twelvemonth, when he suddenly appeared at
meeting in a long coat (and well did it deserve the name) of black homespun,
with little bootees, bound with uncoloured calf-skin, for the want of red
morocco.
    Soon after, he was seen shaving with a dull razor. Three or four months had
scarce elapsed before several elderly ladies were observed hastening towards the
house of a poor woman in the village, while others were running to and fro in
great apparent distress. One or two boys were mounted, bareback, on horses, and
sent off at speed in various directions. Several indirect questions were put,
concerning the place where the physician was last seen; but all would not do;
and at length Elnathan was seen issuing from his door, with a very grave air,
preceded by a little white-headed boy, out of breath, trotting before him. The
following day the youth appeared in the street, as the highway was called, and
the neighbourhood was much edified by the additional gravity of his air. The
same week he bought a new razor; and the succeeding Sunday he entered the
meeting-house with a red silk handkerchief in his hand, and with an extremely
demure countenance. In the evening he called upon a young woman of his own class
in life, for there were no others to be found, and, when he was left alone with
the fair, he was called, for the first time in his life, Doctor Todd, by her
prudent mother. The ice once broken in this manner, Elnathan was greeted from
every mouth with his official appellation.
    Another year passed under the superintendence of the same master, during
which the young physician had the credit of riding with the old doctor, although
they were generally observed to travel different roads. At the end of that
period, Dr. Todd attained his legal majority. He then took a jaunt to Boston, to
purchase medicines, and, as some intimated, to walk the hospital; we know not
how the latter might have been, but if true, he soon walked through it, for he
returned within a fortnight, bringing with him a suspicious-looking box, that
smelt powerfully of brimstone.
    The next Sunday he was married; and the following morning he entered a
one-horse sleigh with his bride, having before him the box we have mentioned,
with another filled with home-made household linen, a paper-covered trunk, with
a red umbrella lashed to it, a pair of quite new saddlebags, and a band-box. The
next intelligence that his friends received of the bride and bridegroom was,
that the latter was »settled in the new-countries, and well to do as a doctor,
in Templetown, in York state.«
    If a templar would smile at the qualifications of Marmaduke to fill the
judicial seat he occupied, we are certain that a graduate of Leyden or Edinburgh
would be extremely amused with this true narration of the servitude of Elnathan
in the temple of Æsculapius. But the same consolation was afforded to both the
jurist and the leech; for Dr. Todd was quite as much on a level with his
compeers of the profession, in that country, as was Marmaduke with his brethren
on the bench.
    Time and practice did wonders for the physician. He was naturally humane,
but possessed of no small share of moral courage; or, in other words, he was
chary of the lives of his patients, and never tried uncertain experiments on
such members of society as were considered useful; but once or twice, when a
luckless vagrant had come under his care, he was a little addicted to trying the
effects of every vial in his saddlebags on the stranger's constitution. Happily
their number was small, and in most cases their natures innocent. By these means
Elnathan had acquired a certain degree of knowledge in fevers and agues, and
could talk with much judgment concerning intermittents, remittents, tertians,
quotidians, etc. - In certain cutaneous disorders, very prevalent in new
settlements, he was considered to be infallible; and there was no woman on the
Patent, but would as soon think of becoming a mother without a husband, as
without the assistance of Dr. Todd. In short, he was rearing, on this foundation
of sand, a superstructure, cemented by practice, though composed of somewhat
brittle materials. He, however, occasionally renewed his elementary studies,
and, with the observation of a shrewd mind, was comfortably applying his
practice to his theory.
    In surgery, having the least experience, and it being a business that spoke
directly to the senses, he was most apt to distrust his own powers; but he had
applied oils to several burns, cut round the roots of sundry defective teeth,
and sewed up the wounds of numberless wood-choppers, with considerable eclat,
when an unfortunate jobber9 suffered a fracture of his leg, by the tree that he
had been felling. It was on this occasion that our hero encountered the greatest
trial his nerves and moral feeling had ever sustained. In the hour of need,
however, he was not found wanting. Most of the amputations in the new
settlements, and they were quite frequent, were performed by some one
practitioner, who, possessing originally a reputation, was enabled by this
circumstance to acquire an experience that rendered him deserving of it; and
Elnathan had been present at one or two of these operations. But on the present
occasion the man of practice was not to be obtained, and the duty fell, as a
matter of course, to the share of Mr. Todd. He went to work with a kind of blind
desperation, observing, at the same time, all the externals of decent gravity
and great skill. The sufferer's name was Milligan, and it was to this event that
Richard alluded, when he spoke of assisting the Doctor, at an amputation - by
holding the leg! The limb was certainly cut off, and the patient survived the
operation. It was, however, two years before poor Milligan ceased to complain
that they had buried the leg in so narrow a box, that it was straitened for
room; he could feel the pain shooting up from the inhumed fragment into the
living members. Marmaduke suggested that the fault might lie in the arteries and
nerves, but Richard, considering the amputation as part of his own handy-work,
strongly repelled the insinuation, at the same time declaring, that he had often
heard of men who could tell when it was about to rain, by the toes of amputated
limbs. After two or three years, notwithstanding Milligan's complaints gradually
diminished, the leg was dug up, and a larger box furnished, and from that hour
no one had heard the sufferer utter another complaint on the subject. This gave
the public great confidence in Doctor Todd, whose reputation was hourly
increasing, and, luckily for his patients, his information also.
    Notwithstanding Mr. Todd's practice, and his success with the leg, he was
not a little appalled, on entering the hall of the mansion-house. It was glaring
with the light of day; it looked so splendid and imposing, compared with the
hastily built and scantily furnished apartments which he frequented in his
ordinary practice, and contained so many well-dressed persons, and anxious
faces, that his usually firm nerves were a good deal discomposed. He had heard
from the messenger who summoned him, that it was a gun-shot wound, and had come
from his own home, wading through the snow, with his saddle-bags thrown over his
arm, while separated arteries, penetrated lungs, and injured vitals, were
whirling through his brain, as if he were stalking over a field of battle,
instead of Judge Temple's peaceable enclosure.
    The first object that met his eye, as he moved into the room, was Elizabeth,
in her riding-habit, richly laced with gold cord, her fine form bending towards
him, and her face expressing deep anxiety in every one of its beautiful
features. The enormous bony knees of the physician struck each other with a
noise that was audible, for in the absent state of his mind, he mistook her for
a general officer, perforated with bullets, hastening from the field of battle
to implore assistance. The delusion, however, was but momentary, and his eye
glanced rapidly from the daughter to the earnest dignity of the father's
countenance; thence to the busy strut of Richard, who was cooling his impatience
at the hunter's indifference to his assistance, by pacing the hall and cracking
his whip; from him to the Frenchman, who had stood for several minutes unheeded
with a chair for the lady; thence to Major Hartmann, who was very coolly
lighting a pipe three feet long by a candle in one of the chandeliers; thence to
Mr. Grant, who was turning over a manuscript with much earnestness at one of the
lustres; thence to Remarkable, who stood, with her arms demurely folded before
her, surveying with a look of admiration and envy the dress and beauty of the
young lady; and from her to Benjamin, who, with his feet standing wide apart,
and his arms a - kimbo, was balancing his square little body, with the
indifference of one who is accustomed to wounds and bloodshed. All of these
seemed to be unhurt, and the operator began to breathe more freely; but before
he had time to take a second look, the Judge, advancing, shook him kindly by the
hand, and spoke.
    »Thou art welcome, my good sir, quite welcome, indeed; here is a youth, whom
I have unfortunately wounded in shooting a deer this evening, and who requires
some of thy assistance.«
    »Shooting at a deer, 'duke,« interrupted Richard, - »Shooting at a deer. Who
do you think can prescribe, unless he knows the truth of the case? It is always
so, with some people; they think a doctor can be deceived, with the same
impunity as another man.«
    »Shooting at a deer truly,« returned the Judge, smiling, »although it is by
no means certain that I did not aid in destroying the buck; but the youth is
injured by my hand, be that as it may; and it is thy skill, that must cure him,
and my pocket shall amply reward thee for it.«
    »Two ver good tings to depend on,« observed Monsieur Le Quoi, bowing
politely, with a sweep of his head, to the Judge and the practitioner.
    »I thank you, Monsieur,« returned the Judge; »but we keep the young man in
pain. Remarkable, thou wilt please to provide linen, for lint and bandages.«
    This remark caused a cessation of the compliments, and induced the physician
to turn an inquiring eye in the direction of his patient. During the dialogue,
the young hunter had thrown aside his over coat, and now stood clad in a plain
suit of the common, light-coloured homespun of the country, that was evidently
but recently made. His hand was on the lapels of his coat, in the attitude of
removing the garment, when he suddenly suspended the movement, and looked
towards the commiserating Elizabeth, who was standing in an unchanged posture,
too much absorbed with her anxious feelings to heed his actions. A slight colour
appeared on the brow of the youth.
    »Possibly the sight of blood may alarm the lady; I will retire to another
room, while the wound is dressing.«
    »By no means,« said Doctor Todd, who, having discovered that his patient was
far from being a man of importance, felt much emboldened to perform the duty. -
»The strong light of these candles is favourable to the operation, and it is
seldom that we hard students enjoy good eyesight.«
    While speaking, Elnathan placed a pair of large, iron-rimmed spectacles on
his face, where they dropped, as it were by long practice, to the extremity of
his slim, pug nose; and if they were of no service as assistants to his eyes,
neither were they any impediment to his vision; for his little, gray organs were
twinkling above them, like two stars emerging from the envious cover of a cloud.
The action was unheeded by all but Remarkable, who observed to Benjamin -
    »Doctor Todd is a comely man to look on, and disp'ut pretty. How well he
seems in spectacles. I declare, they give a grand look to a body's face. I have
quite a great mind to try them myself.«
    The speech of the stranger recalled the recollection of Miss Temple, who
started, as if from deep abstraction, and, colouring excessively, she motioned
to a young woman, who served in the capacity of maid, and retired, with an air
of womanly reserve.
    The field was now left to the physician and his patient, while the different
personages who remained, gathered around the latter, with faces expressing the
various degrees of interest, that each one felt in his condition. Major Hartmann
alone retained his seat, where he continued to throw out vast quantities of
smoke, now rolling his eyes up to the ceiling, as if musing on the uncertainty
of life, and now bending them on the wounded man, with an expression, that
bespoke some consciousness of his situation.
    In the mean time, Elnathan, to whom the sight of a gunshot wound was a
perfect novelty, commenced his preparations, with a solemnity and care that were
worthy of the occasion. An old shirt was procured by Benjamin, and placed in the
hands of the other, who tore divers bandages from it, with an exactitude, that
marked both his own skill, and the importance of the operation.
    When this preparatory measure was taken, Dr. Todd selected a piece of the
shirt with great care, and, handing it to Mr. Jones, without moving a muscle,
said -
    »Here, Squire Jones, you are well acquainted with these things; will you
please to scrape the lint? It should be fine, and soft, you know, my dear sir;
and be cautious that no cotton gets in, or it may p'ison the wownd. The shirt
has been made with cotton thread, but you can easily pick it out.«
    Richard assumed the office, with a nod at his cousin, that said, quite
plainly, »you see, this fellow can't get along without me;« and began to scrape
the linen on his knee, with great diligence.
    A table was now spread, with vials, boxes of salve, and divers surgical
instruments. As the latter appeared, in succession, from a case of red morocco,
their owner held up each implement, to the strong light of the chandelier, near
to which he stood, and examined it, with the nicest care. A red silk
handkerchief was frequently applied to the glittering steel, as if to remove
from the polished surfaces, the least impediment, which might exist, to the most
dedicate operation. After the rather scantily furnished pocket-case, which
contained these instruments, was exhausted, the physician turned to his
saddle-bags, and produced various vials, filled with liquids, of the most
radiant colours. These were arranged, in due order, by the side of the murderous
saws, knives, and scissors, when Elnathan stretched his long body to its utmost
elevation, placing his hand on the small of his back, as if for support, and
looked about him, to discover what effect this display of professional skill,
was likely to produce on the spectators.
    »Upon my wort, toctor,« observed Major Hartmann, with a roguish roll of his
little black eyes, but with every other feature of his face in a state of
perfect rest, »put you have a very pretty pocket-pook of tools tere, and your
toctor-stuff glitters, as if it was petter for ter eyes as for ter pelly.«
    Elnathan gave a hem, - one that might have been equally taken, for that kind
of noise, which cowards are said to make, in order to awaken their dormant
courage, or for a natural effort, to clear the throat: if for the latter, it was
successful; for, turning his face to the veteran German, he said -
    »Very true, Major Hartmann, very true, sir; a prudent man will always strive
to make his remedies agreeable to the eyes, though they may not altogether suit
the stomach. It is no small part of our art, sir,« and he now spoke with the
confidence of a man who understood his subject, »to reconcile the patient to
what is for his own good, though, at the same time, it may be unpalatable.«
    »Sartain! Doctor Todd is right,« said Remarkable, »and has scripter for what
he says. The Bible tells us, how things mought be sweet to the mouth, and bitter
to the inwards.«
    »True, true,« interrupted the Judge, a little impatiently; »but here is a
youth who needs no deception to lure him to his own benefit. I see, by his eye,
that he fears nothing more than delay.«
    The stranger had, without assistance, bared his own shoulder, when the
slight perforation, produced by the passage of the buck-shot, was plainly
visible. The intense cold of the evening, had stopped the bleeding, and Dr.
Todd, casting a furtive glance at the wound, thought it by no means so
formidable an affair as he had anticipated. Thus encouraged, he approached his
patient, and made some indication of an intention to trace the route that had
been taken by the lead.
    Remarkable often found occasions, in after days, to recount the minutiæ of
that celebrated operation; and when she arrived at this point, she commonly
proceeded as follows: - »And then the Doctor tuck out of the pocket-book a long
thing, like a knitting-needle, with a button fastened to the end on't; and then
he pushed it into the wownd; and then the young man looked awful; and then I
thought I should have swan'd away - I felt in sitch a disp'ut taking; and then
the Doctor had run it right through his shoulder, and shoved the bullet out on
t'other side; and so Doctor Todd cured the young man - of a ball that the Judge
had shot into him, for all the world, as easy as I could pick out a splinter,
with my darning-needle.«
    Such were the impressions of Remarkable on the subject; and such, doubtless,
were the opinions of most of those, who felt it necessary to entertain a species
of religious veneration for the skill of Elnathan; but such was far from the
truth.
    When the physician attempted to introduce the instrument, described by
Remarkable, he was repulsed by the stranger, with a good deal of decision, and
some little contempt, in his manner.
    »I believe, sir,« he said, »that a probe is not necessary; the shot has
missed the bone, and has passed directly through the arm, to the opposite side,
where it remains, but skin-deep, and whence, I should think, it might be easily
extracted.«
    »The gentleman knows best,« said Dr. Todd, laying down the probe, with the
air of a man who had assumed it merely in compliance with forms; and, turning to
Richard, he fingered the lint, with the appearance of great care and foresight.
»Admirably well scraped, Squire Jones! it is about the best lint I have ever
seen. I want your assistance, my good sir, to hold the patient's arm, while I
make an incision for the ball. Now, I rather guess, there is not another
gentleman present, who could scrape the lint so well as Squire Jones.«
    »Such things run in families,« observed Richard, rising with alacrity, to
render the desired assistance; »my father, and my grandfather before him, were
both celebrated for their knowledge of surgery; they were not, like Marmaduke
here, puffed up with an accidental thing, such as the time when he drew in the
hip-joint of the man, who was thrown from his horse; that was the fall before
you came into the settlement, Doctor; but they were men who were taught the
thing regularly, spending half their lives in learning those little niceties;
though, for the matter of that, my grandfather was a college-bred physician, and
the best in the colony, too - that is, in his neighbourhood.«
    »So it goes with the world, Squire,« cried Benjamin; »if-so-be a man want to
walk the quarter-deck with credit, d'ye see, and with regular-built swabs on his
shoulders, he mus'nt think to do it, by getting in at the cabin-windows. There
are two ways to get into a top, besides the lubber-holes. The true way to walk
aft, is to begin forward; tho'f it be only in a humble way, like myself, d'ye
see, which was, from being only a hander of top-gallant-sails, and a stower of
the flying-jib, to keeping the key of the Captain's locker.«
    »Benjamin speaks quite to the purpose,« continued Richard. »I dare say, that
he has often seen shot extracted, in the different ships in which he has served;
suppose we get him to hold the basin; he must be used to the sight of blood.«
    »That he is, Squire, that he is,« interrupted the ci-devant steward; »many's
the good shot, round, double-headed, and grape, that I've seen the doctors at
work on. For the matter of that, I was in a boat, alongside the ship, when they
cut out the twelve-pound shot from the thigh of the Captain of the Foody-rong,
one of Mounsheer Ler Quaw's countrymen!«10
    »A twelve-pound ball, from the thigh of a human being!« exclaimed Mr. Grant,
with great simplicity, dropping the sermon he was again reading, and raising his
spectacles to the top of his forehead.
    »A twelve-pounder!« echoed Benjamin, staring around him, with much
confidence; »a twelve-pounder! ay! a twenty-four pound shot can easily be taken
from a man's body, if-so-be a doctor only knows how. There's Squire Jones, now,
ask him, sir; he reads all the books; ask him, if he never fell in with a page,
that keeps the reckoning of such things.«
    »Certainly, more important operations than that have been performed,«
observed Richard; »the Encyclopædia mentions much more incredible circumstances
than that, as, I dare say, you know, Doctor Todd.«
    »Certainly, there are incredible tales told in the Encyclopædias,« returned
Elnathan, »though I cannot say, that I have ever seen, myself, any thing larger
than a musket bullet extracted.«
    During this discourse, an incision had been made, through the skin of the
young hunter's shoulder, and the lead was laid bare. Elnathan took a pair of
glittering forceps, and was in the act of applying them to the wound, when a
sudden motion of the patient, caused the shot to fall out of itself. The long
arm and broad hand of the operator were now of singular service; for the latter
expanded itself, and caught the lead, while at the same time, an extremely
ambiguous motion was made, by its brother, so as to leave it doubtful to the
spectators, how great was its agency in releasing the shot. Richard, however,
put the matter at rest, by exclaiming -
    »Very neatly done, Doctor! I have never seen a shot more neatly extracted;
and, I dare say, Benjamin will say the same.«
    »Why, considering,« returned Benjamin, »I must say, that it was ship-shape,
and Brister-fashion. - Now all that the Doctor has to do, is to clap a couple of
plugs in the holes, and the lad will float in any gale, that blows in these here
hills.«
    »I thank you, sir, for what you have done,« said the youth, with a little
distance: »But here is a man, who will take me under his care, and spare you
all, gentlemen, any further trouble on my account.«
    The whole group turned their heads, in surprise, and beheld, standing at one
of the distant doors of the hall, the person of Indian John.
 

                                  Chapter VII

 »From Susquehanna's utmost springs,
 Where savage tribes pursue their game,
 His blanket tied with yellow strings,
 The shepherd of the forest came.«
                                         Freneau, »The Indian Student,« ll. 1-4.
 
Before the Europeans, or, to use a more significant term, the Christians,
dispossessed the original owners of the soil, all that section of country, which
contains the New-England States, and those of the Middle which lie east of the
mountains, was occupied by two great nations of Indians, from whom had descended
numberless tribes. But, as the original distinctions between these nations, were
marked by a difference in language, as well as by repeated and bloody wars, they
never were known to amalgamate, until after the power and inroads of the whites
had reduced some of the tribes to a state of dependence, that rendered not only
their political, but, considering the wants and habits of a savage, their animal
existence also, extremely precarious.
    These two great divisions consisted, on the one side, of the Five, or, as
they were afterwards called, the Six Nations, and their allies; and, on the
other, of the Lenni Lenape, or Delawares, with the numerous and powerful tribes,
that owned that nation as their Grandfather. The former were generally called,
by the Anglo-Americans, Iroquois, or the Six Nations, and sometimes Mingoes.
Their appellation, among their rivals, seems generally to have been the Mengwe,
or Maqua. They consisted of the tribes, or, as their allies were fond of
asserting, in order to raise their consequence, of the several nations, of the
Mohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, Cayugas, and Senecas; who ranked, in the
confederation, in the order in which they are named. The Tuscaroras were
admitted to this union, near a century after its formation, and thus completed
the number to six.
    Of the Lenni Lenape, or, as they were called by the whites, from the
circumstance of their holding their great council-fire on the banks of that
river, the Delaware nation, the principal tribes, besides that which bore the
generic name, were, the Mahicanni, or Mohegans, and the Naticokes, or Néntigoes.
Of these, the latter held the country the waters of the Chesapeake, and the
seashore; while the Mohegans occupied the district between the Hudson and the
ocean, including much of New-England: of course, these two tribes were the first
who were dispossessed of their lands by the Europeans.
    The wars of a portion of the latter, are celebrated among us, as the wars of
King Philip; but the peaceful policy of William Penn, or Miquon, as he was
termed by the natives, effected its object, with less difficulty, though not
with less certainly. As the natives gradually disappeared from the country of
the Mohegans, some scattering families sought a refuge around the council-fire
of the mother tribe, or the Delawares.
    This people had been induced to suffer themselves to be called women, by
their old enemies, the Mingoes, or Iroquois, after the latter, having in vain
tried the effects of hostility, had recourse to artifice, in order to prevail
over their rivals. - According to Delawares were to cultivate the arts of peace,
and to entrust their defence, entirely, to the men, or warlike tribes of the Six
nations.
    This state of things continued until the war of revolution, when the Lenni
Lenape formally asserted their independence, and fearlessly declared, that they
were again men. But, in a government, so peculiarly republican as the Indian
polity, it was not, at all times, an easy task, to restrain its members within
the rules of the nation. Several fierce and renowned warriors, of the Mohegans,
finding the conflict with the whites to be in vain, sought a refuge with their
Grandfather, and brought with them the feelings and principles, that had so long
distinguished them in own tribe. These chieftains kept alive, in some measure,
the martial spirit of the Delawares; and would, at times, lead small parties
against their ancient enemies, or such other foes as incurred their resentment.
    Among these warriors, was one race, particularly famous for their prowess,
and for those qualities that render an Indian hero celebrated. But war, time,
disease, and want, had conspired to thin their number; and the sole
representative of this once renowned family, now stood in the hall of Marmaduke
Temple. He had, for a long time, been an associate of the white-men,
particularly in their wars; and, having been, at a season when his services were
of importance, much noticed and flattered, he had turned Christian, and was
baptized by the name of John. He had suffered severely, in his family, during
the recent war, having had every soul to whom he was allied, cut off by an
inroad of the enemy; and when the last, lingering remnant of his nation,
extinguished their fires, amongst the hills of the Delaware, he alone had
remained, with a determination of laying his bones in that country, where his
fathers had so long lived and governed.
    It was only, however, within a few months, that he had appeared among the
mountains that surrounded Templeton. To the hut of the old hunter, he seemed
peculiarly welcome; and, as the habits of the Leather- were so nearly
assimilated to those of the savages, the conjunction of their interests excited
no surprise. They resided in the same cabin, ate of the same food, and were
chiefly occupied in the same pursuits.
    We have already mentioned the baptismal name of this ancient chief; but in
his conversation with Natty, held in the language of the Delawares, he was heard
uniformly to call himself Chingachgook, which, interpreted, means the Great
Snake. This name he had acquired in youth, by his skill and prowess in war; but
when his brows began to wrinkle with time, and he stood alone, the last of his
family, and his particular tribe, the few Delawares, who yet continued about the
head-waters of their river, gave him the mournful appellation of Mohegan.
Perhaps there was something of deep feeling, excited in the bosom of this
inhabitant of the forest, by the sound of a name, that recalled the idea of his
nation in ruins, for he seldom used it himself - never, indeed, excepting on the
most solemn occasions; but the settlers had united, according to the Christian
custom, his baptismal with his national name, and to them, he was generally
known as John Mohegan, or, more familiarly, as Indian John.
    From his long association with the white-men, the habits of Mohegan, were a
mixture of the civilized and savage states, though there was certainly a strong
preponderance in favour of the latter. In common with all his people, who dwelt
within the influence of the Anglo-Americans, he had acquired new wants, and his
dress was a mixture of his native and European fashions. Notwithstanding the
intense cold without, his head was uncovered; but a profusion of long, black,
coarse hair, concealed his forehead, his crown, and even hung about his cheeks,
so as to convey the idea, to one who knew his present and former conditions,
that he encouraged its abundance, as a willing veil, to hide the shame of a
noble soul, mourning for glory once known. His forehead, when it could be seen,
appeared lofty, broad, and noble. His nose was high, and of the kind called
Roman, with nostrils, that expanded, in his seventieth year, with the freedom
that had distinguished them in youth. His mouth was large, but compressed, and
possessing a great share of expression and character, and, when opened, it
discovered a perfect set of short, strong, and regular teeth. His chin was full,
though not prominent; and his face bore the infallible mark of his people, in
its square, high cheek-bones. The eyes were not large, but their black orbs
glittered in the rays of the candles, as he gazed intently down the hall, like
two balls of fire.
    The instant that Mohegan observed himself to be noticed by the group, around
the young stranger, he dropped the blanket, which covered the upper part of his
frame, from his shoulders, suffering it to fall over his leggins, of untanned
deer-skin, where it was retained by a belt of bark, that confined it to his
waist.
    As he walked slowly down the long hall, the dignified and deliberate tread
of the Indian, surprised the spectators. His shoulders, and body, to his waist,
were entirely bare, with the exception of a silver medallion of Washington, that
was suspended from his neck by a thong of buck-skin, and rested on his high
chest, amidst many scars. His shoulders were rather broad and full; but the
arms, though straight and graceful, wanted the muscular appearance, that labour
gives to a race of men. The medallion was the only ornament he wore, although
enormous slits, in the rim of either ear, which suffered the cartilages to fall
two inches below the members, had evidently been used for the purposes of
decoration, in other days. In his hand, he held a small basket, of the ash-wood
slips, coloured in divers fantastical conceits, with red and black paints
mingled with the white of the wood.
    As this child of the forest approached them, the whole party stood aside,
and allowed him to confront the object of his visit. He did not speak, however,
but stood, fixing his glowing eyes on the shoulder of the young hunter, and then
turning them intently on the countenance of the Judge. The latter was a good
deal astonished, at this unusual departure from the ordinarily subdued and quiet
manner of the Indian; but he extended his hand, and said -
    »Thou art welcome, John. This youth entertains a high opinion of thy skill,
it seems, for he prefers thee, to dress his wound, even to our good friend Dr.
Todd.«
    Mohegan now spoke, in tolerable English, but in a low, monotonous, guttural
tone: -
    »The children of Miquon do not love the sight of blood; and yet, the Young
Eagle has been struck, by the hand that should do no evil!«
    »Mohegan! old John!« exclaimed the Judge, »thinkest thou, that my hand has
ever drawn human blood willingly? For shame! for shame, old John! thy religion
should have taught thee better.«
    »The evil spirit sometimes lives in the best heart,« returned John, »but my
brother speaks the truth; his hand has never taken life, when awake; no! not
even when the children of the great English Father, were making the waters red
with the blood of his people.«
    »Surely, John,« said Mr. Grant, with much earnestness, »you remember the
divine command of our Saviour, judge not, lest ye be judged. What motive could
Judge Temple have, for injuring a youth like this; one to whom he is unknown,
and from whom he can receive neither injury nor favour?«
    John listened respectfully to the divine, and when he had concluded, he
stretched out his arm, and said with energy -
    »He is innocent - my brother has not done this.«
    Marmaduke received the offered hand of the other, with a smile, that showed,
however he might be astonished at his suspicion, he had ceased to resent it;
while the wounded youth stood, gazing from his red friend to his host, with
interest powerfully delineated in his countenance. No sooner was this act of
pacification exchanged, than John proceeded to discharge the duty, on which he
had come. Dr. Todd was far from manifesting any displeasure at this invasion of
his rights, but made way for the new leech, with an air that expressed a
willingness to gratify the humours of his patient, now that the all-important
part of the business was so successfully performed, and nothing remained to be
done, but what any child might effect. Indeed, he whispered as much to Monsieur
Le Quoi, when he said -
    »It was fortunate that the ball was extracted before this Indian came in;
but any old woman can dress the wound. The young man, I hear, lives with John
and Natty Bumppo, and it's always best to humour a patient, when it can be done
discreetly - I say, discreetly, Mounsheer.«
    »Certainement,« returned the Frenchman; »you seem ver happy, Mister Toad, in
your practeece. I tink de elder lady might ver well finish, vat you so
skeelfully begin.«
    But Richard had, at the bottom, a great deal of veneration for the knowledge
of Mohegan, especially in external wounds; and retaining all his desire for a
participation in glory, he advanced nigh the Indian, and said -
    »Sago, sago, Mohegan! sago, my good fellow! I am glad you have come; give me
a regular physician, like Doctor Todd, to cut into flesh, and a native to heal
the wound. Do you remember, John, the time when I and you set the bone of Natty
Bumppo's little finger, after he broke it, by falling from the rock, when he was
trying to get the partridge that fell on the cliffs. I never could tell yet,
whether it was I or Natty, who killed that bird: he fired first, and the bird
stooped, but then it was rising again as I pulled trigger. I should have claimed
it, for a certainty, but Natty said the hole was too big for shot, and he fired
a single ball from his rifle; but the piece I carried then, didn't scatter, and
I have known it to bore a hole through a board, when I've been shooting at a
mark, very much like rifle-bullets. Shall I help you, John? You know I have a
knack at these things.«
    Mohegan heard this disquisition quite patiently, and when Richard concluded,
he held out the basket, which contained his specifics, indicating, by a gesture,
that he might hold it. Mr. Jones was quite satisfied with this commission; and,
ever after, in speaking of the event, was used to say, that »Doctor Todd and I
cut out the bullet, and I and Indian John dressed the wound.«
    The patient was much more deserving of that epithet, while under the hands
of Mohegan, than while suffering under the practice of the physician. Indeed,
the Indian gave him but little opportunity for the exercise of a forbearing
temper, as he had come prepared for the occasion. His dressings were soon
applied, and consisted only of some pounded bark, moistened with a fluid, that
he had expressed from some of the simples of the woods.
    Among the native tribes of the forest, there were always two kinds of
leeches to be met with. The one placed its whole dependence on the exercise of a
supernatural power, and was held in greater veneration than their practice could
at all justify; but the other was really endowed with great skill, in the
ordinary complaints of the human body, and was, more particularly, as Natty had
intimated, curous in cuts and bruises.
    While John and Richard were placing the dressings on the wound, Elnathan was
acutely eyeing the contents of Mohegan's basket, which Mr. Jones, in his
physical ardour, had transferred to the Doctor, in order to hold, himself, one
end of the bandages. Here he was soon enabled to detect sundry fragments of wood
and bark, of which he, quite coolly, took possession, very possibly without any
intention of speaking at all upon the subject; but when he beheld the full, blue
eye of Marmaduke, watching his movements, he whispered to the Judge -
    »It is not to be denied, Judge Temple, but what the savages are knowing, in
small matters of physic. They hand these things down in their traditions. Now,
in cancers, and hydrophoby, they are quite ingenous. I will just take this bark
home, and analyse it; for, though it can't be worth sixpence to the young man's
shoulder, it may be good for the toothache, or rhoomatis, or some of them
complaints. A man should never be above larning, even if it be from an Indian.«
    It was fortunate for Dr. Todd, that his principles were so liberal, as,
coupled with his practice, they were the means by which he acquired all his
knowledge, and by which he was gradually qualifying himself for the duties of
his profession. The process to which he subjected the specific, differed,
however, greatly from the ordinary rules of chemistry; for, instead of
separating, he afterwards united the component parts of Mohegan's remedy, and
thus was able to discover the tree, whence the Indian had taken it.
    Some ten years after this event, when civilization and its refinements had
crept, or rather rushed, into the settlements among these wild hills, an affair
of honour occurred, and Elnathan was seen to apply a salve to the wound received
by one of the parties, which had the flavour that was peculiar to the tree, or
root, that Mohegan had used. Ten years later still, when England and the United
States were again engaged in war, and the hordes of the western parts of the
state of New-York, were rushing to the field, Elnathan, presuming on the
reputation obtained by these two operations, followed in the rear of a brigade
of militia, as its surgeon!
    When Mohegan had applied the bark, he freely relinquished to Richard the
needle and thread, that were used in sewing the bandages, for these were
implements of which the native but little understood the use; and, stepping
back, with decent gravity, awaited the completion of the business by the other.
    »Reach me the scissors,« said Mr. Jones, when he had finished, and finished
for the second time, after tying the linen in every shape and form that it could
be placed; »reach me the scissors, for here is a thread that must be cut off, or
it might get under the dressings, and inflame the wound. See, John, I have put
the lint I scraped, between two layers of the linen; for though the bark is
certainly best for the flesh, yet the lint will serve to keep the cold air from
the wound. If any lint will do it good, it is this lint; I scraped it myself,
and I will not turn my back, at scraping lint, to any man on the Patent. I ought
to know how, if any body ought, for my grandfather was a doctor, and my father
had a natural turn that way.«
    »Here, Squire, is the scissors,« said Remarkable, producing from beneath her
petticoat of green moreen, a pair of dulllooking shears; »well, upon my say so,
you have sewed on the rags, as well as a woman.«
    »As well as a woman!« echoed Richard, with indignation; »what do women know
of such matters? and you are proof of the truth of what I say. Who ever saw such
a pair of shears used about a wound? Dr. Todd, I will thank you for the scissors
from the case. Now, young man, I think you'll do. The shot has been very neatly
taken out, although, perhaps, seeing I had a hand in it, I ought not to say so;
and the wound is admirably dressed. You will soon be well again; though the jerk
you gave my leaders, must have a tendency to inflame the shoulder, yet, you will
do, you will do. You were rather flurried, I suppose, and not used to horses;
but I forgive the accident, for the motive; - no doubt, you had the best of
motives; - yes, now you will do.«
    »Then, gentlemen,« said the wounded stranger, rising, and resuming his
clothes, »it will be unnecessary for me to trespass longer on your time and
patience. There remains but one thing more to be settled, and that is, our
respective rights to the deer, Judge Temple.«
    »I acknowledge it to be thine,« said Marmaduke; »and much more deeply am I
indebted to thee, than for this piece of venison. But in the morning, thou wilt
call here, and we can adjust this, as well as more important matters.
Elizabeth,« - for the young lady, being apprised that the wound was dressed, had
re-entered the hall, - »thou wilt order a repast, for this youth, before we
proceed to the church; and Aggy will have a sleigh prepared, to convey him to
his friend.«
    »But, sir, I cannot go, without a part of the deer,« returned the youth,
seemingly struggling with his own feelings: »I have already told you, that I
needed the venison for myself.«
    »Oh! we will not be particular,« exclaimed Richard; »the Judge will pay you,
in the morning, for the whole deer; and, Remarkable, give the lad all the animal
excepting the saddle: so, on the whole, I think, you may consider yourself as a
very lucky young man; - you have been shot, without being disabled; have had the
wound dressed in the best possible manner, here in the woods, as well as it
would have been done in the Philadelphia hospital, if not better; have sold your
deer at a high price, and yet can keep most of the carcass, with the skin in the
bargain. 'Marky, tell Tom to give him the skin too; and in the morning, bring
the skin to me, and I will give you half-a-dollar for it, or at least,
three-and-sixpence. I want just such a skin, to cover the pillion that I am
making for cousin Bess.«
    »I thank you, sir, for your liberality, and, I trust, am also thankful for
my escape,« returned the stranger; »but you reserve the very part of the animal
that I wish for my own use. I must have the saddle myself.«
    »Must!« echoed Richard; »must is harder to be swallowed than the horns of
the buck.«
    »Yes, must,« repeated the youth; when, turning his head proudly around him,
as if to see who would dare to controvert his rights, he met the astonished gaze
of Elizabeth, and proceeded more mildly - »that is, if a man is allowed the
possession of that which his hand hath killed, and the law will protect him in
the enjoyment of his own.«
    »The law will do so,« said Judge Temple, with an air of mortification,
mingled with surprise. »Benjamin, see that the whole deer is placed in the
sleigh; and have this youth conveyed to the hut of Leather-stocking. But, young
man, thou hast a name, and I shall see you again, in order to compensate thee
for the wrong I have done thee?«
    »I am called Edwards,« returned the hunter, »Oliver Edwards. I am easily to
be seen, sir, for I live nigh by, and am not afraid to show my face, having
never injured any man.«
    »It is we, who have injured you, sir,« said Elizabeth; »and the knowledge,
that you decline our assistance, would give my father great pain. He would
gladly see you in the morning.«
    The young hunter gazed at the fair speaker, until his earnest look brought
the blood to her temples; when, recollecting himself, he bent his head, dropping
his eyes to the carpet, and replied -
    »In the morning, then, will I return, and see Judge Temple; and I will
accept his offer of the sleigh, in token of amity.«
    »Amity!« repeated Marmaduke; »there was no malice in the act that injured
thee, young man; there should be none in the feelings which it may engender.«
    »Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us,«
observed Mr. Grant, »is the language used by our Divine Master himself, and it
should be the golden rule of us, his humble followers.«
    The stranger stood a moment, lost in thought, and then, glancing his dark
eyes, rather wildly, around the hall, he bowed low to the divine, and moved from
the apartment, with an air that would not admit of detention.
    »'Tis strange, that one so young should harbour such feelings of
resentment,« said Marmaduke, when the door closed behind the stranger; »but
while the pain is recent, and the sense of the injury so fresh, he must feel
more strongly than in cooler moments. I doubt not, we shall see him, in the
morning, more tractable.«
    Elizabeth, to whom this speech was addressed, did not reply, but moved
slowly up the hall, by herself, fixing her eyes on the little figure of the
English ingrained carpet, that covered the floor; while, on the other hand,
Richard gave a loud crack with his whip, as the stranger disappeared, and cried
-
    »Well, 'duke, you are your own master, but I would have tried law for the
saddle, before I would have given it to the fellow. Do you not own the
mountains, as well as the valleys? are not the woods your own? what right has
this chap, or the Leather-stocking, to shoot in your woods, without your
permission? Now, I have known a farmer, in Pennsylvania, order a sportsman off
his farm, with as little ceremony as I would order Benjamin to put a log in the
stove. By-the-by, Benjamin, see how the thermometer stands. Now, if a man has a
right to do this, on a farm of a hundred acres, what power must a landlord have,
who owns sixty thousand - ay! for the matter of that, including the late
purchases, a hundred thousand? There is Mohegan, to-be-sure, he may have some
right, being a native; but it's little the poor fellow can do now with his
rifle. How is this managed in France, Monsieur Le Quoi? do you let every body
run over your land, in that country, helter-skelter, as they do here, shooting
the game, so that a gentleman has but little or no chance with his gun?«
    »Bah! diable, no, Meester Deeck,« replied the Frenchman; »we give, in
France, no liberty, except to de ladi.«
    »Yes, yes, to the women, I know,« said Richard; »that is your Sallick law. I
read, sir, all kinds of books; of France, as well as England; of Greece, as well
as Rome. But if I were in 'duke's place, I would stick up advertisements,
to-morrow morning, forbidding all persons to shoot, or trespass, in any manner,
on my woods. I could write such an advertisement myself, in an hour, as would
put a stop to the thing at once.«
    »Richart,« said Major Hartmann, very coolly knocking the ashes from his pipe
into the spitting-box by his side, »now listen: I have livet seventy-five years
on ter Mohawk, and in ter woots. - You hat petter mettle as mit ter deyvel, as
mit ter hunters. Tey live mit ter gun, and a rifle is petter as ter law.«
    »A'nt Marmaduke a Judge?« said Richard, indignantly; »where is the use of
being a Judge or having a Judge, if there is no law? Damn the fellow, I have a
great mind to sue him in the morning myself, before Squire Doolittle, for
meddling with my leaders. I am not afraid of his rifle. I can shoot too. I have
hit a dollar, many a time, at fifty rods.«
    »Thou hast missed more dollars than ever thou hast hit, Dickon,« exclaimed
the cheerful voice of the Judge. - »But we will now take our evening's repast,
which, I perceive by Remarkable's physiognomy, is ready. Monsieur Le Quoi, Miss
Temple has a hand at your service. Will you lead the way, my child?«
    »Ah! ma chère Mam'selle, come je suis enchanté!« said the Frenchman. »Il ne
manque que les dames de faire un paradis de Templeton.«
    Mr. Grant and Mohegan, continued in the hall, while the remainder of the
party withdrew to an eating parlour, if we except Benjamin, who civilly
remained, to close the rear after the clergyman, and to open the front door, for
the exit of the Indian.
    »John,« said the divine, when the figure of Judge Temple disappeared, the
last of the group, »to-morrow is the festival of the nativity of our blessed
Redeemer, when the church has appointed prayers and thanksgivings, to be offered
up by her children, and when all are invited to partake of the mystical
elements. As you have taken up the cross, and become a follower of good, and an
eschewer of evil, I trust I shall see you before the altar, with a contrite
heart, and a meek spirit.«
    »John will come,« said the Indian, betraying no surprise, though he did not
understand all the terms used by the other.
    »Yes,« continued Mr. Grant, laying his hand gently on the tawny shoulder of
the aged chief, »but it is not enough to be there in the body; you must come in
the spirit, and in truth. The Redeemer died for all, for the poor Indian, as
well as for the white man. Heaven knows no difference in colour; nor must earth
witness a separation of the church. It is good and profitable, John, to freshen
the understanding, and support the wavering, by the observance of our holy
festivals; but all form is but stench, in the nostrils of the Holy One, unless
it be accompanied by a devout and humble spirit.«
    The Indian stepped back a little, and, raising his body to its utmost powers
of erection, he stretched his right arm on high, and dropped his fore-finger
downward, as if pointing from the heavens, then striking his other hand on his
naked breast, he said, with energy -
    »The eye of the Great Spirit can see from the clouds; - the bosom of Mohegan
is bare.«
    »It is well, John, and I hope you will receive profit and consolation, from
the performance of this duty. The Great Spirit overlooks none of his children;
and the man of the woods, is as much an object of his care, as he who dwells in
a palace. I wish you a good night, and pray God to bless you.«
    The Indian bent his head, and they separated - the one to seek his hut, and
the other to join the party at the supper-table. While Benjamin was opening the
door, for the passage of the chief, he cried, in a tone that was meant to be
encouraging -
    »The parson says the word that is true, John. If-so-be, that they took count
of the colour of the skin in heaven, why, they might refuse to muster on their
books, a christian-born, like myself, just for the matter of a little tan, from
cruising in warm latitudes; though, for the matter of that, this damned
nor-wester is enough to whiten the skin of a blackamoor. Let the reef out of
your blanket, man, or your red hide will hardly weather the night, without a
touch from the frost.«
 

                                  Chapter VIII

 »For here the exile met from every clime,
 And spoke, in friendship, every distant tongue.«
                                        Campbell, Gertrude of Wyoming, I.iv.3-4.
 
We have made our readers acquainted with some variety in character and nations,
in introducing the most important personages of this legend to their notice: but
in order to establish the fidelity of our narrative, we shall briefly attempt to
explain the reason why we have been obliged to present so motley a dramatis
personæ.
    Europe, at the period of our tale, was in the commencement of that
commotion, which afterwards shook her political institutions to the centre.
Louis the Sixteenth had been beheaded, and a nation, once esteemed the most
refined amongst the civilized people of the world, was changing its character,
and substituting cruelty for mercy, and subtlety and ferocity for magnanimity
and courage. Thousands of Frenchmen were compelled to seek protection in distant
lands. Among the crowds who fled from France and her islands, to the United
States of America, was the gentleman whom we have already mentioned as Monsieur
Le Quoi. He had been recommended to the favour of Judge Temple, by the head of
an eminent mercantile house in New-York, with whom Marmaduke was in habits of
intimacy, and accustomed to exchange good offices. At his first interview with
the Frenchman, our Judge had discovered him to be a man of breeding, and one who
had seen much more prosperous days, in his own country. From certain hints that
had escaped him, Monsieur Le Quoi was suspected of having been a West-India
planter, great numbers of whom had fled from St. Domingo and the other islands,
and were now living in the Union, in a state of comparative poverty, and some in
absolute want. The latter was not, however, the lot of Monsieur Le Quoi. He had
but little, he acknowledged, but that little was enough to furnish, in the
language of the country, an assortment for a store.
    The knowledge of Marmaduke was eminently practical, and there was no part of
a settler's life with which he was not familiar. Under his direction, Monsieur
Le Quoi made some purchases, consisting of a few cloths; some groceries, with a
good deal of gunpowder and tobacco; a quantity of ironware, among which was a
large proportion of Barlow's jack-knives, potash-kettles, and spiders; a very
formidable collection of crockery, of the coarsest quality, and most uncouth
forms; together with every other common article, that the art of man has devised
for his wants, not forgetting the luxuries of looking-glasses and Jew's-harps.
With this collection of valuables, Monsieur Le Quoi had stepped behind a
counter, and, with a wonderful pliability of temper, had dropped into his
assumed character, as gracefully as he had ever moved in any other. The
gentleness and suavity of his manners, rendered him extremely popular; besides
this, the women soon discovered that he had a taste; his calicoes were the
finest, or, in other words, the most showy, of any that were brought into the
country; and it was impossible to look at the prices, asked for his goods, by so
pretty a spoken man. Through these conjoint means, the affairs of Monsieur Le
Quoi were again in a prosperous condition, and he was looked up to by the
settlers as the second best man on the Patent.
    This term, Patent, which we have already used, and for which we may have
further occasion, meant the district of country that had been originally granted
to old Major Effingham, by the King's letters patent, and which had now become,
by purchase under the act of confiscation, the property of Marmaduke Temple. It
was a term in common use, throughout the new parts of the state, and was usually
annexed to the landlord's name, as, Temple's, or Effingham's Patent.
    Major Hartmann was the descendant of a man, who, in company with a number of
his countrymen, had emigrated, with their families, from the banks of the Rhine,
to those of the Mohawk. This migration had occurred as far back as the reign of
Queen Anne; and their descendants were now living, in great peace and plenty, on
the fertile borders of that beautiful stream.
    The Germans, or High Dutchers, as they were called, to distinguish them from
the original, or Low Dutch colonists, were a very peculiar people. They
possessed all the gravity of the latter, without any of their phlegm; and, like
them, the High Dutchers were industrious, honest, and economical.
    Fritz, or Frederick Hartmann, was an epitome of all the vices and virtues,
foibles and excellencies, of his race. He was passionate, though silent,
obstinate, and a good deal suspicious of strangers; of immoveable courage,
inflexible honesty, and undeviating in his friendships. Indeed, there was no
change about him, unless it were from grave to gay. He was serious by months,
and jolly by weeks. He had, early in their acquaintance, formed an attachment
for Marmaduke Temple, who was the only man, that could not speak High Dutch,
that ever gained his entire confidence. Four times in each year, at periods
equi-distant, he left his low stone dwelling, on the banks of the Mohawk, and
travelled thirty miles, through the hills, to the door of the mansion-house in
Templeton. Here he generally staid a week, and was reputed to spend much of that
time in riotous living, greatly countenanced by Mr. Richard Jones. But every one
loved him, even to Remarkable Pettibone, to whom he occasioned some additional
trouble, he was so frank, so sincere, and, at times, so mirthful. He was now on
his regular Christmas visit, and had not been in the village an hour, when
Richard summoned him to fill a seat in the sleigh, to meet the landlord and his
daughter.
    Before explaining the character and situation of Mr. Grant, it will be
necessary to recur to times, far back in the brief history of the settlement.
    There seems to be a tendency in human nature, to endeavour to provide for
the wants of this world, before our attention is turned to the business of the
other. Religion was a quality but little cultivated, amid the stumps of Temple's
Patent, for the first few years of its settlement; but as most of its
inhabitants were from the moral states of Connecticut and Massachusetts, when
the wants of nature were satisfied, they began seriously to turn their attention
to the introduction of those customs and observances, which had been the
principal care of their forefathers. There was certainly a great variety of
opinions, on the subject of grace and free-will, amongst the tenantry of
Marmaduke; and, when we take into consideration the variety of religious
instruction which they received, it can easily be seen, that it could not well
be otherwise.
    Soon after the village had been formally laid out, into the streets and
blocks that resembled a city, a meeting of its inhabitants had been convened, to
take into consideration the propriety of establishing an Academy. This measure
originated with Richard, who, in truth, was much disposed to have the
institution designated a University, or at least a College. Meeting after
meeting was held, for this purpose, year after year. The resolutions of these
assemblages, appeared in the most conspicuous columns of a little, blue-looking
newspaper, that was already issued weekly from the garret of a dwelling-house in
the village, and which the traveller might as often see, stuck into the fissure
of a stake, erected at the point where the footpath from the log cabin of some
settler entered the highway, as a post-office for an individual. Sometimes the
stake supported a small box, and a whole neighbourhood received a weekly supply,
for their literary wants, at this point, where the man who rides post, regularly
deposited a bundle of the precious commodity. To these flourishing resolutions,
which briefly recounted the general utility of education, the political and
geographical rights of the village of Templeton, to a participation in the
favours of the regents of the university, the salubrity of the air, and
wholesomeness of the water, together with the cheapness of food, and the
superior state of morals in the neighbourhood, were uniformly annexed, in large
Roman capitals, the names of Marmaduke Temple, as chairman, and Richard Jones,
as secretary.
    Happily for the success of this undertaking, the regents were not accustomed
to resist these appeals to their generosity, whenever there was the smallest
prospect of a donation to second the request. Eventually, Judge Temple concluded
to bestow the necessary land, and to erect the required edifice at his own
expense. The skill of Mr., or, as he was now called, from the circumstance of
having received the commission of a justice of the peace, Squire Doolittle, was
again put in requisition, and the science of Mr. Jones was once more resorted
to.
    We shall not recount the different devices of the architects on the
occasion; nor would it be decorous so to do, seeing that there was a convocation
of the society of the ancient and honourable fraternity of the free and accepted
masons, at the head of whom was Richard, in the capacity of master, doubtless to
approve or reject such of the plans as, in their wisdom, they deemed to be for
the best. The knotty point was, however, soon decided; and, on the appointed
day, the brotherhood marched, in great state, displaying sundry banners and
mysterious symbols, each man with a little mimic apron before him, from a most
cunningly contrived apartment in the garret of the Bold Dragoon, an inn, kept by
one Captain Hollister, to the site of the intended edifice. Here Richard laid
the corner-stone, with suitable gravity, amidst an assemblage of more than half
the men, and all the women, within ten miles of Templeton.
    In the course of the succeeding week, there was another meeting of the
people, not omitting swarms of the gentler sex, when the abilities of Hiram, at
the square rule, were put to the test of experiment. The frame fitted well; and
the skeleton of the fabric was reared without a single accident, if we except a
few falls from horses, while the labourers were returning home in the evening.
From this time, the work advanced with great rapidity, and in the course of the
season, the labour was completed; the edifice standing, in all its beauty and
proportions, the boast of the village, the study of young aspirants for
architectural fame, and the admiration of every settler on the Patent.
    It was a long, narrow house, of wood, painted white, and more than half
windows; and when the observer stood at the western side of the building, the
edifice offered but a small obstacle to a full view of the rising sun. It was,
in truth, but a very comfortless, open place, through which the daylight shone
with natural facility. On its front were divers ornaments, in wood, designed by
Richard, and executed by Hiram; but a window in the centre of the second story,
immediately over the door, or grand entrance, and the steeple, were the pride of
the building. The former was, we believe, of the composite order, for it
included in its composition a multitude of ornaments, and a great variety of
proportions. It consisted of an arched compartment in the centre, with a square
and small division on either side, the whole encased in heavy frames, deeply and
laboriously moulded in pine wood, and lighted with a vast number of blurred and
green-looking glass, of those dimensions which are commonly called eight by ten.
Blinds, that were intended to be painted green, kept the window in a state of
preservation, and probably might have contributed to the effect of the whole,
had not the failure in the public funds, which seems always to be incidental to
any undertaking of this kind, left them in the sombre coat of lead-colour with
which they had been originally clothed. The steeple was a little cupola, reared
on the very centre of the roof, on four tall pillars of pine, that were fluted
with a gouge, and loaded with mouldings. On the tops of the columns was reared a
dome, or cupola, resembling in shape an inverted tea-cup without its bottom,
from the centre of which projected a spire, or shaft of wood, transfixed with
two iron rods, that bore on their ends the letters N.S.E. and W., in the same
metal. The whole was surmounted by an imitation of one of the finny tribe,
carved in wood, by the hands of Richard, and painted, what he called, a
scale-colour. This animal Mr. Jones affirmed to be an admirable resemblance of a
great favourite of the epicures in that country, which bore the title of
lake-fish; and doubtless the assertion was true; for, although intended to
answer the purposes of a weather-cock, the fish was observed invariably to look,
with a longing eye, in the direction of the beautiful sheet of water that lay
imbedded in the mountains of Templeton.
    For a short time after the charter of the regents was received, the trustees
of this institution employed a graduate of one of the eastern colleges, to
instruct such youth as aspired to knowledge, within the walls of the edifice
which we have described. The upper part of the building was in one apartment,
and was intended for gala-days and exhibitions; and the lower contained two
rooms, that were intended for the great divisions of education, viz. the Latin
and the English scholars. The former were never very numerous; though the sounds
of nominative, pennaa; genitive, penny, were soon heard to issue from the
windows of the room, to the great delight and manifest edification of the
passengers.
    Only one labourer in this temple of Minerva, however, was known to get so
far as to attempt a translation of Virgil. He, indeed, appeared at the annual
exhibition, to the prodigious exultation of all his relatives, a farmer's family
in the vicinity, and repeated the whole of the first eclogue from memory,
observing the intonations of the dialogue with much judgment and effect. The
sounds, as they proceeded from his mouth, of
 
»Titty-ree too patty-lee ree-coo-bans sub teg-mi-nee faa-gy
Syl-ves-trem ten-oo-i moo-sam med-i-taa-ris aa-ve-ny« -
 
were the last that had been heard in that building, as probably they were the
first that had ever been heard, in the same language, there or any where else.
By this time, the trustees discovered, that they had anticipated the age, and
the instructor, or principal, was superseded by a master, who went on to teach
the more humble lesson, of the more haste the worse speed, in good, plain
English.
    From this time until the date of our incidents, the Academy was a common
country school; and the great room of the building was sometimes used as a
court-room, on extraordinary trials; sometimes for conferences of the religious,
and the morally disposed, in the evening; at others for a ball in the afternoon,
given under the auspices of Richard; and on Sundays, invariably, as a place of
public worship.
    When an itinerant priest, of the persuasion of the Methodists, Baptists,
Universalists, or of the more numerous sect of the Presbyterians, was
accidentally in the neighbourhood, he was ordinarily invited to officiate, and
was commonly rewarded for his services by a collection in a hat, before the
congregation separated. When no such regular minister offered, a kind of
colloquial prayer or two was made, by some of the more gifted members, and a
sermon was usually read, from Sterne, by Mr. Richard Jones.
    The consequence of this desultory kind of priesthood was, as we have already
intimated, a great diversity of opinion, on the more abstruse points of faith.
Each sect had its adherents, though neither was regularly organized and
disciplined. Of the religious education of Marmaduke, we have already written,
nor was the doubtful character of his faith completely removed by his marriage.
The mother of Elizabeth was an Episcopalian, as, indeed, was the mother of the
Judge himself; and the good taste of Marmaduke revolted at the familiar
colloquies which the leaders of the conferences held with the Deity, in their
nightly meetings. In form, he was certainly an Episcopalian, though not a
sectary of that denomination. On the other hand, Richard was as rigid in the
observance of the canons of his church, as he was inflexible in his opinions.
Indeed, he had once or twice essayed to introduce the Episcopal form of service,
on the Sundays that the pulpit was vacant; but Richard was a good deal addicted
to carrying things to an excess, and then there was something so papal in his
air, that the greater part of his hearers deserted him on the second Sabbath -
on the third, his only auditor was Ben Pump, who had all the obstinate and
enlightened orthodoxy of a high-churchman.
    Before the war of the revolution, the English church was supported, in the
colonies, with much interest, by some of its adherents in the mother country,
and a few of the congregations were very amply endowed. But, for a season, after
the independence of the states was established, this sect of Christians
languished, for the want of the highest order of its priesthood. Pious and
suitable divines were at length selected, and sent to the mother country, to
receive that authority, which, it is understood, can only be transmitted
directly from one to the other, and thus obtain, in order to preserve, that
unity in their churches, which properly belonged to a people of the same nation.
But unexpected difficulties presented themselves, in the oaths with which the
policy of England had fettered their establishment, and much time was spent,
before a conscientious sense of duty would permit the prelates of Britain to
delegate the authority so earnestly sought. Time, patience, and zeal, however,
removed every impediment, and the venerable men, who had been set apart by the
American churches, at length returned to their expecting dioceses, endowed with
the most elevated functions of their earthly church. Priests and Deacons were
ordained; and missionaries provided, to keep alive the expiring flame of
devotion, in such members as were deprived of the ordinary administrations, by
dwelling in new and unorganized districts.
    Of this number was Mr. Grant. He had been sent into the county of which
Templeton was the capital, and had been kindly invited by Marmaduke, and
officiously pressed by Richard, to take up his abode in the village. A small and
humble dwelling was prepared for his family, and the divine had made his
appearance in the place, but a few days before the time of his introduction to
the reader. As his forms were entirely new to most of the inhabitants, and a
clergyman of another denomination had previously occupied the field, by engaging
the academy, the first Sunday after his arrival was suffered to pass in silence;
but now that his rival had passed on, like a meteor, filling the air with the
light of his wisdom, Richard was empowered to give notice, that »Public worship,
after the forms of the Protestant Episcopal Church, would be held, on the night
before Christmas, in the long-room of the academy in Templeton, by the Rev. Mr.
Grant.«
    This annunciation excited great commotion among the different sectaries.
Some wondered as to the nature of the exhibition; others sneered; but a far
greater part, recollecting the essays of Richard in that way, and mindful of the
liberality, or rather laxity, of Marmaduke's notions on the subject of
sectarianism, thought it most prudent to be silent.
    The expected evening was, however, the wonder of the hour; nor was the
curiosity at all diminished, when Richard and Benjamin, on the morning of the
eventful day, were seen to issue from the woods in the neighbourhood of the
village, each bearing on his shoulders a large bunch of evergreens. This worthy
pair was observed to enter the academy, and carefully to fasten the door, after
which their proceedings remained a profound secret to the rest of the village;
Mr. Jones, before he commenced this mysterious business, having informed the
schoolmaster, to the great delight of the white-headed flock he governed, that
there could be no school that day. Marmaduke was apprised of all these
preparations, by letter, and it was especially arranged, that he and Elizabeth
should arrive in season, to participate in the solemnities of the evening.
    After this digression, we shall return to our narrative.
 

                                   Chapter IX

 »Now all admire, in each high-flavour'd dish,
 The capabilities of flesh - fowl - fish;
 In order due each guest assumes his station,
 Throbs high his breast with fond anticipation,
 And prelibates the joys of mastication.«
                                                                  Heliogabaliad.
 
The apartment to which Monsieur Le Quoi handed Elizabeth, communicated with the
hall, through the door that led under the urn which was supposed to contain the
ashes of Dido. The room was spacious, and of very just proportions; but in its
ornaments and furniture, the same diversity of taste, and imperfection of
execution, were to be observed, as existed in the hall. Of furniture, there were
a dozen green, wooden arm-chairs, with cushions of moreen, taken from the same
piece as the petticoat of Remarkable. The tables were spread, and their
materials and workmanship could not be seen; but they were heavy, and of great
size. An enormous mirror, in a gilt frame, hung against the wall, and a cheerful
fire, of the hard or sugar-maple, was burning on the hearth. The latter was the
first object that struck the attention of the Judge, who, on beholding it,
exclaimed, rather angrily, to Richard -
    »How often have I forbidden the use of the sugar-maple, in my dwelling. The
sight of that sap, as it exudes with the heat, is painful to me, Richard.
Really, it behooves the owner of woods so extensive as mine, to be cautious what
example he sets his people, who are already felling the forests, as if no end
could be found to their treasures, nor any limits to their extent. If we go on
in this way, twenty years hence, we shall want fuel.«
    »Fuel in these hills, cousin 'duke!« exclaimed Richard, in derision - »fuel!
why, you might as well predict, that the fish will die, for the want of water in
the lake, because I intend, when the frost gets out of the ground, to lead one
or two of the springs, through logs, into the village. But you are always a
little wild on such subjects, Marmaduke.«
    »Is it wildness,« returned the Judge, earnestly, »to condemn a practice,
which devotes these jewels of the forest, these precious gifts of nature, these
mines of comfort and wealth, to the common uses of a fire-place? But I must, and
will, the instant the snow is off the earth, send out a party into the
mountains, to explore for coal.«
    »Coal!« echoed Richard; »who the devil do you think will dig for coal, when
in hunting for a bushel, he would have to rip up more roots of trees, than would
keep him in fuel for a twelvemonth? Poh! poh! Marmaduke, you should leave the
management of these things to me, who have a natural turn that way. It was I
that ordered this fire, and a noble one it is, to warm the blood of my pretty
cousin Bess.«
    »The motive, then, must be your apology, Dickon,« said the Judge. - »But,
gentlemen, we are waiting. Elizabeth, my child, take the head of the table;
Richard, I see, means to spare me the trouble of carving, by sitting opposite to
you.«
    »To be sure I do,« cried Richard; »here is a turkey to carve, and I flatter
myself that I understand carving a turkey, or, for that matter, a goose, as well
as any man alive. Mr. Grant! where's Mr. Grant? will you please to say grace,
sir? Every thing is getting cold. Take a thing from the fire, this cold weather,
and it will freeze in five minutes. Mr. Grant! we want you to say grace. For
what we are about to receive, the Lord make us thankful. Come, sit down, sit
down. Do you eat wing or breast, cousin Bess?«
    But Elizabeth had not taken her seat, nor was she in readiness to receive
either the wing or breast. Her laughing eyes were glancing at the arrangements
of the table, and the quality and selection of the food. The eyes of the father
soon met the wondering looks of his daughter, and he said, with a smile -
    »You perceive, my child, how much we are indebted to Remarkable, for her
skill in housewifery; she has indeed provided a noble repast; such as well might
stop the cravings of hunger.«
    »Law!« said Remarkable, »I'm glad if the Judge is pleased; but I'm notional
that you'll find the sa'ce overdone. I thought, as Elizabeth was coming home,
that a body could do no less than make things agreeable.«
    »My daughter has now grown to woman's estate, and is from this moment
mistress of my house,« said the Judge; »it is proper, that all, who live with
me, address her as Miss Temple.«
    »Do tell!« exclaimed Remarkable, a little aghast; »well who ever heard of a
young woman's being called Miss? If the Judge had a wife now, I shouldn't think
of calling her any thing but Miss Temple; but -«
    »Having nothing but a daughter, you will observe that style to her, if you
please, in future,« interrupted Marmaduke.
    As the Judge look'd seriously displeased, and, at such moments, carried a
particularly commanding air with him, the wary housekeeper made no reply; and,
Mr. Grant entering the room, the whole party were soon seated at the table. As
the arrangements of this repast were much in the prevailing taste of that period
and country, we shall endeavour to give a short description of the appearance of
the banquet.
    The table-linen was of the most beautiful damask, and the plates and dishes
of real china, an article of great luxury at this early period in American
commerce. The knives and forks were of exquisitely polished steel, and were set
in unclouded ivory. So much being furnished by the wealth of Marmaduke, was not
only comfortable, but even elegant. The contents of the several dishes, and
their positions, however, were the result of the sole judgment of Remarkable.
Before Elizabeth, was placed an enormous roasted turkey, and before Richard, one
boiled. In the centre of the table, stood a pair of heavy silver castors,
surrounded by four dishes; one a fricassee, that consisted of gray squirrels;
another of fish fried; a third of fish boiled; the last was a venison steak.
Between these dishes and the turkeys, stood, on the one side, a prodigious chine
of roasted bear's meat, and on the other a boiled leg of delicious mutton.
Interspersed among this load of meats, was every species of vegetables that the
season and country afforded. The four corners were garnished with plates of
cake. On one was piled certain curiously twisted and complicated figures, called
nut-cakes. On another were heaps of a black-looking substance, which, receiving
its hue from molasses, was properly termed sweet-cake; a wonderful favourite in
the coterie of Remarkable. A third was filled, to use the language of the
housekeeper, with caards of gingerbread; and the last held a plum-cake, so
called from the number of large raisins that were showing their black heads, in
a substance of a suspiciously similar colour. At each corner of the table, stood
saucers, filled with a thick fluid, of somewhat equivocal colour and
consistence, variegated with small dark lumps of a substance that resembled
nothing but itself, which Remarkable termed her sweet-meats. At the side of each
plate, which was placed bottom upwards, with its knife and fork most accurately
crossed above it, stood another, of smaller size, containing a motley-looking
pie, composed of triangular slices of apple, mince, pumpkin, craneberry, and
custard, so arranged as to form an entire whole. Decanters of brandy, rum, gin,
and wine, with sundry pitchers of cider, beer, and one hissing vessel of flip,
were put wherever an opening would admit of their introduction. Notwithstanding
the size of the tables, there was scarcely a spot where the rich damask could be
seen, so crowded were the dishes, with their associated bottles, plates and
saucers. The object seemed to be profusion, and it was obtained entirely at the
expense of order and elegance.
    All the guests, as well as the Judge himself, seemed perfectly familiar with
this description of fare, for each one commenced eating, with an appetite that
promised to do great honour to Remarkable's taste and skill. What rendered this
attention to the repast a little surprising, was the fact, that both the German
and Richard had been summoned from another table, to meet the Judge; but Major
Hartmann both ate and drank without any rule, when on his excursions; and Mr.
Jones invariably made it a point, to participate in the business in hand, let it
be what it would. The host seemed to think some apology necessary, for the
warmth he had betrayed on the subject of the firewood, and when the party were
comfortably seated, and engaged with their knives and forks, he observed -
    »The wastefulness of the settlers, with the noble trees of this country, is
shocking, Monsieur Le Quoi, as doubtless you have noticed. I have seen a man
fell a pine, when he has been in want of fencing-stuff, and roll his first cuts
into the gap, where he left it to rot, though its top would have made rails
enough to answer his purpose, and its butt would have sold in the Philadelphia
market for twenty dollars.«
    »And how the devil - I beg your pardon, Mr. Grant,« interrupted Richard;
»but how is the poor devil to get his logs to the Philadelphia market, pray? put
them in his pocket, ha! as you would a handful of chestnuts, or a bunch of
chicker-berries? I should like to see you walking up High-street, with a pine
log in each pocket. - Poh! poh! cousin 'duke, there are trees enough for us all,
and some to spare. Why I can hardly tell which way the wind blows, when I'm out
in the clearings, they are so thick, and so tall; - I couldn't at all, if it
wasn't't for the clouds, and I happen to know all the points of the compass, as it
were, by heart.«
    »Ay! ay! Squire,« cried Benjamin, who had now entered, and taken his place
behind the Judge's chair, a little aside withal, in order to be ready for any
observation like the present; »look aloft, sir, look aloft. The old seamen say,
that the devil wouldn't make a sailor, unless he look'd aloft. As for the
compass, why, there is no such thing as steering without one. I'm sure I never
lose sight of the main-top, as I call the Squire's look-out on the roof, but I
set my compass, d'ye see, and take the bearings and distance of things, in order
to work out my course, if-so-be that it should cloud up, or the tops of the
trees should shut out the light of heaven. The steeple of St. Paul's, now that
we have got it on end, is a great help to the navigation of the woods, for, by
the Lord Harry, as I was« -
    »It is well, Benjamin,« interrupted Marmaduke, observing that his daughter
manifested displeasure at the major-domo's familiarity; »but you forget there is
a lady in company, and the women love to do most of the talking themselves.«
    »The Judge says the true word,« cried Benjamin, with one of his discordant
laughs: »now here is Mistress Remarkable Prettybones; just take the stopper off
her tongue, and you'll hear a gabbling, worse like than if you should happen to
fall to leeward, in crossing a French privateer, or some such thing, mayhap, as
a dozen monkeys stowed in one bag.«
    It were impossible to say, how perfect an illustration of the truth of
Benjamin's assertion the housekeeper would have furnished, if she had dared; but
the Judge looked sternly at her, and, unwilling to incur his resentment, yet
unable to contain her anger, she threw herself out of the room, with a toss of
the body, that nearly separated her frail form in the centre.
    »Richard,« said Marmaduke, observing that his displeasure had produced the
desired effect, »can you inform me of any thing concerning the youth, whom I so
unfortunately wounded? I found him on the mountain, hunting in company with the
Leather-stocking, as if they were of the same family; but there is a manifest
difference in their manners. The youth delivers himself in chosen language; such
as is seldom heard in these hills, and such as occasions great surprise to me,
how one so meanly clad, and following so lowly a pursuit, could attain. Mohegan
also knew him. Doubtless he is a tenant of Natty's hut. Did you remark the
language of the lad, Monsieur Le Quoi?«
    »Certainement, Monsieur Templ',« returned the Frenchman, »he deed,
conevairse in de excellent Anglaise.«
    »The boy is no miracle,« exclaimed Richard; »I've known children that were
sent to school early, talk much better, before they were twelve years old. There
was Zared Coe, old Nehemiah's son, who first settled on the beaver-dam meadow,
he could write almost as good a hand as myself, when he was fourteen; though
it's true, I helped to teach him a little, in the evenings. But this shooting
gentleman ought to be put in the stocks, if he ever takes a rein in his hand
again. He is the most awkward fellow about a horse I ever met with. I dare say,
he never drove any thing but oxen in his life.«
    »There I think, Dickon, you do the lad injustice,« said the Judge; »he uses
much discretion in critical moments. - Dost thou not think so, Bess?«
    There was nothing in this question particularly to excite blushes, but
Elizabeth started from the reverie into which she had fallen, and coloured to
her forehead, as she answered -
    »To me, dear sir, he appeared extremely skillful, and prompt, and
courageous; but perhaps cousin Richard will say, I am as ignorant as the
gentleman himself.«
    »Gentleman!« echoed Richard; »do you call such chaps gentlemen, at school,
Elizabeth?«
    »Every man is a gentleman, who knows how to treat a woman with respect and
consideration,« returned the young lady, promptly, and a little smartly.
    »So much for hesitating to appear before the heiress in his shirt sleeves,«
cried Richard, winking at Monsieur Le Quoi, who returned the wink with one eye,
while he rolled the other, with an expression of sympathy, towards the young
lady. - »Well, well, to me he seemed any thing but a gentleman. I must say,
however, for the lad, that he draws a good trigger, and has a true aim. He's
good at shooting a buck, ha! Marmaduke?«
    »Richart,« said Major Hartmann, turning his grave countenance towards the
gentleman he addressed, with much earnestness, »ter poy is goot. He savet your
life, and my life, and ter life of Tominie Grant, and ter life of ter Frenchman;
and, Richart, he shall never vant a pet to sleep in, vile olt Fritz Hartmann
hast a shingle to cover his het mit.«
    »Well, well, as you please, old gentleman,« returned Mr. Jones, endeavouring
to look indifferent; »put him into your own stone house, if you will, Major. I
dare say, the lad never slept in any thing better than a bark shanty in his
life, unless it was some such hut as the cabin of Leather-stocking. I prophesy,
you will soon spoil him; any one could see how proud he grew, in a short time,
just because he stood by my horses' heads, while I turned them into the
highway.«
    »No, no, my old friend,« cried Marmaduke, »it shall be my task, to provide
in some manner for the youth: I owe him a debt of my own, besides the service he
has done me, through my friends. And yet I anticipate some little trouble, in
inducing him to accept of my services. He showed a marked dislike, I thought,
Bess, to my offer of a residence within these walls for life.«
    »Really, dear sir,« said Elizabeth, projecting her beautiful under-lip, »I
have not studied the gentleman so closely, as to read his feelings in his
countenance. I thought he might very naturally feel pain from his wound, and
therefore pitied him; but« - and as she spoke, she glanced her eye, with
suppressed curiosity, towards the major-domo - »I dare say, sir, that Benjamin
can tell you something about him. He cannot have been in the village, and
Benjamin not have seen him often.«
    »Ay! I have seen the boy before,« said Benjamin, who wanted little
encouragement to speak: »he has been backing and filling in the wake of Natty
Bumppo, through the mountains, after deer, like a Dutch long-boat in tow of an
Albany sloop. He carries a good rifle too. The Leather-stocking said, in my
hearing, before Betty Hollister's bar-room fire, no later than the Tuesday
night, that the younker was certain death to the wild beasts. If-so-be he can
kill the wild cat, that has been heard moaning on the lake-side, since the hard
frosts and deep snows have driven the deer to herd, he will be doing the thing
that is good. Your wild cat is a bad shipmate, and should be made to cruize out
of the track of christian-men.«
    »Lives he in the hut of Bumppo?« asked Marmaduke, with some interest.
    »Cheek by jowl: the Wednesday will be three weeks since he first hove in
sight, in company with Leather-stocking. They had captured a wolf between them,
and had brought in his scalp for the bounty. That Mister Bump-ho has a handy
turn with him, in taking off a scalp; and there's them, in this here village,
who say he larnt the trade by working on christian-men. If-so-be that there is
truth in the saying, and I commanded along shore here, as your honour does, why
d'ye see, I'd bring him to the gangway for it, yet. There's a very pretty post
rigged alongside of the stocks, and for the matter of a cat, I can fit one with
my own hands; ay! and use it too, for the want of a better.«
    »You are not to credit the idle tales you hear of Natty: he has a kind of
natural right to gain a livelihood in these mountains; and if the idlers in the
village take it into their heads to annoy him, as they sometimes do reputed
rogues, they shall find him protected by the strong arm of the law.«
    »Ter rifle is petter as ter law,« said the Major, sententiously.
    »That for his rifle!« exclaimed Richard, snapping his fingers; »Ben is
right, and I« - He was stopped by the sounds of a common ship-bell, that had
been elevated to the belfry of the academy, which now announced, by its
incessant ringing, that the hour for the appointed service had arrived. »For
this, and every other instance of his goodness - I beg pardon, Mr. Grant; will
you please to return thanks, sir? it is time we should be moving, as we are the
only Episcopalians in the neighbourhood; that is, I, and Benjamin, and
Elizabeth; for I count half-breeds, like Marmaduke, as bad as heretics.«
    The divine arose, and performed the office, meekly and fervently, and the
whole party instantly prepared themselves for the church - or rather academy.
 

                                   Chapter X

 »And calling sinful man to pray,
 Loud, long, and deep the bell had toll'd.«
                                                    Bürger, »The Wild Huntsman,«
                                                          ll. 11-12 (tr. Scott).
 
While Richard and Monsieur Le Quoi, attended by Benjamin, proceeded to the
academy, by a foot-path through the snow, the Judge, his daughter, the Divine,
and the Major, took a more circuitous route to the same place by the streets of
the village.
    The moon had risen, and its orb was shedding a flood of light over the dark
outline of pines, which crowned the eastern mountain. In many climates, the sky
would have been thought clear and lucid for a noontide. The stars twinkled in
the heavens, like the last glimmerings of distant fire, so much were they
obscured by the overwhelming radiance of the atmosphere; the rays from the moon
striking upon the smooth white surfaces of the lake and fields, reflecting
upwards a light that was brightened by the spotless colour of the immense bodies
of snow.
    Elizabeth employed herself with reading the signs, one of which appeared
over almost every door, while the sleigh moved, steadily and at an easy gait,
along the principal street. Not only new occupations, but names that were
strangers to her ears, met her gaze at every step they proceeded. The very
houses seemed changed. This had been altered by an addition; that had been
painted; another had been erected on the site of an old acquaintance, which had
been banished from the earth, almost as soon as it made its appearance on it.
All were, however, pouring forth their inmates, who uniformly held their way
towards the point where the expected exhibition, of the conjoint taste of
Richard and Benjamin, was to be made.
    After viewing the buildings, which really appeared to some advantage, under
the bright but mellow light of the moon, our heroine turned her eyes to a
scrutiny of the different figures that they passed, in search of any form that
she knew. But all seemed alike, as, muffled in cloaks, hoods, coats, or tippets,
they glided along the narrow passages in the snow, which led under the houses,
half hid by the bank that had been thrown up in excavating the deep path in
which they trod. Once or twice she thought there was a stature, or a gait, that
she recollected, but the person who owned it instantly disappeared behind one of
those enormous piles of wood, that lay before most of the doors. It was only as
they turned from the main street into another that intersected it at right
angles, and which led directly to the place of meeting, that she recognised a
face and building that she knew.
    The house stood at one of the principal corners in the village, and, by its
well-trodden doorway, as well as the sign, that was swinging, with a kind of
doleful sound, in the blasts that occasionally swept down the lake, was clearly
one of the most frequented inns in the place. The building was only of one
story, but the dormer windows in the roof, the paint, the window-shutters, and
the cheerful fire that shone through the open door, gave it an air of comfort,
that was not possessed by many of its neighbours. The sign was suspended from a
common alehouse post, and represented the figure of a horseman, armed with sabre
and pistols, and surmounted by a bear-skin cap, with the fiery animal that he
bestrode rampant. All these particulars were easily to be seen, by the aid of
the moon, together with a row of somewhat illegible writing, in black paint, but
in which Elizabeth, to whom the whole was familiar, read with facility, »The
Bold Dragoon.«
    A man and a woman were issuing from the door of this habitation, as the
sleigh was passing. The former moved with a stiff, military step, that was a
good deal heightened by a limp in one leg; but the woman advanced with a measure
and an air, that seemed not particularly regardful of what she might encounter.
The light of the moon fell directly upon her full, broad, and red visage;
exhibiting her masculine countenance, under the mockery of a ruffled cap, that
was intended to soften the lineaments of features that were by no means
squeamish. A small bonnet, of black silk, and of a slightly formal cut, was
placed on the back of her head, but not so as to shade her visage in the least.
Her face, as it encountered the rays of the moon from the east, seemed not
unlike a sun rising in the west. She advanced, with masculine strides, to
intercept the sleigh, and the Judge, directing the namesake of the Grecian king,
who held the lines, to check his horses, the parties were soon near to each
other.
    »Good luck to ye, and a wilcome home, Jooge,« cried the female, with a
strong Irish accent; »and I'm sure it's to me that ye'r always wilcome. Sure!
and there's Miss 'Lizzy, and a fine young woman is she grown. What a heart-ach
would she be giving the young men now, if there was such a thing as a rigiment
in the town. Och! but it's idle to talk of such vanities, while the bell is
calling us to mating, just as we shall be call'd away unexpictedly, some day,
when we are the laist calkilating. Good even, Major; will I make the bowl of
gin-toddy the night? - or it's likely ye'll stay at the big house, the Christmas
eve, and the very night of ye'r getting there.«
    »I am glad to see you, Mrs. Hollister,« returned Elizabeth. »I've been
trying to find a face that I knew, since we left the door of the mansion-house,
but none have I seen except your own. Your house, too, is unaltered, while all
the others are so changed, that, but for the places where they stand, they would
be utter strangers. I observe you also keep the dear sign, that I saw cousin
Richard paint, and even the name at the bottom, about which, you may remember,
you had the disagreement.«
    »Is it the bould dragoon ye mane? and what name would he have, who niver was
known by any other, as my husband here, the Captain, can tistify. He was a
pleasure to wait upon, and was iver the foremost in need. Och! but he had a
sudden ind! But it's to be hoped, that he was justified by the cause. And it's
not Parson Grant there, who'll gainsay that same. - Yes, yes - the Squire would
paint, and so I thought that we might have his face up there, who had so often
shared good and evil wid us. The eyes is no so large nor so fiery as the
Captain's own, but the whiskers and the cap is as like as two paas. Well, well -
I'll not keep ye in the cowld, talking, but will drop in, the morrow, after
service, and ask ye how ye do. It's our bounden duty to make the most of this
present, and to go to the house which is open to all: so God bless ye, and keep
ye from evil. - Will I make the gin-twist the night, or no, Major?«
    To this question the German replied, very sententiously, in the affirmative;
and, after a few words had passed between the husband of this fiery-faced
hostess and the Judge, the sleigh moved on. It soon reached the door of the
academy, where the party alighted and entered the building.
    In the mean time, Mr. Jones and his two companions, having a much shorter
distance to journey, had arrived before the appointed place several minutes
sooner than the party in the sleigh. Instead of hastening into the room, in
order to enjoy the astonishment of the settlers, Richard placed a hand in either
pocket of his surtout, and affected to walk about, in front of the academy, like
one to whom the ceremonies were familiar.
    The villagers proceeded uniformly into the building, with a decorum and
gravity that nothing could move, on such occasions; but with a haste, that was
probably a little heightened by curiosity. Those who came in from the adjacent
country, spent some little time in placing certain blue and white blankets over
their horses, before they proceeded to indulge their desire to view the interior
of the house. Most of these men Richard approached, and inquired after the
health and condition of their families. The readiness with which he mentioned
the names of even the children, showed how very familiarly acquainted he was
with their circumstances; and the nature of the answers he received, proved that
he was a general favourite.
    At length one of the pedestrians from the village stopped also, and fixed an
earnest gaze at a new brick edifice, that was throwing a long shadow across the
fields of snow, as it rose, with a beautiful gradation of light and shade, under
the rays of a full moon. In front of the academy was a vacant piece of ground,
that was intended for a public square. On the side opposite to Mr. Jones, the
new, and as yet unfinished, church of St. Paul's was erected. This edifice had
been reared, during the preceding summer, by the aid of what was called a
subscription; though all, or nearly all, of the money, came from the pocket of
the landlord. It had been built under a strong conviction of the necessity of a
more seemly place of worship than the long-room of the academy, and under an
implied agreement, that, after its completion, the question should be fairly put
to the people, that they might decide to what denomination it should belong. Of
course, this expectation kept alive a strong excitement, in some few of the
sectaries who were interested in its decision; though but little was said openly
on the subject. Had Judge Temple espoused the cause of any particular sect, the
question would have been immediately put at rest, for his influence was too
powerful to be opposed; but he declined interference in the matter, positively
refusing to lend even the weight of his name on the side of Richard, who had
secretly given an assurance to his Diocesan, that both the building and the
congregation would cheerfully come within the pale of the Protestant Episcopal
Church. But when the neutrality of the Judge was clearly ascertained, Mr. Jones
discovered that he had to contend with a stiff-necked people. His first measure
was to go among them, and commence a course of reasoning, in order to bring them
round to his own way of thinking. They all heard him patiently, and not a man
uttered a word in reply, in the way of argument: and Richard thought, by the
time that he had gone through the settlement, the point was conclusively decided
in his favour. Willing to strike while the iron was hot, he called a meeting,
through the newspaper, with a view to decide the question, by a vote, at once.
Not a soul attended, and one of the most anxious afternoons that he had ever
known, was spent by Richard in a vain discussion with Mrs. Hollister, who
strongly contended that the Methodist (her own) church was the best entitled to,
and most deserving of, the possession of the new tabernacle. Richard now
perceived that he had been too sanguine, and had fallen into the error of all
those who, ignorantly, deal with that wary and sagacious people. He assumed a
disguise himself, that is, as well as he knew how, and proceeded step by step to
advance his purpose.
    The task of erecting the building had been unanimously transferred to Mr.
Jones and Hiram Doolittle. Together they had built the mansion-house, the
academy, and the jail; and they alone knew how to plan and rear such a structure
as was now required. Early in the day, these architects had made an equitable
division of their duties. To the former was assigned the duty of making all the
plans, and to the latter, the labour of superintending the execution.
    Availing himself of this advantage, Richard silently determined that the
windows should have the Roman arch; the first positive step in effecting his
wishes. As the building was made of bricks, he was enabled to conceal his
design, until the moment arrived for placing the frames: then, indeed, it became
necessary to act. He communicated his wishes to Hiram, with great caution; and
without in the least adverting to the spiritual part of his project, he pressed
the point a little warmly, on the score of architectural beauty. Hiram heard him
patiently, and without contradiction; but still Richard was unable to discover
the views of his coadjutor, on this interesting subject. As the right to plan
was duly delegated to Mr. Jones, no direct objection was made in words, but
numberless unexpected difficulties arose in the execution. At first, there was a
scarcity in the right kind of material necessary to form the frames; but this
objection was instantly silenced, by Richard running his pencil through two feet
of their length at one stroke. Then the expense was mentioned; but Richard
reminded Hiram that his cousin paid, and that he was his treasurer. This last
intimation had great weight, and, after a silent and protracted, but fruitless
opposition, the work was suffered to proceed on the original plan.
    The next difficulty occurred in the steeple, which Richard had modelled
after one of the smaller of those spires that adorn the great London Cathedral.
The imitation was somewhat lame, it is true, the proportions being but
indifferently observed; but, after much difficulty, Mr. Jones had the
satisfaction of seeing an object reared, that bore, in its outlines, a striking
resemblance to a vinegar-cruet. There was less opposition to this model than to
the windows, for the settlers were fond of novelty, and their steeple was
without a precedent.
    Here the labour ceased for the season, and the difficult question of the
interior remained for further deliberation. Richard well knew, that when he came
to propose a reading-desk and a chancel, he must unmask; for these were
arrangements, known to no church in the country, but his own. Presuming,
however, on the advantages he had already obtained, he boldly styled the
building St. Paul's, and Hiram prudently acquiesced in this appellation, making,
however, the slight addition of calling it New St. Paul's, feeling less aversion
to a name taken from the English Cathedral, than from the saint.
    The pedestrian, whom we have already mentioned, as pausing to contemplate
this edifice, was no other than the gentleman so frequently named as Mr., or
Squire Doolittle. He was of a tall, gaunt formation, with rather sharp features,
and a face that expressed formal propriety, mingled with low cunning. Richard
approached him, followed by Monsieur Le Quoi and the Major-Domo.
    »Good evening, Squire,« said Richard, bobbing his head, but without moving
his hands from his pockets.
    »Good evening, Squire,« echoed Hiram, turning his body, in order to turn his
head also.
    »A cold night, Mr. Doolittle, a cold night, sir.«
    »Coolish; a tedious spell on't.«
    »What, looking at our church, ha! it looks well by moonlight; how the tin of
the cupola glistens. I warrant you, the dome of the other St. Paul's never
shines so in the smoke of London.«
    »It is a pretty meeting-house to look on,« returned Hiram, »and I believe
that Monshure Ler Quow and Mr. Penguilliam will allow it.«
    »Sairtainlee!« exclaimed the complaisant Frenchman, »it ees ver fine.«
    »I thought the Monshure would say so. The last molasses that we had was
excellent good. It isn't likely that you have any more of it on hand?«
    »Ah! oui; ees, sair,« returned Monsieur Le Quoi, with a slight shrug of his
shoulder, and a trifling grimace, »dere is more. I feel ver happi dat you love
eet. I hope dat Madame Dooleet' is in good 'ealth.«
    »Why, so as to be stirring,« said Hiram. - »The Squire hasn't finished the
plans for the inside of the meeting-house yet?«
    »No - no - no,« returned Richard, speaking quickly, but making a significant
pause between each negative - »it requires reflection. There is a great deal of
room to fill up, and I am afraid we shall not know how to dispose of it to
advantage. There will be a large vacant spot around the pulpit, which I do not
mean to place against the wall, like a sentry-box stuck up on the side of a
fort.«
    »It is ruleable to put the deacons' box under the pulpit,« said Hiram; and
then, as if he had ventured too much, he added, »but there's different fashions
in different countries.«
    »That there is,« cried Benjamin; »now, in running down the coast of Spain
and Portingal, you may see a nunnery stuck out on every head-land, with more
steeples and outriggers, such as dog-vanes and weather-cocks, than you'll find
aboard of a three-masted schooner. If-so-be that a well-built church is wanting,
Old England, after all, is the country to go to, after your models and
fashion-pieces. As to Paul's, thof I've never seen it, being that it's a long
way up town from Radcliffe-highway and the docks, yet every body knows that it's
the grandest place in the world. Now, I've no opinion but this here church over
there, is as like one end of it, as a grampus is to a whale; and that's only a
small difference in bulk. Mounsheer Ler Quaw here, has been in foreign parts,
and thof that is not the same as having been at home, yet he must have seen
churches in France too, and can form a small idee of what a church should be:
now, I ask the Mounsheer to his face, if it is not a clever little thing, taking
it by and large?«
    »It ees ver apropos of saircumstonce,« said the Frenchman - »ver judgement -
but it is in de Catholique country dat dey build de - vat you call - ah-a-ah-ha
- la grande cathédrale - de big church. St. Paul Londre, is ver fine; ver
bootiful; ver grand - vat you call beeg; but, Monsieur Ben, pardonnez moi, it is
no vort so much as Notre Dame« -
    »Ha! Mounsheer, what is that you say?« cried Benjamin - »St. Paul's Church
not worth so much as a damn! mayhap you may be thinking, too, that the Royal
Billy isn't so good a ship as the Billy de Paris; but she would have lick'd two
of her, any day, and in all weathers.«
    As Benjamin had assumed a very threatening kind of attitude, flourishing an
arm, with a bunch at the end of it, that was half as big as Monsieur Le Quoi's
head, Richard thought it time to interpose his authority.
    »Hush, Benjamin, hush,« he said; »you both misunderstand Monsieur Le Quoi,
and forget yourself. - But here comes Mr. Grant, and the service will commence.
Let us go in.«
    The Frenchman, who received Benjamin's reply with a well-bred good humour,
that would not admit of any feeling but pity for the other's ignorance, bowed in
acquiescence, and followed his companion.
    Hiram and the Major-Domo brought up the rear, the latter grumbling, as he
entered the building -
    »If-so-be that the King of France had so much as a house to live in, that
would lay alongside of Paul's, one might put up with their jaw. It's more than
flesh and blood can bear, to hear a Frenchman run down an English church in this
manner. Why, Squire Doolittle, I've been at the whipping of two of them in one
day - clean built, snug frigates, with standing-royals and them new-fashioned
cannonades on their quarters - such as, if they had only Englishmen aboard of
them, would have fout the devil.«
    With this ominous word in his mouth, Benjamin entered the church!
 

