Cooper_The_Pioneers.txt topic ['13', '324', '378', '393']
Daks Scenes of History
LiLLr Dawson Mas. C bo we
I Hope Lelib MibsSedowic
Lonqbeabd, orthe Revolt of tha Saioni ..
I LtOBT DbAOOON
' The Clarionet, &o
I The Poritan & hib Dadohtbr
Labt of the Mdhicanb
I FlONEBRB
ThrSpt
[ ThhFiot
Lionel Lincoln
I Jane Sinclair &: Neai, Malone
^ Sense and Sensibilitv Jane Aubten
On the Ist December, 18^1, mil be published,
' THE SEC^iUSE OP NORWAY.
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.eaaajw
CHAPTER I.
See. Winter comes. to rale the raried jear,
Saneo and sad, with all bis rising irain ;
Vapours, and cloads, and storms
THOMPSOir*
Near the centre of the great State of New York lies an ex-
tensive district of country, whose surface is a succession of
hills and dales, or, to speak with greater deference to geo-
graphical deflnitions, 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 country,
the numerous sources of the mighty Susquehanna meander
through the valleys, until, uniting, they form one of the
proudest streams of which the old United States could
boast. The mountains are generally arable to the top, al-
though instances are not wanting where their sides are
jutted with rocks, that aid greatly in giving that romantic
character to the country which it so eminently possesses.
The vales are narrow, rich, and cultivated ; with a stream
uniformly winding through each, now gliding peacefully
under the brow of one of the hills, and then suddenly shoot-
ing bcross the plain, to wash the feet of its opposite rival.
Beaatifal and thriving villages are found interspersed along
8 THK PlOKEKftS.
the margins of the small lakes, or situated at those points af
the streams Mhich are favourable to manufacturing ; and
Btat and comfortable farms, with every indication of wealth
about them, are scattered profuseljr through the vales, and
even to the mountain tops. Roads diverge in every direc-
tion, from the even and graceful bottoms of the valleys, to
the most rugged and intricate passes of the hills. Acade
mies, and minor edifices for the encouragement of learning,
meet the eye of the stranger, at every few miles, as he winchi
his way through this uneven territory ; and places for the
public worship of God abound with that fiequency whiob
characterizes 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 do-
minion of mild laws, and where every roan feels a direct in-
terest in the prosperity of a commonwealth, of which ho
knows himself to form a distinct and indepe'Vident part.
The expedients of the pioneers, who first broke ground in
the settlement of this country, are succeeded by the per-
manent 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 years
have passed since this whole territory was a wilderness.
Very soon after the establishment of the independence of
the States by the peace of 1783, the enterprise of their citi-
zens was directed to a developement of the natural advan-
tages 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 her possessions.
A narrow belt of country, extending for a short distance on
either side of the Hudson, with a similar occupation of flfty
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 that was then inhabited by less than two hundred
thousand souls. Within the short period we have mention-
ed, her population has spread itself over five degrees of lati-
tude and seven of longitude, and has swelled to the power-
ful number of nearly a million and a half, who are main-
tained in abundance, and can look forward to ages before
the evil day must arrive when their possessions uill become
unequal to their wants.
Oqr tale begins in 179*3^ about seven years after the
THE PI0KEER8.
eommenoemcnt of pne of the earliest of those settlenicDts,
livbich 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 daj in
December of that year, when a sleigh was moving slow-
ly up one of the mountains of the district which wo
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.
Tlie road wound along the brow of a precipice, and on
one side was upheld by a foundation of logs, piled for
many feet, 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, oxcavation, and every thing that did not
reach for several feet above the earth, lay promiscu-
ously buried under the snow. A single track, barely wide
enough to receive the sleigh, denoted the route of the
highway, and this was sunken near two feet below the
surrounding surface. In the vale, which lay at a distance
of several hundred feet beneath them, 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 op the hill to the point where the road turned
short and ran across the level land, which lay on the sum-
mit of the mountain ; but the summit itself yet remained
a forest. There was a glittering in the atmosphere, as it
it were filled with innumerable shining particles, and the
noble bay horses that drew the sleigh were' covered, in
many parts with coats of 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 the transient beams of the sun, which found their
way obliquely through the tops of the trees. Huge saddles,
studded with nails of the same material, and fitted with
cloth that admirably served as blankets to the shoulders
of the animals, supported four high, square-topped tur-
rets, through which the stout reins led from the mouths
of the horses to the hands of the diiver, who was a negro,
of apparently twenty years of age. His face, which nature
nad ca^^ured with a glistening black, was p'^w mottled with
10 THE nONUBS.
tlio oold, and his large shining eyes were moistened with
a liquid that flowed from the same cause ; still there was
a smiling expression of good humour in his happy counten
ance that was created hy the thoughts of his home, and a
Christmas fire-side, with its Christmas frolics. The sleigh
was one of those largo, comfortable, old-fashioned connej-
ances, which would admit a whole family within its bosom,
but which now contained only two passengers besides the
driver. Its outside was a modest green, and its inside of a
fiery red, that 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 ot middle age, and the other a female just enter-
ing 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, if it where not made
more comfortable, by a profusion of furs, enveloped the
whole of his figure, excepting the head, which was co-
vered witiM a cap of martin skins, lined with morocco, the
sides of which were made to fall if necessary, and were
now drawn close over the ears, and were fastened beneath
his chin with a black riband ; its top was surmounted with
the tail of the animal whose skin had furnished the ma-
terials for the cap, 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 oj[pressive, large, blue eyes, that promised extraor-
dinary intellect, covert humour, and great benevolence.
The lorm of his companion was literally hid beneath the
multtlude and variety of garments which she wore. There
wore Yurs and silks peeping from under a large camlet
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 a at small opening in front
for breath, through which occasionally sparkled a pair of
animated eyes of the deepest black.
Both the father and daughter (for such was the connexion
between the travellers) were too much occupied witb their
different reflections to break the 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 fondly to her bosom
THB nONECFi). II
when, fonr years before, she had relactantly consented to
re]iD{uish the society of her daughter, in order tliat the
latter might enjoy the advantages which the city could afford
to her education. A few months afterwards death had de-
prived him of the remaining companion of his solitude ; bat
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 that she met at every turn in the road.
The mountain on which they were journeying was covered
with pines, that rose without a branch seventy or eighty feet,
and which frequently towered to an additional height that
more than equalled that elevation. Through the innumer-
able 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
their 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, sighing sound, that
was quite in consonance with the scene.
The sleigh had glided for some distance along the eve!i
surface, and the gaze of the female was bent in in^isitive,
and, perhaps, timid, glances, into the recesses of the forest,
which were lighted by the unsullied covering of the earth,
when a loud and continued howling was heard pealing
under the long arches of the woods, like the cry of a nu-
merous pack of hounds. The instant the sounds reached
the ears of the gentleman, whatever might have been the
subject of his meditations, he forgot it ; for 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 start-
ed their game, you hear. There is a deer-track a few rods
a-head : and now Bess, if thou canst muster courage enough
to stand fire, I will give thee a saddle for thy Christma '
dinner."
The black drew up^ vritb a oheerfiil grin Qpon his ehilled
i^ THE PI0NBER8.
featoTes, 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, stept from the
aleigh upon a bank of snow, which sustained his weight
without yielding more than an inch or two. A storm of sleet
had fallen and frozen upon the surface a few days before,
and but a slight snow had occurred since to purify, without
weakening, its covering.
In a few moments the speaker succeeded in extricating a
double-barrelled fowling-piece from among a multitude of
trunks and bandboxes. After throwing aside the thick mit-
tens which had encased his hands, that now appear^^in a
pair of leather gloves tipped with fur, he examined his\)rim
ing, and was about to move forward, when the light bound-
ing noise of an animal plunging through the woods was
heard, and directly a fine buck darted into the path, a short
distance a-head 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 ; but the deer dashed forward undaunte^,
and apparently unhurt. Without lowering his piece, the
traveller turned its muzzle towards his intended victim, and
fired again. Neither discharge, however, seemed lo 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 roai before her, when a sharp, quick sound struck her
ear, quite difierent from the full round reports of her father's
gun,' but still sufiQciently distinct to be known as the concus-
sion 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 dis-
charge, similar in sound to the first, followed, when the ani-
mal came to the earth, falling headlong, and rolling over
on the crust once or twice with its own velocity. A loud
shout was given by the unseen marksman, as triumphing
in his better aim ; 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.
* Hal Natty, had I known you were in ambush, I would
not have fired," cried the traveller, moving towards the spot
where the deer lay near to whwk he was foMowed by fhe
THB PIONKBIUI. 13
delighted black, with the sl^eigh ; " bat the sound of old Hec-
tor as too exhilarating to let me be quiet; though I hardly
think J struck him either."
** No no Judge," returned the hunter, with an inwaid
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 robin pop-gun in your hand ?
Thero*8 plenty of pheasants among the swamps ; and the
snow birds are flying round your own door, where you may
feed them with crumbs, and shoot enough for a pot-pie, any
day ; but if you're for a buck, or a little bear's meat. Judge,
you U have to take the long rifle, with a greased waddini^,
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 has killed a deer be-
fore now," said the traveller, smiling good humouredJy.
. *' One barrel was charged with buck shot ; but the other
was loaded for birds only. Here are two hurts that he has
received ; one through his neck, and the other directly
through his 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,
'* 1 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 want to know if
there wasn't two rifles fired besides, who ever saw such a
ragged hole from a smooth-bore, as this is 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 Weil
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 trayeller, with undisturbed
li
THB P10NBER9.
m
m
good humour, ''it is for the honour that & contend. A few
dollars will pay for the venison; but what wilt requite me
for the lost honour of a buck's tail in my cap? Think,
Natty, how I should triumph over that qaiszing^ dog, Dick
^ones, who has failed seven times this season already, and
has only brought in one wood-chuck and a few gray
squirrels 1"
*' Ah ! the game is becoming hard to find, indeed, Judge,
with your clearings and betterments," said the old hunter,
with a kind of disdainful 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 from the cretur, 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,
neither, 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 I was smok-
ing on the chimbly top that dog is more to be trusted nor
many a Christian man ; for he never torgets a friend, and
loves the hand that gives him bread."
There was a peculiarity in the manner of the hunter that
struck the notice of the young female, who had been a close
and interested observer of his appearance and equipments,
from the moment he first ame into view. He was tkll, and
so meagre as to make him seem ahove even the six feet that
he actually stood in his stockings. On his head, which wu
thinly covered with lank, sandy hair, he wore a cap made oif
fox-skin, resemhling in shape the one we have already des-
cribed, although much inferior in finish and ornaments.
His face was skinny, and thin almost to emaciation ; but yet
bore no signs of disease; on ihe contrary, it had every in-
dication of the most robust and enduring health. The cold
and the exposure had, together, given it a colour of uniform
r^d ; his gray eyes were glancing under a pair of shaggy
brows, that overhung them in long hairs :of gray 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
leer-s)un mpccassins^ ornamented with Dorcu^^nes' qnilUi,
,w -
TBI PiONBERS. 1ft
miiet ihb tnannei of the ladians, and his Hmbj were guarded
#iih lon^ 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, notwithstanding his legs were
(itbtected beneath, in winter, by thick garments of woollen,
duly made of good blue yarn. Over his left shoulder was
slung a belt of deer-skin, from which depended an enormous
dx horn, so thinly scraped, as to discover the dark po\der
that it contained. The larger end was fitted ingeniously and
ilecurely with a wooden bottom, ^nd 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 commen-
ced 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, exclaimed
** I would fain establish a right, Natty, to the honour of
this capture ; and surely if the hit in the neck be mine, it is
enough ; for the shot in the heart was nnriecessary what we
call an act of supererogation. Leather-stocking."
" You may call it by what larded 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
ftmall 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," eried the traveller, turning
pleasantly to Natty's companion ; '* shall we toss up this
dollar for the honour, and yod kee{ the silver if you lose ;
what say you, friend ?"
* That 1 killed the deer," answered the yoting man, with
a little haughtiness, as he leaned on another long rifle^ simi-
lar to that of Natty's.
" Here are two to one, indeed," replied the Judge, with a
iitiile ; ** I am out-voted overruled, 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
ihe the venison ; and the deuce is in it, but 1 make a good
story about its death."
'' The meat is none of mine to sell,** said Leather-stocking.^
10 THE nONECRS.
adopting a little of his companion's hauteur ; ** for ocy par^
I have known animals travel days with shots in the neci^
and I'm none of them who'll rob a man of his rightful dues."
** You are tenacious of your riglits, this cold evening
Natty, "re turned the Judge, with unconquerable good nature
** but what say you, young man, will' three dollars pay yom
for the buck ?*' -
'^ First let us determine the question of right to the satis-
faction 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, gravely, a little struck
with the other's manner; "are they not enough to slay a
buck like this ?"
'' One would do it ; but," moTing 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 rough 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 V*
** Here," said the youth, throwing aside the rough oyer-
coat that he wore, and exhibiting a hole in his un-
der 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 fel-
low-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 tby wound is healed ay, and for ever afterwards,
too."
