Cooper_The_Deerslayer.txt topic ['13', '324', '378', '393']
hopes, and told her that
for once her exceeding beauty had failed to excite the admiration
and homage it was wont to receive. are said seldom to
forgive those who slight their advances, but this high spirited and
impetuous girl entertained no shadow of resentment, then or ever,
against the fair dealing and ingenuous hunter. the moment,
the prevailing feeling was the wish to be certain that there was
no misunderstanding. another painful pause, therefore, she
brought the matter to an issue by a question too direct to admit
of equivocation.
" forbid that we lay up regrets, in after life, through my want
of sincerity now," she said. " hope we understand each other, at
least. will not accept me for a wife, ?"
"' better for both that shouldn't take advantage of your own
forgetfulness, . can never marry."
" do not love me, - cannot find it in your heart, perhaps, to
esteem me, !"
" in the way of fri'ndship, - everything, even to
sarvices and life itself. , 'd risk as much for you, at this
moment, as would risk in behalf of , and that is sayin' as
much as can say of any darter of woman. do not think feel
towards either - mind say either, - as if wished to
quit father and mother - if father and mother was livin', which,
howsever, neither is - but if both was livin', do not feel towards
any woman as if wish'd to quit 'em in order to cleave unto her."
" is enough!" answered , in a rebuked and smothered voice.
" understand all that you mean. you cannot with loving, and
that love you do not feel for me. no answer, if am right,
for shall understand your silence. will be painful enough
of itself."
obeyed her, and he made no reply. more than a
minute, the girl riveted her bright eyes on him as if to read his
soul, while he was playing with the water like a corrected school
boy. , herself, dropped the end of her paddle, and urged
the canoe away from the spot, with a movement as reluctant as the
feelings which controlled it. quietly aided the effort,
however, and they were soon on the trackless line taken by the
.
their way to the point, not another syllable was exchanged between
and his fair companion. sat in the bow of
the canoe, her back was turned towards him, else it is probable
the expression of her countenance might have induced him to venture
some soothing terms of friendship and regard. to what
would have been expected, resentment was still absent, though the
colour frequently changed from the deep flush of mortification to
the paleness of disappointment. , deep, heart-felt sorrow,
however, was the predominant emotion, and this was betrayed in a
manner not to be mistaken.
neither labored hard at the paddle, the ark had already arrived
and the soldiers had disembarked before the canoe of the two loiterers
reached the point. had preceded it, and was already
some distance in the wood, at a spot where the two trails, that to
the garrison and that to the villages of the , separated.
soldiers, too, had taken up their line of march, first setting
the adrift again, with a reckless disregard of its fate.
this saw, but she heeded it not. glimmerglass had no
longer any charms for her, and when she put her foot on the strand,
she immediately proceeded on the trail of the soldiers without casting
a single glance behind her. was passed unnoticed, that
modest young creature shrinking from the averted face of ,
as if guilty herself of some wrongdoing.
" you here, ," said as he followed in the
footsteps of the dejected beauty, while passing his friend. "
will just see among her party, and come and j'ine you."
hundred yards had hid the couple from those in front, as well as
those in their rear, when turned, and spoke.
" will do, ," she said sadly. " understand your
kindness but shall not need it. a few minutes shall reach
the soldiers. you cannot go with me on the journey of life,
do not wish you to go further on this. , stop - before we part,
would ask you a single question. require of you, as you
fear , and reverence the truth, not to deceive me in your answer.
know you do not love another and can see but one reason why
you cannot, will not love me. me then, ," girl
paused, the words she was about to utter seeming to choke her.
rallying all her resolution, with a face that flushed and paled at
every breath she drew, she continued.
" me then, , if anything light of me, that
has said, may not have influenced your feelings?"
was the 's polar star. ever kept it in view,
and it was nearly impossible for him to avoid uttering it, even
when prudence demanded silence. read his answer in his
countenance, and with a heart nearly broken by the consciousness
of undue erring, she signed to him an adieu, and buried herself
in the woods. some time was irresolute as to his
course; but, in the end, he retraced his steps, and joined the
. night the three camped on the head waters of their
own river, and the succeeding evening they entered the village of
the tribe, and his betrothed in triumph; their companion
honored and admired, but in a sorrow that it required months of
activity to remove.
war that then had its rise was stirring and bloody.
chief rose among his people, until his name was never mentioned
without eulogiums, while another , the last of his race, was
added to the long line of warriors who bore that distinguishing
appellation. for the , under the sobriquet of ,
he made his fame spread far and near, until the crack of his rifle
became as terrible to the ears of the as the thunders of
the . services were soon required by the officers of
the crown, and he especially attached himself in the field to one
in particular, with whose after life he had a close and important
connection.