                                   Chapter XI

            »And fools, who came to scoff, remain'd to pray.«
                                      Goldsmith, »The Deserted Village,« l. 179.
 
Notwithstanding the united labours of Richard and Benjamin, the long-room was
but an extremely in-artificial temple. Benches, made in the coarsest manner, and
entirely with a view to usefulness, were arranged in rows, for the reception of
the congregation, while a rough, unpainted box, was placed against the wall, in
the centre of the length of the apartment, as an apology for a pulpit. Something
like a reading-desk was in front of this rostrum, and a small mahogany table,
from the mansion-house, covered with a spotless damask cloth, stood a little on
one side, by the way of an altar. Branches of pines and hemlocks were stuck in
each of the fissures that offered, in the unseasoned, and hastily completed
wood-work, of both the building and its furniture; while festoons and
hieroglyphics met the eye, in vast profusion, along the brown sides of the
scratch-coated walls. As the room was only lighted by some ten or fifteen
miserable candles, and the windows were without shutters, it would have been but
a dreary, cheerless place for the solemnities of a Christmas-eve, had not the
large fire, that was crackling at each end of the apartment, given an air of
cheerfulness to the scene, by throwing an occasional glare of light through the
vistas of bushes and faces.
    The two sexes were separated by an area in the centre of the room,
immediately before the pulpit, and a few benches lined this space, that were
occupied by the principal personages of the village and its vicinity. This
distinction was rather a gratuitous concession, made by the poorer and less
polished part of the population, than a right claimed by the favoured few. One
bench was occupied by the party of Judge Temple, including his daughter; and,
with the exception of Dr. Todd, no one else appeared willing to incur the
imputation of pride, by taking a seat in what was, literally, the high place of
the tabernacle.
    Richard filled the chair, that was placed behind another table, in the
capacity of clerk; while Benjamin, after heaping sundry logs on the fires,
posted himself nigh by, in reserve for any movement that might require
co-operation.
    It would greatly exceed our limits, to attempt a description of the
congregation, for the dresses were as various as the individuals. Some one
article of more than usual finery, and perhaps the relic of other days, was to
be seen about most of the females, in connexion with the coarse attire of the
woods. This, wore a faded silk, that had gone through at least three
generations, over coarse, woolen, black stockings; that, a shawl, whose dies
were as numerous as those of the rainbow, over an awkwardly-fitting gown, of
rough, brown woman's-wear. In short, each one exhibited some favourite article,
and all appeared in their best, both men and women; while the ground-works in
dress, in either sex, were the coarse fabrics manufactured within their own
dwellings. One man appeared in the dress of a volunteer company of artillery, of
which he had been a member, in the down-countries, precisely for no other
reason, than because it was the best suit he had. Several, particularly of the
younger men, displayed pantaloons of blue, edged with red cloth down the seams,
part of the equipments of the Templeton Light Infantry, from a little vanity to
be seen in boughten clothes. There was also one man in a rifle frock, with its
fringes and folds of spotless white, striking a chill to the heart with the idea
of its coolness; although the thick coat of brown home-made, that was concealed
beneath, preserved a proper degree of warmth.
    There was a marked uniformity of expression in countenance, especially in
that half of the congregation, who did not enjoy the advantages of the polish of
the village. A sallow skin, that indicated nothing but exposure, was common to
all, as was an air of great decency and attention, mingled, generally, with an
expression of shrewdness, and, in the present instance, of active curiosity. Now
and then a face and dress were to be seen, among the congregation, that differed
entirely from this description. If pock-marked, and florid, with gaitered legs,
and a coat that snugly fitted the person of the wearer, it was surely an English
emigrant, who had bent his steps to this retired quarter of the globe. If
hard-featured, and without colour, with high cheek-bones, it was a native of
Scotland, in similar circumstances. The short, black-eyed man, with a cast of
the swarthy Spaniard in his face, who rose repeatedly, to make room for the
belles of the village, as they entered, was a son of Erin, who had lately left
off his pack, and become a stationary trader in Templeton. In short, half the
nations in the north of Europe had their representatives in this assembly,
though all had closely assimilated themselves to the Americans, in dress and
appearance, except the Englishman. He, indeed, not only adhered to his native
customs, in attire and living, but usually drove his plough, among the stumps,
in the same manner as he had before done, on the plains of Norfolk, until
dear-bought experience taught him the useful lesson, that a sagacious people
knew what was suited to their circumstances, better than a casual observer; or a
sojourner, who was, perhaps, too much prejudiced to compare, and, peradventure,
too conceited to learn.
    Elizabeth soon discovered that she divided the attention of the congregation
with Mr. Grant. Timidity, therefore, confined her observation of the appearances
which we have described, to stolen glances; but, as the stamping of feet was now
becoming less frequent, and even the coughing, and other little preliminaries of
a congregation settling themselves down into reverential attention, were
ceasing, she felt emboldened to look around her. Gradually all noises
diminished, until the suppressed cough denoted, that it was necessary to avoid
singularity, and the most profound stillness pervaded the apartment. The
snapping of the fires, as they threw a powerful heat into the room, was alone
heard, and each face, and every eye, were turned on the divine.
    At this moment, a heavy stamping of feet was heard in the passage below, as
if a new comer was releasing his limbs from the snow, that was necessarily
clinging to the legs of a pedestrian. It was succeeded by no audible tread; but
directly Mohegan, followed by the Leather-stocking and the young hunter, made
his appearance. Their footsteps would not have been heard, as they trod the
apartment in their moccasins, but for the silence which prevailed.
    The Indian moved with great gravity, across the floor, and, observing a
vacant seat next to the Judge, he took it, in a manner that manifested his sense
of his own dignity. Here, drawing his blanket closely around him, so as partly
to conceal his countenance, he remained during the service, immoveable, but
deeply attentive. Natty passed the place, that was so freely taken by his red
companion, and seated himself on one end of a log, that was lying near the fire,
where he continued, with his rifle standing between his legs, absorbed in
reflections, seemingly, of no very pleasing nature. The youth found a seat,
among the congregation, and another silence prevailed.
    Mr. Grant now arose, and commenced his service, with the sublime declaration
of the Hebrew prophet - »The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep
silence before him.« The example of Mr. Jones was unnecessary, to teach the
congregation to rise: the solemnity of the divine, effected this as by magic.
After a short pause, Mr. Grant proceeded with the solemn and winning exhortation
of his service. Nothing was heard but the deep, though affectionate, tones of
the reader, as he slowly went through this exordium; until, something
unfortunately striking the mind of Richard as incomplete, he left his place, and
walked on tip-toe from the room.
    When the clergyman bent his knees in prayer and confession, the congregation
so far imitated his example, as to resume their seats; whence no succeeding
effort of the divine, during the evening, was able to remove them in a body.
Some rose, at times, but by far the larger part continued unbending; observant,
it is true, but it was the kind of observation that regarded the ceremony as a
spectacle, rather than a worship in which they were to participate. Thus
deserted by his clerk, Mr. Grant continued to read; but no response was audible.
The short and solemn pause, that succeeded each petition, was made; still no
voice repeated the eloquent language of the prayer.
    The lips of Elizabeth moved, but they moved in vain; and, accustomed, as she
was, to the service in the churches of the metropolis, she was beginning to feel
the awkwardness of the circumstance most painfully, when a soft, low, female
voice repeated after the priest, »We have left undone those things which we
ought to have done.« Startled, at finding one of her own sex in that place, who
could rise superior to natural timidity, Miss Temple turned her eyes in the
direction of the penitent. She observed a young female, on her knees, but a
short distance from her, with her meek face humbly bent over her book. The
appearance of this stranger, for such she was, entirely, to Elizabeth, was light
and fragile. Her dress was neat and becoming; and her countenance, though pale,
and slightly agitated, excited deep interest, by its sweet, and melancholy
expression. A second and third response were made by this juvenile assistant,
when the manly sounds of a male voice, proceeded from the opposite part of the
room. Miss Temple knew the tones of the young hunter instantly, and, struggling
to overcome her own diffidence, she added her low voice to the number.
    All this time, Benjamin stood thumbing the leaves of a prayer-book with
great industry, but some unexpected difficulties prevented his finding the
place. Before the divine reached the close of the confession, however, Richard
re-appeared at the door, and, as he moved lightly across the room, he took up
the response, in a voice that betrayed no other concern than that of not being
heard. In his hand he carried a small open box, with the figures of 8 by 10
written, in black paint, on one of its sides; which having placed in the pulpit,
apparently as a footstool for the divine, he returned to his station, in time to
say, sonorously, amen. The eyes of the congregation, very naturally, were turned
to the windows, as Mr. Jones entered with this singular load, and then, as if
accustomed to his general agency, were again bent on the priest, in close, and
curious attention.
    The long experience of Mr. Grant admirably qualified him to perform his
present duty. He well understood the character of his listeners, who were mostly
a primitive people in their habits; and who, being a good deal addicted to
subtleties and nice distinctions in their religious opinions, viewed the
introduction of any such temporal assistance as form, into their spiritual
worship, not only with jealousy, but frequently with disgust. He had acquired
much of his knowledge, from studying the great book of human nature, as it lay
open in the world; and, knowing how dangerous it was to contend with ignorance,
uniformly endeavoured to avoid dictating, where his better reason taught him it
was the most prudent to attempt to lead. His orthodoxy had no dependence on his
cassock; he could pray, with fervour and with faith, if circumstances required
it, without the assistance of his clerk; and he had even been known to preach a
most evangelical sermon, in the winning manner of native eloquence, without the
aid of a cambric handkerchief!
    In the present instance he yielded, in many places, to the prejudices of his
congregation; and when he had ended, there was not one of his new hearers, who
did not think the ceremonies less papal and offensive, and more conformant to
his or her own notions of devout worship, than they had been led to expect from
a service of forms. Richard found in the divine, during the evening, a most
powerful co-operator in his religious schemes. In preaching, Mr. Grant
endeavoured to steer a middle course, between the mystical doctrines of those
sublimated creeds, which daily involve their professors in the most absurd
contradictions, and those fluent rules of moral government, which would reduce
the Saviour to a level with the teacher of a school of ethics. Doctrine it was
necessary to preach, for nothing less would have satisfied the disputatious
people who were his listeners, and who would have interpreted silence on his
part, into a tacit acknowledgement of the superficial nature of his creed. We
have already said that, amongst the endless variety of religious instructors,
the settlers were accustomed to hear every denomination urge its own distinctive
precepts; and to have found one indifferent to this interesting subject, would
have been destructive to his influence. But Mr. Grant so happily blended the
universally received opinions of the Christian faith, with the dogmas of his own
church, that, although none were entirely exempt from the influence of his
reasons, very few took any alarm at the innovation.
    »When we consider the great diversity of the human character, influenced as
it is by education, by opportunity, and by the physical and moral conditions of
the creature, my dear hearers,« he earnestly concluded, »it can excite no
surprise, that creeds, so very different in their tendencies, should grow out of
a religion, revealed, it is true, but whose revelations are obscured by the
lapse of ages, and whose doctrines were, after the fashion of the countries in
which they were first promulgated, frequently delivered in parables, and in a
language abounding in metaphors and loaded with figures. On points where the
learned have, in purity of heart, been compelled to differ, the unlettered will
necessarily be at variance. But, happily for us, my brethren, the fountain of
divine love flows from a source, too pure to admit of pollution in its course;
it extends, to those who drink of its vivifying waters, the peace of the
righteous, and life everlasting; it endures through all time, and it pervades
creation. If there be mystery in its workings, it is the mystery of a Divinity.
With a clear knowledge of the nature, the might, and majesty of God, there might
be conviction, but there could be no faith. If we are required to believe in
doctrines, that seem not in conformity with the deductions of human wisdom, let
us never forget, that such is the mandate of a wisdom that is infinite. It is
sufficient for us, that enough is developed to point our path aright, and to
direct our wandering steps to that portal, which shall open on the light of an
eternal day. Then, indeed, it may be humbly hoped, that the film, which has been
spread by the subtleties of earthly arguments, will be dissipated, by the
spiritual light of heaven; and that our hour of probation, by the aid of divine
grace, being once passed in triumph, will be followed by an eternity of
intelligence, and endless ages of fruition. All that is now obscure, shall
become plain to our expanded faculties; and what, to our present senses, may
seem irreconcilable to our limited notions of mercy, of justice, and of love,
shall stand, irradiated by the light of truth, confessedly the suggestions of
Omniscience, and the acts of an All-powerful Benevolence.
    What a lesson of humility, my brethren, might not each of us obtain, from a
review of his infant hours, and the recollection of his juvenile passions. How
differently do the same acts of parental rigour appear, in the eyes of the
suffering child, and of the chastened man. When the sophist would supplant, with
the wild theories of his worldly wisdom, the positive mandates of inspiration,
let him remember the expansion of his own feeble intellects, and pause - let him
feel the wisdom of God, in what is partially concealed, as well as in that which
is revealed; - in short, let him substitute humility for pride of reason - let
him have faith, and live!
    The consideration of this subject is full of consolation, my hearers, and
does not fail to bring with it lessons of humility and of profit, that, duly
improved, would both chasten the heart, and strengthen the feeble-minded man in
his course. It is a blessed consolation, to be able to lay the misdoubtings of
our arrogant nature at the threshold of the dwelling-place of the Deity, from
whence they shall be swept away, at the great opening of the portal, like the
mists of the morning before the rising sun. It teaches us a lesson of humility,
by impressing us with the imperfection of human powers, and by warning us of the
many weak points, where we are open to the attacks of the great enemy of our
race; it proves to us, that we are in danger of being weak, when our vanity
would fain soothe us into the belief that we are most strong; it forcibly points
out to us the vain-glory of intellect, and shows us the vast difference between
a saving faith, and the corollaries of a philosophical theology; and it teaches
us to reduce our self-examination to the test of good works. By good works must
be understood, the fruits of repentance, the chiefest of which is charity. Not
that charity only, which causes us to help the needy and comfort the suffering,
but that feeling of universal philanthropy, which, by teaching us to love,
causes us to judge with lenity, all men; striking at the root of
self-righteousness, and warning us to be sparing of our condemnation of others,
while our own salvation is not yet secure.
    The lesson of expediency, my brethren, which I would gather from the
consideration of this subject, is most strongly inculcated by humility. On the
leading and essential points of our faith, there is but little difference,
amongst those classes of Christians, who acknowledge the attributes of the
Saviour, and depend on his mediation. But heresies have polluted every church,
and schisms are the fruits of disputation. In order to arrest these dangers, and
to insure the union of his followers, it would seem, that Christ had established
his visible church, and delegated the ministry. Wise and holy men, the fathers
of our religion, have expended their labours, in clearing what was revealed from
the obscurities of language; and the results of their experience and researches
have been embodied in the form of evangelical discipline. That this discipline
must be salutary, is evident, from the view of the weakness of human nature,
that we have already taken: and that it may be profitable to us, and all who
listen to its precepts and its liturgy, may God, in his infinite wisdom, grant.
- And now to,« etc.
    With this ingenious reference to his own forms and ministry, Mr. Grant
concluded the discourse. The most profound attention had been paid to the sermon
during the whole of its delivery, although the prayers had not been received
with so perfect a demonstration of respect. This was by no means an intended
slight of that liturgy, to which the divine alluded, but was the habit of a
people, who owed their very existence, as a distinct nation, to the doctrinal
character of their ancestors. Sundry looks of private dissatisfaction were
exchanged between Hiram and one or two of the leading members of the conference,
but the feeling went no farther at that time; and the congregation, after
receiving the blessing of Mr. Grant, dispersed in silence, and with great
decorum.
 

                                  Chapter XII

 »Your creeds, and dogmas of a learned church,
 May build a fabric, fair with moral beauty;
 But it would seem, that the strong hand of God
 Can, only, 'rase the devil from the heart.«
                                                                            Duo.
 
While the congregation was separating, Mr. Grant approached the place where
Elizabeth and her father were seated, leading the youthful female, whom we have
mentioned in the preceding chapter, and presented her as his daughter. Her
reception was as cordial and frank, as the manners of the country, and the value
of good society, could render it; the two young women feeling, instantly, that
they were necessary to the comfort of each other. The Judge, to whom the
clergyman's daughter was also a stranger, was pleased to find one, who, from
habits, sex, and years, could probably contribute largely to the pleasures of
his own child, during her first privations, on her removal from the associations
of a city to the solitude of Templeton; while Elizabeth, who had been forcibly
struck with the sweetness and devotion of the youthful suppliant, removed the
slight embarrassment of the timid stranger, by the ease of her own manners. They
were at once acquainted, and, during the ten minutes while the academy was
clearing, engagements were made between the young people, not only for the
succeeding day, but they would probably have embraced in their arrangements half
of the winter, had not the divine interrupted them, by saying -
    »Gently, gently, my dear Miss Temple, or you will make my girl too
dissipated. You forget that she is my housekeeper, and that my domestic affairs
must remain unattended to, should Louisa accept of half the kind offers you are
so good as to make her.«
    »And why should they not be neglected entirely, sir?« interrupted Elizabeth.
»There are but two of you, and certain I am that my father's house will not only
contain you both, but will open its doors spontaneously, to receive such guests.
Society is a good, not to be rejected on account of cold forms, in this
wilderness, sir; and I have often heard my father say, that hospitality is not a
virtue in a new country, the favour being conferred by the guest.«
    »The manner in which Judge Temple exercises its rites, would confirm this
opinion; but we must not trespass too freely. Doubt not that you will see us
often, my child particularly, during the frequent visits, that I shall be
compelled to make, to the distant parts of the county. But to obtain an
influence with such a people,« he continued, glancing his eyes towards the few,
who were still lingering, curious observers of the interview, »a clergyman must
not awaken envy or distrust, by dwelling under so splendid a roof as that of
Judge Temple.«
    »You like the roof, then, Mr. Grant,« cried Richard, who had been directing
the extinguishment of the fires, and other little necessary duties, and who
approached, in time, to hear the close of the divine's speech - »I am glad to
find one man of taste at last. Here's 'duke now, pretends to call it by every
abusive name he can invent; but though 'duke is a very tolerable judge, he is a
very poor carpenter, let me tell him. - Well, sir, well, I think we may say,
without boasting, that the service was as well performed this evening as you
often see; I think, quite as well as I ever knew it to be done in old Trinity -
that is, if we except the organ. But there is the schoolmaster, leads the psalm
with a very good air. I used to lead myself, but latterly I have sung nothing
but bass. There is a good deal of science to be shown in the bass, and it
affords a fine opportunity to show off a full, deep voice. Benjamin, too, sings
a good bass, though he is often out in the words. Did you ever hear Benjamin
sing the Bay of Biscay, O?«
    »I believe he gave us part of it this evening,« said Marmaduke, laughing. -
»There was, now and then, a fearful quaver in his voice, and it seems that Mr.
Penguillian, like most others who do one thing particularly well, knows nothing
else. He has, certainly, a wonderful partiality to one tune, and he has a
prodigious self-confidence in that one, for he delivers himself like a
north-wester sweeping across the lake. - But come, gentlemen, our way is clear,
and the sleigh waits. - Good evening, Mr. Grant. Good night, young lady.
Remember that you dine beneath the Corinthian roof to-morrow, with Elizabeth.«
    The parties separated, Richard holding a close dissertation with Mr. Le
Quoi, as they descended the stairs, on the subject of psalmody, which he closed
by a violent eulogium on the air of the »Bay of Biscay, O,« as particularly
connected with his friend Benjamin's execution.
    During the preceding dialogue, Mohegan retained his seat, with his head
shrouded in his blanket, as seemingly inattentive to surrounding objects, as the
departing congregation was, itself, to the presence of the aged chief. Natty,
also, continued on the log, where he had first placed himself, with his head
resting on one of his hands, while the other held the rifle, which was thrown
carelessly across his lap. His countenance expressed uneasiness, and the
occasional unquiet glances, that he had thrown around him, during the service,
plainly indicated some unusual causes for unhappiness. His continuing seated
was, however, out of respect to the Indian chief, to whom he paid the utmost
deference, on all occasions, although it was mingled with the rough manner of a
hunter.
    The young companion of these two ancient inhabitants of the forest,
remained, also, standing before the extinguished brands, probably from an
unwillingness to depart without his comrades. The room was now deserted by all
but this group, the divine and his daughter. As the party from the Mansion-House
disappeared, John arose, and dropping the blanket from his head, he shook back
the mass of black hair from his face, and approaching Mr. Grant, he extended his
hand, and said, solemnly -
    »Father, I thank you. The words that have been said, since the rising moon,
have gone upward, and the Great Spirit is glad. What you have told your
children, they will remember, and be good.« He paused a moment, and then
elevating himself with the grandeur of an Indian chief, he added - »If
Chingachgook lives to travel towards the setting sun, after his tribe, and the
Great Spirit carries him over the lakes and mountains, with the breath in his
body, he will tell his people the good talk he has heard; and they will believe
him, for who can say that Mohegan has ever lied?«
    »Let him place his dependence on the goodness of Divine mercy,« said Mr.
Grant, to whom the proud consciousness of the Indian sounded a little heterodox,
»and it never will desert him. When the heart is filled with love to God, there
is no room for sin. - But, young man, to you I owe not only an obligation, in
common with those you saved this evening, on the mountain, but my thanks, for
your respectful and pious manner, in assisting in the service, at a most
embarrassing moment. I should be happy to see you sometimes, at my dwelling,
when, perhaps, my conversation may strengthen you in the path which you appear
to have chosen. It is so unusual to find one of your age and appearance, in
these woods, at all acquainted with our holy liturgy, that it lessens at once
the distance between us, and I feel we are no longer strangers. You seem quite
at home in the service: I did not perceive that you had even a book, although
good Mr. Jones had laid several in different parts of the room.«
    »It would be strange, if I were ignorant of the service of our church, sir,«
returned the youth, modestly, »for I was baptized in its communion, and I have
never yet attended public worship, elsewhere. For me, to use the forms of any
other denomination, would be as singular as our own have proved, to the people
here this evening.«
    »You give me great pleasure, my dear sir,« cried the divine, seizing the
other by the hand, and shaking it cordially. - »You will go home with me now -
indeed you must - my child has yet to thank you for saving my life. I will
listen to no apologies. This worthy Indian, and your friend there, will
accompany us. - Bless me! to think, that he has arrived at manhood, in this
country, without entering a dissenting11 meeting-house!«
    »No, no,« interrupted the Leather-stocking, »I must away to the wigwam:
there's work there, that mus'nt be forgotten, for all your churchings and
merry-makings. Let the lad go with you in welcome; he is used to keeping company
with ministers, and talking of such matters; so is old John, who was
christianized by the Moravians, about the time of the old war. But I am a plain,
unlarned man, that has sarved both the king and his country, in his day, ag'in
the French and savages, but never so much as looked into a book, or larnt a
letter of scholarship, in my born days. I've never seen the use of such in-door
work, though I've lived to be partly bald, and in my time, have killed two
hundred beaver in a season, and that without counting the other game. If you
mistrust what I'm telling you, you can ask Chingachgook there, for I did it in
the heart of the Delaware country, and the old man is knowing to the truth of
every word I say.«
    »I doubt not, my friend, that you have been both a valiant soldier and
skilful hunter, in your day,« said the divine; »but more is wanting, to prepare
you for that end which approaches. - You may have heard the maxim, that young
men may die, but that old men must.«
    »I'm sure I never was so great a fool as to expect to live for ever,« said
Natty, giving one of his silent laughs: »no man need do that, who trails the
savages through the woods, as I have done, and lives, for the hot months, on the
lake-streams. I've a strong constitution, I must say that for myself, as is
plain to be seen, for I've drunk the Onondaga water a hundred times, while I've
been watching the deer-licks, when the fever-an-agy seeds was to be seen in it,
as plain and as plenty as you can see the rattle-snakes on old Crumhorn. But
then, I never expected to hold out for ever; though there's them living, who
have seen the Garman Flats a wilderness, ay! and them that's larned, and
acquainted with religion too; though you might look a week now, and not find
even the stump of a pine on them; and that's a wood, that lasts in the ground
the better part of a hundred years after the tree is dead.«
    »This is but time, my good friend,« returned Mr. Grant, who began to take an
interest in the welfare of his new acquaintance, »but I would have you prepare
for eternity. It is incumbent on you to attend places of public worship, as I am
pleased to see that you have done this evening. Would it not be heedless in you
to start on a day's toil of hard hunting, and leave your ramrod and flint
behind?«
    »It must be a young hand in the woods,« interrupted Natty, with another
laugh, »that didn't know how to dress a rod out of an ash sapling, or find a
fire-stone in the mountains. No, no, I never expected to live for ever; but I
see, times be altering in these mountains from what they was thirty years ago,
or for that matter, ten years. But might makes right, and the law is stronger
than an old man, whether he is one that has much larning, or only one like me,
that is better now at standing at the passes than in following the hounds, as I
once used to could. - Heigh-ho! I never know'd preaching come into a settlement,
but it made game scearce, and raised the price of gun-powder; and that's a thing
that's not as easily made as a ramrod, or an Indian flint.«
    The divine, perceiving that he had given his opponent an argument, by his
own unfortunate selection of a comparison, very prudently relinquished the
controversy; although he was fully determined to resume it, at a more happy
moment. Repeating his request to the young hunter, with great earnestness, the
youth and Indian consented to accompany him and his daughter to the dwelling,
that the care of Mr. Jones had provided for their temporary residence.
Leather-stocking persevered in his intention of returning to the hut, and at the
door of the building they separated.
    After following the course of one of the streets of the village a short
distance, Mr. Grant, who led the way, turned into a field, through a pair of
open bars, and entered a foot-path, of but sufficient width to admit one person
to walk in it, at a time. The moon had gained a height, that enabled her to
throw her rays perpendicularly on the valley; and the distinct shadows of the
party flitted along on the banks of the silvery snow, like the presence of
aerial figures, gliding to their appointed place of meeting. The night still
continued intensely cold, although not a breath of wind was felt. The path was
beaten so hard, that the gentle female, who made one of the party, moved with
ease along its windings; though the frost emitted a low creaking, at the
impression of even her light footsteps.
    The clergyman, in his dark dress of broadcloth, with his mild, benevolent
countenance occasionally turned towards his companions, expressing that look of
subdued care, which was its characteristic, presented the first object in this
singular group. Next to him moved the Indian, his hair falling about his face,
his head uncovered, and the rest of his form concealed beneath his blanket. As
his swarthy visage, with its muscles fixed in rigid composure, was seen under
the light of the moon, which struck his face obliquely, he seemed a picture of
resigned old age, on whom the storms of winter had beaten in vain, for the
greater part of a century; but when, in turning his head, the rays fell directly
on his dark, fiery eyes, they told a tale of passions unrestrained, and of
thoughts free as air. The slight person of Miss Grant, which followed next, and
which was but too thinly clad for the severity of the season, formed a marked
contrast to the wild attire, and uneasy glances of the Delaware chief; and more
than once, during their walk, the young hunter, himself no insignificant figure
in the group, was led to consider the difference in the human form, as the face
of Mohegan, and the gentle countenance of Miss Grant, with eyes that rivalled
the soft hue of the sky, met his view, at the instant that each turned, to throw
a glance at the splendid orb which lighted their path. Their way, which led
through fields, that lay at some distance in the rear of the houses, was cheered
by a conversation, that flagged or became animated with the subject. The first
to speak was the divine.
    »Really,« he said, »it is so singular a circumstance, to meet with one of
your age, that has not been induced, by idle curiosity, to visit any other
church than the one in which he has been educated, that I feel a strong
curiosity to know the history of a life so fortunately regulated. - Your
education must have been excellent; as indeed is evident from your manners and
language. Of which of the states are you a native, Mr. Edwards? for such, I
believe, was the name that you gave Judge Temple.«
    »Of this -«
    »Of this! I was at a loss to conjecture, from your dialect, which does not
partake, particularly, of the peculiarities of any country with which I am
acquainted. You have, then, resided much in the cities, for no other part of
this country is so fortunate, as to possess the constant enjoyment of our
excellent liturgy.«
    The young hunter smiled, as he listened to the divine, while he so clearly
betrayed from what part of the country he had come himself; but, for reasons,
probably, connected with his present situation, he made no answer.
    »I am delighted to meet with you, my young friend, for I think an ingenuous
mind, such as I doubt not yours must be, will exhibit all the advantages of a
settled doctrine and devout liturgy. You perceive how I was compelled to bend to
the humours of my hearers this evening. Good Mr. Jones wished me to read the
communion, and, in fact, all the morning service; but, happily, the canons do
not require this of an evening. It would have wearied a new congregation; but
to-morrow I propose administering the sacrament - do you commune, my young
friend?«
    »I believe not, sir,« returned the youth, with a little embarrassment, that
was not at all diminished by Miss Grant's pausing involuntarily, and turning her
eyes on him in surprise - »I fear that I am not qualified; I have never yet
approached the altar; neither would I wish to do it, while I find so much of the
world clinging to my heart.«
    »Each must judge for himself,« said Mr. Grant; »though I should think, that
a youth who had never been blown about by the wind of false doctrines, and who
has enjoyed the advantages of our liturgy for so many years, in its purity,
might safely come. Yet, sir, it is a solemn festival, which none should
celebrate, until there is reason to hope it is not mockery. I observed, this
evening, in your manner to Judge Temple, a resentment, that bordered on one of
the worst of human passions. - We will cross this brook on the ice: it must bear
us all, I think, in safety. - Be careful not to slip, my child.« While speaking,
he descended a little bank, by the path, and crossed one of the small streams
that poured their waters into the lake; and, turning to see his daughter pass,
observed that the youth had advanced, and was kindly directing her footsteps.
When all were safely over, he moved up the opposite bank, and continued his
discourse: - »It was wrong, my dear sir, very wrong, to suffer such feelings to
rise, under any circumstances, and especially in the present, where the evil was
not intended.«
    »There is good in the talk of my father,« said Mohegan, stopping short, and
causing those who were behind him to pause also; »It is the talk of Miquon. The
white man may do as his fathers have told him; but the Young Eagle has the blood
of a Delaware chief in his veins: it is red, and the stain it makes, can only be
washed out with the blood of a Mingo.«12
    Mr. Grant was surprised by the interruption of the Indian, and, stopping,
faced the speaker. His mild features were confronted to the fierce and
determined looks of the chief, and expressed the horror he felt, at hearing such
sentiments, from one who professed the religion of his Saviour. Raising his
hands to a level with his head, he exclaimed -
    »John, John! is this the religion that you have learned from the Moravians?
But no - I will not be so uncharitable as to suppose it. They are a pious, a
gentle, and a mild people, and could never tolerate these passions. Listen to
the language of the Redeemer - But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them
that curse you; do good to them that hate you; pray for them that despitefully
use you and persecute you. - This is the command of God, John, and without
striving to cultivate such feelings, no man can see him.«
    The Indian heard the divine with attention; the unusual fire of his eye
gradually softened, and his muscles relaxed into their ordinary composure; but,
slightly shaking his head, he motioned with dignity for Mr. Grant to resume his
walk, and followed himself in silence. The agitation of the divine caused him to
move with unusual rapidity along the deep path, and the Indian, without any
apparent exertion, kept an equal pace; but the young hunter observed the female
to linger in her steps, until a trifling distance intervened between the two
former and the latter. Struck by the circumstance, and not perceiving any new
impediment to retard her footsteps, the youth made a tender of his assistance.
    »You are fatigued, Miss Grant,« he said: »the snow yields to the foot, and
you are unequal to the strides of us men. Step on the crust, I entreat you, and
take the help of my arm. Yonder light is, I believe, the house of your father;
but it seems yet at some distance.«
    »I am quite equal to the walk,« returned a low, tremulous voice, »but I am
startled by the manner of that Indian. Oh! his eye was horrid, as he turned to
the moon, in speaking to my father. - But I forget, sir; he is your friend, and,
by his language, may be your relative; and yet, of you I do not feel afraid.«
    The young man stepped on the bank of snow, which firmly sustained his
weight, and by a gentle effort, induced his companion to follow. Drawing her arm
through his own, he lifted his cap from his head, allowing the dark locks to
flow in rich curls over his open brow, and walked by her side, with an air of
conscious pride, as if inviting an examination of his inmost thoughts. Louisa
took but a furtive glance at his person, and moved quietly along, at a rate that
was greatly quickened by the aid of his arm.
    »You are but little acquainted with this peculiar people, Miss Grant,« he
said, »or you would know that revenge is a virtue with an Indian. They are
taught, from infancy upward, to believe it a duty, never to allow an injury to
pass unrevenged; and nothing but the stronger claims of hospitality, can guard
one against their resentments, where they have power.«
    »Surely, sir,« said Miss Grant, involuntarily withdrawing her arm from his,
»you have not been educated with such unholy sentiments.«
    »It might be a sufficient answer, to your excellent father, to say that I
was educated in the church,« he returned; »but to you I will add, that I have
been taught deep and practical lessons of forgiveness. I believe that, on this
subject, I have but little cause to reproach myself; it shall be my endeavour,
that there yet be less.«
    While speaking, he stopped, and stood with his arm again proffered to her
assistance. As he ended, she quietly accepted his offer, and they resumed their
walk.
    Mr. Grant and Mohegan had reached the door of the former's residence, and
stood waiting near its threshold, for the arrival of their young companions. The
former was earnestly occupied, in endeavouring to correct, by his precepts, the
evil propensities, that he had discovered in the Indian, during their
conversation; to which the latter listened in profound, but respectful
attention. On the arrival of the young hunter and the lady, they entered the
building.
    The house stood at some distance from the village, in the centre of a field,
surrounded by stumps, that were peering above the snow, bearing caps of pure
white, nearly two feet in thickness. Not a tree nor a shrub was nigh it; but the
house, externally, exhibited that cheerless, unfinished aspect, which is so
common to the hastily-erected dwellings of a new country. The uninviting
character of its outside was, however, happily relieved by the exquisite
neatness, and comfortable warmth, within.
    They entered an apartment, that was fitted as a parlour, though the large
fire-place, with its culinary arrangements, betrayed the domestic uses to which
it was occasionally applied. The bright blaze from the hearth, rendered the
light that proceeded from the candle Louisa produced, unnecessary; for the
scanty furniture of the room was easily seen and examined, by the former. The
floor was covered, in the centre, by a carpet made of rags, a species of
manufacture that was, then, and yet continues to be, much in use, in the
interior; while its edges, that were exposed to view, were of unspotted
cleanliness. There was a trifling air of better life, in a tea-table and
work-stand, as well as in an old-fashioned mahogany book-case; but the chairs,
the dining-table, and the rest of the furniture, were of the plainest and
cheapest construction. Against the walls were hung a few specimens of
needle-work and drawing, the former executed with great neatness, though of
somewhat equivocal merit in their designs, while the latter were strikingly
deficient in both.
    One of the former represented a tomb, with a youthful female weeping over
it, exhibiting a church with arched windows, in the back-ground. On the tomb
were the names, with the dates of the births and deaths, of several individuals,
all of whom bore the name of Grant. An extremely cursory glance at this record,
was sufficient to discover to the young hunter the domestic state of the divine.
He there read, that he was a widower, and that the innocent and timid maiden,
who had been his companion, was the only survivor of six children. The knowledge
of the dependence, which each of these meek christians had on the other, for
happiness, threw an additional charm around the gentle, but kind attentions,
which the daughter paid to the father.
    These observations occurred while the party were seating themselves before
the cheerful fire, during which time, there was a suspension of discourse. But
when each was comfortably arranged, and Louisa, after laying aside a thin coat
of faded silk, and a Gipsy hat, that was more becoming to her modest, ingenuous
countenance, than appropriate to the season, had taken a chair between her
father and the youth, the former resumed the conversation.
    »I trust, my young friend,« he said, »that the education you have received,
has eradicated most of those revengeful principles, which you may have inherited
by descent; for I understand, from the expressions of John, that you have some
of the blood of the Delaware tribe. Do not mistake me, I beg, for it is not
colour, nor lineage, that constitutes merit; and I know not, that he, who claims
affinity to the proper owners of this soil, has not the right to tread these
hills with the lightest conscience.«
    Mohegan turned solemnly to the speaker, and, with the peculiarly significant
gestures of an Indian, he spoke: -
    »Father, you are not yet past the summer of life; your limbs are young. Go
to the highest hill, and look around you. All that you see, from the rising to
the setting sun, from the head-waters of the great spring, to where the crooked
river13 is hid by the hills, is his. He has Delaware blood, and his right is
strong. But the brother of Miquon is just: he will cut the country in two parts,
as the river cuts the low-lands, and will say to the Young Eagle, Child of the
Delawares! take it - keep it - and be a chief in the land of your fathers.«
    »Never!« exclaimed the young hunter, with a vehemence that destroyed the
rapt attention with which the divine and his daughter were listening to the
Indian - »The wolf of the forest is not more rapacious for his prey, than that
man is greedy of gold; and yet his glidings into wealth are subtle as the
movements of a serpent.«
    »Forbear, forbear, my son, forbear,« interrupted Mr. Grant. - »These angry
passions must be subdued. The accidental injury you have received from Judge
Temple, has heightened the sense of your hereditary wrongs. But remember, that
the one was unintentional, and that the other is the effect of political
changes, which have, in their course, greatly lowered the pride of kings, and
swept mighty nations from the face of the earth. Where now are the Philistines,
who so often held the children of Israel in bondage! or that city of Babylon,
which rioted in luxury and vice, and who styled herself the Queen of Nations, in
the drunkenness of her pride? Remember the prayer of our holy litany, where we
implore the Divine power - That it may please thee to forgive our enemies,
persecutors, and slanderers, and to turn their hearts. The sin of the wrongs
which have been done to the natives, are to be alleged against Judge Temple,
only, in common with a whole people, and your arm will speedily be restored to
its strength.«
    »This arm!« repeated the youth, pacing the floor in violent agitation;
»think you, sir, that I believe the man a murderer? - oh, no! he is too wily,
too cowardly, for such a crime. But, let him and his daughter riot in their
wealth - a day of retribution will come. No, no, no,« he continued, as he trod
the floor more calmly - »it is for Mohegan to suspect him of an intent to injure
me; but the trifle is not worth a second thought.«
    He seated himself, and hid his face between his hands, as they rested on his
knees.
    »It is the hereditary violence of a native's passion, my child,« said Mr.
Grant, in a low tone, to his affrighted daughter, who was clinging, in terror,
to his arm. »He is mixed with the blood of the Indians, you have heard; and
neither the refinements of education, nor the advantages of our excellent
liturgy, have been able entirely to eradicate the evil. But care and time will
do much for him yet.«
    Although the divine spoke in a low tone, yet what he uttered was heard by
the youth, who raised his head, with a smile of indefinite expression, and spoke
more calmly: -
    »Be not alarmed, Miss Grant, at either the wildness of my manner, or that of
my dress. I have been carried away by passions, that I should struggle to
repress. I must attribute it, with your father, to the blood in my veins,
although I would not impeach my lineage willingly; for it is all that is left me
to boast of. Yes! I am proud of my descent from a Delaware chief, who was a
warrior that ennobled human nature. Old Mohegan, was his friend, and will vouch
for his virtues.«
    Mr. Grant here took up the discourse, and, finding the young man more calm,
and the aged chief attentive, he entered into a full and theological discussion
of the duty of forgiveness. The conversation lasted for more than an hour, when
the visitors arose, and, after exchanging good wishes with their entertainers,
they departed. At the door they separated, Mohegan taking the direct route to
the village, while the youth moved towards the lake. The divine stood at the
entrance of his dwelling, regarding the figure of the aged chief, as it glided,
at an astonishing gait, for his years, along the deep path; his black, straight
hair, just visible over the bundle formed by his blanket, which was sometimes
blended with the snow under the silvery light of the moon. From the rear of the
house was a window, that overlooked the lake; and here Louisa was found by her
father, when he entered, gazing, intently on some object, in the direction of
the eastern mountain. He approached the spot, and saw the figure of the young
hunter, at the distance of half a mile, walking with prodigious steps, across
the wide fields of frozen snow, that covered the ice, towards the point, where
he knew the hut inhabited by the Leather-stocking was situated, on the margin of
the lake, under a rock, that was crowned by pines and hemlocks. At the next
instant, the wildly looking form entered the shadow, cast from the overhanging
trees, and was lost to view.
    »It is marvellous, how long the propensities of the savage continue, in that
remarkable race,« said the good divine; »but if he persevere, as he has
commenced, his triumph shall yet be complete. Put me in mind, Louisa, to lend
him the homily against peril of idolatry, at his next visit.«
    »Surely, father, you do not think him in danger of relapsing into the
worship of his ancestors!«
    »No, my child,« returned the clergyman, laying his hand affectionately on
her flaxen locks, and smiling, »his white blood would prevent it; but there is
such a thing as the idolatry of our passions.«
 

                                  Chapter XIII

 »And I'll drink out of the quart pot,
 Here's a health to the barley mow.«
                                                        Anon., »The Barley-Mow.«
 
On one of the corners, where the two principal streets of Templeton intersected
each other, stood, as we have already mentioned, the inn called the Bold
Dragoon. In the original plan, it was ordained that the village should stretch
along the little stream, that rushed down the valley, and the street which led
from the lake to the academy, was intended to be its western boundary. But
convenience frequently frustrates the best regulated plans. The house of Mr., or
as, in consequence of commanding the militia of that vicinity, he was called,
Captain Hollister, had, at an early day, been erected directly facing the main
street, and ostensibly interposed a barrier to its further progress. Horsemen,
and subsequently teamsters, however, availed themselves of an opening, at the
end of the building, to shorten their passage westward, until, in time, the
regular highway was laid out along this course, and houses were gradually built,
on either side, so as effectually to prevent any subsequent correction of the
evil.
    Two material consequences followed this change in the regular plans of
Marmaduke. The main street, after running about half its length, was suddenly
reduced to precisely that difference in its width; and the Bold Dragoon became,
next to the Mansion-house, by far the most conspicuous edifice in the place.
    This conspicuousness, aided by the characters of the host and hostess, gave
the tavern an advantage over all its future competitors, that no circumstances
could conquer. An effort was, however, made to do so; and, at the corner
diagonally opposite, stood a new building, that was intended, by its occupants,
to look down all opposition. It was a house of wood, ornamented in the
prevailing style of architecture, and about the roof and balustrades, was one of
the three imitators of the Mansion-House. The upper windows were filled with
rough boards, secured by nails, to keep out the cold air; for the edifice was
far from finished, although glass was to be seen in the lower apartments, and
the light of the powerful fires, within, denoted that it was already inhabited.
The exterior was painted white, on the front, and on the end which was exposed
to the street; but in the rear, and on the side which was intended to join the
neighbouring house, it was coarsely smeared with Spanish brown. Before the door
stood two lofty posts, connected at the top by a beam, from which was suspended
an enormous sign, ornamented around its edges, with certain curious carvings, in
pine boards, and on its faces, loaded with masonic emblems. Over these
mysterious figures, was written, in large letters, »The Templetown Coffee-House,
and Traveller's Hotel,« and beneath them, »By Habakkuk Foote and Joshua Knapp.«
This was a fearful rival to the Bold Dragoon, as our readers will the more
readily perceive, when we add, that the same sonorous names were to be seen over
the door of a newly-erected store in the village, a hatter's shop, and the gates
of a tan-yard. But, either because too much was attempted to be executed well,
or that the Bold Dragoon had established a reputation which could not be easily
shaken, not only Judge Temple and his friends, but most of the villagers also,
who were not in debt to the powerful firm we have named, frequented the inn of
Captain Hollister, on all occasions where such a house was necessary.
    On the present evening, the limping veteran, and his consort, were hardly
housed, after their return from the academy, when the sounds of stamping feet at
their threshold announced the approach of visitors, who were probably
assembling, with a view to compare opinions, on the subject of the ceremonies
they had witnessed.
    The public, or, as it was called, the bar-room, of the Bold Dragoon, was a
spacious apartment, lined on three sides with benches, and on the fourth by
fire-places. Of the latter, there were two, of such size as to occupy, with
their enormous jambs, the whole of that side of the apartment where they were
placed, excepting room enough for a door or two, and a little apartment in one
corner, which was protected by miniature pallisadoes, and profusely garnished
with bottles and glasses. In the entrance to this sanctuary, Mrs. Hollister was
seated, with great gravity in her air, while her husband occupied himself with
stirring the fires; moving the logs with a large stake, burnt to a point at one
end.
    »There, Sargeant dear,« said the landlady, after she thought the veteran had
got the logs arranged in the most judicious manner, »give over poking, for it's
no good yee'll be doing, now that they burn so convaniently. There's the glasses
on the table there, and the mug that the Doctor was taking his cider and ginger
in, before the fire here, - just put them in the bar, will ye? for we'll be
having the Joodge, and the Major, and Mr. Jones, down the night, widout
reckoning Benjamin Poomp, and the Lawyers: so yee'll be fixing the room tidy;
and put both flip-irons in the coals; and tell Jude, the lazy, black baste, that
if she's no be claning up the kitchen, I'll turn her out of the house, and she
may live wid the jontlemen that kape the Coffee-house, good luck to 'em. Och!
Sargeant, sure it's a great privilege to go to a mateing, where a body can sit
asy, widout joomping up and down so often, as this Mr. Grant is doing that
same.«
    »It's a privilege at all times, Mistress Hollister, whether we stand or be
seated; or, as good Mr. Whitefield used to do, after he had made a wearisome
day's march, get on our knees and pray, like Moses of old, with a flanker to the
right and left, to lift his hands to heaven,« returned her husband, who
composedly performed what she had directed to be done. »It was a very pretty
fight, Betty, that the Israelites had, on that day, with the Amalekites. It
seems that they fout on a plain, for Moses is mentioned, as having gone on to
the heights, to overlook the battle, and wrestle in prayer; and if I should
judge, with my little larning, the Israelites depended mainly on their horse,
for it is written, that Joshua cut up the enemy with the edge of the sword: from
which I infar, not only that they were horse, but well disciplyn'd troops.
Indeed, it says as much, as that they were chosen men; quite likely volunteers;
for raw dragoons seldom strike with the edge of their swords, particularly if
the weapon be any way crooked.«
    »Pshaw! why do ye bodder yourself wid taxts, man, about so small a matter,«
interrupted the landlady; »sure it was the Lord who was wid 'em; for he always
sided wid the Jews, before they fell away; and it's but little matter what kind
of men Joshua commanded, so that he was doing the right bidding. Aven them
cursed millishy, the Lord forgi'e me for swearing, that was the death of him,
wid their cowardice, would have carried the day in old times. There's no rason
to be thinking that the soldiers was used to the drill.«
    »I must say, Mrs. Hollister, that I have not often seen raw troops fight
better than the left flank of the militia, at the time you mention. They rallied
handsomely, and that without beat of drum, which is no easy thing to do under
fire, and were very steady till he fell. But the scriptures contain no
unnecessary words; and I will maintain, that horse, who know how to strike with
the edge of the sword, must be well disciplyn'd. Many a good sarmon has been
preached about smaller matters than that one word. If the text was not meant to
be particular, why wasn't't it written, with the sword, and not with the edge?
Now, a back-handed stroke, on the edge, takes long practice. Goodness! what an
argument would Mr. Whitefield make of that word edge! - As to the Captain, if he
had only called up the guard of dragoons, when he rallied the foot, they would
have shown the enemy what the edge of a sword was; for, although there was no
commissioned officer with them, yet I think I may say,« - the veteran continued,
stiffening his cravat about the throat, and raising himself up, with the air of
a drill-sergeant, - »they were led by a man, who know'd how to bring them on, in
spite of the ravine.«
    »Is it lade on ye would?« cried the landlady, »when ye know yourself, Mr.
Hollister, that the baste he rode was but little able to joomp from one rock to
another, and the animal was as spry as a squirrel? Och! but it's useless to
talk, for he's gone this many a year. I would that he had lived to see the true
light; but there's mercy for a brave sowl, that died in the saddle, fighting for
the liberty. It's a poor tomb-stone they have given him, any way, and many a
good one that died like himself: but the sign is very like, and I will be
kapeing it up, while the blacksmith can make a hook for it to swing on, for all
the coffee-houses betwane this and Albany.«
    There is no saying where this desultory conversation would have led the
worthy couple, had not the men who were stamping the snow off their feet, on the
little platform before the door, suddenly ceased their occupation, and entered
the bar-room.
    For ten or fifteen minutes, the different individuals, who intended either
to bestow or receive edification, before the fires of the Bold Dragoon, on that
evening, were collecting, until the benches were nearly filled with men of
different occupations. Dr. Todd, and a slovenly-looking, shabby genteel young
man, who took tobacco profusely, wore a coat of imported cloth, cut with
something like a fashionable air, frequently exhibited a large, French, silver
watch, with a chain of woven hair and a silver key, and who, altogether, seemed
as much above the artisans around him, as he was himself inferior to the real
gentlemen, occupied a high-back, wooden settee, in the most comfortable corner
in the apartment.
    Sundry brown mugs, containing cider or beer, were placed between the heavy
andirons, and little groups were formed among the guests, as subjects arose, or
the liquor was passed from one to the other. No man was seen to drink by
himself, nor in any instance was more than one vessel considered necessary, for
the same beverage; but the glass, or the mug, was passed from hand to hand,
until a chasm in the line, or a regard to the rights of ownership, would
regularly restore the dregs of the potation to him who defrayed the cost.
    Toasts were uniformly drunk; and occasionally, some one, who conceived
himself peculiarly endowed by nature to shine in the way of wit, would attempt
some such sentiment as »hoping that he« who treated »might make a better man
than his father;« or »live till all his friends wished him dead;« while the more
humble pot-companion contented himself by saying, with a most imposing gravity
in his air, »come, here's luck,« or by expressing some other equally
comprehensive wish. In every instance, the veteran landlord was requested to
imitate the custom of the cup-bearers to kings, and taste the liquor he
presented, by the invitation of after you is manners; with which request he
ordinarily complied, by wetting his lips, first expressing the wish of here's
hoping, leaving it to the imagination of the hearers to fill the vacuum by
whatever good each thought most desirable. During these movements, the landlady
was busily occupied with mixing the various compounds required by her customers,
with her own hands, and occasionally exchanging greetings and inquiries
concerning the conditions of their respective families, with such of the
villagers as approached the bar.
    At length, the common thirst being in some measure assuaged, conversation of
a more general nature became the order of the hour. The physician, and his
companion, who was one of the two lawyers of the village, being considered the
best qualified to maintain a public discourse with credit, were the principal
speakers, though a remark was hazarded, now and then, by Mr. Doolittle, who was
thought to be their inferior, only in the enviable point of education. A general
silence was produced on all but the two speakers, by the following observation
from the practitioner of the law: -
    »So, Doctor Todd, I understand that you have been performing an important
operation, this evening, by cutting a charge of buck-shot from the shoulder of
the son of Leather-stocking?«
    »Yes, sir,« returned the other, elevating his little head, with an air of
importance. »I had a small job, up at the Judge's, in that way: it was, however,
but a trifle to what it might have been, had it gone through the body. The
shoulder is not a very vital part; and I think the young man will soon be well.
But I did not know that the patient was a son of Leather-stocking: it is news to
me, to hear that Natty had a wife.«
    »It is by no means a necessary consequence,« returned the other, winking,
with a shrewd look around the bar-room; »there is such a thing, I suppose you
know, in law, as a filius nullius.«
    »Spake it out, man,« exclaimed the landlady, »spoke it out in king's
English; what for should ye be talking Indian, in a room full of Christian
folks, though it is about a poor hunter, who is but a little better in his ways
than the wild savages themselves? Och! it's to be hoped that the missionaries
will, in his own time, make a convarsion of the poor divils; and then it will
matter little of what colour is the skin, or wedder there be wool or hair on the
head.«
    »Oh! it is Latin, not Indian, Miss Hollister,« returned the lawyer,
repeating his winks and shrewd looks; »and Dr. Todd understands Latin, or how
would he read the labels on his gallipots and drawers? No, no, Miss Hollister,
the Doctor understands me; don't you, Doctor?«
    »Hem - why I guess I am not far out of the way,« returned Elnathan,
endeavouring to imitate the expression of the other's countenance, by looking
jocular; »Latin is a queer language, gentlemen; - now, I rather guess there is
no one in the room, except Squire Lippet, who can believe that Far. Av. means
oatmeal, in English.«
    The lawyer, in his turn, was a good deal embarrassed by this display of
learning; for although he actually had taken his first degree at one of the
eastern universities, he was somewhat puzzled with the terms used by his
companion. It was dangerous, however, to appear to be outdone in learning in a
public bar-room, and before so many of his clients; he therefore put the best
face on the matter, and laughed knowingly, as if there were a good joke
concealed under it, that was understood only by the physician and himself. All
this was attentively observed by the listeners, who exchanged looks of
approbation; and the expressions of tonguey man, and I guess Squire Lippet
knows, if any body doos, were heard in different parts of the room, as vouchers
for the admiration of his auditors. Thus encouraged, the lawyer rose from his
chair, and, turning his back to the fire, and facing the company, he continued -
    »The son of Natty, or the son of nobody, I hope the young man is not going
to let the matter drop. This is a country of laws; and I should like to see it
fairly tried, whether a man who owns, or says he owns, a hundred thousand acres
of land, has any more right to shoot a body, than another. What do you think of
it, Dr. Todd?«
    »Oh! sir, I am of opinion that the gentleman will soon be well, as I said
before; the wownd isn't in a vital part, and as the ball was extracted so soon,
and the shoulder was what I call well attended to, I do not think there is as
much danger as there might have been.«
    »I say, Squire Doolittle,« continued the attorney, raising his voice, »you
are a magistrate, and know what is law, and what is not law. I ask you, sir, if
shooting a man is a thing that is to be settled so very easily? Suppose, sir,
that the young man had a wife and family; and suppose that he was a mechanic,
like yourself, sir; and suppose that his family depended on him for bread; and
suppose that the ball, instead of merely going through the flesh, had broken the
shoulder-blade, and crippled him for ever; - I ask you all, gentlemen, supposing
this to be the case, whether a jury wouldn't give what I call handsome damages?«
    As the close of this supposititious case was addressed to the company,
generally, Hiram did not, at first, consider himself called on for a reply; but
finding the eyes of the listeners bent on him in expectation, he remembered his
character for judicial discrimination, and spoke, observing a due degree of
deliberation and dignity.
    »Why, if a man should shoot another,« he said, »and if he should do it on
purpose, and if the law took notice on't, and if a jury should find him guilty,
it would be likely to turn out a state-prison matter.«
    »It would so, sir,« returned the attorney. - »The law, gentlemen, is no
respecter of persons, in a free country. It is one of the great blessings that
has been handed down to us from our ancestors, that all men are equal in the eye
of the law, as they are by nater. Though some may get property, no one knows
how, yet they are not privileged to trangress the laws, any more than the
poorest citizen in the state. This is my notion, gentlemen; and I think that if
a man had a mind to bring this matter up, something might be made out of it,
that would help pay for the salve - ha! Doctor?«
    »Why, sir,« returned the physician, who appeared a little uneasy at the turn
the conversation was taking, »I have the promise of Judge Temple, before men -
not but what I would take his word as soon as his note of hand - but it was
before men. Let me see - there was Mounshier Ler Quow, and Squire Jones, and
Major Hartmann, and Miss Pettibone, and one or two of the blacks by, when he
said that his pocket would amply reward me for what I did.«
    »Was the promise made before or after the service was performed?« asked the
attorney.
    »It might have been both,« returned the discreet physician, »though I'm
certain he said so, before I undertook the dressing.«
    »But it seems that he said his pocket should reward you, Doctor,« observed
Hiram; »now I don't know that the law will hold a man to such a promise: he
might give you his pocket with sixpence in't, and tell you to take your pay out
on't.«
    »That would not be a reward in the eye of the law,« interrupted the attorney
- »not what is called a quid pro quo; nor is the pocket to be considered as an
agent, but as part of a man's own person, that is, in this particular. I am of
opinion that an action would lie on that promise, and I will undertake to bear
him out, free of costs, if he don't recover.«
    To this proposition the physician made no reply, but he was observed to cast
his eyes around him, as if to enumerate the witnesses, in order to substantiate
this promise also, at a future day, should it prove necessary. A subject so
momentous, as that of suing Judge Temple, was not very palatable to the present
company, in so public a place; and a short silence ensued, that was only
interrupted by the opening of the door, and the entrance of Natty himself.
    The old hunter carried in his hand his never-failing companion, the rifle;
and, although all of the company were uncovered, excepting the lawyer, who wore
his hat on one side, with a certain dam'me air, Natty moved to the front of one
of the fires, without in the least altering any part of his dress or appearance.
Several questions were addressed to him, on the subject of the game he had
killed, which he answered readily, and with some little interest; and the
landlord, between whom and Natty there existed much cordiality, on account of
their both having been soldiers in youth, offered him a glass of a liquid,
which, if we might judge from its reception, was no unwelcome guest. When the
forester had gotten his potation also, he quietly took his seat on the end of
one of the logs, that lay nigh the fires, and the slight interruption, produced
by his entrance, seemed to be forgotten.
    »The testimony of the blacks could not be taken, sir,« continued the lawyer,
»for they are all the property of Mr. Jones, who owns their time. But there is a
way by which Judge Temple, or any other man, might be made to pay for shooting
another, and for the cure in the bargain. - There is a way, I say, and that
without going into the court of errors too.«
    »And a mighty big error ye would make of it, Mister Todd,« cried the
landlady, »should ye be putting the matter into the law at all, with Joodge
Temple, who has a purse as long as one of them pines on the hill, and who is an
asy man to dale wid, if yees but mind the humour of him. He's a good man is
Joodge Temple, and a kind one, and one who will be no the likelier to do the
pratty thing, bekaase ye would wish to tarrify him wid the law. I know of but
one objaction to the same, which is an over carelessness about his sowl. It's
nather a Methodie, nor a Papish, nor a Prasbetyrian, that he is, but just
nothing at all; and it's hard to think that he who will not fight the good
fight, under the banners of a rig'lar church, in this world, will be mustered
among the chosen in heaven, as my husband, the Captain there, as ye call him,
says - though there is but one captain that I know, who desaarves the name. I
hopes, Lather-stocking, ye'll no be foolish, and putting the boy up to try the
law in the matter; for 'twill be an evil day to ye both, when ye first turn the
skin of so paceable an animal as a sheep into a bone of contention. The lad is
wilcome to his drink for nothing, until his shouther will bear the rifle ag'in.«
    »Well, that's gin'rous,« was heard from several mouths at once, for this was
a company in which a liberal offer was not thrown away; while the hunter,
instead of expressing any of that indignation which he might be supposed to
feel, at hearing the hurt of his young companion alluded to, opened his mouth,
with the silent laugh for which he was so remarkable; and after he had indulged
his humour, made this reply -
    »I know'd the Judge would do nothing with his smooth-bore, when he got out
of his sleigh. I never see'd but one smooth-bore, that would carry at all, and
that was a French ducking-piece, upon the big lakes: it had a barrel half as
long ag'in as my rifle, and would throw fine shot into a goose, at a hundred
yards; but it made dreadful work with the game, and you wanted a boat to carry
it about in. When I went with Sir William ag'in the French, at Fort Niagara, all
the rangers used the rifle; and a dreadful weepon it is, in the hands of one who
knows how to charge it, and keeps a steady aim. The Captain knows, for he says
he was a soldier in Shirley's, and though they were nothing but baggonet-men, he
must know how we cut up the French and Iroquois in the skrimmages, in that war.
Chingachgook, which means Big Sarpent in English, old John Mohegan, who lives up
at the hut with me, was a great warrior then, and was out with us; he can tell
all about it, too; though he was overhand for the tomahawk, never firing more
than once or twice, before he was running in for the scalps. Ah! times is
dreadfully altered since then. Why, Doctor, there was nothing but a foot-path,
or at the most a track for pack-horses, along the Mohawk, from the Garman Flats
up to the forts. Now, they say, they talk of running one of them wide roads with
gates on't, along the river; first making a road, and then fencing it up! I
hunted one season back of the Kaatskills, nigh-hand to the settlements, and the
dogs often lost the scent, when they com'd to them highways, there was so much
travel on them; though I can't say that the brutes was of a very good breed. -
Old Hector will wind a deer in the fall of the year, across the broadest place
in the Otsego, and that is a mile and a half, for I paced it myself on the ice,
when the tract was first surveyed under the Indian grant.«
    »It sames to me, Natty, but a sorry compliment, to call your cumrad after
the evil one,« said the landlady; »and it's no much like a snake that old John
is looking now. Nimrood would be a more besaming name for the lad, and a more
Christian too, seeing that it comes from the Bible. The Sargeant read me the
chapter about him, the night before my christening, and a mighty asement it was,
to listen to any thing from the book.«
    »Old John and Chingachgook were very different men to look on,« returned the
hunter, shaking his head at his melancholy recollections. - »In the fifty-eight
war, he was in the middle of manhood, and taller than now by three inches. If
you had seen him, as I did, the morning we beat Dieskau, from behind our log
walls, you would have called him as comely a red-skin as ye ever set eyes on. He
was naked, all to his breech-cloth and leggens; and you never seed a creature so
handsomely painted. One side of his face was red, and the other black. His head
was shaved clean, all to a few hairs on the crown, where he wore a tuft of
eagle's feathers, as bright as if they had come from a peacock's tail. He had
coloured his sides, so that they looked like an atomy, ribs and all; for
Chingachgook had a great taste in such things: so that, what with his bold,
fiery countenance, his knife and his tomahawk, I have never seed a fiercer
warrior on the ground. He played his part, too, like a man; for I seen him next
day, with thirteen scalps on his pole. And I will say this for the Big Snake,
that he always dealt fair, and never scalped any that he didn't kill with his
own hands.«
    »Well, well,« cried the landlady, »fighting is fighting, any way, and
there's different fashions in the thing; though I can't say that I relish
mangling a body after the breath is out of it; neither do I think it can be
uphild by doctrine. I hopes, Sargeant, ye niver was helping in such evil
worrek.«
    »It was my duty to keep my ranks, and to stand or fall by the baggonet or
lead,« returned the veteran. »I was then in the fort, and seldom leaving my
place, saw but little of the savages, who kept on the flanks, or in front,
skrimmaging. I remember, howsomever, to have heard mention made of the Great
Snake, as he was called, for he was a chief of renown; but little did I ever
expect to see him enlisted in the cause of Christianity, and civilized, like old
John.«
    »Oh! he was christianized by the Moravians, who was always over intimate
with the Delawares,« said Leather-stocking. »It's my opinion, that had they been
left to themselves, there would be no such doings now, about the head-waters of
the two rivers, and that these hills mought have been kept as good
hunting-ground, by their right owner, who is not too old to carry a rifle, and
whose sight is as true as a fish-hawk, hovering -«
    He was interrupted by more stamping at the door, and presently the party
from the Mansion-house entered, followed by the Indian himself.
 

                                  Chapter XIV

 »There's quart pot, pint pot, half-pint,
 Gill pot, half-gill, nipperkin,
 And the brown bowl. -
 Here's a health to the barley mow,
 My brave boys,
 Here's a health to the barley mow.«
                                                        Anon., »The Barley-Mow.«
 
Some little commotion was produced by the appearance of the new guests, during
which the lawyer slunk from the room. Most of the men approached Marmaduke, and
shook his offered hand, hoping that the Judge was well; while Major Hartmann,
having laid aside his hat and wig, and substituted for the latter a warm,
peaked, woollen night-cap, took his seat very quietly, on one end of the settee
which was relinquished by its former occupants. His tobacco-box was next
produced, and a clean pipe was handed him by the landlord. When he had succeeded
in raising a smoke, the Major gave a long whiff, and turning his head towards
the bar, he said -
    »Petty, pring in ter toddy.«
    In the mean time, the Judge had exchanged his salutations with most of the
company, and taken a place by the side of the Major, and Richard had bustled
himself into the most comfortable seat in the room. Mr. Le Quoi was the last
seated, nor did he venture to place his chair finally, until, by frequent
removals, he had ascertained that he could not possibly intercept a ray of heat
from any individual present. Mohegan found a place on an end of one of the
benches, and somewhat approximated to the bar. When these movements had
subsided, the Judge remarked, pleasantly -
    »Well, Betty, I find you retain your popularity, through all weathers,
against all rivals, and amongst all religions. - How liked you the sermon?«
    »Is it the sarmon?« exclaimed the landlady. »I can't say but it was
rasonable; but the prayers is mighty unasy. It's no so small a matter for a
body, in their fifty-nint' year, to be moving so much in church. Mr. Grant sames
a godly man, any way, and his garrel is a hoomble one, and a devout. - Here,
John, is a mug of cider lac'd with whisky. An Indian will drink cider, though he
niver be athirst.«
    »I must say,« observed Hiram, with due deliberation, »that it was a tonguey
thing; and I rather guess that it gave considerable satisfaction. There was one
part, though, which might have been left out, or something else put in; but
then, I s'pose that, as it was a written discourse, it is not so easily altered,
as where a minister preaches without notes.«
    »Ay! there's the rub, Joodge,« cried the landlady; »how can a man stand up
and be praching his word, when all that he is saying is written down, and he is
as much tied to it as iver a thaving dragoon was to the pickets?«
    »Well, well,« cried Marmaduke, waving his hand for silence, »there is enough
said; as Mr. Grant told us, there are different sentiments on such subjects, and
in my opinion he spoke most sensibly. - So, Jotham, I am told you have sold your
betterments to a new settler, and have moved into the village and opened a
school. Was it cash or dicker?«
    The man who was thus addressed, occupied a seat immediately behind
Marmaduke; and one who was ignorant of the extent of the Judge's observation,
might have thought he would have escaped notice. He was of a thin, shapeless
figure, with a discontented expression of countenance, and with something
extremely shiftless in his whole air. Thus spoken to, after turning and twisting
a little, by way of preparation, he made a reply.
    »Why, part cash, and part dicker. I sold out to a Pumfret-man, who was
so'thin forehanded. He was to give me ten dollars an acre for the clearin, and
one dollar an acre over the first cost, on the wood-land: and we agreed to leave
the buildins to men. So I tuck Asa Mountagu, and he tuck Absalom Bement, and
they two tuck old Squire Naphtali Green. And so they had a meetin, and made out
a vardict of eighty dollars for the buildins. There was twelve acres of clearin,
at ten dollars, and eighty-eight at one, and the whull came to two hundred and
eighty-six dollars and a half, after paying the men.«
    »Hum,« said Marmaduke; »what did you give for the place?«
    »Why, besides what's comin to the Judge, I gi'n my brother Tim, a hundred
dollars for his bargain; but then there's a new house on't, that cost me sixty
more, and I paid Moses a hundred dollars, for choppin, and loggin, and sowin; so
that the whull stood me in about two hundred and sixty dollars. But then I had a
great crop off on't, and as I got twenty-six dollars and a half more than it
cost, I conclude I made a pretty good trade on't.«
    »Yes, but you forgot that the crop was yours without the trade, and you have
turned yourself out of doors for twenty-six dollars.«
    »Oh! the Judge is clean out,« said the man, with a look of sagacious
calculation; »he turned out a span of horses, that is wuth a hundred and fifty
dollars of any man's money, with a bran new wagon; fifty dollars in cash; and a
good note for eighty more; and a side-saddle, that was valood at seven and a
half - so there was just twelve shillings betwixt us. I wanted him to turn out a
set of harness, and take the cow and the sap-troughs. He wouldn't - but I saw
through it; he thought I should have to buy the tacklin afore I could use the
wagon and horses; but I know'd a thing or two myself: I should like to know of
what use is the tacklin to him! I offered him to trade back ag'in, for one
hundred and fifty-five. But my woman said she wanted a churn, so I tuck a churn
for the change.«
    »And what do you mean to do with your time, this winter? you must remember
that time is money.«
    »Why, as the master is gone down country, to see his mother, who, they say,
is going to make a die on't, I agreed to take the school in hand, till he comes
back. If times doosn't get wuss in the spring, I've some notion of going into
trade, or maybe I may move off to the Genessee; they say they are carryin on a
great stroke of business that-a-way. If the wust comes to the wust, I can but
work at my trade, for I was brought up in a shoe manufactory.«
    It would seem, that Marmaduke did not think his society of sufficient value,
to attempt inducing him to remain where he was; for he addressed no further
discourse to the man, but turned his attention to other subjects. - After a
short pause, Hiram ventured a question: -
    »What news doos the Judge bring us from the legislater? it's not likely that
congress has done much this session; or maybe the French haven't fit any more
battles lately?«
    »The French, since they have beheaded their king, have done nothing but
fight,« returned the Judge. »The character of the nation seems changed. I knew
many French gentlemen, during our war, and they all appeared to me to be men of
great humanity and goodness of heart; but these Jacobins are as blood-thirsty as
bull-dogs.«
    »There was one Roshambow wid us, down at Yorrek-town,« cried the landlady;
»a mighty pratty man he was too; and their horse was the very same. It was there
that the Sargeant got the hurt in the leg, from the English batteries, bad luck
to 'em.«
    »Ah! mon pauvre Roi!« murmured Monsieur Le Quoi.
    »The legislature have been passing laws,« continued Marmaduke, »that the
country much required. Among others, there is an act, prohibiting the drawing of
seines, at any other than proper seasons, in certain of our streams and small
lakes; and another, to prohibit the killing of deer in the teeming months. These
are laws that were loudly called for, by judicious men; nor do I despair of
getting an act, to make the unlawful felling of timber a criminal offence.«
    The hunter listened to this detail with breathless attention, and when the
Judge had ended, he laughed in open derision.
    »You may make your laws, Judge,« he cried, »but who will you find to watch
the mountains through the long summer days, or the lakes at night? Game is game,
and he who finds may kill; that has been the law in these mountains for forty
years, to my certain knowledge; and I think one old law is worth two new ones.
None but a green-one would wish to kill a doe with a fa'n by its side, unless
his moccasins was getting old, or his leggins ragged, for the flesh is lean and
coarse. But a rifle rings amongst them rocks along the lake shore, sometimes, as
if fifty pieces was fired at once; it would be hard to tell where the man stood
who pulled the trigger.«
    »Armed with the dignity of the law, Mr. Bumppo,« returned the Judge,
gravely, »a vigilant magistrate can prevent much of the evil that has hitherto
prevailed, and which is already rendering the game scarce. I hope to live to see
the day, when a man's rights in his game shall be as much respected as his title
to his farm.«
    »Your titles and your farms are all new together,« cried Natty; »but laws
should be equal, and not more for one than another. I shot a deer, last
Wednesday was a fortnight, and it floundered through the snow- till it got over
a brush fence; I catch'd the lock of my rifle in the twigs, in following, and
was kept back, until finally the creature got off. Now I want to know who is to
pay me for that deer; and a fine buck it was. If there hadn't been a fence, I
should have gotten another shot into it; and I never draw'd upon any thing that
hadn't wings, three times running, in my born days. - No, no, Judge, it's the
farmers that makes the game scearce, and not the hunters.«
    »Ter teer is not so plenty as in ter olt war, Pumppo,« said the Major, who
had been an attentive listener, amidst clouds of smoke; »put ter lant is not
mate, as for ter teer to live on, put for Christians.«
    »Why, Major, I believe you're a friend to justice and the right, though you
go so often to the grand house; but it's a hard case to a man, to have his
honest calling for a livelihood stopped by laws, and that too when, if right was
done, he mought hunt or fish on any day in the week, or on the best flat in the
Patent, if he was so minded.«
    »I unterstant you, Letter-stockint,« returned the Major, fixing his black
eyes, with a look of peculiar meaning, on the hunter; »put you tidn't use to pe
so prutent, as to look ahet mit so much care.«
    »Maybe there wasn't't so much 'casion,« said the hunter, a little sulkily;
when he sunk into a silence, from which he was not roused for some time.
    »The Judge was saying so'thin about the French,« Hiram observed, when the
pause in the conversation had continued a decent time.
    »Yes, sir,« returned Marmaduke, »the Jacobins of France seem rushing from
one act of licentiousness to another. They continue those murders, which are
dignified by the name of executions. You have heard, that they have added the
death of their Queen to the long list of their crimes.«
    »Les monstres!« again murmured Monsieur Le Quoi, turning himself suddenly in
his chair, with a convulsive start.
    »The province of La Vendée is laid waste by the troops of the republic, and
hundreds of its inhabitants, who are royalists in their sentiments, are shot at
a time. - La Vendée is a district in the south-west of France, that continues
yet much attached to the family of the Bourbons: doubtless Monsieur Le Quoi is
acquainted with it, and can describe it more faithfully.«
    »Non, non, non, mon cher ami,« returned the Frenchman, in a suppressed
voice, but speaking rapidly, and gesticulating with his right hand, as if for
mercy, while with his left he concealed his eyes.
    »There have been many battles fought lately,« continued Marmaduke, »and the
infuriated republicans are too often victorious. I cannot say, however, that I
am sorry they have captured Toulon from the English, for it is a place to which
they have a just right.«
    »Ah - ha!« exclaimed Monsieur Le Quoi, springing on his feet, and
flourishing both arms with great animation; »ces Anglais!«
    The Frenchman continued to move about the room with great alacrity for a few
minutes, repeating his exclamations to himself; when, overcome by the
contradictory nature of his emotions, he suddenly burst out of the house, and
was seen wading through the snow towards his little shop, waving his arms on
high, as if to pluck down honour from the moon. His departure excited but little
surprise, for the villagers were used to his manner; but Major Hartmann laughed
outright, for the first time during his visit, as he lifted the mug, and
observed -
    »Ter Frenchman is mat - put he is goot as for notting to trink; he is trunk
mit joy.«
    »The French are good soldiers,« said Captain Hollister; »they stood us in
hand a good turn, down at York-town; nor do I think, although I am an ignorant
man about the great movements of the army, that his Excellency would have been
able to march against Cornwallis, without their reinforcements.«
    »Ye spoke the trut', Sargeant,« interrupted his wife, »and I would iver have
ye be doing the same. It's varry pratty men is the French; and just when I stopped
the cart, the time when ye was pushing on in front it was, to kape the rig'lars
in, a rigiment of the jontlemen marched by, and so I dealt them out to their
liking. Was it pay I got? sure did I, and in good, solid crowns; the divil a bit
of continental could they muster among them all, for love nor money. Och! the
Lord forgive me for swearing and spakeing of such vanities; but this I will say
for the French, that they paid in good silver; and one glass would go a great
way wid 'em, for they gin'rally handed it back wid a drop in the cup; and that's
a brisk trade, Joodge, where the pay is good, and the men not over partic'lar.«
    »A thriving trade, Mrs. Hollister,« said Marmaduke. »But what has become of
Richard? he jumped up as soon as seated, and has been absent so long that I am
fearful he has frozen.«
    »No fear of that, cousin 'duke,« cried the gentleman himself; »business will
sometimes keep a man warm, the coldest night that ever snapt in the mountains.
Betty, your husband told me, as we came out of church, that your hogs were
getting mangy, so I have been out to take a look at them, and found it true. I
stepped across, Doctor, and got your boy to weigh me out a pound of salts, and
have been mixing it with their swill. I'll bet a saddle of venison against a
gray squirrel, that they are better in a week. And now, Mrs. Hollister, I'm
ready for a hissing mug of flip.«
    »Sure, I know'd yee'd be wanting that same,« said the landlady; »it's mixed
and ready to the boiling. Sargeant dear, be handing up the iron, will ye? - no
the one in the far fire, it's black, ye will see. - Ah! you've the thing now;
look if it's not as red as a cherry.«
    The beverage was heated, and Richard took that kind of draught which men are
apt to indulge in, who think that they have just executed a clever thing,
especially when they like the liquor.
    »Oh! you have a hand, Betty, that was formed to mix flip,« cried Richard,
when he paused for breath. »The very iron has a flavour in it. Here, John;
drink, man, drink. I and you and Dr. Todd, have done a good thing with the
shoulder of that lad, this very night. 'Duke, I made a song while you were gone;
one day when I had nothing to do; so I'll sing you a verse or two, though I
haven't really determined on the tune yet.
 
What is life but a scene of care,
Where each one must toil in his way?
Then let us be jolly, and prove that we are
A set of good fellows, who seem very rare,
And can laugh and sing all the day.
Then let us be jolly,
And cast away folly,
For grief turns a black head to gray.
 
There, 'duke, what do you think of that? There is another verse of it, all but
the last line; I haven't got a rhyme for the last line yet. - Well, old John,
what do you think of the music? as good as one of your war-songs, ha!«
    »Good,« said Mohegan, who had been sharing deeply in the potations of the
landlady, besides paying a proper respect to the passing mugs of the Major and
Marmaduke.
    »Pravo! pravo! Richart,« cried the Major, whose black eyes were beginning to
swim in moisture; »pravissimo! it is a goot song; put Natty Pumppo hast a
petter. Letter-stockint, vilt sing? say, olt poy, vilt sing ter song, as apout
ter woots?«
    »No, no, Major,« returned the hunter, with a melancholy shake of the head,
»I have lived to see what I thought eyes could never behold in these hills, and
I have no heart left for singing. If he, that has a right to be master and ruler
here, is forced to squinch his thirst, when a-dry, with snow-water, it ill
becomes them that have lived by his bounty to be making merry, as if there was
nothing in the world but sunshine and summer.«
    When he had spoken, Leather-stocking again dropped his head on his knees,
and concealed his hard and wrinkled features with his hands. The change from the
excessive cold without to the heat of the bar-room, coupled with the depth and
frequency of Richard's draughts, had already levelled whatever inequality there
might have existed between him and the other guests, on the score of spirits;
and he now held out a pair of swimming mugs of foaming flip towards the hunter,
as he cried -
    »Merry! ay! merry Christmas to you, old boy! Sunshine and summer! no! you
are blind, Leather-stocking, 'tis moonshine and winter; - take these spectacles,
and open your eyes.
 
So let us be jolly,
And cast away folly,
For grief turns a black head to gray.
 
Hear how old John turns his quavers. What damned dull music an Indian song is,
after all, Major. I wonder if they ever sing by note?«
    While Richard was singing and talking, Mohegan was uttering dull, monotonous
tones, keeping time by a gentle motion of his head and body. He made use of but
few words, and such as he did utter were in his native language, and
consequently, only understood by himself and Natty. Without heeding Richard, he
continued to sing a kind of wild, melancholy air, that rose, at times, in sudden
and quite elevated notes, and then fell again into the low, quavering sounds,
that seemed to compose the character of his music.
    The attention of the company was now much divided, the men in the rear
having formed themselves into little groups, where they were discussing various
matters, among the principal of which were, the treatment of mangy hogs, and
Parson Grant's preaching; while Dr. Todd was endeavouring to explain to
Marmaduke the nature of the hurt received by the young hunter. Mohegan continued
to sing, while his countenance was becoming vacant, though, coupled with his
thick bushy hair, it was assuming an expression very much like brutal ferocity.
His notes were gradually growing louder, and soon rose to a height that caused a
general cessation in the discourse. The hunter now raised his head again, and
addressed the old warrior, warmly, in the Delaware language, which, for the
benefit of our readers, we shall render freely into English.
    »Why do you sing of your battles, Chingachgook, and of the warriors you have
slain, when the worst enemy of all is near you, and keeps the Young Eagle from
his rights? I have fought in as many battles as any warrior in your tribe, but
cannot boast of my deeds at such a time as this.«
    »Hawk-eye,« said the Indian, tottering with a doubtful step from his place,
»I am the Great Snake of the Delawares; I can track the Mingoes, like an adder
that is stealing on the whip-poor-will's eggs, and strike them, like the
rattle-snake, dead at a blow. The white man made the tomahawk of Chingachgook
bright as the waters of Otsego, when the last sun is shining; but it is red with
the blood of the Maquas.«
    »And why have you slain the Mingo warriors? was it not to keep these
hunting-grounds and lakes to your father's children? and were they not given in
solemn council to the Fire-eater? and does not the blood of a warrior run in the
veins of a young chief, who should speak aloud, where his voice is now too low
to be heard?«
    The appeal of the hunter seemed, in some measure, to recall the confused
faculties of the Indian, who turned his face towards the listeners, and gazed
intently on the Judge. He shook his head, throwing his hair back from his
countenance, and exposed eyes, that were glaring with an expression of wild
resentment. But the man was not himself. His hand seemed to make a fruitless
effort to release his tomahawk, which was confined by its handle to his belt,
while his eyes gradually became vacant. Richard at that instant thrusting a mug
before him, his features changed to the grin of idiocy, and seizing the vessel
with both hands, he sunk backward on the bench, and drunk until satiated, when
he made an effort to lay aside the mug, with the helplessness of total
inebriety.
    »Shed not blood!« exclaimed the hunter, as he watched the countenance of the
Indian in its moment of ferocity - »but he is drunk, and can do no harm. This is
the way with all the savages; give them liquor, and they make dogs of
themselves. Well, well - the time will come when right will be done, and we must
have patience.«
    Natty still spoke in the Delaware language, and of course was not
understood. He had hardly concluded, before Richard cried -
    »Well, old John is soon sowed up. Give him a berth, Captain, in the barn,
and I will pay for it. I am rich to-night, ten times richer than 'duke, with all
his lands, and military lots, and funded debts, and bonds, and mortgages.
 
Come let us be jolly,
And cast away folly,
For grief -
 
Drink, King Hiram - drink, Mr. Doo-nothing - drink, sir, I say. This is a
Christmas eve, which comes, you know, but once a year.«
    »He! he! he! the Squire is quite moosical to-night,« said Hiram, whose
visage began to give marvellous signs of relaxation. »I rather guess we shall
make a church on't yet, Squire?«
    »A church, Mr. Doolittle! we will make a cathedral of it! bishops, priests,
deacons, wardens, vestry and choir; organ, organist and bellows! By the Lord
Harry, as Benjamin says, we will clap a steeple on the other end of it, and make
two churches of it. What say you, 'duke, will you pay? ha! my cousin Judge, wilt
pay?«
    »Thou makest such a noise, Dickon,« returned Marmaduke, »it is impossible
that I can hear what Dr. Todd is saying. I think thou observed, it is probable
the wound will fester, so as to occasion danger to the limb, in this cold
weather?«
    »Out of nater, sir, quite out of nater;« said Elnathan, attempting to
expectorate, but succeeding only in throwing a light, frothy substance, like a
flake of snow, into the fire - »quite out of nater, that a wownd so well
dressed, and with the ball in my pocket, should fester. I s'pose, as the Judge
talks of taking the young man into his house, it will be most convenient if I
make but one charge on't.«
    »I should think one would do,« returned Marmaduke, with that arch smile that
so often beamed on his face; leaving the beholder in doubt whether he most
enjoyed the character of his companion, or his own covert humour.
    The landlord had succeeded in placing the Indian on some straw, in one of
his out-buildings, where, covered with his own blanket, John continued for the
remainder of the night.
    In the mean time, Major Hartmann began to grow noisy and jocular; glass
succeeded glass, and mug after mug was introduced, until the carousal had run
deep into the night, or rather morning; when the veteran German expressed an
inclination to return to the Mansion-house. Most of the party had already
retired, but Marmaduke knew the habits of his friend too well to suggest an
earlier adjournment. So soon, however, as the proposal was made, the Judge
eagerly availed himself of it, and the trio prepared to depart. Mrs. Hollister
attended them to the door in person, cautioning her guests as to the safest
manner of leaving her premises.
    »Lane on Mister Jones, Major,« said she, »he's young, and will be a support
to ye. Well, it's a charming sight to see ye, any way, at the Bould Dragoon; and
sure it's no harm to be kaping a Christmas-eve wid a light heart, for it's no
telling when we may have sorrow come upon us. So good night Joodge, and a merry
Christmas to ye all, to-morrow morning.«
    The gentlemen made their adieus as well as they could, and taking the middle
of the road, which was a fine, wide, and well-beaten path, they did tolerably
well until they reached the gate of the Mansion-house; but on entering the
Judge's domains, they encountered some slight difficulties. We shall not stop to
relate them, but will just mention that, in the morning, sundry diverging paths
were to be seen in the snow; and that once during their progress to the door,
Marmaduke, missing his companions, was enabled to trace them by one of these
paths to a spot, where he discovered them with nothing visible but their heads;
Richard singing in a most vivacious strain,
 
»Come let us be jolly,
And cast away folly,
For grief turns a black head to gray.«
 

                                   Chapter XV

 »As she lay, on that day, in the Bay of Biscay, O!«
                                       Anon., »The Bay of Biscay, O.« ll. 15-16.
 