'* I thank you,^ sir, for your good intention, but 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 V repeated the agitated Judge ; I here give
thee a right to shoot deer, or bears, or any thing SiQa
pleasest in my woods, for ever. 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 thyihot
and my own."
THB nomEBs. If
The old banter ^tfaered his tall person dp into an air
of pride, daring this dialogue, and now muttered in an
under tone
" There's them living who say that Nathaniel Bomppo'8
right to shoot in these hills is of older date than Marma-
duke Temple's right to forbid him. Bat if there's a law
about it at all, though who ever heard tell of a law that a
man should'nt kill deer where he pleased ! but it there is
a law at all, it should be to keep people from the use of
them smooth-bores. A body never knows where his lead
will fly^ when he pulls the trigger of one of them fancified
fire-arms."
Without attending to the soliloquy of Nattjr, the joetb
bowed his head silently to the offer of the bank note, and
replied
** Excuse me, sir, I have need of the venison."
'* But this will bay yon many deer," said the Judge ; ** taktf
it, I entreat you,'' and lowering his voice nearly to a Whisper^
he added ** it is for a hundred dollars."
For an instant only, the youth seemed to he8itate and
then, blushing even through the high colour the cold had given
to his cheeks, as if with inward shame at his own weakness,
he again proudly declined the offen
During this scene the female arose, and regardless of the
cold air, she threw back the hood which concealed her fea*
tures, 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 witdemess, whom his own hand has
injured. I entreat you will go with us and receive medical
aid for your hurts."
Whether his wound became more painful^ or there w^s
something irresistible in the voice and manner of the fair
S leader for her father's feelings, we know not, but the
aughty distance of the young man's manner was sensibly
lioftened 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, uiged him to en-
ter it.
"There is no human aid nearer than Templeton," he
iaid ; *' and the hut of Natty is full three miles from this ;
edme come, my young friend, go with us, and let the
IS THE PIONEERS.
new doctor look to this shoulder of thine. Here is Nafty
will take the tidiogs of thy welfare to. thy fricDd; and
should'st thou require it thou shalt return to thy home in
the morning."
The young man succeeded in extricating himself from,
the warm grasp of the Judge, but 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 enga-
ged in deep and 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. 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 Iro-
quois, 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 pos-
teerum, 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 straight-
ened his body, as he opened hJSi 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 emit-
ted, except a kind of thick hissing, as he inhaled his breath
in quavers. '^Ihad lost my bullet mould in crossing the
Oneida outlet, and so had to make shift with the buck shot ;
but the rifle was true, and didn't scatter like your two*]egged
thing there. Judge, which don't do, I find, to hunt in com-
pany 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 their baggage to hear him. Unable to resist the kind
urgency of the travellers any longer, the youth, though still
with an unaccountable reluctance expressed in his iftnner,
suflered himself to be persuaded to enter the sleigh. The
black, with the aid of his master, threw the buck across the
/BK nONEERS. !:
baggage, and, entering the vehicle themselves, the Judge
invited the hunter to do so likewise.
*' No DO," said the old man, shaking his head; ** I have
Mrork to do at home this Christmas eve drive on with the
boj, and let your doctor look to the shoulder ; though if he
will only cut out the shot, I have yarbs that will heal the
woand quicker nor all his foreign 'intments/' He turned
and was about to move off, when, suddenly recollecting him-
self, 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 curious at cuts and bruises, and it*a
likelier than not he'll be in with brooms to sweep your Christ-
mas 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, eigni-
iicantty ; *' he hasn't lived forty 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 Christ-
mas dinner."
He was interrupted by the hunter, who held up his finger
with an expressive gesture for silence, and moved softly
alon^ the margin of the road, keeping his eyes steadfastly
fixed on the branches of a pine near him. When he had
obtained such a position as he wished, he stopped, and
cocking his rifle, threw one leg far behind him, and stretch*
ing 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 vulj^at
language of the country was indiscriminately called a phea-
sant or a partridge. In size, it was but little smaller than
a common barn-yard fowl. The baying of the dogs, and t4ie
conversation that had passed near the root of (he tree on
which it was perched, had alarmed the bird, which was now
drawn an near the body of the pine with a head and neck
91^ THE PI0NBKR8.
erect, that formed nearly a sfraig^bt line with its legs. So
soon as the rifle bore on the Tictim' Natty drew his trigger,
and the partridge fell from its height with a force that buried
it in the snow.
'' Liei down, yon old Tillain/' exclaimed Leather-stocking^
shaking his ramroad at Hector as he bounded towards fhe
foot of the tree, *' lie down, I say." The dog obeyed, and
Natty proceeded, with great rapidity, thongh 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 nice tit-bit for an old man's
Christmas neter mind the venison, boy, and remember
Indian John ; his yarbs are better nor all the foreign 'int-
ments. 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 gaye another of his re-
markable laughs, which partook so largely of exultation,
mirth, and irony, and shaking his head, he turned^ with his
rifle iit a trail, and moved into the forest with short and
quick steps, that were between a walk and a trot. At each
movement that 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 al-
ready 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 in-
stinctively was now of no farther use to them. Another ierk
was given to the sleigh, and Leather'Stocking was hidden,
from view.
CHAPTER II.
All places thiit the ejb of Heaved visits
Are to a wise man potts and happy havens ^
Think not the king did banish thee :
Bat thoa the kinj^r,
RiCHAKb II.
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-reli-
(innist of its great patrCn. Old Matinaduke, for this for-
inidable prenomen was a kind of appellative ta the itce,
THE PIOVEBRS. 2l
broach t with him, to that asjlam of the persocatcd, an
abuDdance of the good things of this life He became the
master of many thousands of acres of uninhabited territory,
and tho supporter of many a score of depeqilants. He lived
greatly respected for his piety, and not a little distinguis|^ed
as a sectary : was intrusted by his associates with many im-
portant political stations ; and died just in time to escape
the knowledge of hjs 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 ser-
vants or dependants, and the nature of the public situations
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 inevit-
able, 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 su-
periority and acquirements ; but the moment that his head
was laid in the grave, his indolent, and comparatively un-
educated, 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 whcT depended rather on their hereditary pos-
sessions than on their own powers ; and, in the third gene-
ration, 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, add peradventure the wealth, of their ancestors
also. It was the father of our new acquaintance^ l\\^^\x^^^^^
who first b^gan to re-ascend the scaVe oi a^cX^V'^ \ ^xv^ v^
*h\3 uDdertakiog he was not a little as\\ed \i^ ^xfik^xvca-v^
92 rai P10NEBR8.
that he formed, which aided greatly in faroishiDg the means
ofedacating his only son, in a rather better manner than
the low state of the common schools in PennsyWania coidd
promise ; or than had been the practice in the family, for
the two or three pi'cccding generations.
At the school where the reviving prosperity of his father
was enabled to maintain him, young Marmadake formed an
intimacy with a youth whose years were aboat equal to his
own. This was a fortunate connexion#for our judge, and
paired the way to most of his future elevation in life, when
the early inclination for cacti other in the boys was taatared
into friendship.
There was not only great wealth, but high court interest,
dmong the connexions of Edward Effingham. They were
ofie of the \cry few families, then resident in the colonies^
who thought it a degradation to its members to descend to
the pursuits uf commerce: and who nevci' emerged from the
privacy of their domestic life, unless to preside iii the coun7
cils of the colony, or to bear arms in her defence. The latter
had, from youth to approaching age, been the only employ-
ment of Edward's father. Military rank, under the crown
of Great Britain, was, sixty years ago, attained ^ith much
longer probation, and by much more toilsome senrices, than
at the present time. Tears 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 intitled to re-
ceive the greatest deference from the peaceful occupants of
the soil. Any one of our readers, who in a visit to the falls,
has occasion to cross the Niagara, by spending a day at
Newark, may easily observe, not only the self-importance,
but the real estiipation enjoyed by the humblest representa-
, tive 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 sym-
bol 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 com-
parative splendour, it is not to be doubted but that he be-
came a man of the first consideration in his natiye colony
which was that of New-York. He had served with fidelity
and courage, and having been, according to the custom of
the provinces, intrusted 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 re*-
VHB noHBBif m
tired with dignity, refusing his half-pay or any other com-
pensation for services that he felt he could no longer perform.
The ministry proffered to his acceptance various civil
oflices, which yielded not only hononr but profit ; hut 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, how-
ever little it accorded with prudence, was in perfect confor-
mity 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 tor his own future maintainance. Major Effing-
ham, 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 voluatarily stript himself of his great per-
sonal wealth, the remainder of the community seemed in-
stinctively to adopt the conclusion also that he had reached
a second childhood. This may explain the fact of his im-
portance rapidly declining ; and if privacy was his object,
the veteran had soon a free indulgence of his wishes. What-
ever views the world nitght 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 lon-
ger 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 burthen : such, in-
deed, 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, vrith
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 o&\ ^ilVx^xcw^^
acceptable .to the ^onng PenosyhamaYi \ ^i^b U\X \^ ^"^^
%i TRIl PIONRKM*
powers, he saw, not only the excellences, but the foibles, ia
the character of his friend. Effingham was by nature indo-
lent, confiding, and at times impetuous and indiscreet; but
Mnrniadukc was uniformly equable, {Penetrating, and full of
activity and enterprise. To the latter, therefore, the assist-
ance, or rather connexion, that was proffered to him, seemed
to promise a mutual advantage. It was cheerfully accepted,
and the arrangement of its conditions left entirely to the
dictates of his own judgment. A mercantile house was es-
tablished in the metropolis of Pennsylvania, wilh the avails
of Mr. EITingham'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 toMarmaduke, 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, com-
merce, even in that indirect manner, seemed a degrading
pursuit; and every sentiment of young Effingham was op-
posed to the acknowledgment of an arrangement which he
only reconciled to his private feelings by a knowledge of his
own motives but an insuperable obstacle to the disclosure
existed in ihe prejudices of his father.
We have already said that Major Effingham had served as
a soldier with reputation. On one occasion, while in com-
mand 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
only--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
gallant soldier succeeded, after a desperate conflict, in ex-
tricating himself with a handful of his men, from their mar-
derous 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 U ; "it
was their religious duty to have supported him/'
At DO 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 propor-
tions and athletic frames of the colonists, with a look that
seemed to atter volames of content 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 exter-
nals of religion, there could not be much of the substance.-*
It is not our task to explain what is, or ought to be, the sub-
stance 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 seen that Marmaduke deduced his origin from
the contemporaries 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 of
bis 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, be 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 commer-
cial operations of his house with a prudence and sagacity
that afforded rich returns fot the labour and hazard in-
curred. He married the lady we have mentioned, who
was the mother of Elizabeth, and the visits of his friend were
becoming more freouent; and there was a speedy prospect
96 THE PIONUU,
of renioviiiii; the veil from their iDtercourae, as its advaa-
taj^es 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 dependant loyally by his fa^
ther, Mr. Effingham had, from the commencement of the
disputes between the colonists and the crown, warmly
maintained what he believed to be the just preogatives
of his prince ; while, on the other hand, the clear head
and independant mind of Temple had induced him io
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 discus- -
sloas on the part ofMarmaduke, 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 scend
of strife and bloodshed for years.
A short time before the battle of Lexington, Mr. Effing-
ham, already a widower, transmitted to Marmaduke, ror
safe-keeping, all his valuable effects and papers ; and left
the colony without his father. The war had, however,
ioarcely commenced in earnest, when he re-appeared la
New-York, wearing the livery of his king and in a short
time he took the field at the bead of a provincial corps'.
In the meantime, 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 Gol. 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 rettiov^
to the interior the whole of his effects beyond the reach
of the royal forces, including the papers of his frietid 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 fiinctiona
with credit and fidelity, .Marmaduke never seemed to lose
Tat PIONEERS. 27
sight of his own interests ; for, when the estates of the ad
herents of the orown fell under the hammer, by the acts
of confiscation, he appeared in New- York, and became the
purchaser of extensive possessions at, comparatively, very
low prices.
It is trae that Marmadake, 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 par-
ticipation in the fainily union, seems ever unwilling to
abandon them entirely to the world. But either his suc-
cess, or the frequency of the transgression in others, scon
wiped oft* 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 those vague conjectures from men's
minds.
When the war had ended, and the independence of the
states 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 enterprises throve to a degree that the climate
and rugged face of the country which ne selected would
seem to forbid. His property increased in a tenfold ratio,
and he was already to be ranked among the most wealthy
and important of his countrymen. To inherit this wealth
he had but one child the daughter whom we have intro-
duced to the reader, and whom he was now conveying from
school, to preside over a household that had too long wan.
ted a mistress.