years had passed away, ere it was in the power of the
to revisit the . peace had intervened,
and it was on the eve of another and still more important war,
when he and his constant friend, , were hastening to
the forts to join their allies. stripling accompanied them, for
already slumbered beneath the pines of the , and the
three survivors had now become inseparable. reached the lake
just as the sun was setting. all was unchanged. river
still rushed through its bower of trees; the little rock was washing
away, by the slow action of the waves, in the course of centuries,
the mountains stood in their native dress, dark, rich and mysterious,
while the sheet glistened in its solitude, a beautiful gem of the
forest.
following morning, the youth discovered one of the canoes
drifted on the shore, in a state of decay. little labor put it
in a state for service, and they all embarked, with a desire to
examine the place. the points were passed, and
pointed out to his son the spot where the had first encamped,
and the point whence he had succeeded in stealing his bride.
they even landed, but all traces of the former visit had disappeared.
they proceeded to the scene of the battle, and there they
found a few of the signs that linger around such localities.
beasts had disinterred many of the bodies, and human bones were
bleaching in the rains of summer. regarded all with reverence
and pity, though traditions were already rousing his young mind to
the ambition and sternness of a warrior.
the point, the canoe took its way toward the shoal, where the
remains of the castle were still visible, a picturesque ruin.
storms of winter had long since unroofed the house, and decay had
eaten into the logs. the fastenings were untouched, but the
seasons rioted in the place, as if in mockery at the attempt to
exclude them. palisades were rotting, as were the piles, and
it was evident that a few more recurrences of winter, a few more
gales and tempests, would sweep all into the lake, and blot the
building from the face of that magnificent solitude. graves
could not be found. the elements had obliterated their
traces, or time had caused those who looked for them to forget
their position.
was discovered stranded on the eastern shore, where it had
long before been driven with the prevalent northwest winds.
lay on the sandy extremity of a long low point, that is situated
about two miles from the outlet, and which is itself fast disappearing
before the action of the elements. scow was filled with water,
the cabin unroofed, and the logs were decaying. of its coarser
furniture still remained, and the heart of beat quick,
as he found a ribbon of 's fluttering from a log. recalled
all her beauty, and we may add all her failings. the girl
had never touched his heart, the , for so we ought now to
call him, still retained a kind and sincere interest in her welfare.
tore away the ribbon, and knotted it to the stock of ,
which had been the gift of the girl herself.
few miles farther up the lake, another of the canoes was discovered,
and on the point where the party finally landed, were found those
which had been left there upon the shore. in which the present
navigation was made, and the one discovered on the eastern shore,
had dropped through the decayed floor of the castle, drifted past
the falling palisades, and had been thrown as waifs upon the beach.
all these signs, it was probable the lake had not been visited
since the occurrence of the final scene of our tale. or
tradition had rendered it again a spot sacred to nature, the frequent
wars and the feeble population of the colonies still confining the
settlements within narrow boundaries. and his friend
left the spot with melancholy feelings. had been the region
of their , and it carried back the minds of both to
scenes of tenderness, as well as to hours of triumph. held
their way towards the in silence, however, to rush into
new adventures, as stirring and as remarkable as those which had
attended their opening careers on this lovely lake. a later
day they returned to the place, where the found a grave.
and circumstances have drawn an impenetrable mystery around
all else connected with the . lived, erred, died, and
are forgotten. connected have felt sufficient interest in
the disgraced and disgracing to withdraw the veil, and a century is
about to erase even the recollection of their names. history
of crime is ever revolting, and it is fortunate that few love to
dwell on its incidents. sins of the family have long since
been arraigned at the judgment seat of , or are registered for
the terrible settlement of the last great day.
same fate attended . reached the garrison
on the he enquired anxiously after that lovely but misguided
creature. knew her - even her person was no longer remembered.
officers had, again and again, succeeded the and
and , though an old sergeant of the garrison, who
had lately come from , was enabled to tell our hero that
lived on his paternal estates, and that there was a
lady of rare beauty in the who had great influence over him,
though she did not bear his name. this was relapsed
into her early failing, or some other victim of the soldier's,
never knew, nor would it be pleasant or profitable to inquire.
live in a world of transgressions and selfishness, and no pictures
that represent us otherwise can be true, though, happily, for
human nature, gleamings of that pure spirit in whose likeness man
has been fashioned are to be seen, relieving its deformities, and
mitigating if not excusing its crimes.