Previously to the occurrence of the scene at the Bold Dragoon, Elizabeth had
been safely reconducted to the Mansion-house, where she was left, as its
mistress, either to amuse or employ herself during the evening, as best suited
her own inclinations. Most of the lights were extinguished; but as Benjamin
adjusted, with great care and regularity, four large candles, in as many massive
candlesticks of brass, in a row on the sideboard, the hall possessed a peculiar
air of comfort and warmth, contrasted with the cheerless aspect of the room she
had left, in the academy.
    Remarkable had been one of the listeners to Mr. Grant, and returned with her
resentment, which had been not a little excited by the language of the Judge,
somewhat softened by reflection and the worship. She recollected the youth of
Elizabeth, and thought it no difficult task, under present appearances, to
exercise that power indirectly, which hitherto she had enjoyed undisputed. The
idea of being governed, or of being compelled to pay the deference of servitude,
was absolutely intolerable; and she had already determined within herself, some
half-dozen times, to make an effort, that should at once bring to an issue the
delicate point of her domestic condition. But as often as she met the dark,
proud eye of Elizabeth, who was walking up and down the apartment, musing on the
scenes of her youth, and the change in her condition, and perhaps the events of
the day, the housekeeper experienced an awe, that she would not own to herself
could be excited by any thing mortal. It, however, checked her advances, and for
some time held her tongue-tied. At length she determined to commence the
discourse, by entering on a subject that was apt to level all human
distinctions, and in which she might display her own abilities.
    »It was quite a wordy sarmont that Parson Grant give us to-night,« said
Remarkable. - »Them church ministers be commonly smart sarmonizers; but they
write down their idees, which is a great privilege. I don't think that by nater
they are as tonguey speakers for an off-hand discourse, as the standing-order
ministers.«
    »And what denomination do you distinguish as the standing-order?« inquired
Miss Temple, with some surprise.
    »Why, the Presbyterans, and Congregationals, and Baptists too, for-ti-'now,
and all such as don't go on their knees to prayer.«
    »By that rule, then, you would call those who belong to the persuasion of my
father, the sitting-order,« observed Elizabeth.
    »I'm sure I've never here'n 'em spoken of by any other name than Quakers, so
called,« returned Remarkable, betraying a slight uneasiness. »I should be the
last to call them otherwise, for I never in my life used a disparaging tarm of
the Judge, or any of his family. I've always set store by the Quakers, they are
so pretty-spoken, clever people; and it's a wonderment to me, how your father
come to marry into a church family, for they are as contrary in religion as can
be. One sits still, and for the most part, says nothing, while the church folks
practyse all kinds of ways, so that I sometimes think it quite moosical to see
them; for I went to a church-meeting once before, down country.«
    »You have found an excellence in the church liturgy, that has hitherto
escaped me. I will thank you to inquire whether the fire in my room burns; I
feel fatigued with my journey, and will retire.«
    Remarkable felt a wonderful inclination to tell the young mistress of the
mansion, that by opening a door she might see for herself; but prudence got the
better of resentment, and after pausing some little time, as a salve to her
dignity, she did as desired. The report was favourable, and the young lady,
wishing Benjamin, who was filling the stove with wood, and the housekeeper, each
a good night, withdrew.
    The instant the door closed on Miss Temple, Remarkable commenced a sort of
mysterious, ambiguous discourse, that was neither abusive nor commendatory of
the qualities of the absent personage; but which seemed to be drawing nigh, by
regular degrees, to a most dissatisfied description. The Major-domo made no
reply, but continued his occupation with great industry, which being happily
completed, he took a look at the thermometer, and then, opening a drawer of the
sideboard, he produced a supply of stimulants, that would have served to keep
the warmth in his system, without the aid of the enormous fire he had been
building. A small stand was drawn up near the stove, and the bottles and the
glasses necessary for convenience, were quietly arranged. Two chairs were placed
by the side of this comfortable situation, when Benjamin, for the first time,
appeared to observe his companion.
    »Come,« he cried, »come, Mistress Remarkable, bring yourself to an anchor in
this chair. It's a peeler without, I can tell you, good woman; but what cares I,
blow high or blow low, d'ye see, it's all the same thing to Ben. The niggers are
snug stowed below, before a fire that would roast an ox whole. The thermometer
stands now at fifty-five, but if there's any vartue in good maple wood, I'll
weather upon it, before one glass, as much as ten points more, so that the
Squire, when he comes home from Betty Hollister's warm room, will feel as hot as
a hand that has given the rigging a lick with bad tar. Come, Mistress, bring up
in this here chair, and tell me how you like our new heiress.«
    »Why, to my notion, Mr. Penguillum -«
    »Pump - Pump,« interrupted Benjamin, »it's Christmas-eve, Mistress
Remarkable, and so d'ye see, you had better call me Pump. It's a shorter name,
and as I mean to pump this here decanter till it sucks, why you may as well call
me Pump.«
    »Did you ever!« cried Remarkable, with a laugh that seemed to unhinge every
joint in her body; »You're a moosical creature, Benjamin, when the notion takes
you. But as I was saying, I rather guess that times will be altered now in this
house.«
    »Altered!« exclaimed the Major-domo, eyeing the bottle, that was assuming
the clear aspect of cut glass with astonishing rapidity; »it don't matter much,
Mistress Remarkable, so long as I keep the keys of the lockers in my pocket.«
    »I can't say,« continued the housekeeper, »but there's good eatables and
drinkables enough in the house for a body's content - a little more sugar,
Benjamin, in the glass - for Squire Jones is an excellent provider. But new
lords, new laws; and I shouldn't wonder if you and I had an unsartain time on't
in footer.«
    »Life is as unsartain as the wind that blows,« said Benjamin with a
moralizing air; »and nothing is more varible than the wind, Mistress Remarkable,
unless you happen to fall in with the trades, d'ye see, and then you may run for
the matter of a month at a time, with studding-sails on both sides, alow and
aloft, and with the cabin-boy at the wheel.«
    »I know that life is disp'ut unsartain,« said Remarkable, compressing her
features to the humour of her companion; »but I expect there will be great
changes made in the house to rights; and that you will find a young man put over
your head, as there is one that wants to be over mine; and after having been
settled as long as you have, Benjamin, I should judge that to be hard.«
    »Promotion should go according to length of service,« said the Major-domo,
»and if-so-be that they ship a hand for my berth, or place a new steward aft, I
shall throw up my commission in less time than you can put a pilot-boat in
stays. Thof Squire Dickens« - this was a common misnomer with Benjamin - »is a
nice gentleman, and as good a man to sail with as heart could wish, yet I shall
tell the Squire, d'ye see, in plain English, and that's my native tongue, that
if-so-be he is thinking of putting any Johnny-raw over my head, why I shall
resign. I began forward, Mistress Pretty-bones, and worked my way aft, like a
man. I was six months aboard a Garnsey lugger, hauling in the slack of the
lee-sheet, and coiling up rigging. From that I went a few trips in a
fore-and-after, in the same trade, which after all, was but a blind kind of
sailing in the dark, where a man larns but little, excepting how to steer by the
stars. Well! then d'ye see, I larnt how a topmast should be slushed, and how a
top-gallant-sail was to be becketted; and then I did small jobs in the cabin,
such as mixing the skipper's grog. 'Twas there I got my taste, which you must
have often seen, is excellent. - Well, here's better acquaintance to us.«
    Remarkable nodded a return to the compliment, and took a sip of the beverage
before her; for, provided it was well sweetened, she had no objection to a small
potation now and then. After this observance of courtesy between the worthy
couple, the dialogue proceeded.
    »You have had great experunces in life, Benjamin; for, as the scripter says,
they that go down to the sea in ships see the works of the Lord.«
    »Ay! for that matter, they in brigs and schooners too; and it mought say the
works of the devil. The sea, Mistress Remarkable, is a great advantage to a man,
in the way of knowledge, for he sees the fashions of nations, and the shape of a
country. Now, I suppose, for myself here, who is but an unlarned man to some
that follows the seas, I suppose that, taking the coast from Cape Ler-Hogue as
low down as Cape Finish-there, there isn't so much as a head-land, or an island,
that I don't know either the name of it, or something more or less about it.
Take enough, woman, to colour the water. Here's sugar. It's a sweet tooth, that
fellow that you hold on upon yet, Mistress Pretty-bones. But as I was saying,
take the whole coast along, I know it as well as the way from here to the Bold
Dragoon; and a devil of an acquaintance is that Bay of Biscay. Whew! I wish you
could but hear the wind blow there. It sometimes takes two to hold one man's
hair on his head. Scudding through the Bay is pretty much the same thing as
travelling the roads in this country, up one side of a mountain, and down the
other.«
    »Do tell!« exclaimed Remarkable, »and doos the sea run as high as mountains,
Benjamin?«
    »Well I will tell; but first let's taste the grog. - Hem! it's the right
kind of stuff, I must say, that you keeps in this country; but then you're so
close aboard the West Indees, you make but a small run of it. By the Lord Harry,
woman, if Garnsey only lay somewhere between Cape Hatteras and the Bite of
Logann, but you'd see rum cheap. As to the seas, they runs more in lippers in
the Bay of Biscay, unless it may be in a sow-wester, when they tumble about
quite handsomely; thof it's not in the narrow sea that you are to look for a
swell; just go off the Western Islands, in a westerly blow, keeping the land on
your larboard hand, with the ship's head to the south'ard, and bring to, under a
close-reef'd topsail; or mayhap a reef'd foresail, with a fore-topmast staysail;
and mizzen staysail, to keep her up to the sea, if she will bear it; and lay
there for the matter of two watches, if you want to see mountains. Why, good
woman, I've been off there in the Boadishey frigate, when you could see nothing
but some such matter as a piece of sky, mayhap, as big as the mainsail; and then
again, there was a hole under your lee-quarter, big enough to hold the whole
British navy.«
    »Oh! for massy's sake! and wa'nt you afraid, Benjamin? and how did you get
off?«
    »Afeard! who the devil do you think was to be frightened at a little salt
water tumbling about his head? As for getting off, when we had enough of it, and
had washed our decks down pretty well, we called all hands, for d'ye see, the
watch below was in their hammocks, all the same as if they were in one of your
best bed-rooms; and so we watched for a smooth time; clapped her helm hard
a-weather, let fall the foresail, and got the tack aboard; and so, when we got
her afore it, I ask you, Mistress Pretty-bones, if she didn't walk? didn't she!
I'm no liar, good woman, when I say that I saw that ship jump from the top of
one sea to another, just like one of these squirrels, that can fly, jumps from
tree to tree.«
    »What, clean out of the water!« exclaimed Remarkable, lifting her two lank
arms, with their bony hands spread in astonishment.
    »It was no such easy matter to get out of the water, good woman, for the
spray flew so that you couldn't tell which was sea and which was cloud. So there
we kept her afore it, for the matter of two glasses. The First Lieutenant he
cun'd the ship himself, and there was four quarter-masters at the wheel, besides
the master, with six forecastle men in the gun-room, at the relieving tackles.
But then she behaved herself so well! Oh! she was a sweet ship, mistress! That
one frigate was well worth more, to live in, than the best house in the island.
If I was King of England, I'd have her hauled up above Lon'on bridge, and fit
her up for a palace; because why? If any body can afford to live comfortably,
his majesty can.«
    »Well! but Benjamin,« cried the listener, who was in an ecstasy of
astonishment, at this relation of the steward's dangers, »what did you do?«
    »Do! why we did our duty, like hearty fellows. Now, if the countrymen of
Mounsheer Ler Quaw had been aboard of her, they would have just struck her
ashore on some of them small islands; but we run along the land until we found
her dead to leeward off the mountains of Pico, and dam'me if I know to this day
how we got there, whether we jumped over the island, or hauled round it: but
there we was, and there we lay, under easy sail, fore-reaching, first upon one
tack and then upon t'other, so as to poke her nose out now and then, and take a
look to wind'ard, till the gale blow'd its pipe out.«
    »I wonder now!« exclaimed Remarkable, to whom most of the terms used by
Benjamin were perfectly unintelligible, but who had got a confused idea of a
raging tempest; »it must be an awful life, that going to sea! and I don't feel
astonishment that you're so affronted with the thoughts of being forced to quit
a comfortable home like this. Not that a body cares much for't, as there's more
housen than one to live in. Why, when the Judge agreed with me to come and live
with him, I'd no more notion of stopping any time, than any thing. I happened
in, just to see how the family did, about a week after Miss Temple died,
thinking to be back home again night; but the family was in such a distressed
way, that I couldn't but stop awhile and help 'em on. I thought the sitooation a
good one, seeing that I was an unmarried body, and they was so much in want of
help; so I tarried.«
    »And a long time have you left your anchors down in the same place,
mistress; I think you must find that the ship rides easy.«
    »How you talk, Benjamin! there's no believing a word you say. I must say
that the Judge and Squire Jones have both acted quite clever, so long; but I see
that now we shall have a spicimin to the contrary. I here'n say that the Judge
was gone a great 'broad, and that he meant to bring his darter hum, but I didn't
calcoolate on such carrins on. To my notion, Benjamin, she's likely to turn out
a disp'ut ugly gall.«
    »Ugly!« echoed the Major-domo, opening eyes, that were beginning to close in
a very suspicious sleepiness, in wide amazement; »by the Lord Harry, woman, I
should as soon think of calling the Boadishey a clumsy frigate. What the devil
would you have? arn't her eyes as bright as the morning and evening stars! and
isn't her hair as black and glistening as rigging that has just had a lick of
tar! doesn't't she move as stately as a first-rate in smooth water, on a bow line!
Why, woman, the figure-head of the Boadishey was a fool to her, and that, as
I've often heard the captain say, was an image of a great Queen; and arn't
Queens always comely, woman? for who do you think would be a King, and not
choose a handsome bed-fellow?«
    »Talk decent, Benjamin,« said the housekeeper, »or I won't keep your
company. I don't gainsay her being comely to look on, but I will maintain that
she's likely to show poor conduct. She seems to think herself too good to talk
to a body. From what Squire Jones had tell'd me, I some expected to be quite
captivated by her company. Now, to my reckoning, Lowizy Grant is much more
pritty behaved than Betsy Temple. She wouldn't so much as hold discourse with
me, when I wanted to ask her how she felt, on coming home and missing her
mammy.«
    »Perhaps she didn't understand you, woman; you are none of the best
linguister, and then Miss Lizzy has been exercising the King's English under a
great Lon'on lady, and, for that matter, can talk the language almost as well as
myself, or any native born British subject. You've forgot your schooling, and
the young mistress is a great scollard.«
    »Mistress!« cried Remarkable; »don't make one out to be a nigger, Benjamin.
She's no mistress of mine, and never will be. And as to speech, I hold myself as
second to nobody out of New-England. I was born and raised in Essex county, and
I've always here'n say, that the Bay State was provarbal for pronounsation.«
    »I've often heard of that Bay of State,« said Benjamin, »but can't say that
I've ever been in it, nor do I know exactly where away it is that it lays; but I
suppose there's good anchorage in it, and that it's no bad place for the taking
of ling; but for size, it can't be so much as a yawl to a sloop of war, compared
with the Bay of Biscay, or mayhap, Tor-bay. And as for language, if you want to
hear dictionary overhauled, like a log-line in a blow, you must go to Wapping,
and listen to the Lon'oners, as they deal out their lingo. Howsomever, I see no
such mighty matter that Miss Lizzy has been doing to you, good woman, so take
another drop of your brew, and forgive and forget, like an honest soul.«
    »No, indeed! and I shan't do such a thing, Benjamin. This treatment is a
newity to me, and what I won't put up with. I have a hundred and fifty dollars
at use, besides a bed and twenty sheep, to good; and I don't crave to live in a
house where a body musn't call a young woman by her given name to her face. I
will call her Betsy as much as I please; it's a free country, and no one can
stop me. I did intend to stop while summer, but I shall quit to-morrow morning;
and I will talk just as I please.«
    »For that matter, Mistress Remarkable,« said Benjamin, »there's none here
who will contradict you, for I'm of opinion that it would be as easy to stop a
hurricane with a Barcelony hankerchy, as to bring up your tongue, when the
stopper is off. I say, good woman, do they grow many monkeys along the shores of
that Bay of State?«
    »You're a monkey yourself, Mr. Penguillum,« cried the enraged housekeeper,
»or a bear! a black, beastly bear! and an't fit for a decent woman to stay with.
I'll never keep your company again, sir, if I should live thirty years with the
Judge. Sitch talk is more befitting the kitchen than the keeping-room of a house
of one who is well to do in the world.«
    »Look you, Mistress Pitty - Patty - Pretty-bones, mayhap I'm some such
matter as a bear, as they will find who come to grapple with me; but dam'me if
I'm a monkey - a thing that chatters without knowing a word of what it says - a
parrot, that will hold dialogue, for what an honest man knows, in a dozen
languages; mayhap in the Bay of State lingo; mayhap in Greek or High Dutch. But
dost it know what it means itself? canst answer me that, good woman? Your
Midshipman can sing out, and pass the word, when the Captain gives the order,
but just set him adrift by himself, and let him work the ship of his own head,
and, stop my grog, if you don't find all the Johnny-raws laughing at him.«
    »Stop your grog indeed!« said Remarkable, rising with great indignation, and
seizing a candle; »you're groggy now, Benjamin, and I'll quit the room before I
hear any misbecoming words from you.«
    The housekeeper retired, with a manner but little less dignified, as she
thought, than the air of the heiress, muttering, as she drew the door after her,
with a noise like the report of a musket, the opprobrious terms of drunkard,
sot, and beast.
    »Who's that you say is drunk?« cried Benjamin, fiercely, rising and making a
movement towards Remarkable. »You talk of mustering yourself with a lady! you're
just fit to grumble and find fault. Where the devil should you larn behaviour
and dictionary? in your damn'd Bay of State, ha!«
    Benjamin here fell back in his chair, and soon gave vent to certain ominous
sounds, which resembled, not a little, the growling of his favourite animal, the
bear itself. Before, however, he was quite locked, to use the language that
would suit the Della-cruscan humour of certain refined minds of the present day,
»in the arms of Morpheus,« he spoke aloud, observing due pauses between his
epithets, the impressive terms of monkey, parrot, pic-nic, tar-pot, and
linguisters.
    We shall not attempt to explain his meaning, nor connect his sentences, and
our readers must be satisfied with our informing them, that they were expressed
with all that coolness of contempt that a man might well be supposed to feel for
a monkey.
    Nearly two hours passed in this sleep, before the Major-domo was awakened by
the noisy entrance of Richard, Major Hartmann, and the master of the mansion.
Benjamin so far rallied his confused faculties, as to shape the course of the
two former to their respective apartments, when he disappeared himself, leaving
the task of securing the house to him who was most interested in its safety.
Locks and bars were but little attended to, in the early day of that settlement;
and so soon as Marmaduke had given an eye to the enormous fires of his dwelling,
he retired. With this act of prudence closes the first night of our tale.
 

                                  Chapter XVI

 »Watch. (aside.) Some treason, masters -
 Yet stand close.«
                                          Much Ado about Nothing, III.iii.106-7.
 
It was fortunate for more than one of the bacchanalians, who left the Bold
Dragoon late in the evening, that the severe cold of the season was becoming,
rapidly, less dangerous, as they threaded the different mazes, through the
snow-banks, that led to their respective dwellings. Thin, driving clouds began,
towards morning, to flit across the heavens, and the moon set behind a volume of
vapour, that was impelled furiously towards the north, carrying with it the
softer atmosphere from the distant ocean. The rising sun was obscured by denser
and increasing columns of clouds, while the southerly wind that rushed up the
valley, brought the never-failing symptoms of a thaw.
    It was quite late in the morning, before Elizabeth, observing the faint glow
which appeared on the eastern mountain, long after the light of the sun had
struck the opposite hills, ventured from the house, with a view to gratify her
curiosity with a glance by daylight at the surrounding objects, before the tardy
revellers of the Christmas-eve should make their appearance at the
breakfast-table. While she was drawing the folds of her pelisse more closely
around her form, to guard against a cold that was yet great, though rapidly
yielding, in the small enclosure that opened in the rear of the house on a
little thicket of low pines, that were springing up where trees of a mightier
growth had lately stood, she was surprised at the voice of Mr. Jones.
    »Merry Christmas, merry Christmas to you, cousin Bess,« he shouted. »Ah, ha!
an early riser, I see; but I knew I should steal a march on you. I never was in
a house yet, where I didn't get the first Christmas greeting on every soul in
it, man, woman and child; great and small; black, white and yellow. But stop a
minute, till I can just slip on my coat; you are about to look at the
improvements, I see, which no one can explain so well as I, who planned them
all. It will be an hour before 'duke and the Major can sleep off Mrs.
Hollister's confounded distillations, and so I'll come down and go with you.«
    Elizabeth turned, and observed her cousin in his night-cap, with his head
out of his bed-room window, where his zeal for pre-eminence, in defiance of the
weather, had impelled him to thrust it. She laughed, and promising to wait for
his company, re-entered the house, making her appearance again, holding in her
hand a packet that was secured by several large and important seals, just in
time to meet the gentleman.
    »Come, Bessy, come,« he cried, drawing one of her arms through his own; »the
snow begins to give, but it will bear us yet. Don't you snuff old Pennsylvania
in the very air? This is a vile climate, girl; now at sunset last evening it was
cold enough to freeze a man's zeal, and that, I can tell you, takes a
thermometer near zero for me; then about nine or ten it began to moderate; at
twelve it was quite mild, and here all the rest of the night I have been so hot
as not to bear a blanket on the bed. - Holla! Aggy! - merry Christmas, Aggy - I
say, do you hear me, you black dog! there's a dollar for you; and if the
gentlemen get up before I come back, do you come out and let me know. I wouldn't
have 'duke get the start of me for the worth of your head.«
    The black caught the money from the snow, and promising a due degree of
watchfulness, he gave the dollar a whirl of twenty feet in the air, and catching
it as it fell, in the palm of his hand, he withdrew to the kitchen, to exhibit
his present, with a heart as light as his face was happy in its expression.
    »Oh, rest easy, my dear coz,« said the young lady; »I took a look in at my
father, who is likely to sleep an hour; and by using due vigilance you will
secure all the honours of the season.«
    »Why, 'duke is your father, Elizabeth, but 'duke is a man who likes to be
foremost, even in trifles. Now, as for myself, I care for no such things, except
in the way of competition; for a thing which is of no moment in itself, may be
made of importance in the way of competition. So it is with your father, he
loves to be first; but I only struggle with him as a competitor.«
    »It's all very clear, sir,« said Elizabeth; »you would not care a fig for
distinction, if there were no one in the world but yourself; but as there happen
to be a great many others, why you must struggle with them all - in the way of
competition.«
    »Exactly so; I see you are a clever girl, Bess, and one who does credit to
her masters. It was my plan to send you to that school; for when your father
first mentioned the thing, I wrote a private letter for advice to a judicious
friend in the city, who recommended the very school you went to. 'Duke was a
little obstinate at first, as usual, but when he heard the truth, he was obliged
to send you.«
    »Well, a truce to 'duke's foibles, sir; he is my father; and if you knew
what he has been doing for you while we were in Albany, you would deal more
tenderly with his character.«
    »For me!« cried Richard, pausing a moment in his walk to reflect. »Oh! he
got the plans of the new Dutch meeting-house for me, I suppose; but I care very
little about it, for a man, of a certain kind of talent, is seldom aided by any
foreign suggestions; his own brain is the best architect.«
    »No such thing,« said Elizabeth, looking provokingly knowing.
    »No! let me see - perhaps he had my name put in the bill for the new
turnpike, as a director?«
    »He might possibly; but it is not to such an appointment that I allude.«
    »Such an appointment!« repeated Mr. Jones, who began to fidget with
curiosity; »then it is an appointment. If it is in the militia, I won't take
it.«
    »No, no, it is not in the militia,« cried Elizabeth, showing the packet in
her hand, and then drawing it back, with a coquettish air; »it is an office of
both honour and emolument.«
    »Honour and emolument!« echoed Richard, in painful suspense; »show me the
paper, girl. Say, is it an office where there is any thing to do?«
    »You have hit it, cousin Dickon; it is the executive office of the county;
at least so said my father, when he gave me this packet to offer you as a
Christmas box - Surely, if any thing will please Dickon, he said, it will be to
fill the executive chair of the county.«
    »Executive chair! what nonsense!« cried the impatient gentleman, snatching
the packet from her hand; »there is no such office in the county. Eh! what! it
is, I declare, a commission, appointing Richard Jones, Esquire, Sheriff of the
county. Well, this is kind in 'duke, positively. I must say 'duke has a warm
heart, and never forgets his friends. Sheriff! High Sheriff of -! It sounds
well, Bess, but it shall execute better. 'Duke is a judicious man, after all,
and knows human nature thoroughly. I'm sure I'm much obliged to him,« continued
Richard, using the skirt of his coat, unconsciously, to wipe his eyes; »though I
would do as much for him any day, as he shall see, if I can have an opportunity
to perform any of the duties of my office on him. It shall be well done, cousin
Bess - it shall be well done I say. - How this cursed south wind makes one's
eyes water.«
    »Now, Richard,« said the laughing maiden, »now I think you will find
something to do. I have often heard you complain of old, that there was nothing
to do in this new country, while to my eyes, it seemed as if every thing
remained to be done.«
    »Do!« echoed Richard, who blew his nose, raised his little form to its
greatest elevation, and looked serious. »Every thing depends on system, girl. I
shall sit down this afternoon, and systematize the county. I must have deputies,
you know. I will divide the county into districts, over which I will place my
deputies; and I will have one for the village, which I will call my home
department. Let me see - oh! Benjamin! yes, Benjamin will make a good deputy; he
has been naturalized, and would answer admirably, if he could only ride on
horseback.«
    »Yes, Mr. Sheriff,« said his companion, »and as he understands ropes so
well, he would be very expert, should occasion happen for his services, in
another way.«
    »No,« interrupted the other, »I flatter myself that no man could hang a man
better than - that is - ha - oh! yes, Benjamin would do extremely well, in such
an unfortunate dilemma, if he could be persuaded to attempt it. But I should
despair of the thing. I never could induce him to hang, or teach him to ride on
horseback. I must seek another deputy.«
    »Well, sir, as you have abundant leisure for all these important affairs, I
beg that you will forget that you are High Sheriff, and devote some little of
your time to gallantry. Where are the beauties and improvements which you were
to show me?«
    »Where! why every where. Here I have laid out some new streets; and when
they are opened, and the trees felled, and they are all built up, will they not
make a fine town? Well, 'duke is a liberal-hearted fellow, with all his
stubbornness. - Yes, yes, I must have at least four deputies, besides a jailer.«
    »I see no streets in the direction of our walk,« said Elizabeth, »unless you
call the short avenues through these pine bushes by that name. Surely you do not
contemplate building houses, very soon, in that forest before us, and in those
swamps.«
    »We must run our streets by the compass, coz, and disregard trees, hills,
ponds, stumps, or, in fact, any thing but posterity. Such is the will of your
father, and your father, you know -«
    »Had you made Sheriff, Mr. Jones,« interrupted the lady, with a tone that
said very plainly to the gentleman, that he was touching a forbidden subject.
    »I know it, I know it,« cried Richard; »and if it were in my power, I'd make
'duke a king. He is a noble-hearted fellow, and would make an excellent king;
that is, if he had a good prime minister. - But who have we here? voices in the
bushes; - a combination about mischief, I'll wager my commission. Let us draw
near, and examine a little into the matter.«
    During this dialogue, as the parties had kept in motion, Richard and his
cousin advanced some distance from the house, into the open space in the rear of
the village, where, as may be gathered from the conversation, streets were
planned and future dwellings contemplated; but where, in truth, the only mark of
improvement that was to be seen, was a neglected clearing along the skirt of a
dark forest of mighty pines, over which the bushes or sprouts of the same tree
had sprung up, to a height that interspersed the fields of snow with little
thickets of evergreen. The rushing of the wind, as it whistled through the tops
of these mimic trees, prevented the footsteps of the pair from being heard,
while the branches concealed their persons. Thus aided, the listeners drew nigh
to a spot where the young hunter, Leather-stocking and the Indian chief were
collected in an earnest consultation. The former was urgent in his manner, and
seemed to think the subject of deep importance, while Natty appeared to listen
with more than his usual attention, to what the other was saying. Mohegan stood
a little on one side, with his head sunken on his chest, his hair falling
forward, so as to conceal most of his features, and his whole attitude
expressive of deep dejection, if not of shame.
    »Let us withdraw,« whispered Elizabeth; »we are intruders, and can have no
right to listen to the secrets of these men.«
    »No right!« returned Richard, a little impatiently, in the same tone, and
drawing her arm so forcibly through his own as to prevent her retreat; »you
forget, cousin, that it is my duty to preserve the peace of the county, and see
the laws executed. These wanderers frequently commit depredations; though I do
not think John would do any thing secretly. Poor fellow! he was quite boozy last
night, and hardly seems to be over it yet. Let us draw nigher, and hear what
they say.«
    Notwithstanding the lady's reluctance, Richard, stimulated doubtless by his
nice sense of duty, prevailed; and they were soon so near as distinctly to hear
sounds.
    »The bird must be had,« said Natty, »by fair means or foul. Heigho! I've
known the time, lad, when the wild turkeys wasn't't over scarce in the country;
though you must go into the Virginy gaps, if you want them now. To be sure,
there is a different taste to a partridge, and a well-fatted turkey; though, to
my eating, beaver's tail and bear's hams makes the best of food. But then every
one has his own appetite. I gave the last farthing, all to that shilling, to the
French trader, this very morning, as I come through the town, for powder; so, as
you have nothing, we can have but one shot for it. I know that Billy Kirby is
out, and means to have a pull of the trigger at that very turkey. John has a
true eye for a single fire, and somehow, my hand shakes so, whenever I have to
do any thing extrawnary, that I often lose my aim. Now when I killed the
she-bear this fall, with her cubs, though they were so mighty ravenous, I
knocked them over one at a shot, and loaded while I dodged the trees in the
bargain; but this is a very different thing, Mr. Oliver.«
    »This,« cried the young man, with an accent that sounded as if he took a
bitter pleasure in his poverty, while he held a shilling up before his eyes -
»this is all the treasure that I possess - this and my rifle! Now, indeed, I
have become a man of the woods, and must place my sole dependence on the fruits
of the chase. Come, Natty, let us stake the last penny for the bird; with your
aim, it cannot fail to be successful.«
    »I would rather it should be John, lad; my heart jumps into my mouth,
because you set your mind so much on't; and I'm certain that I shall miss the
bird. Them Indians can shoot one time as well as another; nothing ever troubles
them. I say, John, here's a shilling; take my rifle, and get a shot at the big
turkey they've put up at the stump. Mr. Oliver is over anxious for the creature,
and I'm sure to do nothing when I have over anxiety about it.«
    The Indian turned his head gloomily, and after looking keenly for a moment,
in profound silence, at his companions, he replied -
    »When John was young, eyesight was not straighter than his bullet. The Mingo
squaws cried out at the sound of his rifle. The Mingo warriors were made squaws.
When did he ever shoot twice! The eagle went above the clouds, when he passed
the wigwam of Chingachgook; his feathers were plenty with the women. - But see,«
he said, raising his voice from the low, mournful tones in which he had spoken,
to a pitch of keen excitement, and stretching forth both hands - »they shake
like a deer at the wolf's howl. Is John old? When was a Mohican a squaw, with
seventy winters! No! the white man brings old age with him - rum is his
tomahawk!«
    »Why then do you use it, old man?« exclaimed the young hunter; »why will one
so noble by nature, aid the devices of the devil, by making himself a beast!«
    »Beast! is John a beast?« replied the Indian, slowly; »yes; you say no lie,
child of the Fire-eater! John is a beast. The smokes were once few in these
hills. The deer would lick the hand of a white man, and the birds rest on his
head. They were strangers to him. My fathers came from the shores of the salt
lake. They fled before rum. They came to their grandfather, and they lived in
peace; or when they did raise the hatchet, it was to strike it into the brain of
a Mingo. They gathered around the council-fire, and what they said was done.
Then John was the man. But warriors and traders with light eyes followed them.
One brought the long knife, and one brought rum. They were more than the pines
on the mountains; and they broke up the councils, and took the lands. The evil
spirit was in their jugs, and they let him loose. - Yes, yes - you say no lie,
Young Eagle, John is a Christian beast.«
    »Forgive me, old warrior,« cried the youth, grasping his hand; »I should be
the last to reproach you. The curses of Heaven light on the cupidity that has
destroyed such a race. Remember, John, that I am of your family, and it is now
my greatest pride.«
    The muscles of Mohegan relaxed a little, and he said more mildly -
    »You are a Delaware, my son; your words are not heard. - John cannot shoot.«
    »I thought that lad had Indian blood in him,« whispered Richard, »by the
awkward way he handled my horses, last night. You see, coz, they never use
harness. But the poor fellow shall have two shots at the turkey, if he wants it,
for I'll give him another shilling myself; though, perhaps, I had better offer
to shoot for him. They have got up their Christmas sports, I find, in the bushes
yonder, where you hear the laughter; - though it is a queer taste this chap has
for turkey; not but what it is good eating too.«
    »Hold, cousin Richard,« exclaimed Elizabeth, clinging to his arm, »would it
be delicate to offer a shilling to that gentleman?«
    »Gentleman again! do you think a half-breed, like him, will refuse money?
No, no, girl; he will take the shilling; ay! and even rum too, notwithstanding
he moralizes so much about it. - But I'll give the lad a chance for his turkey,
for that Billy Kirby is one of the best marksmen in the country; that is, if we
except the - the gentleman.«
    »Then,« said Elizabeth, who found her strength unequal to her will, »then,
sir, I will speak.« - She advanced, with an air of determination, in front of
her cousin, and entered the little circle of bushes that surrounded the trio of
hunters. Her appearance startled the youth, who at first made an unequivocal
motion towards retiring, but, recollecting himself, bowed, by lifting his cap,
and resumed his attitude of leaning on his rifle. Neither Natty nor Mohegan
betrayed any emotion, though the appearance of Elizabeth was so entirely
unexpected.
    »I find,« she said, »that the old Christmas sport of shooting the turkey is
yet in use among you. I feel inclined to try my chance for a bird. Which of you
will take this money, and, after paying my fee, give me the aid of his rifle?«
    »Is this a sport for a lady!« exclaimed the young hunter, with an emphasis
that could not well be mistaken, and with a rapidity that showed he spoke
without consulting any thing but feeling.
    »Why not, sir? If it be inhuman, the sin is not confined to one sex only.
But I have my humour as well as others. I ask not your assistance; but« -
turning to Natty, and dropping a dollar in his hand - »this old veteran of the
forest will not be so ungallant, as to refuse one fire for a lady.«
    Leather-stocking dropped the money into his pouch, and throwing up the end
of his rifle, he freshened his priming; and, first laughing in his usual manner,
he threw the piece over his shoulder, and said -
    »If Billy Kirby don't get the bird before me, and the Frenchman's powder
don't hang fire this damp morning, you'll see as fine a turkey dead, in a few
minutes, as ever was eaten in the Judge's shanty. I have know'd the Dutch women
on the Mohawk and Scoharie count greatly on coming to the merry-makings; and so,
lad, you shouldn't be short with the lady. Come, let us go forward, for if we
wait, the finest bird will be gone.«
    »But I have a right before you, Natty, and shall try my own luck first. You
will excuse me, Miss Temple; I have much reason to wish that bird, and may seem
ungallant, but I must claim my privileges.«
    »Claim any thing that is justly your own, sir,« returned the lady; »we are
both adventurers, and this is my knight. I trust my fortune to his hand and eye.
Lead on, Sir Leather-stocking, and we will follow.«
    Natty, who seemed pleased with the frank address of the young and beauteous
Elizabeth, who had so singularly entrusted him with such a commission, returned
the bright smile with which she had addressed him, by his own peculiar mark of
mirth, and moved across the snow, towards the spot whence the sounds of
boisterous mirth proceeded, with the long strides of a hunter. His companions
followed in silence, the youth casting frequent and uneasy glances towards
Elizabeth, who was detained by a motion from Richard.
    »I should think, Miss Temple,« he said, so soon as the others were out of
hearing, »that if you really wished a turkey, you would not have taken a
stranger for the office, and such a one as Leather-stocking. But I can hardly
believe that you are serious, for I have fifty at this moment shut up in the
coops, in every stage of fat, so that you might choose any quality you pleased.
There are six that I am trying an experiment on, by giving them brick-bats with
-«
    »Enough, cousin Dickon,« interrupted the lady; »I do wish the bird, and it
is because I so wish, that I commissioned this Mr. Leather-stocking.«
    »Did you ever hear of the great shot that I made at the wolf, cousin
Elizabeth, who was carrying off your father's sheep?« said Richard, drawing
himself up into an air of displeasure. - »He had the sheep on his back; and had
the head of the wolf been on the other side, I should have killed him dead; as
it was -«
    »You killed the sheep, - I know it all, dear coz. But would it have been
decorous, for the High Sheriff of - to mingle in such sports as these?«
    »Surely you did not think I intended actually to fire with my own hands?«
said Mr. Jones. - »But let us follow, and see the shooting. There is no fear of
any thing unpleasant occurring to a female, in this new country, especially to
your father's daughter, and in my presence.«
    »My father's daughter fears nothing, sir, more especially, when escorted by
the highest executive officer in the county.«
    She took his arm, and he led her through the mazes of the bushes, to the
spot where most of the young men of the village were collected for the sports of
shooting a Christmas match, and whither Natty and his companions had already
preceded them.
 

                                  Chapter XVII

 »I guess, by all this quaint array,
 The burghers hold their sports to-day.«
                                                    Scott, The Lady of the Lake,
                                                                     V.xx.31-32.
 
The ancient amusement of shooting the Christmas turkey, is one of the few sports
that the settlers of a new country seldom or never neglect to observe. It was
connected with the daily practices of a people, who often laid aside the axe or
the sithe, to seize the rifle, as the deer glided through the forests they were
felling, or the bear entered their rough meadows, to scent the air of a
clearing, and to scan, with a look of sagacity, the progress of the invader.
    On the present occasion, the usual amusement of the day had been a little
hastened, in order to allow a fair opportunity to Mr. Grant, whose exhibition
was not less a treat to the young sportsmen, than the one which engaged their
present attention. The owner of the birds was a free black, who had prepared for
the occasion a collection of game, that was admirably qualified to inflame the
appetite of an epicure, and was well adapted to the means and skill of the
different competitors, who were of all ages. He had offered to the younger and
more humble marksmen divers birds of an inferior quality, and some shooting had
already taken place, much to the pecuniary advantage of the sable owner of the
game. The order of the sports was extremely simple, and well understood. The
bird was fastened by a string to the stump of a large pine, the side of which,
towards the point where the marksmen were placed, had been flattened with an
axe, in order to serve the purpose of a target, by which the merit of each
individual might be ascertained. The distance between the stump and
shooting-stand was one hundred measured yards; a foot more or a foot less being
thought an invasion of the rights of one of the parties. The negro affixed his
own price to every bird, and the terms of the chance; but when these were once
established, he was obliged, by the strict principles of public justice that
prevailed in the country, to admit any adventurer who chose to offer.
    The throng consisted of some twenty or thirty young men, most of whom had
rifles, and a collection of all the boys in the village. The little urchins,
clad in coarse but warm garments, stood gathered around the more distinguished
marksmen, with their hands stuck under their waistbands, listening eagerly to
the boastful stories of skill that had been exhibited on former occasions, and
were already emulating in their hearts these wonderful deeds in gunnery.
    The chief speaker was the man who had been mentioned by Natty, as Billy
Kirby. This fellow, whose occupation, when he did labour, was that of clearing
lands, or chopping jobs, was of great stature, and carried, in his very air, the
index of his character. He was a noisy, boisterous, reckless lad, whose
good-natured eye contradicted the bluntness and bullying tenor of his speech.
For weeks he would lounge around the taverns of the county, in a state of
perfect idleness, or doing small jobs for his liquor and his meals, and
cavilling with applicants about the prices of his labour; frequently preferring
idleness to an abatement of a tittle of his independence, or a cent in his
wages. But when these embarrassing points were satisfactorily arranged, he would
shoulder his axe and his rifle, slip his arms through the straps of his pack,
and enter the woods with the tread of a Hercules. His first object was to learn
his limits, round which he paced, occasionally freshening, with a blow of his
axe, the marks on the boundary trees. Then he would proceed, with an air of
great deliberation, to the centre of his premises, and throwing aside his
superfluous garments, measure, with a knowing eye, one or two of the nearest
trees, that were towering apparently into the very clouds, as he gazed upward.
Commonly selecting one of the most noble, for the first trial of his power, he
approached it with a listless air, whistling a low tune; and wielding his axe,
with a certain flourish not unlike the salutes of a fencing-master, he would
strike a light blow into the bark, and measure his distance. A pause of a moment
was ominous of the fall of the forest, which had flourished there for centuries.
The heavy and brisk blows that he struck, were soon succeeded by the thundering
report of the tree, as it came, first cracking and threatening, with the
separation of its own last ligaments, then threshing and tearing with its
branches the tops of its surrounding brethren, and finally meeting the ground,
with a shock but little inferior to an earthquake. From that moment, the sounds
of the axe were ceaseless, while the falling of the trees was like a distant
cannonading; and the daylight broke into the depths of the woods, with the
suddenness of a morning in winter.
    For days, weeks, nay, months, Billy Kirby would toil, with an ardour that
evinced his native spirit, and with an effect that seemed magical; until, his
chopping being ended, his stentorian lungs could be heard, emitting sounds, as
he called to his patient oxen, which rung through the hills like the cries of an
alarm. He had been often heard, on a mild summer's evening, a long mile across
the vale of Templeton; the echoes from the mountains taking up his cries, until
they died away in feeble sounds, from the distant rocks that overhung the lake.
His piles, or, to use the language of the country, his logging, ended, with a
despatch that could only accompany his dexterity and Herculean strength, the
jobber would collect together his implements of labour, light the heaps of
timber, and march away, under the blaze of the prostrate forest, like the
conqueror of some city, who, having first prevailed over his adversary, applies
the torch as the finishing blow to his conquest. For a long time Billy Kirby
would then be seen, sauntering around the taverns, the rider of scrub-races, the
bully of cock-fights, and, not unfrequently, the hero of such sports as the one
in hand.
    Between him and the Leather-stocking there had long existed a jealous
rivalry, on the point of skill with the rifle. Notwithstanding the long practice
of Natty, it was commonly supposed that the steady nerves and quick eye of the
woodchopper, rendered him his equal. The competition had, however, been
confined, hitherto, to boastings, and comparisons made from their success in
various hunting excursions; but the present occasion was the first time that
they had ever come in open collision. A good deal of higgling, about the price
of a shot at the choicest bird, had taken place between Billy Kirby and its
owner, before Natty and his companions rejoined the sportsmen. It had, however,
been settled at one shilling14 a shot, which was the highest sum ever exacted,
the black taking care to protect himself from losses, as much as possible, by
the conditions of the sport. The turkey was already fastened at the mark, its
body being entirely hid by the surrounding snow, nothing being visible but its
red, swelling head, and long neck. If the bird was injured by any bullet that
struck beneath the snow, it was to continue the property of its present owner;
but if a feather was touched in a visible part, the animal became the prize of
the successful adventurer.
    These terms were loudly proclaimed by the negro, who was seated in the snow,
in a somewhat hazardous vicinity to his favourite bird, when Elizabeth, and her
cousin approached the noisy sportsmen. The sounds of mirth and contention
sensibly lowered at this unexpected visit, but after a moment's pause, the
curious interest exhibited in the face of the young lady, together with her
smiling air, restored the freedom of the morning; though it was somewhat
chastened, both in language and vehemence, by the presence of such a spectator.
    »Stand out of the way there, boys,« cried the wood-chopper, who was placing
himself at the shooting-point - »stand out of the way, you little rascals, or I
will shoot through you. Now, Brom, take leave of your turkey.«
    »Stop!« cried the young hunter; »I am a candidate for a chance. Here is my
shilling, Brom; I wish a shot too.«
    »You may wish it in welcome,« cried Kirby; »but if I ruffle the gobbler's
feathers, how are you to get it? is money so plenty in your deer-skin pocket,
that you pay for a chance you may never have?«
    »How know you, sir, how plenty money is in my pocket?« said the youth,
fiercely. »Here is my shilling, Brom, and I claim a right to shoot.«
    »Don't be crabbed, my boy,« said the other, who was very coolly fixing his
flint. »They say you have a hole in your left shoulder, yourself; so I think
Brom may give you a fire for half-price. It will take a keen one to hit that
bird, I can tell you, my lad, even if I give you a chance, which is what I have
no mind to do.«
    »Don't be boasting, Billy Kirby,« said Natty, throwing the breech of his
rifle into the snow, and leaning on its barrel; »you'll get but one shot at the
creature, for if the lad misses his aim, which wouldn't be a wonder if he did,
with his arm so stiff and sore, you'll find a good piece and an old eye comin
a'ter you. Maybe it's true, that I can't shoot as I used to could, but a hundred
yards is a short distance for a long rifle.«
    »What, old Leather-stocking, are you out this morning?« cried his reckless
opponent. »Well, fair play's a jewel. I've the lead of you, old fellow; so here
goes, for a dry throat or a good dinner.«
    The countenance of the negro evinced not only all the interest which his
pecuniary adventure might occasion, but also the keen excitement that the sport
produced in the others, though certainly with a very different wish as to the
result. While the wood-chopper was slowly and steadily raising his rifle, he
bawled -
    »Fair play, Billy Kirby - stand back - make 'em stand back, boys - gib a
nigger fair play - poss up, gobbler; shake a head, fool; don't a see 'em taking
aim?«
    These cries, which were intended as much to distract the attention of the
marksman, as for any thing else, were fruitless. The nerves of the wood-chopper
were not so easily shaken, and he took his aim with the utmost deliberation.
Stillness prevailed for a moment, and he fired. The head of the turkey was seen
to dash on one side, and its wings were spread in momentary fluttering; but it
settled itself down, calmly, into its bed of snow, and glanced its eyes uneasily
around. For a time long enough to draw a deep breath, not a sound was heard. The
silence was then broken, by the noise of the negro, who laughed, and shook his
body, with all kinds of antics, rolling over in the snow in the excess of
delight.
    »Well done a gobbler,« he cried, jumping up, and affecting to embrace his
bird; »I tell 'em to poss up, and you see 'em dodge. Gib anoder shillin, Billy,
and hab anoder shot.«
    »No - the shot is mine,« said the young hunter; »you have my money already.
Leave the mark, and let me try my luck.«
    »Ah! it's but money thrown away, lad,« said Leather-stocking. »A turkey's
head and neck is but a small mark for a new hand and a lame shoulder. You'd best
let me take the fire, and maybe we can make some sittlement with the lady about
the bird.«
    »The chance is mine,« said the young hunter. »Clear the ground, that I may
take it.«
    The discussions and disputes concerning the last shot were now abating, it
having been determined, that if the turkey's head had been any where but just
where it was at the moment, the bird must certainly have been killed. There was
not much excitement produced by the preparations of the youth, who proceeded in
a hurried manner to take his aim, and was in the act of pulling the trigger,
when he was stopped by Natty.
    »Your hand shakes, lad,« he said, »and you seem over eager. Bullet wownds
are apt to weaken flesh, and, to my judgment, you'll not shoot so well as in
common. If you will fire, you should shoot quick, before there is time to shake
off the aim.«
    »Fair play,« again shouted the negro; »fair play - gib a nigger fair play.
What right a Natty Bumppo advise a young man? Let 'em shoot - clear a ground.«
    The youth fired with great rapidity; but no motion was made by the turkey;
and when the examiners for the ball returned from the mark, they declared that
he had missed the stump.
    Elizabeth observed the change in his countenance, and could not help feeling
surprise, that one evidently so superior to his companions, should feel a
trifling loss so sensibly. But her own champion was now preparing to enter the
lists.
    The mirth of Brom, which had been again excited, though in a much smaller
degree than before, by the failure of the second adventurer, vanished, the
instant Natty took his stand. His skin became mottled with large brown spots,
that fearfully sullied the lustre of his native ebony, while his enormous lips
gradually compressed around two rows of ivory, that had hitherto been shining in
his visage, like pearls set in jet. His nostrils, at all times the most
conspicuous features of his face, dilated, until they covered the greater part
of the diameter of his countenance; while his brown and bony hands unconsciously
grasped the snow-crust near him, the excitement of the moment completely
overcoming his native dread of cold.
    While these indications of apprehension were exhibited in the sable owner of
the turkey, the man who gave rise to this extraordinary emotion was as calm and
collected, as if there was not to be a single spectator of his skill.
    »I was down in the Dutch settlements on the Scoharie,« said Natty, carefully
removing the leathern guard from the lock of his rifle, »just before the
breaking out of the last war, and there was a shooting-match amongst the boys;
so I took a hand. I think I opened a good many Dutch eyes that day, for I won
the powder-horn, three pounds of lead, and a pound of as good powder as ever
flashed in pan. Lord! how they did swear in Garman! They did tell of one drunken
Dutchman, who said he'd have the life of me, before I got back to the lake
ag'in. But if he had put his rifle to his shoulder, with evil intent, God would
have punished him for it; and even if the Lord didn't, and he had missed his
aim, I know one that would have given him as good as he sent, and better too, if
good shooting could come into the 'count.«
    By this time the old hunter was ready for his business, and, throwing his
right leg far behind him, and stretching his left arm along the barrel of his
piece, he raised it towards the bird. Every eye glanced rapidly from the
marksman to the mark; but at the moment when each ear was expecting the report
of the rifle, they were disappointed by the ticking sound of the flint.
    »A snap - a snap,« shouted the negro, springing from his crouching posture,
like a madman, before his bird. »A snap good as fire - Natty Bumppo gun he snap
- Natty Bumppo miss a turkey.«
    »Natty Bumppo hit a nigger,« said the indignant old hunter, »if you don't
get out of the way, Brom. It's contrary to the reason of the thing, boy, that a
snap should count for a fire, when one is nothing more than a fire-stone
striking a steel pan, and the other is sudden death; so get out my way, boy, and
let me show Billy Kirby how to shoot a Christmas turkey.«
    »Gib a nigger fair play,« cried the black, who continued resolutely to
maintain his post, and making that appeal to the justice of his auditors, which
the degraded condition of his caste so naturally suggested. »Ebbery body know
dat snap as good as fire. Leab it to Massa Jone - leab it to young lady.«
    »Sartain,« said the wood-chopper; »it's the law of the game in this part of
the country, Leather-stocking. If you fire ag'in, you must pay up the other
shilling. I b'lieve I'll try luck once more myself; so, Brom, here's my money,
and I take the next fire.«
    »It's likely you know the laws of the woods better than I do, Billy Kirby!«
returned Natty. »You come in with the settlers, with an ox goad in your hand,
and I come in with moccasins on my feet, and with a good rifle on my shoulders,
so long back as afore the old war; which is likely to know best! I say, no man
need tell me that snapping is as good as firing, when I pull the trigger.«
    »Leab it to Massa Jone,« said the alarmed negro; »he know ebbery ting.«
    This appeal to the knowledge of Richard was too flattering to be unheeded.
He therefore advanced a little from the spot whither the delicacy of Elizabeth
had induced her to withdraw, and gave the following opinion, with the gravity
that the subject and his own rank demanded: -
    »There seems to be a difference in opinion,« he said, »on the subject of
Nathaniel Bumppo's right to shoot at Abraham Freeborn's turkey, without the said
Nathaniel paying one shilling for the privilege.« This fact was too evident to
be denied, and after pausing a moment, that the audience might digest his
premises, Richard proceeded: - »It seems proper that I should decide this
question, as I am bound to preserve the peace of the county; and men with deadly
weapons in their hands, should not be heedlessly left to contention, and their
own malignant passions. It appears that there was no agreement, either in
writing or in words, on the disputed point; therefore we must reason from
analogy, which is, as it were, comparing one thing with another. Now, in duels,
where both parties shoot, it is generally the rule that a snap is a fire; and if
such is the rule, where the party has a right to fire back again, it seems to me
unreasonable, to say that a man may stand snapping at a defenceless turkey all
day. I therefore am of opinion, that Nathaniel Bumppo has lost his chance, and
must pay another shilling before he renews his right.«
    As this opinion came from so high a quarter, and was delivered with effect,
it silenced all murmurs, for the whole of the spectators had begun to take sides
with great warmth, except from the Leather-stocking himself.
    »I think Miss Elizabeth's thoughts should be taken,« said Natty. »I've known
the squaws give very good counsel, when the Indians have been dumb-foundered. If
she says that I ought to lose, I agree to give it up.«
    »Then I adjudge you to be a loser, for this time,« said Miss Temple; »but
pay your money, and renew your chance; unless Brom will sell me the bird for a
dollar. I will give him the money to save the life of the poor victim.«
    This proposition was evidently but little relished by any of the listeners,
even the negro feeling the evil excitement of the chances. In the mean while, as
Billy Kirby was preparing himself for another shot, Natty left the stand, with
an extremely dissatisfied manner, muttering -
    »There hasn't been such a thing as a good flint sold at the foot of the
lake, sin' the Indian traders used to come into the country; - and if a body
should go into the flats or along the streams in the hills, to hunt for such a
thing, it's ten to one but they be all covered up with the plough. Heigho! it
seems to me, that just as the game grows scarce, and a body wants the best of
ammunition, to get a livelihood, every thing that's bad falls on him, like a
judgment. But I'll change the stone, for Billy Kirby hasn't the eye for such a
mark, I know.«
    The wood-chopper seemed now entirely sensible that his reputation depended
on his care; nor did he neglect any means to insure success. He drew up his
rifle, and renewed his aim, again and again, still appearing reluctant to fire.
No sound was heard from even Brom, during these portentous movements, until
Kirby discharged his piece, with the same want of success as before. Then,
indeed, the shouts of the negro rung through the bushes, and sounded among the
trees of the neighbouring forest, like the outcries of a tribe of Indians. He
laughed, rolling his head, first on one side, then on the other, until nature
seemed exhausted with mirth. He danced, until his legs were wearied with motion,
in the snow; and, in short, he exhibited all that violence of joy that
characterizes the mirth of a thoughtless negro.
    The wood-chopper had exerted all his art, and felt a proportionate degree of
disappointment at the failure. He first examined the bird with the utmost
attention, and more than once suggested that he had touched its feathers; but
the voice of the multitude was against him, for it felt disposed to listen to
the often repeated cries of the black, to gib a nigger fair play.
    Finding it impossible to make out a title to the bird, Kirby turned fiercely
to the black, and said -
    »Shut your oven, you crow. Where is the man that can hit a turkey's head at
a hundred yards? I was a fool for trying. You needn't make an uproar, like a
falling pine tree, about it. Show me the man who can do it.«
    »Look this a-way, Billy Kirby,« said Leather-stocking, »and let them clear
the mark, and I'll show you a man who's made better shots afore now, and that
when he's been hard pressed by the savages and wild beasts.«
    »Perhaps there is one whose right comes before ours, Leather-stocking,« said
Miss Temple; »if so, we will waive our privilege.«
    »If it be me that you have reference to,« said the young hunter, »I shall
decline another chance. My shoulder is yet weak, I find.«
    Elizabeth regarded his manner, and thought that she could discern a tinge on
his cheek, that spoke the shame of conscious poverty. She said no more, but
suffered her own champion to make a trial.
    Although Natty Bumppo had certainly made hundreds of more momentous shots,
at his enemies or his game, yet he never exerted himself more to excel. He
raised his piece three several times; once to get his range; once to calculate
his distance; and once because the bird, alarmed by the death-like stillness,
turned its head quickly, to examine its foes. But the fourth time he fired. The
smoke, the report, and the momentary shock, prevented most of the spectators
from instantly knowing the result; but Elizabeth, when she saw her champion drop
the end of his rifle in the snow, and open his mouth in one of its silent
laughs, and then proceed, very coolly, to re-load his piece, knew that he had
been successful. The boys rushed to the mark, and lifted the turkey on high,
lifeless, and with nothing but the remnant of a head.
    »Bring in the creature,« said Leather-stocking, »and put it at the feet of
the lady. I was her deputy in the matter, and the bird is her property.«
    »And a good deputy you have proved yourself,« returned Elizabeth - »so good,
cousin Richard, that I would advise you to remember his qualities.« She paused,
and the gaiety that beamed on her face gave place to a more serious earnestness.
She even blushed a little, as she turned to the young hunter, and, with the
charm of a woman's manner, added - »But it was only to see an exhibition of the
far-famed skill of Leather-stocking, that I tried my fortunes. Will you, sir,
accept the bird, as a small peace-offering, for the hurt that prevented your own
success?«
    The expression with which the youth received this present was indescribable.
He appeared to yield to the blandishment of her air, in opposition to a strong
inward impulse to the contrary. He bowed, and raised the victim silently from
her feet, but continued silent.
    Elizabeth handed the black a piece of silver, as a remuneration for his
loss, which had some effect in again unbending his muscles, and then expressed
to her companion her readiness to return homeward.
    »Wait a minute, cousin Bess,« cried Richard; »there is an uncertainty about
the rules of this sport, that it is proper I should remove. - If you will
appoint a committee, gentlemen, to wait on me this morning, I will draw up, in
writing, a set of regulations -« He stopped, with some indignation, for at that
instant a hand was laid familiarly on the shoulder of the High Sheriff of -.
    »A merry Christmas to you, cousin Dickon,« said Judge Temple, who had
approached the party unperceived: »I must have a vigilant eye to my daughter,
sir, if you are to be seized daily with these gallant fits. I admire the taste,
which would introduce a lady to such scenes!«
    »It is her own perversity, 'duke,« cried the disappointed Sheriff, who felt
the loss of the first salutation as grievously as many a man would a much
greater misfortune; »and I must say that she comes honestly by it. I led her out
to show her the improvements, but away she scampered, through the snow, at the
first sound of fire-arms, the same as if she had been brought up in a camp,
instead of a first-rate boarding-school. I do think, Judge Temple, that such
dangerous amusements should be suppressed by statute; nay, I doubt whether they
are not already indictable at common law.«
    »Well, sir, as you are Sheriff of the county, it becomes your duty to
examine into the matter,« returned the smiling Marmaduke. »I perceive that Bess
has executed her commission, and I hope it met with a favourable reception.«
    Richard glanced his eye at the packet, which he held in his hand, and the
slight anger produced by disappointment vanished instantly.
    »Ah! 'duke, my dear cousin,« he said, »step a little on one side; I have
something I would say to you.« Marmaduke complied, and the Sheriff led him to a
little distance in the bushes, and continued - »First, 'duke, let me thank you
for your friendly interest with the Council and the Governor, without which, I
am confident that the greatest merit would avail but little. But we are sisters'
children - we are sisters' children; and you may use me like one of your horses;
ride me or drive me, 'duke, I am wholly yours. - But in my humble opinion, this
young companion of Leather-stocking requires looking after. He has a very
dangerous propensity for turkey.«
    »Leave him to my management, Dickon,« said the Judge, »and I will cure his
appetite by indulgence. It is with him that I would speak. Let us rejoin the
sportsmen.«
 

                                 Chapter XVIII

 »Poor wretch! the mother that him bare,
 If she had been in presence there,
 In his wan face, and sun-burn'd hair,
 She had not known her child.«
                                                 Scott, Marmion, I.xxviii.13-16.
 
It diminished, in no degree, the effect produced by the conversation which
passed between Judge Temple and the young hunter, that the former took the arm
of his daughter, and drew it through his own, when he advanced from the spot
whither Richard had led him, to that where the youth was standing, leaning on
his rifle, and contemplating the dead bird at his feet. The presence of
Marmaduke did not interrupt the sports, which were resumed, by loud and
clamorous disputes concerning the conditions of a chance, that involved the life
of a bird of much inferior quality to the last. Leather-stocking and Mohegan had
alone drawn aside to their youthful companion; and, although in the immediate
vicinity of such a throng, the following conversation was heard only by those
who were interested in it.
    »I have greatly injured you, Mr. Edwards,« said the Judge; but the sudden
and inexplicable start with which the person spoken to received this unexpected
address, caused him to pause a moment. As no answer was given, and the strong
emotion exhibited in the countenance of the youth gradually passed away, he
continued - »But, fortunately, it is in some measure in my power to compensate
you for what I have done. My kinsman, Richard Jones, has received an appointment
that will, in future, deprive me of his assistance, and leaves me, just now,
destitute of one who might greatly aid me with his pen. Your manner,
notwithstanding appearances, is a sufficient proof of your education, nor will
thy shoulder suffer thee to labour, for some time to come.« (Marmaduke
insensibly relapsed into the language of the Friends as he grew warm.) »My doors
are open to thee, my young friend, for in this infant country, we harbour no
suspicions; little offering to tempt the cupidity of the evil disposed. Become
my assistant, for at least a season, and receive such compensation as thy
services will deserve.«
    There was nothing in the manner or the offer of the Judge, to justify the
reluctance, amounting nearly to loathing, with which the youth listened to his
speech; but, after a powerful effort, for self-command, he replied -
    »I would serve you, sir, or any other man, for an honest support, for I do
not affect to conceal that my necessities are very great, even beyond what
appearances would indicate; but I am fearful that such new duties would
interfere too much with more important business; so that I must decline your
offer, and depend on my rifle, as before, for subsistence.«
    Richard here took occasion to whisper to the young lady, who had shrunk a
little from the foreground of the picture -
    »This, you see, cousin Bess, is the natural reluctance of a half-breed to
leave the savage state. Their attachment to a wandering life is, I verily
believe, unconquerable.«
    »It is a precarious life,« observed Marmaduke, without hearing the Sheriff's
observation, »and one that brings more evils with it than present suffering.
Trust me, young friend, my experience is greater than thine, when I tell thee,
that the unsettled life of these hunters is of vast disadvantage for temporal
purposes, and it totally removes one from the influence of more sacred things.«
    »No, no, Judge,« interrupted the Leather-stocking; who was hitherto unseen,
or disregarded; »take him into your shanty in welcome, but tell him truth. I
have lived in the woods for forty long years, and have spent five at a time
without seeing the light of a clearing, bigger than a wind-row in the trees, and
I should like to know where you'll find a man, in his sixty-eighth year, who can
get an easier living, for all your betterments, and your deer-laws; and, as for
honesty, or doing what's right between man and man, I'll not turn my back to the
longest winded deacon on your Patent.«
    »Thou art an exception, Leather-stocking,« returned the Judge, nodding
good-naturedly at the hunter; »for thou hast a temperance unusual in thy class,
and a hardihood exceeding thy years. But this youth is made of materials too
precious to be wasted in the forest. I entreat thee to join my family, if it be
but till thy arm be healed. My daughter here, who is mistress of my dwelling,
will tell thee that thou art welcome.«
    »Certainly,« said Elizabeth, whose earnestness was a little checked by
female reserve. »The unfortunate would be welcome at any time, but doubly so,
when we feel that we have occasioned the evil ourselves.«
    »Yes,« said Richard, »and if you relish turkey, young man, there are plenty
in the coops, and of the best kind, I can assure you.«
    Finding himself thus ably seconded, Marmaduke pushed his advantage to the
utmost. He entered into a detail of the duties that would attend the situation,
and circumstantially mentioned the reward, and all those points which are deemed
of importance among men of business. The youth listened in extreme agitation.
There was an evident contest in his feelings; at times he appeared to wish
eagerly for the change, and then again, the incomprehensible expression of
disgust would cross his features, like a dark cloud obscuring a noon-day sun.
    The Indian, in whose manner the depression of self-abasement was most
powerfully exhibited, listened to the offers of the Judge, with an interest that
increased with each syllable. Gradually he drew nigher to the group, and when,
with his keen glance, he detected the most marked evidence of yielding in the
countenance of his young companion, he changed at once from his attitude and
look of shame, to the front of an Indian warrior, and moving, with great
dignity, closer to the parties, he spoke -
    »Listen to your Father,« he said; »his words are old. Let the Young Eagle
and the Great Land Chief eat together; let them sleep, without fear, near each
other. The children of Miquon love not blood; they are just, and will do right.
The sun must rise and set often, before men can make one family: it is not the
work of a day, but of many winters. The Mingoes and the Delawares are born
enemies; their blood can never mix in the wigwam; it never will run in the same
stream in the battle. What makes the brother of Miquon and the Young Eagle foes!
they are of the same tribe; their fathers and mothers are one. Learn to wait, my
son: you are a Delaware, and an Indian warrior knows how to be patient.«
    This figurative address seemed to have great weight with the young man, who
gradually yielded to the representations of Marmaduke, and eventually consented
to his proposal. It was, however, to be an experiment only; and if either of the
parties thought fit to rescind the engagement, it was left at his option so to
do. The remarkable and ill-concealed reluctance of the youth, to accept of an
offer, which most men in his situation would consider as an unhoped for
elevation, occasioned no little surprise in those to whom he was a stranger; and
it left a slight impression to his disadvantage. When the parties separated,
they very naturally made the subject the topic of a conversation, which we shall
relate; first commencing with the Judge, his daughter, and Richard, who were
slowly pursuing the way back to the Mansion-house.
    »I have surely endeavoured to remember the holy mandates of our Redeemer,
when he bids us love them who despite-fully use you, in my intercourse with this
incomprehensible boy,« said Marmaduke. »I know not what there is in my dwelling,
to frighten a lad of his years, unless it may be thy presence and visage, Bess.«
    »No, no,« said Richard, with great simplicity; »it is not cousin Bess. But
when did you ever know a half-breed, 'duke, who could bear civilization? for
that matter, they are worse than the savages themselves. Did you notice how
knock-kneed he stood, Elizabeth, and what a wild look he had in his eyes?«
    »I heeded not his eyes, nor his knees, which would be all the better for a
little humbling. Really, my dear sir, I think you did exercise the Christian
virtue of patience to the utmost. I was disgusted with his airs, long before he
consented to make one of our family. Truly, we are much honoured by the
association. In what apartment is he to be placed, sir, and at what table is he
to receive his nectar and ambrosia?«
    »With Benjamin and Remarkable,« interrupted Mr. Jones; »you surely would not
make the youth eat with the blacks! He is part Indian, it is true, but the
natives hold the Negroes in great contempt. No, no - he would starve before he
would break a crust with the Negroes.«
    »I am but too happy, Dickon, to tempt him to eat with ourselves,« said
Marmaduke, »to think of offering even the indignity you propose.«
    »Then, sir,« said Elizabeth, with an air that was slightly affected, as if
submitting to her father's orders in opposition to her own will, »it is your
pleasure that he be a gentleman.«
    »Certainly; he is to fill the station of one; let him receive the treatment
that is due to his place, until we find him unworthy of it.«
    »Well, well, 'duke,« cried the Sheriff, »you will find it no easy matter to
make a gentleman of him. The old proverb says, that it takes three generations
to make a gentleman. There was my father, whom every body knew; my grandfather
was an M.D.; and his father a D.D.; and his father came from England. I never
could come at the truth of his origin, but he was either a great merchant, in
London, or a great country lawyer, or the youngest son of a bishop.«
    »Here is a true American genealogy for you,« said Marmaduke, laughing. »It
does very well, till you get across the water, where, as every thing is obscure,
it is certain to deal in the superlative. You are sure that your English
progenitor was great, Dickon, whatever his profession might have been?«
    »To be sure I am,« returned the other; »I have heard my old aunt talk of him
by the month. We are of a good family, Judge Temple, and have never filled any
but honourable stations in life.«
    »I marvel that you should be satisfied with so scanty a provision of
gentility, in the olden time, Dickon. Most of the American genealogists commence
their traditions, like the stories for children, with three brothers, taking
especial care that one of the triumvirate shall be the progenitor of any of the
same name who may happen to be better furnished with worldly gear than
themselves. But, here, all are equal who know how to conduct themselves with
propriety; and Oliver Edwards comes into my family, on a footing with both the
High Sheriff and the Judge.«
    »Well, 'duke, I call this democracy, not republicanism; but I say nothing;
only let him keep within the law, or I shall show him, that the freedom of even
this country is under wholesome restraint.«
    »Surely, Dickon, you will not execute till I condemn! But what says Bess to
the new inmate. We must pay a deference to the ladies, in this matter, after
all.«
    »Oh! sir,« returned Elizabeth, »I believe I am much like a certain Judge
Temple, in this particular; not easily to be turned from my opinion. But, to be
serious, although I must think the introduction of a demi-savage into the family
a somewhat startling event, whomsoever you think proper to countenance, may be
sure of my respect.«
    The Judge drew her arm more closely in his own, and smiled, while Richard
led the way through the gate of the little court-yard in the rear of the
dwelling, dealing out his ambiguous warnings, with his accustomed loquacity.
    On the other hand, the foresters, for the three hunters, notwithstanding
their difference in character, well deserved this common name, pursued their
course along the skirts of the village in silence. It was not until they had
reached the lake, and were moving over its frozen surface, towards the foot of
the mountain, where the hut stood, that the youth exclaimed -
    »Who could have foreseen this, a month since! I have consented to serve
Marmaduke Temple! to be an inmate in the dwelling of the greatest enemy of my
race! yet what better could I do? The servitude cannot be long, and when the
motive for submitting to it ceases to exist, I will shake it off, like the dust
from my feet.«
    »Is he a Mingo, that you will call him enemy?« said Mohegan. »The Delaware
warrior sits still, and waits the time of the Great Spirit. He is no woman, to
cry out like a child.«
    »Well, I'm mistrustful, John,« said Leather-stocking, in whose air there had
been, during the whole business, a strong expression of doubt and uncertainty.
»They say that there's new laws in the land, and I am certain that there's new
ways in the mountains. They alter the country so much, one hardly knows the
lakes and streams. I must say I'm mistrustful of such smooth speakers, for I've
known the whites talk fair, when they wanted the Indian lands most. This I will
say, though I'm white myself, and was born nigh York, and of honest parents
too.«
    »I will submit,« said the youth; »I will forget who I am. Cease to remember,
old Mohegan, that I am the descendant of a Delaware chief, who once was master
of these noble hills, these beautiful vales, and of this water, over which we
tread. Yes, yes - I will become his bondsman - his slave! Is it not an
honourable servitude, old man?«
    »Old man!« repeated the Indian, solemnly, and pausing in his walk, as usual
when much excited - »yes; John is old. Son of my brother! if Mohegan was young,
when would his rifle be still? where would the deer hide, and he not find him?
But John is old; his hand is the hand of a squaw; his tomahawk is a hatchet;
brooms and baskets are his enemies - he strikes no other. Hunger and old age
come together. - See, Hawkeye! when young, he would go days, and eat nothing;
but should he not put the brush on the fire now, the blaze would go out. Take
the son of Miquon by the hand, and he will help you.«
    »I'm not the man I was, I'll own, Chingachgook,« returned the
Leather-stocking; »but I can go without a meal now, on occasion. When we tracked
the Iroquois through the Beech-woods, they druv the game afore them, for I
hadn't a morsel to eat from Monday morning, come Wednesday sundown; and then I
shot as fat a buck, on the Pennsylvany line, as ever mortal laid eyes on. It
would have done your heart good to have seen the Delaware eat, - for I was out
scouting and scrimmaging with their tribe, at the time. Lord! the Indians, lad,
lay still, and just waited till Providence should send them their game; but I
foraged about, and put a deer up, and put him down too, 'fore he had made a
dozen jumps. I was too weak, and too ravenous to stop for his flesh; so I took a
good drink of his blood, and the Indians eat of his meat raw. John was there,
and John knows. But then starvation would be apt to be too much for me now, I
will own, though I'm no great eater at any time.«
    »Enough is said, my friends,« cried the youth; »I feel that everywhere the
sacrifice is required at my hands, and it shall be made; but say no more, I
entreat you; I cannot bear this subject now.«
    His companions were silent, and they soon reached the hut, which they
entered, after removing certain complicated and ingenious fastenings, that were
put there, apparently, to guard a property of but very little value. Immense
piles of snow lay against the log walls of this secluded habitation, on one
side, while fragments of small trees, and branches of oak and chestnut, that had
been torn from their parent stems by the winds, were thrown into a pile, on the
other. A small column of smoke rose through a chimney of sticks, cemented with
clay, along the side of the rock; and had marked the snow above with its dark
tinges, in a wavy line, from the point of emission to another where the hill
receded from the brow of a precipice, and held a soil that nourished trees of a
gigantic growth, that overhung the little bottom beneath.
    The remainder of the day passed off as such days are commonly spent, in a
new country. - The settlers thronged to the academy again, to witness the second
effort of Mr. Grant; and Mohegan was one of his hearers. But, notwithstanding
the divine fixed his eyes intently on the Indian, when he invited his
congregation to advance to the table, the shame of last night's abasement was
yet too keen in the old chief to suffer him to move.
    When the people were dispersing, the clouds, that had been gathering all the
morning, were dense and dirty; and before half of the curious congregation had
reached their different cabins, that were placed in every glen and hollow of the
mountains, or perched on the summits of the hills themselves, the rain was
falling in torrents. The dark edges of the stumps began to exhibit themselves,
as the snow settled rapidly; the fences of logs and brush, which before had been
only traced by long lines of white mounds, that ran across the valley and up the
mountains, peeped out from their covering; and the black stubs were momentarily
becoming more distinct, as large masses of snow and ice fell from their sides,
under the influence of the thaw.
    Sheltered in the warm hall of her father's comfortable mansion, Elizabeth,
accompanied by Louisa Grant, looked abroad with admiration at the ever varying
face of things without. Even the village, which had just before been glittering
with the colour of the frozen element, reluctantly dropped its mask, and the
houses exposed their dark roofs and smoked chimneys. The pines shook off the
covering of snow, and every thing seemed to be assuming its proper hue, with a
transition that bordered on the supernatural.
 

                                  Chapter XIX

            »And yet, poor Edwin was no vulgar boy.«
                                                 Beattie, The Minstrel, I.xvi.1.
 
The close of Christmas day, A.D. 1793, was tempestuous, but comparatively warm.
When darkness had again hid the objects in the village from the gaze of
Elizabeth, she turned from the window, where she had remained while the least
vestige of light lingered over the tops of the dark pines, with a curiosity that
was rather excited than appeased by the passing glimpses of woodland scenery
that she had caught during the day.
    With her arm locked in that of Miss Grant, the young mistress of the mansion
walked slowly up and down the hall, musing on scenes that were rapidly recurring
to her memory, and possibly dwelling, at times, in the sanctuary of her
thoughts, on the strange occurrences that had led to the introduction to her
father's family of one, whose manners so singularly contradicted the inferences
to be drawn from his situation. The expiring heat of the apartment, for its
great size required a day to reduce its temperature, had given to her cheeks a
bloom that exceeded their natural colour, while the mild and melancholy features
of Louisa were brightened with a faint tinge, that, like the hectic of disease,
gave a painful interest to her beauty.
    The eyes of the gentlemen, who were yet seated around the rich wines of
Judge Temple, frequently wandered from the table, that was placed at one end of
the hall, to the forms that were silently moving over its length. Much mirth,
and that, at times, of a boisterous kind, proceeded from the mouth of Richard;
but Major Hartmann was not yet excited to his pitch of merriment, and Marmaduke
respected the presence of his clerical guest too much, to indulge in even the
innocent humour that formed no small ingredient in his character.
    Such were, and such continued to be, the pursuits of the party, for half an
hour after the shutters were closed, and candles were placed in various parts of
the hall, as substitutes for the departing daylight. The appearance of Benjamin,
staggering under the burden of an armful of wood, was the first interruption to
the scene.
    »How now, Master Pump!« roared the newly appointed Sheriff; »is there not
warmth enough in 'duke's best Madeira, to keep up the animal heat through this
thaw? Remember, old boy, that the Judge is particular with his beech and maple,
beginning to dread, already, a scarcity of the precious articles. Ha! ha! ha!
'duke, you are a good, warm-hearted relation, I will own, as in duty bound, but
you have some queer notions about you, after all. Come let us be jolly, and cast
away folly.« -
    The notes gradually sunk into a hum, while the Majordomo threw down his
load, and turning to his interrogator with an air of earnestness, replied -
    »Why, look you, Squire Dickens, mayhap there's a warm latitude round about
the table there, thof it's not the stuff to raise the heat in my body neither;
the raal Jamaiky being the only thing to do that, beside good wood, or some such
matter as Newcastle coal. But if I know any thing of weather, d'ye see, it's
time to be getting all snug, and for putting the ports in, and stirring the
fires abit. Mayhap I've not followed the seas twenty-seven years, and lived
another seven in these here woods, for nothing, gemmen.«
    »Why, does it bid fair for a change in the weather, Benjamin?« inquired the
master of the house.
    »There's a shift of wind, your honour,« returned the steward; »and when
there's a shift of wind, you may look for a change, in this here climate. I was
aboard of one of Rodney's fleet, d'ye see, about the time we licked De Grasse,
Mounsheer Ler Quaw's countryman, there; and the wind was here at the south'ard
and east'ard; and I was below, mixing a toothful of hot-stuff for the Captain of
marines, who dined, d'ye see, in the cabin, that there very same day; and I
suppose he wanted to put out the Captain's fire with a gun-room ingyne: and so,
just as I got it to my own liking, after tasting pretty often, for the soldier
was difficult to please, slap come the foresail ag'inst the mast, and whiz went
the ship round on her heel, like a whirlygig. And a lucky thing was it that our
helm was down; for as she gathered starnway she payed off, which was more than
every ship in the fleet did, or could do. But she strained herself in the trough
of the sea, and she shipped a deal of water over her quarter. I never swallowed
so much clear water at a time, in my life, as I did then, for I was looking up
the after-hatch at the instant.«
    »I wonder, Benjamin, that you did not die with a dropsy!« said Marmaduke.
    »I mought, Judge,« said the old tar, with a broad grin; »but there was no
need of the med'cine chest for a cure; for, as I thought the brew was spoilt for
the marine's taste, and there was no telling when another sea might come and
spoil it for mine, I finished the mug on the spot. So then all hands was called
to the pumps, and there we began to ply the pumps -«
    »Well, but the weather?« interrupted Marmaduke; »what of the weather without
doors?«
    »Why, here the wind has been all day at the south, and now there's a lull,
as if the last blast was out of the bellows; and there's a streak along the
mountains, to the north'ard, that, just now, wasn't't wider than the bigness of
your hand; and then the clouds drive afore it as you'd brail a mainsail, and the
stars are heaving in sight, like so many lights and beacons, put there to warn
us to pile on the wood; and, if-so-be that I'm a judge of weather, it's getting
to be time to build on a fire; or you'll have half of them there porter-bottles,
and them dimmy-johns of wine, in the locker here, breaking with the frost, afore
the morning watch is called.«
    »Thou art a prudent sentinel,« said the Judge. »Act thy pleasure with the
forests, for this night at least.«
    Benjamin did as he was ordered; nor had two hours elapsed, before the
prudence of his precautions became very visible. The south wind had, indeed,
blown itself out, and it was succeeded by the calmness that usually gave warning
of a serious change in the weather. Long before the family retired to rest, the
cold had become cuttingly severe; and when Monsieur Le Quoi sallied forth, under
a bright moon, to seek his own abode, he was compelled to beg a blanket, in
which he might envelope his form, in addition to the numerous garments that his
sagacity had provided for the occasion. The divine and his daughter remained, as
inmates of the Mansion-house, during the night, and the excess of last night's
merriment induced the gentlemen to make an early retreat to their several
apartments. Long before midnight, the whole family were invisible.
    Elizabeth and her friend had not yet lost their senses in sleep, when the
howlings of the northwest wind were heard around the buildings, and brought with
them that exquisite sense of comfort, that is ever excited under such
circumstances, in an apartment where the fire has not yet ceased to glimmer, and
curtains, and shutters, and feathers, unite to preserve the desired temperature.
Once, just as her eyes had opened, apparently in the last stage of drowsiness,
the roaring winds brought with them a long and plaintive howl, that seemed too
wild for a dog, and yet resembled the cries of that faithful animal, when night
awakens his vigilance, and gives sweetness and solemnity to his alarms. The form
of Louisa Grant instinctively pressed nearer to that of the young heiress, who,
finding her companion was yet awake, said, in a low tone, as if afraid to break
a charm with her voice -
    »Those distant cries are plaintive, and even beautiful. Can they be the
hounds from the hut of Leather-stocking?«
    »They are wolves, who have ventured from the mountain, on the lake,«
whispered Louisa, »and who are only kept from the village by the lights. One
night, since we have been here, hunger drove them to our very door. Oh! what a
dreadful night it was! But the riches of Judge Temple have given him too many
safeguards, to leave room for fear in this house.«
    »The enterprise of Judge Temple is taming the very forests!« exclaimed
Elizabeth, throwing off the covering, and partly rising in the bed. »How rapidly
is civilization treading on the footsteps of nature!« she continued, as her eye
glanced over not only the comforts, but the luxuries of her apartment, and her
ear again listened to the distant, but often repeated howls from the lake.
Finding, however, that the timidity of her companion rendered the sounds painful
to her, Elizabeth resumed her place, and soon forgot the changes in the country,
with those in her own condition, in a deep sleep.
    The following morning, the noise of the female servant, who entered the
apartment to light the fire, awoke the females. They arose, and finished the
slight preparations of their toilettes in a clear, cold atmosphere, that
penetrated through all the defences of even Miss Temple's warm room. When
Elizabeth was attired, she approached a window and drew its curtain, and,
throwing open its shutters, she endeavoured to look abroad on the village and
the lake. But a thick covering of frost, on the glass, while it admitted the
light, shut out the view. She raised the sash, and then, indeed, a glorious
scene met her delighted eye.
    The lake had exchanged its covering of unspotted snow, for a face of dark
ice, that reflected the rays of the rising sun, like a polished mirror. The
houses were clothed in a dress of the same description, but which, owing to its
position, shone like bright steel; while the enormous icicles that were pendent
from every roof, caught the brilliant light, apparently throwing it from one to
the other, as each glittered, on the side next the luminary, with a golden
lustre, that melted away, on its opposite, into the dusky shades of a
back-ground. But it was the appearance, of the boundless forests, that covered
the hills, as they rose, in the distance, one over the other, that most
attracted the gaze of Miss Temple. The huge branches of the pines and hemlocks
bent with the weight of the ice they supported, while their summits rose above
the swelling tops of the oaks, beeches, and maples, like spires of burnished
silver issuing from domes of the same material. The limits of the view, in the
west, were marked by an undulating outline of bright light, as if, reversing the
order of nature, numberless suns might momentarily be expected to heave above
the horizon. In the foreground of the picture, along the shores of the lake, and
near to the village, each tree seemed studded with diamonds. Even the sides of
the mountains, where the rays of the sun could not yet fall, were decorated with
a glassy coat, that presented every gradation of brilliancy, from the first
touch of the luminary to the dark foliage of the hemlock, glistening through its
coat of crystal. In short, the whole view was one scene of quivering radiancy,
as lake, mountains, village, and woods, each emitted a portion of light, tinged
with its peculiar hue, and varied by its position and its magnitude.
    »See!« cried Elizabeth - »see, Louisa; hasten to the window, and observe the
miraculous change.«
    Miss Grant complied; and, after bending for a moment in silence from the
opening, she observed, in a low tone, as if afraid to trust the sound of her
voice -
    »The change is indeed wonderful! I am surprised that he should be able to
effect it so soon.«
    Elizabeth turned in amazement, to hear so sceptical a sentiment from one
educated like her companion; but was surprised to find that, instead of looking
at the view, the mild, blue eyes of Miss Grant were dwelling on the form of a
well-dressed young man, who was standing before the door of the building, in
earnest conversation with her father. A second look was necessary, before she
was able to recognise the person of the young hunter, in a plain, but,
assuredly, the ordinary garb of a gentleman.
    »Every thing in this magical country seems to border on the marvellous,«
said Elizabeth; »and among all the changes, this is certainly not the least
wonderful. The actors are as unique as the scenery.«
    Miss Grant coloured, and drew in her head.
    »I am a simple country girl, Miss Temple, and I am afraid you will find me
but a poor companion,« she said. »I - I am not sure that I understand all you
say. But I really thought that you wished me to notice the alteration in Mr.
Edwards. Is it not more wonderful, when we recollect his origin? They say he is
part Indian.«
    »He is a genteel savage; but let us go down, and give the Sachem his tea; -
for I suppose he is a descendant of King Philip, if not a grandson of
Pocahontas.«
    The ladies were met in the hall by Judge Temple, who took his daughter
aside, to apprise her of that alteration in the appearance of their new inmate,
with which she was already acquainted.
    »He appears reluctant to converse on his former situation,« continued
Marmaduke; »but I gather from his discourse, as is apparent from his manner,
that he has seen better days; and I really am inclining to the opinion of
Richard, as to his origin; for it was no unusual thing for the Indian Agents to
rear their children in a very laudable manner, and -«
    »Very well, my dear sir,« interrupted his daughter, laughing, and averting
her eyes; »it is all well enough, I dare say; but as I do not understand a word
of the Mohawk language, he must be content to speak English; and as for his
behaviour, I trust to your discernment to control it.«
    »Ay! but, Bess,« said the Judge, detaining her gently, with his hand,
»nothing must be said to him of his past life. This he has begged particularly
of me, as a favour. He is, perhaps, a little soured, just now, with his wounded
arm; the injury seems very light, and another time he may be more
communicative.«
    »Oh! I am not much troubled, sir, with that laudable thirst after knowledge,
that is called curiosity. I shall believe him to be the child of Corn-stalk, or
Corn-planter, or some other renowned chieftain; possibly of the Big Snake
himself; and shall treat him as such, until he sees fit to shave his
good-looking head, borrow some half-dozen pair of my best earrings, shoulder his
rifle again, and disappear as suddenly as he made his entrance. So come, my dear
sir, and let us not forget the rites of hospitality, for the short time he is to
remain with us.«
    Judge Temple smiled, at the playfulness of his child, and taking her arm,
they entered the breakfast parlour, where the young hunter was seated, with an
air that showed his determination to domesticate himself in the family, with as
little parade as possible.
    Such were the incidents that led to this extraordinary increase in the
family of Judge Temple, where, having once established the youth, the subject of
our tale requires us to leave him, for a time, to pursue with diligence and
intelligence the employments that were assigned him by Marmaduke.
    Major Hartmann made his customary visit, and took his leave of the party,
for the next three months. Mr. Grant was compelled to be absent much of his
time, in remote parts of the country, and his daughter became almost a constant
visitor at the Mansion-house. Richard entered, with his constitutional
eagerness, on the duties of his new office; and, as Marmaduke was much employed,
with the constant applications of adventurers, for farms, the winter passed
swiftly away. The lake was a principal scene for the amusements of the young
people; where the ladies, in their one-horse cutter, driven by Richard, and
attended, when the snow would admit of it, by young Edwards, on his skates,
spent many hours, taking the benefit of exercise in the clear air of the hills.
The reserve of the youth gradually gave way to time and his situation, though it
was still evident, to a close observer, that he had frequent moments of bitter
and intense feeling.
    Elizabeth saw many large openings appear in the sides of the mountains,
during the three succeeding months, where different settlers had, in the
language of the country, made their pitch; while the numberless sleighs that
passed through the village, loaded with wheat and barrels of pot-ashes, afforded
a clear demonstration that all these labours were not undertaken in vain. In
short, the whole country was exhibiting the bustle of a thriving settlement,
where the highways were thronged with sleighs, bearing piles of rough household
furniture, studded, here and there, with the smiling faces of women and
children, happy in the excitement of novelty; or with loads of produce,
hastening to the common market at Albany, that served as so many snares, to
induce the emigrants to enter into those wild mountains in search of competence
and happiness.
    The village was alive with business, the artisans increasing in wealth with
the prosperity of the country, and each day witnessing some nearer approach to
the manners and usages of an old-settled town. The man who carried the mail, or
the post, as he was called, talked much of running a stage, and once or twice,
during the winter, he was seen taking a single passenger in his cutter, through
the snow-banks towards the Mohawk, along which a regular vehicle glided,
semi-weekly, with the velocity of lightning, and under the direction of a
knowing whip from the down countries. Towards spring, divers families, who had
been into the old states, to see their relatives, returned, in time to save the
snow, frequently bringing with them whole neighbourhoods, who were tempted by
their representations to leave the farms of Connecticut and Massachusetts, to
make a trial of fortune in the woods.
    During all this time, Oliver Edwards, whose sudden elevation excited no
surprise in that changeful country, was earnestly engaged in the service of
Marmaduke, during the days; but his nights were often spent in the hut of
Leather-stocking. The intercourse between the three hunters was maintained with
a certain air of mystery, it is true, but with much zeal and apparent interest
to all the parties. Even Mohegan seldom came to the Mansion-house, and Natty,
never; but Edwards sought every leisure moment to visit his former abode, from
which he would often return in the gloomy hours of night, through the snow, or,
if detained beyond the time at which the family retired to rest, with the
morning sun. These visits certainly excited much speculation in those to whom
they were known, but no comments were made, excepting occasionally in whispers
from Richard, who would say -
    »It is not at all remarkable; - a half-breed can never be weaned from the
savage ways - and for one of his lineage, the boy is much nearer civilisation
than could, in reason, be expected.«
 

                                   Chapter XX

 »Away! nor let me loiter in my song,
 For we have many a mountain path to tread.«
                                              Byron, Childe Harold's Pilgrimage,
                                                                    II.xxxv.1-2.
 