When the district in which his estates lay had become
sufiiciently populous to be set off as a county, Mr. Temple
had, according to the custom of the new settlements, been
selected to fill itj 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 sufiicient, in any station, for the protection of its
possessor; and Marmaduke, more fortunate in his native
islcarness 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
bJT the country and the times ; and Judge Temple, so far
THE flONRERS.
from ranking; among the lowest of his jadioial oontemp^farioi
in the courts of the new counties, felt himself, and was uaa
nimously acknowledged to be, among the first.
We shall here close this brief explanation of the bistofy
and character of some of our personages, leaving|tliem in
fature to speak and act for themselves.
CHAPTER III.
All that thoa see'at is nature's bandf-work.
Those rocks that apward throw their mossjr browsy
liike castled pinnacles of the elder times !
Tbeiie fenerable stems, that slowlj rock
Their tow'rinz branches in the wintrj 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 rade taste.
Like some sad spoiler of a virgin's fame.
nOO;
Some little while elapsed, after the horses had resumed their
journey, 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-twcnty years of age; and rather above the middle
height. Further observation was prevented by the rough
overcoat 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 contraction of the brows, and a look of
care, visible in the features of the youth, when lie first en-
tered the sleigh, that had not only attracted the notice of
Elizabeth, but which she had been much puzzled to inter*
pret. The passion seemed the strongest when he was en-
joining his old companion to secresy ; and when he had de-
cided, and was, rather passively, suffering himself to be oon-
veycd to the village, the expression of the young man's 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 in silent, and apparently abstracted, musing. The
ludge gazed at hitn for some time with earnestness, and
then, smiling as if at his o\vn forge tfulness, he spoke
*I believe my young friend, that terror has dru'^n yo^x
TUB PIONEBRt. 7l0
name irom iny recoJlectioii your face is very familiar to me,
ana yet, for tine honour of a score of buck's tails in my cap,
I could not tell your name."
^* I oame into the country but three weeks since, sir," re-
turned the youth coldly, *' and I understand you have been
absent more than that time/
* It will be five to-morrow. Yet your face is one that'I
haTC seen ; though it would not be strange, such has been
my affright, should I see thee in thy winding-sheet walking
by my bed-side, to-night. What say'st thou, Bess P 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 hon-
ours 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."
A slightly scornful smile passed over the features of the
youth, at the archness of the first part of this speech ; but it
instantly vanished, as he listened to the tremulous tones in
which it was concluded. The Judge, also, seemed to be af-
fected with the consciousness of how narrowly he had es-
oaped taking the life of a feliow-creature, and, for some time,
there was a dead silence in the sleigh.
The horses soon reached a point where they seemed to
know by instinct that their journey was nearly ended, and,
bearing on the bits, as they tossed their heads, uneasily, up
and down, they rapidly drew the sleigh over the level land,
which lay oh 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 dense smoke, which floated along the
air from his own chimneys. As hous^r 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, yonng man, if thou wilt consent to dwell with as."
The eyes of the youth and maiden involuntarily met, as
th6 Judge, in the warmth of his feelings, thus included them
in an association which was to endure so long ; and if the
flecpening colour that, notwithstanding her hood, might be
seen gathering over the face even to the forehead of Eliza*
be*a as contradicted In its language by the proud expres-
mon of her eye, the scornfal bat eovrt smile that agaia
30 THE FIONBKRS.
played about the lips of the stranger seemed equally to denj
the probability of bis consenting to form one of this fauiil|
^roup. The scene was one, however, which might easUj
warm a heart less given to misanthropy than that bf Manna*
duke Temple.
The side of the mountain, on which our travellers wen
journeying, though not absolutel perpendicular, was yet so
steep as to render great care necessary in descending tb
rude and narrow path which, in that early day, wound along
the precipices. Ttie negro reined in his impatient steeds,
and time was given to Elizabeth to dwell on a scene which
was so rapidly altering under the hands of man that it only
re.scmJ)!ed, in its outlines, the picture she had often studied
with delight in her childhood. On the right, and stretching
for several miles to the north, lay a narrow plain, buried
among mountains, which, falling occasionally, jutted in long
low points that were covered with tall trees, into the valley;
and then again, for miles, stretched their lofty brows per-
pendicularly along its margin, nourishing in the crags that
formed their sides, pines and hemlocks thinly insterpersed
with chesnut and beech, which grew in lines nearly parallel
to the mountains themselves. The dark foliage of the ever*
greens was brilliantly contrasted by the glittering whiteness
of the plain, which exhibited, over the tops of the trees, and
through the vistas formed by the advancing pcrints of the
hills, a single sheet of unspotted snow, relieved occasionally
by a few small dark objects that were discovered, as they
were passing directly beneath the feet of the travellers, to
be sleighs moving in various directions. 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, and 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 sidd 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, that announced, by
the smoke which curled over the tops of the trees, the habi-
tations 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 fre*
quently 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
TUP PIOKEEtlt. ftl
w%s r.ot difficult for the imat^ination of Elizabeth to conceive
they were enlarging under her eye, while she was gazmr*
in mute wonder, at the alterations that a few short yearx
had made in the aspect of the country. The points on the
western side of the plain were both larger and more numer-
ous 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 a mighty
oak stretched forward, as if to overshadow, with its branches,
a spot which its roots were forbidden to enter. It had re-
leased 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 all the
wildness of unrestrained liberty. A dark spot of a few acres
in extent at the southern extremity of this beautiful flat,
and immediatciv under the feet of our travellers, alone
showed, by its rippling surface, and the vapours which ex-
haled from it, that what it 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 might be traced for a
few 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 for many miles a narrow
but level plain, along which the settlers had scattered their
bumble habitations, with a profusion that bespoke the
quality of the soil, and the comparative facilities of inter-
course. Imnvediately on the bank of the lake stood the vil-
lage of Templeton. It consisted of about ddy buildings, in-
cluding those of every description, chiefly built of wood, and
which, in their^architectore, bore not only strong marks of
the absence of taste, but also, by the slovenly and 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 andrear,
but more bore that expensive colour on their fro nts only,
while their economical but ambitious owners had covered
the remaining sides of their 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 t he broken
windows of their second stories, showed that either the
ta?tc, or the vanity, of their proprietors had led Vci^.\i\ \Qi w^-
dertake ft task which they were unable lo ace.om^\\^\i *Y\!C^
M THB PIOIIMBS.
whole were grouped together in a manner that aped tb
streets of a city, and were evident]}' so arranged by the dv-
i^ctions of one, who looked far ahead to the wants of pos-
terity, rather than to the convenience of the present incum
bonts. Some three or four of the better sort of buildings, in
addition to the uniformity of their colour, were fitted with
green blinds, that were rather strangely contrasted to the
chill aspect of the lake, the mduntains, 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 Mar-
maduke was its king. They were the dwellings of two young
men who were cunning in the law ; an equal number of that
class who chafiered to supply the wants of the community
under the significant title of store-keepers ; and a disciple of
ilSscuIapius who, for a novelty, brought more subjects into
the world than he sent out of it. In the midst of this incon-
gruous group of dwellings, rose the mansion of the Judge,
towering proudly above all its neighbours. It stood in the
centre of an enclosure that included several acres, which
wore covered with fruit trees. Some of these were of Indian
origin, and began already to assume the moss and iucllnatioa
nt'age, therein forming a very marked contrast to the infant
plantations that peered over most of the picketed fences in
the village. In addition to this show of cultivation, were
two rows of young poplars, a tree but lately introduced into
America, formally lining either side of a pathway, which led
from a gate, that opened on the principal street, to the front
door of the building. The house itself had been built en-
tirely under the snperintendance of a Mr. Richard Jones^
whom we have already mentioned, and who, from a certain
cleverness in small matters, and his willingness to ei^ert his
tnients, added to the circumstance of their being sisters'
cliildren, ordinarily superintended all the minor concerns t)f
Marmaduke Temple's business. Richard ^asfondof say^lng
that this child of his invention consisted of nothing more
ror less than what should form the grovnd^work of a clergy-
man's discourse ; viz. a firstly, and a lastly. He had com-
menced his labours in the first year of their residence by
erecting a tall, gaunt edifice of wood, with its gable toward*
die highway. In this shelter, for it was but little more, the
fnxn'Ay resided for three years. By the end of that period*
Itv^iiuid \d completed bis diign. Ho h^ %Tailed hiui^ti^
THE FI0KBES8. 33
In this heavy undertaking, of the experience of a certain
wondering, eastern mechanic, tvho, by exhibiting a few Bolid
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 but
that Mr. Jones affected to consider Mr. Hiram Doolittle a
perfect empiric 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 anything plausible from his own stores of learning, or
from a secret admiration of their truth, Bichard generally
submitted to the arguments of his coadjutor. Together, they
had not only erected a dwelling for Marmaduke, but bad
given a fashion to the architecture of the country. The com-
posite order, Mr. Doolittle would contend, was an order com-
posed of many others, and was intended to be the most useful, for
it admitted into its construction such alterations as convenience
or circumstances might require. To this proposition Richard
very gravely assented ; and it was by this unison in sentiment
that the composite order, or a style of architecture that
emanated from the carpenter's own genius, with a few sug-
gestions from the other, became the fashion of the new
county.
The house itself, or the " lastly, " was of stone; large, square,
formal, and far from uncomfortable. These were four
requisites on which Marmaduke had insisted with a little
more than his ordinary pertinacity. But everything else, was
peaceably resigned to Richard and his associate. These
worthies found but little opportunity for the display of their
talents on a stone edifice, excepting in the roof and in the
porch. The former, it was soon decided, should be made with
four faces and a platform, in order to hide a part of the
building that all writers agreed was an object that ought to
be concealed. 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 efiect 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
tho efiect that was to be produced by thi^ oi!k^'tYCi% ^
^OB^und genius, until the massive linbiuc^ ^t x^vsj^^^^wC^
M THB PIOMESBS.
muoh labour) on the four walk of the building. Then indeed*
It wa loon loen that, in defiance of all rule, the roof was
by far the most conspicuous part of the edifice. Kichard and
ma aMooiato consoled themselves with the belief that the
oovering would aid in concealing this unnatural eleTatioUt
but every shinjo^lo that was laid was only multiplying objects
to look at. liichard essayed to remedy the evil wim paint,
and four different colours were laid on by his own hands. The
flrst waa a sky-blue, in the vain expectation that the eye
might bo cheated into the belief it was the heavens themselves
that hung so imposingly over Marmaduke's dwelling; the
second wun. what ho called, a " cloud-colour,'' being nothing
more nor Iom than an imitation of light smoke ; the third
was wliat ilichard termed an invisible green, which he laid
on with a belief that the deformity might be blended .with
the back-ground of pines, that rose in tall grandeur but a
short (HhUuico in the rear of the mansion-house. But all
tliuHu ingenious expedients entirely failed, and our artiste
yelinqulshod tlie desire to conceal and attempted to ornament
tlio MUunsive member. The last colour that Ilichard bestowed
on the luckless roof, was a "sunshiny yellow;" so called both
iVom its runumblunce to, and its powers to resist, the rays
of the great luminary. The platform, as well as the eaves
of tho houNO, were surmounted by gaudily painted railings,
and the genius of Hiram was exercised in tne fabrication of
divers urns and mouldings, that were scattered profusely
around this part of their labours. Richard had originally a
ounning expedient, by which the chimneys were intended
to bo HO low, and so situated, as to resemble ornaments on
tho balustrades; but comfort required tJiat the chimneys
should rise with the roof, in order that the smoke might
be carried off, and they thus became four extremely con-
spicuous objects in the view.
As this was much the most important undertaking in
which Mr. Jones was ever engagea, his failure produced
a correspondent degree of mortification. At first he whispered
among his acquaintances that it all proceeded from ignorance
of the square rule on the part of Hiram, but as his eye
became gradually accustomed to the object, he p:ew better
satisfied with his labours, and, instead of apologizing for the
defects, he commenced praising the beauties of the mansion-
house. Ho soon found hearers ; and, as wealth and comfort
are at all times attractive, it was 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 htunU* unitator# of iU
THE PlONEEift M
brauiy. Thus it Is cvar with fashion, which even renders tho
&ajfts 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 both 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 slump
of a mighty pine ; and even in one or two instances, unsightly
remnants of trees that had been partly destroyed by fire
were seen rearing their black and glistening columns, for
twenty or thirty feet above the pure white of the snow. These,
which in the language of the country are termed stubs,
abounded in the open fields adjacent to the village, and
frere accompanied, occasionally, by the ruin of a pine or a
hemlock that had been stripped of its bark, and which
^aved hi a melancholy grandeur its naked limbs to the blast,
a skeleton of its former glory. But these unpleasant additions
to the view were unnoticed by the delighted Elizabeth, who
{18 the horses slowly 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 diagonally
cuiiing irom^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 riband of water, that gushed mm
the outlet, and was winding its way already towards the far
distant Chesapeake the altered, &ough still rememberedi
scenes of her childhood and of joy !
Five years had here wrought greater changes than a century
would produce in older countries, where time and labour have
given permanency to the works of man. To the young hunter
and the Judge the scene had less of novelty : though none
ever emerged from the dark forests of that mountain, and
witnessed the glorious scenery of that beauteous valley, as it
bursts unexpectedly upon them, without a feeUng of delight.