As the spring gradually approached, the immense piles of snow, that, by
alternate thaws and frosts, and repeated storms, had obtained a firmness which
threatened a tiresome durability, begun to yield to the influence of milder
breezes and a warmer sun. The gates of Heaven, at times, seemed to open, and a
bland air diffused itself over the earth, when animate and inanimate nature
would awaken, and, for a few hours, the gaiety of spring shone in every eye, and
smiled on every field. But the shivering blasts from the north would carry their
chill influence over the scene again, and the dark and gloomy clouds that
intercepted the rays of the sun, were not more cold and dreary, than the
re-action. These struggles between the seasons became, daily, more frequent,
while the earth, like a victim to contention, slowly lost the animated
brilliancy of winter, without obtaining the aspect of spring.
    Several weeks were consumed, in this cheerless manner, during which the
inhabitants of the country gradually changed their pursuits from the social and
bustling movements of the time of snow, to the laborious and domestic
engagements of the coming season. The village was no longer thronged with
visitors; the trade, that had enlivened the shops for several months, begun to
disappear; the highways lost their shining coats of beaten snow in impassable
sloughs, and were deserted by the gay and noisy travellers who, in sleighs, had,
during the winter, glided along their windings; and, in short, every thing
seemed indicative of a mighty change, not only in the earth, but in those who
derived their sources of comfort and happiness from its bosom.
    The younger members of the family in the Mansion-house, of which Louisa
Grant was now habitually one, were by no means indifferent observers of these
fluctuating and tardy changes. While the snow rendered the roads passable, they
had partaken largely in the amusements of the winter, which included not only
daily rides over the mountains, and through every valley within twenty miles of
them, but divers ingenious and varied sources of pleasure, on the bosom of their
frozen lake. There had been excursions in the equipage of Richard, when, with
his four horses, he had outstripped the winds, as it flew over the glassy ice
which invariably succeeded a thaw. Then the exciting and dangerous whirligig
would be suffered to possess its moment of notice. Cutters, drawn by a single
horse, and hand-sleds, impelled by the gentlemen, on skates, would each in turn
be used; and, in short, every source of relief against the tediousness of a
winter in the mountains, was resorted to by the family. Elizabeth was willing to
acknowledge to her father, that the season, with the aid of his library, was
much less irksome than she had anticipated.
    As exercise in the open air was, in some degree necessary to the habits of
the family, when the constant recurrence of frosts and thaws rendered the roads,
which were dangerous, at the most favourable times, utterly impassable for
wheels, saddle-horses were used as substitutes for other conveyances. Mounted on
small and sure-footed beasts, the ladies would again attempt the passages of the
mountains, and penetrate into every retired glen, where the enterprise of a
settler had induced him to establish himself. In these excursions they were
attended by some one or all of the gentlemen of the family, as their different
pursuits admitted. Young Edwards was hourly becoming more familiarized to his
situation, and not unfrequently mingled in the parties, with an unconcern and
gaiety, that, for a short time, would expel all unpleasant recollections from
his mind. Habit, and the buoyancy of youth, seemed to be getting the ascendency
over the secret causes of his uneasiness; though there were moments, when the
same remarkable expression of disgust, would cross his intercourse with
Marmaduke, that had distinguished their conversations in the first days of their
acquaintance.
    It was at the close of the month of March, that the Sheriff succeeded in
persuading his cousin and her young friend to accompany him in a ride to a hill,
that was said to overhang the lake, in a manner peculiar to itself.
    »Besides, cousin Bess,« continued the indefatigable Richard, »we will stop
and see the sugar bush of Billy Kirby: he is on the east end of the Ransom lot,
making sugar for Jared Ransom. There is not a better hand over a kettle in the
county, than that same Kirby. You remember, 'duke, that I had him his first
season, in our own camp; and it is not a wonder that he knows something of his
trade.«
    »He's a good chopper, is Billy,« observed Benjamin, who held the bridle of
the horse while the Sheriff mounted; »and he handles an axe, much the same as a
forecastle-man does his marling-spike, or a tailor his goose. They say he'll
lift a potash kettle off the arch alone, thof I can't say that I've ever seen
him do it with my own eyes; but that is the say. And I've seen sugar of his
making, which, maybe, wasn't't as white as an old top-gallantsail, but which my
friend Mistress Pretty-bones, within there, said, had the true molasses smack to
it; and you are not the one, Squire Dickens, to be told that Mistress Remarkable
has a remarkable tooth for sweet things in her nut-grinder.«
    The loud laugh that succeeded the wit of Benjamin, and in which he
participated, with no very harmonious sounds, himself, very fully illustrated
the congenial temper which existed between the pair. Most of its point was,
however, lost on the rest of the party, who were either mounting their horses,
or assisting the ladies at the moment. When all were safely in their saddles,
they moved through the village in great order. They paused for a moment, before
the door of Monsieur Le Quoi, until he could bestride his steed, and then,
issuing from the little cluster of houses, they took one of the principal of
those highways, that centred in the village.
    As each night brought with it a severe frost, which the heat of the
succeeding day served to dissipate, the equestrians were compelled to proceed
singly, along the margin of the road, where the turf, and firmness of the
ground, gave the horses a secure footing. Very trifling indications of
vegetation were to be seen, the surface of the earth presenting a cold, wet, and
cheerless aspect, that chilled the blood. The snow yet lay scattered over most
of those distant clearings that were visible in different parts of the
mountains; though here and there an opening might be seen, where, as the white
covering yielded to the season, the bright and lively green of the wheat served
to enkindle the hopes of the husbandman. Nothing could be more marked, than the
contrast between the earth and the heavens; for, while the former presented the
dreary view that we have described, a warm and invigorating sun was dispensing
his heats, from a sky that contained but a solitary cloud, and through an
atmosphere, that softened the colours of the sensible horizon, until it shone
like a sea of blue.
    Richard led the way, on this, as on all other occasions, that did not
require the exercise of unusual abilities; and as he moved along, he essayed to
enliven the party with the sounds of his experienced voice.
    »This is your true sugar weather, 'duke,« he cried; »a frosty night, and a
sunshiny day. I warrant me that the sap runs like a mill-tail up the maples,
this warm morning. It is a pity, Judge, that you do not introduce a little more
science into the manufacture of sugar, among your tenants. It might be done,
sir, without knowing as much as Dr. Franklin - it might be done, Judge Temple.«
    »The first object of my solicitude, friend Jones,« returned Marmaduke, »is
to protect the sources of this great mine of comfort and wealth, from the
extravagance of the people themselves. When this important point shall be
achieved, it will be in season to turn our attention to an improvement in the
manufacture of the article. But thou knows, Richard, that I have already
subjected our sugar to the process of the refiner, and that the result has
produced loaves as white as the snow on yon fields, and possessing the
saccharine quality in its utmost purity.«
    »Saccharine, or turpentine, or any other -ine, Judge Temple, you have never
made a loaf larger than a good sized sugar-plum,« returned the Sheriff. »Now,
sir, I assert, that no experiment is fairly tried, until it be reduced to
practical purposes. If, sir, I owned a hundred, or, for that matter, two hundred
thousand acres of land, as you do, I would build a sugar-house in the village; I
would invite learned men to an investigation of the subject, - and such are
easily to be found, sir; yes, sir, they are not difficult to find, - men who
unite theory with practice; and I would select a wood of young and thrifty
trees; and, instead of making loaves of the size of a lump of candy, dam'me,
'duke, but I'd have them as big as a hay-cock.«
    »And purchase the cargo of one of those ships that, they say, are going to
China,« cried Elizabeth; »turn your potash-kettles into tea-cups, the scows on
the lake into saucers; bake your cake in yonder lime-kiln, and invite the county
to a tea-party. How wonderful are the projects of genius! Really, sir, the world
is of opinion that Judge Temple has tried the experiment fairly, though he did
not cause his loaves to be cast in moulds of the magnitude that would suit your
magnificent conceptions.«
    »You may laugh, cousin Elizabeth - you may laugh, madam,« retorted Richard,
turning himself so much in his saddle as to face the party, and making dignified
gestures with his whip; »but I appeal to common sense, good sense, or, what is
of more importance than either, to the sense of taste, which is one of the five
natural senses, whether a big loaf of sugar is not likely to contain a better
illustration of a proposition, than such a lump as one of your Dutch women puts
under her tongue when she drinks her tea. There are two ways of doing every
thing; the right way, and the wrong way. You make sugar now, I will admit, and
you may, possibly, make loaf-sugar; but I take the question to be, whether you
make the best possible sugar, and in the best possible loaves.«
    »Thou art very right, Richard,« observed Marmaduke, with a gravity in his
air, that proved how much he was interested in the subject. »It is very true
that we manufacture sugar, and the inquiry is quite useful, how much? and in
what manner? I hope to live to see the day, when farms and plantations shall be
devoted to this branch of business. Little is known concerning the properties of
the tree itself, the source of all this wealth; how much it may be improved by
cultivation, by the use of the hoe and plough.«
    »Hoe and plough!« roared the Sheriff; - »would you set a man hoeing round
the root of a maple like this,« - pointing to one of the noble trees, that occur
so frequently in that part of the country. - »Hoeing trees! are you mad, 'duke?
This is next to hunting for coal! Poh! poh! my dear cousin, hear reason, and
leave the management of the sugar-bush to me. Here is Mr. Le Quoi, he has been
in the West-Indies, and has seen sugar made. Let him give an account of how it
is made there, and you will hear the philosophy of the thing. - Well, Monsieur,
how is it that you make sugar in the West-Indies; any thing in Judge Temple's
fashion?«
    The gentleman to whom this query was put, was mounted on a small horse, of
no very fiery temperament, and was riding with his stirrups so short, as to
bring his knees, while the animal rose a small ascent in the wood-path they were
now travelling, into a somewhat hazardous vicinity to his chin. There was no
room for gesticulation or grace in the delivery of his reply, for the mountain
was steep and slippery; and although the Frenchman had an eye of uncommon
magnitude on either side of his face, they did not seem to be half competent to
forewarn him of the impediments of bushes, twigs, and fallen trees, that were
momentarily crossing his path. With one hand employed in averting these dangers,
and the other grasping his bridle, to check an untoward speed that his horse was
assuming, the native of France responded as follows: -
    »Sucre! dey do make sucre in Martinique: mais - mais ce n'est pas, one tree;
- ah - ah - vat you call - Je voudrois que ces chemins fussent au diable - vat
you call - steeck pour le promenade.«
    »Cane,« said Elizabeth, smiling at the imprecation which the wary Frenchman
supposed was understood only by himself.
    »Oui, Mam'selle, cane.«
    »Yes, yes,« cried Richard, »cane is the vulgar name for it, but the real
term is saccharum officinarum: and what we call the sugar, or hard maple, is
acer saccharinum. These are the learned names, Monsieur, and are such as,
doubtless, you well understand.«
    »Is this Greek or Latin, Mr. Edwards?« whispered Elizabeth to the youth, who
was opening a passage for herself and her companions through the bushes - »or
perhaps it is a still more learned language, for an interpretation of which we
must look to you.«
    The dark eye of the young man glanced towards the speaker, but its resentful
expression changed, in a moment.
    »I shall remember your doubts, Miss Temple, when next I visit my old friend
Mohegan, and either his skill, or that of Leather-stocking, shall solve them.«
    »And are you, then, really ignorant of their language?«
    »Not absolutely; but the deep learning of Mr. Jones is more familiar to me,
or even the polite masquerade of Monsieur Le Quoi.«
    »Do you speak French?« said the lady, with quickness.
    »It is a common language with the Iroquois, and through the Canadas,« he
answered, smiling.
    »Ah! but they are Mingoes, and your enemies.«
    »It will be well for me, if I have no worse,« said the youth, dashing ahead
with his horse, and putting an end to the evasive dialogue.
    The discourse, however, was maintained with great vigour by Richard, until
they reached an open wood on the summit of the mountain, where the hemlocks and
pines totally disappeared, and a grove of the very trees that formed the subject
of debate, covered the earth with their tall, straight trunks and spreading
branches, in stately pride. The underwood had been entirely removed from this
grove, or bush, as, in conjunction, with the simple arrangements for boiling, it
was called, and a wide space of many acres was cleared, which might be likened
to the dome of a mighty temple, to which the maples formed the columns, their
tops composing the capitals, and the heavens the arch. A deep and careless
incision had been made into each tree, near its root, into which little spouts,
formed of the bark of the alder, or of the sumach, were fastened; and a trough,
roughly dug out of the linden, or bass-wood, was lying at the root of each tree,
to catch the sap that flowed from this extremely wasteful and inartificial
arrangement.
    The party paused a moment, on gaining the flat, to breathe their horses,
and, as the scene was entirely new to several of their number, to view the
manner of collecting the fluid. A fine, powerful voice aroused them from their
momentary silence, as it rung under the branches of the trees, singing the
following words of that inimitable doggrel, whose verses, if extended, would
reach from the waters of the Connecticut to the shores of Ontario. The tune was,
of course, that familiar air, which, although it is said to have been first
applied to his nation in derision, circumstances have since rendered so
glorious, that no American ever hears its jingling cadence, without feeling a
thrill at his heart.
 
»The Eastern States be full of men,
The Western full of woods, sir;
The hills be like a cattle pen,
The roads be full of goods, sir,
Then flow away, my sweety sap,
And I will make you boily;
Nor catch a woodman's hasty nap,
For fear you should get roily.
 
The maple tree's a precious one,
'Tis fuel, food, and timber;
And when your stiff day's work is done,
Its juice will make you limber.
Then flow away, etc.
 
And what's a man without his glass,
His wife without her tea, sir?
But neither cup nor mug would pass,
Without this honey-bee, sir.
Then flow away,« etc.
 
During the execution of this sonorous doggrel, Richard kept time with his whip
on the mane of his charger, accompanying the gestures with a corresponding
movement of his head and body. Towards the close of the song, he was overheard
humming the chorus, and at its last repetition, to strike in at sweety sap, and
carry a second through, with a prodigious addition to the effect of the noise,
if not to that of the harmony.
    »Well done us!« roared the Sheriff, on the same key with the tune; »a very
good song, Billy Kirby, and very well sung. Where got you the words, lad? is
there more of it, and can you furnish me with a copy?«
    The sugar-boiler, who was busy in his camp, at a short distance from the
equestrians, turned his head with great indifference, and surveyed the party, as
they approached, with admirable coolness. To each individual, as he or she rode
close by him, he gave a nod, that was extremely good-natured and affable, but
which partook largely of the virtue of equality, for not even to the ladies did
he in the least vary his mode of salutation, by touching the apology for a hat
that he wore, or by any other motion than the one we have mentioned.
    »How goes it, how goes it, Sheriff?« said the wood-chopper; »what's the good
word in the village?«
    »Why, much as usual, Billy,« returned Richard. »But how is this! where are
your four kettles, and your troughs, and your iron coolers? Do you make sugar in
this slovenly way! I thought you were one of the best sugar-boilers in the
county.«
    »I'm all that, Squire Jones,« said Kirby, who continued his occupation;
»I'll turn my back to no man in the Otsego hills, for chopping and logging; for
boiling down the maple sap; for tending brick-kiln; splitting out rails; making
potash, and parling too; or hoeing corn. Though I keep myself, pretty much, to
the first business, seeing that the axe comes most nateral to me.«
    »You be von Jack All-trade, Mister Beel,« said Monsieur Le Quoi.
    »How?« said Kirby, looking up, with a simplicity which, coupled with his
gigantic frame and manly face, was a little ridiculous - »if you be for trade,
Mounsher, here is some as good sugar as you'll find the season through. It's as
clear from dirt as the Jarman Flats is free from stumps, and it has the raal
maple flavour. Such stuff would sell in York for candy.«
    The Frenchman approached the place where Kirby had deposited his cakes of
sugar, under the cover of a bark roof, and commenced the examination of the
article, with the eye of one who well understood its value. Marmaduke had
dismounted, and was viewing the works and the trees very closely, and not
without frequent expressions of dissatisfaction, at the careless manner in which
the manufacture was conducted.
    »You have much experience in these things, Kirby,« he said; »what course do
you pursue in making your sugar? I see you have but two kettles.«
    »Two is as good as two thousand, Judge; I'm none of your polite
sugar-makers, that boils for the great folks; but if the raal sweet maple is
wanted, I can answer your turn. First, I choose, and then I tap my trees; say
along about the last of February, or, in these mountains, maybe not afore the
middle of March; but any way, just as the sap begins to cleverly run -«
    »Well, in this choice,« interrupted Marmaduke, »are you governed by any
outward signs, that prove the quality of the tree?«
    »Why, there's judgment in all things,« said Kirby, stirring the liquor in
his kettles briskly. »There's something in knowing when and how much to stir the
pot. It's a thing that must be larnt. Rome wasn't't built in a day, nor, for that
matter, Templetown 'ither, though it may be said to be a quick-growing place. I
never put my axe into a stunty tree, or one that hasn't a good, fresh-looking
bark; for trees have disorders like creaturs; and where's the policy of taking a
tree that's sickly, any more than you'd choose a foundered horse to ride post,
or an overheated ox to do your logging -«
    »All this is true; but what are the signs of illness? how do you distinguish
a tree that is well from one that is diseased?«
    »How does the doctor tell who has fever, and who colds?« interrupted Richard
- »by examining the skin, and feeling the pulse, to be sure.«
    »Sartain,« continued Billy; »the Squire a'nt far out of the way. It's by the
look of the thing, sure enough. - Well, when the sap begins to get a free run, I
hang over the kettles, and set up the bush. My first boiling I push pretty
smart, till I get the vartoo of the sap; but when it begins to grow of a
molasses nater, like this in the kettle, one musn't drive the fires too hard, or
you'll burn the sugar; and burny sugar is bad to the taste, let it be never so
sweet. So you ladle out from one kettle into the other, till it gets so, when
you put the stirring-stick into it, that it will draw into a thread; when it
takes a kerful hand to manage it. There is a way to drain it off, after it has
grained, by putting clay into the pans; but it isn't always practysed: some
doos, and some doosn't. - Well, Mounsher, be we likely to make a trade?«
    »I vill give you, Mister Beel, for von pound - dix sous.«
    »No; I expect cash for't; I never dicker my sugar. But, seeing that it's
you, Mounsher,« said Billy, with a coaxing smile, »I'll agree to receive a
gallon of rum, and cloth enough for two shirts, if you will take the molasses in
the bargain. It's raal good. I wouldn't deceive you or any man; and to my
drinking, it's about the best molasses that come out of a sugar-bush.«
    »Mr. Le Quoi has offered you ten pence,« said young Edwards.
    The manufacturer stared at the speaker, with an air of great freedom, but
made no reply.
    »Oui,« said the Frenchman, »ten penny. Je vous remercie, Monsieur; ah! mon
Anglois! je l'oublie toujours.«
    The wood-chopper looked from one to the other, with some displeasure; and
evidently imbibed the opinion that they were amusing themselves at his expense.
He seized the enormous ladle, which was lying in one of his kettles, and began
to stir the boiling liquid with great diligence. After a moment, passed in
dipping the ladle full, and then raising it on high, as the thick, rich fluid
fell back into the kettle, he suddenly gave it a whirl, as if to cool what yet
remained, and offered the bowl to Mr. Le Quoi, saying -
    »Taste that, Mounsher, and you will say it is worth more than you offer. The
molasses itself would fetch the money.«
    The complaisant Frenchman, after several timid efforts to trust his lips in
contact with the bowl of the ladle, got a good swallow of the scalding liquid.
He clapped his hand on his breast, and looked most piteously at the ladies, for
a single instant, and then, to use the language of Billy, when he afterwards
recounted the tale, »no drum-sticks ever went faster on the skin of a sheep,
than the Frenchman's legs, for a round or two: and then, such swearing and
spitting, in French, you never seen. But it's a knowing one, from the old
countries, that thinks to get his jokes smoothly over a wood-chopper.«
    The air of innocence with which Kirby resumed the occupation of stirring the
contents of his kettle, would have completely deceived the spectators, as to his
agency in the temporary suffering of Mr. Le Quoi, had not the reckless fellow
thrust his tongue into his cheek, and cast his eyes over the party, with a
simplicity of expression that was too exquisite to be natural. Mr. Le Quoi soon
recovered his presence of mind, and his decorum; he briefly apologized to the
ladies for one or two very intemperate expressions, that had escaped him in a
moment of extraordinary excitement, and remounting his horse, he continued in
the back-ground during the remainder of the visit, the wit of Kirby putting a
violent termination, at once, to all negotiations on the subject of trade.
During all this time, Marmaduke had been wandering about the grove, making
observations on his favourite trees, and the wasteful manner in which the
wood-chopper conducted his manufacture.
    »It grieves me to witness the extravagance that pervades this country,« said
the Judge, »where the settlers trifle with the blessings they might enjoy, with
the prodigality of successful adventurers. You are not exempt from the censure
yourself, Kirby, for you make dreadful wounds in these trees, where a small
incision would effect the same object. I earnestly beg you will remember, that
they are the growth of centuries, and when once gone, none living will see their
loss remedied.«
    »Why, I don't know, Judge,« returned the man he addressed: »It seems to me,
if there's a plenty of any thing in this mountaynous country, it's the trees. If
there's any sin in chopping them, I've a pretty heavy account to settle; for
I've chopped over the best half of a thousand acres, with my own hands, counting
both Varmount and York states; and I hope to live to finish the whull, before I
lay up my axe. Chopping comes quite nateral to me, and I wish no other
employment; but Jared Ransom said that he thought the sugar was likely to be
scurce this season, seeing that so many folks was coming into the settlement,
and so I concluded to take the bush on sheares, for this one spring. What's the
best news, Judge, concarning ashes? do pots hold so that a man can live by them
still? I s'pose they will if they keep on fighting across the water.«
    »Thou reasonest with judgment, William,« returned Marmaduke. »So long as the
old world is to be convulsed with wars, so long will the harvest of America
continue.«
    »Well, it's an ill wind, Judge, that blows nobody any good. I'm sure the
country is in a thriving way; and, though I know you kalkilate greatly on the
trees, setting as much store by them as some men would by their children, yet,
to my eyes, they are a sore sight at any time, unless I'm privileged to work my
will on them; in which case, I can't say but they are more to my liking. I have
heern the settlers from the old countries say, that their rich men keep great
oaks and elms, that would make a barrel of pots to the tree, standing round
their doors and humsteads, and scattered over their farms, just to look at. Now,
I call no country much improved, that is pretty well covered with trees. Stumps
are a different thing, for they don't shade the land; and besides, if you dig
them, they make a fence that will turn any thing bigger than a hog, being grand
for breachy cattle.«
    »Opinions on such subjects vary much, in different countries,« said
Marmaduke; »but it is not as ornaments that I value the noble trees of this
country; it is for their usefulness. We are stripping the forests, as if a
single year would replace what we destroy. But the hour approaches, when the
laws will take notice of not only the woods, but the game they contain also.«
    With this consoling reflection, Marmaduke remounted, and the equestrians
passed the sugar- on their way to the promised landscape of Richard. The
wood-chopper was left alone, in the bosom of the forest, to pursue his labours.
Elizabeth turned her head, when they reached the point where they were to
descend the mountain, and thought that the slow fires, that were glimmering
under his enormous kettles, his little brush shelter, covered with pieces of
hemlock bark, his gigantic size, as he wielded his ladle with a steady and
knowing air, aided by the back-ground of stately trees, with their spouts and
troughs, formed, altogether, no unreal picture of human life in its first stages
of civilization. Perhaps whatever the scene possessed of a romantic character
was not injured by the powerful tones of Kirby's voice, ringing through the
woods, as he again awoke his strains to another tune, which was but little more
scientific than the former. All that she understood of the words, were -
 
»And when the proud forest is falling,
To my oxen cheerfully calling,
From morn until night I am bawling,
Woe, back there, and hoy and gee;
Till our labour is mutually ended,
By my strength and cattle befriended,
And against the musquitoes defended,
By the bark of the walnut tree. -
 
Away! then, you lads who would buy land,
Choose the oak that grows on the high land,
Or the silvery pine on the dry land,
It matters but little to me.«
 

                                  Chapter XXI

 »Speed! Malise, speed! such cause of haste
 Thine active sinews never brac'd.«
                                      Scott, The Lady of the Lake, III.xiii.3-4.
 
The roads of Otsego, if we except the principal highways, were, at the early day
of our tale, but little better than wood-paths. The high trees that were growing
on the very verge of the wheel-tracks, excluded the sun's rays, unless at
meridian, and the slowness of the evaporation, united with the rich mould of
vegetable decomposition, that covered the whole country, to the depth of several
inches, occasioned but an indifferent foundation for the footing of travellers.
Added to these were the inequalities of a natural surface, and the constant
recurrence of enormous and slippery roots, that were laid bare by the removal of
the light soil, together with stumps of trees, to make a passage not only
difficult, but dangerous. Yet the riders, among these numerous obstructions,
which were such as would terrify an unpractised eye, gave no demonstrations of
uneasiness, as their horses toiled through the sloughs, or trotted with
uncertain paces along the dark route. In many places, the marks on the trees
were the only indications of a road, with, perhaps, an occasional remnant of a
pine, that, by being cut close to the earth, so as to leave nothing visible but
its base of roots, spreading for twenty feet in every direction, was apparently
placed there as a beacon, to warn the traveller that it was the centre of a
highway.
    Into one of these roads the active Sheriff led the way, first striking out
of the footpath, by which they had descended from the sugar-bush, across a
little bridge, formed of round logs laid loosely on sleepers of pine, in which
large openings, of a formidable width, were frequent. The nag of Richard, when
it reached one of these gaps, laid its nose along the logs, and stepped across
the difficult passage with the sagacity of a man; but the blooded filly which
Miss Temple rode disdained so humble a movement. She made a step or two with an
unusual caution, and then, on reaching the broadest opening, obedient to the
curb and whip of her fearless mistress, she bounded across the dangerous pass,
with the activity of a squirrel.
    »Gently, gently, my child,« said Marmaduke, who was following in the manner
of Richard - »this is not a country for equestrian feats. Much prudence is
requisite, to journey through our rough paths with safety. Thou mayst practise
thy skill in horsemanship on the plains of New-Jersey, with safety, but in the
hills of Otsego, they must be suspended for a time.«
    »I may as well, then, relinquish my saddle at once, dear sir,« returned his
daughter; »for if it is to be laid aside until this wild country be improved,
old age will overtake me, and put an end to what you term my equestrian feats.«
    »Say not so, my child,« returned her father; »but if thou venturest again,
as in crossing this bridge, old age will never overtake thee, but I shall be
left to mourn thee, cut off in thy pride, my Elizabeth. If thou hadst seen this
district of country, as I did, when it lay in the sleep of nature, and had
witnessed its rapid changes, as it awoke to supply the wants of man, thou
wouldst curb thy impatience for a little time, though thou shouldst not check
thy steed.«
    »I recollect hearing you speak of your first visit to these woods, but the
impression is faint, and blended with the confused images of childhood. Wild and
unsettled as it may yet seem, it must have been a thousand times more dreary
then. Will you repeat, dear sir, what you then thought of your enterprise, and
what you felt?«
    During this speech of Elizabeth, which was uttered with the fervour of
affection, young Edwards rode more closely to the side of the Judge, and bent
his dark eyes on his countenance, with an expression that seemed to read his
thoughts.
    »Thou wast then young, my child, but must remember when I left thee and thy
mother, to take my first survey of these uninhabited mountains,« said Marmaduke.
»But thou dost not feel all the secret motives that can urge a man to endure
privations in order to accumulate wealth. In my case they have not been
trifling, and God has been pleased to smile on my efforts. If I have encountered
pain, famine, and disease, in accomplishing the settlement of this rough
territory, I have not the misery of failure to add to the grievances.«
    »Famine!« echoed Elizabeth; »I thought this was the land of abundance! had
you famine to contend with?«
    »Even so, my child,« said her father. »Those who look around them now, and
see the loads of produce that issue out of every wild path in these mountains,
during the season of travelling, will hardly credit that no more than five years
have elapsed, since the tenants of these woods were compelled to eat the scanty
fruits of the forest to sustain life, and, with their unpractised skill, to hunt
the beasts as food for their starving families.«
    »Ay!« cried Richard, who happened to overhear the last of this speech,
between the notes of the wood-chopper's song, which he was endeavouring to
breathe aloud; »that was the starving-time15, cousin Bess. I grew as lank as a
weasel that fall, and my face was as pale as one of your fever-and-ague visages.
Monsieur Le Quoi, there, fell away like a pumpkin in drying; nor do I think you
have got fairly over it yet, Monsieur. Benjamin, I thought, bore it with a worse
grace than any of the family, for he swore it was harder to endure than a short
allowance in the calm latitudes. Benjamin is a sad fellow to swear, if you
starve him ever so little. I had half a mind to quit you then, 'duke, and to go
into Pennsylvania to fatten; but, damn it, thinks I, we are sisters' children,
and I will live or die with him, after all.«
    »I do not forget thy kindness,« said Marmaduke, »nor that we are of one
blood.«
    »But, my dear father,« cried the wondering Elizabeth, »was there actual
suffering? where were the beautiful and fertile vales of the Mohawk? could they
not furnish food for your wants?«
    »It was a season of scarcity; the necessities of life commanded a high price
in Europe, and were greedily sought after by the speculators. The emigrants,
from the east to the west, invariably passed along the valley of the Mohawk, and
swept away the means of subsistence, like a swarm of locusts. Nor were the
people on the Flats in a much better condition. They were in want themselves,
but they spared the little excess of provisions, that nature did not absolutely
require, with the justice of the German character. There was no grinding of the
poor. The word speculator was then unknown to them. I have seen many a stout
man, bending under the load of the bag of meal, which he was carrying from the
mills of the Mohawk, through the rugged passes of these mountains, to feed his
half-famished children, with a heart so light, as he approached his hut, that
the thirty miles he had passed seemed nothing. Remember, my child, it was in our
very infancy: we had neither mills, nor grain, nor roads, nor often clearings; -
we had nothing of increase, but the mouths that were to be fed; for, even at
that inauspicious moment, the restless spirit of emigration was not idle; nay,
the general scarcity, which extended to the east, tended to increase the number
of adventurers.«
    »And how, dearest father, didst thou encounter this dreadful evil?« said
Elizabeth, unconsciously adopting the dialect of her parent, in the warmth of
her sympathy. »Upon thee must have fallen the responsibility, if not the
suffering.«
    »It did, Elizabeth,« returned the Judge, pausing for a single moment, as if
musing on his former feelings. »I had hundreds, at that dreadful time, daily
looking up to me for bread. The sufferings of their families, and the gloomy
prospect before them, had paralysed the enterprise and efforts of my settlers;
hunger drove them to the woods for food, but despair sent them, at night,
enfeebled and wan, to a sleepless pillow. It was not a moment for inaction. I
purchased cargoes of wheat from the granaries of Pennsylvania; they were landed
at Albany, and brought up the Mohawk in boats; from thence it was transported on
pack-horses into the wilderness, and distributed amongst my people. Seines were
made, and the lakes and rivers were dragged for fish. Something like a miracle
was wrought in our favour, for enormous shoals of herrings were discovered to
have wandered five hundred miles, through the windings of the impetuous
Susquehanna, and the lake was alive with their numbers. These were at length
caught, and dealt out to the people, with proper portions of salt; and from that
moment, we again began to prosper.«16
    »Yes,« cried Richard, »and I was the man who served out the fish and the
salt. When the poor devils came to receive their rations, Benjamin, who was my
deputy, was obliged to keep them off by stretching ropes around me, for they
smelt so of garlic, from eating nothing but the wild onion, that the fumes put
me out, often, in my measurement. You were a child then, Bess, and knew nothing
of the matter, for great care was observed to keep both you and your mother from
suffering. That year put me back, dreadfully, both in the breed of my hogs, and
of my turkeys.«
    »No, Bess,« cried the Judge, in a more cheerful tone, disregarding the
interruption of his cousin, »he who hears of the settlement of a country, knows
but little of the toil and suffering by which it is accomplished. Unimproved and
wild as this district now seems to your eyes, what was it when I first entered
the hills! I left my party, the morning of my arrival, near the farms of the
Cherry Valley, and, following a deer-path, rode to the summit of the mountain,
that I have since called Mount Vision; for the sight that there met my eyes
seemed to me as the deceptions of a dream. The fire had run over the pinnacle,
and, in a great measure, laid open the view. The leaves were fallen, and I
mounted a tree, and sat for an hour looking on the silent wilderness. Not an
opening was to be seen in the boundless forest, except where the lake lay, like
a mirror of glass. The water was covered by myriads of the wild-fowl that
migrate with the changes in the season; and, while in my situation on the branch
of the beech, I saw a bear, with her cubs, descend to the shore to drink. I had
met many deer, gliding through the woods, in my journey; but not the vestige of
a man could I trace, during my progress, nor from my elevated observatory. No
clearing, no hut, none of the winding roads that are now to be seen, were there;
nothing but mountains rising behind mountains, and the valley, with its surface
of branches, enlivened here and there with the faded foliage of some tree, that
parted from its leaves with more than ordinary reluctance. Even the Susquehanna
was then hid, by the height and density of the forest.«
    »And were you alone?« asked Elizabeth; - »passed you the night in that
solitary state?«
    »Not so, my child,« returned her father. »After musing on the scene for an
hour, with a mingled feeling of pleasure and desolation, I left my perch, and
descended the mountain. My horse was left to browse on the twigs that grew
within his reach, while I explored the shores of the lake, and the spot where
Templeton stands. A pine of more than ordinary growth stood where my dwelling is
now placed; a wind-row had been opened through the trees from thence to the
lake, and my view was but little impeded. Under the branches of that tree I made
my solitary dinner; I had just finished my repast as I saw a smoke curling from
under the mountain, near the eastern bank of the lake. It was the only
indication of the vicinity of man that I had then seen. After much toil, I made
my way to the spot, and found a rough cabin of logs, built against the foot of a
rock, and bearing the marks of a tenant, though I found no one within it. -«
    »It was the hut of Leather-stocking,« said Edwards, quickly.
    »It was; though I, at first, supposed it to be a habitation of the Indians.
But while I was lingering around the spot, Natty made his appearance, staggering
under the carcass of a buck that he had slain. Our acquaintance commenced at
that time; before, I had never heard that such a being tenanted the woods. He
launched his bark canoe, and set me across the foot of the lake, to the place
where I had fastened my horse, and pointed out a spot where he might get a
scanty browsing until the morning; when I returned and passed the night in the
cabin of the hunter.«
    Miss Temple was so much struck by the deep attention of young Edwards,
during this speech, that she forgot to resume her interrogatories; but the youth
himself continued the discourse, by asking -
    »And how did the Leather-stocking discharge the duties of a host, sir?«
    »Why, simply but kindly, until late in the evening, when he discovered my
name and object, and the cordiality of his manner very sensibly diminished, or,
I might better say, disappeared. He considered the introduction of the settlers
as an innovation on his rights, I believe; for he expressed much dissatisfaction
at the measure, though it was in his confused and ambiguous manner. I hardly
understood his objections myself, but supposed they referred chiefly to an
interruption of the hunting.«
    »Had you then purchased the estate, or were you examining it with an intent
to buy?« asked Edwards, a little abruptly.
    »It had been mine for several years. It was with a view to people the land
that I visited the lake. Natty treated me hospitably, but coldly, I thought,
after he learnt the nature of my journey. I slept on his own bear-skin, however,
and in the morning joined my surveyors again.«
    »Said he nothing of the Indian rights, sir? The Leather-stocking is much
given to impeach the justice of the tenure by which the whites hold the
country.«
    »I remember that he spoke of them, but I did not clearly comprehend him, and
may have forgotten what he said; for the Indian title was extinguished so far
back as the close of the old war; and if it had not been at all, I hold under
the patents of the Royal Governors, confirmed by an act of our own State
Legislature, and no court in the country can affect my title.«
    »Doubtless, sir, your title is both legal and equitable,« returned the
youth, coldly, reining his horse back, and remaining silent till the subject was
changed.
    It was seldom Mr. Jones suffered any conversation to continue, for a great
length of time, without his participation. It seems that he was of the party
that Judge Temple had designated as his surveyors; and he embraced the
opportunity of the pause that succeeded the retreat of young Edwards, to take up
the discourse, and with it a narration of their further proceedings, after his
own manner. As it wanted, however, the interest that had accompanied the
description of the Judge, we must decline the task of committing his sentences
to paper.
    They soon reached the point where the promised view was to be seen. It was
one of those picturesque and peculiar scenes, that belong to the Otsego, but
which required the absence of the ice, and the softness of a summer's landscape,
to be enjoyed in all its beauty. Marmaduke had early forewarned his daughter of
the season, and of its effect on the prospect, and after casting a cursory
glance at its capabilities, the party returned homeward, perfectly satisfied
that its beauties would repay them for the toil of a second ride, at a more
propitious season.
    »The spring is the gloomy time of the American year,« said the Judge; »and
it is more peculiarly the case in these mountains. The winter seems to retreat
to the fastnesses of the hills, as to the citadel of its dominion, and is only
expelled, after a tedious siege, in which either party, at times, would seem to
be gaining the victory.«
    »A very just and apposite figure, Judge Temple,« observed the Sheriff; »and
the garrison under the command of Jack Frost make formidable sorties - you
understand what I mean by sorties, Monsieur; sallies, in English - and sometimes
drive General Spring and his troops back again into the low countries.«
    »Yes, sair,« returned the Frenchman, whose prominent eyes were watching the
precarious footsteps of the beast he rode, as it picked its dangerous way among
the roots of trees, holes, log-bridges, and sloughs, that formed the aggregate
of the highway. »Je vous entend; de low countrie is freeze up for half de year.«
    The error of Mr. Le Quoi was not observed by the Sheriff; and the rest of
the party were yielding to the influence of the changeful season, which was
already teaching the equestrians that a continuance of its mildness was not to
be expected for any length of time. Silence and thoughtfulness succeeded the
gaiety and conversation that had prevailed during the commencement of the ride,
as clouds began to gather about the heavens, apparently collecting from every
quarter, in quick motion, without the agency of a breath of air.
    While riding over one of the cleared eminences that occurred in their route,
the watchful eye of Judge Temple pointed out to his daughter the approach of a
tempest. Flurries of snow already obscured the mountain that formed the northern
boundary of the lake, and the genial sensation which had quickened the blood
through their veins, was already succeeded by the deadening influence of an
approaching northwester.
    All of the party were now busily engaged in making the best of their way to
the village, though the badness of the roads frequently compelled them to check
the impatience of their horses, which often carried them over places that would
not admit of any gait faster than a walk.
    Richard continued in advance, followed by Mr. Le Quoi; next to whom rode
Elizabeth, who seemed to have imbibed the distance which pervaded the manner of
young Edwards, since the termination of the discourse between the latter and her
father. Marmaduke followed his daughter, giving her frequent and tender warnings
as to the management of her horse. It was, possibly, the evident dependence that
Louisa Grant placed on his assistance, which induced the youth to continue by
her side, as they pursued their way through a dreary and dark wood, where the
rays of the sun could but rarely penetrate, and where even the daylight was
obscured and rendered gloomy by the deep forests that surrounded them. No wind
had yet reached the spot where the equestrians were in motion, but that dead
stillness that often precedes a storm, contributed to render their situation
more irksome than if they were already subjected to the fury of the tempest.
Suddenly the voice of young Edwards was heard shouting, in those appalling tones
that carry alarm to the very soul, and which curdle the blood of those that hear
them -
    »A tree! a tree! whip - spur for your lives! a tree! a tree!«
    »A tree! a tree!« echoed Richard, giving his horse a blow, that caused the
alarmed beast to jump nearly a rod, throwing the mud and water into the air,
like a hurricane.
    »Von tree! von tree!« shouted the Frenchman, bending his body on the neck of
his charger, shutting his eyes, and playing on the ribs of his beast with his
heels, at a rate that caused him to be conveyed, on the crupper of the Sheriff,
with a marvellous speed.
    Elizabeth checked her filly, and looked up, with an unconscious but alarmed
air, at the very cause of their danger, while she listened to the crackling
sounds that awoke the stillness of the forest; but, at the next instant, her
bridle was seized by her father, who cried -
    »God protect my child!« and she felt herself hurried onward, impelled by the
vigour of his nervous arm.
    Each one of the party bowed to his saddle-bows, as the tearing of branches
was succeeded by a sound like the rushing of the winds, which was followed by a
thundering report, and a shock that caused the very earth to tremble, as one of
the noblest ruins of the forest fell directly across their path.
    One glance was enough to assure Judge Temple that his daughter, and those in
front of him, were safe, and he turned his eyes, in dreadful anxiety, to learn
the fate of the others. Young Edwards was on the opposite side of the tree, his
form thrown back in his saddle to its utmost distance, his left hand drawing up
his bridle with its greatest force, while the right grasped that of Miss Grant,
so as to draw the head of her horse under its body. Both the animals stood
shaking in every joint with terror, and snorting fearfully. Louisa herself had
relinquished her reins, and with her hands pressed on her face, sat bending
forward in her saddle, in an attitude of despair mingled strangely with
resignation.
    »Are you safe?« cried the Judge, first breaking the awful silence of the
moment.
    »By God's blessing,« returned the youth; »but if there had been branches to
the tree we must have been lost -«
    He was interrupted by the figure of Louisa, slowly yielding in her saddle;
and but for his arm, she would have sunken to the earth. Terror, however, was
the only injury that the clergyman's daughter had sustained, and, with the aid
of Elizabeth, she was soon restored to her senses. After some little time was
lost in recovering her strength, the young lady was replaced in her saddle, and,
supported on either side, by Judge Temple and Mr. Edwards, she was enabled to
follow the party in their slow progress.
    »The sudden falling of the trees,« said Marmaduke, »are the most dangerous
accidents in the forest, for they are not to be foreseen, being impelled by no
winds, nor any extraneous or visible cause, against which we can guard.«
    »The reason of their falling, Judge Temple, is very obvious,« said the
Sheriff. »The tree is old and decayed, and it is gradually weakened by the
frosts, until a line drawn from the centre of gravity falls without its base,
and then the tree comes of a certainty; and I should like to know, what greater
compulsion there can be for any thing, than a mathematical certainty. I studied
mathe -«
    »Very true, Richard,« interrupted Marmaduke; »thy reasoning is true, and, if
my memory be not over treacherous, was furnished by myself, on a former
occasion. But how is one to guard against the danger? canst thou go through the
forests, measuring the bases, and calculating the centres of the oaks? answer me
that, friend Jones, and I will say thou wilt do the country a service.«
    »Answer thee that, friend Temple!« returned Richard; »a well-educated man
can answer thee any thing, sir. Do any trees fall in this manner, but such as
are decayed? Take care not to approach the roots of a rotten tree, and you will
be safe enough.«
    »That would be excluding us entirely from the forests,« said Marmaduke.
»But, happily, the winds usually force down most of these dangerous ruins, as
their currents are admitted into the woods by the surrounding clearings, and
such a fall as this has been is very rare.«
    Louisa, by this time, had recovered so much strength, as to allow the party
to proceed at a quicker pace; but long before they were safely housed, they were
overtaken by the storm; and when they dismounted at the door of the
Mansion-house, the black plumes of Miss Temple's hat were drooping with the
weight of a load of damp snow, and the coats of the gentlemen were powdered with
the same material.
    While Edwards was assisting Louisa from her horse, the warm-hearted girl
caught his hand with fervour, and whispered -
    »Now, Mr. Edwards, both father and daughter owe their lives to you.«
    A driving, north-westerly storm succeeded; and before the sun was set, every
vestige of spring had vanished; the lake, the mountains, the village, and the
fields, being again hid under one dazzling coat of snow.
 

                                  Chapter XXII

 »Men, boys, and girls,
 Desert th' unpeopled village; and wild crowds
 Spread o'er the plain, by the sweet frenzy driven.«
                                               Somerville, The Chace, II.197-99.
 
From this time to the close of April, the weather continued to be a succession
of great and rapid changes. One day, the soft airs of spring seemed to be
stealing along the valley, and, in unison with an invigorating sun, attempting,
covertly, to rouse the dormant powers of the vegetable world; while on the next,
the surly blasts from the north would sweep across the lake, and erase every
impression left by their gentle adversaries. The snow, however, finally
disappeared, and the green wheat fields were seen in every direction, spotted
with the dark and charred stumps that had, the preceding season, supported some
of the proudest trees of the forest. Ploughs were in motion, wherever those
useful implements could be used, and the smokes of the sugar-camps were no
longer seen issuing from the woods of maple. The lake had lost the beauty of a
field of ice, but still a dark and gloomy covering concealed its waters, for the
absence of currents left them yet hid under a porous crust, which, saturated
with the fluid, barely retained enough strength to preserve the contiguity of
its parts. Large flocks of wild geese were seen passing over the country, which
hovered, for a time, around the hidden sheet of water, apparently searching for
a resting-place; and then, on finding themselves excluded by the chill covering,
would soar away to the north, filling the air with discordant screams, as if
venting their complaints at the tardy operations of nature.
    For a week, the dark covering of the Otsego was left to the undisturbed
possession of two eagles, who alighted on the centre of its field, and sat
eyeing their undisputed territory. During the presence of these monarchs of the
air, the flocks of migrating birds avoided crossing the plain of ice, by turning
into the hills, apparently seeking the protection of the forests, while the
white and bald heads of the tenants of the lake were turned upward, with a look
of contempt. But the time had come, when even these kings of birds were to be
dispossessed. An opening had been gradually increasing, at the lower extremity
of the lake, and around the dark spot where the current of the river prevented
the formation of ice, during even the coldest weather; and the fresh southerly
winds, that now breathed freely upon the valley, made an impression on the
waters. Mimic waves begun to curl over the margin of the frozen field, which
exhibited an outline of crystallizations, that slowly receded towards the north.
At each step the power of the winds and the waves increased, until, after a
struggle of a few hours, the turbulent little billows succeeded in setting the
whole field in motion, when it was driven beyond the reach of the eye, with a
rapidity, that was as magical as the change produced in the scene by this
expulsion of the lingering remnant of winter. Just as the last sheet of agitated
ice was disappearing in the distance, the eagles rose, and soared with a wide
sweep above the clouds, while the waves tossed their little caps of snow into
the air, as if rioting in their release from a thraldom of five months'
duration.
    The following morning Elizabeth was awakened by the exhilarating sounds of
the martins, who were quarrelling and chattering around the little boxes
suspended above her windows, and the cries of Richard, who was calling, in tones
animating as the signs of the season itself -
    »Awake! awake! my fair lady! the gulls are hovering over the lake already,
and the heavens are alive with pigeons. You may look an hour before you can find
a hole, through which, to get a peep at the sun. Awake! awake! lazy ones!
Benjamin is overhauling the ammunition, and we only wait for our breakfasts, and
away for the mountains and pigeon-
    There was no resisting this animated appeal, and in a few minutes Miss
Temple and her friend descended to the parlour. The doors of the hall were
thrown open, and the mild, balmy air of a clear spring morning was ventilating
the apartment, where the vigilance of the ex-steward had been so long
maintaining an artificial heat, with such unremitted diligence. The gentlemen
were impatiently waiting for their morning's repast, each equipt in the garb of
a sportsman. Mr. Jones made many visits to the southern door, and would cry -
    »See, cousin Bess! see, 'duke! the pigeon-roosts of the south have broken
up! They are growing more thick every instant. Here is a flock that the eye
cannot see the end of. There is food enough in it to keep the army of Xerxes for
a month, and feathers enough to make beds for the whole country. Xerxes, Mr.
Edwards, was a Grecian king, who - no, he was a Turk, or a Persian, who wanted
to conquer Greece, just the same as these rascals will overrun our wheat-fields,
when they come back in the fall. - Away! away! Bess; I long to pepper them.«
    In this wish both Marmaduke and young Edwards seemed equally to participate,
for the sight was exhilarating to a sportsman; and the ladies soon dismissed the
party, after a hasty breakfast.
    If the heavens were alive with pigeons, the whole village seemed equally in
motion, with men, women, and children. Every species of fire-arms, from the
French ducking-gun, with a barrel near six feet in length, to the common
horseman's pistol, was to be seen in the hands of the men and boys; while bows
and arrows, some made of the simple stick of a walnut sapling, and others in a
rude imitation of the ancient crossbows, were carried by many of the latter.
    The houses, and the signs of life apparent in the village, drove the alarmed
birds from the direct line of their flight, towards the mountains, along the
sides and near the bases of which they were glancing in dense masses, equally
wonderful by the rapidity of their motion, and their incredible numbers.
    We have already said, that across the inclined plane which fell from the
steep ascent of the mountain to the banks of the Susquehanna, ran the highway,
on either side of which a clearing of many acres had been made, at a very early
day. Over those clearings, and up the eastern mountain, and along the dangerous
path that was cut into its side, the different individuals posted themselves,
and in a few moments the attack commenced.
    Amongst the sportsmen was the tall, gaunt form of Leather-stocking, walking
over the field, with his rifle hanging on his arm, his dogs at his heels; the
latter now scenting the dead or wounded birds, that were beginning to tumble
from the flocks, and then crouching under the legs of their master, as if they
participated in his feelings, at this wasteful and unsportsmanlike execution.
    The reports of the fire-arms became rapid, whole volleys rising from the
plain, as flocks of more than ordinary numbers darted over the opening,
shadowing the field, like a cloud; and then the light smoke of a single piece
would issue from among the leafless bushes on the mountain, as death was hurled
on the retreat of the affrighted birds, who were rising from a volley, in a vain
effort to escape. Arrows, and missiles of every kind, were in the midst of the
flocks; and so numerous were the birds, and so low did they take their flight,
that even long poles, in the hands of those on the sides of the mountain, were
used to strike them to the earth.
    During all this time, Mr. Jones, who disdained the humble and ordinary means
of destruction used by his companions, was busily occupied, aided by Benjamin,
in making arrangements for an assault of a more than ordinarily fatal character.
Among the relics of the old military excursions, that occasionally are
discovered throughout the different districts of the western part of New-York,
there had been found in Templeton, at its settlement, a small swivel, which
would carry a ball of a pound weight. It was thought to have been deserted by a
war-party of the whites, in one of their inroads into the Indian settlements,
when, perhaps, convenience or their necessity induced them to leave such an
encumbrance behind them in the woods. This miniature cannon had been released
from the rust, and being mounted on little wheels, was now in a state for actual
service. For several years, it was the sole organ for extraordinary rejoicings
used in those mountains. On the mornings of the Fourths of July, it would be
heard ringing among the hills, and even Captain Hollister, who was the highest
authority in that part of the country on all such occasions, affirmed that,
considering its dimensions, it was no despicable gun for a salute. It was
somewhat the worse for the service it had performed, it is true, there being but
a trifling difference in size between the touch-hole and the muzzle. Still, the
grand conceptions of Richard had suggested the importance of such an instrument,
in hurling death at his nimble enemies. The swivel was dragged by a horse into a
part of the open space, that the Sheriff thought most eligible for planting a
battery of the kind, and Mr. Pump proceeded to load it. Several handfuls of
duck-shot were placed on top of the powder, and the Major-domo announced that
his piece was ready for service.
    The sight of such an implement collected all the idle spectators to the
spot, who, being mostly boys, filled the air with cries of exultation and
delight. The gun was pointed high, and Richard, holding a coal of fire in a pair
of tongs, patiently took his seat on a stump, awaiting the appearance of a flock
worthy of his notice.
    So prodigious was the number of the birds, that the scattering fire of the
guns, with the hurling of missiles, and the cries of the boys, had no other
effect than to break off small flocks from the immense masses that continued to
dart along the valley, as if the whole of the feathered tribe were pouring
through that one pass. None pretended to collect the game, which lay scattered
over the fields in such profusion, as to cover the very ground with the
fluttering victims.
    Leather-stocking was a silent, but uneasy spectator of all these
proceedings, but was able to keep his sentiments to himself until he saw the
introduction of the swivel into the sports.
    »This comes of settling a country!« he said - »here have I known the pigeons
to fly for forty long years, and, till you made your clearings, there was nobody
to skear or to hurt them. I loved to see them come into the woods, for they were
company to a body; hurting nothing; being, as it was, as harmless as a
garter-snake. But now it gives me sore thoughts when I hear the frighty things
whizzing through the air, for I know it's only a motion to bring out all the
brats in the village. Well! the Lord won't see the waste of his creaters for
nothing, and right will be done to the pigeons, as well as others, by-and-by. -
There's Mr. Oliver, as bad as the rest of them, firing into the flocks as if he
was shooting down nothing but Mingo warriors.«
    Among the sportsmen was Billy Kirby, who, armed with an old musket, was
loading, and, without even looking into the air, was firing, and shouting as his
victims fell even on his own person. He heard the speech of Natty, and took upon
himself to reply -
    »What! old Leather-stocking,« he cried, »grumbling at the loss of a few
pigeons! If you had to sow your wheat twice, and three times, as I have done,
you wouldn't be so massy-fully feeling'd to'ards the divils. - Hurrah, boys!
scatter the feathers. This is better than shooting at a turkey's head and neck,
old fellow.«
    »It's better for you, maybe, Billy Kirby,« replied the indignant old hunter,
»and all them that don't know how to put a ball down a rifle-barrel, or how to
bring it up ag'in with a true aim; but it's wicked to be shooting into flocks in
this wastey manner; and none do it, who know how to knock over a single bird. If
a body has a craving for pigeon's flesh, why! it's made the same as all other
creature's, for man's eating, but not to kill twenty and eat one. When I want
such a thing, I go into the woods till I find one to my liking, and then I shoot
him off the branches without touching a feather of another, though there might
be a hundred on the same tree. You couldn't do such a thing, Billy Kirby - you
couldn't do it if you tried.«
    »What's that, old corn-stalk! you sapless stub!« cried the wood-chopper.
»You've grown wordy, since the affair of the turkey; but if you're for a single
shot, here goes at that bird which comes on by himself.«
    The fire from the distant part of the field had driven a single pigeon below
the flock to which it belonged, and, frightened with the constant reports of the
muskets, it was approaching the spot where the disputants stood, darting first
from one side, and then to the other, cutting the air with the swiftness of
lightning, and making a noise with its wings, not unlike the rushing of a
bullet. Unfortunately for the wood-chopper, notwithstanding his vaunt, he did
not see this bird until it was too late to fire as it approached, and he pulled
his trigger at the unlucky moment when it was darting immediately over his head.
The bird continued its course with the usual velocity.
    Natty lowered the rifle from his arm, when the challenge was made, and,
waiting a moment, until the terrified victim had got in a line with his eye, and
had dropped near the bank of the lake, he raised it again with uncommon
rapidity, and fired. It might have been chance, or it might have been skill,
that produced the result; it was probably a union of both; but the pigeon
whirled over in the air, and fell into the lake, with a broken wing. At the
sound of his rifle, both his dogs started from his feet, and in a few minutes
the slut brought out the bird, still alive.
    The wonderful exploit of Leather-stocking was noised through the field with
great rapidity, and the sportsmen gathered in to learn the truth of the report.
    »What,« said young Edwards, »have you really killed a pigeon on the wing,
Natty, with a single ball?«
    »Haven't I killed loons before now, lad, that dive at the flash?« returned
the hunter. »It's much better to kill only such as you want, without wasting
your powder and lead, than to be firing into God's creaters in this wicked
manner. But I come out for a bird, and you know the reason why I like small
game, Mr. Oliver, and now I have got one I will go home, for I don't relish to
see these wasty ways that you are all practysing, as if the least thing was not
made for use, and not to destroy.«
    »Thou sayest well, Leather-stocking,« cried Marmaduke, »and I begin to think
it time to put an end to this work of destruction.«
    »Put an ind, Judge, to your clearings. An't the woods his work as well as
the pigeons? Use, but don't waste. Wasn't the woods made for the beasts and
birds to harbour in? and when man wanted their flesh, their skins, or their
feathers, there's the place to seek them. But I'll go to the hut with my own
game, for I wouldn't touch one of the harmless things that kiver the ground
here, looking up with their eyes on me, as if they only wanted tongues to say
their thoughts.«
    With this sentiment in his mouth, Leather-stocking threw his rifle over his
arm, and, followed by his dogs, stepped across the clearing with great caution,
taking care not to tread on one of the wounded birds in his path. He soon
entered the bushes on the margin of the lake, and was hid from view.
    Whatever impression the morality of Natty made on the Judge, it was utterly
lost on Richard. He availed himself of the gathering of the sportsmen, to lay a
plan for one fell swoop of destruction. The musketmen were drawn up in battle
array, in a line extending on each side of his artillery, with orders to await
the signal of firing from himself.
    »Stand by, my lads,« said Benjamin, who acted as an aide-de-camp, on this
occasion, »stand by, my hearties, and when Squire Dickens heaves out the signal
to begin the firing, d'ye see, you may open upon them in a broadside. Take care
and fire low, boys, and you'll be sure to hull the flock.«
    »Fire low!« shouted Kirby - »hear the old fool! If we fire low, we may hit
the stumps, but not ruffle a pigeon.«
    »How should you know, you lubber?« cried Benjamin, with a very unbecoming
heat, for an officer on the eve of battle - »how should you know, you grampus?
Havn't I sailed aboard of the Boadishy for five years? and wasn't't it a standing
order to fire low, and to hull your enemy? Keep silence at your guns, boys, and
mind the order that is passed.«
    The loud laughs of the musketmen were silenced by the more authoritative
voice of Richard, who called for attention and obedience to his signals.
    Some millions of pigeons were supposed to have already passed, that morning,
over the valley of Templeton; but nothing like the flock that was now
approaching had been seen before. It extended from mountain to mountain in one
solid blue mass, and the eye looked in vain over the southern hills to find its
termination. The front of this living column was distinctly marked by a line,
but very slightly indented, so regular and even was the flight. Even Marmaduke
forgot the morality of Leather-stocking as it approached, and, in common with
the rest, brought his musket to a poise.
    »Fire!« cried the Sheriff, clapping a coal to the priming of the cannon. As
half of Benjamin's charge escaped through the touch-hole, the whole volley of
the musketry preceded the report of the swivel. On receiving this united
discharge of small-arms, the front of the flock darted upward, while, at the
same instant, myriads of those in the rear rushed with amazing rapidity into
their places, so that when the column of white smoke gushed from the mouth of
the little cannon, an accumulated mass of objects was gliding over its point of
direction. The roar of the gun echoed along the mountains, and died away to the
north, like distant thunder, while the whole flock of alarmed birds seemed, for
a moment, thrown into one disorderly and agitated mass. The air was filled with
their irregular flight, layer rising above layer, far above the tops of the
highest pines, none daring to advance beyond the dangerous pass; when, suddenly,
some of the leaders of the feathered tribe shot across the valley, taking their
flight directly over the village, and hundreds of thousands in their rear
followed the example, deserting the eastern side of the plain to their
persecutors and the slain.
    »Victory!« shouted Richard, »victory! we have driven the enemy from the
field.«
    »Not so, Dickon,« said Marmaduke; »the field is covered with them; and, like
the Leather-stocking, I see nothing but eyes, in every direction, as the
innocent sufferers turn their heads in terror. Full one half of those that have
fallen are yet alive: and I think it is time to end the sport; if sport it be.«
    »Sport!« cried the Sheriff; »it is princely sport. There are some thousands
of the blue-coated boys on the ground, so that every old woman in the village
may have a pot-pie for the asking.«
    »Well, we have happily frightened the birds from this side of the valley,«
said Marmaduke, »and the carnage must of necessity end, for the present. - Boys,
I will give thee sixpence a hundred for the pigeons' heads only; so go to work,
and bring them into the village.«
    This expedient produced the desired effect, for every urchin on the ground
went industriously to work to wring the necks of the wounded birds. Judge Temple
retired towards his dwelling with that kind of feeling, that many a man has
experienced before him, who discovers, after the excitement of the moment has
passed, that he has purchased pleasure at the price of misery to others. Horses
were loaded with the dead; and, after this first burst of sporting, the shooting
of pigeons became a business, with a few idlers, for the remainder of the
season. Richard, however, boasted for many a year, of his shot with the cricket;
and Benjamin gravely asserted, that he thought they killed nearly as many
pigeons on that day, as there were Frenchmen destroyed on the memorable occasion
of Rodney's victory.
 

                                 Chapter XXIII

            »Help, masters, help; here's a fish hangs in the net, like a poor
            man's right in the law.«
                                                          Pericles, II.i.116-17.
 
The advance of the season now became as rapid, as its first approach had been
tedious and lingering. The days were uniformly mild, while the nights, though
cool, were no longer chilled by frosts. The whip-poor-will was heard whistling
his melancholy notes along the margin of the lake, and the ponds and meadows
were sending forth the music of their thousand tenants. The leaf of the native
poplar was seen quivering in the woods; the sides of the mountains began to lose
their hue of brown, as the lively green of the different members of the forest
blended their shades with the permanent colours of the pine and hemlock; and
even the buds of the tardy oak were swelling with the promise of the coming
summer. The gay and fluttering blue-bird, the social robin, and the industrious
little wren, were all to be seen, enlivening the fields with their presence and
their songs; while the soaring fish-hawk was already hovering over the waters of
the Otsego, watching, with native voracity, for the appearance of his prey.
    The tenants of the lake were far-famed for both their quantities and their
quality, and the ice had hardly disappeared, before numberless little boats were
launched from the shores, and the lines of the fishermen were dropped into the
inmost recesses of its deepest caverns, tempting the unwary animals with every
variety of bait, that the ingenuity or the art of man had invented. But the
slow, though certain adventures with hook and line were ill-suited to the
profusion and impatience of the settlers. More destructive means were resorted
to; and, as the season had now arrived when the bass-fisheries were allowed by
the provisions of the law, that Judge Temple had procured, the Sheriff declared
his intention by availing himself of the first dark night, to enjoy the sport in
person -
    »And you shall be present, cousin Bess,« he added, when he announced this
design, »and Miss Grant, and Mr. Edwards; and I will show you what I call
fishing - not nibble, nibble, nibble, as 'duke does, when he goes after the
salmon-trout. There he will sit, for hours, in a broiling sun, or, perhaps, over
a hole in the ice, in the coldest days in winter, under the lee of a few bushes,
and not a fish will he catch, after all this mortification of the flesh. No, no
- give me a good seine, that's fifty or sixty fathoms in length, with a jolly
parcel of boatmen to crack their jokes, the while, with Benjamin to steer, and
let us haul them in by thousands; I call that fishing.«
    »Ah! Dickon,« cried Marmaduke, »thou knows but little of the pleasure
there is in playing with the hook and line, or thou wouldst be more saving of
the game. I have known thee to leave fragments enough behind thee, when thou
hast headed a night-party on the lake, to feed a dozen famishing families.«
    »I shall not dispute the matter, Judge Temple: this night will I go; and I
invite the company to attend, and then let them decide between us.«
    Richard was busy, during most of the afternoon, making his preparations for
the important occasion. Just as the light of the setting sun had disappeared,
and a new moon had begun to throw its shadows on the earth, the fishermen took
their departure in a boat, for a point that was situated on the western shore of
the lake, at the distance of rather more than half a mile from the village. The
ground had become settled, and the walking was good and dry. Marmaduke, with his
daughter, her friend, and young Edwards, continued on the high, grassy banks, at
the outlet of the placid sheet of water, watching the dark object that was
moving across the lake, until it entered the shade of the western hills, and was
lost to the eye. The distance round by land, to the point of destination, was a
mile, and he observed -
    »It is time for us to be moving; the moon will be down ere we reach the
point, and then the miraculous hauls of Dickon will commence.«
    The evening was warm, and, after the long and dreary winter from which they
had just escaped, delightfully invigorating. Inspirited by the scene, and their
anticipated amusement, the youthful companions of the Judge followed his steps,
as he led them along the shores of the Otsego, and through the skirts of the
village.
    »See!« said young Edwards; »they are building their fire already; it
glimmers for a moment, and dies again, like the light of a fire-fly.«
    »Now it blazes,« cried Elizabeth; »you can perceive figures moving around
the light. Oh! I would bet my jewels against the gold beads of Remarkable, that
my impatient cousin Dickon had an agency in raising that bright flame; - and
see; it fades again, like most of his brilliant schemes.«
    »Thou hast guessed the truth, Bess,« said her father; »he has thrown an
armful of brush on the pile, which has burnt out as soon as lighted. But it has
enabled them to find a better fuel, for their fire begins to blaze with a more
steady flame. It is the true fisherman's beacon now; observe how beautifully it
throws its little circle of light on the water.«
    The appearance of the fire urged the pedestrians on, for even the ladies had
become eager to witness the miraculous draught. By the time they reached the
bank which rose above the low point, where the fishermen had landed, the moon
had sunk behind the tops of the western pines, and, as most of the stars were
obscured by clouds, there was but little other light than that which proceeded
from the fire. At the suggestion of Marmaduke, his companions paused to listen
to the conversation of those below them, and examine the party, for a moment,
before they descended to the shore.
    The whole group were seated around the fire, with the exception of Richard
and Benjamin; the former of whom occupied the root of a decayed stump, that had
been drawn to the spot as part of their fuel, and the latter was standing, with
his arms a-kimbo, so near to the flame, that the smoke occasionally obscured his
solemn visage, as it waved around the pile, in obedience to the night-airs, that
swept gently over the water.
    »Why, look you, Squire,« said the Major-domo, »you may call a lake-fish that
will weigh twenty or thirty pounds a serious matter; but to a man who has hauled
in a shovel-nosed shirk, d'ye see, it's but a poor kind of fishing, after all.«
    »I don't know, Benjamin,« returned the Sheriff; »a haul of one thousand
Otsego bass, without counting pike, pickerel, perch, bull-pouts, salmon-trouts,
and suckers, is no bad fishing, let me tell you. There may be sport in sticking
a shark, but what is he good for after you have got him? Now any one of the fish
that I have named is fit to set before a king.«
    »Well, Squire,« returned Benjamin, »just listen to the philosophy of the
thing. Would it stand to reason, that such fish should live and be caught in
this here little pond of water, where it's hardly deep enough to drown a man, as
you'll find in the wide ocean, where, as every body knows, that is, every body
that has followed the seas, whales and grampuses are to be seen, that are as
long as one of them pine trees on yonder mountain?«
    »Softly, softly, Benjamin,« said the Sheriff, as if he wished to save the
credit of his favourite; »why some of the pines will measure two hundred feet,
and even more.«
    »Two hundred or two thousand, it's all the same thing,« cried Benjamin, with
an air which manifested that he was not easily to be bullied out of his opinion,
on a subject like the present - »Haven't I been there, and haven't I seen? I
have said that you fall in with whales as long as one of them there pines; and
what I have once said I'll stand to!«
    During this dialogue, which was evidently but the close of a much longer
discussion, the huge frame of Billy Kirby was seen extended on one side of the
fire, where he was picking his teeth with splinters of the chips near him, and
occasionally shaking his head, with distrust of Benjamin's assertions.
    »I've a notion,« said the wood-chopper, »that there's water in this lake to
swim the biggest whale that ever was invented; and, as to the pines, I think I
ought to know so'thing consarning them; I have chopped many a one that was sixty
times the length of my helve, without counting the eye; and I b'lieve, Benny,
that if the old pine that stands in the hollow of the Vision Mountain, just over
the village, - you may see the tree itself by looking up, for the moon is on its
top yet; - well, now I b'lieve, if that same tree was planted out in the deepest
part of the lake, there would be water enough for the biggest ship that ever was
built to float over it, without touching its upper branches, I do.«
    »Did'ee ever see a ship, Master Kirby?« roared the steward - »did'ee ever
see a ship, man? or any craft bigger than a lime-scow, or a wood-boat, on this
here small bit of fresh water?«
    »Yes, I have,« said the wood-chopper, stoutly; »I can say that I have, and
tell no lie.«
    »Did'ee ever see a British ship, Master Kirby? an English line-of-battle
ship, boy? Where away did'ee ever fall in with a regular-built vessel, with
starn-post and cutwater, garboard streak and plank-shear, gangways and
hatchways, and water-ways, quarter-deck and forecastle, ay, and flush-deck? -
tell me that, man, if you can; where away did'ee ever fall in with a
full-rigged, regular-built, decked vessel?«
    The whole company were a good deal astounded with this overwhelming
question, and even Richard afterwards remarked, that it »was a thousand pities
that Benjamin could not read, or he must have made a valuable officer to the
British marine. It is no wonder that they overcome the French so easily on the
water, when even the lowest sailor so well understood the different parts of a
vessel.« But Billy Kirby was a fearless wight, and had great jealousy of foreign
dictation; he had arisen on his feet, and turned his back to the fire, during
the voluble delivery of this interrogatory, and when the steward ended, contrary
to all expectation, he gave the following spirited reply: -
    »Where! why on the North River, and maybe on Champlain. There's sloops on
the river, boy, that would give a hard time on't to the stoutest vessel King
George owns. They carry masts of ninety feet in the clear, of good, solid pine,
for I've been at the chopping of many a one in Varmount state. I wish I was
captain in one of them, and you was in that Board-dish that you talk so much
about, and we'd soon see what good Yankee stuff is made on, and whether a
Varmounter's hide an't as thick as an Englishman's.«
    The echoes from the opposite hills, which were more than half a mile from
the fishing point, sent back the discordant laugh that Benjamin gave forth at
this challenge; and the woods that covered their sides, seemed, by the noise
that issued from their shades, to be full of mocking demons.
    »Let us descend to the shore,« whispered Marmaduke, »or there will soon be
ill blood between them. Benjamin is a fearless boaster, and Kirby, though
good-natured, is a careless son of the forest, who thinks one American more than
a match for six Englishmen. I marvel that Dickon is silent, where there is such
a trial of skill in the superlative!«
    The appearance of Judge Temple and the ladies produced, if not a
pacification, at least a cessation of hostilities. Obedient to the directions of
Mr. Jones, the fishermen prepared to launch their boat, which had been seen in
the back-ground of the view, with the net carefully disposed on a little
platform in its stern, ready for service. Richard gave vent to his reproaches at
the tardiness of the pedestrians, when all the turbulent passions of the party
were succeeded by a calm, as mild and as placid as that which prevailed over the
beautiful sheet of water, that they were about to rifle of its best treasures.
    The night had now become so dark as to render objects, without the reach of
the light of the fire, not only indistinct, but, in most cases, invisible. For a
little distance the water was discernible, glistening, as the glare from the
fire danced over its surface, touching it, here and there, with red, quivering
streaks; but at a hundred feet from the shore, there lay a boundary of
impenetrable gloom. One or two stars were shining through the openings of the
clouds, and the lights were seen in the village, glimmering faintly, as if at an
immeasurable distance. At times, as the fire lowered, or as the horizon cleared,
the outline of the mountain, on the other side of the lake, might be traced, by
its undulations; but its shadow was cast, wide and dense, on the bosom of the
water, rendering the darkness, in that direction, trebly deep.
    Benjamin Pump was invariably the cockswain and net-caster of Richard's boat,
unless the Sheriff saw fit to preside in person; and, on the present occasion,
Billy Kirby, and a youth of about half his strength, were assigned to the oars.
The remainder of the assistants were stationed at the drag ropes. The
arrangements were speedily made, and Richard gave the signal to shove off.
    Elizabeth watched the motion of the batteau, as it pulled from the shore,
letting loose its rope as it went, but it very soon disappeared in the darkness,
when the ear was her only guide to its evolutions. There was great affectation
of stillness, during all these manoeuvres, in order, as Richard assured them,
»not to frighten the bass, who were running into the shoal waters, and who would
approach the light, if not disturbed by the sounds from the fishermen.«
    The hoarse voice of Benjamin was alone heard, issuing out of the gloom, as
he uttered, in authoritative tones, pull larboard oar, pull starboard, give way
together, boys, and such other dictative mandates as were necessary for the
right disposition of his seine. A long time was passed in this necessary part of
the process, for Benjamin prided himself greatly on his skill in throwing the
net, and, in fact, most of the success of the sport depended on its being done
with judgment. At length a loud splash in the water, as he threw away the staff,
or stretcher, with a hoarse call from the steward, of clear, announced that the
boat was returning; when Richard seized a brand from the fire, and ran to a
point, as far above the centre of the fishing ground, as the one from which the
batteau had started was below it.
    »Stick her in dead for the Squire, boys,« said the steward, »and we'll have
a look at what grows in this here pond.«
    In place of the falling net, were now to be heard the quick strokes of the
oars, and the noise of the rope, running out of the boat. Presently the batteau
shot into the circle of light, and in an instant she was pulled to shore.
Several eager hands were extended, to receive the line, and, both ropes being
equally well manned, the fishermen commenced hauling in, with slow and steady
drags, Richard standing in the centre, giving orders, first to one party and
then to the other, to increase or slacken their efforts, as occasion required.
The visitors were posted near him, and enjoyed a fair view of the whole
operation, which was slowly advancing to an end.
    Opinions, as to the result of their adventure, were now freely hazarded by
all the men, some declaring that the net came in as light as a feather, and
others affirming that it seemed to be full of logs. As the ropes were many
hundred feet in length, these opposing sentiments were thought to be of little
moment by the Sheriff, who would go first to one line and then to the other,
giving each a small pull, in order to enable him to form an opinion for himself.
    »Why, Benjamin,« he cried, as he made his first effort in this way, »you did
not throw the net clear. I can move it with my little finger. The rope slackens
in my hand.«
    »Did you ever see a whale, Squire?« responded the steward: »I say that if
that there net is foul, the devil is in the lake in the shape of a fish, for I
cast it as fair as ever rigging was rove over the quarter-deck of a flag-ship.«
    But Richard discovered his mistake, when he saw Billy Kirby before him,
standing with his feet in the water, at an angle of forty-five degrees,
inclining shorewards, and expending his gigantic strength in sustaining himself
in that posture. He ceased his remonstrances, and proceeded to the party at the
other line.
    »I see the staffs,« shouted Mr. Jones; - »gather in, boys, and away with it;
to shore with her - to shore with her.«
    At this cheerful sound, Elizabeth strained her eyes, and saw the ends of the
two sticks on the seine, emerging from the darkness, while the men closed near
to each other, and formed a deep bag of their net. The exertions of the
fishermen sensibly increased, and the voice of Richard was heard, encouraging
them to make their greatest efforts, at the present moment.
    »Now's the time, my lads,« he cried; »let us get the ends to land, and all
we have will be our own - away with her!«
    »Away with her it is,« echoed Benjamin - »hurrah! ho-a-hoy, ho-a-hoy, ho-a!«
    »In with her,« shouted Kirby, exerting himself in a manner that left nothing
for those in his rear to do, but to gather up the slack of the rope which passed
through his hands.
    »Staff, ho!« shouted the steward.
    »Staff, ho!« echoed Kirby, from the other rope.
    The men rushed to the water's edge, some seizing the upper rope, and some
the lower, or lead-rope, and began to haul with great activity and zeal. A deep
semicircular sweep, of the little balls that supported the seine in its
perpendicular position, was plainly visible to the spectators, and, as it
rapidly lessened in size, the bag of the net appeared, while an occasional
flutter on the water, announced the uneasiness of the prisoners it contained.
    »Haul in, my lads,« shouted Richard - »I can see the dogs kicking to get
free. Haul in, and here's a cast that will pay for the labour.«
    Fishes of various sorts were now to be seen, entangled in the meshes of the
net, as it was passed through the hands of the labourers, and the water, at a
little distance from the shore, was alive with the movements of the alarmed
victims. Hundreds of white sides were glancing up to the surface of the water,
and glistening in the fire-light, when, frightened at the uproar and the change,
the fish would again dart to the bottom, in fruitless efforts for freedom.
    »Hurrah!« shouted Richard; »one or two more heavy drags, boys, and we are
safe.«
    »Cheerily, boys, cheerily!« cried Benjamin; »I see a salmon-trout that is
big enough for a chowder.«
    »Away with you, you varmint!« said Billy Kirby, plucking a bull-pout from
the meshes, and casting the animal back into the lake with contempt. »Pull,
boys, pull; here's all kinds, and the Lord condemn me for a liar, if there an't
a thousand bass!«
    Inflamed beyond the bounds of discretion at the sight, and forgetful of the
season, the wood-chopper rushed to his middle into the water, and begun to drive
the reluctant animals before him from their native element.
    »Pull heartily, boys,« cried Marmaduke, yielding to the excitement of the
moment, and laying his hands to the net, with no trifling addition to the force.
Edwards had preceded him, for the sight of the immense piles of fish, that were
slowly rolling over on the gravelly beach, had impelled him also to leave the
ladies, and join the fishermen.
    Great care was observed in bringing the net to land, and, after much toil,
the whole shoal of victims was safely deposited in a hollow of the bank, where
they were left to flutter away their brief existence, in the new and fatal
element.
    Even Elizabeth and Louisa were greatly excited and highly gratified, by
seeing two thousand captives thus drawn from the bosom of the lake, and laid as
prisoners at their feet. But when the feelings of the moment were passing away,
Marmaduke took in his hands a bass, that might have weighed two pounds, and,
after viewing it a moment, in melancholy musing, he turned to his daughter, and
observed -
    »This is a fearful expenditure of the choicest gifts of Providence. These
fish, Bess, which thou seest lying in such piles before thee, and which, by
to-morrow evening, will be rejected food on the meanest table in Templeton, are
of a quality and flavour that, in other countries, would make them esteemed a
luxury on the tables of princes or epicures. The world has no better fish than
the bass of Otsego: it unites the richness of the shad17 to the firmness of the
salmon.«
    »But surely, dear sir,« cried Elizabeth, »they must prove a great blessing
to the country, and a powerful friend to the poor.«
    »The poor are always prodigal, my child, where there is plenty, and seldom
think of a provision against the morrow. But if there can be any excuse for
destroying animals in this manner, it is in taking the bass. During the winter,
you know, they are entirely protected from our assaults by the ice, for they
refuse the hook; and during the hot months, they are not seen. It is supposed
they retreat to the deep and cool waters of the lake, at that season; and it is
only in the spring and autumn, that, for a few days, they are to be found,
around the points where they are within the reach of a seine. But, like all the
other treasures of the wilderness, they already begin to disappear, before the
wasteful extravagance of man.«
    »Disappear, 'duke! disappear!« exclaimed the Sheriff; »if you don't call
this appearing, I know not what you will. Here are a good thousand of the
shiners, some hundreds of suckers, and a powerful quantity of other fry. But
this is always the way with you, Marmaduke; first it's the trees, then it's the
deer, after that it's the maple sugar, and so on to the end of the chapter. One
day, you talk of canals, through a country where there's a river or a lake every
half-mile, just because the water won't run the way you wish it to go; and the
next, you say something about mines of coal, though any man who has good eyes,
like myself - I say with good eyes - can see more wood than would keep the city
of London in fuel for fifty years; - wouldn't it, Benjamin?«
    »Why, for that, Squire,« said the steward, »Lon'on is no small place. If it
was stretched an end, all the same as a town on one side of a river, it would
cover some such matter as this here lake. Thof I dar'st to say, that the wood in
sight might starve them a good turn, seeing that the Lon'oners mainly burn coal.«
    »Now we are on the subject of coal, Judge Temple,« interrupted the Sheriff,
»I have a thing of much importance to communicate to you; but I will defer it
until to-morrow. I know that you intend riding into the eastern part of the
Patent, and I will accompany you, and conduct you to a spot, where some of your
projects may be realized. We will say no more now, for there are listeners; but
a secret has this evening been revealed to me, 'duke, that is of more
consequence to your welfare, than all your estate united.«
    Marmaduke laughed at the important intelligence, to which in a variety of
shapes he was accustomed, and the Sheriff, with an air of great dignity, as if
pitying his want of faith, proceeded in the business more immediately before
them. As the labour of drawing the net had been very great, he directed one
party of his men to commence throwing the fish into piles, preparatory to the
usual division, while another, under the superintendence of Benjamin, prepared
the seine for a second haul.
 

                                  Chapter XXIV

 »While from its margin, terrible to tell!
 Three sailors with their gallant boatswain fell.«
                                             Falconer, The Shipwreck, II.354-55.
 