The former cast one admiring glance from north to south, and
then simk his face again beneath the folds of his coat ; while
ihe latter contemplated, vrith philanthropic pleasure, the pros^
{)ect of affluence and comfort that was expanding around nim j
the result of his own enterprise, and much of it the fruits of hiA
own industry.
The cheerM sound of sleigh-bells, howevei, %ootl ^^Xx^^;^^
tfie attention of the whole paz^, as they came y(ns^% "^^
36 THE PtOKEEBS.
sides of the Tnountoin, at a rate that announced both a potirerfol
team and a hard driver. The bushes which lined the highway
iDterrupted the view, and they were close upon this vehicid
before they discovered who \^ere its occupants.
CHAPTER IV.
How nowY whose mare's dead 7 what's the matter t
A FEW minutes resolved whatever doubts our travellers
entertained, as to the description of those who were approach-
ing[ them with such exhilarating sounds. A large lumber-
sleieh, drawn by four horses, was soon seen dashing through
the leafless bushes, which fringed the road that was here, as on
the other side of the mountain, cut into the hill. The leaders
were of grey, and the pole-horses of a jet black. Bells,
innumerable, were suspended from every part of the harness,
where one of those tiuKling bells 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 satisfied the
Judge as to the character of &o&e in the sleigh. It contained
four male figures. On one ot 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 a habitual up-
ward look about the head of this gentleman, as if it were
dissatisfied with the proximity to the earth that nature had
decreed in his stature, and the expression of his countenance
was that of bus^ care. He was the charioteer, and he gyided
the mettled animals that he drove alon^ the precipice, with a
fearless eye and a steady hand. Immediately behind him, with.
^' face toward the other tW0| was a tall figure, to whoaee
tHE FI0XCES3. S7
appearance not even the duplicate oTer-coats which he wore,
aided by the comer of a horse-blanket, could give the appear-
ance of strength. His face was protruding from beneath a
iiroollen night-cap ; and when he turned to the vehicle of Mar-
maduke as the sleighs approached each other, it seemed formed
by nature to cut the atmosphere with the least possible resist-
ance. The eyes alone appeared to create an obstacle, as from
either side of his forehead their light, blue, glassy balls pro-
jected. * The sallow of his countenance was a colour too perma-
nent to be affected even by the intense cold of the evening.
Opposite to this personage, sat a square figure of large propor-
tions. No part of his form was to be discovered through his
over-dress, but a full face with an agreeable expression, that
was illuminated by a pair of animated black eyes of a lurking
look, that gave the lie to every demure feature in his counte-
nance. A fair, jolly wig furnished a neat and rounded outline
to his visage, and he, as well as the other two, wore martin-
skin caps as outward coverings for their heads. The fourth
was a meek-looking, long-visaged man, without any other
Tirotection from the cold man uiat which was furnished by a
black surtout, made witji 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, with a little melancholy,
bnt so slightly expressed as to leave the b ^holder in doubt
whether it proceeded from mental or bodily ilmcnt. The air
had given it, just now, a slight and somewl at feverish flush.
The character of his whole appearance, especially contrasted to
the air of humour in his next companion, \7as that of a habitual,
but subdued dejection. No sooner had the two sleighs ap-
proached within speaking distance, than the driver of this fan-
tastic equipage shouted aloud
" Draw up in the quarry draw up, thou king of the Greeks;
draw intojthe quarry, Agamenmon, or I shall never be able to
pass you. Welcome home, cousin 'duke welcome, welcome,
mv bbck-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 Frits
would not stay to finish the bottle ; and Mr. Grant has got to
put the *' lastl/* to his sermon, yet Even all the horses would
come by the by, Judge, I must sell these blacks for you
immediately; they both interfere, and then the nigh one
28 a bad goer in double harness. I can get rid of them to "
"Sell what thou wilt, Dickon," interrupted the cheerful
Toice of the Judge, " so that thou leavest me my daughter ^\A
my lands. Ah ! Fritz, my old friend, this ia a VXn^ Qic]rGK\^QXfikSDX%
38 THE PI0NEEB8.
indeed, for seventy to pay to five-ond-fort^. Monsieur Le Quoi,
I am your servant. Mr. Grant/* lifting his cap, " I feel
indebted to your attention. Gentlemen, I make you ac-
quainted 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 Fetsy vilt owe
me a kiss."
" And cheerfully will I pay it, my good sir," cried he soft
voice of Elizabeth ; which sounded, in the clear air of the hills,
like tones of silver, amid the loud cries of Richard, and the
manlv greetings of the gentleman. ** 1 have always a kiss for
my old friend, Major Hartmann."
By this time the gentleman on the front seat, who had been
addressed as Monsieur Le Quoi, rose with spme difficulty,
owing to the impediment of his over coats, and steadying him*
self by placing one hand on the stool of the charioteer, with thq
other he removed his cap, and bowing politely to the Judge,
and profoundly to Elizabeth, he said with a smile that opened
fL mouth of no common dimensions
If Ye], yelcome home. Monsieur TempP. Ah I L^m'sello
Lis'bet, you ver humble sairvant."
" Cover thy poll, Gaul, cover thy poll," cried the driver, who
was Mr. Blchard Jones ; " cover thy poll, or' the frost will pluc]L
out the remnant of thy locks. Haa the hairs on the head oif
Absalom been as scarce as on this crown of thine, he might
have been living to this day." The jokes of Richard never
failed of exciting risibility, for if others were unbending, he
uniformly did honour to his own wit; and he enjoyed a hearty
laugh on the present occasion, while Mr. Le Quoi resumed hi
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 home-
ward.
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 into 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 vUlage
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 very civilly volunteered his services to take off the
' -'fiders, and the J udge very earnestly seconded tJbe measure
with his advice. Richard treated the proposals "with great
disdain.
" Why, and wherefore, cousin duke,** he exclaimed a little
angrily; *the horses are as gentle as lambs. You know that I
broke the leaders myself, and the pole-hordes 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."
Thus appealed to, it was not in the nature of the Frenchman
to disappomt expectations that were so confidently formed |
although he sat looking down the precipice which fronted him.
as Kicbard turned his leaders into the quarry, with a pair of
eyes that stood at least half an inch noxA his visage. The
German's muscles were unmoved, but his quick sight scanned
each movement with an understanding compression that blinded
amusement at Bichard's dilemma with anxiety at their situa-
tion. Mr. Grant placed his hands on the side of the sleigh, in
preparation for a spring, but moral timidity deterred him from
takmg the leap that bodily apprehension strongly urged him to
attempt.
Bichard, by a sudden application of his whip, succeedect
m forcing his leaders into thfe 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 theit
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 towards the valley, which Was now buried in
the snow. The sleigh was easily forced across this slight
impediment; and before Bichard became conscious of hift
danger, one half of the vehicle was projected over a precipice,
which fell, nearly perpendicularly, more than a hundred feet.
The Frenchman, who by his position, had a full Sriew of their
threatened flight, instinctively threw his body as far forward
as possible in the sleigh, and cried, " Ah ! Mon cher monsieur
Deeck ! mon Dieu ! prenez gardez 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, losing iVifc
slight flush that cold had given to Ma c^eQ'ks^ ^^\i^ ^^xx^i^ssQ^i^
good sir ^be careful."
40 THE PI0NEEE8.
"Get up, you obstinate devils T cried Bichard, catch
ing a bird's eye view of his situation, applying his Avhi^
with new vigour, and unconsciously kicking the stool on
which he sat, as if inclined to urge the inanimate wood
forward; "Get up, I say Cousin duke, I shall have to
sell the grays too; they are the worst broken horses Mr.
Le Quaw!" Kichard iqr&s 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 I can t guide the
horses?
"Merciful Providence!" exclaimed the Judge, "they will
be all killed!"
Elizabeth gave a piercing shriek, and the black of Aga
Hemnon's face changed to a muddy white.
At#this critical moment, the young hunter, who, during
ihe salutations of the parties, had sat in rather sullen silence,
sprang from the sleigti of Marmaduke to the heads of the
refractory leaders. The horses, who were yet suffering
under the injudicious and somewhat random blows from
Bichard, were dancing up and down with that ominous
movement that threatens a sudden and uncontrollable start,
and pressing backward instead of going into the quarry.
The youth gave the leaders a powerful jerk, and they
plunged aside, by the path they had themselves trodden,
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 its runners outwards. The German
and the divine were thrown rather unceremoniously into
the highway, but without danger to their bones. Bichard
appeared in the air, for a moment, describing the segment
of a circle, of which the reins were the radii, and was 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, to
check the further career of his steeds. The Frenchman, who
was on his legs in the act of springing from the sleigh, took
an aerial flight also, much in that attitude which boys assume
when they play leap-frog, and flj^ing 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 fiela. Major
Hartmann, whose self-possession had been admirably pre-
served durin^^ the whole evolution, was the first of the party
Nliat gained his feet and bis voice.
THE FIONEEBS. 4i
" Ter deyvel, Eichart !" he exclaimed, in a voice half
serious, half comical, " put you - unloat your sleigh very
hantily.**
It may be doubtful whether the attitude in iirhich Mr.
Grant continued for an instant after his overthrow, was the
one into which he had been thrown, or was assumed, in
Aumbling himself before the Power that he reverenced, iii
thanksgiving at his escape. When he rose from his knees,
lie began to gaze about him, with anxious looks after the
welfare of his companions, while every joint in his body was
trembling with nervous agitation. There was also a 'slight
confusion in the faculties of Mr. Jones, that continued for
some little time; 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 th6
reins, or the fiery devils would have been over the mountaiii
by this time. How well I recovered myself, cou6ui *duke !
Another moment would have been too late; but I kne^
just the spot where to touch the off-leader; that bloV^
under this right flank, and the sudden jerk I gave with the
reins, brought them round quite handsomely^ I must own,
myself."
. " Thou jerk ! thou recover thyself, Dickon !" cried the
Judge, whose fears were all vanished !n mirth at the dis-
comfiture of the party; "but for that brave lad yonder,
thou and thy horses, or rather mine, would have assuredly
been dashed to pieces. But where is Monsieur Le
Quoi ?"
" Oh ! mon cher Juge ! Mx)n ami !" cried a smothered voice,
** praise be God I live ; vul-a you, Mister Agamemnon, be
pleased come down ici, and help-a me on my foot ?"
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. Hii good humour
returned, however, with a knowled^^e of his safety, though
it was some little time before he clearly comprehended the
case.
" What, monsieur," said Richard, who was busilv as-
sisting the black in taking off the leaders ; " are you tnere P
I thought I saw you flying up towards the top of the mouhtaih
but iust now."
42 THE PIONEEES.
' 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 com-
plaisance that seemed natural to his pliable features; ''ah!
mon cher Mister Deeck) vat you do next; dere be noting
you no try."
" The next thing, I trust, will be to learn to Arive," said
the Judge, who had busied himself in throwing the buck,
together with several articles of his baggage, from his own
sleigh into the snow ; " here are seats for you all, gentlemen ;
the evening grows piercingly cold, and tne 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 Aggyl remember there will be
a visit fh}m Santaclaus to your stocking to-night, if you
are smart and careful about the buck, and get in in
season."
The black grinned with the consciousness of the bribe
that was thus offered him for his silence on the subject
of the deer, while Kichard, without in the least waiting for
the termination of hiscousin's speech, at once 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^ Har, that John what's
that, a buck?" Bichard abandoned the horses, and ran
to the spot where Marmaduke had thrown the deer: ''It
is a buck indeed! 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, 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 dearl 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 ?"
" h ! Massa Bichaxdi may be a ten rod " cried the black.
T.BE PIONEEHS, iS
bending under one of the horses, with the pretence of fastening
A buckle, but in reality to conceal the broad grin Uiat t)peuea
a mouth from ear to ear.
"Ten rod!" echoed the other; "why, Aggy, the deer
1 killed last winter was at twenty yes! if anything, 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 Eichard, I 'member 'em ! Natty Bumppo fire
t'oder gun. You know, sir, the 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 for him. This is a damn'd envioua
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 Patent, that Hi-
ram Doolittle helped to plan the steeple to St. Paul's,
when Hiram knows that it is entirely mine; a little taken
irom a print of its namesake in London, I own : but all the
rest is mme."
"I don't know where he come from," said the black,
losing every mark of humour in an expression of deep
admiration, " but eb'ry body say, he wonnerful hansome."