While the fishermen were employed in making the preparations for an equitable
division of the spoil, Elizabeth and her friend strolled a short distance from
the group, along the shore of the lake. After reaching a point, to which even
the brightest of the occasional gleams of the fire did not extend, they turned,
and paused a moment, in contemplation of the busy and lively party they had
left, and of the obscurity, which, like the gloom of oblivion, seemed to
envelope the rest of the creation.
    »This is indeed a subject for the pencil,« exclaimed Elizabeth. »Observe the
countenance of that wood-chopper, while he exults in presenting a larger fish
than common to my cousin Sheriff; and see, Louisa, how handsome and considerate
my dear father looks, by the light of that fire, where he stands viewing the
havoc of the game. He seems melancholy, as if he actually thought that a day of
retribution was to follow this hour of abundance and prodigality! Would they not
make a picture, Louisa?«
    »You know that I am ignorant of all such accomplishments, Miss Temple.«
    »Call me by my christian name,« interrupted Elizabeth; »this is not a place,
neither is this a scene, for forms.«
    »Well, then, if I may venture an opinion,« said Louisa, timidly, »I should
think it might indeed make a picture. The selfish earnestness of that Kirby over
his fish, would contrast finely with the - the - expression of Mr. Edwards'
face. I hardly know what to call it; but it is - a - is - you know what I would
say, dear Elizabeth.«
    »You do me too much credit, Miss Grant,« said the heiress; »I am no diviner
of thoughts, or interpreter of expressions.«
    There was certainly nothing harsh, or even cold, in the manner of the
speaker, but still it repressed the conversation, and they continued to stroll
still further from the party, retaining each other's arm, but observing a
profound silence. Elizabeth, perhaps conscious of the improper phraseology of
her last speech, or perhaps excited by the new object that met her gaze, was the
first to break the awkward cessation in the discourse, by exclaiming -
    »Look, Louisa! we are not alone; there are fishermen lighting a fire on the
other side of the lake, immediately opposite to us: it must be in front of the
cabin of Leather-stocking!«
    Through the obscurity, which prevailed most, immediately under the eastern
mountain, a small and uncertain light was plainly to be seen, though, as it was
occasionally lost to the eye, it seemed struggling for existence. They observed
it to move, and sensibly to lower, as if carried down the descent of the bank to
the shore. Here, in a very short time, its flame gradually expanded, and grew
brighter, until it became of the size of a man's head, when it continued to
shine, a steady ball of fire.
    Such an object, lighted as it were by magic, under the brow of the mountain,
and in that retired and unfrequented place, gave double interest to the beauty
and singularity of its appearance. It did not at all resemble the large and
unsteady light of their own fire, being much more clear and bright, and
retaining its size and shape with perfect uniformity.
    There are moments when the best regulated minds are, more or less, subjected
to the injurious impressions, which few have escaped in infancy, and Elizabeth
smiled at her own weakness, while she remembered the idle tales, which were
circulated through the village, at the expense of the Leather-stocking. The same
ideas seized her companion, and at the same instant, for Louisa pressed nearer
to her friend, as she said, in a low voice, stealing a timid glance towards the
bushes and trees that overhung the bank near them -
    »Did you ever hear the singular ways of this Natty spoken of, Miss Temple?
They say that, in his youth, he was an Indian warrior, or, what is the same
thing, a white man leagued with the savages; and it is thought he has been
concerned in many of their inroads, in the old wars.«
    »The thing is not at all improbable,« returned Elizabeth: »he is not alone
in that particular.«
    »No, surely; but is it not strange, that he is so cautious with his hut? He
never leaves it, without fastening it in a remarkable manner; and, in several
instances, when the children, or even the men of the village have wished to seek
a shelter there from the storms, he has been known to drive them from his door,
with rudeness and threats. That surely is singular in this country.«
    »It is certainly not very hospitable; but we must remember his aversion to
the customs of civilized life. You heard my father say, a few days since, how
kindly he was treated by him, on his first visit to this place.« Elizabeth
paused, and smiled, with an expression of peculiar archness, though the darkness
hid its meaning from her companion, as she continued: - »Besides, he certainly
admits the visits of Mr. Edwards, whom we both know to be far from a savage.«
    To this speech Louisa made no reply, but continued gazing on the object
which had elicited her remarks. In addition to the bright and circular flame,
was now to be seen a fainter, though a vivid light, of an equal diameter to the
other at the upper end, but which, after extending, downward, for many feet,
gradually tapered to a point at its lower extremity. A dark space was plainly
visible between the two, and the new illumination was placed beneath the other,
the whole forming an appearance not unlike an inverted note of admiration. It
was soon evident that the latter was nothing but the reflection from the water
of the former, and that the object, whatever it might be, was advancing across,
or rather over the lake, for it seemed to be several feet above its surface, in
a direct line with themselves. Its motion was amazingly rapid, the ladies having
hardly discovered that it was moving at all, before the waving light of a flame
was discerned, losing its regular shape, while it increased in size, as it
approached.
    »It appears to be supernatural!« whispered Louisa, beginning to retrace her
steps towards the party.
    »It is beautiful!« exclaimed Elizabeth.
    A brilliant, though waving flame was now plainly visible, gracefully gliding
over the lake, and throwing its light on the water, in such a manner as to tinge
it slightly; though, in the air, so strong was the contrast, the darkness seemed
to have the distinctness of material substances, as if the fire were embedded in
a setting of ebony. This appearance, however, gradually wore off, and the rays
from the torch struck out, and enlightened the atmosphere in front of it,
leaving the background in a darkness that was more impenetrable than ever.
    »Ho! Natty, is that you?« shouted the Sheriff - »paddle in, old boy, and
I'll give you a mess of fish that is fit to place before the Governor.«
    The light suddenly changed its direction, and a long and slightly-built boat
hove up out of the gloom, while the red glare fell on the weather-beaten
features of the Leather-stocking, whose tall person was seen erect in the frail
vessel, wielding, with the grace of an experienced boatman, a long
fishing-spear, which he held by its centre, first dropping one end and then the
other into the water, to aid in propelling the little canoe of bark, we will not
say through, but over the water. At the farther end of the vessel, a form was
faintly seen, guiding its motions, and using a paddle with the ease of one who
felt there was no necessity for exertion. The Leather-stocking struck his spear
lightly against the short staff which upheld, on a rude grating framed of old
hoops of iron, the knots of pine that composed the fuel; and the light, which
glared high, for an instant fell on the swarthy features, and dark, glancing
eyes of Mohegan.
    The boat glided along the shore until it arrived opposite the
fishing-ground, when it again changed its direction, and moved on to the land,
with a motion so graceful, and yet so rapid, that it seemed to possess the power
of regulating its own progress. The water, in front of the canoe, was hardly
ruffled by its passage, and no sound betrayed the collision, when the light
fabric shot on the gravelly beach, for nearly half its length, Natty receding a
step or two from its bow, in order to facilitate the landing.
    »Approach, Mohegan,« said Marmaduke; »approach, Leather-stocking, and load
your canoe with the bass. It would be a shame to assail the animals with the
spear, when such multitudes of victims lie here, that will be lost as food, for
the want of mouths to consume them.«
    »No, no, Judge,« returned Natty, his tall figure stalking over the narrow
beach, and ascending to the little grassy bottom where the fish were laid in
piles; »I eat of no man's wasty ways. I strike my spear into the eels, or the
trout, when I crave the creaters, but I wouldn't be helping to such a sinful
kind of fishing, for the best rifle that was ever brought out from the old
countries. If they had fur, like a beaver, or you could tan their hides, like a
buck, something might be said in favour of taking them by the thousands with
your nets; but as God made them for man's food, and for no other disarnable
reason, I call it sinful and wasty to catch more than can be eat.«
    »Your reasoning is mine: for once, old hunter, we agree in opinion; and I
heartily wish we could make a convert of the Sheriff. A net of half the size of
this would supply the whole village with fish, for a week, at one haul.«
    The Leather-stocking did not relish this alliance in sentiment, and he shook
his head doubtingly, as he answered -
    »No, no; we are not much of one mind, Judge, or you'd never turn good
hunting grounds into stumpy pastures. And you fish and hunt out of rule; but to
me, the flesh is sweeter, where the creature has some chance for its life; for
that reason, I always use a single ball, even if it be at a bird or a squirrel;
besides, it saves lead, for, when a body knows how to shoot, one piece of lead
is enough for all, except hard-lived animals.«
    The Sheriff heard these opinions with great indignation, and when he
completed the last arrangement for the division, by carrying, with his own
hands, a trout of a large size, and placing it on four different piles in
succession, as his vacillating ideas of justice required, he gave vent to his
spleen.
    »A very pretty confederacy, indeed! Judge Temple, the landlord and owner of
a township, with Nathaniel Bumppo, a lawless squatter, and professed
deer-killer, in order to preserve the game of the county! But, 'duke, when I
fish, I fish; so, away, boys, for another haul, and we'll send out wagons and
carts, in the morning, to bring in our prizes!«
    Marmaduke appeared to understand that all opposition to the will of the
Sheriff would be useless, and he strolled from the fire, to the place where the
canoe of the hunters lay, whither the ladies and Oliver Edwards had already
preceded him.
    Curiosity induced the females to approach this spot, but it was a different
motive that led the youth thither. Elizabeth examined the light ashen timbers
and thin bark covering of the canoe, in admiration of its neat but simple
execution, and with wonder, that any human being could be so daring as to trust
his life in so frail a vessel. But the youth explained to her the buoyant
properties of the boat, and its perfect safety, when under proper management,
adding, in such glowing terms, a description of the manner in which the fish
were struck with the spear, that she changed, suddenly, from an apprehension of
the danger of the excursion, to a desire to participate in its pleasures. She
even ventured a proposition to that effect to her father, laughing, at the same
time, at her own wish, and accusing herself of acting under a woman's caprice.
    »Say not so, Bess,« returned the Judge; »I would have you above the idle
fears of a silly girl. These canoes are the safest kind of boats, to those who
have skill and steady nerves. I have crossed the broadest part of the Oneida in
one much smaller than this.«
    »And I the Ontary,« interrupted the Leather-stocking; »and that with squaws
in the canoe, too. But the Delaware women are used to the paddle, and are good
hands in a boat of this nater. If the young lady would like to see an old man
strike a trout for his breakfast, she is welcome to a seat. John will say the
same, seeing that he built the canoe, which was only launched yesterday; for I'm
not over curous at such small work as brooms, and basket-making, and other like
Indian trades.«
    Natty gave Elizabeth one of his significant laughs, with a kind nod of the
head, when he concluded his invitation; but Mohegan, with the native grace of an
Indian, approached, and taking her soft, white hand into his own swarthy and
wrinkled palm, said -
    »Come, grand-daughter of Miquon, and John will be glad. Trust the Indian:
his head is old, though his hand is not steady. The Young Eagle will go, and see
that no harm hurts his sister.«
    »Mr. Edwards,« said Elizabeth, blushing slightly, »your friend Mohegan has
given a promise for you. Do you redeem the pledge?«
    »With my life, if necessary, Miss Temple,« cried the youth, with fervour.
»The sight is worth some little apprehension, for of real danger there is none.
I will go with you and Miss Grant, however, to save appearances.«
    »With me!« exclaimed Louisa; »no, not with me, Mr. Edwards; nor surely do
you mean to trust yourself in that slight canoe.«
    »But I shall, for I have no apprehensions any longer,« said Elizabeth,
stepping into the boat, and taking a seat where the Indian directed. »Mr.
Edwards, you may remain, as three do seem to be enough for such an egg-shell.«
    »It shall hold a fourth,« cried the young man, springing to her side, with a
violence that nearly shook the weak fabric of the vessel asunder; - »pardon me,
Miss Temple, that I do not permit these venerable Charons to take you to the
shades, unattended by your genius.«
    »Is it a good or evil spirit?« asked Elizabeth.
    »Good to you.«
    »And mine,« added the maiden, with an air that strangely blended pique with
satisfaction. But the motion of the canoe gave rise to new ideas, and
fortunately afforded a good excuse to the young man to change the discourse.
    It appeared to Elizabeth, that they glided over the water by magic, so easy
and graceful was the manner in which Mohegan guided his little bark. A slight
gesture with his spear, indicated the way in which the Leather-stocking wished
to go, and a profound silence was preserved by the whole party, as a precaution
necessary to the success of their fishery. At that point of the lake, the water
shoaled regularly, differing, in this particular, altogether, from those parts,
where the mountains rose, nearly in perpendicular precipices, from the beach.
There, the largest vessels could have lain, with their yards interlocked with
the pines; while here, a scanty growth of rushes lifted their tops above the
lake, gently curling the waters, as their bending heads waved with the passing
breath of the night air. It was at the shallow points, only, that the bass could
be found, or the net cast with success.
    Elizabeth saw thousands of these fish, swimming in shoals along the shallow
and warm waters of the shore; for the flaring light of their torch laid bare the
mysteries of the lake, as plainly as if the limpid sheet of the Otsego was but
another atmosphere. Every instant she expected to see the impending spear of
Leather-stocking darting into the thronging hosts that were rushing beneath her,
where it would seem that a blow could not go amiss; and where, as her father had
already said, the prize that would be obtained was worthy any epicure. But Natty
had his peculiar habits; and, it would seem, his peculiar tastes also. His tall
stature, and his erect posture, enabled him to see much further than those who
were seated in the bottom of the canoe; and he turned his head warily, in every
direction, frequently bending his body forward, and straining his vision, as if
desirous of penetrating the water, that surrounded their boundary of light. At
length his anxious scrutiny was rewarded with success, and, waving his spear
from the shore, he said, in a cautious tone -
    »Send her outside the bass, John; I see a laker there, that has run out of
the school. It's sildom one finds such a creature in shallow water, where a spear
can touch it.«
    Mohegan gave a wave of assent with his hand, and in the next instant the
canoe was without the run of the bass, and in water nearly twenty feet in depth.
A few additional knots were laid on the grating, and the light penetrated to the
bottom. Elizabeth then saw a fish of unusual size, floating above small pieces
of logs and sticks. The animal was only distinguishable, at that distance, by a
slight, but almost imperceptible motion of its fins and tail. The curiosity
excited by this unusual exposure of the secrets of the lake, seemed to be mutual
between the heiress of the land and the lord of these waters, for the
salmon-trout soon announced his interest, by raising his head and body, for a
few degrees above a horizontal line, and then dropping them again into a
horizontal position.
    »Whist, whist,« said Natty, in a low voice, on hearing a slight sound made
by Elizabeth, in bending over the side of the canoe, in curiosity; »'tis a
sceary animal, and it's a far stroke for a spear. My handle is but fourteen
foot, and the creature lies a good eighteen from the top of the water; but I'll
try him, for he's a ten-pounder.«
    While speaking, the Leather-stocking was poising and directing his weapon.
Elizabeth saw the bright, polished tines, as they slowly and silently entered
the water, where the refraction pointed them many degrees from the true
direction of the fish; and she thought that the intended victim saw them also,
as he seemed to increase the play of his tail and fins, though without moving
his station. At the next instant, the tall body of Natty bent to the water's
edge, and the handle of his spear disappeared in the lake. The long, dark streak
of the gliding weapon, and the little bubbling vortex, which followed its rapid
flight, were easily to be seen; but it was not until the handle shot again into
the air, by its own re-action, and its master, catching it in his hand, threw
its tines uppermost, that Elizabeth was acquainted with the success of the blow.
A fish of great size was transfixed by the barbed steel, and was very soon
shaken from its impaled situation into the bottom of the canoe.
    »That will do, John,« said Natty, raising his prize by one of his fingers,
and exhibiting it before the torch; »I shall not strike another blow to-night.«
    The Indian again waved his hand, and replied with the simple and energetic
monosyllable of -
    »Good.«
    Elizabeth was awakened from the trance, created by this scene, and by gazing
in that unusual manner at the bottom of the lake, by the hoarse sounds of
Benjamin's voice, and the dashing of oars, as the heavier boat of the
seine-drawers approached the spot where the canoe lay, dragging after it the
folds of the net.
    »Haul off, haul off, Master Bumppo,« cried Benjamin; »your top-light
frightens the fish, who see the net, and sheer off soundings. A fish knows as
much as a horse, or, for that matter, more, seeing that it's brought up on the
water. Haul off, Master Bumppo, haul off, I say, and give a wide berth to the
seine.«
    Mohegan guided their little canoe to a point where the movements of the
fishermen could be observed, without interruption to the business, and then
suffered it to lie quietly on the water, looking like an imaginary vessel
floating in air. There appeared to be much ill-humour among the party in the
batteau, for the directions of Benjamin were not only frequent, but issued in a
voice that partook largely of dissatisfaction.
    »Pull larboard oar, will ye, Master Kirby,« cried the old seaman; »pull
larboard, best. It would puzzle the oldest admiral in the British fleet to cast
this here net fair, with a wake like a corkscrew. Pull starboard, boy, pull
starboard oar, with a will.«
    »Harkee, Mister Pump,« said Kirby, ceasing to row, and speaking with some
spirit; »I'm a man that likes civil language and decent treatment; such as is
right 'twixt man and man. If you want us to go hoy, say so, and hoy I'll go, for
the benefit of the company; but I'm not used to being ordered about like dumb
cattle.«
    »Who's dumb cattle!« echoed Benjamin, fiercely, turning his forbidding face
to the glare of light from the canoe, and exhibiting every feature teeming with
the expression of disgust. »If you want to come aft and cun the boat round, come
and be damned, and pretty steerage you'll make of it. There's but another heave
of the net in the stern-sheets, and we're clear of the thing. Give way, will ye?
and shoot her ahead for a fathom or two, and if you catch me afloat again with
such a horse-marine as yourself, why rate me a ship's jackass, that's all.«
    Probably encouraged by the prospect of a speedy termination to his labour,
the wood-chopper resumed his oar, and, under strong excitement, gave a stroke,
that not only cleared the boat of the net, but of the steward, at the same
instant. Benjamin had stood on the little platform that held the seine, in the
stern of the boat, and the violent whirl, occasioned by the vigour of the
wood-chopper's arm, completely destroyed his balance. The position of the lights
rendered objects in the batteau distinguishable, both from the canoe and the
shore; and the heavy fall on the water drew all eyes to the steward, as he lay
struggling, for a moment, in sight.
    A loud burst of merriment, to which the lungs of Kirby contributed no small
part, broke out like a chorus of laughter, and rung along the eastern mountain,
in echoes, until it died away in distant, mocking mirth, among the rocks and
woods. The body of the steward was seen slowly to disappear, as was expected;
but when the light waves, which had been raised by his fall, begun to sink in
calmness, and the water finally closed over his head, unbroken and still, a very
different feeling pervaded the spectators.
    »How fare you, Benjamin?« shouted Richard from the shore.
    »The dumb devil can't swim a stroke!« exclaimed Kirby, rising, and beginning
to throw aside his clothes.
    »Paddle up, Mohegan,« cried young Edwards, »the light will show us where he
lies, and I will dive for the body.«
    »Oh! save him! for God's sake, save him!« exclaimed Elizabeth, bowing her
head on the side of the canoe in horror.
    A powerful and dexterous sweep of Mohegan's paddle sent the canoe directly
over the spot, where the steward had fallen, and a loud shout from the
Leather-stocking announced that he saw the body.
    »Steady the boat while I dive,« again cried Edwards.
    »Gently, lad, gently,« said Natty; »I'll spear the creature up in half the
time, and no risk to any body.«
    The form of Benjamin was lying, about half way to the bottom, grasping with
both hands some broken rushes. The blood of Elizabeth curdled to her heart, as
she saw the figure of a fellow-creature thus extended under an immense sheet of
water, apparently in motion, by the undulations of the dying waves, with its
face and hands, viewed by that light, and through the medium of the fluid,
already coloured with hues like death.
    At the same instant, she saw the shining tines of Natty's spear approaching
the head of the sufferer, and entwining themselves, rapidly and dexterously, in
the hairs of his queue and the cape of his coat. The body was now raised slowly,
looking ghastly and grim, as its features turned upward to the light, and
approached the surface. The arrival of the nostrils of Benjamin into their own
atmosphere, was announced by a breathing, that would have done credit to a
porpoise. For a moment, Natty held the steward suspended, with his head just
above the water, while his eyes slowly opened, and stared about him, as if he
thought that he had reached a new and unexplored country.
    As all the parties acted and spoke together, much less time was consumed in
the occurrence of these events, than in their narration. To bring the batteau to
the end of the spear, and to raise the form of Benjamin into the boat, and for
the whole party to gain the shore, required but a minute. Kirby, aided by
Richard, whose anxiety induced him to run into the water to meet his favourite
assistant, carried the motionless steward up the bank, and seated him before the
fire, while the Sheriff proceeded to order the most approved measures then in
use, for the resuscitation of the drowned.
    »Run, Billy,« he cried, »to the village, and bring up the rum-hogshead that
lies before the door, in which I am making vinegar, and be quick, boy, don't
stay to empty the vinegar; and stop at Mr. Le Quoi's, and buy a paper of tobacco
and half-a-dozen pipes; and ask Remarkable for some salt, and one of her flannel
petticoats; and ask Dr. Todd to send his lancet, and to come himself; and - ha!
'duke, what are you about? would you strangle a man, who is full of water, by
giving him rum! Help me to open his hand, that I may pat it.«
    All this time Benjamin sat, with his muscles fixed, his mouth shut, and his
hands clenching the rushes, which he had seized in the confusion of the moment,
and which, as he held fast, like a true seaman, had been the means of preventing
his body from rising again to the surface. His eyes, however, were open, and
stared wildly on the group about the fire, while his lungs were playing like a
blacksmith's bellows, as if to compensate themselves for the minute of inaction
to which they had been subjected. As he kept his lips compressed, with a most
inveterate determination, the air was compelled to pass through his nostrils,
and he rather snorted than breathed, and in such a manner, that nothing, but the
excessive agitation of the Sheriff, could at all justify his precipitous orders.
    The bottle, applied to the steward's lips by Marmaduke, acted like a charm.
His mouth opened instinctively; his hands dropped the rushes, and seized the
glass; his eyes raised from their horizontal stare, to the heavens; and the
whole man was lost, for a moment, in a new sensation. Unhappily for the
propensity of the steward, breath was as necessary after one of these draughts,
as after his submersion, and the time at length arrived when he was compelled to
let go the bottle.
    »Why, Benjamin!« roared the Sheriff; »you amaze me! for a man of your
experience in drownings to act so foolishly! just now, you were half full of
water, and now you are« -
    »Full of grog,« interrupted the steward, his features settling down, with
amazing flexibility, into their natural economy. »But, d'ye see, Squire, I kept
my hatches close, and it is but little water that ever gets into my
scuttle-butt. - Harkee, Master Kirby! I've follow'd the salt water for the
better part of a man's life, and have seen some navigation on the fresh; but
this here matter I will say in your favour, and that is, that you're the
awk'ardest green'un that ever straddled a boat's thwart. Them that likes you for
a shipmate, may sail with you, and no thanks; but dam'me if I even walk on the
lake shore in your company. For why? you'd as lief drown a man as one of them
there fish; not to throw a christian creature so much as a rope's end, when he
was adrift, and no life-buoy in sight! - Natty Bumppo, give us your fist.
There's them that says you're an Indian, and a scalper, but you've sarved me a
good turn, and you may set me down for a friend; thof it would have been more
ship-shape to lower the bight of a rope, or running bow-line, below me, than to
seize an old seaman by his head-lanyard; but I suppose you are used to taking
men by the hair, and seeing you did me good instead of harm thereby, why, it's
the same thing, d'ye see.«
    Marmaduke prevented any reply, and assuming the direction of matters, with a
dignity and discretion that at once silenced all opposition from his cousin,
Benjamin was despatched to the village by land, and the net was hauled to shore,
in such a manner that the fish, for once, escaped its meshes with impunity.
    The division of the spoils was made in the ordinary manner, by placing one
of the party with his back to the game, who named the owner of each pile. Billy
Kirby stretched his large frame on the grass, by the side of the fire, as
sentinel until morning, over net and fish; and the remainder of the party
embarked in the batteau, to return to the village.
    The wood-chopper was seen broiling his supper on the coals, as they lost
sight of the fire; and when the boat approached the shore, the torch of
Mohegan's canoe was shining again under the gloom of the eastern mountain. Its
motion ceased suddenly; a scattering of brands was in the air, and then all
remained dark as the conjunction of night, forest, and mountain, could render
the scene.
    The thoughts of Elizabeth wandered from the youth, who was holding a canopy
of shawls over herself and Louisa, to the hunter and the Indian warrior; and she
felt an awakening curiosity to visit a hut, where men of such different habits
and temperament were drawn together, as by common impulse.
 

                                  Chapter XXV

 »Cease all this parlance about hills and dales:
 None listen to thy scenes of boyish frolic,
 Fond dotard! with such tickled ears as thou dost;
 Come! to thy tale.«
                                                                            Duo.
 
Mr. Jones arose, on the following morning, with the sun, and, ordering his own
and Marmaduke's steeds to be saddled, he proceeded, with a countenance big with
some business of unusual moment, to the apartment of the Judge. The door was
unfastened, and Richard entered, with the freedom that characterized, not only
the intercourse between the cousins, but the ordinary manners of the Sheriff.
    »Well, 'duke, to horse,« he cried, »and I will explain to you my meaning in
the allusions I made last night. David says, in the Psalms - no, it was Solomon,
but it was all in the family - Solomon said, there was a time for all things;
and, in my humble opinion, a fishing party is not the moment for discussing
important subjects - Ha! why what the devil ails you, Marmaduke? an't you well?
let me feel your pulse; my grandfather, you know« -
    »Quite well in the body, Richard,« interrupted the Judge, repulsing his
cousin, who was about to assume the functions that properly belonged to Dr.
Todd; »but ill at heart. I received letters by the post of last night, after we
returned from the point, and this among the number.«
    The Sheriff took the letter, but without turning his eyes on the writing,
for he was examining the appearance of the other with astonishment. From the
face of his cousin, the gaze of Richard wandered to the table, which was covered
with letters, packets, and newspapers; then to the apartment, and all that it
contained. On the bed there was the impression that had been made by a human
form, but the coverings were unmoved, and every thing indicated that the
occupant of the room had passed a sleepless night. The candles were burnt to the
sockets, and had evidently extinguished themselves in their own fragments.
Marmaduke had drawn his curtains, and opened both the shutters and the sashes,
to admit the balmy air of a spring morning; but his pale cheek, his quivering
lip, and his sunken eye, presented, altogether, so very different an appearance
from the usual calm, manly, and cheerful aspect of the Judge, that the Sheriff
grew each moment more and more bewildered with astonishment. At length Richard
found time to cast his eyes on the direction of the letter, which he still held
unopened, crumbling it in his hand.
    »What! a ship letter!« he exclaimed; »and from England! ha! 'duke, there
must be news of importance indeed!«
    »Read it,« said Marmaduke, pacing the floor in excessive agitation.
    Richard, who commonly thought aloud, was unable to read a letter, without
suffering part of its contents to escape him in audible sounds. So much of the
epistle as was divulged in that manner, we shall lay before the reader,
accompanied by the passing remarks of the Sheriff: -
    »London, February 12th, 1793. What a devil of a passage she had! but the
wind has been northwest, for six weeks, until within the last fortnight. Sir,
your favours, of August 10th, September 23d, and of December 1st, were received
in due season, and the first answered by return of packet. Since the receipt of
the last, I« - Here a long passage was rendered indistinct, by a kind of humming
noise, made by the Sheriff. »I grieve to say, that - hum, hum, bad enough, to be
sure - but trust that a merciful Providence has seen fit - hum, hum, hum; seems
to be a good, pious sort of a man, 'duke; belongs to the established church, I
dare say; hum, hum - vessel sailed from Falmouth on or about the 1st September
of last year, and - hum, hum, hum. If any thing should transpire, on this
afflicting subject, shall not fail - hum, hum; really a good-hearted man, for a
lawyer - but can communicate nothing further at present. - Hum, hum. The
national convention - hum, hum - unfortunate Louis - hum, hum - example of your
Washington - a very sensible man, I declare, and none of your crazy democrats.
Hum, hum - our gallant navy - hum, hum - under our most excellent monarch - ay,
a good man enough, that King George, but bad advisers; hum, hum - I beg to
conclude with assurances of my perfect respect, - hum, hum - ANDREW HOLT. -
Andrew Holt - a very sensible, feeling man, this Mr. Andrew Holt, but the writer
of evil tidings. What will you do next, cousin Marmaduke?«
    »What can I do, Richard, but trust to time, and the will of Heaven? Here is
another letter, from Connecticut, but it only repeats the substance of the last.
There is but one consoling reflection to be gathered from the English news,
which is, that my last letter was received by him, before the ship sailed.«
    »This is bad enough indeed! 'duke, bad enough indeed! and away go all my
plans of putting the wings to the house, to the devil. I had made arrangements
for a ride, to introduce you to something of a very important nature. You know
how much you think of mines« -
    »Talk not of mines,« interrupted the Judge; »there is a sacred duty to be
performed, and that without delay. I must devote this day to writing; and thou
must be my assistant, Richard; it will not do to employ Oliver in a matter of
such secrecy and interest.«
    »No, no, 'duke,« cried the Sheriff, squeezing his hand, »I am your man, just
now; we are sisters' children, and blood, after all, is the best cement to make
friendship stick together. Well, well, there is no hurry about the silver mine,
just now; another time will do as well. We shall want Dirky Van, I suppose?«
    Marmaduke assented to this indirect question, and the Sheriff relinquished
all his intentions, on the subject of the ride, and, repairing to the breakfast
parlour, he despatched a messenger to require the immediate presence of Dirck
Van der School.
    The village of Templeton, at that time, supported but two lawyers, one of
whom was introduced to our readers in the bar-room of the Bold Dragoon, and the
other was the gentleman of whom Richard spoke, by the friendly, but familiar
appellation of Dirck or Dirky Van. Great good nature, a very tolerable share of
skill in his profession, and, considering the circumstances, no contemptible
degree of honesty, were the principal ingredients in the character of this man;
who was known to the settlers as Squire Van der School, and sometimes by the
flattering, though anomalous title of the Dutch, or honest lawyer. We would not
wish to mislead our readers in their conceptions of any of our characters, and
we therefore feel it necessary to add, that the adjective, in the preceding
agnomen of Mr. Van der School, was used in direct reference to its substantive.
Our orthodox friends need not be told that all merit in this world is
comparative; and, once for all, we desire to say, that where any thing which
involves qualities or character is asserted, we must be understood to mean,
under the circumstances.
    During the remainder of the day, the Judge was closeted with his cousin and
his lawyer; and no one else was admitted to his apartment, excepting his
daughter. The deep distress, that so evidently afflicted Marmaduke, was, in some
measure, communicated to Elizabeth also; for a look of dejection shaded her
intelligent features, and the buoyancy of her animated spirits was sensibly
softened. Once, on that day, young Edwards, who was a wondering and observant
spectator of the sudden alteration produced in the heads of the family, detected
a tear stealing over the cheek of Elizabeth, and suffusing her bright eyes, with
a softness that did not always belong to their expression.
    »Have any evil tidings been received, Miss Temple?« he inquired, with an
interest and voice that caused Louisa Grant to raise her head from her
needle-work, with a quickness, at which she instantly blushed herself. »I would
offer my services to your father, if, as I suspect, he needs an agent in some
distant place, and I thought it would give you relief.«
    »We have certainly heard bad news,« returned Elizabeth, »and it may be
necessary that my father should leave home, for a short period; unless I can
persuade him to trust my cousin Richard with the business, whose absence from
the county, just at this time, too, might be inexpedient.«
    The youth paused a moment, and the blood gathered slowly to his temples, as
he continued -
    »If it be of a nature that I could execute« -
    »It is such as can only be confided to one we know - one of ourselves.«
    »Surely, you know me, Miss Temple!« he added, with a warmth that he seldom
exhibited, but which did sometimes escape him, in the moments of their frank
communications - »Have I lived five months under your roof to be a stranger!«
    Elizabeth was engaged with her needle, also; and she bent her head to one
side, affecting to arrange her muslin; but her hand shook, her colour
heightened, and her eyes lost their moisture, in an expression of ungovernable
interest, as she said -
    »How much do we know of you, Mr. Edwards?«
    »How much!« echoed the youth, gazing from the speaker to the mild
countenance of Louisa, that was also illuminated with curiosity; »how much! have
I been so long an inmate with you, and not known?«
    The head of Elizabeth slowly turned from its affected position, and the look
of confusion that had blended so strongly with an expression of interest,
changed to a smile.
    »We know you, sir, indeed: you are called Mr. Oliver Edwards. I understand
that you have informed my friend, Miss Grant, that you are a native« -
    »Elizabeth!« exclaimed Louisa, blushing to the eyes, and trembling like an
aspen; »you misunderstood me, dear Miss Temple; I - I - it was only conjecture.
Besides, if Mr. Edwards is related to the natives, why should we reproach him!
in what are we better? at least I, who am the child of a poor and unsettled
clergyman?«
    Elizabeth shook her head, doubtingly, and even laughed, but made no reply,
until, observing the melancholy which pervaded the countenance of her companion,
who was thinking of the poverty and labours of her father, she continued -
    »Nay, Louisa, humility carries you too far. The daughter of a minister of
the church can have no superiors. Neither I nor Mr. Edwards is quite your equal,
unless,« she added, again smiling, »he is in secret a king.«
    »A faithful servant of the King of kings, Miss Temple, is inferior to none
on earth,« said Louisa; »but his honours are his own; I am only the child of a
poor and friendless man, and can claim no other distinction. Why, then, should I
feel myself elevated above Mr. Edwards, because - because - perhaps, he is only
very, very distantly related to John Mohegan?«
    Glances of a very comprehensive meaning were exchanged between the heiress
and the young man, as Louisa betrayed, while vindicating his lineage, the
reluctance with which she admitted his alliance to the old warrior; but not even
a smile at the simplicity of their companion was indulged by either.
    »On reflection, I must acknowledge that my situation here is somewhat
equivocal,« said Edwards, »though I may be said to have purchased it with my
blood.«
    »The blood, too, of one of the native lords of the soil!« cried Elizabeth,
who evidently put little faith in his aboriginal descent.
    »Do I bear the marks of my lineage so very plainly impressed on my
appearance? I am dark, but not very red - not more so than common?«
    »Rather more so, just now.«
    »I am sure, Miss Temple,« cried Louisa, »you cannot have taken much notice
of Mr. Edwards. His eyes are not so black as Mohegan's, or even your own, nor is
his hair!«
    »Very possibly, then, I can lay claim to the same descent. It would be a
great relief to my mind to think so, for I own that I grieve when I see old
Mohegan walking about these lands, like the ghost of one of their ancient
possessors, and feel how small is my own right to possess them.«
    »Do you!« cried the youth, with a vehemence that startled the ladies.
    »I do, indeed,« returned Elizabeth, after suffering a moment to pass in
surprise; »but what can I do? what can my father do? Should we offer the old man
a home and a maintenance, his habits would compel him to refuse us. Neither,
were we so silly as to wish such a thing, could we convert these clearings and
farms, again, into hunting-grounds, as the Leather-stocking would wish to see
them.«
    »You speak the truth, Miss Temple,« said Edwards. »What can you do, indeed!
But there is one thing that I am certain you can and will do, when you become
the mistress of these beautiful valleys - use your wealth with indulgence to the
poor and charity to the needy; - indeed, you can do no more.«
    »And that will be doing a good deal,« said Louisa, smiling in her turn. »But
there will, doubtless, be one to take the direction of such things from her
hands.«
    »I am not about to disclaim matrimony, like a silly girl, who dreams of
nothing else from morning till night; but I am a nun, here, without the vow of
celibacy. Where shall I find a husband, in these forests?«
    »There is none, Miss Temple,« said Edwards, quickly, »there is none who has
a right to aspire to you, and I know that you will wait to be sought by your
equal; or die, as you live, loved, respected, and admired, by all who know you.«
    The young man seemed to think that he had said all that was required by
gallantry, for he arose, and taking his hat, hurried from the apartment. Perhaps
Louisa thought that he had said more than was necessary, for she sighed, with an
aspiration so low that it was scarcely audible to herself, and bent her head
over her work again. And it is possible that Miss Temple wished to hear more,
for her eyes continued fixed, for a minute, on the door through which the young
man had passed, then glanced quickly towards her companion, when the long
silence that succeeded manifested how much zest may be given to the conversation
of two maidens under eighteen, by the presence of a youth of three and twenty.
    The first person encountered by Mr. Edwards, as he rather rushed than walked
from the house, was the little, square-built lawyer, with a large bundle of
papers under his arm, a pair of green spectacles on his nose, with glasses at
the sides, as if to multiply his power of detecting frauds, by additional organs
of vision.
    Mr. Van der School was a well-educated man, but of slow comprehension, who
had imbibed a wariness in his speeches and actions, from having suffered by his
collisions with his more mercurial and apt brethren who had laid the foundations
of their practice in the eastern courts, and who had sucked in shrewdness with
their mothers' milk. The caution of this gentleman was exhibited in his actions,
by the utmost method and punctuality, tinctured with a good deal of timidity;
and in his speeches, by a parenthetical style, that frequently left to his
auditors a long search after his meaning.
    »A good morning to you, Mr. Van der School,« said Edwards; »it seems to be a
busy day with us, at the Mansion-house.«
    »Good morning, Mr. Edwards, (if that is your name, (for, being a stranger,
we have no other evidence of the fact than your own testimony,) as I understand
you have given it to Judge Temple,) good morning, sir. It is, apparently, a busy
day, (but a man of your discretion need not be told, (having, doubtless,
discovered it of your own accord,) that appearances are often deceitful,) up at
the Mansion-house.«
    »Have you papers of consequence, that will require copying? can I be of
assistance in any way?«
    »There are papers (as, doubtless, you see (for your eyes are young) by the
outsides) that require copying.«
    »Well, then I will accompany you to your office, and receive such as are
most needed, and by night I shall have them done, if there be much haste.«
    »I shall be always glad to see you, sir, at my office, (as in duty bound,
(not that it is obligatory to receive any man within your dwelling, (unless so
inclined,) which is a castle,) according to the forms of politeness,) or at any
other place; but the papers are most strictly confidential, (and, as such,
cannot be read by any one, (unless so directed,) by Judge Temple's solemn
injunctions,) and are invisible to all eyes; excepting those whose duties (I
mean assumed duties) require it of them.«
    »Well, sir, as I perceive that I can be of no service, I wish you another
good morning; but beg you will remember that I am quite idle, just now, and I
wish you would intimate as much to Judge Temple, and make him a tender of my
services, in any part of the world; unless - unless - it be far from Templeton.«
    »I will make the communication, sir, in your name, (with your own
qualifications,) as your agent. Good morning, sir. - But stay proceedings, Mr.
Edwards, (so called,) for a moment. Do you wish me to state the offer of
travelling, as a final contract, (for which consideration has been received, at
former dates, (by sums advanced,) which would be binding,) or as a tender of
services, for which compensation is to be paid (according to future agreement
between the parties) on performance of the conditions?«
    »Any way - any way,« said Edwards - »he seems in distress, and I would
assist him.«
    »The motive is good, sir, (according to appearances, (which are often
deceitful,) on first impressions,) and does you honour. I will mention your
wish, young gentleman, (as you now seem,) and will not fail to communicate the
answer, by five o'clock, P.M. of this present day, (God willing,) if you give me
an opportunity so to do.«
    The ambiguous nature of the situation and character of Mr. Edwards, had
rendered him an object of peculiar suspicion to the lawyer, and the youth was
consequently too much accustomed to similar equivocal and guarded speeches, to
feel any unusual disgust at the present dialogue. He saw, at once, that it was
the intention of the practitioner to conceal the nature of his business, even
from the private secretary of Judge Temple; and he knew too well the difficulty
of comprehending the meaning of Mr. Van der School, when the gentleman most
wished to be luminous in his discourse, not to abandon all thoughts of a
discovery, when he perceived that the attorney was endeavouring to avoid any
thing like an approach to a cross-examination. They parted at the gate, the
lawyer walking, with an important and hurried air, towards his office, keeping
his right hand firmly clenched on the bundle of papers.
    It must have been obvious to all our readers, that the youth entertained an
unusual and deeply-seated prejudice against the character of the Judge; but,
owing to some counteracting cause, his sensations were now those of powerful
interest in the state of his patron's present feelings, and in the causes of his
secret uneasiness.
    He remained gazing after the lawyer, until the door closed on both the
bearer and the mysterious packet, when he returned slowly to the dwelling, and
endeavoured to forget his curiosity, in the usual avocations of his office.
    When the Judge made his re-appearance in the circle of his family, his
cheerfulness was tempered by a shade of melancholy, that lingered for many days
around his manly brow; but the magical progression of the season aroused him
from his temporary apathy, and his smiles returned with the summer.
    The heats of the days, and the frequent occurrence of balmy showers, had
completed, in an incredibly short period, the growth of plants, which the
lingering spring had so long retarded in the germ; and the woods presented every
shade of green that the American forests know. The stumps in the cleared fields
were already hid beneath the wheat, that was waving with every breath of the
summer air, shining, and changing its hues, like velvet.
    During the continuance of his cousin's dejection, Mr. Jones forbore, with
much consideration, to press on his attention a business that each hour was
drawing nearer to the heart of the Sheriff, and which, if any opinion could be
formed by his frequent private conferences with the man, who was introduced in
these pages, by the name of Jotham, at the bar-room of the Bold Dragoon, was
becoming also of great importance.
    At length the Sheriff ventured to allude again to the subject, and one
evening, in the beginning of July, Marmaduke made him a promise of devoting the
following day to the desired excursion.
 

                                  Chapter XXVI

 »Speak on, my dearest father!
 Thy words are like the breezes of the west.«
                                                  Milman, Belshazzar, III.73-74.
 
It was a mild and soft morning, when Marmaduke and Richard mounted their horses,
to proceed on the expedition that had so long been uppermost in the thoughts of
the latter; and Elizabeth and Louisa appeared at the same instant in the hall,
attired for an excursion on foot.
    The head of Miss Grant was covered by a neat, little hat of green silk, and
her modest eyes peered from under its shade, with the soft languor that
characterized her whole appearance; but Miss Temple trod her father's wide
apartments, with the step of their mistress, holding in her hand, dangling by
one of its ribands, the gipsy that was to conceal the glossy locks that curled
around her polished forehead, in rich profusion.
    »What, are you for a walk, Bess!« cried the Judge, suspending his movements
for a moment, to smile, with a father's fondness, at the display of womanly
grace and beauty that his child presented. »Remember the heats of July, my
daughter; nor venture further than thou canst retrace before the meridian. Where
is thy parasol, girl? thou wilt lose the polish of that brow, under this sun and
southern breeze, unless thou guard it with unusual care.«
    »I shall then do more honour to my connexions,« returned the smiling
daughter. »Cousin Richard has a bloom that any lady might envy. At present, the
resemblance between us is so trifling, that no stranger would know us to be
sisters' children.«
    »Grand-children, you mean, cousin Bess,« said the Sheriff. »But on, Judge
Temple; time and tide wait for no man; and if you take my counsel, sir, in
twelve months from this day, you may make an umbrella for your daughter of her
camel's-hair shawl, and have its frame of solid silver. I ask nothing for
myself, 'duke; you have been a good friend to me already; besides, all that I
have will go to Bess, there, one of these melancholy days, so it's as long as
it's short, whether I or you leave it. But we have a day's ride before us, sir;
so move forward, or dismount, and say you won't go, at once.«
    »Patience, patience, Dickon,« returned the Judge, checking his horse, and
turning again to his daughter. »If thou art for the mountains, love, stray not
too deep into the forest, I entreat thee; for, though it is done often with
impunity, there is sometimes danger.«
    »Not at this season, I believe, sir,« said Elizabeth; »for, I will confess,
it is the intention of Louisa and myself to stroll among the hills.«
    »Less at this season than in the winter, dear; but still there may be danger
in venturing too far. But though thou art resolute, Elizabeth, thou art too much
like thy mother not to be prudent.«
    The eyes of the parent turned reluctantly from his child, and the Judge and
Sheriff rode slowly through the gateway, and disappeared among the buildings of
the village.
    During this short dialogue, young Edwards stood, an attentive listener,
holding in his hand a fishing-rod, the day and the season having tempted him
also to desert the house, for the pleasure of exercise in the air. As the
equestrians turned through the gate, he approached the young females, who were
already moving towards the street, and was about to address them, as Louisa
paused, and said quickly -
    »Mr. Edwards would speak to us, Elizabeth.«
    The other stopped also, and turned to the youth, politely, but with a slight
coldness in her air, that sensibly checked the freedom with which he had
approached them.
    »Your father is not pleased that you should walk unattended in the hills,
Miss Temple. If I might offer myself as a protector« -
    »Does my father select Mr. Oliver Edwards as the organ of his displeasure?«
interrupted the lady.
    »Good Heaven! you misunderstand my meaning; I should have said uneasy, for
not pleased. I am his servant, madam, and in consequence yours. I repeat that,
with your consent, I will change my rod for a fowling-piece, and keep nigh you
on the mountain.«
    »I thank you, Mr. Edwards; but where there is no danger, no protection is
required. We are not yet reduced to wandering among these free hills accompanied
by a body-guard. If such a one is necessary, there he is, however. - Here,
Brave, - Brave - my noble Brave!«
    The huge mastiff that has been already mentioned, appeared from his kennel,
gaping and stretching himself, with pampered laziness; but as his mistress again
called - »Come, dear Brave; once have you served your master well; let us see
how you can do your duty by his daughter« - the dog wagged his tail, as if he
understood her language, walked with a stately gait to her side, where he seated
himself, and looked up at her face, with an intelligence but little inferior to
that which beamed in her own lovely countenance.
    She resumed her walk, but again paused, after a few steps, and added, in
tones of conciliation -
    »You can be serving us, equally, and, I presume, more agreeably to yourself,
Mr. Edwards, by bringing us a string of your favourite perch, for the dinner-
    When they again begun to walk, Miss Temple did not look back, to see how the
youth bore this repulse; but the head of Louisa was turned several times, before
they reached the gate, on that considerate errand.
    »I am afraid, Elizabeth,« she said, »that we have mortified Oliver. He is
still standing where we left him, leaning on his rod. Perhaps he thinks us
proud.«
    »He thinks justly,« exclaimed Miss Temple, as if awaking from a deep musing;
»he thinks justly, then. We are too proud to admit of such particular attentions
from a young man whose situation is so equivocal. What! make him the companion
of our most private walks! It is pride, Louisa, but it is the pride of our sex.«
    It was several minutes before Oliver aroused himself from the contemplative
posture in which he was standing when Louisa last saw him; but when he did, he
muttered something, rapidly and incoherently, and throwing his rod over his
shoulder, he strode down the walk, through the gate, and along one of the
streets of the village, until he reached the lake-shore, with the air of an
emperor. At this spot boats were kept, for the use of Judge Temple and his
family. The young man threw himself into a light skiff, and seizing the oars, he
sent it across the lake, towards the hut of Leather-stocking, with a pair of
vigorous arms. By the time he had rowed a quarter of a mile, his reflections
were less bitter; and when he saw the bushes that lined the shore in front of
Natty's habitation gliding by him, as if they possessed the motion which
proceeded from his own efforts, he was quite cooled in mind, though somewhat
heated in body. It is quite possible, that the very same reason which guided the
conduct of Miss Temple, suggested itself to a man of the breeding and education
of the youth; and it is very certain, that if such were the case, Elizabeth rose
instead of falling in the estimation of Mr. Edwards.
    The oars were now raised from the water, and the boat shot close into the
land, where it lay gently agitated by waves of its own creating, while the young
man, first casting a cautious and searching glance around him in every
direction, put a small whistle to his mouth, and blew a long, shrill note, that
rung among the echoing rocks behind the hut. At this alarm, the hounds of Natty
rushed out of their bark kennel, and commenced their long, piteous howls,
leaping about as if half frantic, though restrained by the leashes of buck-skin,
by which they were fastened.
    »Quiet, Hector, quiet,« said Oliver, again applying his whistle to his
mouth, and drawing out notes still more shrill than before. No reply was made,
the dogs having returned to their kennel at the sounds of his voice.
    Edwards pulled the bows of the boat on the shore, and landing, ascended the
beach and approached the door of the cabin. The fastenings were soon undone, and
he entered, closing the door after him, when all was as silent, in that retired
spot, as if the foot of man had never trod the wilderness. The sounds of the
hammers, that were in incessant motion in the village, were faintly heard across
the water; but the dogs had crouched into their lairs, satisfied that none but
the privileged had approached the forbidden ground.
    A quarter of an hour elapsed before the youth re-appeared, when he fastened
the door again and spoke kindly to the hounds. The dogs came out at the
well-known tones, and the slut jumped upon his person, whining and barking, as
if entreating Oliver to release her from prison. But Old Hector raised his nose
to the light current of air, and opened a long howl, that might have been heard
for a mile.
    »Ha! what do you scent, old veteran of the woods?« cried Edwards. »If a
beast, it is a bold one; and if a man, an impudent.«
    He sprung through the top of a pine, that had fallen near the side of the
hut, and ascended a small hillock, that sheltered the cabin to the south, where
he caught a glimpse of the formal figure of Hiram Doolittle, as it vanished,
with unusual rapidity for the architect, amid the bushes.
    »What can that fellow be wanting here?« muttered Oliver. »He has no business
in this quarter, unless it be curiosity, which is an endemic in these woods. But
against that I will effectually guard, though the dogs should take a liking to
his ugly visage, and let him pass.« The youth returned to the door, while giving
vent to this soliloquy, and completed the fastenings, by placing a small chain
through a staple, and securing it there by a padlock. »He is a pettifogger, and
surely must know that there is such a thing as feloniously breaking into a man's
house.«
    Apparently well satisfied with this arrangement, the youth again spoke to
the hounds; and, descending to the shore, he launched his boat, and taking up
his oars, pulled off into the lake.
    There were several places in the Otsego that were celebrated fishing-ground
for perch. One was nearly opposite to the cabin, and another, still more famous,
was near a point, at the distance of a mile and a half above it, under the brow
of the mountain, and on the same side of the lake with the hut. Oliver Edwards
pulled his little skiff to the first, and sat, for a minute, undecided whether
to continue there, with his eyes on the door of the cabin, or to change his
ground, with a view to get superior game. While gazing about him, he saw the
light-coloured bark canoe of his old companions, riding on the water, at the
point we have mentioned, and containing two figures, that he at once knew to be
Mohegan and the Leather-stocking. This decided the matter, and the youth pulled,
in a very few minutes, to the place where his friends were fishing, and fastened
his boat to the light vessel of the Indian.
    The old men received Oliver with welcoming nods, but neither drew his line
from the water, nor, in the least, varied his occupation. When Edwards had
secured his own boat, he baited his hook and threw it into the lake, without
speaking.
    »Did you stop at the wigwam, lad, as you rowed past?« asked Natty.
    »Yes, and I found all safe; but that carpenter and justice of the peace,
Mr., or, as they call him, Squire Doolittle, was prowling through the woods. I
made sure of the door, before I left the hut, and I think he is too great a
coward to approach the hounds.«
    »There's little to be said in favour of that man,« said Natty, while he drew
in a perch and baited his hook. »He craves dreadfully to come into the cabin,
and has as good as asked me as much to my face; but I put him off with unsartain
answers, so that he is no wiser than Solomon. This comes of having so many laws
that such a man may be called on to intarpret them.«
    »I fear he is more knave than fool,« cried Edwards: »he makes a tool of that
simple man, the Sheriff, and I dread that his impertinent curiosity may yet give
us much trouble.«
    »If he harbours too much about the cabin, lad, I'll shoot the creature,« said
the Leather-stocking, quite simply.
    »No, no, Natty, you must remember the law,« said Edwards, »or we shall have
you in trouble; and that, old man, would be an evil day, and sore tidings to us
all.«
    »Would it, boy!« exclaimed the hunter, raising his eyes with a look of
friendly interest towards the youth. »You have the true blood in your veins, Mr.
Oliver, and I'll support it, to the face of Judge Temple, or in any court in the
country. How is it, John? do I speak the true word? is the lad stanch, and of
the right blood?«
    »He is a Delaware,« said Mohegan, »and my brother. The Young Eagle is brave,
and he will be a chief. No harm can come.«
    »Well, well,« cried the youth, impatiently; »say no more about it, my good
friends; if I am not all that your partiality would make me, I am yours through
life - in prosperity as in poverty. We will talk of other matters.«
    The old hunters yielded to his wish, which seemed to be their law. For a
short time a profound silence prevailed, during which each man was very busy
with his hook and line; but Edwards, probably feeling that it remained with him
to renew the discourse, soon observed, with the air of one who knew not what he
said -
    »How beautifully tranquil and glassy the lake is. Saw you it ever more calm
and even than at this moment, Natty?«
    »I have known the Otsego water for five-and-forty year,« said
Leather-stocking, »and I will say that for it, which is, that a cleaner spring
or better fishing is not to be found in the land. Yes, yes - I had the place to
myself once; and a cheerful time I had of it. The game was plenty as heart could
wish, and there was none to meddle with the ground, unless there might have been
a hunting party of the Delawares crossing the hills, or, maybe, a rifling scout
of them thieves, the Iroquois. There was one or two Frenchmen that squatted in
the flats, further west, and married squaws; and some of the Scotch-Irishers,
from the Cherry Valley, would come on to the lake, and borrow my canoe, to take
a mess of parch, or drop a line for salmon-trout; but, in the main, it was a
cheerful place, and I had but little to disturb me in it. John would come, and
John knows.«
    Mohegan turned his dark face, at this appeal, and, moving his hand forward
with a graceful motion of assent, he spoke, using the Delaware language -
    »The land was owned by my people: we gave it to my brother, in council - to
the Fire-Eater; and what the Delawares give, lasts as long as the waters run.
Hawk-eye smoked at that council, for we loved him.«
    »No, no, John,« said Natty, »I was no chief, seeing that I know'd nothing of
scholarship, and had a white skin. But it was a comfortable hunting-ground then,
lad, and would have been so to this day, but for the money of Marmaduke Temple,
and the twisty ways of the law.«
    »It must have been a sight of melancholy pleasure, indeed,« said Edwards,
while his eye roved along the shores and over the hills, where the clearings,
groaning with the golden corn, were cheering the forests with the signs of life,
»to have roamed over these mountains, and along this sheet of beautiful water,
without a living soul to speak to, or to thwart your humour.«
    »Haven't I said it was cheerful!« said Leather-stocking. »Yes, yes - when
the trees begun to be kivered with leaves, and the ice was out of the lake, it
was a second paradise. I have travelled the woods for fifty-three year, and have
made them my home for more than forty, and I can say that I have met but one
place that was more to my liking; and that was only to eyesight, and not for
hunting or fishing.«
    »And where was that?« asked Edwards.
    »Where! why up on the Cattskills. I used often to go up into the mountains
after wolves' skins, and bears; once they paid me to get them a stuffed painter;
and so I often went. There's a place in them hills that I used to climb to, when
I wanted to see the carryings on of the world, that would well pay any man for a
barked shin or a torn moccasin. You know the Cattskills, lad, for you must have
seen them on your left, as you followed the river up from York, looking as blue
as a piece of clear sky, and holding the clouds on their tops, as the smoke
curls over the head of an Indian chief at the council fire. Well, there's the
High-peak and the Round-top, which lay back, like a father and mother among
their children, seeing they are far above all the other hills. But the place I
mean is next to the river, where one of the ridges juts out a little from the
rest, and where the rocks fall for the best part of a thousand feet, so much up
and down, that a man standing on their edges is fool enough to think he can jump
from top to bottom.«
    »What see you when you get there?« asked Edwards.
    »Creation!« said Natty, dropping the end of his rod into the water, and
sweeping one hand around him in a circle - »all creation, lad. I was on that
hill when Vaughan burnt 'Sopus, in the last war, and I seen the vessels come out
of the highlands as plain as I can see that lime-scow rowing into the
Susquehanna, though one was twenty times further from me than the other. The
river was in sight for seventy miles, looking like a curled shaving, under my
feet, though it was eight long miles to its banks. I saw the hills in the
Hampshire grants, the high lands of the river, and all that God had done or man
could do, far as eye could reach - you know that the Indians named me for my
sight, lad - and from the flat on the top of that mountain, I have often found
the place where Albany stands; and as for 'Sopus! the day the royal troops burnt
the town, the smoke seemed so nigh, that I thought I could hear the screeches of
the women.«
    »It must have been worth the toil, to meet with such a glorious view!«
    »If being the best part of a mile in the air, and having men's farms and
housen at your feet, with rivers looking like ribands, and mountains bigger than
the Vision, seeming to be haystacks of green grass under you, gives any
satisfaction to a man, I can recommend the spot. When I first come into the
woods to live, I used to have weak spells, when I felt lonesome; and then I
would go into the Cattskills and spend a few days on that hill, to look at the
ways of man; but it's now many a year since I felt any such longings, and I'm
getting too old for rugged rocks. But there's a place, a short two miles back of
that very hill, that in late times I relished better than the mountains; for it
was kivered with the trees, and nateral.«
    »And where was that?« inquired Edwards, whose curiosity was strongly excited
by the simple description of the hunter.
    »Why, there's a fall in the hills, where the water of two little ponds that
lie near each other breaks out of their bounds, and runs over the rocks into the
valley. The stream is, maybe, such a one as would turn a mill, if so useless a
thing was wanted in the wilderness. But the hand that made that Leap never made
a mill! There the water comes crooking and winding among the rocks, first so
slow that a trout could swim in it, and then starting and running like a creature
that wanted to make a far spring, till it gets to where the mountain divides,
like the cleft hoof of a deer, leaving a deep hollow for the brook to tumble
into. The first pitch is nigh two hundred feet, and the water looks like flakes
of driven snow, afore it touches the bottom; and there the stream gathers
together again for a new start, and maybe flutters over fifty feet of flat-rock,
before it falls for another hundred, when it jumps about from shelf to shelf,
first turning this-away and then turning that-away, striving to get out of the
hollow, till it finally comes to the plain.«
    »I have never heard of this spot before: it is not mentioned in the books.«
    »I have never read a book in my life,« said Leather-stocking; »and how
should a man who has lived in towns and schools know any thing about the wonders
of the woods! No, no, lad; there has that little stream of water been playing
among them hills, since He made the world, and not a dozen white men have ever
laid eyes on it. The rock sweeps like mason-work, in a half-round, on both sides
of the fall, and shelves over the bottom for fifty feet; so that when I've been
sitting at the foot of the first pitch, and my hounds have run into the caverns
behind the sheet of water, they've looked no bigger than so many rabbits. To my
judgment, lad, it's the best piece of work that I've met with in the woods; and
none know how often the hand of God is seen in the wilderness, but them that
rove it for a man's life.«
    »What becomes of the water? in which direction does it run? is it a
tributary of the Delaware?«
    »Anan!« said Natty.
    »Does the water run into the Delaware?«
    »No, no, it's a drop for the old Hudson; and a merry time it has till it
gets down off the mountain. I've sat on the shelving rock many a long hour, boy,
and watched the bubbles as they shot by me, and thought how long it would be
before that very water, which seemed made for the wilderness, would be under the
bottom of a vessel, and tossing in the salt sea. It is a spot to make a man
solemnize. You can see right down into the valley that lies to the east of the
High-Peak, where, in the fall of the year, thousands of acres of woods are afore
your eyes, in the deep hollow, and along the side of the mountain, painted like
ten thousand rainbows, by no hand of man, though not without the ordering of
God's providence.«
    »You are eloquent, Leather-stocking!« exclaimed the youth.
    »Anan!« repeated Natty.
    »The recollection of the sight has warmed your blood, old man. How many
years is it since you saw the place?«
    The hunter made no reply; but, bending his ear near the water, he sat
holding his breath, and listening attentively, as if to some distant sound. At
length he raised his head, and said -
    »If I hadn't fastened the hounds with my own hands, with a fresh leash of
green buck-skin, I'd take a bible oath that I heard old Hector ringing his cry
on the mountain.«
    »It is impossible,« said Edwards; »it is not an hour since I saw him in his
kennel.«
    By this time the attention of Mohegan was attracted to the sounds; but,
notwithstanding the youth was both silent and attentive, he could hear nothing
but the lowing of some cattle from the western hills. He looked at the old men,
Natty sitting with his hand to his ear, like a trumpet, and Mohegan bending
forward, with an arm raised to a level with his face, holding the fore finger
elevated as a signal for attention, and laughed aloud at what he deemed to be
their imaginary sounds.
    »Laugh if you will, boy,« said Leather-stocking; »the hounds be out, and be
hunting a deer. No man can deceive me in such a matter. I wouldn't have had the
thing happen for a beaver's skin. Not that I care for the law! but the venison
is lean now, and the dumb things run the flesh off their own bones for no good.
Now do you hear the hounds?«
    Edwards started, as a full cry broke on his ear, changing from the distant
sounds that were caused by some intervening hill, to confused echoes that rung
among the rocks that the dogs were passing, and then directly to a deep and
hollow baying that pealed under the forest on the lake shore. These variations
in the tones of the hounds passed with amazing rapidity, and while his eyes were
glancing along the margin of the water, a tearing of the branches of the alder
and dogwood caught his attention, at a spot near them, and, at the next moment,
a noble buck sprung on the shore, and buried himself in the lake. A full-mouthed
cry followed, when Hector and the slut shot through the opening in the bushes,
and darted into the lake also, bearing their breasts gallantly against the
water.
 

                                 Chapter XXVII

 »Oft in the full-descending flood he tries
 To lose the scent, and lave his burning sides.«
                                         Thomson, The Seasons, »Autumn,« 445-46.
 
»I know'd it - I know'd it!« cried Natty, when both deer and hounds were in full
view; - »the buck has gone by them with the wind, and it has been too much for
the poor rogues; but I must break them of these tricks, or they'll give me a
deal of trouble. He-ere, he-ere - shore with you, rascals - shore with you -
will ye? - Oh! off with you, old Hector, or I'll hatchel your hide with my
ramrod when I get ye.«
    The dogs knew their master's voice, and, after swimming in a circle, as if
reluctant to give over the chase, and yet afraid to persevere, they finally
obeyed, and returned to the land, where they filled the air with their cries.
    In the mean time, the deer, urged by his fears, had swam over half the
distance between the shore and the boats, before his terror permitted him to see
the new danger. But at the sounds of Natty's voice he turned short in his
course, and, for a few moments, seemed about to rush back again, and brave the
dogs. His retreat in this direction was, however, effectually cut off, and,
turning a second time, he urged his course obliquely for the centre of the lake,
with an intention of landing on the western shore. As the buck swam by the
fishermen, raising his nose high into the air, curling the water before his slim
neck like the beak of a galley, the Leather-stocking began to sit very uneasy in
his canoe.
    »'Tis a noble creature!« he exclaimed; »what a pair of horns! a man might
hang up all his garments on the branches. Lets me see - July is the last month,
and the flesh must be getting good.« While he was talking, Natty had
instinctively employed himself in fastening the inner end of the bark rope, that
served him for a cable, to a paddle, and, rising suddenly on his legs, he cast
this buoy away, and cried - »Strike out, John! let her go. The creature's a fool,
to tempt a man in this way.«
    Mohegan threw the fastening of the youth's boat from the canoe, and with one
stroke of his paddle, sent the light bark over the water like a meteor.
    »Hold!« exclaimed Edwards. »Remember the law, my old friends. You are in
plain sight of the village, and I know that Judge Temple is determined to
prosecute all, indiscriminately, who kill deer out of season.«
    The remonstrance came too late; the canoe was already far from the skiff,
and the two hunters were too much engaged in the pursuit to listen to his voice.
    The buck was now within fifty yards of his pursuers, cutting the water
gallantly, and snorting at each breath with terror and his exertions, while the
canoe seemed to dance over the waves, as it rose and fell with the undulations
made by its own motion. Leather-stocking raised his rifle and freshened the
priming, but stood in suspense whether to slay his victim or not.
    »Shall I, John, or no?« he said. »It seems but a poor advantage to take of
the dumb thing, too. I won't; it has taken to the water on its own nater, which
is the reason that God has given to a deer, and I'll give it the lake play; so,
John, lay out your arm, and mind the turn of the buck; it's easy to catch them,
but they'll turn like a snake.«
    The Indian laughed at the conceit of his friend, but continued to send the
canoe forward, with a velocity that proceeded much more from his skill than his
strength. Both of the old men now used the language of the Delawares when they
spoke.
    »Hooh!« exclaimed Mohegan; »the deer turns his head. Hawk-eye, lift your
spear.«
    Natty never moved abroad without taking with him every implement that might,
by possibility, be of service in his pursuits. From his rifle he never parted;
and, although intending to fish with the line, the canoe was invariably
furnished with all its utensils, even to its grate. This precaution grew out of
the habits of the hunter, who was often led, by his necessities or his sports,
far beyond the limits of his original destination. A few years earlier than the
date of our tale, the Leather-stocking had left his hut on the shores of the
Otsego, with his rifle and his hounds, for a few days' hunting in the hills; but
before he returned, he had seen the waters of Ontario. One, two, or even three
hundred miles, had once been nothing to his sinews, which were now a little
stiffened by age. The hunter did as Mohegan advised, and prepared to strike a
blow with the barbed weapon into the neck of the buck.
    »Lay her more to the left, John,« he cried, »lay her more to the left;
another stroke of the paddle, and I have him.«
    While speaking, he raised the spear, and darted it from him like an arrow.
At that instant the buck turned. The long pole glanced by him, the iron striking
against his horn, and buried itself, harmlessly, in the lake.
    »Back water,« cried Natty, as the canoe glided over the place where the
spear had fallen, »hold water, John.«
    The pole soon re-appeared, shooting upward from the lake, and as the hunter
seized it in his hand, the Indian whirled the light canoe round, and renewed the
chase. But this evolution gave the buck a great advantage; and it also allowed
time for Edwards to approach the scene of action.
    »Hold your hand, Natty,« cried the youth, »hold your hand; remember it is
out of season.«
    This remonstrance was made as the batteau arrived close to the place where
the deer was struggling with the water, his back now rising to the surface, now
sinking beneath it, as the waves curled from his neck, the animal still
sustaining itself nobly against the odds.
    »Hurrah!« shouted Edwards, inflamed beyond prudence at the sight; »mind him
as he doubles - mind him as he doubles; sheer more to the right, Mohegan, more
to the right, and I'll have him by the horns; I'll throw the rope over his
antlers.«
    The dark eye of the old warrior was dancing in his head, with a wild
animation, and the sluggish repose in which his aged frame had been resting in
the canoe, was now changed to all the rapid inflections of practised agility.
The canoe whirled, with each cunning evolution of the chase, like a bubble
floating in a whirlpool; and when the direction of the pursuit admitted of a
straight course, the little bark skimmed the lake with a velocity, that urged
the deer to seek its safety in some new turn. The frequency of these circuitous
movements, by confining the action to so small a compass, enabled the youth to
keep near his companions. More than twenty times both the pursued and the
pursuers glided by him, just without the reach of his oars, until he thought the
best way to view the sport was to remain stationary, and, by watching a
favourable opportunity, assist as much as he could in taking the victim.
    He was not required to wait long, for no sooner had he adopted this
resolution, and risen in the boat, than he saw the deer coming bravely towards
him, with an apparent intention of pushing for a point of land at some distance
from the hounds, which were still barking and howling on the shore. Edwards
caught the painter of his skiff, and, making a noose, cast it from him with all
his force, and luckily succeeded in drawing its knot close around one of the
antlers of the buck.
    For one instant, the skiff was drawn through the water, but in the next, the
canoe glided before it, and Natty, bending low, passed his knife across the
throat of the animal, whose blood followed the wound, dying the waters. The
short time that was passed in the last struggles of the animal, was spent by the
hunters in bringing their boats together, and securing them in that position;
when Leather-stocking drew the deer from the water, and laid its lifeless form
in the bottom of the canoe. He placed his hands on the ribs, and on different
parts of the body of his prize, and then, raising his head, he laughed in his
peculiar manner -
    »So much for Marmaduke Temple's law!« he said. »This warms a body's blood,
old John; I haven't killed a buck in the lake afore this, sin' many a year. I
call that good venison, lad; and I know them that will relish the creature's
steaks, for all the betterments in the land.«
    The Indian had long been drooping with his years, and perhaps under the
calamities of his race, but this invigorating and exciting sport caused a gleam
of sunshine to cross his swarthy face, that had long been absent from his
features. It was evident the old man enjoyed the chase more as a memorial of his
youthful sports and deeds, than with any expectation of profiting by the
success. He felt the deer, however, lightly, his hand already trembling with the
re-action of his unusual exertions, and smiled with a nod of approbation, as he
said, in the emphatic and sententious manner of his people -
    »Good.«
    »I am afraid, Natty,« said Edwards, when the heat of the moment had passed,
and his blood began to cool, »that we have all been equally transgressors of the
law. But keep your own counsel, and there are none here to betray us. Yet, how
came those dogs at large? I left them securely fastened, I know, for I felt the
thongs, and examined the knots, when I was at the hut.«
    »It has been too much for the poor things,« said Natty, »to have such a buck
take the wind of them. See, lad, the pieces of the buck-skin are hanging from
their necks yet. Let us paddle up, John, and I will call them in, and look a
little into the matter.«
    When the old hunter landed, and examined the thongs that were yet fast to
the hounds, his countenance sensibly changed, and he shook his head doubtingly.
    »Here has been a knife at work,« he said - »this skin was never torn, nor is
this the mark of a hound's tooth. No, no - Hector is not in fault, as I feared.«
    »Has the leather been cut?« cried Edwards.
    »No, no - I didn't say it had been cut, lad; but this is a mark that was
never made by a jump or a bite.«
    »Could that rascally carpenter have dared!«
    »Ay! he durst to do any thing when there is no danger,« said Natty; »he is a
curous body, and loves to be helping other people on with their concarns. But he
had best not harbour so much near the wigwam.«
    In the mean time, Mohegan had been examining, with an Indian's sagacity, the
place where the leather thong had been separated. After scrutinizing it closely,
he said, in Delaware -
    »It was cut with a knife - a sharp blade and a long handle - the man was
afraid of the dogs.«
    »How is this, Mohegan!« exclaimed Edwards; »You saw it not! how can you know
these facts?«
    »Listen, son,« said the warrior. »The knife was sharp, for the cut is
smooth; - the handle was long, for a man's arm would not reach from this gash to
the cut that did not go through the skin; - he was a coward, or he would have
cut the thongs around the necks of the hounds.«
    »On my life,« cried Natty, »John is on the scent! It was the carpenter; and
he has got on the rock back of the kennel, and let the dogs loose by fastening
his knife to a stick. It would be an easy matter to do it, where a man is so
minded.«
    »And why should he do so?« asked Edwards; »who has done him wrong, that he
should trouble two old men like you?«
    »It's a hard matter, lad, to know men's ways, I find, since the settlers
have brought in their new fashions. But is there nothing to be found out in the
place? and maybe he is troubled with his longings after other people's business,
as he often is.«
    »Your suspicions are just. Give me the canoe: I am young and strong, and
will get down there yet, perhaps, in time to interrupt his plans. Heaven forbid,
that we should be at the mercy of such a man!«
    His proposal was accepted, the deer being placed in the skiff in order to
lighten the canoe, and in less than five minutes the little vessel of bark was
gliding over the glassy lake, and was soon hid by the points of land, as it shot
close along the shore.
    Mohegan followed slowly with the skiff, while Natty called his hounds to
him, bade them keep close, and, shouldering his rifle, he ascended the mountain,
with an intention of going to the hut by land.
 

                                 Chapter XXVIII

 »Ask me not what the maiden feels,
 Left in that dreadful hour alone;
 Perchance, her reason stoops, or reels;
 Perchance, a courage not her own,
 Braces her mind to desperate tone.«
                                                    Scott, Marmion, VI.xxix.1-5.
 
While the chase was occurring on the lake, Miss Temple and her companion pursued
their walk on the mountain. Male attendants, on such excursions, were thought to
be altogether unnecessary, for none were ever known to offer an insult to a
female who respected herself. After the embarrassment, created by the parting
discourse with Edwards, had dissipated, the girls maintained a conversation that
was as innocent and cheerful as themselves.
    The path they took led them but a short distance above the hut of
Leather-stocking, and there was a point in the road which commanded a bird's-eye
view of the sequestered spot.
    From a feeling, that might have been natural, and must have been powerful,
neither of the friends, in their frequent and confidential dialogues, had ever
trusted herself to utter one syllable concerning the equivocal situation in
which the young man, who was now so intimately associated with them, had been
found. If Judge Temple had deemed it prudent to make any inquiries on the
subject, he had also thought it proper to keep the answers to himself; though it
was so common an occurrence to find the well-educated youth of the eastern
states, in every stage of their career to wealth, that the simple circumstance
of his intelligence, connected with his poverty, would not, at that day, and in
that country, have excited any very powerful curiosity. With his breeding it
might have been different; but the youth himself had so effectually guarded
against surprise on this subject, by his cold, and even, in some cases, rude
deportment, that when his manners seemed to soften by time, the Judge, if he
thought about it at all, would have been most likely to imagine that the
improvement was the result of his late association. But women are always more
alive to such subjects than men; and what the abstraction of the father had
overlooked, the observation of the daughter had easily detected. In the thousand
little courtesies of polished life, she had early discovered that Edwards was
not wanting, though his gentleness was so often crossed by marks of what she
conceived to be fierce and uncontrollable passions. It may, perhaps, be
unnecessary to tell the reader that Louisa Grant never reasoned so much after
the fashions of the world. The gentle girl, however, had her own thoughts on the
subject, and, like others, she drew her own conclusions.
    »I would give all my other secrets, Louisa,« exclaimed Miss Temple,
laughing, and shaking back her dark locks, with a look of childish simplicity
that her intelligent face seldom expressed, »to be mistress of all that those
rude logs have heard and witnessed.«
    They were both looking at the secluded hut, at the instant, and Miss Grant
raised her mild eyes, as she answered -
    »I am sure they would tell nothing to the disadvantage of Mr. Edwards.«
    »Perhaps not; but they might, at least, tell who he is.«
    »Why, dear Miss Temple, we know all that already. I have heard it all very
rationally explained by your cousin« -
    »The executive chief! he can explain any thing. His ingenuity will one day
discover the philosopher's stone. But what did he say?«
    »Say!« echoed Louisa, with a look of surprise; »why every thing that seemed
to me to be satisfactory; and I have believed it to be true. He said that Natty
Bumppo had lived most of his life in the woods, and among the Indians, by which
means he had formed an acquaintance with old John, the Delaware chief.«
    »Indeed! that was quite a matter of fact tale for cousin Dickon. What came
next?«
    »I believe he accounted for their close intimacy, by some story about the
Leather-stocking saving the life of John in a battle.«
    »Nothing more likely,« said Elizabeth, a little impatiently; »but what is
all this to the purpose?«
    »Nay, Elizabeth, you must bear with my ignorance, and I will repeat all that
I remember to have overheard; for the dialogue was between my father and the
Sheriff, so lately as the last time they met. He then added, that the kings of
England used to keep gentlemen as agents among the different tribes of Indians,
and sometimes officers in the army, who frequently passed half their lives on
the edge of the wilderness.«
    »Told with wonderful historical accuracy! And did he end there?«
    »Oh! no - then he said that these agents seldom married; and - and - they
must have been wicked men, Elizabeth! but I assure you he said so.«
    »Never mind,« said Miss Temple, blushing and smiling, though so slightly
that both were unheeded by her companion - »skip all that.«
    »Well, then he said that they often took great pride in the education of
their children, whom they frequently sent to England, and even to the colleges;
and this is the way that he accounts for the liberal manner in which Mr. Edwards
has been taught; for he acknowledges that he knows almost as much as your father
- or mine - or even himself!«
    »Quite a climax in learning! And so he made Mohegan the grand-uncle or
grandfather of Oliver Edwards.«
    »You have heard him yourself, then?« said Louisa.
    »Often; but not on this subject. Mr. Richard Jones, you know, dear, has a
theory for every thing; but has he one which will explain the reason why that
hut is the only habitation within fifty miles of us, whose door is not open to
every person who may choose to lift its latch?«
    »I have never heard him say any thing on this subject,« returned the
clergyman's daughter; »but I suppose that, as they are poor, they very naturally
are anxious to keep the little that they honestly own. It is sometimes dangerous
to be rich, Miss Temple; but you cannot know how hard it is to be very, very
poor.«
    »Nor you, I trust, Louisa; at least I should hope, that in this land of
abundance, no minister of the church could be left to absolute suffering.«
    »There cannot be actual misery,« returned the other, in a low and humble
tone, »where there is a dependence on our Maker; but there may be such suffering
as will cause the heart to ache.«
    »But not you - not you,« said the impetuous Elizabeth - »not you, dear girl;
you have never known the misery that is connected with poverty.«
    »Ah! Miss Temple, you little understand the troubles of this life, I
believe. My father has spent many years as a missionary, in the new countries,
where his people were poor, and frequently we have been without bread; unable to
buy, and ashamed to beg, because we would not disgrace his sacred calling. But
how often have I seen him leave his home, where the sick and the hungry felt,
when he left them, that they had lost their only earthly friend, to ride on a
duty which could not be neglected for domestic evils. Oh! how hard it must be,
to preach consolation to others, when your own heart is bursting with anguish!«
    »But it is all over now! your father's income must now be equal to his wants
- it must be - it shall be« -
    »It is,« replied Louisa, dropping her head on her bosom to conceal the tears
which flowed in spite of her gentle Christianity, »for there are none left to be
supplied but me.«
    The turn the conversation had taken drove from the minds of the young
maidens all other thoughts but those of holy charity, and Elizabeth folded her
friend in her arms, when the latter gave vent to her momentary grief in audible
sobs. When this burst of emotion had subsided, Louisa raised her mild
countenance, and they continued their walk in silence.
    By this time they had gained the summit of the mountain, where they left the
highway, and pursued their course, under the shade of the stately trees that
crowned the eminence. The day was becoming warm, and the girls plunged more
deeply into the forest, as they found its invigorating coolness agreeably
contrasted to the excessive heat they had experienced in the ascent. The
conversation, as if by mutual consent, was entirely changed to the little
incidents and scenes of their walk, and every tall pine, and every shrub or
flower, called forth some simple expression of admiration.
    In this manner they proceeded along the margin of the precipice, catching
occasional glimpses of the placid Otsego, or pausing to listen to the rattling
of wheels and the sounds of hammers, that rose from the valley, to mingle the
signs of men with the scenes of nature, when Elizabeth suddenly started, and
exclaimed -
    »Listen! there are the cries of a child on this mountain! is there a
clearing near us? or can some little one have strayed from its parents?«
    »Such things frequently happen,« returned Louisa. »Let us follow the sounds;
it may be a wanderer, starving on the hill.«
    Urged by this consideration, the females pursued the low, mournful sounds,
that proceeded from the forest, with quick and impatient steps. More than once,
the ardent Elizabeth was on the point of announcing that she saw the sufferer,
when Louisa caught her by the arm, and pointing behind them, cried -
    »Look at the dog!«
    Brave had been their companion, from the time the voice of his young
mistress lured him from his kennel, to the present moment. His advanced age had
long before deprived him of his activity; and when his companions stopped to
view the scenery, or to add to their bouquets, the mastiff would lay his huge
frame on the ground, and await their movements, with his eyes closed, and a
listlessness in his air that ill accorded with the character of a protector. But
when, aroused by this cry from Louisa, Miss Temple turned, she saw the dog with
his eyes keenly set on some distant object, his head bent near the ground, and
his hair actually rising on his body, through fright or anger. It was most
probably the latter, for he was growling in a low key, and occasionally showing
his teeth, in a manner that would have terrified his mistress, had she not so
well known his good qualities.
    »Brave!« she said, »be quiet, Brave! what do you see, fellow?«
    At the sounds of her voice, the rage of the mastiff, instead of being at all
diminished, was very sensibly increased. He stalked in front of the ladies, and
seated himself at the feet of his mistress, growling louder than before, and
occasionally giving vent to his ire by a short, surly barking.
    »What does he see?« said Elizabeth; »there must be some animal in sight.«
    Hearing no answer from her companion, Miss Temple turned her head, and
beheld Louisa, standing with her face whitened to the colour of death, and her
finger pointing upward, with a sort of flickering, convulsed motion. The quick
eye of Elizabeth glanced in the direction indicated by her friend, where she saw
the fierce front and glaring eyes of a female panther, fixed on them in horrid
malignity, and threatening to leap.
    »Let us fly!« exclaimed Elizabeth, grasping the arm of Louisa, whose form
yielded like melting snow.
    There was not a single feeling in the temperament of Elizabeth Temple, that
could prompt her to desert a companion in such an extremity. She fell on her
knees, by the side of the inanimate Louisa, tearing from the person of her
friend, with instinctive readiness, such parts of her dress as might obstruct
her respiration, and encouraging their only safeguard, the dog, at the same
time, by the sounds of her voice.
    »Courage, Brave,« she cried, her own tones beginning to tremble, »courage,
courage, good Brave.«
    A quarter-grown cub, that had hitherto been unseen, now appeared, dropping
from the branches of a sapling, that grew under the shade of the beech which
held its dam. This ignorant, but vitious creature, approached the dog, imitating
the actions and sounds of its parent, but exhibiting a strange mixture of the
playfulness of a kitten with the ferocity of its race. - Standing on its hind
legs, it would rend the bark of a tree with its fore paws, and play the antics
of a cat; and then, by lashing itself with its tail, growling, and scratching
the earth, it would attempt the manifestations of anger that rendered its parent
so terrific.
    All this time Brave stood firm and undaunted, his short tail erect, his body
drawn backward on its haunches, and his eyes following the movements of both dam
and cub. At every gambol played by the latter, it approached nigher to the dog,
the growling of the three becoming more horrid at each moment, until the younger
beast overleaping its intended bound, fell directly before the mastiff. There
was a moment of fearful cries and struggles, but they ended almost as soon as
commenced, by the cub appearing in the air, hurled from the jaws of Brave, with
a violence that sent it against a tree so forcibly, as to render it completely
senseless.
    Elizabeth witnessed the short struggle, and her blood was warming with the
triumph of the dog, when she saw the form of the old panther in the air,
springing twenty feet from the branch of the beech to the back of the mastiff.
No words of ours can describe the fury of the conflict that followed. It was a
confused struggle on the dried leaves, accompanied by loud and terrific cries.
Miss Temple continued on her knees, bending over the form of Louisa, her eyes
fixed on the animals, with an interest so horrid, and yet so intense, that she
almost forgot her own stake in the result. So rapid and vigorous were the bounds
of the inhabitant of the forest, that its active frame seemed constantly in the
air, while the dog nobly faced his foe, at each successive leap. When the
panther lighted on the shoulders of the mastiff, which was its constant aim, old
Brave, though torn with her talons, and stained with his own blood, that already
flowed from a dozen wounds, would shake off his furious foe, like a feather, and
rearing on his hind legs, rush to the fray again, with jaws distended, and a
dauntless eye. But age, and his pampered life, greatly disqualified the noble
mastiff for such a struggle. In every thing but courage, he was only the vestige
of what he had once been. A higher bound than ever, raised the wary and furious
beast far beyond the reach of the dog, who was making a desperate, but fruitless
dash at her, from which she alighted in a favourable position, on the back of
her aged foe. For a single moment, only, could the panther remain there, the
great strength of the dog returning with a convulsive effort. But Elizabeth saw,
as Brave fastened his teeth in the side of his enemy, that the collar of brass
around his neck, which had been glittering throughout the fray, was of the
colour of blood, and directly, that his frame was sinking to the earth, where it
soon lay prostrate and helpless. Several mighty efforts of the wild-cat to
extricate herself from the jaws of the dog, followed, but they were fruitless,
until the mastiff turned on his back, his lips collapsed, and his teeth
loosened; when the short convulsions and stillness that succeeded, announced the
death of poor Brave.
    Elizabeth now lay wholly at the mercy of the beast. There is said to be
something in the front of the image of the Maker, that daunts the hearts of the
inferior beings of his creation; and it would seem that some such power, in the
present instance, suspended the threatened blow. The eyes of the monster and the
kneeling maiden met, for an instant, when the former stooped to examine her
fallen foe; next to scent her luckless cub. From the latter examination it
turned, however, with its eyes apparently emitting flashes of fire, its tail
lashing its sides furiously, and its claws projecting inches from its broad
feet.
    Miss Temple did not, or could not move. Her hands were clasped in the
attitude of prayer, but her eyes were still drawn to her terrible enemy; her
cheeks were blanched to the whiteness of marble, and her lips were slightly
separated with horror. The moment seemed now to have arrived for the fatal
termination, and the beautiful figure of Elizabeth was bowing meekly to the
stroke, when a rustling of leaves behind seemed rather to mock the organs, than
to meet her ears.
    »Hist! hist!« said a low voice - »stoop lower, gall; your bunnet hides the
creature's head.«
    It was rather the yielding of nature than a compliance with this unexpected
order, that caused the head of our heroine to sink on her bosom; when she heard
the report of the rifle, the whizzing of the bullet, and the enraged cries of
the beast, who was rolling over on the earth, biting its own flesh, and tearing
the twigs and branches within its reach. At the next instant the form of the
Leather-stocking rushed by her, and he called aloud -
    »Come in, Hector, come in, old fool; 'tis a hard-lived animal, and may jump
ag'in.«
    Natty fearlessly maintained his position in front of the females,
notwithstanding the violent bounds and threatening aspect of the wounded
panther, which gave several indications of returning strength and ferocity,
until his rifle was again loaded, when he stepped up to the enraged animal, and,
placing the muzzle close to its head, every spark of life was extinguished by
the discharge.
    The death of her terrible enemy appeared to Elizabeth like a resurrection
from her own grave. There was an elasticity in the mind of our heroine, that
rose to meet the pressure of instant danger, and the more direct it had been,
the more her nature had struggled to overcome it. But still she was a woman. Had
she been left to herself, in her late extremity, she would probably have used
her faculties to the utmost, and with discretion, in protecting her person, but
encumbered with her inanimate friend, retreat was a thing not to be attempted. -
Notwithstanding the fearful aspect of her foe, the eye of Elizabeth had never
shrunk from its gaze, and long after the event, her thoughts would recur to her
passing sensations, and the sweetness of her midnight sleep would be disturbed,
as her active fancy conjured, in dreams, the most trifling movements of savage
fury, that the beast had exhibited in its moment of power.
    We shall leave the reader to imagine the restoration of Louisa's senses, and
the expressions of gratitude which fell from the young women. The former was
effected by a little water, that was brought from one of the thousand springs of
those mountains, in the cap of the Leather-stocking; and the latter were uttered
with the warmth that might be expected from the character of Elizabeth. - Natty
received her vehement protestations of gratitude, with a simple expression of
good will, and with indulgence for her present excitement, but with a
carelessness that showed how little he thought of the service he had rendered.
    »Well, well,« he said, »be it so, gall; let it be so, if you wish it, -
we'll talk the thing over another time. Come, come - let us get into the road,
for you've had tirror enough to make you wish yourself in your father's house
ag'in.«
    This was uttered as they were proceeding, at a pace that was adapted to the
weakness of Louisa, towards the highway; on reaching which the ladies separated
from their guide, declaring themselves equal to the remainder of the walk
without his assistance, and feeling encouraged by the sight of the village,
which lay beneath their feet, like a picture, with its limpid lake in front, the
winding stream along its margin, and its hundred chimneys of whitened bricks.
    The reader need not be told the nature of the emotions, which two youthful,
ingenuous, and well-educated girls would experience, at their escape from a
death so horrid as the one which had impended over them, while they pursued
their way in silence along the track on the side of the mountain; nor how deep
were their mental thanks to that Power which had given them their existence, and
which had not deserted them in their extremity; neither how often they pressed
each other's arms, as the assurance of their present safety came, like a healing
balm, athwart their troubled spirits, when their thoughts were recurring to the
recent moments of horror.
    Leather-stocking remained on the hill, gazing after their retiring figures,
until they were hid by a bend in the road, when he whistled in his dogs, and,
shouldering his rifle, he returned into the forest.
    »Well, it was a skeary thing to the young creaters,« said Natty, while he
retrod the path towards the slain. »It might frighten an older woman, to see a
she-painter so near her, with a dead cub by its side. I wonder if I had aimed at
the varmint's eye, if I shouldn't have touched the life sooner than in the
forehead? but they are hard-lived animals, and it was a good shot, consid'ring
that I could see nothing but the head and the peak of its tail. Ha! who goes
there?«
    »How goes it, Natty?« said Mr. Doolittle, stepping out of the bushes, with a
motion that was a good deal accelerated by the sight of the rifle, that was
already lowered in his direction. »What! shooting this warm day! mind old man,
the law don't get hold on you.«
    »The law, Squire! I have shook hands with the law these forty year,«
returned Natty; »for what has a man who lives in the wilderness to do with the
ways of the law?«
    »Not much, maybe,« said Hiram; »but you sometimes trade in ven'son. I s'pose
you know, Leather-stocking, that there is an act passed to lay a fine of five
pounds currency, or twelve dollars and fifty cents, by dicimals, on every man
who kills a deer betwixt January and August. The Judge had a great hand in
getting the law through.«
    »I can believe it,« returned the old hunter; »I can believe that, or any
thing, of a man who carries on as he does in the country.«
    »Yes, the law is quite positive, and the Judge is bent on putting it in
force - five pounds penalty. I thought I heard your hounds out on the scent of
so'thing this morning: I didn't know but they might get you in difficulty.«
    »They know their manners too well,« said Natty, carelessly. »And how much
goes to the state's evidence, Squire?«
    »How much!« repeated Hiram, quailing under the honest, but sharp look of the
hunter - »the informer gets half, I - I b'lieve; - yes, I guess it's half. But
there's blood on your sleeve, man; - you haven't been shooting any thing this
morning?«
    »I have, though,« said the hunter, nodding his head significantly to the
other, »and a good shot I made of it.«
    »He-e-m!« ejaculated the magistrate; »and where is the game? I s'pose it's
of a good nater, for your dogs won't hunt any thing that isn't choish.«
    »They'll hunt any thing I tell them to, Squire,« cried Natty, favouring the
other with his laugh. »They'll hunt you, if I say so. He-e-e-re, he-e-e-re,
Hector - he-e-e-re, slut - come this a-way, pups - come this a-way - come
hither.«
    »Oh! I've always heern a good character of the dogs,« returned Mr.
Doolittle, quickening his pace by raising each leg in rapid succession, as the
hounds scented around his person. »And where is the game, Leather-stocking?«
    During this dialogue, the speakers had been walking at a very fast gait, and
Natty swung the end of his rifle round, pointing through the bushes, and replied
-
    »There lays one. How do you like such meat?«
    »This!« exclaimed Hiram, »why this is Judge Temple's dog Brave. Take kear,
Leather-stocking, and don't make an enemy of the Judge. I hope you haven't
harmed the animal?«
    »Look for yourself, Mr. Doolittle,« said Natty, drawing his knife from his
girdle, and wiping it, in a knowing manner, once or twice across his garment of
buck-skin; »does his throat look as if I had cut it with this knife?«
    »It is dreadfully tore! it's an awful wownd! - no knife never did this deed.
Who could have done it?«
    »The painters behind you, Squire.«
    »Painters!« echoed Hiram, whirling on his heel, with an agility that would
have done credit to a dancing master.
    »Be easy, man,« said Natty; »there's two of the vinimous things; but the dog
finished one, and I have fastened the other's jaws for her; so don't be
frightened, Squire; they won't hurt you.«
    »And where's the deer?« cried Hiram, staring about him with a bewildered
air.
    »Anan! deer!« repeated Natty.
    »Sartain; an't there ven'son here, or didn't you kill a buck?«
    »What! when the law forbids the thing, Squire!« said the old hunter. »I hope
there's no law ag'in killing the painters.«
    »No; there's a bounty on the scalps - but - will your dogs hunt painters,
Natty?«
    »Any thing; didn't I tell you they'd hunt a man? He-e-re, he-e-re, pups« -
    »Yes, yes, I remember. Well, they are strange dogs, I must say - I am quite
in a wonderment.«
    Natty had seated himself on the ground, and having laid the grim head of his
late ferocious enemy in his lap, was drawing his knife, with a practised hand,
around the ears, which he tore from the head of the beast in such a manner as to
preserve their connexion, when he answered -
    »What at, Squire? did you never see a painter's scalp afore? Come, you be a
magistrate. I wish you'd make me out an order for the bounty.«
    »The bounty!« repeated Hiram, holding the ears on the end of his finger, for
a moment, as if uncertain how to proceed. »Well, let us go down to your hut,
where you can take the oath, and I will write out the order. I s'pose you have a
bible? all the law wants is the four evangelists and the Lord's prayer.«
    »I keep no books,« said Natty, a little coldly; »not such a bible as the law
needs.«
    »Oh! there's but one sort of bible that's good in law,« returned the
magistrate; »and yourn will do as well as another's. Come, the carcasses are
worth nothing, man; let us go down and take the oath.«
    »Softly, softly, Squire,« said the hunter, lifting his trophies very
deliberately from the ground, and shouldering his rifle; »why do you want an
oath at all, for a thing that your own eyes has seen? won't you believe
yourself, that another man must swear to a fact that you know to be true? You
have seen me scalp the creaters, and if I must swear to it, it shall be before
Judge Temple, who needs an oath.«
    »But we have no pen or paper here, Leather-stocking; we must go to the hut
for them, or how can I write the order?«
    Natty turned his simple features on the cunning magistrate with another of
his laughs, as he said -
    »And what should I be doing with scholar's tools? I want no pens or paper,
not knowing the use of 'ither; and I keep none. No, no, I'll bring the scalps
into the village, Squire, and you can make out the order on one of your
law-books, and it will be all the better for it. The deuce take this leather on
the neck of the dog, it will strangle the old fool. Can you lend me a knife,
Squire?«
    Hiram, who seemed particularly anxious to be on good terms with his
companion, unhesitatingly complied. Natty cut the thong from the neck of the
hound, and, as he returned the knife to its owner, carelessly remarked -
    »'Tis a good bit of steel, and has cut such leather as this very same before
now, I dare to say.«
    »Do you mean to charge me with letting your hounds loose!« exclaimed Hiram,
with a consciousness that disarmed his caution.
    »Loose!« repeated the hunter - »I let them loose myself. I always let them
loose before I leave the hut.«
    The ungovernable amazement with which Mr. Doolittle listened to this
falsehood, would have betrayed his agency in the liberation of the dogs, had
Natty wanted any further confirmation; and the coolness and management of the
old man now disappeared in open indignation.
    »Look you here, Mr. Doolittle,« he said, striking the breech of his rifle
violently on the ground: »what there is in the wigwam of a poor man like me,
that one like you can crave, I don't know; but this I tell you to your face,
that you never shall put foot under the roof of my cabin with my consent, and
that if you harbour round the spot as you have done lately, you may meet with
treatment that you will little relish.«
    »And let me tell you, Mr. Bumppo,« said Hiram, retreating, however, with a
quick step, »that I know you've broke the law, and that I'm a magistrate, and
will make you feel it too, before you are a day older.«
    »That for you and your law too,« cried Natty, snapping his fingers at the
justice of the peace - »away with you, you varmint, before the divil tempts me
to give you your desarts. Take kear, if I ever catch your prowling face in the
woods ag'in, that I don't shoot it for an owl.«
    There is something at all times commanding in honest indignation, and Hiram
did not stay to provoke the wrath of the old hunter to extremities. When the
intruder was out of sight, Natty proceeded to the hut, where he found all quiet
as the grave. He fastened his dogs, and tapping at the door, which was opened by
Edwards, asked -
    »Is all safe, lad?«
    »Every thing,« returned the youth. »Some one attempted the lock, but it was
too strong for him.«
    »I know the creature,« said Natty; »but he'll not trust himself within reach
of my rifle very soon -« What more was uttered by the Leather-stocking, in his
vexation, was rendered inaudible by the closing of the door of the cabin.
 