" And well they may say so, Aggy," cried Kichard, 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 an^ the
most scientific country church in America. I know that the
Connecticut settlers talk about their Weathersfield meeting-
house ; but I never believe more than half of what they say,
they are such unconscionable braggers. Just as you have got
a thing done, if they see it is likely to be successful, they are
always for interfering; and then it'aten 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
Captain HolUster, there was that fellow, who was about town
laying brick-dust on the houses, came one day and ofiered
to mix what I call the streaky black, for the tail and mane,
and then, because it looks just 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
Kichard paused a moment, and cleared his throat by a loud
hem, while the negro, who was all this time busily eti%t8^A^
in preparing their sleigh, proce^de^ VvCt\- \v\^ ^^"^ "^^
44 THE PIONEERS.
#
respectful silence. Owing to the religions scruples of the
Judge, Aggy was the servant of Bichard, who had his services
for a timCf and who, of course, commanded a legal claim
to the respect of the young negro. But when any dispute
between his lawful master and his real benefactor occurred,
l^e black felt too much deference for both to express any
opinion. In the mean while, Bichard 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, ne will be telling every body how he
saved my horses, when if he had just left them alone for one
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 that he gave
them." Bichard a^ain naused, and again hemmed; for his
conscience smote mm a little, for censuring a man who had
jiiat saved his life " Who is the lad, Aggy ^I don't remember
to have seen him before P"
The black recollected the hint about Santaclaus ; and while
fie briefly explained how they had taken him on the top of
the mountain, he forebore to add anything 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 whom they found
toiling through the snow, that Bichard 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,
6nd as he certainly meant well, I shall take some notice of
him perhaps he is land hunting I say, Aggy may be he
18 out hunting?"
'h! yes, massa Bichard," said the black, a little
confused; for as Bichard did all the floggingj he stood in
great terror of his master, in the main ** yes, sir, I bMieve he be."
** Had he a pack and an axe ?"
** No, sir, only he rifie."
"Bifie!" exclaimed Bichard, observing the confusion
of the negro, which now amounted tb terror. "By Jove!
be killed the deer. I knew that Marmaduke couldn't kill
a buck on the jump How was it, Aggy ? tell me all about
it, and 1*11 roast duke quicker than he can roast his
saddle How was it, Aggy P the lad shot the buck, and the
Judee bought it, ha! and is taking him down to get the pay P"
The pleasure of this discovery had put Bichard in such a
THE PIONEEBS. 45
good humour, that the negro's fears in some measure ranished,
and he remembered the stocking. After a gulp or two, he
made out to reply
" You for^it a two shot, sir?"
"Don't he, you black rascal T cried Richard, stepping
on the snow-bank to measure the distance from his long lata
to the negro's back ; " speak the truth, or III trounce you.**
While speaking, the stock was slowly rising in Richard*!
ri^ht hand, and the lash drawing through ms left, in the
scientific manner with which drummers apply the cat, and
Agamemnon, after turning each side of himself towards hit
master, and finding all equally unwilling to remain there,
forgetful of his great name, 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 hit
hands with delight; "say nothing, but leave me to manage
Muke I have a damn'd great mind to leave the deer on the
hill, and to make the fellow send for his own carcase: but
no, I will let Marmaduke tell a few bouncers about it before
I come out upon him. Come, hurry in, Aggv, I must jielp
to dress the lad's wound ; this Yankee doctor knows nothing
of surgery I had to hold old Milligan's leg for him, while
he cut it oE" ^Richard was now seated on the stool agaioi
and the black taking the hind seat, the steeds were put in mo-
tion 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 exbting 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 wordi
with Marmaduke about it ^Will you bite, you villain ? hip,
boys, hip ! Old Natty too, thaj 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 admira-
tion of all the gaping women and children who thronged
the windows to witness the arrival of their landlord and jiif
daughter.
46 THE PI0NEEB8.
CHAPTER V.
Kathaniel't coat, sir, was not fullj 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 nne, but Adam, Balph, and Gregory.
SHAKSPBAmia
After winding along the side of the mountain, the road,
(m 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 frame-
work, both the value of labour and the abundance of materials.
This little torrent, whose' dark waters gushed in mimic
turbulence over the limestones that linea its bottom, was
nothing less than one of the many sources of the Susquehanna;
a river, to which the Atlantic herself has extended her right
arm, to welcome into her bosom. 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
the astonished Elizabeth found herself at once amid the
incongruous dwellings of the villagie. The street was laid out
of the width of an ordinary avenue to a city, notwithstanding
that 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 doum 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 tract for the sleighs was much
more limited. On either side of the highway were piled before
the houses huge heaps of logs, that were daily increasing
rather than diminishing in size, notwithstanding the enormous
THE PI0NEBB8. 49
fires that might be seen lighting every window through the duBk
of the evening. .
The last object at which Elizabeth had gazed when they
renewed their journey, after the rencontre 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 his setting rayi
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
in scorn at the changes in the season. But at each step,
as they descended, El^abeth 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
ploom of the valley. Along the summits of the mountainSy
in the eastern range, it is true, that the light still lingered, r^
ceding step by step from the earth into the few clouds that
were gathering, with the evening mist, about the Umitf.d
horizon ; but the frozen lake lay without a shadow on its c/iU
^ bosom ; the dwellings were becoming already gloomy And
* indistinct ; and the wood-cutters were shouldering their 'oesi
and preparing to enjoy, throughout the long evening \ efore
them, the comforts of those exhilarating fires that their
labour had been supplying with fuel. They paused ( nly to
gaze at the passing sleighs,, to lift theur caps to Marmad ike, to
exchange familiar nods with Bichard, and each disappe ared in
his dwelling. The paper curtains dropped behvid our
travellers in every window, shutting from the air even the
fire-light of their cheerful apartments ; and when the horses of
her father turned, with a rapid whirl, into the open g^te of the
mansion-house, and nothing stood before her but the cold
dreary stone-walls of ttie building, as she approached them
through an avenue of young and ledB[ess poplars, Elizabeth feU
as if ^1 the loveliness of the mountain-view had vanished like
the fancies of a dream. Marmaduke retained so much of hie
early habits as to reject the use of bells, but the equipage ol
Mr. Jones came dashing through the gate after them, sendintf
its jingling sounds through every crasny in the building, ana
in a moment the dwelling was in an uproar.
On a stohe platform, of rather small proportions, conr
sidering the size of the buUding, Bichard and Hiram had*
conjointly, reared four little columns of woodf which in their
turn supported the shingled roofii of the portico this was lb
48 THB nONER&8.
name that Mr. Jones had thought proper to give to a very
plain, coYQ^ed entrance to the mansion. 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 tne superstructure suspended in the air, leaving an
open space of a foot from the base of the pillars to the bases
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
80 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
l^ven, as the booksellers say, with additions and improve*
ments. It was necessarily larger, and it was properly ^
ornamented with mouldings; still the steps continuea to
yield, and, at the moment when Elizabeth returned to her
uther's door, a few rough wedges were driven under the pillars
to keep them steady, and to prevent their weight from separat-
ing them from the pediment which they ought to have sup-
ported.
from the great door, which opened into the porch, emerged
two or three female domestics, and one male. The latter was
bare-beaded, but evidently more dressed than usual, and
in the whole 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 in order to give a 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 enolmous dimen-
sions, filled with fine teeth; and a pair of blue eyes, that
teemed to look about them, on surrounding objects, witk
tast contempt. His head composed full one-fourth of his
THE PIONEEte 'id
whole length, and the qtf^ne 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 was 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 de-
clared, that as he had seen all the civilized parts of the world,
he was inclined to 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 souna of
Bow bells is fairly 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 Marma^iuke Temple,
where, owing to a combination of qualities, he held, under
Mr. Jones, the office of ^ major domo. The name of this
worthy was Benjamin Penguillan, according to his own pro-
nunciation; 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 in her physiognomy. Her teeth were mostly gone,
end what did ^emain were of a light yellow. The skin of her
s
KO . THB PIONEERS.
nose was drawn tightly over the member, and then suffered to
hang in large wrmkles in her cheeks and about her mouth*
8he took snuff in such large quantities as to create the im-
pression, that she owed the saffron of her lips and the adjacent
parts to this circumstance i 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 Kemarkable 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 en-
trance to the cellar-kitchen.
Besides these* there was a general rush from JUchard'a
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 ftoia his own throat, when the dogs, probably from
shame at being outdone, ceased their outcrv. One stately,
powerful mastiff, who wore around his neck a orass 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, receivug a kind pat or two, he turned to
Blizabeth, who even stooped to kiss him, as she called him
kindly by the name of "Old Brave." The animal seemed im
know her, as she ascended Jhe 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 wist-
fully after her figure, and when the door closed on the whole
party, he laid himself on a kennel that was placed nigh by, as
if conscious that the house contained something of additional
value to guard.
Elisabeth followed her father, who paused a moment to
whisper a message to onei 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 nearlv at
sero, 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 the heat it emitted ; 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
prenerv^ a proper humidity in the apartment. The room was
THB FI0HEB18 M
carpeted, and furnished with conTenient, substantial AimitQra
of a great variety in its appearance and materials i soma of
which was brought from the city, and the remainder manufiu^*
tared by the mechanics of Templeton. There was a sideboard
of mahogany, inlaid with ivory, and bearing enormous handles
of glittering brass, and groaning under piles of silTer plato.
Near it stood a set of prodigious tables, made of the wild
cherr)% to imitate the imported wood of the sideboard, but
plain and without ornament of any kind. Opposite to theaa
stood a smaller table, formed from a lighter coloured wood*
through the grains of which the wavy lines of the eurled-
meple of the mountains were undulating in precise rmdarity.
Near to this, in a corner, stood a heavy, ola-fashioned, brasa-
faced clock, encased in a high box, with the dark hue of the
black-walnut from the sea-shore. An enormous settee, or
sofa covered with light chints, stretched along the walls for
near twenty feet on one side of the haU, and diairs of wood
painted a light vellow, with black lines that were drawn by
no very steady hand, were ranged opposite, and in the iiH
tervals between the other pieces of furmture. A Fahrenheit^
thermometer, in a mahogany case, and with a barometer
annexed, was hung against the wdl, at some little distance
from the stove, which Benjamin consulted, every half-hour,
with prodigious veneration. Two snudl glass chandeUers were
suspended at equal distances between the stove and the outer
doors, one of which opened at either end of the hall, and ^t
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 payments, that bore
each a little pedestal in its centre. On these pedestals were
small busts in blacked plaster of Paris. The stvle of the
pedestals, as well as the selection of the busts, had been exe*
outed uifder the auspices 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, wnom he called
Shakespeare. A third ornament was an urn, which, from ita
shape, jRichard 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 nondescript, re])resenting " a man with a shirt-collar
open,'' to use the language of Kichard, ''with a laurel on his
52 * THE pioneehs.
head ; it was Julius Cflcsar or Dr. Faustus ! there were good
reasons for belieying 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, at the edge of the paper. Each width
contained the figure, with the slight exception of one arm of
the General running over on to the next piece, so that when
Kichard 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 favorite's life, numberless cruel
amputations of his right arm.
The luckless cause of these unnatural divisions an-
nounced his presence in the hall by a loud crack of his whip,
that startled the party, and his voice was first heard, ex-
claiming^
"Why, Benjamin! you Ben Pump! is this the manner
in which you receive the heiress? Excuse him, cousin
Elizabeth. The arrangements were too delicate and nice
to be trusted to very one ; but now I am here, things will
go on better. Come light up,, Mr. Penguillan, light up,
tight 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
iving his mouth a wipe with the back of his hand, " if this
ere 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 namejs 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 go to take offence with an old fellow, for the small
matter of hghting a few candles."
Elizabeth and her father continued silent, for both ex-
perienced the same sensations on entering the hall. The
former had resided one year in the building before she left
home for school, and the figure of its late lamented mistresa
was missed by both the husband and the child.
f
ne
THB PIOKEEB& IS
But candles had been placed in the chandeliers and Instntf
and the attendants were so far rccoTered from their 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 that they had
worn in the air.
During this operation, Kichard kept up a desultory dialogue
with the different domestics, occasionally throwing out ft
remark to the Judge concerning the deei;; but as his con
versation 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 wonderfully
disused discourse.
The instant that Kemarkable Pettibone had executed hef
portion of the labour in illuminating, she returned to a no*
sition near Elizabeth, with the apparent motive of receivmg
the clothes that the other threw aside, but in reality to ex*
amine, with an air of mingled curiosity and jealousy, the
appearance of the lady who was to supplant her in the ad*
ministration 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
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 onlv 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
etill beautifuli though^ it was beauty in its grandeur. As the
M THE PIOSEKBS.
last sbawl fell aside, and she stood dressed in a rich blae
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 soffosed with moisture,
that rendered their ordinary beauty more dazzling, and with
eTery 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. Marma-
duke 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 laige brass buttons, a club wig,
and boots ; and Mr. Hichard 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,
oiled, white-top boots, and spurs; one of the latter a little bent,
from its recent attacks on the unfortunate stooL
When the young lady had extricated herself from the
duresse of 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 all clean, and
each glittering, in the strong li^ht of the apartment, with its
peculiar lustre. 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 strongly
contrasted to the smiling faces and neatly attired person-
ages who had thus assembled to do honour to the heiress of
'lempleton.
In a corner of the hall, near to the grand entrance, stood
THE PI0NEEB8. 5ft
the young hunter, unnoticed, and for the moment apparently
forgotten. But even the forgetfulness of the Jud^e, 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 noble
in the rounded outlmes 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 oi
his frame was clad, bespoke not only familiarity with a splen-
dour 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 instru-
ment, as if accustomed to dweU 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 ex-
changing their welcomes ; and Elizabeth, herself as much an
object to be looked at by others, continued to gaze at him in a
kind of stupid wonder. The contraction of the stranger's
brows increased, as his eyes moved slowly from one object
to another. For moments the expressidn of his countenance
was fierce, and then again it seemed to pass away in some
Eainful emotion. The arm that was extended, bent, and
rought the hand nigh to his face, when his head dropped
upon it, and concealed the wonderfully speaking lineaments of
his features.
"We forget, dear sir, the strange gentleman,'' (for her
life Elizabeth could not call him otherwise,) "whom we
have brought here for assistance, ai4 to whom we owe every
attention."
All eyes were instantly turned in the direction of those of the
"V
W THE nOHEEBS.
gpeaker, and the youth, rather proudlj, derated his head again,
while he answered
^Mj wound is trifling, and I helieve that Judge Temple
ent for a physician the moment we arriTed."
''Certainly,'' said Marmaduke; **! ha^e not forgotten
the object of the Tint, young man, nor the nature of my debt to
thee.*'
''Ohf exclaimed Richard, with something of a waggish
leer, " thou owest the lad for the Tenison, 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 fiBire 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 oeat 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 but small, as thou
movest thy arm with apparent freedom."
" Don't make the matter worse, 'duke, b^ 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 Brandy-wine, he died twice as easy as any other
man in the regiment, only from knowing how to do the thing
as it ought to be done."
"I doubt not, Dickon," returned the Judge playfullv,
after meeting the Bright smile which, in spite of himself,
stole over the stranger's features, ** that thy family understood
the art of letting a life slip through their fingers with great
facility."
Richard heard him quite coolly, and putting a hand in
either pocket of his surtout, so as to press forward the skirts
with an air of vast disdain, 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,
ho has never seen anything but bears, and deers, and wood*
THt nONEEIS. Of
chucks, knows better than not to believe in firtiies beio(
transmitted down in families. Don't you, friend V
** I believe that vice is not/' said, the stranger abruptly
his eye glancing keenly 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 hung. Oh ! yes, the squire is right, for if so be
that he wasn't, how is it that the seventh son always is a
doctor, whether he ships for thecock'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 en
tertaining adventures, together ; just now, a room mus*
be prepared, in which the arm of this gentleman can bo
dressed."
** I will attend to that myself, cousin Elizabeth," observ-
ed Richard, somewhat haughtily. *' The young man shal.
not suffer, because Marmaduke chooses to be a little obsti-
nate. Follow me, my friend, and I will examine the hurt
myself."
** It will be well to wait for the physician," saiid the hun-
ter, coldly; ''he cannot be distant; I will save you the
trouble."
Richard paused, and looked earnestly at the speaJcer, a
little astonished at the language, and a good deal appalled
at the refusal. He instantly construed the latter into an aet-
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, he said in an under tOne--T
** Now, mark my words : there will be a story among the
settlers that all our necks would have been broken, but for
that fellow there 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 touch-
ing 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 villai;e
physician. "
(Ml TUB IHOMBM*.
CHAPTKH Vi.
And about bis shelfcSt
A beggarljr account of emptj boxes,
Green earthen pots, bladders, and ttlQStj-tMdt
Remnants of pack-tbread, and old cakes of roMif
Were tbinljr scattered to make up a show.
8tIAKBPB4Mi*
DocTER Elnathan Todd, for such was the unworthy name
of the man of physic, was commonly thought to be, amon((
the settlers, a gentleman of great mental endowments ; and
he was assuredly of rare personal proportions. In heij^lit
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 siaes 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 that they supported
seemed to issue out of his back. His neck possessed to an
eminent degree, the property of length to which we have
alluded, and it was topped by a small bullet-head, that ex-
hibited, on one side, a bush of bristling brovrn hair, and on
the other, a short, twinkling visage, that appeared to main-
tain 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 hi9 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 earn a living,
comfortably enough, by takHg to pleading law, or turning
minister, or doctoring, or some sitch-like easy calling."
Still there was a great uncertainty which of these vocations
the youth was best endowed to fill with credit and profit ;
but having no other employment, the stripling was constantly
loanging about the " homestead,'* munching green apples,
bunting for sorrel ; when the same sagacious eye, that
brought to light his latent talents^ seized upon this cir-
eamstance as a clue to direct hia future path througli ^e
turmoils of the world. *' Elnathan was cutout for a doctor,''
she knew, ** for he wa for *vor iMg^ing for yarbs, and tast-
ing all kinds of things tkat^row'd about the lots. Then again
he had a natural love for doctor-fttuff, for when she had left
the bilious pills out for her man, all nicely covered with
maple sugar, junt ready to take, Nathan had come in, and
swallowed them for all the world as if they were nothing,
while lohabod (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, muchJikc a wild colt, caught and trimmed,
by clipping his bushy looks ; dressed in a suit of home-
spun, dyed 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 ** prodij^ious 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 to much ; and once or twice,
when the ignorant little things had persevered in opposition
to Elnathan's advice, he had known her son to empty
the schools-baskets with his own mouth, to prevent conse
queAces."
Soon after this most comfortable declaration from the
master, the lad was removed to the house of the village
doctor, a gentleman whoso early career bad not been unlike
that of our hero, where he was to be seen, sometimes
watering a horse, at others watering medicines, blue, yel-
low and red ; then again lie 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 the pocket of his coat; ^for his instructor held it
absiirb to teach his pupil how to despatch a patient regu-
larly 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 ooat (and well
did it deserve the name !) of black homespun, with little
bootcos, bound with uncoloured ealfnikin, fbr tbe want oC
Mdmoroeod.
t
M THE nONESRS.
Soon after, he was seen shayitig with a dull razor; and
bnt three or months elapsed before several elderly ladica
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 set ofif at full speed in
Tarioas directions. Several indirect questions were put
concerning where the physician was last observed ; 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, who, out of breath, was trotting before
Jiim. The following day the youth appeared in the street,
as the highway was called, and the neighbourhood was
astonished ^in observing how much he had grown lately.
the same week he bought a new razor ; and the succeed-
ing Sunday he entered the meeting house with a red silk
handkercheif 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 pra
dent mother. The ice once broken in this manner, Elna
than, was greeted from every mouth with his official appel-
lation*
Another year was passed under the superintendanoe of
the same master during which the young physician had the
credit of *' riding with the old doctor," although Ibey 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 knew 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 suspicio.usly looking box that smelled powerfully of
brimstone.
The next Sunday he was married ; and the following
morning he entered a one-horse -sleigh with his bride, havinjf
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 saddle
bags, and a band-box. The next intelligence that his fiiends
received of the bride and bridegroom was that the latter was
** settled in the new countries, and well to do as a doctor^ in
Templeton in York state/'
- IfaTempler would smile at the qualifications of Mar*
maduke to fill the judicial seat that he occupied, we are
THE nONBIM. %l
tain thut a gp'adaate of Leyden or Edinji:barj^1i would be ex-
tremely amused with this true narration of the servitude of
Elnathan in the temple ofiEsculapias. But the same con-
solation was aflbrded to both the jurist and the leech; for
Dr. Todd wa% quite as much on a level with his compeers
in the profession in that country, as was Marmaduke with
his brethren on the bench.
Time and practice did wonders for the physician. He
TV as naturally humane, but possessed no small share of
moral courage ; or, in other words, be 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 bad come under his
care, he was a little addicted to trying the effects of every
vial in his saddle-bags 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 intermit tents,
remittents, tertians, quotidians, &c. In certain cutaneous
disorders, verj prevalent in new settlements, he was con-
sidered to be infallible ; and there was no woman on the
Patent but would as soon think of becoming a mother with-
out a husband, as without the assistance of Dr. Todd. In
short, he was rearing, on this foundation of sand, a super-
structure, cemented by practice, though composed of some-
what brittle materials. He, however, occasionally renewed
his elementary studies, and, with the observation of a shrewd
mind, was 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 several defective teeth,
and sewed up the wounds of numberless wood-choppers,
with considerable eclat, when an unfortunate jobber suffered
a fracture of his leg by the tree that he had been felling
It was on this occasion that our hero encountered tie
greatest trial that his nerves and moral feeling had ever
sustained. In the hour of need, he was, however, 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 nim deserving; of it ; and Elnathan had been pre-
sent at one or two of tnese operations. But on the present
ii THE PIONBERS.
eeasion 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, observ-
ing, 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 Uie kg !
The limb was certainly cut off, and the patient survived
the operation. It was, however, two years oefore poor Mil-
ligan ceased to complain that they had baried the leg in so
narrow a box, that it was straitened for room ; he knew this
to be true, for he could feel the pain shooting up from the
inhumed fragment to his living members. Marmaduke sug-
gested that the fault might lie in the living arteries and
nerves ; but Richard, considering the amputation as part
of his own handy-work, strongly renelled the insinuation,
at the same time declaring that he nad often heard of men
who could tell when it was about to rain, by the toes of
amputated limbs. After two or three years, notwithstand-
ing that 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 ereat confidence in
Doctor Todd, whose reputation was hourly increasing, and,
luckily for his patients, his information also.
Notwithstanding Mr. Todd's six years* practice, and his
success with the leg, he was not a little appalled, on enter-
ing the hall of the mansion-house. It was glaring with the
light of day ; it looked so splendid and imposing, com-
pared with the hastily built and scantily furnishedi apart-
ments which he frequented in his ordinary practice, and
contained so many well-dressed persons, and anxiously-
looking faces, that his usually firm nerves were a good deal
discomposed. He had heard from the messenger who sum-
moned Iiim that it was a gun-shot wound, 'and had come
from his own liome, wading through the snow, with his
saddle-bags thrown over his arm, venile separated arteries,
penetrated lungs, and injured vitals, were whirling through
nis brain, as if ne 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, with her
.^ face expressing deep anxiety in every one of its beautifol
^MKatarss. The enormous bony knees of the physician struck
THE PI0KEEB8. 6)
each other with a noise that was audible; for in the absent
jitate of his mind, he mistook her for a general officer, per-
forated with bullets, hastening from the field of battle to
implore his assistance. The delusion, however, was but
momentary, and his eye glanced rapidly from the daughter
to the earnest dignity of his fathers countenance; thence
to the busy strut of Richard, who was coolinc^ his impa-
tience at tne hunter's indifference to his offered assistance,
by pacing the hall and cracking his whip; from him to
the Frenchman, who had stood for several minutes un-
heeded 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 Benjamiui
who, with his feet standing wide apart and his arms a-kimbo,
was balancing his square little body with the indifference
of one who was 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 5
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, abruptly
** 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, with a
smile, ." although it is by no means certain that I did not
aid in killing 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 that shall amply reward thee
for it."
" Two ver good things to depend on," observed Monsieur
lue Quoi, bowing politely, with a sweep of his head, to the
Judge and the practitioner.
"1 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."
^Pt\
64 THE PIONEERS.
This remark caused a cessatioa of the compliments, and
induced the physician to turn an inquiring eye in the direc-
tion 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-coloared, homespun of the
country, that was evidently out recently made. His hand
was on the lapels of his coat, m the attitude of removing the
garment, when he suddenl;^ 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 passing over the brow of the youth, as he
spoke.
" Possibly the sight of blood may alarm the lady ; I will
retire to another room while the wound is dressing."
'* By no means," said Dr. Todd, who, having discovered
that his patient was far from being a man of importance,
felt wonderfully emboldened to perform his doty, ** The
strong light of these candles is favourable to the operation,
and it is seldom that we hard students enjoy good eye-
sight."
While speaking, EInathan placed a pair of large iron-
immed spectacles on his face, where they dropped, as it
were by long practice, to the ftctremity 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 cover of an envious cloud. The
action was unheeded by all but Remarkable, who observed
to Benjamin
"Doctor Todd is a comely man to look on, and a disp'ut
pretty spoken one too. 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 abstractioVi, and,
colouring excessively, she motioned to a young woman, who
served in the capacity of a maid, and retired, with an air of
womanly reserve.
The field was now left to the physicia;i 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 Hart-
mann alone refained his seat, where he continued to throw
out vast quantities of smoke, now rolling his eyes up to tho
"iling, as if rousing on the uncertainty of life, and now
nut PI0NEEE8. Oft
bending them on the woanded man, with an expreiision that
bespoke some consciousness of his sitaation.
In the mean time, EJnathan, to whom the sight of a gnu-
shot woand was a perfect novelty, commenced his prepara-
tions with a solemnity and care that wax worthy of the oo
casion. 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.