                                  Chapter XXIX

            »It is noised, he hath a mass of treasure.«
                                                    Timon of Athens, IV.iii.402.
 
When Marmaduke Temple and his cousin rode through the gate of the former, the
heart of the father had been too recently touched with the best feelings of our
nature, to leave inclination for immediate discourse. There was an importance in
the air of Richard, which would not have admitted of the ordinary informal
conversation of the Sheriff, without violating all the rules of consistency; and
the equestrians pursued their way with great diligence, for more than a mile, in
profound silence. At length the soft expression of parental affection was slowly
chased from the handsome features of the Judge, and was gradually supplanted by
the cast of humour and benevolence that was usually seated on his brow.
    »Well, Dickon,« he said, »since I have yielded myself, so far, implicitly to
your guidance, I think the moment has arrived, when I am entitled to further
confidence. Why and wherefore are we journeying together in this solemn gait?«
    The Sheriff gave a loud hem, that rung far in the forest, and keeping his
eyes fixed on objects before him, like a man who is looking deep into futurity -
    »There has always been one point of difference between us, Judge Temple, I
may say, since our nativity,« he replied; »not that I would insinuate that you
are at all answerable for the acts of nature; for a man is no more to be
condemned for the misfortunes of his birth, than he is to be commended for the
natural advantages he may possess; but on one point we may be said to have
differed from our births, and they, you know, occurred within two days of each
other.«
    »I really marvel, Richard, what this one point can be; for, to my eyes, we
seem to differ so materially, and so often« -
    »Mere consequences, sir,« interrupted the Sheriff; »all our minor
differences proceed from one cause, and that is, our opinions of the universal
attainments of genius.«
    »In what, Dickon?«
    »I speak plain English, I believe, Judge Temple; at least I ought; for my
father, who taught me, could speak« -
    »Greek and Latin,« interrupted Marmaduke - »I well know the qualifications
of your family in tongues, Dickon. But proceed to the point; why are we
travelling over this mountain to-day?«
    »To do justice to any subject, sir, the narrator must be suffered to proceed
in his own way,« continued the Sheriff. »You are of opinion, Judge Temple, that
a man is to be qualified by nature and education to do only one thing well,
whereas I know that genius will supply the place of learning, and that a certain
sort of man can do any thing and every thing.«
    »Like yourself, I suppose,« said Marmaduke, smiling.
    »I scorn personalities, sir, I say nothing of myself; but there are three
men on your Patent, of the kind that I should term talented by nature, for her
general purposes, though acting under the influence of different situations.«
    »We are better off, then, than I had supposed. Who are these triumviri?«
    »Why, sir, one is Hiram Doolittle; a carpenter by trade, as you know, and I
need only to point to the village to exhibit his merits. Then he is a
magistrate, and might shame many a man, in his distribution of justice, who has
had better opportunities.«
    »Well, he is one,« said Marmaduke, with the air of a man that was determined
not to dispute the point.
    »Jotham Riddel is another.«
    »Who?«
    »Jotham Riddel.«
    »What, that dissatisfied, shiftless, lazy, speculating fellow! he who
changes his county every three years, his farm every six months, and his
occupation every season! an agriculturist yesterday, a shoemaker to-day, and a
schoolmaster to-morrow! that epitome of all the unsteady and profitless
propensities of the settlers, without one of their good qualities to
counterbalance the evil! Nay, Richard, this is too bad for even - but the
third?«
    »As the third is not used to hearing such comments on his character, Judge
Temple, I shall not name him.«
    »The amount of all this, then, Dickon, is, that the trio, of which you are
one, and the principal, have made some important discovery.«
    »I have not said that I am one, Judge Temple. As I told you before, I say
nothing egotistical. But a discovery has been made, and you are deeply
interested in it.«
    »Proceed - I am all ears.«
    »No, no, 'duke, you are bad enough, I own, but not so bad as that either;
your ears are not quite full grown.«
    The Sheriff laughed heartily at his own wit, and put himself in good humour
thereby, when he gratified his patient cousin with the following explanation: -
    »You know, 'duke, there is a man living on your estate, that goes by the
name of Natty Bumppo. Here has this man lived, by what I can learn, for more
than forty years - by himself, until lately; and now with strange companions.«
    »Part very true, and all very probable,« said the Judge.
    »All true, sir; all true. Well, within these last few months have appeared
as his companions, an old Indian chief, the last, or one of the last of his
tribe, that is to be found in this part of the country, and a young man, who is
said to be the son of some Indian agent, by a squaw.«
    »Who says that!« cried Marmaduke, with an interest that he had not
manifested before.
    »Who! why common sense - common report - the hue and cry. But listen, till
you know all. This youth has very pretty talents - yes, what I call very pretty
talents - and has been well educated, has seen very tolerable company, and knows
how to behave himself, when he has a mind to. Now, Judge Temple, can you tell me
what has brought three such men as Indian John, Natty Bumppo, and Oliver
Edwards, together?«
    Marmaduke turned his countenance, in evident surprise, to his cousin, and
replied quickly -
    »Thou hast unexpectedly hit on a subject, Richard, that has often occupied
my mind. But knows thou any thing of this mystery, or are they only the crude
conjectures of« -
    »Crude nothing, 'duke, crude nothing; but facts, stubborn facts. You know
there are mines in these mountains; I have often heard you say that you believed
in their existence« -
    »Reasoning from analogy, Richard, but not with any certainty of the fact.«
    »You have heard them mentioned, and have seen specimens of the ore, sir; you
will not deny that! and, reasoning from analogy, as you say, if there be mines
in South America, ought there not to be mines in North America too?«
    »Nay, nay, I deny nothing, my cousin. I certainly have heard many rumours of
the existence of mines, in these hills; and I do believe that I have seen
specimens of the precious metals that have been found here. It would occasion me
no surprise to learn that tin and silver, or, what I consider of more
consequence, good coal,« -
    »Damn your coal,« cried the Sheriff; »who wants to find coal, in these
forests? No, no, silver, 'duke; silver is the one thing needful, and silver is
to be found. But listen: you are not to be told that the natives have long known
the use of gold and silver; now who so likely to be acquainted where they are to
be found, as the ancient inhabitants of a country? I have the best reasons for
believing that both Mohegan and the Leather-stocking have been privy to the
existence of a mine, in this very mountain, for many years.«
    The Sheriff had now touched his cousin in a sensitive spot, and Marmaduke
lent a more attentive ear to the speaker, who, after waiting a moment, to see
the effect of this extraordinary development, proceeded -
    »Yes, sir, I have my reasons, and at a proper time you shall know them.«
    »No time is so good as the present.«
    »Well, well, be attentive,« continued Richard, looking cautiously about him,
to make certain that no eavesdropper was hid in the forest, though they were in
constant motion. »I have seen Mohegan and the Leather-stocking, with my own eyes
- and my eyes are as good as any body's eyes - I have seen them, I say, both
going up the mountain and coming down it, with spades and picks; and others have
seen them carrying things into their hut, in a secret and mysterious manner,
after dark. Do you call this a fact of importance?«
    The Judge did not reply, but his brow had contracted, with a thoughtfulness
that he always wore when much interested, and his eyes rested on his cousin in
expectation of hearing more. Richard continued -
    »It was ore. Now, sir, I ask if you can tell me who this Mr. Oliver Edwards
is, that has made a part of your household since Christmas?«
    Marmaduke again raised his eyes, but continued silent, shaking his head in
the negative.
    »That he is a half-breed we know, for Mohegan does not scruple to call him,
openly, his kinsman; that he is well educated we know. But as to his business
here - do you remember that about a month before this young man made his
appearance among us, Natty was absent from home several days? You do; for you
inquired for him, as you wanted some venison to take to your friends, when you
went for Bess. Well, he was not to be found. Old John was left in the hut alone;
and when Natty did appear, although he came on in the night, he was seen drawing
one of those jumpers that they carry their grain to mill in, and to take out
something, with great care, that he had covered up under his bear-skins. Now let
me ask you, Judge Temple, what motive could induce a man like the
Leather-stocking to make a sled, and toil with a load over these mountains, if
he had nothing but his rifle or his ammunition to carry?«
    »They frequently make these jumpers to convey their game home, and you say
he had been absent many days.«
    »How did he kill it? His rifle was in the village to be mended. No, no -
that he was gone to some unusual place is certain; that he brought back some
secret utensils is more certain; and that he has not allowed a soul to approach
his hut since, is most certain of all.«
    »He was never fond of intruders« -
    »I know it,« interrupted Richard; »but did he drive them from his cabin
morosely? Within a fortnight of his return, this Mr. Edwards appears. They spend
whole days in the mountains, pretending to be shooting, but in reality
exploring; the frosts prevent their digging at that time, and he avails himself
of a lucky accident to get into good quarters. But even now, he is quite half of
his time in that hut - many hours every night. They are smelting, 'duke, they
are smelting, and as they grow rich you grow poor.«
    »How much of this is thine own, Richard, and how much comes from others? I
would sift the wheat from the chaff.«
    »Part is my own, for I saw the jumper, though it was broken up and burnt in
a day or two. I have told you that I saw the old man with his spades and picks.
Hiram met Natty, as he was crossing the mountain, the night of his arrival with
the sled, and very good-naturedly offered - Hiram is good natured - to carry up
part of his load, for the old man had a heavy pull up the back of the mountain,
but he wouldn't listen to the thing, and repulsed the offer in such a manner
that the Squire said he had half a mind to swear the peace against him. Since
the snow has been off, more especially after the frosts got out of the ground,
we have kept a watchful eye on the gentleman, in which we have found Jotham
useful.«
    Marmaduke did not much like the associates of Richard in this business;
still he knew them to be cunning and ready in expedients; and as there was
certainly something mysterious, not only in the connexion between the old
hunters and Edwards, but in what his cousin had just related, he begun to
revolve the subject in his own mind with more care. On reflection, he remembered
various circumstances that tended to corroborate these suspicions, and, as the
whole business favoured one of his infirmities, he yielded the more readily to
their impression. The mind of Judge Temple, at all times comprehensive, had
received, from his peculiar occupations, a bias to look far into futurity, in
his speculations on the improvements that posterity were to make in his lands.
To his eye, where others saw nothing but a wilderness, towns, manufactories,
bridges, canals, mines, and all the other resources of an old country, were
constantly presenting themselves, though his good sense suppressed, in some
degree, the exhibition of these expectations.
    As the Sheriff allowed his cousin full time to reflect on what he had heard,
the probability of some pecuniary adventure being the connecting link in the
chain that brought Oliver Edwards into the cabin of Leather-stocking, appeared
to him each moment to be stronger. But Marmaduke was too much in the habit of
examining both sides of a subject, not to perceive the objections, and he
reasoned with himself aloud: -
    »It cannot be so, or the youth would not be driven so near the verge of
poverty.«
    »What so likely to make a man dig for money, as being poor?« cried the
Sheriff.
    »Besides, there is an elevation of character about Oliver, that proceeds
from education, which would forbid so clandestine a proceeding.«
    »Could an ignorant fellow smelt?« continued Richard.
    »Bess hints that he was reduced even to his last shilling, when we took him
into our dwelling.«
    »He had been buying tools. And would he spend his last sixpence for a shot
at a turkey, had he not known where to get more?«
    »Can I have possibly been so long a dupe! His manner has been rude to me, at
times; but I attributed it to his conceiving himself injured, and to his
mistaking the forms of the world.«
    »Haven't you been a dupe all your life, 'duke? and an't what you call
ignorance of forms deep cunning, to conceal his real character?«
    »If he were bent on deception, he would have concealed his knowledge, and
passed with us for an inferior man.«
    »He cannot. I could no more pass for a fool, myself, than I could fly.
Knowledge is not to be concealed, like a candle under a bushel.«
    »Richard,« said the Judge, turning to his cousin, »there are many reasons
against the truth of thy conjectures; but thou hast awakened suspicions which
must be satisfied. But why are we travelling here?«
    »Jotham, who has been much in the mountain latterly, being kept there by me
and Hiram, has made a discovery, which he will not explain, he says, for he is
bound by an oath; but the amount is, that he knows where the ore lies, and he
has this day begun to dig. I would not consent to the thing, 'duke, without your
knowledge, for the land is yours; - and now you know the reason of our ride. I
call this a countermine, ha!«
    »And where is the desirable spot?« asked the Judge, with an air half
comical, half serious.
    »At hand; and when we have visited that, I will show you one of the places
that we have found within a week, where our hunters have been amusing themselves
for six months past.«
    The gentlemen continued to discuss the matter, while their horses picked
their way under the branches of trees, and over the uneven ground of the
mountain. They soon arrived at the end of their journey, where, in truth, they
found Jotham already buried to his neck in a hole that he had been digging.
    Marmaduke questioned the miner very closely, as to his reasons for believing
in the existence of the precious metals near that particular spot; but the
fellow maintained an obstinate mystery in his answers. He asserted that he had
the best of reasons for what he did, and inquired of the Judge what portion of
the profits would fall to his own share, in the event of success, with an
earnestness that proved his faith. After spending an hour near the place,
examining the stones, and searching for the usual indications of the proximity
of ore, the Judge remounted, and suffered his cousin to lead the way to the
place where the mysterious trio had been making their excavation.
    The spot chosen by Jotham was on the back of the mountain that overhung the
hut of Leather-stocking, and the place selected by Natty and his companions was
on the other side of the same hill, but above the road, and, of course, in an
opposite direction to the route taken by the ladies in their walk.
    »We shall be safe in approaching the place now,« said Richard, while they
dismounted and fastened their horses; »for I took a look with the glass, and saw
John and Leather-stocking in their canoe fishing, before we left home, and
Oliver is in the same pursuit; but these may be nothing but shams, to blind our
eyes, so we will be expeditious, for it would not be pleasant to be caught here
by them.«
    »Not on my own land!« said Marmaduke, sternly. »If it be as you suspect, I
will know their reasons for making this excavation.«
    »Mum,« said Richard, laying a finger on his lip, and leading the way down a
very difficult descent to a sort of a natural cavern, which was formed in the
face of the rock, and was not unlike a fire-place in shape. In front of this
place lay a pile of earth, which had evidently been taken from the recess, and
part of which was yet fresh. An examination of the exterior of the cavern, left
the Judge in doubt whether it was one of nature's frolics that had thrown it
into that shape, or whether it had been wrought by the hands of man, at some
earlier period. But there could be no doubt that the whole of the interior was
of recent formation, and the marks of the pick were still visible, where the
soft, lead-coloured rock had opposed itself to the progress of the miners. The
whole formed an excavation of about twenty feet in width, and nearly twice that
distance in depth. The height was much greater than was required for the
ordinary purposes of experiment; but this was evidently the effect of chance, as
the roof of the cavern was a natural stratum of rock, that projected many feet
beyond the base of the pile. Immediately in front of the recess, or cave, was a
little terrace, partly formed by nature, and partly by the earth that had been
carelessly thrown aside by the labourers. The mountain fell off precipitously in
front of the terrace, and the approach by its sides, under the ridge of the
rocks, was difficult, and a little dangerous. The whole was wild, rude, and
apparently incomplete; for, while looking among the bushes, the Sheriff found
the very implements that had been used in the work.
    When the Sheriff thought that his cousin had examined the spot sufficiently,
he asked solemnly -
    »Judge Temple, are you satisfied?«
    »Perfectly - that there is something mysterious, and perplexing, in this
business. It is a secret spot, and cunningly devised, Richard; yet I see no
symptoms of ore.«
    »Do you expect, sir, to find gold and silver lying like pebbles on the
surface of the earth? - dollars and dimes ready coined to your hands! No, no -
the treasure must be sought after to be won. But let them mine; I shall
countermine.«
    The Judge took an accurate survey of the place, and noted in his
memorandum-book such marks as were necessary to find it again, in the event of
Richard's absence; when the cousins returned to their horses.
    On reaching the highway they separated, the Sheriff to summon twenty-four
good men and true, to attend as the inquest of the county, on the succeeding
Monday, when Marmaduke held his stated court of common pleas and general
sessions of the peace, and the Judge to return, musing deeply on what he had
seen and heard in the course of the morning.
    When the horse of the latter reached the spot where the highway fell towards
the valley, the eye of Marmaduke rested, it is true, on the same scene that had,
ten minutes before, been so soothing to the feelings of his daughter and her
friend, as they emerged from the forest; but it rested in vacancy. He threw the
reins to his sure-footed beast, and suffered the animal to travel at its own
gait, while he soliloquized as follows: -
    »There may be more in this than I at first supposed. I have suffered my
feeling to blind my reason, in admitting an unknown youth in this manner to my
dwelling; - yet this is not the land of suspicion. I will have the
Leather-stocking before me, and, by a few direct questions, extract the truth
from the simple old man.« -
    At that instant the Judge caught a glimpse of the figures of Elizabeth and
Louisa, who were slowly descending the mountain, a short distance before him. He
put spurs to his horse, and riding up to them, dismounted, and drove his steed
along the narrow path. While the agitated parent was listening to the vivid
description that his daughter gave of her recent danger, and her unexpected
escape, all thoughts of mines, vested rights, and examinations, were absorbed in
emotion; and when the image of Natty again crossed his recollection, it was not
as a lawless and depredating squatter, but as the preserver of his child.
 

                                  Chapter XXX

            »The court awards it, and the law doth give it.«
                                               The Merchant of Venice, IV.i.300.
 
Remarkable Pettibone, who had forgotten the wound received by her pride, in
contemplation of the ease and comforts of her situation, and who still retained
her station in the family of Judge Temple, was despatched to the humble dwelling
which Richard already styled the Rectory, in attendance on Louisa, who was soon
consigned to the arms of her father.
    In the mean time, Marmaduke and his daughter were closeted for more than an
hour, nor shall we invade the sanctuary of parental love, by relating the
conversation. - When the curtain rises on the reader, the Judge is seen walking
up and down the apartment, with a tender melancholy in his air, and his child
reclining on a settee, with a flushed cheek, and her dark eyes seeming to float
in crystals.
    »It was a timely rescue! it was, indeed, a timely rescue, my child!« cried
the Judge. »Then thou didst not desert thy friend, my noble Bess?«
    »I believe I may as well take the credit of fortitude,« said Elizabeth,
»though I much doubt if flight would have availed me any thing, had I even
courage to execute such an intention. But I thought not of the expedient.«
    »Of what didst thou think, love? where did thy thoughts dwell most, at that
fearful moment?«
    »The beast! the beast!« cried Elizabeth, veiling her face with her hand;
»Oh! I saw nothing, I thought of nothing, but the beast. I tried to think of
better things, but the horror was too glaring, the danger too much before my
eyes.«
    »Well, well, thou art safe, and we will converse no more on the unpleasant
subject. I did not think such an animal yet remained in our forest; but they
will stray far from their haunts when pressed by hunger, and« -
    A loud knocking at the door of the apartment interrupted what he was about
to utter, and he bid the applicant enter. The door was opened by Benjamin, who
came in with a discontented air, as if he felt that he had a communication to
make that would be out of season.
    »Here is Squire Doolittle below, sir,« commenced the Major-domo. »He has
been standing off and on in the door-yard, for the matter of a glass; and he has
sum'mat on his mind that he wants to heave up, d'ye see; but I tells him, says
I, man, would you be coming aboard with your complaints, said I, when the Judge
has gotten his own child, as it were, out of the jaws of a lion? But damn the
bit of manners has the fellow any more than if he was one of them Guineas, down
in the kitchen there; and so as he was sheering nearer, every stretch he made
towards the house, I could do no better than to let your honour know that the
chap was in the offing.«
    »He must have business of importance,« said Marmaduke; »something in
relation to his office, most probably, as the court sits so shortly.«
    »Ay, ay, you have it, sir,« cried Benjamin, »it's sum'mat about a complaint
that he has to make of the old Leather-stocking, who, to my judgment, is the
better man of the two. It's a very good sort of a man is this Master Bumppo, and
he has a way with a spear, all the same as if he was brought up at the bow oar
of the captain's barge, or was born with a boat-hook in his hand.«
    »Against the Leather-stocking!« cried Elizabeth, rising from her reclining
posture.
    »Rest easy, my child; some trifle, I pledge you; I believe I am already
acquainted with its import. Trust me, Bess, your champion shall be safe in my
care. - Show Mr. Doolittle in, Benjamin.«
    Miss Temple appeared satisfied with this assurance, but fastened her dark
eyes on the person of the architect, who profited by the permission, and
instantly made his appearance.
    All the impatience of Hiram seemed to vanish the instant he entered the
apartment. After saluting the Judge and his daughter, he took the chair to which
Marmaduke pointed, and sat for a minute, composing his straight black hair, with
a gravity of demeanour, that was intended to do honour to his official station.
At length he said -
    »It's likely, from what I hear, that Miss Temple had a pretty narrow chance
with the painters, on the mountain.«
    Marmaduke made a gentle inclination of his head, by way of assent, but
continued silent.
    »I s'pose the law gives a bounty on the scalps,« continued Hiram, »in which
case the Leather-stocking will make a good job on't.«
    »It shall be my care to see that he is rewarded,« returned the Judge.
    »Yes, yes, I rather guess that nobody hereabouts doubts the Judge's
ginerosity. Doos he know whether the Sheriff has fairly made up his mind to have
a reading-desk or a deacon's pew under the pulpit?«
    »I have not heard my cousin speak on that subject lately,« replied
Marmaduke.
    »I think it's likely that we will have a pretty dull court on't, from what I
can gather. I hear that Jotham Riddel and the man who bought his betterments
have agreen to leave their difference to men, and I don't think there'll be more
than two civil cases in the calendar.«
    »I am glad of it,« said the Judge; »nothing gives me more pain, than to see
my settlers wasting their time and substance in the unprofitable struggles of
the law. I hope it may prove true, sir.«
    »I rather guess 'twill be left out to men,« added Hiram, with an air equally
balanced between doubt and assurance, but which Judge Temple understood to mean
certainty; »I some think that I am appointed a referee in the case myself.
Jotham as much as told me that he should take me. The defendant, I guess, means
to take Captain Hollister, and we two have partly agreen on Squire Jones for the
third man.«
    »Are there any criminals to be tried?« asked Marmaduke.
    »There's the counterfeiters,« returned the magistrate; »as they were caught
in the fact, I think it likely that they'll be indicted, in which case, it's
probable they will be tried.«
    »Certainly, sir; I had forgotten those men. There are no more, I hope.«
    »Why, there is a threaten to come forward with an assault, that happened at
the last independence day; but I'm not certain that the law'll take hold on't.
There was plaguey hard words passed, but whether they struck or not I haven't
heern. There's some folks talk of a deer or two being killed out of season, over
on the west side of the Patent, by some of the squatters on the Fractions.«
    »Let a complaint be made, by all means,« cried the Judge; »I am determined
to see the law executed, to the letter, on all such depredators.«
    »Why, yes, I thought the Judge was of that mind; I come, partly, on such a
business myself.«
    »You!« exclaimed Marmaduke, comprehending, in an instant, how completely he
had been caught by the other's cunning; »and what have you to say, sir?«
    »I some think that Natty Bumppo has the carcass of a deer in his hut at this
moment, and a considerable part of my business was to get a sarch-warrant to
examine.«
    »You think, sir! do you know that the law exacts an oath, before I can issue
such a precept. The habitation of a citizen is not to be idly invaded on light
suspicion.«
    »I rather think I can swear to it myself,« returned the immoveable Hiram;
»and Jotham is in the street, and as good as ready to come in and make oath to
the same thing.«
    »Then issue the warrant thyself; thou art a magistrate, Mr. Doolittle; why
trouble me with the matter?«
    »Why, seeing it's the first complaint under the law, and knowing the Judge
set his heart on the thing, I thought it best that the authority to sarch should
come from himself. Besides, as I'm much in the woods, among the timber, I don't
altogether like making an enemy of the Leather-stocking. Now the Judge has a
weight in the county that puts him above fear.«
    Miss Temple turned her face to the callous architect, as she said -
    »And what has any honest person to dread from so kind a man as Bumppo?«
    »Why, it's as easy, Miss, to pull a rifle-trigger on a magistrate as on a
painter. But if the Judge don't conclude to issoo the warrant, I must go home
and make it out myself.«
    »I have not refused your application, sir,« said Marmaduke, perceiving, at
once, that his reputation for impartiality was at stake; »go into my office, Mr.
Doolittle, where I will join you, and sign the warrant.«
    Judge Temple stopped the remonstrances which Elizabeth was about to utter,
after Hiram had withdrawn, by laying his hand on her mouth, and saying -
    »It is more terrific in sound than frightful in reality, my child. I suppose
that the Leather-stocking has shot a deer, for the season is nearly over, and
you say that he was hunting with his dogs, when he came so timely to your
assistance. But it will be only to examine his cabin, and find the animal, when
you can pay the penalty out of your own pocket, Bess. Nothing short of the
twelve dollars and a half will satisfy this harpy, I perceive; and surely my
reputation as a Judge is worth that trifle.«
    Elizabeth was a good deal pacified with this assurance, and suffered her
father to leave her, to fulfil his promise to Hiram.
    When Marmaduke left his office, after executing his disagreeable duty, he
met Oliver Edwards, walking up the gravelled walk in front of the Mansion-house,
with great strides, and with a face agitated by feeling. On seeing Judge Temple,
the youth turned aside, and with a warmth in his manner that was not often
exhibited to Marmaduke, he cried -
    »I congratulate you, sir; from the bottom of my soul I congratulate you,
Judge Temple. Oh! it would have been too horrid to have recollected for a
moment! I have just left the hut, where, after showing me his scalps, old Natty
told me of the escape of the ladies, as a thing to be mentioned last. Indeed,
indeed, sir, no words of mine can express half of what I have felt« - the youth
paused a moment, as if suddenly recollecting that he was overstepping prescribed
limits, and concluded with a good deal of embarrassment - »what I have felt, at
this danger to Miss - Grant, and - and your daughter, sir.«
    But the heart of Marmaduke was too much softened, to admit of his cavilling
at trifles, and, without regarding the confusion of the other, he replied -
    »I thank thee, thank thee, Oliver; as thou sayest, it is almost too horrid
to be remembered. But come, let us hasten to Bess, for Louisa has already gone
to the Rectory.«
    The young man sprung forward, and, throwing open a door, barely permitted
the Judge to precede him, when he was in the presence of Elizabeth in a moment.
    The cold distance that often crossed the demeanour of the heiress, in her
intercourse with Edwards, was now entirely banished, and two hours were passed
by the party, in the free, unembarrassed, and confiding manner of old and
esteemed friends. Judge Temple had forgotten the suspicions engendered during
his morning's ride, and the youth and maiden conversed, laughed, and were sad,
by turns, as impulse directed. At length Edwards, after repeating his intention
to do so for the third time, left the Mansion-house, to go to the Rectory on a
similar errand of friendship.
    During this short period, a scene was passing at the hut, that completely
frustrated the benevolent intentions of Judge Temple in favour of the Leather-
and at once destroyed the short-lived harmony between the youth and Marmaduke.
    When Hiram Doolittle had obtained his search-warrant, his first business was
to procure a proper officer to see it executed. The Sheriff was absent,
summoning, in person, the grand inquest for the county; the deputy, who resided
in the village, was riding on the same errand, in a different part of the
settlement; and the regular constable of the township had been selected for his
station from motives of charity, being lame of a leg. Hiram intended to
accompany the officer as a spectator, but he felt no very strong desire to bear
the brunt of the battle. It was, however, Saturday, and the sun was already
turning the shadows of the pines towards the east; on the morrow the
conscientious magistrate could not engage in such an expedition at the peril of
his soul; and long before Monday, the venison, and all vestiges of the death of
the deer, might be secreted or destroyed. Happily, the lounging form of Billy
Kirby met his eye, and Hiram, at all times fruitful in similar expedients, saw
his way clear at once. Jotham, who was associated in the whole business, and who
had left the mountain in consequence of a summons from his coadjutor, but who
failed, equally with Hiram, in the unfortunate particular of nerve, was directed
to summon the wood-chopper to the dwelling of the magistrate.
    When Billy appeared, he was very kindly invited to take the chair in which
he had already seated himself, and was treated, in all respects, as if he were
an equal.
    »Judge Temple has set his heart on putting the deer law in force,« said
Hiram, after the preliminary civilities were over, »and a complaint has been
laid before him that a deer has been killed. He has issooed a sarch-warrant, and
sent for me to get somebody to execute it.«
    Kirby, who had no idea of being excluded from the deliberative part of any
affair in which he was engaged, drew up his bushy head in a reflecting attitude,
and, after musing a moment, replied by asking a few questions.
    »The Sheriff is gone out of the way?«
    »Not to be found.«
    »And his deputy too?«
    »Both gone on the skirts of the Patent.«
    »But I seen the constable hobbling about town an hour ago.«
    »Yes, yes,« said Hiram, with a coaxing smile and knowing nod, »but this
business wants a man - not a cripple.«
    »Why,« said Billy, laughing, »will the chap make fight?«
    »He's a little quarrelsome at times, and thinks he's the best man in the
county at rough-and-tumble.«
    »I heard him brag once,« said Jotham, »that there wasn't't a man 'twixt the
Mohawk Flats and the Pennsylvany line, that was his match at a close hug.«
    »Did you!« exclaimed Kirby, raising his huge frame in his seat, like a lion
stretching in his lair; »I rather guess he never felt a Varmounter's knuckles on
his back-bone. But who is the chap?«
    »Why,« said Jotham, »it's« -
    »It's ag'in law to tell,« interrupted Hiram, »unless you'll qualify to
starve. You'd be the very man to take him, Bill; and I'll make out a spicial
deputation in a minute, when you will get the fees.«
    »What's the fees?« said Kirby, laying his large hand on the leaves of a
statute-book, that Hiram had opened in order to give dignity to his office,
which he turned over, in his rough manner, as if he were reflecting on a
subject, about which he had, in truth, already decided; »will they pay a man for
a broken head?«
    »They'll be something handsome,« said Hiram.
    »Damn the fees,« said Billy, again laughing - »doos the fellow think he's
the best wrestler in the county, though? what's his inches?«
    »He's taller than you be,« said Jotham, »and one of the biggest« -
    Talkers, he was about to add, but the impatience of Kirby interrupted him.
The wood-chopper had nothing fierce, or even brutal in his appearance: the
character of his expression was that of good-natured vanity. It was evident he
prided himself on the powers of the physical man, like all who have nothing
better to boast of; and, stretching out his broad hand, with the palm downward,
he said, keeping his eyes fastened on his own bones and sinews -
    »Come, give us a touch of the book. I'll swear, and you'll see that I'm a
man to keep my oath.«
    Hiram did not give the wood-chopper time to change his mind, but the oath
was administered without unnecessary delay. So soon as this preliminary was
completed, the three worthies left the house, and proceeded by the nearest road
towards the hut. They had reached the bank of the lake, and were diverging from
the route of the highway, before Kirby recollected that he was now entitled to
the privileges of the initiated, and repeated his question, as to the name of
the offender.
    »Which way, which way, Squire?« exclaimed the hardy wood-chopper; »I thought
it was to sarch a house that you wanted me, not the woods. There is nobody lives
on this side of the lake, for six miles, unless you count the Leather-stocking
and old John for settlers. Come, tell me the chap's name, and I warrant me that
I lead you to his clearing by a straighter path than this, for I know every
sapling that grows within two miles of Templetown.«
    »This is the way,« said Hiram, pointing forward, and quickening his step, as
if apprehensive that Kirby would desert, »and Bumppo is the man.«
    Kirby stopped short, and looked from one of his companions to the other in
astonishment. He then burst into a loud laugh, and cried -
    »Who! Leather-stocking! he may brag of his aim and his rifle, for he has the
best of both, as I will own myself, for sin he shot the pigeon I knock under to
him; but for a wrestle! why, I would take the creature between my finger and
thumb, and tie him in a bow-knot around my neck for a Barcelony. The man is
seventy, and was never any thing particular for strength.«
    »He's a deceiving man,« said Hiram, »like all the hunters; he is stronger
than he seems; - besides, he has his rifle.«
    »That for his rifle!« cried Billy; »he'd no more hurt me with his rifle than
he'd fly. He is a harmless creature, and I must say that I think he has as good a
right to kill deer as any man on the Patent. It's his main support, and this is
a free country, where a man is privileged to follow any calling he likes.«
    »According to that doctrine,« said Jotham, »any body may shoot a deer.«
    »This is the man's calling, I tell you,« returned Kirby, »and the law was
never made for such as he.«
    »The law was made for all,« observed Hiram, who began to think that the
danger was likely to fall to his own share, notwithstanding his management; »and
the law is particular in noticing parjury.«
    »See here, Squire Doolittle,« said the reckless wood-chopper, »I don't kear
the valie of a beetle-ring for you and your parjury too. But as I have come so
far, I'll go down and have a talk with the old man, and maybe we'll fry a steak
of the deer together.«
    »Well, if you can get in peaceably, so much the better,« said the
magistrate. »To my notion, strife is very unpopular; I prefar, at all times,
clever conduct to an ugly temper.«
    As the whole party moved at a great pace, they soon reached the hut, where
Hiram thought it prudent to halt on the outside of the top of the fallen pine,
which formed a chevaux-de-frize, to defend the approach to the fortress, on the
side next the village. The delay was little relished by Kirby, who clapped his
hands to his mouth, and gave a loud halloo, that brought the dogs out of their
kennel, and, almost at the same instant, the scantily-covered head of Natty from
the door.
    »Lie down, old fool,« cried the hunter; »do you think there's more painters
about you?«
    »Ha! Leather-stocking, I've an arrand with you,« cried Kirby; »here's the
good people of the state have been writing you a small letter, and they've hired
me to ride post.«
    »What would you have with me, Billy Kirby?« said Natty, stepping across his
threshold, and raising his hand over his eyes to screen them from the rays of
the setting sun, while he took a survey of his visitor. »I've no land to clear;
and Heaven knows I would set out six trees afore I would cut down one. Down,
Hector, I say, into your kennel with ye.«
    »Would you, old boy!« roared Billy; »then so much the better for me. But I
must do my arrand. Here's a letter for you, Leather-stocking. If you can read it
it's all well, and if you can't, here's Squire Doolittle at hand to let you know
what it means. It seems, you mistook the twentieth of July for the first of
August, that's all.«
    By this time Natty had discovered the lank person of Hiram, drawn up under
the cover of a high stump; and all that was complacent in his manner instantly
gave way to marked distrust and dissatisfaction. He placed his head within the
door of his hut, and said a few words in an under tone, when he again appeared,
and continued -
    »I've nothing for ye; so away, afore the evil one tempts me to do you harm.
I owe you no spite, Billy Kirby, and what for should you trouble an old man, who
has done you no harm?«
    Kirby advanced through the top of the pine, to within a few feet of the
hunter, where he seated himself on the end of a log with great composure, and
begun to examine the nose of Hector, with whom he was familiar, from their
frequently meeting in the woods, where he sometimes fed the dog from his own
basket of provisions.
    »You've outshot me, and I'm not ashamed to say it,« said the wood-chopper;
»but I don't owe you a grudge for that, Natty; though it seems, that you've shot
once too often, for the story goes, that you've killed a buck.«
    »I've fired but twice to-day, and both times at the painters,« returned the
Leather-stocking; »see! here's the scalps! I was just going in with them to the
Judge's to ask the bounty.«
    While Natty was speaking, he tossed the ears to Kirby, who continued playing
with them, with a careless air, holding them to the dogs, and laughing at their
movements when they scented the unusual game.
    But Hiram, emboldened by the advance of the deputed constable, now ventured
to approach also, and took up the discourse with the air of authority that
became his commission. His first measure was to read the warrant aloud, taking
care to give due emphasis to the most material parts, and concluding with the
name of the Judge in very audible and distinct tones.
    »Did Marmaduke Temple put his name to that bit of paper!« said Natty,
shaking his head; - »well, well, that man loves the new ways, and his
betterments, and his lands, afore his own flesh and blood. But I won't mistrust
the gall: she has an eye like a full-grown buck! poor thing, she didn't choose
her father, and can't help it. - I know but little of the law, Mr. Doolittle;
what is to be done, now you've read your commission?«
    »Oh! it's nothing but form, Natty,« said Hiram, endeavouring to assume a
friendly aspect. »Let's go in and talk the thing over in reason. I dare to say
that the money can be easily found, and I partly conclude, from what passed,
that Judge Temple will pay it himself.«
    The old hunter had kept a keen eye on the movements of his three visitors,
from the beginning, and had maintained his position, just without the threshold
of his cabin, with a determined manner, that showed he was not to be easily
driven from his post. When Hiram drew nigher, as if expecting his proposition
would be accepted, Natty lifted his hand and motioned for him to retreat.
    »Haven't I told you, more than once, not to tempt me,« he said. »I trouble
no man; why can't the law leave me to myself? Go back - go back, and tell your
Judge that he may keep his bounty; but I won't have his wasty ways brought into
my hut.«
    This offer, however, instead of appeasing the curiosity of Hiram, seemed to
inflame it the more; while Kirby cried -
    »Well, that's fair, Squire; he forgives the county his demand, and the
county should forgive him the fine; it's what I call an even trade, and should
be concluded on the spot. I like quick dealings, and what's fair 'twixt man and
man.«
    »I demand entrance into this house,« said Hiram, summoning all the dignity
he could muster to his assistance, »in the name of the people, and by vartoo of
this warrant, and of my office, and with this peace-officer.«
    »Stand back, stand back, Squire, and don't tempt me,« said the
Leather-stocking, motioning for him to retire, with great earnestness.
    »Stop us at your peril,« continued Hiram - »Billy! Jotham! close up - I want
testimony.«
    Hiram had mistaken the mild but determined air of Natty for submission, and
had already put his foot on the threshold to enter, when he was seized
unexpectedly by his shoulders, and hurled over the little bank towards the lake,
to the distance of twenty feet. The suddenness of the movement, and the
unexpected display of strength on the part of Natty, created a momentary
astonishment in his invaders, that silenced all noises; but at the next instant
Billy Kirby gave vent to his mirth in peals of laughter, that he seemed to heave
up from his very soul.
    »Well done, old stub!« he shouted; »the Squire know'd you better than I did.
Come, come, here's a green spot; take it out like men, while Jotham and I see
fair play.«
    »William Kirby, I order you to do your duty,« cried Hiram, from under the
bank; »seize that man; I order you to seize him in the name of the people.«
    But the Leather-stocking now assumed a more threatening attitude; his rifle
was in his hand, and its muzzle was directed towards the wood-chopper.
    »Stand off, I bid ye,« said Natty; »you know my aim, Billy Kirby; I don't
crave your blood, but mine and yourn both shall turn this green grass red, afore
you put foot into the hut.«
    While the affair appeared trifling, the wood-chopper seemed disposed to take
sides with the weaker party; but when the fire-arms were introduced, his manner
very sensibly changed. He raised his large frame from the log, and, facing the
hunter with an open front, he replied -
    »I didn't come here as your enemy, Leather-stocking; but I don't valie the
hollow piece of iron in your hand so much as a broken axe-helve; - so, Squire,
say the word, and keep within the law, and we'll soon see who's the best man of
the two.«
    But no magistrate was to be seen! The instant the rifle was produced Hiram
and Jotham vanished; and when the wood-chopper bent his eyes about him in
surprise at receiving no answer, he discovered their retreating figures, moving
towards the village, at a rate that sufficiently indicated that they had not
only calculated the velocity of a rifle-bullet, but also its probable range.
    »You've skeared the creaters off,« said Kirby, with great contempt expressed
on his broad features; »but you are not a-going to skear me; so, Mr. Bumppo,
down with your gun, or there'll be trouble 'twixt us.«
    Natty dropped his rifle, and replied -
    »I wish you no harm, Billy Kirby; but I leave it to yourself, whether an old
man's hut is to be run down by such varmint. I won't deny the buck to you,
Billy, and you may take the skin in, if you please, and show it as tistimony.
The bounty will pay the fine, and that ought to satisfy any man.«
    »'Twill, old boy, 'twill,« cried Kirby, every shade of displeasure vanishing
from his open brow at the peace-offering; »throw out the hide, and that shall
satisfy the law.«
    Natty entered his hut, and soon re-appeared, bringing with him the desired
testimonial, and the wood-chopper departed, as thoroughly reconciled to the
hunter as if nothing had happened. As he paced along the margin of the lake, he
would burst into frequent fits of laughter, while he recollected the summerset
of Hiram; and, on the whole, he thought the affair a very capital joke.
    Long before Billy reached the village, however, the news of his danger, and
of Natty's disrespect of the law, and of Hiram's discomfiture, were in
circulation. A good deal was said about sending for the Sheriff; some hints were
given about calling out the posse comitatus to avenge the insulted laws; and
many of the citizens were collected, deliberating how to proceed. The arrival of
Billy with the skin, by removing all grounds for a search, changed the
complexion of things materially. Nothing now remained but to collect the fine,
and assert the dignity of the people; all of which, it was unanimously agreed,
could be done as well on the succeeding Monday as on a Saturday night, a time
kept sacred by a large portion of the settlers. Accordingly, all further
proceedings were suspended for six-and-thirty hours.
 

                                  Chapter XXXI

 »And dar'st thou, then,
 To beard the lion in his den,
 The Douglass in his hall?«
                                                   Scott, Marmion, VI.xiv.23-25.
 
The commotion was just subsiding, and the inhabitants of the village had begun
to disperse from the little groups they had formed, each retiring to his own
home, and closing his door after him, with the grave air of a man who consulted
public feeling in his exterior deportment, when Oliver Edwards, on his return
from the dwelling of Mr. Grant, encountered the young lawyer, who is known to
the reader as Mr. Lippet. There was very little similarity in the manners or
opinions of the two; but as they both belonged to the more intelligent class of
a very small community, they were, of course, known to each other; and, as their
meeting was at a point where silence would have been rudeness, the following
conversation was the result of their interview: -
    »A fine evening, Mr. Edwards,« commenced the lawyer, whose disinclination to
the dialogue was, to say the least, very doubtful; »we want rain sadly; - that's
the worst of this climate of ours, it's either a drought or a deluge. It's
likely you've been used to a more equal temperatoore?«
    »I am a native of this state,« returned Edwards, coldly.
    »Well, I've often heard that point disputed; but it's so easy to get a man
naturalized, that it's of little consequence where he was born. I wonder what
course the Judge means to take in this business of Natty Bumppo?«
    »Of Natty Bumppo!« echoed Edwards; »to what do you allude, sir?«
    »Haven't you heard!« exclaimed the other, with a look of surprise, so
naturally assumed as completely to deceive his auditor; »it may turn out an ugly
business. It seems that the old man has been out in the hills, and has shot a
buck, this morning, and that, you know, is a criminal matter in the eyes of
Judge Temple.«
    »Oh! he has, has he!« said Edwards, averting his face to conceal the colour
that collected in his sun-burnt cheek. »Well, if that be all, he must even pay
the fine.«
    »It's five pounds, currency,« said the lawyer; »could Natty muster so much
money at once?«
    »Could he!« cried the youth. »I am not rich, Mr. Lippet; far from it - I am
poor; and I have been hoarding my salary for a purpose that lies near my heart;
but before that old man should lie one hour in a gaol, I would spend the last
cent to prevent it. Besides, he has killed two panthers, and the bounty will
discharge the fine many times over.«
    »Yes, yes,« said the lawyer, rubbing his hands together with an expression
of pleasure that had no artifice about it; »we shall make it out; I see plainly,
we shall make it out.«
    »Make what out, sir? I must beg an explanation.«
    »Why, killing the buck is but a small matter, compared to what took place
this afternoon,« continued Mr. Lippet, with a confidential and friendly air,
that insensibly won upon the youth, little as he liked the man. »It seems, that
a complaint was made of the fact, and a suspicion that there was venison in the
hut was sworn to, all which is provided for in the statoote, when Judge Temple
granted a search-warrant« -
    »A search-warrant!« echoed Edwards, in a voice of horror, and with a face
that should have been again averted, to conceal its paleness; »and how much did
they discover? What did they see?«
    »They saw old Bumppo's rifle; and that is a sight which will quiet most
men's curiosity in the woods.«
    »Did they! did they!« shouted Edwards, bursting into a convulsive laugh; »so
the old hero beat them back - he beat them back! did he!«
    The lawyer fastened his eyes in astonishment on the youth; but, as his
wonder gave way to the thoughts that were commonly uppermost in his mind, he
replied -
    »It's no laughing matter, let me tell you, sir; the forty dollars of bounty,
and your six months of salary, will be much redooced, before you get the matter
fairly settled. Assaulting a magistrate in the execootion of his duty, and
menacing a constable with fire-arms, at the same time, is a pretty serious
affair, and punishable with both fine and imprisonment.«
    »Imprisonment!« repeated Oliver; »imprison the Leather-stocking! no, no,
sir; it would bring the old man to his grave. They shall never imprison the
Leather-stocking.«
    »Well, Mr. Edwards,« said Lippet, dropping all reserve from his manner, »you
are called a curious man; but if you can tell me how a jury is to be prevented
from finding a verdict of guilty, if this case comes fairly before them, and the
proof is clear, I shall, acknowledge that you know more law than I do, who have
had a license in my pocket for three years.«
    By this time the reason of Edwards was getting the ascendency of his
feelings; and, as he begun to see the real difficulties of the case, he listened
more readily to the conversation of the lawyer. The ungovernable emotion that
escaped the youth, in the first moments of his surprise, entirely passed away,
and, although it was still evident that he continued to be much agitated by what
he had heard, he succeeded in yielding forced attention to the advice which the
other uttered.
    Notwithstanding the confused state of his mind, Oliver soon discovered that
most of the expedients of the lawyer were grounded in cunning, and plans that
required a time to execute them, that neither suited his disposition nor his
necessities. After, however, giving Mr. Lippet to understand that he retained
him, in the event of a trial, an assurance that at once satisfied the lawyer,
they parted, one taking his course, with a deliberate tread, in the direction of
the little building that had a wooden sign over its door, with »Chester Lippet,
Attorney at Law,« painted on it; and the other, pacing over the ground, with
enormous strides, towards the Mansion-house. We shall take leave of the attorney
for the present, and direct the attention of the reader to his client.
    When Edwards entered the hall, whose enormous doors were opened to the
passage of the air of a mild evening, he found Benjamin engaged in some of his
domestic avocations, and, in a hurried voice, inquired where Judge Temple was to
be found.
    »Why, the Judge has stepped into his office, with that master-carpenter,
Mister Doolittle; but Miss Lizzy is in that there parlour. I say, Master Oliver,
we'd like to have had a bad job of that panther, or painter's work - some calls
it one, and some calls it t'other - but I know little of the beast, seeing that
it's not of British growth. I said as much as that it was in the hills, the last
winter; for I heard it moaning on the lake-shore, one evening in the fall, when
I was pulling down from the fishing-point, in the skiff. Had the animal come
into open water, where a man could see how and where to work his vessel, I would
have engaged the thing myself; but looking aloft among the trees, is all the
same to me as standing on the deck of one ship and looking at another vessel's
tops. I never can tell one rope from another« -
    »Well, well,« interrupted Edwards; »I must see Miss Temple.«
    »And you shall see her, sir,« said the steward; »she's in this here room.
Lord, Master Edwards, what a loss she'd have been to the Judge! Dam'me if I know
where he would have gotten such another daughter; that is, full-grown, d'ye see.
I say, sir, this Master Bumppo is a worthy man, and seems to have a handy way
with him, with fire-arms and boat-hooks. I'm his friend, Master Oliver, and he
and you may both set me down as the same.«
    »We may want your friendship, my worthy fellow,« cried Edwards, squeezing
his hand convulsively - »we may want your friendship, in which case, you shall
know it.«
    Without waiting to hear the earnest reply that Benjamin meditated, the youth
extricated himself from the vigorous grasp of the steward, and entered the
parlour.
    Elizabeth was alone, and still reclining on the sofa, where we last left
her. A hand, which exceeded all that the ingenuity of art could model, in shape
and colour, veiled her eyes; and the maiden was sitting as if in deep communion
with herself. Struck by the attitude and loveliness of the form that met his
eye, the young man checked his impatience, and approached her with respect and
caution.
    »Miss Temple - Miss Temple,« he said, »I hope I do not intrude; but I am
anxious for an interview, if it be only for a moment.«
    Elizabeth raised her face, and exhibited her dark eyes swimming in moisture.
    »Is it you, Edwards?« she said, with a sweetness in her voice, and a
softness in her air, that she often used to her father, but which, from its
novelty to himself, thrilled on every nerve of the youth; »how left you our poor
Louisa?«
    »She is with her father, happy and grateful,« said Oliver. »I never
witnessed more feeling than she manifested, when I ventured to express my
pleasure at her escape. Miss Temple, when I first heard of your horrid
situation, my feelings were too powerful for utterance; and I did not properly
find my tongue, until the walk to Mr. Grant's had given me time to collect
myself. I believe - I do believe, I acquitted myself better there, for Miss
Grant even wept at my silly speeches.«
    For a moment Elizabeth did not reply, but again veiled her eyes with her
hand. The feeling that caused the action, however, soon passed away, and,
raising her face again to his gaze, she continued, with a smile -
    »Your friend, the Leather-stocking, has now become my friend, Edwards; I
have been thinking how I can best serve him; perhaps you, who know his habits
and his wants so well, can tell me« -
    »I can,« cried the youth, with an impetuosity that startled his companion -
»I can, and may Heaven reward you for the wish. Natty has been so imprudent as
to forget the law, and has this day killed a deer. Nay, I believe I must share
in the crime and the penalty, for I was an accomplice throughout. A complaint
has been made to your father, and he has granted a search« -
    »I know it all,« interrupted Elizabeth; »I know it all. The forms of the law
must be complied with, however; the search must be made, the deer found, and the
penalty paid. But I must retort your own question. Have you lived so long in our
family, not to know us? Look at me, Oliver Edwards. Do I appear like one who
would permit the man that has just saved her life to linger in a gaol, for so
small a sum as this fine? No, no, sir; my father is a Judge, but he is a man,
and a Christian. It is all understood, and no harm shall follow.«
    »What a load of apprehension do your declarations remove!« exclaimed
Edwards. »He shall not be disturbed again! your father will protect him! I have
your assurance, Miss Temple, that he will, and I must believe it.«
    »You may have his own, Mr. Edwards,« returned Elizabeth, »for here he comes
to make it.«
    But the appearance of Marmaduke, who entered the apartment, contradicted the
flattering anticipations of his daughter. His brow was contracted, and his
manner disturbed. Neither Elizabeth nor the youth spoke; but the Judge was
allowed to pace once or twice across the room without interruption, when he
cried -
    »Our plans are defeated, girl; the obstinacy of the Leather-stocking has
brought down the indignation of the law on his head, and it is now out of my
power to avert it.«
    »How? in what manner?« cried Elizabeth; »the fine is nothing; surely« -
    »I did not - I could not anticipate that an old, a friendless man, like him,
would dare to oppose the officers of justice,« interrupted the Judge; »I
supposed that he would submit to the search, when the fine could have been paid,
and the law would have been appeased; but now he will have to meet its rigour.«
    »And what must the punishment be, sir?« asked Edwards, struggling to speak
with firmness.
    Marmaduke turned quickly to the spot where the youth had withdrawn, and
exclaimed -
    »You here! I did not observe you. I know not what it will be, sir; it is not
usual for a Judge to decide, until he has heard the testimony, and the jury have
convicted. Of one thing, however, you may be assured, Mr. Edwards; it shall be
whatever the law demands, notwithstanding any momentary weakness I may have
exhibited, because the luckless man has been of such eminent service to my
daughter.«
    »No one, I believe, doubts the sense of justice which Judge Temple
entertains!« returned Edwards, bitterly. »But let us converse calmly, sir. Will
not the years, the habits, nay, the ignorance of my old friend, avail him any
thing against this charge?«
    »Ought they? They may extenuate, but can they acquit? Would any society be
tolerable, young man, where the ministers of justice are to be opposed by men
armed with rifles? Is it for this that I have tamed the wilderness?«
    »Had you tamed the beasts that so lately threatened the life of Miss Temple,
sir, your arguments would apply better.«
    »Edwards!« exclaimed Elizabeth -
    »Peace, my child,« interrupted the father; - »the youth is unjust; but I
have not given him cause. I overlook thy remark, Oliver, for I know thee to be
the friend of Natty, and zeal in his behalf has overcome thy discretion.«
    »Yes, he is my friend,« cried Edwards, »and I glory in the title. He is
simple, unlettered, even ignorant; prejudiced, perhaps, though I feel that his
opinion of the world is too true; but he has a heart, Judge Temple, that would
atone for a thousand faults; he knows his friends, and never deserts them, even
if it be his dog.«
    »This is a good character, Mr. Edwards,« returned Marmaduke, mildly; »but I
have never been so fortunate as to secure his esteem, for to me he has been
uniformly repulsive; yet I have endured it, as an old man's whim. However, when
he appears before me, as his judge, he shall find that his former conduct shall
not aggravate, any more than his recent services shall extenuate his crime.«
    »Crime!« echoed Edwards; »is it a crime to drive a prying miscreant from his
door? Crime! Oh! no, sir; if there be a criminal involved in this affair, it is
not he.«
    »And who may it be, sir?« asked Judge Temple, facing the agitated youth, his
features settled to their usual composure.
    This appeal was more than the young man could bear. Hitherto he had been
deeply agitated by his emotions; but now the volcano burst its boundaries.
    »Who! and this to me!« he cried; »ask your own conscience, Judge Temple.
Walk to that door, sir, and look out upon the valley, that placid lake, and
those dusky mountains, and say to your own heart, if heart you have, whence came
these riches, this vale, and those hills, and why am I their owner? I should
think, sir, that the appearance of Mohegan and the Leather-stocking, stalking
through the country, impoverished and forlorn, would wither your sight.«
    Marmaduke heard this burst of passion, at first, with deep amazement; but
when the youth had ended, he beckoned to his impatient daughter for silence, and
replied -
    »Oliver Edwards, thou forgettest in whose presence thou standest. I have
heard, young man, that thou claimest descent from the native owners of the soil;
but surely thy education has been given thee to no effect, if it has not taught
thee the validity of the claims that have transferred the title to the whites.
These lands are mine by the very grants of thy ancestry, if thou art so
descended; and I appeal to Heaven, for a testimony of the uses I have put them
to. After this language, we must separate. I have too long sheltered thee in my
dwelling; but the time has arrived when thou must quit it. Come to my office,
and I will discharge the debt I owe thee. Neither shall thy present intemperate
language mar thy future fortunes, if thou wilt hearken to the advice of one who
is by many years thy senior.«
    The ungovernable feeling that caused the violence of the youth had passed
away, and he stood gazing after the retiring figure of Marmaduke, with a vacancy
in his eye, that denoted the absence of his mind. At length he recollected
himself, and, turning his head slowly around the apartment, he beheld Elizabeth,
still seated on the sofa, but with her head dropped on her bosom, and her face
again concealed by her hands.
    »Miss Temple,« he said - all violence had left his manner - »Miss Temple - I
have forgotten myself - forgotten you. You have heard what your father has
decreed, and this night I leave here. With you, at least, I would part in
amity.«
    Elizabeth slowly raised her face, across which a momentary expression of
sadness stole; but as she left her seat, her dark eyes lighted with their usual
fire, her cheek flushed to burning, and her whole air seemed to belong to
another nature.
    »I forgive you, Edwards, and my father will forgive you,« she said, when she
reached the door. »You do not know us, but the time may come, when your opinions
shall change« -
    »Of you! never!« interrupted the youth; »I« -
    »I would speak, sir, and not listen. There is something in this affair that
I do not comprehend; but tell the Leather-stocking he has friends as well as
judges in us. Do not let the old man experience unnecessary uneasiness, at this
rupture. It is impossible that you could increase his claims here; neither shall
they be diminished by any thing you have said. Mr. Edwards, I wish you
happiness, and warmer friends.«
    The youth would have spoken, but she vanished from the door so rapidly, that
when he reached the hall her form was nowhere to be seen. He paused a moment, in
a stupor, and then, rushing from the house, instead of following Marmaduke to
his office, he took his way directly for the cabin of the hunters.
 

                                 Chapter XXXII

 »Who measured earth, described the starry spheres,
 And traced the long records of lunar years.«
                                          Pope, »The Temple of Fame,« ll.111-12.
 
Richard did not return from the exercise of his official duties, until late in
the evening of the following day. It had been one portion of his business to
superintend the arrest of part of a gang of counterfeiters, that had, even at
that early period, buried themselves in the woods, to manufacture their base
coin, which they afterwards circulated from one end of the Union to the other.
The expedition had been completely successful, and about midnight the Sheriff
entered the village, at the head of a posse of deputies and constables, in the
centre of whom rode, pinioned, four of the malefactors. At the gate of the
Mansion-house they separated, Mr. Jones directing his assistants to proceed with
their charge to the county gaol, while he pursued his own way up the gravelled
walk, with the kind of self-satisfaction that a man of his organization would
feel, who had, really, for once, done a very clever thing.
    »Holla! Aggy!« shouted the Sheriff, when he reached the door; »where are
you, you black dog? will you keep me here in the dark all night? - Holla! Aggy!
Brave! Brave! hoy, hoy - where have you got to, Brave? Off his watch! Every body
is asleep but myself! poor I must keep my eyes open, that others may sleep in
safety. Brave! Brave! Well, I will say this for the dog, lazy as he's grown,
that it is the first time I ever knew him let any one come to the door after
dark, without having a smell to know whether it was an honest man or not. He
could tell by his nose, almost as well as I could myself by looking at them.
Holla! you Agamemnon! where are you? Oh! here comes the dog at last.«
    By this time the Sheriff had dismounted, and observed a form, which he
supposed to be that of Brave, slowly creeping out of the kennel; when, to his
astonishment, it reared itself on two legs, instead of four, and he was able to
distinguish, by the star-light, the curly head and dark visage of the negro.
    »Ha! what the devil are you doing there, you black rascal?« he cried; »is it
not hot enough for your Guinea blood in the house, this warm night, but you must
drive out the poor dog and sleep in his straw!«
    By this time the boy was quite awake, and, with a blubbering whine, he
attempted to reply to his master.
    »Oh! masser Richard! masser Richard! such a ting! such a ting! I nebber tink
a could 'appen! nebber tink he die! Oh, Lor-a-gor! a'nt bury - keep 'em till
masser Richard get back - got a grabe dug« -
    Here the feelings of the negro completely got the mastery, and instead of
making any intelligible explanation of the causes of his grief, he blubbered
aloud.
    »Eh! what! buried! grave! dead!« exclaimed Richard, with a tremour in his
voice; »nothing serious? Nothing has happened to Benjamin, I hope? I know he has
been bilious; but I gave him« -
    »Oh! worser 'an dat! worser 'an dat!« sobbed the negro. »Oh! de Lor! Miss
'Lizzy an Miss Grant - walk - mountain - poor Bravy! - kill a lady - painter -
Oh! Lor, Lor! - Natty Bumppo - tare he troat open - come a see, masser Richard -
here he be - here he be.«
    As all this was perfectly inexplicable to the Sheriff, he was very glad to
wait patiently until the black brought a lantern from the kitchen, when he
followed Aggy to the kennel, where he beheld poor Brave, indeed, lying in his
blood, stiff and cold, but decently covered with the great-coat of the negro. He
was on the point of demanding an explanation; but the grief of the black, who
had fallen asleep on his voluntary watch, having burst out afresh on his waking,
utterly disqualified the lad from giving one. Luckily, at this moment the
principal door of the house opened, and the coarse features of Benjamin were
thrust over the threshold, with a candle elevated above them, shedding its dim
rays around in such a manner as to exhibit the lights and shadows of his
countenance. Richard threw his bridle to the black, and bidding him look to the
horse, he entered the hall.
    »What is the meaning of the dead dog?« he cried. »Where is Miss Temple?«
    Benjamin made one of his square gestures, with the thumb of his left hand
pointing over his right shoulder, as he answered -
    »Turned in.«
    »Judge Temple - where is he?«
    »In his berth.«
    »But explain; why is Brave dead? and what is the cause of Aggy's grief?«
    »Why, it's all down, Squire,« said Benjamin, pointing to a slate that lay on
the table, by the side of a mug of toddy, a short pipe, in which the tobacco was
yet burning, and a prayer-book.
    Among the other pursuits of Richard, he had a passion to keep a register of
all passing events; and his diary, which was written in the manner of a journal,
or log-book, embraced not only such circumstances as affected himself, but
observations on the weather, and all the occurrences of the family, and
frequently of the village. Since his appointment to the office of Sheriff, and
his consequent absences from home, he had employed Benjamin to make memoranda,
on a slate, of whatever might be thought worth remembering, which, on his
return, were regularly transferred to the journal, with proper notations of the
time, manner, and other little particulars. There was, to be sure, one material
objection to the clerkship of Benjamin, which the ingenuity of no one but
Richard could have overcome. The steward read nothing but his Prayer-book, and
that only in particular parts, and by the aid of a good deal of spelling, and
some misnomers; but he could not form a single letter with a pen. This would
have been an insuperable bar to journalizing, with most men; but Richard
invented a kind of hieroglyphical character, which was intended to note all the
ordinary occurrences of a day, such as how the wind blew, whether the sun shone,
or whether it rained, the hours, etc.; and for the extraordinary, after giving
certain elementary lectures on the subject, the Sheriff was obliged to trust to
the ingenuity of the Major-domo. The reader will at once perceive, that it was
to this chronicle that Benjamin pointed, instead of directly answering the
Sheriff's interrogatory.
    When Mr. Jones had drunk a glass of toddy, he brought forth, from its secret
place, his proper journal, and, seating himself by the table, he prepared to
transfer the contents of the slate to the paper, at the same time that he
appeased his curiosity. Benjamin laid one hand on the back of the Sheriff's
chair, in a familiar manner, while he kept the other at liberty, to make use of
a fore-finger, that was bent like some of his own characters, as an index to
point out his meaning.
    The first thing referred to by the Sheriff was the diagram of a compass, cut
in one corner of the slate for permanent use. The cardinal points were plainly
marked on it, and all the usual divisions were indicated in such a manner, that
no man who had ever steered a ship could mistake them.
    »Oh!« said the Sheriff, settling himself down comfortably in his chair -
»you'd the wind south-east, I see, all last night; I thought it would have blown
up rain.«
    »Devil the drop, sir,« said Benjamin; »I believe that the scuttle-butt up
aloft is emptied, for there hasn't so much water fell in the country, for the
last three weeks, as would float Indian John's canoe, and that draws just one
inch nothing, light.«
    »Well, but didn't the wind change here this morning? there was a change
where I was.«
    »To be sure it did, Squire; and haven't I logged it as a shift of wind?«
    »I don't see where, Benjamin« -
    »Don't see!« interrupted the steward, a little crustily; »an't there a mark
ag'in east-and-by-nothe-half-nothe, with sum'mat like a rising sun at the end of
it, to show 'twas in the morning watch?«
    »Yes, yes, that is very legible; but where is the change noted?«
    »Where! why doesn't't it see this here tea-kettle, with a mark run from the
spout straight, or mayhap a little crooked or so, into
west-and-by-southe-half-southe? now I calls this a shift of wind, Squire. Well,
do you see this here boar's head that you made for me, alongside of the compass«
-
    »Ay, ay - Boreas - I see. Why you've drawn lines from its mouth, extending
from one of your marks to the other.«
    »It's no fault of mine, Squire Dickens; 'tis your d-d climate. The wind has
been at all them there marks this very day; and that's all round the compass,
except a little matter of an Irishman's hurricane at meridium, which you'll find
marked right up and down. Now I've known a sow-wester blow for three weeks, in
the Channel, with a clean drizzle in which you might wash your face and hands,
without the trouble of hauling in water from alongside.«
    »Very well, Benjamin,« said the Sheriff, writing in his journal; »I believe
I have caught the idea. Oh! here's a cloud over the rising sun; - so you had it
hazy in the morning?«
    »Ay, ay, sir,« said Benjamin.
    »Ah! it's Sunday, and here are the marks for the length of the sermon - one,
two, three, four - What! did Mr. Grant preach forty minutes!«
    »Ay, sum'mat like it; it was a good half-hour by my own glass, and then
there was the time lost in turning it, and some little allowance for lee-way in
not being over smart about it.«
    »Benjamin, this is as long as a Presbyterian; you never could have been ten
minutes in turning the glass!«
    »Why, d'ye see, Squire, the parson was very solemn, and I just closed my
eyes in order to think the better with myself, just the same as you'd put in the
dead-lights to make all snug, and when I opened them ag'in I found the
congregation were getting under way for home, so I calculated the ten minutes
would cover the lee-way after the glass was out. It was only some such matter as
a cat's nap.«
    »Oh, ho! Master Benjamin, you were asleep, were you! but I'll set down no
such slander against an orthodox divine.« Richard wrote twenty-nine minutes in
his journal, and continued - »Why, what's this you've got opposite ten o'clock,
A.M.? a full moon! had you a moon visible by day! I have heard of such portents
before now, but - eh! what's this alongside of it? an hour-glass?«
    »That!« said Benjamin, looking coolly over the Sheriff's shoulder, and
rolling the tobacco about in his mouth with a jocular air; »why that's a small
matter of my own. It's no moon, Squire, but only Betty Hollister's face; for,
d'ye see, sir, hearing all the same as if she had got up a new cargo of Jamaiky
from the river, I called in as I was going to the church this morning - ten,
A.M. was it? just the time - and tried a glass; and so I logged it, to put me in
mind of calling to pay her like an honest man.«
    »That was it, was it?« said the Sheriff, with some displeasure at this
innovation on his memoranda; »and could you not make a better glass than this?
it looks like a death's head and an hour-glass.«
    »Why, as I liked the stuff, Squire,« returned the steward, »I turned in,
homeward bound, and took t'other glass, which I set down at the bottom of the
first, and that gives the thing the shape it has. But as I was there ag'in
to-night, and paid for the three at once, your honour may as well run the sponge
over the whole business.«
    »I will buy you a slate for your own affairs, Benjamin,« said the Sheriff;
»I don't like to have the journal marked over in this manner.«
    »You needn't - you needn't, Squire; for, seeing that I was likely to trade
often with the woman while this barrel lasted, I've opened a fair account with
Betty, and she keeps the marks on the back of her bar door, and I keeps the
tally on this here bit of a stick.«
    As Benjamin concluded he produced a piece of wood, on which five very large,
honest notches were apparent. The Sheriff cast his eyes on this new leger, for a
moment, and continued -
    »What have we here! Saturday, two, P.M. - why here's a whole family piece!
two wine-glasses up-side-down!«
    »That's two women; the one this a-way is Miss 'Lizzy, and t'other is the
parson's young'un.«
    »Cousin Bess and Miss Grant!« exclaimed the Sheriff, in amazement; »what
have they to do with my journal?«
    »They'd enough to do to get out of the jaws of that there painter, or
panther,« said the immoveable steward. »This here thingum'y, Squire, that maybe
looks sum'mat like a rat, is the beast, d'ye see; and this here t'other thing,
keel uppermost, is poor old Brave, who died nobly, all the same as an admiral
fighting for his king and country; and that there« -
    »Scarecrow,« interrupted Richard.
    »Ay, mayhap it do look a little wild or so,« continued the steward; »but, to
my judgment, Squire, it's the best imager I've made, seeing it's most like the
man himself; - well, that's Natty Bumppo, who shot this here painter, that
killed that there dog, who would have eaten or done worse to them here young
ladies.«
    »And what the devil does all this mean?« cried Richard, impatiently.
    »Mean!« echoed Benjamin; »it's as true as the Boadishey's log-book« -
    He was interrupted by the Sheriff, who put a few direct questions to him,
that obtained more intelligible answers, by which means he became possessed of a
tolerably correct idea of the truth. When the wonder, and, we must do Richard
the justice to say, the feelings also, that were created by this narrative, had
in some degree subsided, the Sheriff turned his eyes again on his journal, where
more inexplicable hieroglyphics met his view.
    »What have we here!« he cried; »two men boxing! has there been a breach of
the peace? ah! that's the way, the moment my back is turned« -
    »That's the Judge and young Master Edwards,« interrupted the steward, very
cavalierly.
    »How! 'duke fighting with Oliver! what the devil has got into you all? more
things have happened within the last thirty-six hours, than in the preceding six
months.«
    »Yes, it's so indeed, Squire,« returned the steward; »I've known a smart
chase, and a fight at the tail of it, where less has been logged than I've got
on that there slate. Howsom-never, they didn't come to facers, only passed a
little jaw fore and aft.«
    »Explain! explain!« cried Richard - »it was about the mines, ha! - ay, ay, I
see it, I see it; here is a man with a pick on his shoulder. So you heard it
all, Benjamin?«
    »Why yes, it was about their minds, I believe, Squire,« returned the
steward; »and, by what I can learn, they spoke them pretty plainly to one
another. Indeed, I may say that I overheard a small matter of it myself, seeing
that the windows was open, and I hard by. But this here is no pick, but an
anchor on a man's shoulder; and here's the other fluke down his back, maybe a
little too close, which signifies that the lad has got under way and left his
moorings.«
    »Has Edwards left the house?«
    »He has.«
    Richard pursued this advantage, and, after a long and close examination, he
succeeded in getting out of Benjamin all that he knew, not only concerning the
misunderstanding, but of the attempt to search the hut, and Hiram's
discomfiture. The Sheriff was no sooner possessed of these facts, which Benjamin
related with all possible tenderness to the Leather-stocking, than, snatching up
his hat, and bidding the astonished steward secure the doors and go to his bed,
he left the house.
    For at least five minutes after Richard disappeared, Benjamin stood with his
arms a-kimbo, and his eyes fastened on the door; when, having collected his
astonished faculties, he prepared to execute the orders he had received.
    It has been already said, that the »court of common pleas and general
sessions of the peace,« or, as it is commonly called, the county court, over
which Judge Temple presided, held one of its stated sessions on the following
morning. The attendants of Richard were officers who had come to the village as
much to discharge their usual duties at this court, as to escort the prisoners;
and the Sheriff knew their habits too well, not to feel confident he should find
most, if not all of them, in the public room of the gaol, discussing the
qualities of the keeper's liquors. Accordingly he held his way, through the
silent streets of the village, directly to the small and insecure building, that
contained all the unfortunate debtors, and some of the criminals of the county,
and where justice was administered to such unwary applicants as were so silly as
to throw away two dollars, in order to obtain one from their neighbours. The
arrival of four malefactors in the custody of a dozen officers, was an event, at
that day, in Templeton; and when the Sheriff reached the gaol, he found every
indication that his subordinates intended to make a night of it.
    The nod of the Sheriff brought two of his deputies to the door, who in their
turn drew off six or seven of the constables. With this force Richard led the
way through the village, towards the bank of the lake, undisturbed by any noise,
except the barking of one or two curs, who were alarmed by the measured tread of
the party, and by the low murmurs that run through their own numbers, as a few
cautious questions and answers were exchanged, relative to the object of their
expedition. When they had crossed the little bridge of hewn logs that was thrown
over the Susquehanna, they left the highway, and struck into that field which
had been the scene of the victory over the pigeons. From this they followed
their leader into the low bushes of pines and chestnuts which had sprung up
along the shores of the lake, where the plough had not succeeded the fall of the
trees, and soon entered the forest itself. Here Richard paused, and collected
his troop around him.
    »I have required your assistance, my friends,« he said, in a low voice, »in
order to arrest Nathaniel Bumppo, commonly called the Leather-stocking. He has
assaulted a magistrate, and resisted the execution of a search-warrant, by
threatening the life of a constable with his rifle. In short, my friends, he has
set an example of rebellion to the laws, and has become a kind of out-law. He is
suspected of other misdemeanours and offences against private rights; and I have
this night taken on myself, by the virtue of my office of sheriff, to arrest the
said Bumppo, and bring him to the county gaol, that he may be present and
forthcoming to answer to these heavy charges before the court to-morrow morning.
In executing this duty, friends and fellow citizens, you are to use courage and
discretion. Courage, that you may not be daunted by any lawless attempts that
this man may make, with his rifle and his dogs, to oppose you; and discretion,
which here means caution and prudence, that he may not escape from this sudden
attack - and - for other good reasons that I need not mention. You will form
yourselves in a complete circle around his hut, and at the word advance, called
aloud by me, you will rush forward, and, without giving the criminal time for
deliberation, enter his dwelling by force and make him your prisoner. Spread
yourselves for this purpose, while I shall descend to the shore with a deputy,
to take charge of that point; and all communications must be made directly to
me, under the bank in front of the hut, where I shall station myself, and remain
in order to receive them.«
    This speech, which Richard had been studying during his walk, had the effect
that all similar performances produce, of bringing the dangers of the expedition
immediately before the eyes of his forces. The men divided, some plunging deeper
into the forest, in order to gain their stations without giving an alarm, and
others continuing to advance, at a gait that would allow the whole party to get
in order; but all devising the best plan to repulse the attack of a dog, or to
escape a rifle-bullet. It was a moment of dread expectation and interest.
    When the Sheriff thought time enough had elapsed for the different divisions
of his force to arrive at their stations, he raised his voice in the silence of
the forest, and shouted the watchword. The sounds played among the arched
branches of the trees in hollow cadences; but when the last sinking tone was
lost on the ear, in place of the expected howls of the dogs, no other noises
were returned but the crackling of torn branches and dried sticks, as they
yielded before the advancing steps of the officers. Even this soon ceased, as if
by a common consent, when, the curiosity and impatience of the Sheriff getting
the complete ascendency over discretion, he rushed up the bank, and in a moment
stood on the little piece of cleared ground in front of the spot where Natty had
so long lived. To his amazement, in place of the hut, he saw only its
smouldering ruins.
    The party gradually drew together about the heap of ashes and the ends of
smoking logs, while a dim flame in the centre of the ruin, which still found
fuel to feed its lingering life, threw its pale light, flickering with the
passing currents of the air, around the circle, now showing a face with eyes
fixed in astonishment, and then glancing to another countenance, leaving the
former shaded in the obscurity of night. Not a voice was raised in inquiry, nor
an exclamation made in astonishment. This transition from excitement to
disappointment was too powerful for speech, and even Richard lost the use of an
organ that was seldom known to fail him.
    The whole group were yet in the fullness of their surprise, when a tall form
stalked from the gloom into the circle, treading down the hot ashes and dying
embers with callous feet, and, standing over the light, lifted his cap, and
exposed the bare head and weather-beaten features of the Leather-stocking. For a
moment he gazed at the dusky figures who surrounded him, more in sorrow than in
anger, before he spoke.
    »What would ye have with an old and helpless man?« he said. »You've driven
God's creaters from the wilderness, where his providence had put them for his
own pleasure, and you've brought in the troubles and divilties of the law, where
no man was ever known to disturb another. You have driven me, that have lived
forty long years of my appointed time in this very spot, from my home and the
shelter of my head, lest you should put your wicked feet and wasty ways in my
cabin. You've driven me to burn these logs, under which I've eaten and drunk,
the first of Heaven's gifts, and the other of the pure springs, for the half of
a hundred years, and to mourn the ashes under my feet, as a man would weep and
mourn for the children of his body. You've rankled the heart of an old man, that
has never harmed you or yourn, with bitter feelings towards his kind, at a time
when his thoughts should be on a better world; and you've driven him to wish
that the beasts of the forest, who never feast on the blood of their own
families, was his kindred and race; and now, when he has come to see the last
brand of his hut, before it is melted into ashes, you follow him up, at
midnight, like hungry hounds on the track of a worn-out and dying deer! What
more would ye have? for I am here - one to many. I come to mourn, not to fight;
and, if it is God's pleasure, work your will on me.«
    When the old man ended, he stood, with the light glimmering around his
thinly-covered head, looking earnestly at the group, which receded from the
pile, with an involuntary movement, without the reach of the quivering rays,
leaving a free passage for his retreat into the bushes, where pursuit, in the
dark, would have been fruitless. Natty seemed not to regard this advantage, but
stood facing each individual in the circle, in succession, as if to see who
would be the first to arrest him. After a pause of a few moments, Richard begun
to rally his confused faculties, and advancing, apologized for his duty, and
made him his prisoner. The party now collected, and, preceded by the Sheriff,
with Natty in their centre, they took their way towards the village.
    During the walk, divers questions were put to the prisoner concerning his
reasons for burning the hut, and whither Mohegan had retreated, but to all of
them he observed a profound silence, until, fatigued with their previous duties,
and the lateness of the hour, the Sheriff and his followers reached the village,
and dispersed to their several places of rest, after turning the key of a gaol
on the aged and apparently friendless Leather-stocking.
 

                                 Chapter XXXIII

 »Fetch here the stocks, ho!
 You stubborn ancient knave, you reverend braggart,
 We'll teach you.«
                                                        King Lear, II.ii.125-27.
 