The moment Richard heard the sound that was produced
by rending the linen, he stepped up to the group, with tlie
air of one who well understood the business in hand. 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 iint? It should be
line, and soft, you know, my dear sir; and be cautious that
no cotton gets in, or it may pi'son the wownd. The shirt
lias been made with cotton thread, but you can easily pick
it out."
Richard assumed the office, with a nod at his consin,that
said, quite plainly, '* You see, this fellow can*t get along
without me ;" and began to scrape the piece of linen on his
knee, with great diligence.
A table was now spread, by the practitioner, with vials.
boxes of salve, and divers surgical instruments. As the
latter appeared, in succession, from a case of red morocco,
tlieir owner held up each implement to the strong light of
the chandelier, near to which he stood, and examined it
with the nicest care and precision. 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 delicate operation. After the rather
scantily furpished pocket-case, which contained these in-
struments 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 eleva-
tion, placing his hand oti the small of his back, as if for sup-
port, and looked about him to discover what effect this dis-
play of his 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 othef
^ THE PIONEERS.
feature of his face in a state of perfect rest, ^' put you have
a Yery pretty pocket-pook of tools tere, ana your toctor-stuff
glitters, as if it was petter for ter eyes as for ter pelly."
Elnathan gave a somewhat equivocal hem, before he re-
plied one that might have been equally taken for that kind
of noise which cowards are said to make, in order to awaken
fheir dormant courage, or for a natural efifort 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 spake 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 mo ugh t be sweet to the mouth, and bitter to the in-
wards,"
" 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 shoul-
der, 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 for-
midable an afair as he had anticipated. Thus encouraged,
he approached his patient, and made some indications of
an intention to trace the route that had been taken by the
lead.
Remarkable often found occasions, in after days, to re-
count the minutiae 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 wound ; and then
the young man looked awful ; and then I thought I should
have swaned away, I felt in sitch a disp'ut taking; and then
the doctor bad run it right through his shoulder, and shoved
the bullet out on toother side ; and so Doctor Todd cured the
young man of a ball that the Judge had shot into him, for
all the world, as e^sy as I could pick out a splinter, with my
darning needle."
TIIB PIONEERS. d
Sach were the impreshions of Remarkable on the subject
and snchy doubtless, were the opinions of most of those wb
felt it necessary to entertain a species of religious veneration
for the abilities and skill of EInathan ; but such was faf
from the truth.
When the physician attempted to introduce the instm*
ment described by Remarkable, he was repulsed by the
stranger, with a good deal of decision, and some little con^
tempt, 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 fin-
gered the lint, with the appearance of great care and fore-
sight. *' 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 gen-
tleman 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 Marmaduk
here, pufifed up with an accidental thing, such as the time
when you 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 that a man wants to walk the quarter-deck with cre-
dit, d'ye see, and with regular built swabs on his shoulders,
he mus'nt think to do it, by gettingin 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 forrard ; tho'f
it be only in an humble way, like myself, d'ye see, which
was, from being only a handei of top-gallant-sails, and a
stower of the flyiuy-gib, to keeping the key of ibft ^^\Nwi^
Jocker,'"
to THB PIONEERS.
'Benjamia speaks quite to the purpose/' oontiimed
Kichardy with a beneYoient smile, directed to the doctor.
** 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/'
'VThat 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 mat-
ter of that, I was in a boat, alongside the ship, when they
eut out the tweWe-pound shot from th^ tliigh of the captain
of the Foody-rong, one of Mounsheer Ler Quaw^s country-
men, there V
" A twelve-pound ball from the thigh of a human being !"
xclaimed Mr. Grant, with great simplicity, dropping the
icrmon he was again reading, and raising his spectacles,
from before his eyes, to the top of his forehead.
'*' A twelve-pounder!" echoed Benjamin, staring around
him with much confidence ; " a twelve-pounder I ay I a
twenty-four pound shot can easily be taken from a man*s
body, if-so-be a doctur 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 th# reckoning of
such things."
"Certainly, more important operations than that have
been performed," observed Richard ; " the Encyclopaedia
mentions much more incredible circumstances than that, as,
I daro say, you know. Doctor Todd."
" Certainly, there are incredible tales told of such mat-
ters," returned Elnathan, " though I cannot say that I have
ever seen, myself, any thing larger than a musket-bullet ex-
acted."
During this discourse, an incision had been made through
the skin of the young hunter's shoulder, and the lead was
laid bare. Elnathan now took into his hand, with a solemn
air, a pair of glittering forceps, and was in the act of apply-
qg them to the wound, when a sudden motion of the patient
;aused the shot to fall out of itself. The long arm and bread
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 spectator how
!{reat was its agency in releasing the shot. Richard, how-
ever, put the matter at rest, by exclaiming
" Very neatly done, Doctor ! I have never seen a shot
more ncath' extracted ; and, 1 dare tay, Benjamin will say
^A^ same/''
niF. FIONERRS. 69
WJiy, considering," returned Benjamin, ' I mast nay,
ta^t it was sbip-shape and Brister-fashion. Now, all that
iue Doctor has to do is to clap a coaple of plu|i^s in the shot
holes, and the lad wiJF 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 farther
trouble on my account."
The whole group turned their heads in surprise, and foe-
held, standing at one of the distant doors of the hall^ the
person of Indian John.
CHAPTER VII.
From Susqaehanna's utmost springs.
Where savage tribes pursae tbeir game.
His blanket tied with jellow strings.
The shepherd of the forest came.
FRENEAU.
BsPOAB 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 moun-
tains, was occupied by two great nations of Indians, from
whom numberless tribes had descended. But, as the ori-
ginal distinctions between these nations were marked by a
difference in language, as well as by repeated and bloodj
wars, tbey 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 tlie wants and habits of a savage,
tbeir 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 tbeir Grandfather. Tl^e 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 thelc iV\^
trere fond of ?. j..3sr^ in order to lalac Wiw owis^i^!^Wk5a%
%
/O THB PfONEBRS.
of the several nations of the Mohawks, the Oneidas^ the
Ooonda^as, Cayugas, and Senecas ; who ranked, in the con
federation, in the order with which they are named. Tti9
Toscaroras were admitted to this anion, near a century afler
'ts 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
eouncil-iire on the banks of that river, the Delaware nation,
the principal tribes, besides that which bore the generic
same, were the Mahicanni, Mohicans or Mohegans, and
Uie Nanticokes, or Nantigoes. Of these, the latter held the
ountry along the waters of the Chesapeake and the sea-
Jhore ; while the Mohegans occupied the district between
*/ie Hudson and the ocean, including most of New England,
^f course, these two tribes were the first who were dispos-
ssed of their lands by Europeans.
The wars of a portion of the latter are celebrated among
liS, as the wars of King Philip ; but the peaceful policy of
William Penn, or Miauon, as he was termed by the natives,
^ected its object with less difficalty, though not with less
certainty. 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 indaeed to suffer themselves to be
called women, by their old enemies, the Mingoes, or I^y-
quois, after the latter, having in vain tried the effects of
hostility, had recourse to artifice, in order to circumvent
their rivals. According to this declaration, the Delawares
were to cultivate the arts of peace, and to entrust their de-
fence entirely to the men, or warlike tribes of the Six nations.
This state of things continued until the war of the revo-
lution, when the Lenni Lenape formally asserted their in-
dependence, 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 res-
train their members within the rules of their nation. Seve-
ral 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 their
own tribe. These chieftains kept alive, in some measure, the
martial spirit of the Delawares ; and would, at times, lead
mall parties against their ancient enemies, or such other
toes as incurred their resentment
Among these warriors was one race particularly famoot
. nt, PIONEBBS. n
for their prowess, and for those qualities that reooer an 1a-
dian hero celebrated. But time, disease, and want bad
conspired to thin their number ; and the sole representatif
of this once renowned family now stood in the haJi of Mar-
maduke Temple. He had, for a long time, been an associate
of the white men, particularly in their wars ; and, having beeo^
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 bad suffered severely in
his family during the recent war, having h{\d every soul !
whom he was allied cut off by an inroad of the enemy ; and
when the last lingering remnant of his nation extinguished
their' fires, among the hills of the Delaware, he alone had
remained, with a determination of laying his bones in th*
country where his fathers had so long lived and governed".
It was only, however, within a few months, that he hatf
appeared among the mountains that surrounded Templetom
To the hut of the old hunter he seemed peculiarly welcome ;
and, as the habits of the ** Leather-Stocking'' were so nearly
assimilated to those of the savages, the conjunction of their
interests excited no surprise. They resided in the same
oabin, 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 oonversation with Natty, held ift
the language of the Delawares, be was heard uniformly to
call himself Chingachgook, which, interpreted, means the
*' Great Snake." This was a name he had attained in his
youth, by his skill and prowess in the art of war ; but when
his brows began to wrinkle with time, and he stood atone,
the last of his family and his particular tribe, the few Dela-
wares, who yet continued about the head-waters of their
river, gave him the expressive 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 seldom
occasions ; but the settlers had united, according to thu
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 bis long association with the white men, the habits
of Mohegan were a mixture of the civilized and savage stateg^
though there was certainly a strong preponderance \w Vsh vost
of the latter. In common with air lA^ ^^op\e, ^\io ^hi^
within tho inflaeoce of tbe A]iglo*Amemia ^H aaA
n THE riONER8.
qaired new wants, and bis dress was a mixture of his native
fashions with European manufactures. Notwithstanding
the fntense cold of the atmosphere without, his head waa
uncovered ; but a profusion of long, black, coarse hair con-
cealed his forehead, his crown, and even hung about his
cheeks, so as to convey the idea, to one who knew his pre-
sent and former conditions, that he encouraged its abun-
dance, as a willing veil, to hide the shame of a noble soul,
mourning for a glory that it had 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 nos-
trils that expanded, in his seventieth year, with the air of
freedom that had distinguished them when a youth. His
mouth was large, but compressed, and possessing a great
share of expression and character, and, when opened, dis-
covered 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 glit-
tered 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 bis 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 con-
fined it to his waist, and moved forward.
As he walked slowly down the long hall, the unusually
dignified and deliberate tread of the Indian surprised the
spectators. His shoulders, and body to bis waist, were en-
tirely bare, with the exception of a silver medallion of Wash-
ington, that was suspended from his neck by a thong of
buck-skin, and rested on his high chest, amidst the scars
and many wounds. His shoulders were rather broad and
full ; but the arms, though straight and graceful, wanted the
muscular appearance that labour alone can give to a race of
men. The medallion was the only ornament he wore,
although enormous slits in the rim of either ear, which suf-
fered the cartilages to fall for two inches below the members^
were evidently 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
ij stood aside, and allowed bim to confront the evident
t of bis risit He did not speak, however, l^"^ stood,
THE PI0NBER8. 7S
izing bis glowing eyes on the shoulder of the yoang hanter,
mnd then turning them intently on the countenance of the
Judge. The latter was a good deal astonished at this un-
' usual departure from the ordinarily subdued and quiet man-
lilr of the Indian ; but, soon recovering himself, 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
^ hifl wonnd even to our good friend Dr. Todd.''
^ Mohegan now spoke, in tolerable English, but in a low,
f Monotonous, guttural tone :
**The children of Miquon do not love the sight of blood,
I and yet, the young eagle has been struck by the hand that
k ihould do no evil V
t- '* Mohegan ! old John !" exclaimed the Judge, in horror,
H and turning his fine, manly, open countenance to the other :
If **thinkest thou that my hand has ever drawn human blood
f willingly ? For shame ! for shame, old John ! thy religion
I should have taught thee better."
f' **The evil spirit sometimes lives in the best heart," re
I turned John, impressively, as he tried to study the counten*
^ ance of the Judge ; "but my brother speaks the truth ; his
r hand has never taken life, when awake ; no ! not even when
the children of the great English Father vrere making the
^ waters red with the blood of his people."
f *' Surely, John," said Mr. Grant, with much earnestness,
^ ** you remember the divine command of our Saviour, 'judge
I not, lest ye be judged.' What motive could Judge Temple
f liave for injuring a youth like this ; one to whom he is un-
m known, and from whom he can receive neither injury nor
fr fiivour !"
W John listened respectfully to the divine, and when he had
A"eoncluded, the Indian stretched out his arms, and said with
# energy
^ *' He is innocent my brother has not done this wrong." '
|2 Marmaduke received the offered hand of the other with a
^benevolent smile, that showed, however he might be aston-
fjf libed at his suspicion, he had ceased to resent it ; while the
^ wounded youth stood, gazing from his red friend to his host,
^ with an expression of scornful pity powerfully delineated in
^ Ids countenance. No sooner was this act of pacification
^ exchanged, than John proceeded to discharge the duty, to
1^ perform which he had come. Dr. Todd was far from mani*
|/ lesting any displeasure at this invasion of his rights, but
^ made way for the new leech, with an air that exi^x^'&&^^ '^
^ milingness to gratify the humours of \i\a v^lX^i^vlX.. twq;^ xXi'^
f4 THE nONJBBRS.
the all-important part of the business was 90 suotDessftilljr
perforroed, and nothing remained to be done, but what aiiy
child might effect. Indeed, he whisjpered as mMch to Mon-
sieur Le Qooi, when he said ^
'* It was fortunate that the ball was extracted befoi^e this
Indian came in ; but any old woman can dress the wound
now. The young man, I hear, lives with John and N^t^
Bumppo, and it'9 always best to humour a patient, when it
can be done discreetly I say, discreetly, IVfonsieur."