The long days and early sun of July allowed time for a gathering of the
interested, before the little bell of the academy announced that the appointed
hour had arrived for administering right to the wronged, and punishment to the
guilty. Ever since the dawn of day, the highways and wood-paths that, issuing
from the forests, and winding along the sides of the mountains, centred in
Templeton, had been thronged with equestrians and footmen, bound to the haven of
justice. There was to be seen a well-clad yeoman, mounted on a sleek,
switch-tailed steed, ambling along the highway, with his red face elevated in a
manner that said, »I have paid for my land, and fear no man,« while his bosom
was swelling with the pride of being one of the grand inquest for the county. At
his side rode a companion, his equal in independence of feeling, perhaps, but
his inferior in thrift, as in property and consideration. This was a professed
dealer in lawsuits, - a man whose name appeared in every calendar; whose
substance, gained in the multifarious expedients of a settler's changeable
habits, was wasted in feeding the harpies of the courts. He was endeavouring to
impress the mind of the grand juror with the merits of a cause now at issue.
Along with these was a pedestrian, who, having thrown a rifle frock over his
shirt, and placed his best wool hat above his sunburnt visage, had issued from
his retreat in the woods by a footpath, and was striving to keep company with
the others, on his way to hear and to decide the disputes of his neighbours as a
petit juror. Fifty similar little knots of countrymen might have been seen, on
that morning, journeying towards the shire-town on the same errand.
    By ten o'clock the streets of the village were filled with busy faces, some
talking of their private concerns, some listening to a popular expounder of
political creeds, and others gaping in at the open stores, admiring the finery,
or examining sithes, axes, and such other manufactures as attracted their
curiosity or excited their admiration. A few women were in the crowd, most
carrying infants, and followed, at a lounging, listless gait, by their rustic
lords and masters. There was one young couple, in whom connubial love was yet
fresh, walking at a respectful distance from each other, while the swain
directed the timid steps of his bride, by a gallant offering of a thumb!
    At the first stroke of the bell, Richard issued from the door of the Bold
Dragoon, flourishing a sheathed sword, that he was fond of saying his ancestors
had carried in one of Cromwell's victories, and crying, in an authoritative
tone, to clear the way for the court. The order was obeyed promptly, though not
servilely; the members of the crowd nodding familiarly to the members of the
procession, as it passed. A party of constables with their staves followed the
Sheriff, preceding Marmaduke and four plain, grave-looking yeomen, who were his
associates on the bench. There was nothing to distinguish these subordinate
judges from the better part of the spectators, except gravity, which they
affected a little more than common, and that one of their number was attired in
an old-fashioned military coat, with skirts that reached no lower than the
middle of his thighs, and bearing two little silver epaulettes, not half so big
as a modern pair of shoulder-knots. This gentleman was a colonel of the militia,
in attendance on a court-martial, who found leisure to steal a moment from his
military, to attend to his civil jurisdiction. But this incongruity excited
neither notice nor comment. Three or four clean-shaved lawyers followed, as
meekly as if they were lambs going to the slaughter. One or two of their number
had contrived to obtain an air of scholastic gravity, by wearing spectacles. The
rear was brought up by another posse of constables, and the mob followed the
whole into the room where the court held its sittings.
    The edifice was composed of a basement of squared logs, perforated here and
there with small grated windows, through which a few wistful faces were gazing
at the crowd without. Among the captives were the guilty, downcast countenances
of the counterfeiters, and the simple but honest features of the
Leather-stocking. The dungeons were to be distinguished, externally, from the
debtors' apartments, only by the size of the apertures, the thickness of the
grates, and by the heads of the spikes that were driven into the logs as a
protection against the illegal use of edge-tools. The upper story was of
frame-work, regularly covered with boards, and contained one room decently
fitted up for the purposes of justice. A bench, raised on a narrow platform to
the height of a man above the floor, and protected in front by a light railing,
ran along one of its sides. In the centre was a seat, furnished with rude arms,
that was always filled by the presiding judge. In front, on a level with the
floor of the room, was a large table, covered with green baize, and surrounded
by benches; and at either of its ends were rows of seats, rising one over the
other, for jury-boxes. Each of these divisions was surrounded by a railing. The
remainder of the room was an open square, appropriated to the spectators.
    When the judges were seated, the lawyers had taken possession of the table,
and the noise of moving feet had ceased in the area, the proclamations were made
in the usual form, the jurors were sworn, the charge was given, and the court
proceeded to hear the business before them.
    We shall not detain the reader with a description of the captious
discussions that occupied the court for the first two hours. Judge Temple had
impressed on the jury, in his charge, the necessity for despatch on their part,
recommending to their notice, from motives of humanity, the prisoners in the
gaol, as the first objects of their attention. Accordingly, after the period we
have mentioned had elapsed, the cry of the officer to »clear the way for the
grand jury,« announced the entrance of that body. The usual forms were observed,
when the foreman handed up to the bench two bills, on both of which the Judge
observed, at the first glance of his eye, the name of Nathaniel Bumppo. It was a
leisure moment with the court; some low whispering passed between the bench and
the Sheriff, who gave a signal to his officers, and in a very few minutes the
silence that prevailed was interrupted by a general movement in the outer crowd;
when presently the Leather-stocking made his appearance, ushered into the
criminal's bar under the custody of two constables. The hum ceased, the people
closed into the open space again, and the silence soon became so deep that the
hard breathing of the prisoner was audible.
    Natty was dressed in his buck-skin garments, without his coat, in place of
which he wore only a shirt of coarse linen-check, fastened at his throat by the
sinew of a deer, leaving his red neck and weather-beaten face exposed and bare.
It was the first time that he had ever crossed the threshold of a court of
justice, and curiosity seemed to be strongly blended with his personal feelings.
He raised his eyes to the bench, thence to the jury-boxes, the bar, and the
crowd without, meeting every where looks fastened on himself. After surveying
his own person, as if searching for the cause of this unusual attraction, he
once more turned his face around the assemblage, and opened his mouth in one of
his silent and remarkable laughs.
    »Prisoner, remove your cap,« said Judge Temple.
    The order was either unheard or unheeded.
    »Nathaniel Bumppo, be uncovered,« repeated the Judge.
    Natty started at the sound of his name, and, raising his face earnestly
towards the bench, he said -
    »Anan!«
    Mr. Lippet arose from his seat at the table, and whispered in the ear of the
prisoner, when Natty gave him a nod of assent, and took the deer-skin covering
from his head.
    »Mr. District Attorney,« said the Judge, »the prisoner is ready; we wait for
the indictment.«
    The duties of public prosecutor were discharged by Dirck Van der School, who
adjusted his spectacles, cast a cautious look around him at his brethren of the
bar, which he ended by throwing his head aside so as to catch one glance over
the glasses, when he proceeded to read the bill aloud. It was the usual charge
for an assault and battery, on the person of Hiram Doolittle, and was couched in
the ancient language of such instruments, especial care having been taken by the
scribe, not to omit the name of a single offensive weapon known to the law. When
he had done, Mr. Van der School removed his spectacles, which he closed and
placed in his pocket, seemingly for the pleasure of again opening and replacing
them on his nose. After this evolution was repeated once or twice, he handed the
bill over to Mr. Lippet, with a cavalier air, that said as much as »pick a hole
in that if you can.«
    Natty listened to the charge with great attention, leaning forward towards
the reader with an earnestness that denoted his interest; and when it was ended
he raised his tall body to the utmost, and drew a long sigh. All eyes were
turned to the prisoner, whose voice was vainly expected to break the stillness
of the room.
    »You have heard the presentment that the grand jury have made, Nathaniel
Bumppo,« said the Judge; »what do you plead to the charge?«
    The old man dropped his head for a moment in a reflecting attitude, and then
raising it, he laughed before he answered -
    »That I handled the man a little rough or so, is not to be denied; but that
there was occasion to make use of all them things that the gentleman has spoken
of, is downright untrue. I am not much of a wrestler, seeing that I'm getting
old; but I was out among the Scotch-Irishers - lets me see - it must have been
as long ago as the first year of the old war« -
    »Mr. Lippet, if you are retained for the prisoner,« interrupted Judge
Temple, »instruct your client how to plead; if not, the court will assign him
counsel.«
    Aroused from studying the indictment by this appeal, the attorney got up,
and, after a short dialogue with the hunter in a low voice, he informed the
court that they were ready to proceed.
    »Do you plead guilty or not guilty?« said the Judge.
    »I may say not guilty with a clean conscience,« returned Natty; »for there's
no guilt in doing what's right; and I'd rather died on the spot, than had him
put foot in the hut at that moment.«
    Richard started at this declaration, and bent his eyes significantly on
Hiram, who returned the look with a slight movement of his eye-brows.
    »Proceed to open the cause, Mr. District Attorney,« continued the Judge.
»Mr. Clerk, enter the plea of not guilty.«
    After a short opening address from Mr. Van der School, Hiram was summoned to
the bar to give his testimony. It was delivered to the letter, perhaps, but with
all that moral colouring which can be conveyed under such expressions as,
»thinking no harm,« »feeling it my bounden duty as a magistrate,« and »seeing
that the constable was back'ard in the business.« When he had done, and the
District Attorney declined putting any further interrogatories, Mr. Lippet
arose, with an air of keen investigation, and asked the following questions: -
    »Are you a constable of this county, sir?«
    »No, sir,« said Hiram, »I'm only a justice-peace.«
    »I ask you, Mr. Doolittle, in the face of this court, putting it to your
conscience and your knowledge of the law, whether you had any right to enter
that man's dwelling?«
    »Hem!« said Hiram, undergoing a violent struggle between his desire for
vengeance and his love of legal fame; »I do suppose - that in - that is - strict
law - that supposing - maybe I hadn't a real - lawful right; - but as the case
was - and Billy was so back'ard - I thought I might come for'ard in the
business.«
    »I ask you, again, sir,« continued the lawyer, following up his success,
»whether this old, this friendless old man, did or did not repeatedly forbid
your entrance?«
    »Why, I must say,« said Hiram, »that he was considerable cross-grained; not
what I call clever, seeing that it was only one neighbour wanting to go into the
house of another.«
    »Oh! then you own it was only meant for a neighbourly visit on your part,
and without the sanction of law. Remember, gentlemen, the words of the witness,
one neighbour wanting to enter the house of another. Now, sir, I ask you if
Nathaniel Bumppo did not again and again order you not to enter?«
    »There was some words passed between us,« said Hiram, »but I read the
warrant to him aloud.«
    »I repeat my question; did he tell you not to enter his habitation?«
    »There was a good deal passed betwixt us - but I've the warrant in my
pocket; maybe the court would wish to see it?«
    »Witness,« said Judge Temple, »answer the question directly; did or did not
the prisoner forbid your entering his hut?«
    »Why, I some think« -
    »Answer without equivocation,« continued the Judge, sternly.
    »He did.«
    »And did you attempt to enter, after this order?«
    »I did; but the warrant was in my hand.«
    »Proceed, Mr. Lippet, with your examination.«
    But the attorney saw that the impression was in favour of his client, and,
waving his hand with a supercilious manner, as if unwilling to insult the
understanding of the jury with any further defence, he replied -
    »No, sir; I leave it for your honour to charge; I rest my case here.«
    »Mr. District Attorney,« said the Judge, »have you any thing to say?«
    Mr. Van der School removed his spectacles, folded them, and replacing them
once more on his nose, eyed the other bill which he held in his hand, and then
said, looking at the bar over the top of his glasses -
    »I shall rest the prosecution here, if the court please.«
    Judge Temple arose and began the charge.
    »Gentlemen of the jury,« he said, »you have heard the testimony, and I shall
detain you but a moment. If an officer meet with resistance in the execution of
a process, he has an undoubted right to call any citizen to his assistance; and
the acts of such assistant come within the protection of the law. I shall leave
you to judge, gentlemen, from the testimony, how far the witness in this
prosecution can be so considered, feeling less reluctance to submit the case
thus informally to your decision, because there is yet another indictment to be
tried, which involves heavier charges against the unfortunate prisoner.«
    The tone of Marmaduke was mild and insinuating, and as his sentiments were
given with such apparent impartiality, they did not fail of carrying due weight
with the jury. The grave-looking yeomen, who composed this tribunal, laid their
heads together for a few minutes, without leaving the box, when the foreman
arose, and, after the forms of the court were duly observed, he pronounced the
prisoner to be -
    »Not guilty.«
    »You are acquitted of this charge, Nathaniel Bumppo,« said the Judge.
    »Anan!« said Natty.
    »You are found not guilty of striking and assaulting Mr. Doolittle.«
    »No, no, I'll not deny but that I took him a little roughly by the
shoulders,« said Natty, looking about him with great simplicity, »and that I« -
    »You are acquitted,« interrupted the Judge; »and there is nothing further to
be done or said in the matter.«
    A look of joy lighted up the features of the old man, who now comprehended
the case, and, placing his cap eagerly on his head again, he threw up the bar of
his little prison, and said feelingly -
    »I must say this for you, Judge Temple, that the law has not been as hard on
me as I dreaded. I hope God will bless you for the kind things you've done to me
this day.«
    But the staff of the constable was opposed to his egress, and Mr. Lippet
whispered a few words in his ear, when the aged hunter sunk back into his place,
and removing his cap, stroked down the remnants of his gray and sandy locks,
with an air of mortification mingled with submission.
    »Mr. District Attorney,« said Judge Temple, affecting to busy himself with
his minutes, »proceed with the second indictment.«
    Mr. Van der School took great care that no part of the presentment, which he
now read, should be lost on his auditors. It accused the prisoner of resisting
the execution of a search-warrant by force of arms, and particularized, in the
vague language of the law, among a variety of other weapons, the use of the
rifle. This was indeed a more serious charge than an ordinary assault and
battery, and a corresponding degree of interest was manifested by the spectators
in its result. The prisoner was duly arraigned, and his plea again demanded. Mr.
Lippet had anticipated the answers of Natty, and in a whisper advised him how to
plead. But the feelings of the old hunter were awakened by some of the
expressions of the indictment, and, forgetful of his caution, he exclaimed -
    »'Tis a wicked untruth; I crave no man's blood. Them thieves, the Iroquois,
won't say it to my face, that I ever thirsted after man's blood. I have fout as
a soldier that feared his Maker and his officer, but I never pulled trigger on
any but a warrior that was up and awake. No man can say that I ever struck even
a Mingo in his blanket. I b'lieve there's some who thinks there's no God in a
wilderness!«
    »Attend to your plea, Bumppo,« said the Judge; »you hear that you are
accused of using your rifle against an officer of justice; are you guilty or not
guilty?«
    By this time the irritated feelings of Natty had found vent; and he rested
on the bar for a moment, in a musing posture, when he lifted his face, with his
silent laugh, and pointing to where the wood-chopper stood, he said -
    »Would Billy Kirby be standing there, d'ye think, if I had used the rifle?«
    »Then you deny it,« said Mr. Lippet; »you plead not guilty?«
    »Sartain,« said Natty; »Billy knows that I never fired at all. Billy, do you
remember the turkey last winter? ah! me! that was better than common firing; but
I can't shoot as I used to could.«
    »Enter the plea of not guilty,« said Judge Temple, strongly affected by the
simplicity of the prisoner.
    Hiram was again sworn, and his testimony given on the second charge. He had
discovered his former error, and proceeded more cautiously than before. He
related very distinctly, and, for the man, with amazing terseness, the suspicion
against the hunter, the complaint, the issuing of the warrant, and the swearing
in of Kirby; all of which, he affirmed, were done in due form of law. He then
added the manner in which the constable had been received; and stated distinctly
that Natty had pointed the rifle at Kirby, and threatened his life, if he
attempted to execute his duty. All this was confirmed by Jotham, who was
observed to adhere closely to the story of the magistrate. Mr. Lippet conducted
an artful cross-examination of these two witnesses, but, after consuming much
time, was compelled to relinquish the attempt to obtain any advantage, in
despair.
    At length the District Attorney called the wood-chopper to the bar. Billy
gave an extremely confused account of the whole affair, although he evidently
aimed at the truth, until Mr. Van der School aided him, by asking some direct
questions: -
    »It appears, from examining the papers, that you demanded admission into the
hut legally; so you were put in bodily fear by his rifle and threats?«
    »I didn't mind them that, man,« said Billy, snapping his fingers; »I should
be a poor stick, to mind old Leather-stocking.«
    »But I understood you to say, (referring to your previous words, (as
delivered here in court,) in the commencement of your testimony,) that you
thought he meant to shoot you?«
    »To be sure I did; and so would you too, Squire, if you had seen the chap
dropping a muzzle that never misses, and cocking an eye that has a nateral
squint by long practice. I thought there would be a dust on't, and my back was
up at once; but Leather-stocking gi'n up the skin, and so the matter ended.«
    »Ah! Billy,« said Natty, shaking his head, »'twas a lucky thought in me to
throw out the hide, or there might have been blood spilt; and I'm sure, if it
had been your'n, I should have mourned it sorely the little while I have to
stay.«
    »Well, Leather-stocking,« returned Billy, facing the prisoner, with a
freedom and familiarity that utterly disregarded the presence of the court, »as
you are on the subject, it may be that you've no« -
    »Go on with your examination, Mr. District Attorney.«
    That gentleman eyed the familiarity between his witness and the prisoner
with manifest disgust, and indicated to the court that he was done.
    »Then you didn't feel frightened, Mr. Kirby?« said the counsel for the
prisoner.
    »Me! no,« said Billy, casting his eyes over his own huge frame with evident
self-satisfaction; »I'm not to be skeared so easy.«
    »You look like a hardy man; where were you born, sir?«
    »Varmount state; 'tis a mountaynious place, but there's a stiff soil, and
it's pretty much wooded with beech and maple.«
    »I have always heard so,« said Mr. Lippet, soothingly. »You have been used
to the rifle yourself, in that country?«
    »I pull the second best trigger in this county. I knock under to Natty
Bumppo there, sin' he shot the pigeon.«
    Leather-stocking raised his head, and laughed again, when he abruptly thrust
out a wrinkled hand, and said -
    »You're young yet, Billy, and haven't seen the matches that I have; but
here's my hand; I bear no malice to you, I don't.«
    Mr. Lippet allowed this conciliatory offering to be accepted, and
judiciously paused, while the spirit of peace was exercising its influence over
the two; but the Judge interposed his authority.
    »This is an improper place for such dialogues,« he said. »Proceed with your
examination of this witness, Mr. Lippet, or I shall order the next.«
    The attorney started, as if unconscious of any impropriety, and continued -
    »So you settled the matter with Natty amicably on the spot, did you?«
    »He gi'n me the skin, and I didn't want to quarrel with an old man; for my
part, I see no such mighty matter in shooting a buck!«
    »And you parted friends? and you would never have thought of bringing the
business up before a court, hadn't you been subpoenaed?«
    »I don't think I should; he gi'n the skin, and I didn't feel a hard thought,
though Squire Doolittle got some affronted.«
    »I have done, sir,« said Mr. Lippet, probably relying on the charge of the
Judge, as he again seated himself, with the air of a man who felt that his
success was certain.
    When Mr. Van der School arose to address the jury, he commenced by saying -
    »Gentlemen of the jury, I should have interrupted the leading questions put
by the prisoner's counsel, (by leading questions I mean telling him what to
say,) did I not feel confident that the law of the land was superior to any
advantages (I mean legal advantages) which he might obtain by his art. The
counsel for the prisoner, gentlemen, has endeavoured to persuade you, in
opposition to your own good sense, to believe that pointing a rifle at a
constable (elected or deputed) is a very innocent affair; and that society (I
mean the commonwealth, gentlemen,) shall not be endangered thereby. But let me
claim your attention, while we look over the particulars of this heinous
offence.« Here Mr. Van der School favoured the jury with an abridgment of the
testimony, recounted in such a manner as utterly to confuse the faculties of his
worthy listeners. After this exhibition he closed as follows: - »And now,
gentlemen, having thus made plain to your senses the crime of which this
unfortunate man has been guilty, (unfortunate both on account of his ignorance
and his guilt,) I shall leave you to your own consciences; not in the least
doubting that you will see the importance (notwithstanding the prisoner's
counsel (doubtless relying on your former verdict) wishes to appear so confident
of success) of punishing the offender, and asserting the dignity of the laws.«
    It was now the duty of the Judge to deliver his charge. It consisted of a
short, comprehensive summary of the testimony, laying bare the artifice of the
prisoner's counsel, and placing the facts in so obvious a light that they could
not well be misunderstood. »Living, as we do, gentlemen,« he concluded, »on the
skirts of society, it becomes doubly necessary to protect the ministers of the
law. If you believe the witnesses, in their construction of the acts of the
prisoner, it is your duty to convict him; but if you believe that the old man,
who this day appears before you, meant not to harm the constable, but was acting
more under the influence of habit than by the instigations of malice, it will be
your duty to judge him, but to do it with lenity.«
    As before, the jury did not leave their box, but, after a consultation of
some little time, their foreman arose, and pronounced the prisoner -
    »Guilty.«
    There was but little surprise manifested in the court-room at this verdict,
as the testimony, the greater part of which we have omitted, was too clear and
direct to be passed over. The judges seemed to have anticipated this sentiment,
for a consultation was passing among them also, during the deliberation of the
jury, and the preparatory movements of the bench announced the coming sentence.
    »Nathaniel Bumppo,« commenced the Judge, making the customary pause.
    The old hunter, who had been musing again, with his head on the bar, raised
himself, and cried, with a prompt, military tone -
    »Here.«
    The Judge waved his hand for silence, and proceeded -
    »In forming their sentence, the court have been governed as much by the
consideration of your ignorance of the laws, as by a strict sense of the
importance of punishing such outrages as this of which you have been found
guilty. They have, therefore, passed over the obvious punishment of whipping on
the bare back, in mercy to your years; but as the dignity of the law requires an
open exhibition of the consequences of your crime, it is ordered, that you be
conveyed from this room to the public stocks, where you are to be confined for
one hour; that you pay a fine to the state of one hundred dollars; and that you
be imprisoned in the gaol of this county for one calendar month; and
furthermore, that your imprisonment do not cease until the said fine shall be
paid. I feel it my duty, Nathaniel Bumppo,« -
    »And where should I get the money!« interrupted the Leather-stocking,
eagerly; »where should I get the money! you'll take away the bounty on the
painters, because I cut the throat of a deer; and how is an old man to find so
much gold or silver in the woods? No, no, Judge; think better of it, and don't
talk of shutting me up in a gaol for the little time I have to stay.«
    »If you have any thing to urge against the passing of the sentence, the
court will yet hear you,« said the Judge, mildly.
    »I have enough to say ag'in it,« cried Natty, grasping the bar, on which his
fingers were working with a convulsed motion. »Where am I to get the money? Let
me out into the woods and hills, where I've been used to breathe the clear air,
and though I'm three score and ten, if you've left game enough in the country,
I'll travel night and day but I'll make you up the sum afore the season is over.
Yes, yes - you see the reason of the thing, and the wickedness of shutting up an
old man, that has spent his days, as one may say, where he could always look
into the windows of heaven.«
    »I must be governed by the law« -
    »Talk not to me of law, Marmaduke Temple,« interrupted the hunter. »Did the
beast of the forest mind your laws, when it was thirsty and hungering for the
blood of your own child! She was kneeling to her God for a greater favour than I
ask, and he heard her; and if you now say no to my prayers, do you think he will
be deaf?«
    »My private feelings must not enter into« -
    »Hear me, Marmaduke Temple,« interrupted the old man, with melancholy
earnestness, »and hear reason. I've travelled these mountains when you was no
judge, but an infant in your mother's arms; and I feel as if I had a right and a
privilege to travel them ag'in afore I die. Have you forgot the time that you
come on to the lake-shore, when there wasn't't even a gaol to lodge in; and didn't
I give you my own bear-skin to sleep on, and the fat of a noble buck to satisfy
the cravings of your hunger? Yes, yes - you thought it no sin then to kill a
deer! And this I did, though I had no reason to love you, for you had never done
any thing but harm to them that loved and sheltered me. And now will you shut me
up in your dungeons to pay me for my kindness? A hundred dollars! where should I
get the money? No, no - there's them that says hard things of you, Marmaduke
Temple, but you an't so bad as to wish to see an old man die in a prison,
because he stood up for the right. Come, friend, let me pass; it's long sin'
I've been used to such crowds, and I crave to be in the woods ag'in. Don't fear
me, Judge - I bid you not to fear me; for if there's beaver enough left on the
streams, or the buckskins will sell for a shilling a-piece, you shall have the
last penny of the fine. Where are ye, pups! come away, dogs! come away! we have
a grievous toil to do for our years, but it shall be done - yes, yes, I've
promised it, and it shall be done!«
    It is unnecessary to say that the movement of the Leather-stocking was again
intercepted by the constable; but before he had time to speak, a bustling in the
crowd, and a loud hem, drew all eyes to another part of the room.
    Benjamin had succeeded in edging his way through the people, and was now
seen balancing his short body, with one foot in a window and the other on the
railing of the jury-box. To the amazement of the whole court, the steward was
evidently preparing to speak. After a good deal of difficulty, he succeeded in
drawing from his pocket a small bag, and then found utterance.
    »If-so-be,« he said, »that your honour is agreeable to trust the poor fellow
out on another cruise among the beasts, here's a small matter that will help to
bring down the risk, seeing that there's just thirty-five of your Spaniards in
it; and I wish, from the bottom of my heart, that they was raal British guineas,
for the sake of the old boy. But 'tis as it is; and if Squire Dickens will just
be so good as to overhaul this small bit of an account, and take enough from the
bag to settle the same, he's welcome to hold on upon the rest, till such time as
the Leather-stocking can grapple with them said beaver, or, for that matter, for
ever, and no thanks asked.«
    As Benjamin concluded, he thrust out the wooden register of his arrears to
the Bold Dragoon with one hand, while he offered his bag of dollars with the
other. Astonishment at this singular interruption produced a profound stillness
in the room, which was only interrupted by the Sheriff, who struck his sword on
the table, and cried -
    »Silence!«
    »There must be an end to this,« said the Judge, struggling to overcome his
feelings. »Constable, lead the prisoner to the stocks. Mr. Clerk, what stands
next on the calendar?«
    Natty seemed to yield to his destiny, for he sunk his head on his chest, and
followed the officer from the court-room in silence. The crowd moved back for
the passage of the prisoner, and when his tall form was seen descending from the
outer door, a rush of the people to the scene of his disgrace followed.
 

                                 Chapter XXXIV

            »Ha! ha! look! he wears cruel garters!«
                                                             King Lear, II.iv.8.
 
The punishments of the common law were still known, at the time of our tale, to
the people of New-York; and the whipping-post, and its companion the stocks,
were not yet supplanted by the more merciful expedients of the public prisons.
Immediately in front of the gaol, those relics of the elder times were situated,
as a lesson of precautionary justice to the evil-doers of the settlement.
    Natty followed the constables to this spot, bowing his head with submission
to a power that he was unable to oppose, and surrounded by the crowd, that
formed a circle about his person, exhibiting in their countenances strong
curiosity. A constable raised the upper part of the stocks, and pointed with his
finger to the holes where the old man was to place his feet. Without making the
least objection to the punishment, the Leather-stocking quietly seated himself
on the ground, and suffered his limbs to be laid in the openings, without even a
murmur; though he cast one glance about him, in quest of that sympathy that
human nature always seems to require under suffering. If he met no direct
manifestations of pity, neither did he see any unfeeling exultation, or hear a
single reproachful epithet. The character of the mob, if it could be called by
such a name, was that of attentive subordination.
    The constable was in the act of lowering the upper plank, when Benjamin, who
had pressed close to the side of the prisoner, said, in his hoarse tones, as if
seeking for some cause to create a quarrel -
    »Where away, master constable, is the use of clapping a man in them here
bilboes? it neither stops his grog nor hurts his back; what for is it that you
do the thing?«
    »'Tis the sentence of the court, Mr. Penguillum, and there's law for it, I
s'pose.«
    »Ay, ay, I know that there's law for the thing; but where away do you find
the use, I say? it does no harm, and it only keeps a man by the heels for the
small matter of two glasses.«
    »Is it no harm, Benny Pump,« said Natty, raising his eyes with a piteous
look to the face of the steward - »is it no harm to show off a man in his
seventy-first year, like a tamed bear, for the settlers to look on! Is it no
harm to put an old soldier, that has sarved through the war of 'fifty-six, and
seen the enemy in the 'seventy-six business, into a place like this, where the
boys can point at him and say, I have known the time when he was a spictacle for
the county! Is it no harm to bring down the pride of an honest man to be the
equal of the beasts of the forest!«
    Benjamin stared about him fiercely, and, could he have found a single face
that expressed contumely, he would have been prompt to quarrel with its owner;
but meeting every where with looks of sobriety, and occasionally of
commiseration, he very deliberately seated himself by the side of the hunter,
and placing his legs in the two vacant holes of the stocks, he said -
    »Now lower away, master constable, lower away, I tell ye! If-so-be there's
such a thing hereabouts as a man that wants to see a bear, let him look and be
d-d, and he shall find two of them, and mayhap one of the same that can bite as
well as growl.«
    »But I've no orders to put you in the stocks, Mr. Pump,« cried the
constable; »you must get up and let me do my duty.«
    »You've my orders, and what do you need better, to meddle with my own feet?
so lower away, will ye, and let me see the man that chooses to open his mouth
with a grin on it.«
    »There can't be any harm in locking up a creator that will enter the pound,«
said the constable, laughing, and closing the stocks on them both.
    It was fortunate that this act was executed with decision, for the whole of
the spectators, when they saw Benjamin assume the position he took, felt an
inclination for merriment, which few thought it worth while to suppress. The
steward struggled violently for his liberty again, with an evident intention of
making battle on those who stood nearest to him; but the key was already turned,
and all his efforts were vain.
    »Hark ye, master constable,« he cried, »just clear away your bilboes for the
small matter of a log-glass, will ye, and let me show some of them there chaps
who it is they are so merry about.«
    »No, no, you would go in, and you can't come out,« returned the officer,
»until the time has expired that the Judge directed for the keeping of the
prisoner.«
    Benjamin, finding that his threats and his struggles were useless, had good
sense enough to learn patience from the resigned manner of his companion, and
soon settled himself down by the side of Natty, with a contemptuousness
expressed in his hard features, that showed he had substituted disgust for rage.
When the violence of the steward's feelings had in some measure subsided, he
turned to his fellow sufferer, and, with a motive that might have vindicated a
worse effusion, he attempted the charitable office of consolation.
    »Taking it by and large, Master Bump-ho, 'tis but a small matter, after
all,« he said. »Now I've known very good sort of men, aboard of the Boadishey,
laid by the heels, for nothing, mayhap, but forgetting that they'd drunk their
allowance already, when a glass of grog has come in their way. This is nothing
more than riding with two anchors ahead, waiting for a turn in the tide, or a
shift of wind, d'ye see, with a soft bottom and plenty of room for the sweep of
your hawse. Now I've seen many a man, for overshooting his reckoning, as I told
ye, moored head and starn, where he couldn't so much as heave his broadside
round, and mayhap a stopper clapped on his tongue too, in the shape of a
plump-bolt lashed athwart-ship his jaws, all the same as an out-rigger alongside
of a taffrel-rail.«
    The hunter appeared to appreciate the kind intentions of the other, though
he could not understand his eloquence; and raising his humbled countenance, he
attempted a smile, as he said -
    »Anan!«
    »'Tis nothing, I say, but a small matter of a squall, that will soon blow
over,« continued Benjamin. »To you that has such a length of keel it must be all
the same as nothing; thof, seeing that I'm a little short in my lower timbers,
they've triced my heels up in such a way as to give me a bit of a cant. But what
cares I, Master Bump-ho, if the ship strains a little at her anchor; it's only
for a dog-watch, and dam'me but she'll sail with you then on that cruise after
them said beaver. I'm not much used to small arms, seeing that I was stationed
at the ammunition-boxes, being sum'mat too low-rigged to see over the
hammock-cloths; but I can carry the game, d'ye see, and mayhap make out to lend
a hand with the traps; and if-so-be you're any way so handy with them as ye be
with your boat-hook, 'twill be but a short cruise after all. I've squared the
yards with Squire Dickens this morning, and I shall send him word that he
needn't bear my name on the books again till such time as the cruise is over.«
    »You're used to dwell with men, Benny,« said Leather-stocking, mournfully,
»and the ways of the woods would be hard on you, if« -
    »Not a bit - not a bit,« cried the steward; »I'm none of your fair-weather
chaps, Master Bump-ho, as sails only in smooth water. When I find a friend I
sticks by him, d'ye see. Now, there's no better man a-going than Squire Dickens,
and I love him about the same as I loves Mistress Hollister's new keg of
Jamaiky.« The steward paused, and turning his uncouth visage on the hunter, he
survey'd him with a roguish leer of his eye, and gradually suffered the muscles
of his hard features to relax, until his face was illuminated by the display of
his white teeth, when he dropped his voice, and added - »I say, Master
Leather-stocking, 'tis fresher and livelier than any Hollands you'll get in
Garnsey. But we'll send a hand over and ask the woman for a taste, for I'm so
jammed in these here bilboes, that I begin to want sum'mat to lighten my
upper-works.«
    Natty sighed, and gazed about him on the crowd, that already begun to
disperse, and which had now diminished greatly, as its members scattered in
their various pursuits. He looked wistfully at Benjamin, but did not reply; a
deeply-seated anxiety seeming to absorb every other sensation, and to throw a
melancholy gloom over his wrinkled features, which were working with the
movements of his mind.
    The steward was about to act on the old principle, that silence gives
consent, when Hiram Doolittle, attended by Jotham, stalked out of the crowd,
across the open space, and approached the stocks. The magistrate passed by the
end where Benjamin was seated, and posted himself, at a safe distance from the
steward, in front of the Leather-stocking. Hiram stood, for a moment, cowering
before the keen looks that Natty fastened on him, and suffering under an
embarrassment that was quite new; when, having in some degree recovered himself,
he looked at the heavens, and then at the smoky atmosphere, as if it were only
an ordinary meeting with a friend, and said, in his formal, hesitating way -
    »Quite a scurcity of rain lately; I some think we shall have a long drought
on't.«
    Benjamin was occupied in untying his bag of dollars, and did not observe the
approach of the magistrate, while Natty turned his face, in which every muscle
was working, away from him in disgust, without answering. Rather encouraged than
daunted by this exhibition of dislike, Hiram, after a short pause, continued -
    »The clouds look as if they'd no water in them, and the earth is dreadfully
parched. To my judgment, there'll be short crops this season, if the rain
doosn't fall quite speedily.«
    The air with which Mr. Doolittle delivered this prophetical opinion was
peculiar to his species. It was a jesuitical, cold, unfeeling, and selfish
manner, that seemed to say, »I have kept within the law,« to the man he had so
cruelly injured. It quite overcame the restraint that the old hunter had been
labouring to impose on himself, and he burst out in a warm glow of indignation.
    »Why should the rain fall from the clouds,« he cried, »when you force the
tears from the eyes of the old, the sick, and the poor! Away with ye - away with
ye! you may be formed in the image of the Maker, but Satan dwells in your heart.
Away with ye, I say! I am mournful, and the sight of ye brings bitter thoughts.«
    Benjamin ceased thumbing his money, and raised his head, at the instant that
Hiram, who was thrown off his guard by the invectives of the hunter, unluckily
trusted his person within reach of the steward, who grasped one of his legs,
with a hand that had the grip of a vice, and whirled the magistrate from his
feet, before he had either time to collect his senses, or to exercise the
strength he did really possess. Benjamin wanted neither proportions nor manhood
in his head, shoulders and arms, though all the rest of his frame appeared to be
originally intended for a very different sort of a man. He exerted his physical
powers, on the present occasion, with much discretion, and as he had taken his
antagonist at a great disadvantage, the struggle resulted, very soon, in
Benjamin getting the magistrate fixed in a posture somewhat similar to his own,
and manfully placed face to face.
    »You're a ship's cousin, I tell ye, Master Doo-but-little,« roared the
steward - »some such matter as a ship's cousin, sir. I know you, I do, with your
fair-weather speeches to Squire Dickens, to his face, and then you go and starve
out your grumbling to all the old women in the town, do ye. An't it enough for
any christian, let him harbour never so much malice, to get an honest old fellow
laid by the heels in this fashion, without carrying sail so hard on the poor
dog, as if you would run him down as he lay at his anchors? But I've logged many
a hard thing against your name, master, and now the time's come to foot up the
day's work, d'ye see; so square yourself, you lubber, square yourself, and we'll
soon know who's the better man.«
    »Jotham!« cried the frightened magistrate - »Jotham! call in the constables.
Mr. Penguillum, I command the peace - I order you to keep the peace.«
    »There's been more peace than love atwixt us, master,« cried the steward,
making some very unequivocal demonstrations towards hostility; »so mind
yourself! square yourself, I say! do you smell this here bit of a
sledge-hammer?«
    »Lay hands on me if you dare!« exclaimed Hiram, as well as he could under
the grasp which the steward held on his throttle - »lay hands on me if you
dare!«
    »If ye call this laying, master, you are welcome to the eggs,« roared the
steward.
    It becomes our disagreeable duty to record here, that the acts of Benjamin
now became violent; for he darted his sledge-hammer violently on the anvil of
Mr. Doolittle's countenance, and the place became, in an instant, a scene of
tumult and confusion. The crowd rushed in a dense circle around the spot, while
some run to the court-room to give the alarm, and one or two of the more
juvenile part of the multitude had a desperate trial of speed, to see who should
be the happy man to communicate the critical situation of the magistrate to his
wife.
    Benjamin worked away with great industry and a good deal of skill, at his
occupation, using one hand to raise up his antagonist, while he knocked him over
with the other; for he would have been disgraced in his own estimation, had he
struck a blow on a fallen adversary. By this considerate arrangement he had
found means to hammer the visage of Hiram out of all shape, by the time Richard
succeeded in forcing his way through the throng to the point of combat. The
Sheriff afterwards declared that, independently of his mortification, as
preserver of the peace of the county at this interruption to its harmony, he was
never so grieved in his life, as when he saw this breach of unity between his
favourites. Hiram had in some degree become necessary to his vanity, and
Benjamin, strange as it may appear, he really loved. This attachment was
exhibited in the first words that he uttered.
    »Squire Doolittle! Squire Doolittle! I am ashamed to see a man of your
character and office forget himself so much as to disturb the peace, insult the
court, and beat poor Benjamin in this manner!«
    At the sound of Mr. Jones's voice the steward ceased his employment, and
Hiram had an opportunity of raising his discomfited visage towards the mediator.
Emboldened by the sight of the Sheriff, Mr. Doolittle again had recourse to his
lungs.
    »I'll have the law on you for this,« he cried, desperately; »I'll have the
law on you for this. I call on you, Mr. Sheriff, to seize this man, and I demand
that you take his body into custody.«
    By this time Richard was master of the true state of the case, and, turning
to the steward, he said, reproachfully -
    »Benjamin, how came you in the stocks! I always thought you were mild and
docile as a lamb. It was for your docility that I most esteemed you. Benjamin!
Benjamin! you have not only disgraced yourself, but your friends, by this
shameless conduct. Bless me! bless me! Mr. Doolittle, he seems to have knocked
your face all of one side.«
    Hiram by this time had got on his feet again, and without the reach of the
steward, when he broke forth in violent appeals for vengeance. The offence was
too apparent to be passed over, and the Sheriff, mindful of the impartiality
exhibited by his cousin in the recent trial of the Leather-stocking, came to the
painful conclusion that it was necessary to commit his Major-domo to prison. As
the time of Natty's punishment was expired, and Benjamin found that they were to
be confined, for that night at least, in the same apartment, he made no very
strong objections to the measure, nor spoke of bail, though, as the Sheriff
preceded the party of constables that conducted them to the gaol, he uttered the
following remonstrance: -
    »As to being berthed with Master Bump-ho for a night or so, it's but little
I think of it, Squire Dickens, seeing that I calls him an honest man, and one as
has a handy way with boat-hooks and rifles; but as for owning that a man
desarves any thing worse than a double allowance, for knocking that carpenter's
face a-one-side, as you call it, I'll maintain it's ag'in reason and
christianity. If there's a blood-sucker in this 'ere county, it's that very
chap. Ay! I know him! and if he hasn't got all the same as dead-wood in his
head-works, he knows sum'mat of me. Where's the mighty harm, Squire, that you
take it so much to heart! It's all the same as any other battle, d'ye see, sir,
being broadside to broadside, only that it was fout at anchor, which was what we
did in Port Praya roads, when Suff'ring came in among us; and a suff'ring time
he had of it, before he got out again.«
    Richard thought it unworthy of him to make any reply to this speech, but
when his prisoners were safely lodged in an outer dungeon, ordering the bolts to
be drawn and the key turned, he withdrew.
    Benjamin held frequent and friendly dialogues with different people, through
the iron gratings, during the afternoon; but his companion paced their narrow
limits, in his moccasins, with quick, impatient treads, his face hanging on his
breast in dejection, or when lifted, at moments, to the idlers at the window,
lighted, perhaps, for an instant with the childish aspect of aged forgetfulness,
which would vanish directly in an expression of deep and obvious anxiety.
    At the close of the day Edwards was seen at the window, in earnest dialogue
with his friend; and after he departed it was thought that he had communicated
words of comfort to the hunter, who threw himself on his pallet, and was soon in
a deep sleep. The curious spectators had exhausted the conversation of the
steward, who had drank good fellowship with half of his acquaintance, and as
Natty was no longer in motion, by eight o'clock, Billy Kirby, who was the last
lounger at the window retired into the Templetown Coffee-House, when Natty rose
and hung a blanket before the opening, and the prisoners apparently retired for
the night.
 

                                  Chapter XXXV

 »And to avoid the foe's pursuit,
 With spurring put their cattle to't;
 And till all four were out of wind,
 And danger too, ne'er look'd behind.«
                                                 Butler, Hudibras, II.ii.841-44.
 
As the shades of evening approached, the jurors, witnesses, and other attendants
on the court, begun to disperse, and before nine o'clock the village was quiet,
and its streets nearly deserted. At that hour, Judge Temple and his daughter,
followed at a short distance by Louisa Grant, walked slowly down the avenue,
under the slight shadows of the young poplars, holding the following discourse:
-
    »You can best soothe his wounded spirit, my child,« said Marmaduke; »but it
will be dangerous to touch on the nature of his offence; the sanctity of the
laws must be respected.«
    »Surely, sir,« cried the impatient Elizabeth, »those laws, that condemn a
man like the Leather-stocking to so severe a punishment, for an offence that
even I must think very venial, cannot be perfect in themselves.«
    »Thou talkest of what thou dost not understand, Elizabeth,« returned her
father. »Society cannot exist without wholesome restraints. Those restraints
cannot be inflicted, without security and respect to the persons of those who
administer them; and it would sound ill indeed, to report that a judge had
extended favour to a convicted criminal, because he had saved the life of his
child.«
    »I see - I see the difficulty of your situation, dear sir,« cried the
daughter; »but in appreciating the offence of poor Natty, I cannot separate the
minister of the law from the man.«
    »There thou talkest as a woman, child; it is not for an assault on Hiram
Doolittle, but for threatening the life of a constable, who was in the
performance of« -
    »It is immaterial whether it be one or the other,« interrupted Miss Temple,
with a logic that contained more feeling than reason; »I know Natty to be
innocent, and thinking so, I must think all wrong who oppress him.«
    »His judge among the number! thy father, Elizabeth?«
    »Nay, nay - nay, do not put such questions to me; give me my commission,
father, and let me proceed to execute it.«
    The Judge paused a moment, smiling fondly on his child, and then dropped his
hand affectionately on her shoulder, as he answered -
    »Thou hast reason, Bess, and much of it too, but thy heart lies too near thy
head. But listen: in this pocket-book are two hundred dollars. Go to the prison
- there are none in this place to harm thee - give this note to the gaoler, and
when thou seest Bumppo, say what thou wilt to the poor old man; give scope to
the feelings of thy warm heart; but try to remember, Elizabeth, that the laws
alone remove us from the condition of the savages; that he has been criminal,
and that his judge was thy father.«
    Miss Temple made no reply, but she pressed the hand that held the
pocket-book to her bosom, and taking her friend by the arm, they issued together
from the enclosure into the principal street of the village.
    As they pursued their walk in silence, under the row of houses, where the
deeper gloom of the evening effectually concealed their persons, no sound
reached them, excepting the slow tread of a yoke of oxen, with the rattling of a
cart, that were moving along the street in the same direction with themselves.
The figure of the teamster was just discernible by the dim light, lounging by
the side of his cattle with a listless air, as if fatigued by the toil of the
day. At the corner, where the gaol stood, the progress of the ladies was
impeded, for a moment, by the oxen, who were turned up to the side of the
building, and given a lock of hay, which they had carried on their necks, as a
reward for their patient labour. The whole of this was so natural, and so
common, that Elizabeth saw nothing to induce a second glance at the team, until
she heard the teamster speaking to his cattle in a low voice -
    »Mind yourself, Brindle; will you, sir! will you!«
    The language itself was unusual to oxen, with which all who dwell in a new
country are familiar; but there was something in the voice also, that startled
Miss Temple. On turning the corner, she necessarily approached the man, and her
look was enabled to detect the person of Oliver Edwards, concealed under the
coarse garb of a teamster. Their eyes met at the same instant, and,
notwithstanding the gloom, and the enveloping cloak of Elizabeth, the
recognition was mutual.
    »Miss Temple!« »Mr. Edwards!« were exclaimed simultaneously, though a
feeling that seemed common to both rendered the words nearly inaudible.
    »Is it possible!« exclaimed Edwards, after the moment of doubt had passed;
»do I see you so nigh the gaol! but you are going to the Rectory. I beg pardon -
Miss Grant, I believe; I did not recognise you at first.«
    The sigh which Louisa uttered, was so faint that it was only heard by
Elizabeth, who replied, quickly -
    »We are going not only to the gaol, Mr. Edwards, but into it. We wish to
show the Leather-stocking that we do not forget his services, and that, at the
same time we must be just, we are also grateful. I suppose you are on a similar
errand; but let me beg that you will give us leave to precede you ten minutes.
Good night, sir; I - I - am quite sorry, Mr. Edwards, to see you reduced to such
labour; I am sure my father would« -
    »I shall wait your pleasure, madam,« interrupted the youth, coldly. »May I
beg that you will not mention my being here?«
    »Certainly,« said Elizabeth, returning his bow by a slight inclination of
her head, and urging the tardy Louisa forward. As they entered the gaoler's
house, however, Miss Grant found leisure to whisper -
    »Would it not be well to offer part of your money to Oliver? half of it will
pay the fine of Bumppo; and he is so unused to hardships! I am sure my father
will subscribe much of his little pittance, to place him in a station that is
more worthy of him.«
    The involuntary smile that passed over the features of Elizabeth was blended
with an expression of deep and heartfelt pity. She did not reply, however, and
the appearance of the gaoler soon recalled the thoughts of both to the object of
their visit.
    The rescue of the ladies, and their consequent interest in his prisoner,
together with the informal manners that prevailed in the country, all united to
prevent any surprise, on the part of the gaoler, at their request for admission
to Bumppo. The note of Judge Temple, however, would have silenced all
objections, if he had felt them, and he led the way without hesitation to the
apartment that held the prisoners. The instant the key was put into the lock,
the hoarse voice of Benjamin was heard, demanding -
    »Yo! hoy! who comes there?«
    »Some visitors that you'll be glad to see,« returned the gaoler. »What have
you done to the lock, that it won't turn?«
    »Handsomely, handsomely, master,« cried the steward; »I've just drove a nail
into a berth alongside of this here bolt, as a stopper, d'ye see, so that master
Doo-but-little can't be running in and breezing up another fight atwixt us, for,
to my account, there'll be but a ban-yan with me soon, seeing that they'll mulct
me of my Spaniards, all the same as if I'd overflogged the lubber. Throw your
ship into the wind and lay by for a small matter, will ye? and I'll soon clear a
passage.«
    The sounds of hammering gave an assurance that the steward was in earnest,
and in a short time the lock yielded, when the door was opened.
    Benjamin had evidently been anticipating the seizure of his money, for he
had made frequent demands on the favourite cask at the Bold Dragoon, during the
afternoon and evening, and was now in that state which by marine imagery is
called half-seas-over. It was no easy thing to destroy the balance of the old
tar by the effects of liquor, for, as he expressed it himself, »he was too
low-rigget not to carry sail in all weathers;« but he was precisely in that
condition which is so expressively termed muddy. When he perceived who the
visitors were, he retreated to the side of the room where his pallet lay, and,
regardless of the presence of his young mistress, seated himself on it with an
air of great sobriety, placing his back firmly against the wall.
    »If you undertake to spoil my locks in this manner, Mr. Pump,« said the
gaoler, »I shall put a stopper, as you call it, on your legs, and tie you down
to your bed.«
    »What for should ye, Master?« grumbled Benjamin; »I've rode out one squall
to-day, anchored by the heels, and I wants no more of them. Where's the harm of
doing all the same as yourself? Leave that there door free outboard, and you'll
find no locking inboard, I'll promise ye.«
    »I must shut up for the night at nine,« said the gaoler, »and it's now
forty-two minutes past eight.« He placed the little candle on a rough pine
table, and withdrew.
    »Leather-stocking!« said Elizabeth, when the key of the door was turned on
them again, »my good friend Leather-stocking! I have come on a message of
gratitude. Had you submitted to the search, worthy old man, the death of the
deer would have been a trifle, and all would have been well« -
    »Submit to the sarch!« interrupted Natty, raising his face from resting on
his knees, without rising from the corner where he had seated himself; »d'ye
think, gall, I would let such a varmint into my hut? No, no - I wouldn't have
opened the door to your own sweet countenance then. But they are wilcome to
sarch among the coals and ashes now; they'll find only some such heap as is to
be seen at every potashery in the mountains.«
    The old man dropped his face again on one hand, and seemed to be lost in
melancholy.
    »The hut can be rebuilt, and made better than before,« returned Miss Temple;
»and it shall be my office to see it done, when your imprisonment is ended.«
    »Can ye raise the dead, child!« said Natty, in a sorrowful voice; »can ye go
into the place where you've laid your fathers, and mothers, and children, and
gather together their ashes, and make the same men and women of them as afore!
You do not know what 'tis to lay your head for more than forty year under the
cover of the same logs, and to look on the same things for the better part of a
man's life. You are young yet, child, but you are one of the most precious of
God's creaters. I had a hope for ye that it might come to pass, but it's all
over now; this put to that, will drive the thing quite out of his mind for
ever.«
    Miss Temple must have understood the meaning of the old man better than the
other listeners; for, while Louisa stood innocently by her side, commiserating
the griefs of the hunter, she bent her head aside, so as to conceal her
features. The action and the feeling that caused it lasted but a moment.
    »Other logs, and better, though, can be had, and shall be found for you, my
old defender,« she continued. »Your confinement will soon be over, and before
that time arrives I shall have a house prepared for you, where you may spend the
close of your harmless life in ease and plenty.«
    »Ease and plenty! house!« repeated Natty, slowly. »You mean well, you mean
well, and I quite mourn that it cannot be; but he has seen me a sight and a
laughing-stock for« -
    »Damn your stocks,« said Benjamin, flourishing his bottle with one hand,
from which he had been taking hasty and repeated draughts, while he made
gestures of disdain with the other; »who cares for his bilboes? there's a leg
that's been stuck up an end like a gib-boom for an hour, d'ye see, and what's it
the worse for't, ha! canst tell me, what's it the worser, ha?«
    »I believe you forget, Mr. Pump, in whose presence you are,« said Elizabeth.
    »Forget you, Miss 'Lizzy,« returned the steward; »if I do dam'me; you're not
to be forgot, like Goody Pretty-bones, up at the big house there. I say, old
sharp-shooter, she may have pretty bones, but I can't say so much for her flesh,
d'ye see, for she looks sum'mat like an otomy with another man's jacket on. Now,
for the skin of her face, it's all the same as a new topsail with a taut
bolt-rope, being snug at the leaches, but all in a bight about the inner
cloths.«
    »Peace - I command you to be silent, sir,« said Elizabeth.
    »Ay, ay, ma'am,« returned the steward. »You didn't say I shouldn't drink,
though.«
    »We will not speak of what is to become of others,« said Miss Temple,
turning again to the hunter - »but of your own fortunes, Natty. It shall be my
care to see that you pass the rest of your days in ease and plenty.«
    »Ease and plenty!« again repeated the Leather-stocking; »what ease can there
be to an old man, who must walk a mile across the open fields, before he can
find a shade to hide him from a scorching sun! or what plenty is there, where
you may hunt a day and not start a buck, or see any thing bigger than a mink, or
maybe a stray fox! Ah! I shall have a hard time after them very beavers, for
this fine. I must go low toward the Pennsylvany line in sarch of the creaters,
maybe a hundred mile, for they are not to be got here-away. No, no - your
betterments and clearings have druv the knowing things out of the country; and
instead of beaver-dams, which is the nater of the animal, and according to
Providence, you turn back the waters over the low grounds with your mill-dams,
as if 'twas in man to stay the drops from going where He wills them to go.
Benny, unless you stop your hand from going so often to your mouth, you won't be
ready to start when the time comes.«
    »Hark'ee, Master Bump-ho,« said the steward; »don't you fear for Ben. When
the watch is called, set me on my legs, and give me the bearings and distance of
where you want to steer, and I'll carry sail with the best of you, I will.«
    »The time has come now,« said the hunter, listening; »I hear the horns of
the oxen rubbing ag'in the side of the gaol.«
    »Well, say the word, and then heave ahead, shipmate,« said Benjamin.
    »You won't betray us, gall?« said Natty, looking simply into the face of
Elizabeth - »you won't betray an old man, who craves to breathe the clear air of
heaven? I mean no harm, and if the law says that I must pay the hundred dollars,
I'll take the season through, but it shall be forthcoming; and this good man
will help me.«
    »You catch them,« said Benjamin, with a sweeping gesture of his arm, »and if
they get away again, call me a slink, that's all.«
    »What mean you!« cried the wondering Elizabeth. »Here you must stay for
thirty days; but I have the money for your fine in this purse. Take it; pay it
in the morning, and summon patience for your month. I will come often to see
you, with my friend; we will make up your clothes with our own hands; indeed,
indeed, you shall be comfortable.«
    »Would ye, children?« said Natty, advancing across the floor with an air of
kindness, and taking the hand of Elizabeth; »would ye be so kearful of an old
man, and just for shooting the beast, which cost him nothing? Such things
doesn't't run in the blood, I believe, for you seem not to forget a favour. Your
little fingers couldn't do much on a buck-skin, nor be you used to such a thread
as sinews. But if he hasn't got past hearing, he shall hear it and know it, that
he may see, like me, there is some who know how to remember a kindness.«
    »Tell him nothing,« cried Elizabeth, earnestly; »if you love me, if you
regard my feelings, tell him nothing. It is of yourself only I would talk, and
for yourself only I act. I grieve, Leather-stocking, that the law requires that
you should be detained here so long; but, after all, it will be only a short
month, and« -
    »A month!« exclaimed Natty, opening his mouth with his usual laugh; »not a
day, nor a night, nor an hour, gall. Judge Temple may sintence, but he can't
keep, without a better dungeon than this. I was taken once by the French, and
they put sixty-two of us in a block-house, nigh hand to old Frontinac; but 'twas
easy to cut through a pine log to them that was used to timber.« The hunter
paused, and looked cautiously around the room, when, laughing again, he shoved
the steward gently from his post, and removing the bed-clothes, discovered a
hole recently cut in the logs with a mallet and chisel. »It's only a kick, and
the outside piece is off, and then« -
    »Off! ay, off!« cried Benjamin, rousing from his stupor; »well, here's off.
Ay! ay! you catch 'em, and I'll hold on to them said beaver-hats.«
    »I fear this lad will trouble me much,« said Natty; »'twill be a hard pull
for the mountain, should they take the scent soon, and he is not in a state of
mind to run.«
    »Run!« echoed the steward; »no, sheer alongside, and let's have a fight of
it.«
    »Peace!« ordered Elizabeth.
    »Ay, ay, ma'am.«
    »You will not leave us, surely, Leather-stocking,« continued Miss Temple; »I
beseech you, reflect that you will be driven to the woods entirely, and that you
are fast getting old. Be patient for a little time, when you can go abroad
openly, and with honour.«
    »Is there beaver to be caught here, gall?«
    »If not, here is money to discharge the fine, and in a month you are free.
See, here it is in gold.«
    »Gold!« said Natty, with a kind of childish curiosity; »it's long sin' I've
seen a gold piece. We used to get the broad joes, in the old war, as plenty as
the bears be now. I remember there was a man in Dieskau's army, that was killed,
who had a dozen of the shining things sewed up in his shirt. I didn't handle
them myself, but I seen them cut out, with my own eyes; they was bigger and
brighter than them be.«
    »These are English guineas, and are yours,« said Elizabeth; »an earnest of
what shall be done for you.«
    »Me! why should you give me this treasure?« said Natty, looking earnestly at
the maiden.
    »Why! have you not saved my life? did you not rescue me from the jaws of the
beast?« exclaimed Elizabeth, veiling her eyes, as if to hide some hideous object
from her view.
    The hunter took the money, and continued turning it in his hand for some
time, piece by piece, talking aloud during the operation.
    »There's a rifle, they say, out on the Cherry Valley, that will carry a
hundred rods and kill. I've seen good guns in my day, but none quite equal to
that. A hundred rods with any certainty is great shooting! Well, well - I'm old,
and the gun I have will answer my time. Here, child, take back your gold. But
the hour has come; I hear him talking to the cattle, and I must be going. You
won't tell of us, gall - you won't tell of us, will ye?«
    »Tell of you!« echoed Elizabeth. - »But take the money, old man; take the
money, even if you go into the mountains.«
    »No, no,« said Natty, shaking his head kindly; »I wouldn't rob you so for
twenty rifles. But there's one thing you can do for me, if ye will, that no
other is at hand to do.«
    »Name it - name it.«
    »Why, it's only to buy a canister of powder; - 'twill cost two silver
dollars. Benny Pump has the money ready, but we daren't come into the town to
get it. Nobody has it but the Frenchman. 'Tis of the best, and just suits a
rifle. Will you get it for me, gall? - say, will you get it for me?«
    »Will I! I will bring it to you, Leather-stocking, though I toil a day in
quest of you through the woods. But where shall I find you, and how?«
    »Where!« said Natty, musing a moment - »to-morrow, on the Vision; on the
very top of the Vision I'll meet you, child, just as the sun gets over our
heads. See that it's the fine grain; you'll know it by the gloss, and the
price.«
    »I will do it,« said Elizabeth, firmly.
    Natty now seated himself, and placing his feet in the hole, with a slight
effort he opened a passage through into the street. The ladies heard the
rustling of hay, and well understood the reason why Edwards was in the capacity
of a teamster.
    »Come, Benny,« said the hunter; »'twill be no darker to-night, for the moon
will rise in an hour.«
    »Stay!« exclaimed Elizabeth; »it should not be said that you escaped in the
presence of the daughter of Judge Temple. Return, Leather-stocking, and let us
retire, before you execute your plan.«
    Natty was about to reply, when the approaching footsteps of the gaoler
announced the necessity of his immediate return. He had barely time to regain
his feet, and to conceal the hole with the bed-clothes, across which Benjamin
very opportunely fell, before the key was turned, and the door of the apartment
opened.
    »Isn't Miss Temple ready to go?« said the civil gaoler - »it's the usooal
hour for locking up.«
    »I follow you, sir,« returned Elizabeth. »Good night, Leather-stocking.«
    »It's a fine grain, gall, and I think 'twill carry lead further than common.
I am getting old, and can't follow up the game with the step that I used to
could.«
    Miss Temple waved her hand for silence, and preceded Louisa and the keeper
from the apartment. The man turned the key once, and observed that he would
return and secure his prisoners, when he had lighted the ladies to the street.
Accordingly, they parted at the door of the building, when the gaoler retired to
his dungeons, and the ladies walked, with throbbing hearts, towards the corner.
    »Now the Leather-stocking refuses the money,« whispered Louisa, »it can all
be given to Mr. Edwards, and that added to« -
    »Listen!« said Elizabeth; »I hear the rustling of the hay; they are escaping
at this moment. Oh! they will be detected instantly!«
    By this time they were at the corner, where Edwards and Natty were in the
act of drawing the almost helpless body of Benjamin through the aperture. The
oxen had started back from their hay, and were standing with their heads down
the street, leaving room for the party to act in.
    »Throw the hay into the cart,« said Edwards, »or they will suspect how it
has been done. Quick, that they may not see it.«
    Natty had just returned from executing this order, when the light of the
keeper's candle shone through the hole, and instantly his voice was heard in the
gaol, exclaiming for his prisoners.
    »What is to be done now?« said Edwards - »this drunken fellow will cause our
detection, and we have not a moment to spare.«
    »Who's drunk, ye lubber?« muttered the steward.
    »A break-gaol! a break-gaol!« shouted five or six voices from within.
    »We must leave him,« said Edwards.
    »Twouldn't be kind, lad,« returned Natty; »he took half the disgrace of the
stocks on himself to-day, and the creature has feeling.«
    At this moment two or three men were heard issuing from the door of the Bold
Dragoon, and among them the voice of Billy Kirby.
    »There's no moon yet,« cried the wood-chopper; »but it's a clear night.
Come, who's for home? Hark! what a rumpus they're kicking up in the gaol -
here's go and see what it's about.«
    »We shall be lost,« said Edwards, »if we don't drop this man.«
    At that instant Elizabeth moved close to him, and said rapidly, in a low
voice -
    »Lay him in the cart, and start the oxen; no one will look there.«
    »There's a woman's quickness in the thought,« said the youth.
    The proposition was no sooner made than executed. The steward was seated on
the hay, and enjoined to hold his peace, and apply the goad that was placed in
his hand, while the oxen were urged on. So soon as this arrangement was
completed, Edwards and the hunter stole along the houses for a short distance,
when they disappeared through an opening that led into the rear of the
buildings. The oxen were in brisk motion, and presently the cries of pursuit
were heard in the street. The ladies quickened their pace, with a wish to escape
the crowd of constables and idlers that were approaching, some execrating, and
some laughing at the exploit of the prisoners. In the confusion, the voice of
Kirby was plainly distinguishable above all the others, shouting and swearing
that he would have the fugitives, threatening to bring back Natty in one pocket
and Benjamin in the other.
    »Spread yourselves, men,« he cried, as he passed the ladies, his heavy feet
sounding along the street like the tread of a dozen; »spread yourselves; to the
mountains; they'll be in the mountain in a quarter of an hour, and then look out
for a long rifle.«
    His cries were echoed from twenty mouths, for not only the gaol but the
taverns had sent forth their numbers, some earnest in the pursuit, and others
joining it as in sport.
    As Elizabeth turned in at her father's gate, she saw the wood-chopper stop
at the cart, when she gave Benjamin up for lost. While they were hurrying up the
walk, two figures, stealing cautiously but quickly under the shades of the
trees, met the eyes of the ladies, and in a moment Edwards and the hunter
crossed their path.
    »Miss Temple, I may never see you again,« exclaimed the youth; »let me thank
you for all your kindness; you do not, cannot know my motives.«
    »Fly! fly!« cried Elizabeth - »the village is alarmed. Do not be found
conversing with me at such a moment, and in these grounds.«
    »Nay, I must speak, though detection were certain.«
    »Your retreat to the bridge is already cut off; before you can gain the wood
your pursuers will be there. - If« -
    »If what?« cried the youth. »Your advice has saved me once already; I will
follow it to death.«
    »The street is now silent and vacant,« said Elizabeth, after a pause; »cross
it, and you will find my father's boat in the lake. It would be easy to land
from it where you please in the hills.«
    »But Judge Temple might complain of the trespass.«
    »His daughter shall be accountable, sir.«
    The youth uttered something in a low voice, that was heard only by
Elizabeth, and turned to execute what she had suggested. As they were
separating, Natty approached the females, and said -
    »You'll remember the canister of powder, children. Them beavers must be had,
and I and the pups be getting old; we want the best of ammunition.«
    »Come, Natty,« said Edwards, impatiently.
    »Coming, lad, coming. God bless you, young ones, both of ye, for ye mean
well and kindly to the old man.«
    The ladies paused until they had lost sight of the retreating figures, when
they immediately entered the Mansion-house.
    While this scene was passing in the walk, Kirby had overtaken the cart,
which was his own, and had been driven by Edwards without asking the owner, from
the place where the patient oxen usually stood at evening, waiting the pleasure
of their master.
    »Woa - come hither, Golden,« he cried; »why, how come you off the end of the
bridge, where I left you, dummies?«
    »Heave ahead,« muttered Benjamin, giving a random blow with his lash, that
alighted on the shoulder of the other.
    »Who the devil be you?« cried Billy, turning round in surprise, but unable
to distinguish, in the dark, the hard visage that was just peering over the
cart-rails.
    »Who be I! why I'm helmsman aboard of this here craft, d'ye see, and a
straight wake I'm making of it. Ay! ay! I've got the bridge right ahead, and the
bilboes dead-aft; I calls that good steerage, boy. Heave ahead.«
    »Lay your lash in the right spot, Mr. Benny Pump,« said the wood-chopper,
»or I'll put you in the palm of my hand and box your ears. - Where be you going
with my team?«
    »Team!«
    »Ay, my cart and oxen.«
    »Why, you must know, Master Kirby, that the Leather-stocking and I - that's
Benny Pump - you knows Ben? - well, Benny and I - no, me and Benny - dam'me if I
know how 'tis; but some of us are bound after a cargo of beaver-skins, d'ye see,
and so we've pressed the cart to ship them 'ome in. I say, Master Kirby, what a
lubberly oar you pull - you handle an oar, boy, pretty much as a cow would a
musket, or a lady would a marling-spike.«
    Billy had discovered the state of the steward's mind, and he walked for some
time alongside of the cart, musing within himself, when he took the goad from
Benjamin, who fell back on the hay, and was soon asleep, and drove his cattle
down the street, over the bridge, and up the mountain, towards a clearing in
which he was to work the next day, without any other interruption than a few
hasty questions from parties of the constables.
    Elizabeth stood for an hour at the window of her room, and saw the torches
of the pursuers gliding along the side of the mountain, and heard their shouts
and alarms; but, at the end of that time, the last party returned, wearied and
disappointed, and the village became as still as when she issued from the gate,
on her mission to the gaol.
 

                                 Chapter XXXVI

 »And I could weep - th' Oneida chief
 His descant wildly thus begun -
 But that I may not stain with grief
 The death-song of my father's son.«
                                                  Campbell, Gertrude of Wyoming,
                                                                   III.xxxv.1-4.
 
It was yet early on the following morning, when Elizabeth and Louisa met by
appointment, and proceeded to the store of Monsieur Le Quoi, in order to redeem
the pledge the former had given to the Leather-stocking. The people were again
assembling for the business of the day, but the hour was too soon for a crowd,
and the ladies found the place in possession of its polite owner, Billy Kirby,
one female customer, and the boy who did the duty of helper or clerk.
    Monsieur Le Quoi was perusing a packet of letters, with manifest delight,
while the wood-chopper, with one hand thrust in his bosom, and the other in the
folds of his jacket, holding an axe under his right arm, stood sympathizing in
the Frenchman's pleasure with good-natured interest. The freedom of manners that
prevailed in the new settlements, commonly levelled all difference in rank, and
with it, frequently, all considerations of education and intelligence. At the
time the ladies entered the store they were unseen by the owner, who was saying
to Kirby -
    »Ah! ha! Monsieur Beel, dis lettair make-a me de most happi of mans. Ah! ma
chère France! I vill see you aga'n.«
    »I rejoice, Monsieur, at any thing that contributes to your happiness,« said
Elizabeth, »but hope we are not going to lose you entirely.«
    The complaisant shopkeeper changed the language to French, and recounted
rapidly to Elizabeth his hopes of being permitted to return to his own country.
Habit had, however, so far altered the manners of this pliable personage, that
he continued to serve the wood-chopper, who was in quest of some tobacco, while
he related to his more gentle visitor, the happy change that had taken place in
the dispositions of his own countrymen.
    The amount of it all was, that Mr. Le Quoi, who had fled from his own
country more through terror than because he was offensive to the ruling powers
in France, had succeeded at length in getting an assurance that his return to
the West Indies would be unnoticed; and the Frenchman, who had sunk into the
character of a country shopkeeper with so much grace, was about to emerge again
from his obscurity into his proper level in society.
    We need not repeat the civil things that passed between the parties on this
occasion, nor recount the endless repetitions of sorrow that the delighted
Frenchman expressed, at being compelled to quit the society of Miss Temple.
Elizabeth took an opportunity, during this expenditure of polite expressions, to
purchase the powder privately of the boy, who bore the generic appellation of
Jonathan. Before they parted, however, Mr. Le Quoi, who seemed to think that he
had not said enough, solicited the honour of a private interview with the
heiress, with a gravity in his air that announced the importance of the subject.
After conceding the favour, and appointing a more favourable time for the
meeting, Elizabeth succeeded in getting out of the store, into which the
countrymen now began to enter, as usual, where they met with the same attention
and bienséance as formerly.
    Elizabeth and Louisa pursued their walk as far as the bridge in profound
silence, but when they reached that place, the latter stopped, and appeared
anxious to utter something that her diffidence suppressed.
    »Are you ill, Louisa?« exclaimed Miss Temple; »had we not better return, and
seek another opportunity to meet the old man?«
    »Not ill, but terrified. Oh! I never, never can go on that hill again with
you only. I am not equal to it, indeed I am not.«
    This was an unexpected declaration to Elizabeth, who, although she
experienced no idle apprehension of a danger that no longer existed, felt most
sensitively all the delicacy of maiden modesty. She stood for some time, deeply
reflecting within herself; but, sensible it was a time for action instead of
reflection, she struggled to shake off her hesitation, and replied firmly -
    »Well, then it must be done by me alone. There is no other than yourself to
be trusted, or poor old Leather-stocking will be discovered. Wait for me in the
edge of these woods, that at least I may not be seen strolling in the hills by
myself just now. One would not wish to create remarks, Louisa - if - if -. You
will wait for me, dear girl?«
    »A year, in sight of the village, Miss Temple,« returned the agitated
Louisa, »but do not, do not ask me to go on that hill.«
    Elizabeth found that her companion was really unable to proceed, and they
completed their arrangement by posting Louisa out of the observation of the
people who occasionally passed, but nigh the road, and in plain view of the
whole valley. Miss Temple then proceeded alone. She ascended the road which has
been so often mentioned in our narrative, with an elastic and firm step, fearful
that the delay in the store of Mr. Le Quoi, and the time necessary for reaching
the summit, would prevent her being punctual to the appointment. Whenever she
passed an opening in the bushes, she would pause for breath, or perhaps, drawn
from her pursuits by the picture at her feet, would linger a moment to gaze at
the beauties of the valley. The long drought had, however, changed its coat of
verdure to a hue of brown, and, though the same localities were there, the view
wanted the lively and cheering aspect of early summer. Even the heavens seemed
to share in the dried appearance of the earth, for the sun was concealed by a
haziness in the atmosphere, which looked like a thin smoke without a particle of
moisture, if such a thing were possible. The blue sky was scarcely to be seen,
though now and then there was a faint lighting up in spots, through which masses
of rolling vapour could be discerned gathering around the horizon, as if nature
were struggling to collect her floods for the relief of man. The very atmosphere
that Elizabeth inhaled was hot and dry, and by the time she reached the point
where the course led her from the highway, she experienced a sensation like
suffocation. But, disregarding her feelings, she hastened to execute her
mission, dwelling on nothing but the disappointment, and even the helplessness,
the hunter would experience, without her aid.
    On the summit of the mountain which Judge Temple had named the Vision, a
little spot had been cleared, in order that a better view might be obtained of
the village and the valley. At this point Elizabeth understood the hunter she
was to meet him; and thither she urged her way, as expeditiously as the
difficulty of the ascent and the impediments of a forest in a state of nature
would admit. Numberless were the fragments of rocks, trunks of fallen trees, and
branches, with which she had to contend; but every difficulty vanished before
her resolution, and, by her own watch, she stood on the desired spot several
minutes before the appointed hour.
    After resting a moment on the end of a log, Miss Temple cast a glance about
her in quest of her old friend, but he was evidently not in the clearing; she
arose and walked around its skirts, examining every place where she thought it
probable Natty might deem it prudent to conceal himself. Her search was
fruitless; and, after exhausting not only herself, but her conjectures, in
efforts to discover or imagine his situation, she ventured to trust her voice in
that solitary place.
    »Natty! Leather-stocking! old man!« she called aloud, in every direction;
but no answer was given, excepting the reverberations of her own clear tones, as
they were echoed in the parched forest.
    Elizabeth approached the brow of the mountain, where a faint cry, like the
noise produced by striking the hand against the mouth at the same time that the
breath is strongly exhaled, was heard, answering to her own voice. Not doubting
in the least that it was the Leather-stocking lying in wait for her, and who
gave that signal to indicate the place where he was to be found, Elizabeth
descended for near a hundred feet, until she gained a little natural terrace,
thinly scattered with trees, that grew in the fissures of the rocks, which were
covered by a scanty soil. She had advanced to the edge of this platform, and was
gazing over the perpendicular precipice that formed its face, when a rustling
among the dry leaves near her drew her eyes in another direction. Our heroine
certainly was startled by the object that she then saw, but a moment restored
her self-possession, and she advanced firmly, and with some interest in her
manner, to the spot.
    Mohegan was seated on the trunk of a fallen oak, with his tawny visage
turned towards her, and his eyes fixed on her face with an expression of
wildness and fire that would have terrified a less resolute female. His blanket
had fallen from his shoulders, and was lying in folds around him, leaving his
breast, arms, and most of his body bare. The medallion of Washington reposed on
his chest, a badge of distinction that Elizabeth well knew he only produced on
great and solemn occasions. But the whole appearance of the aged chief was more
studied than common, and in some particulars it was terrific. The long black
hair was plaited on his head, falling away, so as to expose his high forehead
and piercing eyes. In the enormous incisions of his ears were entwined ornaments
of silver, beads, and porcupine's quills, mingled in a rude taste, and after the
Indian fashions. A large drop, composed of similar materials, was suspended from
the cartilage of his nose, and, falling below his lips, rested on his chin.
Streaks of red paint crossed his wrinkled brow, and were traced down his cheeks,
with such variations in the lines as caprice or custom suggested. His body was
also coloured in the same manner; the whole exhibiting an Indian warrior
prepared for some event of more than usual moment.
    »John! how fare you, worthy John?« said Elizabeth, as she approached him;
»you have long been a stranger in the village. You promised me a willow basket,
and I have long had a shirt of calico in readiness for you.«
    The Indian looked steadily at her for some time without answering, and then
shaking his head, he replied, in his low, guttural tones -
    »John's hand can make baskets no more - he wants no shirt.«
    »But if he should, he will know where to come for it,« returned Miss Temple.
»Indeed, old John, I feel as if you had a natural right to order what you will
from us.«
    »Daughter,« said the Indian, »listen: - Six times ten hot summers have
passed, since John was young; tall like a pine; straight like the bullet of
Hawk-eye; strong as the buffalo; spry as the cat of the mountain. He was strong,
and a warrior like the Young Eagle. If his tribe wanted to track the Maquas for
many suns, the eye of Chingachgook found the print of their moccasins. If the
people feasted and were glad as they counted the scalps of their enemies, it was
on his pole they hung. If the squaws cried because there was no meat for their
children, he was the first in the chase. His bullet was swifter than the deer. -
Daughter, then Chingachgook struck his tomahawk into the trees; it was to tell
the lazy ones where to find him and the Mingos - but he made no baskets.«
    »Those times have gone by, old warrior,« returned Elizabeth; »since then,
your people have disappeared, and in place of chasing your enemies, you have
learned to fear God and to live at peace.«
    »Stand here, daughter, where you can see the great spring, the wigwams of
your father, and the land on the crooked-river. John was young, when his tribe
gave away the country, in council, from where the blue mountain stands above the
water, to where the Susquehannah is hid by the trees. All this, and all that
grew in it, and all that walked over it, and all that fed there, they gave to
the Fire-eater - for they loved him. He was strong, and they were women, and he
helped them. No Delaware would kill a deer that run in his woods, nor stop a
bird that flew over his land; for it was his. Has John lived in peace! Daughter,
since John was young, he has seen the white man from Frontinac come down on his
white brothers at Albany, and fight. Did they fear God! He has seen his English
and his American Fathers burying their tomahawks in each other's brains, for
this very land. Did they fear God, and live in peace! He has seen the land pass
away from the Fire-eater, and his children, and the child of his child, and a
new chief set over the country. Did they live in peace who did this! did they
fear God!«
    »Such is the custom of the whites, John. Do not the Delawares fight, and
exchange their lands for powder, and blankets, and merchandise?«
    The Indian turned his dark eyes on his companion, and kept them there, with
a scrutiny that alarmed her a little.
    »Where are the blankets and merchandise that bought the right of the
Fire-eater?« he replied, in a more animated voice; »are they with him in his
wigwam? Did they say to him, brother, sell us your land, and take this gold,
this silver, these blankets, these rifles, or even this rum? No, they tore it
from him, as a scalp is torn from an enemy; and they that did it looked not
behind them, to see whether he lived or died. Do such men live in peace, and
fear the Great Spirit?«
    »But you hardly understand the circumstances,« said Elizabeth, more
embarrassed than she would own, even to herself. »If you knew our laws and
customs better, you would judge differently of our acts. Do not believe evil of
my father, old Mohegan, for he is just and good.«
    »The brother of Miquon is good, and he will do right. I have said it to
Hawk-eye - I have said it to the Young Eagle, that the brother of Miquon would
do justice.«
    »Whom call you the Young Eagle?« said Elizabeth, averting her face from the
gaze of the Indian as she asked the question; »whence comes he, and what are his
rights?«
    »Has my daughter lived so long with him, to ask this question?« returned the
Indian, warily. »Old age freezes up the blood, as the frosts cover the great
spring in winter; but youth keeps the streams of the blood open, like a sun in
the time of blossoms. The Young Eagle has eyes; had he no tongue?«
    The loveliness to which the old warrior alluded was in no degree diminished
by his allegorical speech; for the blushes of the maiden who listened, covered
her burning cheeks, till her dark eyes seemed to glow with their reflection;
but, after struggling a moment with shame, she laughed, as if unwilling to
understand him seriously, and replied in pleasantry -
    »Not to make me the mistress of his secret. He is too much of a Delaware, to
tell his secret thoughts to a woman.«
    »Daughter, the Great Spirit made your father with a white skin, and he made
mine with a red; but he coloured both their hearts with blood. When young, it is
swift and warm; but when old, it is still and cold. Is there difference below
the skin? No. Once John had a woman. She was the mother of so many sons« - he
raised his hand with three fingers elevated - »and she had daughters that would
have made the young Delawares happy. She was kind, daughter, and what I said she
did. You have different fashions; but do you think John did not love the wife of
his youth - the mother of his children!«
    »And what has become of your family, John, your wife and your children?«
asked Elizabeth, touched by the Indian's manner.
    »Where is the ice that covered the great spring? It is melted, and gone with
the waters. John has lived till all his people have left him for the land of
spirits; his time has come, and he is ready.«
    Mohegan dropped his head in his blanket, and sat in silence. Miss Temple
knew not what to say. She wished to draw the thoughts of the old warrior from
his gloomy recollections, but there was a dignity in his sorrow, and in his
fortitude, that repressed her efforts to speak. After a long pause, however, she
renewed the discourse, by asking -
    »Where is the Leather-stocking, John? I have brought this canister of powder
at his request; but he is nowhere to be seen. Will you take charge of it, and
see it delivered?«
    The Indian raised his head slowly, and looked earnestly at the gift, which
she put into his hand.
    »This is the great enemy of my nation. Without this, when could the white
men drive the Delawares! Daughter, the Great Spirit gave your fathers to know
how to make guns and powder, that they might sweep the Indians from the land.
There will soon be no red-skin in the country. When John has gone, the last will
leave these hills, and his family will be dead.« The aged warrior stretched his
body forward, leaning an elbow on his knee, and appeared to be taking a parting
look at the objects of the vale, which were still visible through the misty
atmosphere; though the air seemed to thicken at each moment around Miss Temple,
who became conscious of an increased difficulty of respiration. The eye of
Mohegan changed gradually, from its sorrowful expression to a look of wildness,
that might be supposed to border on the inspiration of a prophet, as he
continued - »But he will go to the country where his fathers have met. The game
shall be plenty as the fish in the lakes. No woman shall cry for meat. No Mingo
can ever come. The chase shall be for children, and all just red-men shall live
together as brothers.«
    »John! this is not the heaven of a Christian!« cried Miss Temple; »you deal
now in the superstition of your fore-fathers.«
    »Fathers! sons!« said Mohegan with firmness - »all gone - all gone! I have
no son but the Young Eagle, and he has the blood of a white man.«
    »Tell me, John,« said Elizabeth, willing to draw his thoughts to other
subjects, and at the same time yielding to her own powerful interest in the
youth; »who is this Mr. Edwards? why are you so fond of him, and whence does he
come?«
    The Indian started at the question, which evidently recalled his
recollection to earth. Taking her hand, he drew Miss Temple to a seat beside
him, and pointed to the country beneath them -
    »See, daughter,« he said, directing her looks towards the north; »as far as
your young eyes can see, it was the land of his« -
    But immense volumes of smoke at that moment rolled over their heads, and
whirling in the eddies formed by the mountains, interposed a barrier to their
sight, while he was speaking. Startled by the circumstance, Miss Temple sprung
on her feet, and turning her eyes toward the summit of the mountain, she beheld
it covered by a similar canopy, while a roaring sound was heard in the forest
above her, like the rushing of winds.
    »What means it, John!« she exclaimed; »we are enveloped in smoke, and I feel
a heat like the glow of a furnace.«
    Before the Indian could reply, a voice was heard, crying in the woods -
    »John! where are you, old Mohegan! the woods are on fire, and you have but a
minute for escape.«
    The chief put his hand before his mouth, and making it play on his lips,
produced the kind of noise that had attracted Elizabeth to the place, when a
quick and hurried step was heard dashing through the dried underbrush and
bushes, and presently Edwards rushed to his side, with horror in every feature.
 

                                 Chapter XXXVII

            »Love rules the court, the camp, the grove.«
                                  Scott, The Lay of the Last Minstrel, III.ii.5.
 
»It would have been sad indeed, to lose you in such a manner, my old friend,«
said Oliver, catching his breath for utterance. »Up and away! even now we may be
too late; the flames are circling round the point of the rock below, and unless
we can pass there, our only chance must be over the precipice. Away! away! shake
off your apathy, John; now is the time of need.«
    Mohegan pointed towards Elizabeth, who, forgetting her danger, had shrunk
back to a projection of the rock as soon as she recognised the sounds of
Edwards' voice, and said, with something like awakened animation -
    »Save her - leave John to die.«
    »Her! whom mean you?« cried the youth, turning quickly to the place the
other indicated; - but when he saw the figure of Elizabeth, bending towards him
in an attitude that powerfully spoke terror, blended with reluctance to meet him
in such a place, the shock deprived him of speech.
    »Miss Temple!« he cried, when he found words; »you here! is such a death
reserved for you!«
    »No, no, no - no death, I hope, for any of us, Mr. Edwards,« she replied,
endeavouring to speak calmly: »there is smoke but no fire to harm us. Let us
endeavour to retire.«
    »Take my arm,« said Edwards; »there must be an opening in some direction for
your retreat. Are you equal to the effort?«
    »Certainly. You surely magnify the danger, Mr. Edwards. Lead me out the way
you came.«
    »I will - I will,« cried the youth, with a kind of hysterical utterance.
»No, no - there is no danger - I have alarmed you unnecessarily.«
    »But shall we leave the Indian - can we leave him, as he says, to die?«
    An expression of painful emotion crossed the face of the young man; he
stopped, and cast a longing look at Mohegan; but, dragging his companion after
him, even against her will, he pursued his way, with enormous strides, towards
the pass by which he had just entered the circle of flame.
    »Do not regard him,« he said, in those tones that denote a desperate
calmness; »he is used to the woods, and such scenes; and he will escape up the
mountain - over the rock - or he can remain where he is in safety.«
    »You thought not so this moment, Edwards! Do not leave him there to meet
with such a death,« cried Elizabeth, fixing a look on the countenance of her
conductor, that seemed to distrust his sanity.
    »An Indian burn! who ever heard of an Indian dying by fire! an Indian cannot
burn; the idea is ridiculous. Hasten, hasten, Miss Temple, or the smoke may
incommode you.«
    »Edwards! your look, your eye, terrifies me! tell me the danger; is it
greater than it seems? I am equal to any trial.«
    »If we reach the point of yon rock before that sheet of fire, we are safe,
Miss Temple!« exclaimed the young man, in a voice that burst without the bounds
of his forced composure. »Fly! the struggle is for life!«
    The place of the interview between Miss Temple and the Indian has already
been described as one of those platforms of rock which form a sort of terrace in
the mountains of that country, and the face of it, we have said, was both high
and perpendicular. Its shape was nearly a natural arc, the ends of which blended
with the mountain, at points where its sides were less abrupt in their descent.
It was round one of these terminations of the sweep of the rock that Edwards had
ascended, and it was towards the same place that he urged Elizabeth to a
desperate exertion of speed.
    Immense clouds of white smoke had been pouring over the summit of the
mountain, and had concealed the approach and ravages of the element; but a
crackling sound drew the eyes of Miss Temple, as she flew over the ground,
supported by the young man, towards the outline of smoke, where she already
perceived the waving flames shooting forward from the vapour, now flaring high
in the air, and then bending to the earth, seeming to light into combustion
every stick and shrub on which they breathed. The sight aroused them to
redoubled efforts; but, unfortunately, a collection of the tops of trees, old
and dried, lay directly across their course; and, at the very moment when both
had thought their safety insured, the warm currents of the air swept a forked
tongue of flame across the pile, which lighted at the touch; and when they
reached the spot, the flying pair were opposed by the surly roaring of a body of
fire, as if a furnace were glowing in their path. They recoiled from the heat,
and stood on a point of the rock, gazing in a stupor at the flames, which were
spreading rapidly down the mountain, whose side soon became a sheet of living
fire. It was dangerous for one clad in the light and airy dress of Elizabeth to
approach even the vicinity of the raging element; and those flowing robes, that
gave such softness and grace to her form, seemed now to be formed for the
instruments of her destruction.
    The villagers were accustomed to resort to that hill in quest of timber and
fuel; in procuring which, it was their usage to take only the bodies of the
trees, leaving the tops and branches to decay under the operations of the
weather. Much of the hill was, consequently, covered with such light fuel,
which, having been scorched under the sun for the last two months, was ignited
with a touch. Indeed, in some cases, there did not appear to be any contact
between the fire and these piles, but the flames seemed to dart from heap to
heap, as the fabulous fire of the temple is represented to relumine its
neglected lamp.
    There was beauty as well as terror in the sight, and Edwards and Elizabeth
stood viewing the progress of the desolation, with a strange mixture of horror
and interest. The former, however, shortly roused himself to new exertions, and,
drawing his companion after him, they skirted the edge of the smoke, the young
man penetrating frequently into its dense volumes in search of a passage, but in
every instance without success. In this manner they proceeded in a semicircle
around the upper part of the terrace, until, arriving at the verge of the
precipice, opposite to the point where Edwards had ascended, the horrid
conviction burst on both at the same instant, that they were completely
encircled by the fire. So long as a single pass up or down the mountain was
unexplored, there was hope; but when retreat seemed to be absolutely
impracticable, the horror of their situation broke upon Elizabeth as powerfully
as if she had hitherto considered the danger light.
    »This mountain is doomed to be fatal to me!« she whispered; - »we shall find
our graves on it!«
    »Say not so, Miss Temple; there is yet hope,« returned the youth, in the
same tone, while the vacant expression of his eye, contradicted his words; »let
us return to the point of the rock; there is, there must be, some place about it
where we can descend.«
    »Lead me there,« exclaimed Elizabeth; »let us leave no effort untried.« She
did not wait for his compliance, but turning, retraced her steps to the brow of
the precipice, murmuring to herself, in suppressed hysterical sobs, »My father -
my poor, my distracted father!«
    Edwards was by her side in an instant, and with aching eyes he examined
every fissure in the crags, in quest of some opening that might offer the
facilities for flight. But the smooth, even surface of the rocks afforded hardly
a resting place for a foot, much less those continued projections which would
have been necessary for a descent of nearly a hundred feet. Edwards was not slow
in feeling the conviction that this hope was also futile, and, with a kind of
feverish despair, that still urged him to action, he turned to some new
expedient.
    »There is nothing left, Miss Temple,« he said, »but to endeavour to lower
you from this place to the rock beneath. If Natty were here, or even that Indian
could be roused, their ingenuity and long practice would easily devise methods
to do it; but I am a child, at this moment, in every thing but daring. Where
shall I find means? This dress of mine is so light, and there is so little of it
- then the blanket of Mohegan. We must try - we must try - any thing is better
than to see you a victim to such a death!«
    »And what will become of you!« said Elizabeth. »Indeed, indeed, neither you
nor John must be sacrificed to my safety.«
    He heard her not, for he was already by the side of Mohegan, who yielded his
blanket without a question, retaining his seat with Indian dignity and
composure, though his own situation was even more critical than that of the
others. The blanket was cut into shreds, and the fragments fastened together;
the loose linen jacket of the youth, and the light muslin shawl of Elizabeth,
were attached to them, and the whole thrown over the rocks, with the rapidity of
lightning; but the united pieces did not reach half way to the bottom.
    »It will not do - it will not do!« cried Elizabeth; »for me there is no
hope! The fire comes slowly, but certainly. See! it destroys the very earth
before it!«
    Had the flames spread on that rock with half the quickness with which they
leaped from bush to tree, in other parts of the mountain, our painful task would
have soon ended; for they would have consumed already the captives they
enclosed. But the peculiarity of their situation afforded Elizabeth and her
companion the respite, of which they had availed themselves to make the efforts
we have recorded.
    The thin covering of earth on the rock supported but a scanty and faded
herbage, and most of the trees that had found root in the fissures had already
died, during the intense heats of preceding summers. Those which still retained
the appearance of life, bore a few dry and withered leaves, while the others
were merely the wrecks of pines, oaks, and maples. No better materials to feed
the fire could be found, had there been a communication with the flames; but the
ground was destitute of the brush that led the destructive element like a
torrent over the remainder of the hill. As auxiliary to this scarcity of fuel,
one of the large springs which abound in that country gushed out of the side of
the ascent above, and, after creeping sluggishly along the level land,
saturating the mossy covering of the rock with moisture, it swept round the base
of the little cone that formed the pinnacle of the mountain, and, entering the
canopy of smoke near one of the terminations of the terrace, found its way to
the lake, not by dashing from rock to rock, but by the secret channels of the
earth. It would rise to the surface, here and there, in the wet seasons, but in
the droughts of summer, it was to be traced only by the bogs and moss that
announced the proximity of water. When the fire reached this barrier, it was
compelled to pause, until a concentration of its heat could overcome the
moisture, like an army waiting the operations of a battering train, to open its
way to desolation.
    That fatal moment seemed now to have arrived; for the hissing steams of the
spring appeared to be nearly exhausted, and the moss of the rocks was already
curling under the intense heat, while fragments of bark that yet clung to the
dead trees, began to separate from their trunks, and fall to the ground in
crumbling masses. The air seemed quivering with rays of heat, which might be
seen playing along the parched stems of the trees. There were moments when dark
clouds of smoke would sweep along the little terrace, and as the eye lost its
power, the other senses contributed to give effect to the fearful horror of the
scene. At such moments, the roaring of the flames, the crackling of the furious
element, with the tearing of falling branches, and, occasionally, the thundering
echoes of some falling tree, united to alarm the victims. Of the three, however,
the youth appeared much the most agitated. Elizabeth, having relinquished
entirely the idea of escape, was fast obtaining that resigned composure, with
which the most delicate of her sex are sometimes known to meet unavoidable
evils; while Mohegan, who was much nearer to the danger, maintained his seat
with the invincible resignation of an Indian warrior. Once or twice the eye of
the aged chief, which was ordinarily fixed in the direction of the distant
hills, turned towards the young pair, who seemed doomed to so early a death,
with a slight indication of pity crossing his composed features, but it would
immediately revert again to its former gaze, as if already looking into the womb
of futurity. Much of the time he was chanting a kind of low dirge, in the
Delaware tongue, using the deep and remarkably guttural tones of his people.
    »At such a moment, Mr. Edwards, all earthly distinctions end,« whispered
Elizabeth; »persuade John to move nearer to us - let us die together.«
    »I cannot - he will not stir,« returned the youth, in the same horridly
still tones. »He considers this as the happiest moment of his life. He is past
seventy; and has been decaying rapidly for some time; he received some injury in
chasing that unlucky deer, too, on the lake. Oh! Miss Temple, that was an
unlucky chase indeed! it has led, I fear, to this awful scene.«
    The smile of Elizabeth was celestial: »Why name such a trifle now - at this
moment the heart is dead to all earthly emotions!«
    »If any thing could reconcile a man to this death,« cried the youth, »it
would be to meet it in such company!«
    »Talk not so, Edwards, talk not so,« interrupted Miss Temple, »I am unworthy
of it; and it is unjust to yourself. We must die; yes - yes - we must die - it
is the will of God, and let us endeavour to submit like his own children.«
    »Die!« the youth rather shrieked than exclaimed, »No - no - there must yet
be hope - you at least must not, shall not die.«
    »In what way can we escape?« asked, Elizabeth, pointing, with a look of
heavenly composure, towards the fire. »Observe! the flame is crossing the
barrier of wet ground - it comes slowly, Edwards, but surely. - Ah! see! the
tree! the tree is already lighted!«
    Her words were too true. The heat of the conflagration had, at length,
overcome the resistance of the spring, and the fire was slowly stealing along
the half-dried moss; while a dead pine kindled with the touch of a forked flame,
that, for a moment, wreathed around the stem of the tree, as it whirled, in one
of its evolutions, under the influence of the air. The effect was instantaneous.
The flames danced along the parched trunk of the pine, like lightning quivering
on a chain, and immediately a column of living fire was raging on the terrace.
It soon spread from tree to tree, and the scene was evidently drawing to a
close. The log on which Mohegan was seated lighted at its farther end, and the
Indian appeared to be surrounded by fire. Still he was unmoved. As his body was
unprotected, his sufferings must have been great, but his fortitude was superior
to all. His voice could yet be heard, even in the midst of these horrors.
Elizabeth turned her head from the sight, and faced the valley. Furious eddies
of wind were created by the heat, and just at the moment, the canopy of fiery
smoke that overhung the valley, was cleared away, leaving a distinct view of the
peaceful village beneath them.
    »My father! - My father!« shrieked Elizabeth. »Oh! this - this surely might
have been spared me - but I submit.«
    The distance was not so great but the figure of Judge Temple could be seen,
standing in his own grounds, and, apparently, contemplating, in perfect
unconsciousness of the danger of his child, the mountain in flames. This sight
was still more painful than the approaching danger; and Elizabeth again faced
the hill.
    »My intemperate warmth has done this!« cried Edwards, in the accents of
despair. »If I had possessed but a moiety of your heavenly resignation, Miss
Temple, all might yet have been well.«
    »Name it not - name it not,« she said. »It is now of no avail. We must die,
Edwards, we must die - let us do so as Christians. But - no - you may yet
escape, perhaps. Your dress is not so fatal as mine. Fly! leave me. An opening
may yet be found for you, possibly - certainly it is worth the effort. Fly!
leave me - but stay! You will see my father; my poor, my bereaved father! Say to
him, then, Edwards, say to him, all that can appease his anguish. Tell him that
I died happy and collected; that I have gone to my beloved mother; that the
hours of this life are as nothing when balanced in the scales of eternity. Say
how we shall meet again. And say,« she continued, dropping her voice, that had
risen with her feelings, as if conscious of her worldly weaknesses, »how dear,
how very dear, was my love for him. That it was near, too near, to my love for
God.«
    The youth listened to her touching accents, but moved not. In a moment he
found utterance and replied:
    »And is it me that you command to leave you! to leave you on the edge of the
grave! Oh! Miss Temple, how little have you known me,« he cried, dropping on his
knees at her feet, and gathering her flowing robe in his arms, as if to shield
her from the flames. »I have been driven to the woods in despair; but your
society has tamed the lion within me. If I have wasted my time in degradation,
'twas you that charmed me to it. If I have forgotten my name and family, your
form supplied the place of memory. If I have forgotten my wrongs, 'twas you that
taught me charity. No - no - dearest Elizabeth, I may die with you, but I can
never leave you!«
    Elizabeth moved not, nor answered. It was plain that her thoughts had been
raised from the earth. The recollection of her father, and her regrets at their
separation, had been mellowed by a holy sentiment, that lifted her above the
level of earthly things, and she was fast losing the weakness of her sex, in the
near view of eternity. But as she listened to these words, she became once more
woman. She struggled against these feelings, and smiled, as she thought she was
shaking off the last lingering feeling of nature, when the world, and all its
seductions, rushed again to her heart, with the sounds of a human voice, crying
in piercing tones -
    »Gall! where be ye, gall! gladden the heart of an old man, if ye yet belong
to 'earth!«
    »List!« said Elizabeth, »'tis the Leather-stocking; he seeks me!«
    »'Tis Natty!« shouted Edwards, »and we may yet be saved!«
    A wide and circling flame glared on their eyes for a moment, even above the
fire of the woods, and a loud report followed.
    »'Tis the canister! 'tis the powder,« cried the same voice, evidently
approaching them. »'Tis the canister, and the precious child is lost!«
    At the next instant Natty rushed through the steams of the spring, and
appeared on the terrace, without his deer skin cap, his hair burnt to his head,
his shirt of country check, black, and filled with holes, and his red features
of a deeper colour than ever, by the heat he had encountered.
 

                                Chapter XXXVIII

 »Even from the land of shadows, now,
 My father's awful ghost appears.«
                                                  Campbell, Gertrude of Wyoming,
                                                                  III.xxxix.3-4.
 
For an hour after Louisa Grant was left by Miss Temple, in the situation already
mentioned, she continued in feverish anxiety, awaiting the return of her friend.
But, as the time passed by without the re-appearance of Elizabeth, the terror of
Louisa gradually increased, until her alarmed fancy had conjured every species
of danger that appertained to the woods, excepting the one that really existed.
The heavens had become obscured, by degrees, and vast volumes of smoke were
pouring over the valley; but the thoughts of Louisa were still recurring to
beasts, without dreaming of the real cause for apprehension. She was stationed
in the edge of the low pines and chestnuts that succeeded the first or large
growth of the forest, and directly above the angle where the highway turned from
the straight course to the village and ascended the mountain, laterally.
Consequently she commanded a view not only of the valley, but of the road
beneath her. The few travellers that passed, she observed, were engaged in
earnest conversation, and frequently raised their eyes to the hill, and at
length she saw the people leaving the court-house, and gazing upward also. While
under the influence of the alarm excited by such unusual movements, reluctant to
go, and yet fearful to remain, Louisa was startled by the low, cracking, but
cautious treads, of some one approaching through the bushes. She was on the eve
of flight, when Natty emerged from the cover and stood at her side. The old man
laughed as he shook her kindly by a hand that was passive with fear.
    »I am glad to meet you here, child,« he said; »for the back of the mountain
is a-fire, and it would be dangerous to go up it now, till it has been burnt
over once, and the dead wood is gone. There's a foolish man, the comrad of that
varmint, who has given me all this trouble, digging for ore, on the east side. I
told him that the kearless fellows who thought to catch a practys'd hunter in
the woods after dark, had thrown the lighted pine knots in the brush, and that
'it would kindle like tow, and warned him to leave the hill. But he was set upon
his business, and nothing short of Providence could move him. If he isn't burnt
and buried in a grave of his own digging, he's made of salamanders. Why, what
ails the child! you look as skeary as if you see'd more painters! I wish there
was more to be found, they'd count up faster than the beaver. But, where's the
good child of a bad father? did she forget her promise to the old man?«
    »The hill! the hill!« shrieked Louisa; »she seeks you on the hill, with the
powder!«
    Natty recoiled several feet, at this unexpected intelligence.
    »The Lord of Heaven have mercy on her! She's on the Vision, and that's a
sheet of fire ag'in this. Child, if ye love the dear one, and hope to find a
friend when ye need it most, to the village, and give the alarm. The men be us'd
to fighting fire, and there may be a chance left. Fly! I bid ye fly! nor stop
even for breath.«
    The Leather-stocking had no sooner uttered this injunction, than he
disappeared in the bushes, and when last seen by Louisa, was rushing up the
mountain, with a speed that none but those who were accustomed to the toil,
could attain.
    »Have I found ye!« the old man exclaimed, when he burst out of the smoke;
»God be praised, that I've found ye; but follow, there is no time for talking.«
    »My dress!« said Elizabeth; »it would be fatal to trust myself nearer to the
flames in it.«
    »I bethought me of your flimsy things,« cried Natty, throwing loose the
folds of a covering of buckskin that he carried on his arm, and wrapping her
form in it, in such a manner as to envelope her whole person; »now follow, for
it's a matter of life and death to us all.«
    »But John! what will become of John,« cried Edwards; »Can we leave the old
warrior here to perish?«
    The eyes of Natty followed the direction of Edwards' finger, when he beheld
the Indian, still seated as before, with the very earth under his feet consuming
with fire. Without delay, the hunter approached the spot, and spoke in Delaware
-
    »Up and away, Chingachgook! will ye stay here to burn, like a Mingo at the
stake! The Moravians have teached ye better, I hope. The Lord preserve me if the
powder has'nt flashed a-tween his legs, and the skin of his back is roasting.
Will ye come, I say? will ye follow?«
    »Why should Mohegan go?« returned the Indian, gloomily. »He has seen the
days of an eagle, and his eye grows dim. He looks on the valley; he looks on the
water; he looks in the hunting-grounds - but he sees no Delawares. Every one has
a white skin. My fathers say, from the far-off land, come. My women, my young
warriors, my tribe, say, come. The Great Spirit says, come. Let Mohegan die.«
    »But you forget your friend,« cried Edwards.
    »'Tis useless to talk to an Indian with the death-fit on him, lad,«
interrupted Natty, who seized the strips of the blanket, and with wonderful
dexterity strapped the passive chieftain to his own back; when he turned, and
with a strength that seemed to bid defiance, not only to his years, but to his
load, he led the way to the point whence he had issued. As they crossed the
little terrace of rock, one of the dead trees, that had been tottering for
several minutes, fell on the spot where they had stood, and filled the air with
its cinders.
    Such an event quickened the steps of the party, who followed the
Leather-stocking with the urgency required by the occasion.
    »Tread on the soft ground,« he cried, when they were in a gloom where sight
availed them but little, »and keep in the white smoke; keep the skin close on
her, lad, she's a precious one, another will be hard to be found.«
    Obedient to the hunter's directions, they followed his steps and advice
implicitly, and although the narrow passage along the winding of the spring led
amid burning logs and falling branches, they happily achieved it in safety. No
one but a man long accustomed to the woods could have traced his route through a
smoke, in which respiration was difficult, and sight nearly useless; but the
experience of Natty conducted them to an opening through the rocks, where, with
a little difficulty, they soon descended to another terrace, and emerged at once
into a tolerably clear atmosphere.
    The feelings of Edwards and Elizabeth, at reaching this spot, may be
imagined, though not easily described. No one seemed to exult more than their
guide, who turned, with Mohegan still lashed to his back, and laughing in his
own manner, said, »I know'd 'twas the Frenchman's powder, gall; it went so
altogether; your coarse grain will squib for a minute. The Iroquois had none of
the best powder when I went ag'in the Canada tribes, under Sir William. Did I
ever tell you the story, lad, concarning the skrimmage with« -
    »For God's sake, tell me nothing now, Natty, until we are entirely safe -
where shall we go next?«
    »Why, on the platform of rock over the cave, to be sure, - you will be safe
enough there, or we'll go into it if you be so minded.«
    The young man started, and appeared agitated; but looking around him with an
anxious eye, said quickly -
    »Shall we be safe on the rock? cannot the fire reach us there, too?«
    »Can't the boy see?« said Natty, with the coolness of one accustomed to the
kind of danger he had just encountered. »Had ye staid in the place above ten
minutes longer, you would both have been in ashes, but here you may stay for
ever, and no fire can touch you, until they burn the rocks as well as the
woods.«
    With this assurance, which was obviously true, they proceeded to the spot,
and Natty deposited his load, placing the Indian on the ground with his back
against a fragment of the rocks. Elizabeth sunk on the ground, and buried her
face in her hands, while her heart was swelling with a variety of conflicting
emotions.
    »Let me urge you to take a restorative, Miss Temple,« said Edwards
respectfully; »your frame will sink else.«
    »Leave me, leave me,« she said, raising her beaming eyes for a moment to
his; »I feel too much for words; I am grateful, Oliver, for this miraculous
escape; and next to my God, to you.«
    Edwards withdrew to the edge of the rock, and shouted - »Benjamin! where are
you, Benjamin?«
    A hoarse voice replied, as if from the bowels of the earth, »Hereaway,
master; stow'd in this here bit of a hole, which is all the same as hot as the
cook's coppers. I'm tired of my berth, d'ye see, and if-so-be that
Leather-stocking has got much overhauling to do before he sails after them said
beaver, I'll go into dock again, and ride out my quarantine 'till I can get
prottick from the law, and so hold on upon the rest of my 'spaniolas.«
    »Bring up a glass of water from the spring,« continued Edwards, »and throw a
little wine in it; hasten, I entreat you.«
    »I knows but little of your small drink, master Oliver,« returned the
steward, his voice issuing out of the cave into the open air, »and the Jamaiky
held out no longer than to take a parting kiss with Billy Kirby, when he
anchored me alongside the highway last night, where you run me down in the
chase. But here's sum'mat of a red colour that may suit a weak stomach, mayhap.
That master Kirby is no first rate in a boat, but he'll tack a cart among the
stumps, all the same as a Lon'on pilot will back and fill through the colliers
in the Pool.«
    As the steward ascended while talking, by the time he had ended his speech,
he appeared on the rock, with the desired restoratives, exhibiting the worn out
and bloated features of a man who had run deep in a debauch, and that lately.
    Elizabeth took from the hand of Edwards the liquor which he offered, and
then motioned to be left again to herself.
    The youth turned at her bidding, and observed Natty kindly assiduous around
the person of Mohegan. When their eyes met, the hunter said sorrowfully -
    »His time has come, lad; I see it in his eyes; - when an Indian fixes his
eye, he means to go but to one place; and what the wilful creaters put their
minds on, they're sure to do.«
    A quick tread prevented the reply, and in a few moments, to the amazement of
the whole party, Mr. Grant was seen clinging to the side of the mountain, and
striving to reach the place where they stood. Oliver sprang to his assistance,
and by their united efforts, the worthy divine was soon placed safely among
them.
    »How came you added to our number?« cried Edwards; »Is the hill alive with
people, at a time like this?«
    The hasty, but pious thanksgivings of the clergyman were soon ejaculated;
and when he succeeded in collecting his bewildered senses, he replied -
    »I heard that my child was seen coming to the mountain; and when the fire
broke over its summit, my uneasiness drew me up the road, where I found Louisa,
in terror for Miss Temple. It was to seek her that I came into this dangerous
place; and I think but for God's mercy, through the dogs of Natty, I should have
perished in the flames myself.«
    »Ay! follow the hounds, and if there's an opening they'll scent it out,«
said Natty; »their noses be given to them the same as man's reason.«
    »I did so, and they led me to this place; but, praise be to God, that I see
you all safe and well.«
    »No, no,« returned the hunter; »safe we be, but as for well, John can't be
called in a good way, unless you'll say that for a man that's taking his last
look at 'earth.«
    »He speaks the truth!« said the divine, with the holy awe with which he ever
approached the dying; - »I have been by too many death-beds, not to see that the
hand of the tyrant is laid on this old warrior. Oh! how consoling it is, to know
that he has not rejected the offered mercy, in the hour of his strength and of
worldly temptations! The offspring of a race of heathens, he has in truth been
as a brand plucked from the burning.«
    »No, no,« returned Natty, who alone stood with him by the side of the dying
warrior, »it's no burning that ails him, though his Indian feelings made him
scorn to move, unless it be the burning of man's wicked thoughts for near
fourscore years; but it's nater giving out in a chase that's run too long. -
Down with ye, Hector! down, I say! - Flesh isn't iron, that a man can live for
ever, and see his kith and kin driven to a far country, and he left to mourn,
with none to keep him company.«
    »John,« said the divine, tenderly, »do you hear me? do you wish the prayers
appointed by the church, at this trying moment?«
    The Indian turned his ghastly face towards the speaker, and fastened his
dark eyes on him, steadily, but vacantly. No sign of recognition was made; and
in a moment he moved his head again slowly towards the vale, and begun to sing,
using his own language, in those low, guttural tones that have been so often
mentioned, his notes rising with his theme, till they swelled so loud as to be
distinct.
    »I will come! I will come! to the land of the just I will come! The Maquas I
have slain! - I have slain the Maquas! and the Great Spirit calls to his son. I
will come! I will come! to the land of the just I will come!«
    »What says he, Leather-stocking?« inquired the priest, with tender interest;
»sings he the Redeemer's praise?«
    »No, no, - 'tis his own praise that he speaks now,« said Natty, turning in a
melancholy manner from the sight of his dying friend; »and a good right he has
to say it all, for I know every word to be true.«
    »May Heaven avert such self-righteousness from his heart! Humility and
penitence are the seals of christianity; and without feeling them deeply seated
in the soul, all hope is delusive, and leads to vain expectations. Praise
himself! when his whole soul and body should unite to praise his Maker! John!
you have enjoyed the blessings of a gospel ministry, and have been called from
out a multitude of sinners and pagans, and, I trust, for a wise and gracious
purpose. Do you now feel what it is to be justified by your Saviour's death, and
reject all weak and idle dependence on good works, that spring from man's pride
and vain-glory?«
    The Indian did not regard his interrogator, but he raised his head again,
and said, in a low, distinct voice -
    »Who can say that the Maquas know the back of Mohegan! What enemy that
trusted in him did not see the morning? What Mingo that he chased ever sung the
song of triumph? Did Mohegan ever lie? No; the truth lived in him, and none else
could come out of him. In his youth, he was a warrior, and his moccasins left
the stain of blood. In his age, he was wise; his words at the council fire did
not blow away with the winds.«
    »Ah! he has abandoned that vain relic of paganism, his songs,« cried the
divine; - »what says he now? is he sensible of his lost state?«
    »Lord! man,« said Natty, »he knows his ind is at hand as well as you or I,
but, so far from thinking it a loss, he believes it to be a great gain. He is
old and stiff, and you've made the game so scurce and shy, that better shots
than him find it hard to get a livelihood. Now he thinks he shall travel where
it will always be good hunting; where no wicked or unjust Indians can go; and
where he shall meet all his tribe together ag'in. There's not much loss in that,
to a man whose hands be hardly fit for basket-making. Loss! if there be any
loss, 'twill be to me. I'm sure, after he's gone, there will be but little left
for me but to follow.«
    »His example and end, which, I humbly trust, shall yet be made glorious,«
returned Mr. Grant, »should lead your mind to dwell on the things of another
life. But I feel it to be my duty to smooth the way for the parting spirit. This
is the moment, John, when the reflection that you did not reject the mediation
of the Redeemer, will bring balm to your soul. Trust not to any act of former
days, but lay the burden of your sins at his feet, and you have his own blessed
assurance that he will not desert you.«
    »Though all you say be true, and you have scripter gospels for it, too,«
said Natty, »you will make nothing of the Indian. He has'nt seen a Moravian
priest sin' the war; and it's hard to keep them from going back to their native
ways. I should think 'it would be as well to let the old man pass in peace. He's
happy now; I know it by his eye; and that's more than I would say for the chief,
sin' the time the Delawares broke up from the head-waters of their river, and
went west. Ahs! me! 'tis a grievous long time that, and many dark days have we
seen together, sin' it.«
    »Hawk-eye!« said Mohegan, rousing with the last glimmering of life.
»Hawk-eye! listen to the words of your brother.«
    »Yes, John,« said the hunter, in English, strongly affected by the appeal,
and drawing to his side; »we have been brothers; and more so than it means in
the Indian tongue. What would ye have with me, Chingachgook?«
    »Hawk-eye! my fathers call me to the happy hunting-grounds. The path is
clear, and the eyes of Mohegan grow young. I look - but I see no white-skins;
there are none to be seen but just and brave Indians. Farewell, Hawk-eye - you
shall go with the Fire-eater and the Young-eagle, to the white man's heaven; but
I go after my fathers. Let the bow, and tomahawk, and pipe, and the wampum, of
Mohegan, be laid in his grave; for when he starts 'twill be in the night, like a
warrior on a war-party, and he cannot stop to seek them.«
    »What says he, Nathaniel?« cried Mr. Grant, earnestly, and with obvious
anxiety; »does he recall the promises of the mediation? and trust his salvation
to the Rock of ages?«
    Although the faith of the hunter was by no means clear, yet the fruits of
early instruction had not entirely fallen in the wilderness. He believed in one
God, and in one heaven; and when the strong feeling excited by the leave-taking
of his old companion, which was exhibited by the powerful working of every
muscle in his weather beaten face, suffered him to speak, he replied -
    »No - no - he trusts only to the Great Spirit of the savages, and to his own
good deeds. He thinks, like all his people, that he is to be young ag'in, and to
hunt, and be happy to the ind of etarnity. It's pretty much the same with all
colours, parson. I could never bring myself to think that I shall meet with
these hounds, or my piece, in another world; though the thoughts of leaving them
for ever, sometimes brings hard feelings over me, and makes me cling to life
with a greater craving than beseems three-score-and-ten.«
    »The Lord, in his mercy, avert such a death from one who has been sealed
with the sign of the cross!« cried the minister, in holy fervour. »John -«
    He paused for the elements. During the period occupied by the events which
we have related, the dark clouds in the horizon had continued to increase in
numbers and magnitude; and the awful stillness that now pervaded the air,
announced a crisis in the state of the atmosphere. The flames, which yet
continued to rage along the sides of the mountain, no longer whirled in the
uncertain currents of their own eddies, but blazed high and steadily towards the
heavens. There was even a quietude in the ravages of the destructive element, as
if it foresaw that a hand, greater than even its own desolating power, was about
to stay its progress. The piles of smoke which lay above the valley began to
rise, and were dispelling rapidly; and streaks of vivid lightning were dancing
through the masses of clouds that impended over the western hills. While Mr.
Grant was speaking, a flash, which sent its quivering light through the gloom,
laying bare the whole opposite horizon, was followed by a loud crash of thunder,
that rolled away among the hills, seeming to shake the foundations of the earth
to their centre. Mohegan raised himself, as if in obedience to a signal for his
departure, and stretched his wasted arm towards the west. His dark face lighted
with a look of joy; which, with all other expression, gradually disappeared; the
muscles stiffening as they retreated to a state of rest; a slight convulsion
played, for a single instant, about his lips; and his arm slowly dropped by his
side; leaving the frame of the dead warrior reposing against the rock, with its
glassy eyes open, and fixed on the distant hills, as if the deserted shell were
tracing the flight of the spirit to its new abode.
    All this Mr. Grant witnessed, in silent awe; but when the last echoes of the
thunder died away, he clasped his hands together, with pious energy, and
repeated, in the full rich tones of assured faith -
    »O Lord! how unsearchable are thy judgments: And thy ways past finding out!
I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon
the earth: And though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh
shall I see God; whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and
not another.«
    As the divine closed this burst of devotion, he bowed his head meekly to his
bosom, and looked all the dependence and humility that the inspired language
expressed.
    When Mr. Grant retired from the body, the hunter approached, and taking the
rigid hand of his friend, looked him wistfully in the face for some time without
speaking; when he gave vent to his feelings by saying, in the mournful voice of
one who felt deeply -
    »Red skin, or white, it's all over now! He's to be judged by a righteous
Judge, and by no laws that's made to suit times, and new ways. Well, there's
only one more death, and the world be left to me and the hounds. Ahs! me! a man
must wait the time of God's pleasure, but I begin to weary of life. There is
scurcely a tree standing that I know, and it's hard to find a face that I was
acquainted with in my younger days.«
    Large drops of rain began now to fall, and diffuse themselves over the dry
rock, while the approach of the thunder shower was rapid and certain. The body
of the Indian was hastily removed into the cave beneath, followed by the whining
hounds, who missed, and moaned for, the look of intelligence that had always met
their salutations to the chief.
    Edwards made some hasty and confused excuse for not taking Elizabeth into
the same place, which was now completely closed in front with logs and bark,
saying something that she hardly understood about its darkness, and the
unpleasantness of being with the dead body. Miss Temple, however, found a
sufficient shelter against the torrent of rain that fell, under the projection
of a rock which overhung them. But long before the shower was over, the sounds
of voices were heard below them, crying aloud for Elizabeth, and men soon
appeared, beating the dying embers of the bushes, as they worked their way
cautiously among the unextinguished brands.
    At the first short cessation in the rain, Oliver conducted Elizabeth to the
road, where he left her. Before parting, however, he found time to say, in a
fervent manner, that his companion was now at no loss to interpret -
    »The moment of concealment is over, Miss Temple. By this time to-morrow, I
shall remove a veil that perhaps it has been weakness to keep around me and my
affairs so long. But I have had romantic and foolish wishes and weaknesses; and
who has not, that is young and torn by conflicting passions! God bless you! I
hear your father's voice; he is coming up the road, and I would not, just now,
subject myself to detention. Thank Heaven, you are safe again; that alone
removes the weight of a world from my spirit!«
    He waited for no answer, but sprung into the woods. Elizabeth,
notwithstanding she heard the cries of her father as he called upon her name,
paused until he was concealed among the smoking trees, when she turned, and in a
moment rushed into the arms of her half-distracted parent.
    A carriage had been provided, into which Miss Temple hastily entered; when
the cry was passed along the hill, that the lost one was found, and the people
returned to the village, wet and dirty, but elated with the thought that the
daughter of their landlord had escaped from so horrid and untimely an end.18
 

                                 Chapter XXXIX

 »Selictar! unsheath then our chief's scimetar;
 Tambourgi! thy 'larum gives promise of war;
 Ye mountains! that see us descend to the shore,
 Shall view us victors, or view us no more.«
                                              Byron, Childe Harold's Pilgrimage,
                                                                  II.lxxi.50-53.
 
The heavy showers that prevailed during the remainder of the day, completely
stopped the progress of the flames; though glimmering fires were observed during
the night, on different parts of the hill, wherever there was a collection of
fuel to feed the element. The next day the woods, for many miles, were black and
smoking, and were stripped of every vestige of brush and dead wood; but the pines
and hemlocks still reared their heads proudly, among the hills, and even the
smaller trees of the forest retained a feeble appearance of life and vegetation.
    The many tongues of rumour were busy in exaggerating the miraculous escape
of Elizabeth, and a report was generally credited, that Mohegan had actually
perished in the flames. This belief became confirmed, and was indeed rendered
probable, when the direful intelligence reached the village, that Jotham Riddel,
the miner, was found in his hole, nearly dead with suffocation, and burnt to
such a degree that no hopes were entertained of his life.
    The public attention became much alive to the events of the last few days,
and just at this crisis, the convicted counterfeiters took the hint from Natty,
and, on the night succeeding the fire, found means to cut through their log
prison also, and to escape unpunished. When this news begun to circulate through
the village, blended with the fate of Jotham, and the exaggerated and tortured
reports of the events on the hill, the popular opinion was freely expressed, as
to the propriety of seizing such of the fugitives as remained within reach. Men
talked of the cave, as a secret receptacle of guilt; and, as the rumour of ores
and metals found its way into the confused medley of conjectures,
counterfeiting, and every thing else that was wicked and dangerous to the peace
of society, suggested themselves to the busy fancies of the populace.
    While the public mind was in this feverish state, it was hinted that the
wood had been set on fire by Edwards and the Leather-stocking, and that,
consequently, they alone were responsible for the damages. This opinion soon
gained ground, being most circulated by those who, by their own heedlessness,
had caused the evil; and there was one irresistible burst of the common
sentiment, that an attempt should be made to punish the offenders. Richard was
by no means deaf to this appeal, and by noon he set about in earnest, to see the
laws executed.
    Several stout young men were selected, and taken apart, with an appearance
of secrecy, where they received some important charge from the Sheriff,
immediately under the eyes, but far removed from the ears, of all in the
village. Possessed of a knowledge of their duty, these youths hurried into the
hills, with a bustling manner, as if the fate of the world depended on their
diligence, and, at the same time, with an air of mystery, as great as if they
were engaged on secret matters of the state.
    At twelve precisely, a drum beat the long roll before the Bold Dragoon, and
Richard appeared, accompanied by Captain Hollister, who was clad in his
vestments as commander of the Templeton Light-Infantry, when the former demanded
of the latter the aid of the posse comitatus, in enforcing the laws of the
country. We have not room to record the speeches of the two gentlemen on this
occasion, but they are preserved in the columns of the little blue newspaper,
which is yet to be found on file, and are said to be highly creditable to the
legal formula of one of the parties, and to the military precision of the other.
Every thing had been previously arranged, and as the red-coated drummer
continued to roll out his clattering notes, some five-and-twenty privates
appeared in the ranks, and arranged themselves in order of battle.
    As this corps was composed of volunteers, and was commanded by a man who had
passed the first five-and-thirty years of his life in camps and garrisons, it
was the nonpareil of military science in that country, and was confidently
pronounced, by the judicious part of the Templeton community, to be equal in
skill and appearance to any troops in the known world; in physical endowments
they were, certainly, much superior! To this assertion there were but three
dissenting voices, and one dissenting opinion. The opinion belonged to
Marmaduke, who, however, saw no necessity for its promulgation. Of the voices,
one, and that a pretty loud one, came from the spouse of the commander himself,
who frequently reproached her husband for condescending to lead such an
irregular band of warriors, after he had filled the honourable station of
sergeant-major to a dashing corps of Virginian cavalry through much of the
recent war.
    Another of these sceptical sentiments was invariably expressed by Mr. Pump,
whenever the company paraded, generally in some such terms as these, which were
uttered with that sort of meekness that a native of the island of our
forefathers is apt to assume, when he condescends to praise the customs or
character of her truant progeny -
    »It's mayhap that they knows sum'mat about loading and firing, d'ye see; but
as for working ship! why a corporal's guard of the Boadishey's marines would
back and fill on their quarters in such a manner as to surround and captivate
them all in half a glass.« As there was no one to deny this assertion, the
marines of the Boadicea were held in a corresponding degree of estimation.
    The third unbeliever was Monsieur Le Quoi, who merely whispered to the
Sheriff, that the corps was one of the finest he had ever seen, second only to
the Mousquetaires of Le Bon Louis! However, as Mrs. Hollister thought there was
something like actual service in the present appearances, and was, in
consequence, too busily engaged with certain preparations of her own, to make
her comments; as Benjamin was absent, and Monsieur Le Quoi too happy to find
fault with any thing, the corps escaped criticism and comparison altogether on
this momentous day, when they certainly had greater need of self-confidence,
than on any other previous occasion. Marmaduke was said to be again closeted
with Mr. Van der School, and no interruption was offered to the movements of the
troops. At two o'clock precisely the corps shouldered arms, beginning on the
right wing, next to the veteran, and carrying the motion through to the left
with great regularity. When each musket was quietly fixed in its proper
situation, the order was given to wheel to the left, and march. As this was
bringing raw troops, at once, to face their enemy, it is not to be supposed that
the manoeuvre was executed with their usual accuracy, but as the music struck up
the inspiring air of Yankee-doodle, and Richard, accompanied by Mr. Doolittle,
preceded the troops boldly down the street, Captain Hollister led on, with his
head elevated to forty-five degrees, with a little, low cocked hat, perched on
his crown, carrying a tremendous dragoon sabre at a poise, and trailing at his
heels a huge steel scabbard, that had war in its very clattering. There was a
good deal of difficulty in getting all the platoons (there were six) to look the
same way; but, by the time they reached the defile of the bridge, the troops
were in sufficiently compact order. In this manner they marched up the hill to
the summit of the mountain, no other alteration taking place in the disposition
of the forces, excepting that a mutual complaint was made by the Sheriff and the
magistrate, of a failure in wind, which gradually brought these gentlemen to the
rear. It will be unnecessary to detail the minute movements that succeeded. We
shall briefly say, that the scouts came in and reported, that, so far from
retreating, as had been anticipated, the fugitives had evidently gained a
knowledge of the attack, and were fortifying for a desperate resistance. This
intelligence certainly made a material change, not only in the plans of the
leaders, but in the countenances of the soldiery also. The men looked at one
another with serious faces, and Hiram and Richard begun to consult together,
apart.
    At this conjuncture, they were joined by Billy Kirby, who came along the
highway, with his axe under his arm, as much in advance of his team as Captain
Hollister had been of his troops in the ascent. The wood-chopper was amazed at
the military array, but the Sheriff eagerly availed himself of this powerful
reinforcement, and commanded his assistance in putting the laws in force. Billy
held Mr. Jones in too much deference to object; and it was finally arranged that
he should be the bearer of a summons to the garrison to surrender, before they
proceeded to extremities. The troops now divided, one party being led by the
captain, over the Vision, and were brought in on the left of the cave, while the
remainder advanced upon its right, under the orders of the lieutenant. Mr. Jones
and Dr. Todd, for the surgeon was in attendance also, appeared on the platform
of rock, immediately over the heads of the garrison, though out of their sight.
Hiram thought this approaching too near, and he therefore accompanied Kirby
along the side of the hill, to within a safe distance of the fortifications,
where he took shelter behind a tree. Most of the men discovered great accuracy
of eye in bringing some object in range between them and their enemy, and the
only two of the besiegers, who were left in plain sight of the besieged, were
Captain Hollister on one side, and the wood-chopper on the other. The veteran
stood up boldly to the front, supporting his heavy sword, in one undeviating
position, with his eye fixed firmly on his enemy, while the huge form of Billy
was placed in that kind of quiet repose, with either hand thrust into his bosom,
bearing his axe under his right arm, which permitted him, like his own oxen, to
rest standing. So far, not a word had been exchanged between the belligerents.
The besieged had drawn together a pile of black logs and branches of trees,
which they had formed into a chevaux-de-frize, making a little circular abbatis,
in front of the entrance to the cave. As the ground was steep and slippery in
every direction around the place, and Benjamin appeared behind the works on one
side, and Natty on the other, the arrangement was by no means contemptible,
especially as the front was sufficiently guarded by the difficulty of the
approach. By this time, Kirby had received his orders, and he advanced coolly
along the mountain, picking his way with the same indifference as if he were
pursuing his ordinary business. When he was within a hundred feet of the works,
the long and much dreaded rifle of the Leather-stocking was seen issuing from
the parapet, and his voice cried aloud -
    »Keep off! Billy Kirby, keep off! I wish ye no harm; but if a man of ye all
comes a step nigher, there'll be blood spilt a-twixt us. God forgive the one
that draws it first; but so it must be.«
    »Come, old chap,« said Billy, good-naturedly, »don't be crabbed, but hear
what a man has got to say. I've no concarn in the business, only to see right
'twixt man and man; and I don't kear the valie of a beetle-ring which gets the
better; but there's Squire Doolittle, yonder behind the beech sapling, he has
invited me to come in and ask you to give up to the law - that's all.«
    »I see the varmint! I see his clothes!« cried the indignant Natty; »and if
he'll only show so much flesh as will bury a rifle bullet, thirty to the pound,
I'll make him feel me. Go away, Billy, I bid ye; you know my aim, and I bear you
no malice.«
    »You over calkilate your aim, Natty,« said the other, as he stepped behind a
pine that stood near him, »if you think to shoot a man through a tree with a
three foot butt. I can lay this tree-top right across you, in ten minutes, by
any man's watch, and in less time, too; so be civil - I want no more than what's
right.«
    There was a simple seriousness in the countenance of Natty, that showed he
was much in earnest; but it was, also, evident that he was reluctant to shed
human blood. He answered the vaunt of the wood-chopper, by saying -
    »I know you drop a tree where you will, Billy Kirby; but if you show a hand,
or an arm, in doing it, there'll be bones to be set, and blood to stanch. If
it's only to get into the cave that ye want, wait till a two hours' sun, and you
may enter it in welcome; but come in now you shall not. There's one dead body,
already, lying on the cold rocks, and there's another in which the life can
hardly be said to stay. If you will come in, there'll be dead without as well as
within.«
    The wood-chopper stepped out fearlessly from his cover, and cried -
    »That's fair; and what's fair, is right. He wants you to stop till it's two
hours to sun-down; and I see reason in the thing. A man can give up when he's
wrong, if you don't crowd him too hard; but you crowd a man, and he gets to be
like a stubborn ox - the more you beat, the worse he kicks.«
    The sturdy notions of independence maintained by Billy, neither suited the
emergency, nor the impatience of Mr. Jones, who was burning with a desire to
examine the hidden mysteries of the cave. He, therefore, interrupted this
amicable dialogue with his own voice.
    »I command you, Nathaniel Bumppo, by my authority, to surrender your person
to the law,« he cried. »And I command you, gentlemen, to aid me in performing my
duty. Benjamin Penguillan, I arrest you, and order you to follow me to the gaol
of the county, by virtue of this warrant.«
    »I'd follow ye, Squire Dickens,« said Benjamin, removing the pipe from his
mouth, (for during the whole scene the ex-major domo had been very composedly
smoking,) »Ay! I'd sail in your wake, to the end of the world, if-so-be that
there was such a place, which there isn't, seeing that it's round. Now, mayhap,
Master Hollister, having lived all your life on shore, you is'nt acquainted that
the world, d'ye-see -«
    »Surrender!« interrupted the veteran, in a voice that startled his hearers,
and which actually caused his own forces to recoil several paces; »Surrender,
Benjamin Penguillum, or expect no quarter.«
    »Damn your quarter,« said Benjamin, rising from the log on which he was
seated, and taking a squint along the barrel of the swivel, which had been
brought on the hill, during the night, and now formed the means of defence on
his side of the works. »Look you, Master, or Captain, thoff I questions if ye
know the name of a rope, except the one that's to hang ye, there's no need of
singing out, as if ye was hailing a deaf man on a top-gallant-yard. Mayhap you
think you've got my true name in your sheep-skin; but what British sailor finds
it worth while to sail in these seas, without a sham on his stern, in case of
need, d'ye-see. If you call me Penguillan, you calls me by the name of the man
on whose land, d'ye-see, I hove into daylight; and he was a gentleman; and
that's more than my worst enimy will say of any of the family of Benjamin
Stubbs.«
    »Send the warrant round to me, and I'll put in an alias,« cried Hiram, from
behind his cover.
    »Put in a jackass, and you'll put in yourself, Mister Doo-but-little,«
shouted Benjamin, who kept squinting along his little iron tube, with great
steadiness.
    »I give you but one moment to yield,« cried Richard. »Benjamin! Benjamin!
This is not the gratitude I expected from you.«
    »I tell you, Richard Jones,« said Natty, who dreaded the Sheriff's influence
over his comrade; »though the canister the gall brought, be lost, there's powder
enough in the cave to lift the rock you stand on. I'll take off my roof, if you
don't hold your peace.«
    »I think it beneath the dignity of my office to parley further with the
prisoners,« the Sheriff observed to his companion, while they both retired with
a precipitancy that Captain Holister mistook for the signal to advance.
    »Charge baggonet!« shouted the veteran; »march!«
    Although this signal was certainly expected, it took the assailed a little
by surprise, and the veteran approached the works, crying, »courage, my brave
lads! give them no quarter unless they surrender,« and struck a furious blow
upwards with his sabre that would have divided the steward in moieties, by
subjecting him to the process of decapitation, but for the fortunate
interference of the muzzle of the swivel. As it was, the gun was dismounted at
the critical moment that Benjamin was applying his pipe to the priming, and in
consequence, some five or six dozen of rifle bullets were projected into the
air, in, nearly, a perpendicular line. Philosophy teaches us that the atmosphere
will not retain lead; and two pounds of the metal moulded into bullets, of
thirty to the pound, after describing an ellipsis in their journey, returned to
the earth, rattling among the branches of the trees directly over the heads of
the troops stationed in the rear of their captain. Much of the success of an
attack made by irregular soldiers, depends on the direction in which they are
first got in motion. In the present instance, it was retrograde, and in less
than a minute after the bellowing report of the swivel among the rocks and
caverns, the whole weight of the attack, from the left, rested on the prowess of
the single arm of the veteran. Benjamin received a severe contusion from the
recoil of his gun, which produced a short stupor, during which period the
ex-steward was prostrate on the ground. Capt. Holister availed himself of this
circumstance to scramble over the breast-work and obtain a footing in the
bastion - for such was the nature of the fortress, as connected with the cave.
The moment the veteran found himself within the works of his enemy, he rushed to
the edge of the fortification, and waving his sabre over his head, shouted -
    »Victory! come on, my brave boys, the work's our own!«
    All this was perfectly military, and was such an example as a gallant
officer was in some measure bound to exhibit to his men; but the outcry was the
unlucky cause of turning the tide of success. Natty, who had been keeping a
vigilant eye on the wood-chopper, and the enemy immediately before him, wheeled
at this alarm, and was appalled at beholding his comrade on the ground, and the
veteran standing on his own bulwark, giving forth the cry of victory! The muzzle
of the long rifle was turned instantly towards the captain. There was a moment
when the life of the old soldier was in great jeopardy; but the object to shoot
at was both too large and too near for the Leather-stocking, who, instead of
pulling his trigger, applied the gun to the rear of his enemy, and by a powerful
shove, sent him outside of the works with much greater rapidity than he had
entered them. The spot on which Capt. Hollister alighted was directly in front,
where, as his feet touched the ground, so steep and slippery was the side of the
mountain, it seemed to recede from under them. His motion was swift, and so
irregular, as utterly to confuse the faculties of the old soldier. During its
continuance, he supposed himself to be mounted and charging through the ranks of
his enemy. At every tree he made a blow, of course, as at a foot-soldier; and
just as he was making the cut St. George at a half-burnt sapling, he landed in
the highway, and, to his utter amazement, at the feet of his own spouse. When
Mrs. Hollister, who was toiling up the hill, followed by at least twenty curious
boys, leaning with one hand on the staff with which she ordinarily walked, and
bearing in the other an empty bag, witnessed this exploit of her husband,
indignation immediately got the better not only of her religion, but of her
philosophy.
    »Why, Sargeant! is it flying ye are?« she cried - »That I should live to see
a husband of mine turn his back to the enemy! and such a one! Here have I been
telling the b'ys as we come along, all about the saige of Yorrektown, and how ye
was hurted; and how ye'd be acting the same ag'in the day; and I mate ye
retrating just as the first gun is fired. Och! I may trow away the bag! for if
there's plunder 'twill not be the wife of such as yeerself that will be
privileged to be getting the same. They do say too, there's a power of goold and
silver in the place - the Lord forgive me for setting my heart on worreldly
things; but what falls in the battle, there's Scripter for believing, is the
just property of the victor.«
    »Retreating!« exclaimed the amazed veteran; »where's my horse? he has been
shot under me - I -«
    »Is the man mad!« interrupted his wife - »divil the horse do ye own,
sargeant, and yee're nothing but a shabby captain of malaishy. Och! if the ra'al
captain was here, 'tis the other way ye'd be riding, dear, or you would not
follow your lader!«
    While this worthy couple were thus discussing events, the battle began to
rage more violently than ever, above them. When the Leather-stocking saw his
enemy fairly under headway, as Benjamin would express it, he gave his attention
again to the right wing of the assailants. It would have been easy for Kirby,
with his powerful frame, to have seized the moment to scale the bastion, and
with his great strength, to have sent both its defenders in pursuit of the
veteran; but hostility appeared to be the passion that the wood-chopper indulged
the least in, at that moment, for, in a voice that was heard by the retreating
left wing, he shouted.
    »Hurrah! well done, captain! keep it up! how he handles his bush hook! he
makes nothing of a sapling!« and such other encouraging exclamations to the
flying veteran, until, overcome by mirth, the good-natured fellow seated himself
on the ground, kicking the earth with delight, and giving vent to peal after
peal of laughter.
    Natty stood all this time in a menacing attitude, with his rifle pointed
over the breast-work, watching with a quick and cautious eye the least movement
of the assailants. The outcry unfortunately tempted the ungovernable curiosity
of Hiram to take a peep from behind his cover, at the state of the battle.
Though this evolution was performed with great caution, in protecting his front,
he left, like many a better commander, his rear exposed to the attacks of his
enemy. Mr. Doolittle belonged physically to a class of his countrymen, to whom
nature has denied, in their formation, the use of curved lines. Every thing
about him was either straight or angular. But his tailor was a woman who worked
like a regimental contractor, by a set of rules that gave the same configuration
to the whole human species. Consequently, when Mr. Doolittle leaned forward in
the manner described, a loose drapery appeared behind the tree, at which the
rifle of Natty was pointed with the quickness of lightning. A less experienced
man would have aimed at the flowing robe, which hung like a festoon half way to
the earth; but the Leather-stocking knew both the man and his female tailor
better, and when the smart report of the rifle was heard, Kirby, who watched the
whole manoeuvre in breathless expectation, saw the bark fly from the beech, and
the cloth, at some distance above the loose folds, wave at the same instant. No
battery was ever unmasked with more promptitude than Hiram advanced, from behind
the tree, at this summons.
    He made two or three steps, with great precision, to the front, and, placing
one hand on the afflicted part, stretched forth the other, with a menacing air,
towards Natty, and cried aloud -
    »Gawl darn ye! this shan't be settled so easy; I'll follow it up from the
common pleas to the court of errors.«
    Such a shocking imprecation, from the mouth of so orderly a man as Squire
Doolittle, with the fearless manner in which he exposed himself, together with,
perhaps, the knowledge that Natty's rifle was unloaded, encouraged the troops in
the rear, who gave a loud shout, and fired a volley into the tree-tops, after
the contents of the swivel. Animated by their own noise, the men now rushed on
in earnest, and Billy Kirby, who thought the joke, good as it was, had gone far
enough, was in the act of scaling the works, when Judge Temple appeared on the
opposite side, exclaiming -
    »Silence and peace! why do I see murder and bloodshed attempted! is not the
law sufficient to protect itself, that armed bands must be gathered, as in
rebellion and war, to see justice performed!«
    »'Tis the posse comitatus,« shouted the Sheriff, from a distant rock, »who«
-
    »Say rather a posse of demons. I command the peace.« -
    »Hold! shed not blood!« cried a voice from the top of the Vision - »Hold!
for the sake of Heaven, fire no more! all shall be yielded! you shall enter the
cave!«
    Amazement produced the desired effect. Natty, who had reloaded his piece,
quietly seated himself on the logs, and rested his head on his hand, while the
Light Infantry ceased their military movements, and waited the issue in
suspense.
    In less than a minute Edwards came rushing down the hill, followed by Major
Hartmann with a velocity that was surprising for his years. They reached the
terrace in an instant, from which the youth led the way, by the hollow in the
rock, to the mouth of the cave, into which they both entered; leaving all
without silent and gazing after them with astonishment.
 

                                   Chapter XL

 »I am dumb.
 Were you the Doctor, and I knew you not!«
                                             The Merchant of Venice, V.i.279-80.
 
During the five or six minutes that elapsed before the youth and Major
re-appeared, Judge Temple and the Sheriff, together with most of the volunteers,
ascended to the terrace, where the latter begun to express their conjectures of
the result, and to recount their individual services in the conflict. But the
sight of the peace-makers, ascending the ravine, shut every mouth.
    On a rude chair, covered with undressed deer-skins, they supported a human
being, whom they seated carefully and respectfully in the midst of the assembly.
His head was covered by long, smooth locks, of the colour of snow. His dress,
which was studiously neat and clean, was composed of such fabrics as none but
the wealthiest classes wear, but was threadbare and patched; and on his feet
were placed a pair of moccasins, ornamented in the best manner of Indian
ingenuity. The outlines of his face were grave and dignified, though his vacant
eye, which opened and turned slowly to the faces of those around him in
unmeaning looks, too surely announced that the period had arrived, when age
brings the mental imbecility of childhood.
    Natty had followed the supporters of this unexpected object to the top of
the cave, and took his station at a little distance behind him, leaning on his
rifle, in the midst of his pursuers, with a fearlessness that showed that
heavier interests than those which affected himself were to be decided. Major
Hartmann placed himself beside the aged man, uncovered, with his whole soul
beaming through those eyes which so commonly danced with frolic and humour.
Edwards rested with one hand familiarly, but affectionately, on the chair,
though his heart was swelling with emotions that denied him utterance.
    All eyes were gazing intently; but each tongue continued mute. At length the
decrepit stranger, turning his vacant looks from face to face, made a feeble
attempt to rise, while a faint smile crossed his wasted face, like an habitual
effort at courtesy, as he said, in a hollow, tremulous voice -
    »Be pleased to be seated, gentlemen. The council will open immediately. Each
one who loves a good and virtuous king, will wish to see these colonies continue
loyal. Be seated - I pray you, be seated, gentlemen. The troops shall halt for
the night.«
    »This is the wandering of insanity!« said Marmaduke; »who will explain this
scene?«
    »No, sir,« said Edwards, firmly, »'tis only the decay of nature; who is
answerable for its pitiful condition, remains to be shown.«
    »Will the gentlemen dine with us, my son?« said the old stranger, turning to
a voice that he both knew and loved. »Order a repast suitable for his Majesty's
officers. You know we have the best of game always at command.«
    »Who is this man?« asked Marmaduke, in a hurried voice, in which the
dawnings of conjecture united with interest to put the question.
    »This man!« returned Edwards, calmly, his voice, however, gradually rising
as he proceeded; »this man, sir, whom you behold hid in caverns, and deprived of
every thing that can make life desirable, was once the companion and counsellor
of those who ruled your country. This man, whom you see, helpless and feeble,
was once a warrior, so brave and fearless, that even the intrepid natives gave
him the name of the Fire-eater. This man, whom you now see destitute of even the
ordinary comfort of a cabin in which to shelter his head, was once the owner of
great riches; and, Judge Temple, he was the rightful proprietor of this very
soil on which we stand. This man was the father of« -
    »This, then,« cried Marmaduke, with a powerful emotion, »this, then, is the
lost Major Effingham!«
    »Lost indeed,« said the youth, fixing a piercing eye on the other.
    »And you! and you!« continued the Judge, articulating with difficulty.
    »I am his grandson.«
    A minute passed in profound silence. All eyes were fixed on the speakers,
and even the old German appeared to wait the issue in deep anxiety. But the
moment of agitation soon passed. Marmaduke raised his head from his bosom, where
it had sunk, not in shame, but in devout mental thanksgivings, and, as large
tears fell over his fine, manly face, he grasped the hand of the youth warmly,
and said -
    »Oliver, I forgive all thy harshness - all thy suspicions. I now see it all.
I forgive thee every thing, but suffering this aged man to dwell in such a
place, when not only my habitation, but my fortune, were at his and thy
command.«
    »He's true as ter steel!« shouted Major Hartmann; »titn't I tell't you, lat,
dat Marmatuke Temple vast a frient dat woult never fail in ter dime as of neet!«
    »It is true, Judge Temple, that my opinions of your conduct have been
staggered by what this worthy gentleman has told me. When I found it impossible
to convey my grandfather back whence the enduring love of this old man brought
him, without detection and exposure, I went to the Mohawk in quest of one of his
former comrades, in whose justice I had dependence. He is your friend, Judge
Temple, but if what he says be true, both my father and myself may have judged
you harshly.«
    »You name your father!« said Marmaduke, tenderly - »Was he, indeed, lost in
the packet?«
    »He was. He had left me, after several years of fruitless application and
comparative poverty, in Nova-Scotia, to obtain the compensation for his losses,
which the British commissioners had at length awarded. After spending a year in
England, he was returning to Halifax, on his way to a government, to which he
had been appointed, in the West-Indies, intending to go to the place where my
grandfather had sojourned during and since the war, and take him with us.«
    »But, thou!« said Marmaduke, with powerful interest; »I had thought that
thou hadst perished with him.«
    A flush passed over the cheeks of the young man, who gazed about him at the
wondering faces of the volunteers, and continued silent. Marmaduke turned to the
veteran captain, who just then rejoined his command, and said -
    »March thy soldiers back again, and dismiss them; the zeal of the Sheriff
has much mistaken his duty. Dr. Todd, I will thank you to attend to the injury
which Hiram Doolittle has received in this untoward affair. Richard, you will
oblige me by sending up the carriage to the top of the hill. Benjamin, return to
your duty in my family.«
    Unwelcome as these orders were to most of the auditors, the suspicion that
they had somewhat exceeded the wholesome restraints of the law, and the habitual
respect with which all the commands of the Judge were received, induced a prompt
compliance.
    When they were gone, and the rock was left to the parties most interested in
an explanation, Marmaduke, pointing to the aged Major Effingham, said to his
grandson -
    »Had we not better remove thy parent from this open place, until my carriage
can arrive?«
    »Pardon me, sir, the air does him good, and he has taken it whenever there
was no dread of a discovery. I know not how to act, Judge Temple; ought I, can
I, suffer Major Effingham to become an inmate of your family?«
    »Thou shalt be thyself the judge,« said Marmaduke. »Thy father was my early
friend. He entrusted his fortune to my care. When we separated, he had such
confidence in me, that he wished no security, no evidence of the trust, even had
there been time or convenience for exacting it. - This thou hast heard?«
    »Most truly, sir,« said Edwards, or rather Effingham, as we must now call
him.
    »We differed in politics. If the cause of this country was successful, the
trust was sacred with me, for none knew of thy father's interest. If the crown
still held its sway, it would be easy to restore the property of so loyal a
subject as Col. Effingham. - Is not this plain?«
    »The premises are good, sir,« continued the youth, with the same incredulous
look as before.
    »Listen - listen, poy,« said the German. »Dere is not a hair as of ter rogue
in ter het of ter Tchooge.«
    »We all know the issue of the struggle,« continued Marmaduke, disregarding
both; »Thy grandfather was left in Connecticut, regularly supplied by thy father
with the means of such a subsistence as suited his wants. This I well knew,
though I never had intercourse with him, even in our happiest days. Thy father
retired with the troops to prosecute his claims on England. At all events, his
losses must be great, for his real estates were sold, and I became the lawful
purchaser. It was not unnatural to wish that he might have no bar to its just
recovery?«
    »There was none, but the difficulty of providing for so many claimants.«
    »But there would have been one, and an insuperable one, had I announced to
the world that I held these estates, multiplied, by the times and my industry, a
hundred fold in value, only as his trustee. Thou knows that I supplied him
with considerable sums, immediately after the war.«
    »You did, until« -
    »My letters were returned unopened. Thy father had much of thy own spirit,
Oliver; he was sometimes hasty and rash.« The Judge continued, in a
self-condemning manner - »Perhaps my fault lies the other way; I may possibly
look too far ahead, and calculate too deeply. It certainly was a severe trial to
allow the man, whom I most loved, to think ill of me for seven years, in order
that he might honestly apply for his just remunerations. But had he opened my
last letters, thou wouldst have learnt the whole truth. Those I sent him to
England, by what my agent writes me, he did read. He died, Oliver, knowing all.
He died my friend, and I thought thou hadst died with him.«
    »Our poverty would not permit us to pay for two passages,« said the youth,
with the extraordinary emotion with which he ever alluded to the degraded state
of his family; »I was left in the Province to wait for his return, and when the
sad news of his loss reached me, I was nearly pennyless.«
    »And what didst thou, boy?« asked Marmaduke, in a faltering voice.
    »I took my passage here in search of my grandfather; for I well knew that
his resources were gone, with the half-pay of my father. On reaching his abode,
I learnt that he had left it in secret; though the reluctant hireling, who had
deserted him in his poverty, owned to my urgent entreaties, that he believed he
had been carried away by an old man, who had formerly been his servant. I knew
at once it was Natty, for my father often« -
    »Was Natty a servant of thy grandfather?« exclaimed the Judge.
    »Of that too were you ignorant!« said the youth, in evident surprise.
    »How should I know it? I never met the Major, nor was the name of Bumppo
ever mentioned to me. I knew him only as a man of the woods, and one who lived
by hunting. Such men are too common to excite surprise.«
    »He was reared in the family of my grandfather; served him for many years
during their campaigns at the west, where he became attached to the woods; and
he was left here as a kind of locum tenens on the lands that old Mohegan (whose
life my grandfather once saved) induced the Delawares to grant to him, when they
admitted him as an honorary member of their tribe.«
    »This, then, is thy Indian blood?«
    »I have no other,« said Edwards, smiling; - »Major Effingham was adopted as
the son of Mohegan, who at that time was the greatest man in his nation; and my
father, who visited those people when a boy, received the name of the Eagle from
them, on account of the shape of his face, as I understand. They have extended
his title to me. I have no other Indian blood or breeding; though I have seen
the hour, Judge Temple, when I could wish that such had been my lineage and
education.«
    »Proceed with thy tale,« said Marmaduke.
    »I have but little more to say, sir. I followed to the lake where I had so
often been told that Natty dwelt, and found him maintaining his old master in
secret; for even he could not bear to exhibit to the world, in his poverty and
dotage, a man whom a whole people once looked up to with respect.«
    »And what did you?«
    »What did I! I spent my last money in purchasing a rifle, clad myself in a
coarse garb, and learned to be a hunter by the side of Leather-stocking. You
know the rest, Judge Temple.«
    »Ant vere vast olt Fritz Hartmann!« said the German, reproachfully; »didst
never hear a name as of olt Fritz Hartmann from ter mout of ter fader, lat?«
    »I may have been mistaken, gentlemen,« returned the youth; »but I had pride,
and could not submit to such an exposure as this day even has reluctantly
brought to light. I had plans that might have been visionary; but, should my
parent survive till autumn, I purposed taking him with me to the city, where we
have distant relatives, who must have learnt to forget the Tory by this time. He
decays rapidly,« he continued, mournfully, »and must soon lie by the side of old
Mohegan.«
    The air being pure, and the day fine, the party continued conversing on the
rock, until the wheels of Judge Temple's carriage were heard clattering up the
side of the mountain, during which time the conversation was maintained with
deep interest, each moment clearing up some doubtful action, and lessening the
antipathy of the youth to Marmaduke. He no longer objected to the removal of his
grandfather, who displayed a childish pleasure when he found himself seated once
more in a carriage. When placed in the ample hall of the Mansion-house, the eyes
of the aged veteran turned slowly to the objects in the apartment, and a look
like the dawn of intellect would, for moments, flit across his features, when he
invariably offered some useless courtesies to those near him, wandering,
painfully, in his subjects. The exercise and the change soon produced an
exhaustion, that caused them to remove him to his bed, where he lay for hours,
evidently sensible of the change in his comforts, and exhibiting that mortifying
picture of human nature, which too plainly shows that the propensities of the
animal continue, even after the nobler part of the creature appears to have
vanished.
    Until his parent was placed comfortably in bed, with Natty seated at his
side, Effingham did not quit him. He then obeyed a summons to the library of the
Judge, where he found the latter, with Major Hartmann, waiting for him.
    »Read this paper, Oliver,« said Marmaduke to him, as he entered, »and thou
wilt find that, so far from intending thy family wrong during life, it has been
my care to see that justice should be done at even a later day.«
    The youth took the paper, which his first glance told him was the will of
the Judge. Hurried and agitated as he was, he discovered that the date
corresponded with the time of the unusual depression of Marmaduke. As he
proceeded, his eyes began to moisten, and the hand which held the instrument
shook violently.
    The will commenced with the usual forms, spun out by the ingenuity of Mr.
Van der School; but after this subject was fairly exhausted, the pen of
Marmaduke became plainly visible. In clear, distinct, manly, and even eloquent
language, he recounted his obligations to Colonel Effingham, the nature of their
connexion, and the circumstances in which they separated. He then proceeded to
relate the motives of his long silence, mentioning, however, large sums that he
had forwarded to his friend, which had been returned, with the letters unopened.
After this, he spoke of his search for the grandfather, who had unaccountably
disappeared, and his fears that the direct heir of the trust was buried in the
ocean with his father.
    After, in short, recounting in a clear narrative, the events which our
readers must now be able to connect, he proceeded to make a fair and exact
statement of the sums left in his care by Col. Effingham. A devise of his whole
estate to certain responsible trustees followed; to hold the same for the
benefit, in equal moieties, of his daughter, on one part, and of Oliver
Effingham, formerly a major in the army of Great Britain, and of his son Edward
Effingham, and of his son Edward Oliver Effingham, or to the survivor of them,
and the descendants of such survivor, for ever, on the other part. The trust was
to endure until 1810, when, if no person appeared, or could be found, after
sufficient notice, to claim the moiety so devised, then a certain sum,
calculating the principal and interest of his debt to Col. Effingham, was to be
paid to the heirs at law of the Effingham family, and the bulk of his estate was
to be conveyed in fee to his daughter, or her heirs.
    The tears fell from the eyes of the young man, as he read this undeniable
testimony of the good faith of Marmaduke, and his bewildered gaze was still
fastened on the paper, when a voice, that thrilled on every nerve, spoke, near
him, saying,
    »Do you yet doubt us, Oliver?«
    »I have never doubted you!« cried the youth, recovering his recollection and
his voice, as he sprung to seize the hand of Elizabeth; »no, not one moment has
my faith in you wavered.«
    »And my father -«
    »God bless him!«
    »I thank thee, my son,« said the Judge, exchanging a warm pressure of the
hand with the youth; »but we have both erred; thou hast been too hasty, and I
have been too slow. One half of my estates shall be thine as soon as they can be
conveyed to thee; and if what my suspicions tell me, be true, I suppose the
other must follow speedily.« He took the hand which he held, and united it with
that of his daughter, and motioned towards the door to the Major.
    »I telt you vat, gal!« said the old German, good humouredly; »if I vast, ast
I vast, ven I servit mit his grantfader on ter lakes, ter lazy tog shouln't vin
ter prize as for nottin.«
    »Come, come, old Fritz,« said the Judge; »you are seventy, not seventeen;
Richard waits for you with a bowl of egg-nog, in the hall.«
    »Richard! ter duyvel!« exclaimed the other, hastening out of the room; »he
makes ter nog ast for ter horse. I vilt show ter Sheriff mit my own hants! Ter
duyvel! I pelieve he sweetens mit ter yankee melasses!«
    Marmaduke smiled arid nodded affectionately at the young couple, and closed
the door after them. If any of our readers expect that we are going to open it
again, for their gratification, they are mistaken.
    The tête-à-tête continued for a very unreasonable time; how long we shall
not say; but it was ended by six o'clock in the evening, for at that hour
Monsieur Le Quoi made his appearance, agreeably to the appointment of the
preceding day, and claimed the ear of Miss Temple. He was admitted; when he made
an offer of his hand, with much suavity, together with his »amis beeg and leet',
his père, his mère, and his sucre-boosh.« Elizabeth might, possibly, have
previously entered into some embarrassing and binding engagements with Oliver,
for she declined the tender of all, in terms as polite, though perhaps a little
more decided, than those in which they were made.
    The Frenchman soon joined the German and the Sheriff in the hall, who
compelled him to take a seat with them at the table, where, by the aid of punch,
wine, and egg-nog, they soon extracted from the complaisant Monsieur Le Quoi the
nature of his visit. It was evident that he had made the offer, as a duty which
a well-bred man owed to a lady in such a retired place, before he left the
country, and that his feelings were but very little, if at all, interested in
the matter. After a few potations, the waggish pair persuaded the exhilarated
Frenchman that there was an inexcusable partiality in offering to one lady, and
not extending a similar courtesy to another. Consequently, about nine, Monsieur
Le Quoi sallied forth to the Rectory, on a similar mission to Miss Grant, which
proved as successful as his first effort in love.
    When he returned to the Mansion-house, at ten, Richard and the Major were
still seated at the table. They attempted to persuade the Gaul, as the Sheriff
called him, that he should next try Remarkable Pettibone. But, though stimulated
by mental excitement and wine, two hours of abstruse logic were thrown away on
this subject; for he declined their advice, with a pertinacity truly astonishing
in so polite a man.
    When Benjamin lighted Monsieur Le Quoi from the door, he said, at parting -
    »If-so-be, Mounsheer, you'd run alongside Mistress Pretty-bones, as the
Squire Dickens was bidding ye, 'tis my notion you'd have been grappled; in which
case, d'ye see, you mought have been troubled in swinging clear again in a
handsome manner; for thof Miss 'Lizzy and the parson's young 'un be tidy little
vessels, that shoot by a body on a wind, Mistress Remarkable is sum'mat of a
galliot fashion; when you once takes 'em in tow, they doesn't't like to be cast
off again.«
 

                                  Chapter XLI

 »Yes, sweep ye on! - We will not leave,
 For them who triumph, those who grieve.
 With that armada gay
 Be laughter loud, and jocund shout -
 - But with that skiff
 Abides the minstrel tale.«
                                                   Scott, The Lord of the Isles,
                                                              I.xvii.1-4, 11-12.
 
The events of our tale carry us through the summer; and, after making nearly the
circle of the year, we must conclude our labours in the delightful month of
October. Many important incidents had, however, occurred in the intervening
period; a few of which it may be necessary to recount.
    The two principal were, the marriage of Oliver and Elizabeth, and the death
of Major Effingham. They both took place early in September; and the former
preceded the latter only by a few days. The old man passed away like the last
glimmering of a taper; and though his death cast a melancholy over the family,
grief could not follow such an end.
    One of the chief concerns of Marmaduke was to reconcile the even conduct of
a magistrate, with the course that his feelings dictated to the criminals. The
day succeeding the discovery at the cave, however, Natty and Benjamin re-entered
the gaol peaceably, where they continued, well fed and comfortable, until the
return of an express to Albany, who brought the Governor's pardon to the
Leather-stocking. In the mean time, proper means were employed to satisfy Hiram
for the assaults on his person; and on the same day, the two comrades issued
together into society again, with their characters not at all affected by the
imprisonment.
    Mr. Doolittle began to discover that neither his architecture, nor his law,
was quite suitable to the growing wealth and intelligence of the settlement;
and, after exacting the last cent that was attainable in his compromises, to use
the language of the country, he pulled up stakes, and proceeded further west,
scattering his professional science and legal learning through the land;
vestiges of both of which are to be discovered there even to the present hour.
    Poor Jotham, whose life paid the forfeiture of his folly, acknowledged
before he died, that his reasons for believing in a mine, were extracted from
the lips of a sybil, who, by looking in a magic glass, was enabled to discover
the hidden treasures of the earth. Such superstition was frequent in the new
settlements; and after the first surprise was over, the better part of the
community forgot the subject. But at the same time that it removed from the
breast of Richard a lingering suspicion of the acts of the three hunters, it
conveyed a mortifying lesson to him, which brought many quiet hours, in future,
to his cousin Marmaduke. It may be remembered that the Sheriff confidently
pronounced this to be no visionary scheme, and that word was enough to shut his
lips, at any time within the next ten years.
    Monsieur Le Quoi, who has been introduced to our readers, because no picture
of that country would be faithful without some such character, found the island
of Martinique, and his sucre-boosh, in possession of the English; but Marmaduke,
and his family, were much gratified in soon hearing that he had returned to his
bureau, in Paris; where he afterwards issued yearly bulletins of his happiness,
and of his gratitude to his friends in America.
    With this brief explanation we must return to our narrative. Let the
American reader imagine one of our mildest October mornings, when the sun seems
a ball of silvery fire, and the elasticity of the air is felt while it is
inhaled; imparting vigour and life to the whole system; - the weather, neither
too warm, nor too cold, but of that happy temperature which stirs the blood,
without bringing the lassitude of spring.
    It was on such a morning, about the middle of the month, that Oliver entered
the hall, where Elizabeth was issuing her usual orders for the day, and
requested her to join him in a short excursion to the lake-side. The tender
melancholy in the manner of her husband, caught the attention of Elizabeth, who
instantly abandoned her concerns, threw a light shawl across her shoulders, and
concealing her raven hair under a gypsey, she took his arm, and submitted
herself, without a question, to his guidance. They crossed the bridge, and had
turned from the highway, along the margin of the lake, before a word was
exchanged. Elizabeth well knew, by the direction, the object of the walk, and
respected the feelings of her companion too much to indulge in untimely
conversation. But when they gained the open fields, and her eye roamed over the
placid lake, covered with wild fowl, already journeying from the great northern
waters, to seek a warmer sun, but lingering to play in the limpid sheet of the
Otsego, and to the sides of the mountain, which were gay with the thousand dies
of autumn, as if to grace their bridal, the swelling heart of the young wife
burst out in speech.
    »This is not a time for silence, Oliver!« she said, clinging more fondly to
his arm; »every thing in nature seems to speak the praises of the Creator; why
should we, who have so much to be grateful for, be silent.«
    »Speak on,« said her husband, smiling; »I love the sounds of your voice. You
must anticipate our errand hither; I have told you my plans, how do you like
them?«
    »I must first see them,« returned his wife. »But I have had my plans, too;
it is time I should begin to divulge them.«
    »You! It is something for the comfort of my old friend Natty, I know.«
    »Certainly of Natty; but we have other friends besides the Leather-stocking,
to serve. Do you forget Louisa, and her father?«
    »No, surely; have I not given one of the best farms in the county to the
good divine. As for Louisa, I should wish you to keep her always near us.«
    »You do,« said Elizabeth, slightly compressing her lips; »but poor Louisa
may have other views for herself; she may wish to follow my example, and marry.«
    »I don't think it,« said Effingham, musing a moment; »I really don't know
any one hereabouts good enough for her.«
    »Perhaps not here; but there are other places besides Templeton, and other
churches besides New St. Paul's.«
    »Churches, Elizabeth! you would not wish to lose Mr. Grant, surely! though
simple, he is an excellent man. I shall never find another who has half the
veneration for my orthodoxy. You would humble me from a saint to a very common
sinner.«
    »It must be done, sir,« returned the lady, with a half-concealed smile,
»though it degrades you from an angel to a man.«
    »But you forget the farm.«
    »He can lease it, as others do. Besides, would you have a clergyman toil in
the fields!«
    »Where can he go? you forget Louisa.«
    »No, I do not forget Louisa,« said Elizabeth, again compressing her
beautiful lips. »You know, Effingham, that my father has told you that I ruled
him, and that I should rule you. I am now about to exert my power.«
    »Any thing, any thing, dear Elizabeth, but not at the expense of us all; not
at the expense of your friend.«
    »How do you know, sir, that it will be so much at the expense of my friend?«
said the lady, fixing her eyes with a searching look on his countenance, where
they met only the unsuspecting expression of manly regret.
    »How do I know it! why, it is natural that she should regret us.«
    »It is our duty to struggle with our natural feelings,« returned the lady;
»and there is but little cause to fear that such a spirit as Louisa's will not
effect it.«
    »But what is your plan?«
    »Listen, and you shall know. My father has procured a call for Mr. Grant to
one of the towns on the Hudson, where he can live more at his ease than in
journeying through these woods; where he can spend the evening of his life in
comfort and quiet; and where his daughter may meet with such society, and form
such a connexion, as may be proper for one of her years and character.«
    »Bess! you amaze me! I did not think you had been such a manager!«
    »Oh! I manage more deeply than you imagine, sir,« said the wife, archly
smiling, again; »but it is my will, and it is your duty to submit, - for a time
at least.«
    Effingham laughed; but as they approached the end of their walk, the subject
was changed by common consent.
    The place at which they arrived was the little spot of level ground where
the cabin of the Leather-stocking had so long stood. Elizabeth found it entirely
cleared of rubbish, and beautifully laid down in turf, by the removal of sods,
which, in common with the surrounding country, had grown gay, under the
influence of profuse showers, as if a second spring had passed over the land.
This little place was surrounded by a circle of mason-work, and they entered by
a small gate, near which, to the surprise of both, the rifle of Natty was
leaning against the wall. Hector and the slut reposed on the grass by its side,
as if conscious that, however altered, they were lying on ground, and were
surrounded by objects, with which they were familiar. The hunter himself was
stretched on the earth, before a head-stone of white marble, pushing aside with
his fingers the long grass that had already sprung up from the luxuriant soil
around its base, apparently to lay bare the inscription. By the side of this
stone, which was a simple slab at the head of a grave, stood a rich monument,
decorated with an urn, and ornamented with the chisel.
    Oliver and Elizabeth approached the graves, with a light tread, unheard by
the old hunter, whose sunburnt face was working, and whose eyes twinkled as if
something impeded their vision. After some little time, Natty raised himself
slowly from the ground, and said aloud -
    »Well, well - I'm bold to say it's all right! There's something that I
suppose is reading; but I can't make any thing of it; though the pipe, and the
tomahawk, and the moccasins, be pretty well - pretty well, for a man that, I
dares to say, never seed 'ither of the things. Ah's me! there they lie, side by
side, happy enough! Who will there be to put me in the 'earth, when my times
comes!«
    »When that unfortunate hour arrives, Natty, friends shall not be wanting to
perform the last offices for you,« said Oliver, a little touched at the hunter's
soliloquy.
    The old man turned, without manifesting surprise, for he had got the Indian
habits in this particular, and running his hand under the bottom of his nose,
seemed to wipe away his sorrow with the action.
    »You've come out to see the graves, children, have ye?« he said; »well,
well, they're wholesome sights to young as well as old.«
    »I hope they are fitted to your liking,« said Effingham; »no one has a
better right than yourself to be consulted in the matter.«
    »Why, seeing that I an't used to fine graves,« returned the old man, »it is
but little matter consarning my taste. Ye laid the Major's head to the west, and
Mohegan's to the east, did ye, lad?«
    »At your request it was done.«
    »It's so best,« said the hunter; »they thought they had to journey different
ways, children; though there is One greater than all, who'll bring the just
together, at his own time, and who'll whiten the skin of a black-moor, and place
him on a footing with princes.«
    »There is but little reason to doubt that,« said Elizabeth, whose decided
tones were changed to a soft, melancholy voice; »I trust we shall all meet
again, and be happy together.«
    »Shall we, child! shall we!« exclaimed the hunter, with unusual fervour;
»there's comfort in that thought too. But before I go, I should like to know
what 'tis you tell these people, that be flocking into the country like pigeons
in the spring, of the old Delaware, and of the bravest white man that ever trod
the hills.«
    Effingham and Elizabeth were surprised at the manner of the
Leather-stocking, which was unusually impressive and solemn; but attributing it
to the scene, the young man turned to the monument, and read aloud -
    »Sacred to the memory of Oliver Effingham, Esquire, formerly a Major in his
B. Majesty's 60th Foot; a soldier of tried valour; a subject of chivalrous
loyalty; and a man of honesty. To these virtues, he added the graces of a
christian. The morning of his life was spent in honour, wealth, and power; but
its evening was obscured by poverty, neglect, and disease, which were alleviated
only by the tender care of his old, faithful, and upright friend and attendant,
Nathaniel Bumppo. His descendants rear this stone to the virtues of the master,
and to the enduring gratitude of the servant.«
    The Leather-stocking started at the sound of his own name, and a smile of
joy illumined his wrinkled features, as he said -
    »And did ye say it, lad? have ye got then the old man's name cut in the
stone, by the side of his master's? God bless ye, children! 'twas a kind
thought, and kindness goes to the heart as life shortens.«
    Elizabeth turned her back to the speakers. Effingham made a fruitless effort
before he succeeded in saying -
    »It is there cut in plain marble; but it should have been written in letters
of gold!«
    »Show me the name, boy,« said Natty, with simple eagerness; »let me see my
own name placed in such honour. 'Tis a gin'rous gift to a man who leaves none of
his name and family behind him in a country, where he has tarried so long.«
    Effingham guided his finger to the spot, and Natty followed the windings of
the letters to the end, with deep interest, when he raised himself from the
tomb, and said -
    »I suppose it's all right, and it's kindly thought, and kindly done! But
what have ye put over the Red-skin?«
    »You shall hear« -
    »This stone is raised to the memory of an Indian Chief, of the Delaware
tribe, who was known by the several names of John Mohegan; Mohican« -
    »Mo-hee-can, lad; they call theirselves! 'hee-can.«
    »Mohican; and Chingagook« -
    »'Gach, boy; - 'gach-gook; Chingachgook; which, intarpreted, means
Big-sarpent. The name should be set down right, for an Indian's name has always
some meaning in it.«
    »I will see it altered. He was the last of his people who continued to
inhabit this country; and it may be said of him, that his faults were those of
an Indian, and his virtues those of a man.«
    »You never said truer word, Mr. Oliver; ah's me! if you had know'd him as I
did, in his prime, in that very battle, where, the old gentleman who sleeps by
his side, save'd his life, when them thieves, the Iroquois, had him at the stake,
you'd have said all that, and more too. I cut the thongs with this very hand,
and gave him my own tomahawk and knife, seeing that the rifle was always my
fav'rite weepon. He did lay about him like a man! I met him as I was coming home
from the trail, with eleven Mingo scalps on his pole. You needn't shudder, Madam
Effingham, for they was all from shav'd heads and warriors. When I look about
me, at these hills, where I used-to could count, sometimes twenty smokes,
curling over the tree-tops, from the Delaware camps, it raises mournful
thoughts, to think, that not a Red-skin is left of them all; unless it may be a
drunken vagabond from the Oneidas, or them Yankee Indians, who, they say, be
moving up from the sea-shore; and who belong to none of God's creaters, to my
seeming; being, as it were, neither fish nor flesh; neither white-man, nor
savage. - Well! well! the time has come at last, and I must go« -
    »Go!« echoed Edwards, »whither do you go?«
    The Leather-stocking, who had imbibed, unconsciously, many of the Indian
qualities, though he always thought of himself, as of a civilized being,
compared with even the Delawares, averted his face to conceal the workings of
his muscles, as he stooped to lift a large pack from behind the tomb, which he
placed deliberately on his shoulders.
    »Go!« exclaimed Elizabeth, approaching him, with a hurried step; »you should
not venture so far in the woods alone, at your time of life, Natty; indeed, it
is imprudent. He is bent, Effingham, on some distant hunting.«
    »What Mrs. Effingham tells you, is true, Leather-stocking,« said Edwards;
»there can be no necessity for your submitting to such hardships now! So throw
aside your pack, and confine your hunt to the mountains near us, if you will
go.«
    »Hardship! 'tis a pleasure, children, and the greatest that is left me on
this side the grave.«
    »No, no; you shall not go to such a distance,« cried Elizabeth, laying her
white hand on his deer-skin pack; »I am right! I feel his camp-kettle and a
canister of powder! he must not be suffered to wander so far from us, Oliver;
remember how suddenly Mohegan dropp'd away.«
    »I know'd the parting would come hard, children; I know'd it would!« said
Natty, »and so I got aside to look at the graves by myself, and thought if I
left ye the keep-sake which the Major gave me, when we first parted in the
woods, ye wouldn't take it unkind, but would know, that let the old man's body
go where it might, his feelings staid behind him.«
    »This means something more than common!« exclaimed the youth; »where is it,
Natty, that you purpose going?«
    The hunter drew nigh him with a confident reasoning air, as if what he had
to say would silence all objections, and replied -
    »Why, lad, they tell me, that on the Big-lakes, there's the best of hunting,
and a great range, without a white man on it, unless it may be one like myself.
I'm weary of living in clearings, and where the hammer is sounding in my ears
from sun-rise to sun-down. And though I'm much bound to ye both, children; I
wouldn't say it if it wasn't't true; I crave to go into the woods ag'in, I do.«
    »Woods!« echoed Elizabeth, trembling with her feelings; »do you not call
these endless forests woods?«
    »Ah! child, these be nothing to a man that's used to the wilderness. I have
took but little comfort sin' your father come on with his settlers; but I
wouldn't go far, while the life was in the body that lies under the sod there.
But now he's gone, and Chingachgook is gone; and you be both young and happy.
Yes! the big-house has rung with merriment this month past! And now, I thought,
was the time, to try to get a little comfort, in the close of my days. Woods!
indeed! I doesn't't call these woods, Madam Effingham, where I lose myself, every
day of my life, in the clearings.«
    »If there be any thing wanting to your comfort, name it, Leather-stocking;
if it be attainable, it is yours.«
    »You mean all for the best, lad; I know it; and so does Madam, too; but your
ways isn't my ways. 'Tis like the dead there, who thought, when the breath was
in them, that one went east and one went west, to find their heavens; but
they'll meet at last; and so shall we, children. - Yes, ind as you've begun, and
we shall meet in the land of the just, at last.«
    »This is so new! so unexpected!« said Elizabeth, in almost breathless
excitement; »I had thought you meant to live with us, and die with us, Natty.«
    »Words are of no avail!« exclaimed her husband; »the habits of forty years
are not to be dispossessed by the ties of a day. I know you too well to urge you
further, Natty; unless you will let me build you a hut, on one of the distant
hills, where we can sometimes see you, and know that you are comfortable.«
    »Don't fear for the Leather-stocking, children; God will see that his days
be provided for, and his ind happy. I know you mean all for the best, but our
ways doesn't't agree. I love the woods, and ye relish the face of man; I eat when
hungry and drink when a-dry, and ye keep stated hours and rules; nay, nay, you
even over-feed the dogs, lad, from pure kindness; and hounds should be gaunty to
run well. The meanest of God's creators be made for some use, and I'm form'd for
the wilderness; if ye love me, let me go where my soul craves to be ag'in!«
    The appeal was decisive; and not another word of entreaty, for him to
remain, was then uttered; but Elizabeth bent her head to her bosom and wept,
while her husband dashed away the tears from his eyes, and, with hands that
almost refused to perform their office, he produced his pocket-book, and
extended a parcel of bank-notes to the hunter.
    »Take these,« he said, »at least, take these; secure them about your person,
and, in the hour of need, they will do you good service.«
    The old man took the notes, and examined them with a curious eye.
    »This, then, is some of the new-fashioned money that they've been making at
Albany, out of paper! It can't be worth much to they that hasn't larning! No,
no, lad - take back the stuff; it will do me no service. I took kear to get all
the Frenchman's powder, afore he broke up, and they say lead grows where I'm
going. It isn't even fit for wads, seeing that I use none but leather! - Madam
Effingham, let an old man kiss your hand, and wish God's choicest blessings on
you and your'n.«
    »Once more let me beseech you, stay!« cried Elizabeth. »Do not,
Leather-stocking, leave me to grieve for the man who has twice rescued me from
death, and who has served those I love so faithfully. For my sake, if not for
your own, stay. I shall see you, in those frightful dreams that still haunt my
nights, dying in poverty and age, by the side of those terrific beasts you slew.
There will be no evil that sickness, want, and solitude can inflict, that my
fancy will not conjure as your fate. Stay with us, old man; if not for your own
sake, at least for ours.«
    »Such thoughts and bitter dreams, Madam Effingham,« returned the hunter,
solemnly, »will never haunt an innocent parson long. They'll pass away with
God's pleasure. And if the cat-a-mounts be yet brought to your eyes in sleep,
'tis not for my sake, but to show you the power of him that led me there to save
you. Trust in God, Madam, and your honourable husband, and the thoughts for an
old man like me can never be long nor bitter. I pray that the Lord will keep you
in mind - the Lord that lives in clearings as well as in the wilderness - and
bless you, and all that belong to you, from this time, till the great day when
the whites shall meet the red-skins in judgment, and justice shall be the law,
and not power.«
    Elizabeth raised her head, and offered her colourless cheek to his salute;
when he lifted his cap, and touched it respectfully. His hand was grasped with
convulsive fervour by the youth, who continued silent. The hunter prepared
himself for his journey, drawing his belt tighter, and wasting his moments in
the little reluctant movements of a sorrowful departure. Once or twice he
essayed to speak, but a rising in his throat prevented it. At length he
shouldered his rifle, and cried, with a clear huntsman's call, that echoed
through the woods -
    »He-e-e-re, he-e-e-re, pups - away, dogs, away; - ye'll be foot-sore afore
ye see the ind of the journey!«
    The hounds leaped from the earth at this cry, and, scenting around the
graves and the silent pair, as if conscious of their own destination, they
followed humbly at the heels of their master. A short pause succeeded, during
which even the youth concealed his face on his grandfather's tomb. When the
pride of manhood, however, had suppressed the feelings of nature, he turned to
renew his entreaties, but saw that the cemetery was occupied only by himself and
his wife.
    »He is gone!« cried Effingham.
    Elizabeth raised her face, and saw the old hunter standing, looking back for
a moment, on the verge of the wood. As he caught their glances, he drew his hard
hand hastily across his eyes again, waved it on high for an adieu, and, uttering
a forced cry to his dogs, who were crouching at his feet, he entered the forest.
    This was the last that they ever saw of the Leather-stocking, whose rapid
movements preceded the pursuit which Judge Temple both ordered and conducted. He
had gone far towards the setting sun, - the foremost in that band of Pioneers,
who are opening the way for the march of the nation across the continent.
 

                                     Notes

1 Though forests still crown the mountains of Otsego, the bear, the wolf and the
panther are nearly strangers to them. Even the innocent deer is rarely seen
bounding beneath their arches, for the rifle and the activity of the settlers
have driven them to other haunts. To this change, which in some particulars is
melancholy to one who knew the country in its infancy, it may be added that the
Otsego is beginning to be a niggard of its treasures.
 
2 The book was written in 1821-22.
 
3 The population of New York is now (1831) quite 2,000,000.
 
4
Sleigh is the word used in every part of the United States to denote a traineau.
It is of local use in the west of England, whence it is most probably derived by
the Americans. The latter draw a distinction between a sled, or sledge, and a
sleigh; the sleigh being shod with metal. Sleighs are also subdivided into
two-horse and one-horse sleighs. Of the latter, there are the cutter, with
thills so arranged as to permit the horse to travel in the side track; the pung,
or tow-pung, which is driven with a pole, and the jumper, a rude construction
used for temporary purposes, in the new countries.
    Many of the American sleighs are elegant, though the use of this mode of
conveyance is much lessened with the melioration of the climate, consequent on
the clearing of the forests.
 
5 The periodical visits of St. Nicholas, or Santaclaus as he is termed, were
never forgotten among the inhabitants of New York, until the emigration from New
England brought in the opinions and usages of the puritans. Like the bon homme
de Noël, he arrives at each Christmas.
 
6 The grants of land, made either by the crown or the state, were by letters
patent under the great seal, and the term »patent« is usually applied to any
district of extent, thus conceded. Though under the crown, manorial rights being
often granted with the soil, in the older counties, the word manor is frequently
used. There are many manors in New York, though all political and judicial
rights have ceased.
 
7 The manumission of the slaves in New York has been gradual. When public
opinion became strong in their favour, then grew up a custom of buying the
services of a slave, for six or eight years, with a condition to liberate him at
the end of the period. Then the law provided that all born after a certain day
should be free, the males, at twenty-eight, and the females at twenty-five.
After this the owner was obliged to cause his servants to be taught to read and
write before they reached the age of eighteen, and, finally, the few that
remained were all unconditionally liberated in 1826, or after the publication of
this tale. It was quite usual for men more or less connected with the quakers,
who never held slaves, to adopt the first expedient.
 
8 In America the term Yankee is of local meaning. It is thought to be derived
from the manner in which the Indians of New England pronounced the word English
or Yengeese. New York being originally a Dutch province, the term of course was
not known there, and further south different dialects among the natives,
themselves, probably produced a different pronunciation. Marmaduke and his
cousin being Pennsylvanians by birth were not Yankees in the American sense of
the word.
 
9 People who clear land by the acre or job, are thus called.
 
10 It is possible that, the reader may start at this declaration of Benjamin,
but those who have lived in the new settlements of America, are too much
accustomed to hear of these European exploits, to doubt it.
 
11 The divines of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States, commonly
call other denominations Dissenters, though there never was an established
church in their own country!
 
12 His enemy.
 
13 The Susquehannah means crooked river, hannah, or hannock, meant river, in
many of the native dialects. Thus we find Rappehannock, as far south as
Virginia.
 
14 Before the revolution each province had its own money of account, though
neither coined any but copper pieces. In New York the Spanish dollar was divided
into eight shillings, each of the value of a fraction more than sixpence
sterling. At present the Union has provided a decimal system, and coins to
represent it.
 
15
The author has no better apology for interrupting the interest of a work of
fiction by these desultory dialogues, than that they have reference to facts. In
reviewing his work, after so many years, he is compelled to confess it is
injured by too many allusions to incidents that are not at all suited to satisfy
the just expectations of the general reader. One of these events is slightly
touched on, in the commencement of this chapter.
    More than thirty years since, a very near and dear relative of the writer,
an elder sister and a second mother, was killed by a fall from a horse, in a
ride among the very mountains mentioned in this tale. Few of her sex and years
were more extensively known, or more universally beloved, than the admirable
woman who thus fell a victim to the chances of the wilderness.
 
16 All this was literally true.
 
17 Of all the fish the writer has ever tasted, he thinks the one in question the
best.
 
18 The probability of a fire in the woods, similar to that here described, has
been questioned. The writer can only say that he once witnessed a fire in
another part of New York that compelled a man to desert his wagon and horses in
the highway, and in which the latter were destroyed. In order to estimate the
probability of such an event, it is necessary to remember the effects of a long
drought in that climate, and the abundance of dead wood which is found in a
forest like that described. The fires in the American forests frequently rage to
such an extent as to produce a sensible effect on the atmosphere at the distance
of fifty miles. Houses, barns, and fences are quite commonly swept away in their
course.