^* Certainement/' returned the Frenchman ; " you seem
ver happy, Mr. Todd, \u your practeece. I ijhould tink de
elderly lady might ver well finish, va^t you so skeelfuUy
begin."
But Richard had, at the bottom, a great deal of venera-
tion for the knowledge of Mohegan, especially in extern^
wounds ; and, retaining all h|s desire for a participation in
glory, he advanced nigh to the Indian, and said
** Sago, sago, Mohegan ! sago, my goo4 felloi^ ! T am
right glad you have come ; give me a regular physician, like
Df. Todd, to cut.into f[psh, and a native to hea| \1^q woup4-
Bo yon remember, John, the time when | an4 yon s^et the
bone of Natty Bumppo's little finger, after be broJ^e \t hy
falling from the rock, when he was trying tp get the part-
ridge down, that fell on the clifis ? I never coi|l(| |el) yet*
whether it was I or Natty, who killed that bird ; j^e tired
first, and the bird stopped, but then it was rising again, }\\ai
as I pulled trigger. I should have claimed it, for a certainty,
but Natty said the hole was too big for shot, s^ud 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 bpard|
when I've been shooting at the mark, very much l|ke ri^e-
bullets. Shall I help you, John ? You know that J havQ s^
knack at these things."
Mohegan heard this disquisition quite patiently, ^nd when
Richard concluded, he held oyt the basket, which eontai^^d
his specifics, indicating, by a gesture, that he might hold if*
Mr. Jones was quite satisfied with this commi^^^on ; and,
ever after, in speaking: of the event, was usee) to s^y that
'* Doctor Todd and I cut out the bullet, am} I 9^d Indian
John dressed the wound.''
The patient was much more deserving pf that epithet,
while under the hands of Mohegan, than while suffering
under the practice of the true physician. Indeed, the In-
dian gave him but little opportunity for the exercise of a
forbearing temper, as he had come prepare4 ^Ot the ocoa-
MioML JBis dreisingi weie fobn applied^ and consisted only
THB PIONBIU. n
i some poanded bark, moistened with a fluid that he bad
expressed from some of the simples of the woods.
AmoDf^ the Dative 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 sapernatural 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, ** curious in
cuts and bruises."
While John and Richard were placing the dressings on
the wound, EInathan 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 sa-
vages are knowing, in small matters of physic. 1?hey hand
these things down in their traditions. Now in cancers and
hydrophoby, they are quite ingenious. I will just take this
bark home, and analyze it ; for though it can't be worth six-
pence to the young man's shoulder, it may be good for the
toothach, or rheumatis, or some of them complaints. A
man should never be above laming, 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 profes-
sion. The proces^s to which be subjected the specific dif-
fered, however, greatly from the ordinary rules ofchymis-
try ; 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
lnathan was seen to apply a salve to the wound that was
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 IhQ \J\aXa^%\Xk^
were again engaged in war^ and tlie liOi4e% ot ^^ ^^!l^EG^
f9 THE PIONHERS.
rarlsof the state of New- York were rosbing to tbc field
Eltiathan, 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 relin-
quished 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 ot the busincsi
by the other.
*' Reach me the scissors/' said Mr. Jones, when he had
finished, add 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 ; for I
scraped it myself, and I will not turn my back, at scraping
lint, to any man on the Patent. But I ought to. know how,
if any body ought, for my grandfather was a doctor, and in j
father had a natural turn that way."
** Here, Squire, is the scissors," said Remarkable, produo
ing from beneath her petticoat of green moreen,, a pair of
dull-looking shears ; ** well, upon my say so, you Aave sewed
on the rags as well as a woman."
** As well as a woman," echoed Richard, with indigna-
tion ; *' what do women know of such matters ? and you are
proof of the troth of what I say. Who ever saw such a paii
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, al-
though, perhaps, seeing I had a hand in it, I ought not to
say so ; and the wound is most admirably dressed. Yon
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 sup-
pose, and not used to horses ; but I forgive the acciden' ,fot
the motive: no doubt, you had the best of motives; yes,
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
bat one thing more to be settled, and that is, our respectiva
rfgdis to the deer, Judge Temple ''
THB nONEEMi TT
1 acknowledge it to be thine/' toid Marlnadake ; ** and
much more deeply am I indebted to thee, than for this piece
of Yenison. But in the morning thou wilt call here^ and we
can adjust this, as well as more important matters. Eliza-
beth," for the young lady, being apprised that the wound
i^as 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/' re
turned the youth, seemingly struggling with his own feel
ings ; * I have already told you that 1 needed the venison
for mjrself/'
*^ Oh ! we will not be particular/' exclaiined 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 your-
self as a very lucky young man ^you have been shot, with-
out being disabled ; have had the wound dressed in the best
iossible mahner, 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 mo^t of the
carcassj with the skih in the bargain. 'Marky, tell Toni to
give him the skin too ; atid 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
pillioil 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 wished for my own
use. I nitist have the saddle tnyself.,*
** Must !' echoed Richard ; ** must is harder to be swal-
lowed 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 Eliza
beth, and proceeded more mildly *' that is, if a manii
allowed the possession of that which his own hand hat|
killed, and the law will protect him in the enjoyment of h^
own."
'' The law will do so," said Judge Temple, trith an air d|
mortificatioti, mingled with surprise. *' Benjamin, see thai
the whole deer is placed in the sleigh ; and have this yout|
eonveyed to the hut of Leather-Stocking. But young mau^
thou hast a.name, and I shall see thee again, iivQ\^^\\f^
poniftte thee for the wronjp I have done V^et*
f% THB PfONBBR8
** I am called Edwards/' returned the hunter, " 01Wc%
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 very temples ; when,
recollecting himself, he bent his head, dropping his eye to
the carpet, and replied
''In the morning, then, will I return, and see Judge
Temple ; and I will accept his ofler of the sleigh, in token of
our amity.''
*' Amity V 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 tres-
pass against us," observed Mr. Grant, *' is the language of
prayer, 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 ball, he
bowed low to the divine, and moved from the apartment,
with an air that would not admit ol detention.
*' 'Tis strapge that one so young should harbour such feel*
ings of resentment,'* said Marmaduke, when the door closed
behind the stranger ; ** but while the pain is recent, and the
sense of the injury is so fresh he must feel more strongly
than in his cooler moments. I doubt not, we sl^U 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* with-
out your pel mission V now I have known a farmer, in Penn-
fjrlvania, order a sportsman aS his farm with as littli
wMmony om I would order Benjamin, to put a lofi^ in thf
TUB PI0NEEK8. .
Btove. By the by, Benjamin, see how the thermometer
stands. IVow 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 ms rifle. How is
this managed in France, Monsieur Le Quoi? do you let
everv body run over your land, in that country, helter-skelter,
as tney do here, shooting the game, so that a gentleman ha
but little or no chance with his gun ?*'
*Bah! diable, no, Meester Deeck;" replied the French-
man; 'we give, in France, no liberty, except to de
ladi."
" Yes, yes, to the women, I know,'' said Richard ; " that
k your Salic 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 'didie's place, I would stick up advertisements
to-morrow morning, forbidding all persons to shoot, or tres*
pass, in any manner, on my woods. I could write such aa
advertisement myself, in an hour, as would put a stop to the
thing at once."
"Kichard," said Major Hartmann, very coolly, knocking
the ashes from his pipe into the spitting-box by his side,
** now listen ; I have hvet seventy-five years on ter Mohawk,
and in ter woots. ^You hat petter mettle as mit ter devvel,
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 Dolittle,
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 again.
"But we will now take our evening's repast, which, 1 per-
ceive by Remarkable's physiognomy, is in the next room*
Monsieur Le Quoi, Miss Temple has a fair hand at your ser-
vice. WiU you lead the way, my child ?"
'*Ah! ma chere Mam'selle, but too happ;^ to do so,**
said the polite Frenchman, while he ofierea nis hand; **it
is de consolashong in my baneeshi to meet a smile from de .
fair ladL"
Mr. Grant and Mohegan continued in \\iQ \i^^ ^^^^^^ ^Ca
80 THS PIOMItBS.
remainder of the party withdrew to an eating parlour, if we
except Benjamin, who ciTillj remained to close the rear
after the diTine, and to open the front door for the exit of
the Indian.
*' John," said the divine, when the fi|pare of Judge Temple
disappeared, the last of the group, '* to-morrow is Uie festival
of the nativity of our blessed Redeemer, when the church
has appointed prayers and thanksgivings to be offered up by
her chUdren, and when all are invited to partake of the mys-
tical elements. As you have taken up the cross, and become
a follower of good, and an eschewer of evil, John, I trust I
shall see ou before the altar, with a contrite heart and a
ttteek spirit."
*' John will come," said the Indian, betraying no stir*
prise ; 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 only ; you must come in the Spirit
and in truth. The Redeemer died for ail, for the poor lb*
dian, ibis well as for the white man. tieaven knows no dif-
ference in colour ; nor must earth witness a separation 6t
the church. It is good and profitable, John, to freshen the
understanding, and support the wavering, by thtt observance
of our holy festivals; but all form is but stench in the nos-
trils of the Holy One, unless it be accompanied by a devout
i^d humble spirit."
The Indian stepped back a little, and, raising bis body lb
'4s utmost powers of erection, he stretched his right arm on
high, and dropped his fore-finger downward, as if pointing
from the heavens, and striking his other hand on his naked
breast, he said, with energy
** The eye of the Oreat 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
Moods is as much an object of his care as he who dwells in
a palace. I wish you a good night, and pra} God to bleli
you."
The Indian bent his head, and they separated the onetd
seek his hut, and the other to join the party at the stipper-
table. While Benjamin was opeiiing the door fbr the piiS '
sage of the chief, he cried, in a tone that was meant to ht
quiCe consoling
THE nONEERS. 81
Tharson says the word that is true JJohn. If-so-be
that they took count of the colour of L skin in heayeo, why,
they Rii^ht refuse to muster on their boolLs a Christian-boro,
like myself, just for .the matter of a little tan. from cruising
in warm latitudes; though, for the matteir of that, thia
damned nor-wester is enough to whiten the skin of a blacka-
moor. Let the reefs out of your blanket, man, or your red
hide will hardly weather the night, without a touch frcm t;.c
frost."
CHAPTER VIIL
For here the exile met from erery dime,
And spoke, in friendship, erery disUuit tongae
Cmmpbett,
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 will briefly attempt
to explain the '* why and wherefore" of so motley a dramatis
personae.
Europe was, at the period of our ta)e, in the commence-
ment of that mighty commotion which afterwards shook her
political institutions to their centre. Louis the Sixteenth
had been beheaded, and a nation, once esteemed the most
refined among the civilized people of the world, was chang-
ing her character, and substituting cruelty for mercy, and
subtlety and ferocity for magnanimity and courage. Thou-
sands 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 gentle-
man whom we have already mentioned as Monsieur Le
Quoi. He had been recommended to the favour of Judge
Temple, by the b^ad of an eminent mercantile house in New
York, with whom Marmaduke was in habits of intimacy,
and accustomed to an exchange of good offices. At bis 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
biats that had escaped him, Monsieur Le Quoi was suspect-
ed of having been a West India planter, great Yvai\BXi^\% ^
m THE nONEfillf*
whom had fled from St. Domingo and the other islands, and
were now living in the Union, in a state of comparatltb
poverty, and some in absolute want. The latter was not,
however, the lot of Monsieur Le Qaoi. 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 whicn he i^as
not familiar. Under his direction, Monsieur Le Quoi made
some purchases, consisting of a few clothes ; some groceries,
with a good deal of tea and tobacco ; a quantity of iron-ware,
among which was a large proportion of Barlow's jack-
knives, potash-kettles, and spiders ; a very formidable col-
lection 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 col-
lection of valuables, Monsieur Le Quoi had stepped behind
a counter, and, with a wonderful pliability of temperament,
bad dropped into his assumed character as gracefully as ho
hacf'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 im-
possible to look at the prices asked for his goods by ^' so
pretty-a-spoken man.'' Through these conjoint means, the
afiairs of Monsieur Le Quoi were again in a prosperous con-
dition, and he was looked up to by the settlers as the second
best mai^ on the " Patent."
This t^rm, Patent, which we have already used, and for
which we may have further occasion, meant the district ot
country tiaat had been originally granted to old Hiyoi
Effingham, by the ** King's letters patent,'' and which haj
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^
Patent."
Major Hartmann was the descendant of a man, who, in
company with a number of his countrymen, had ralgraieilt
with their families, from the banks of the Rhine, to tbost
of the Mohawk. This transmigration had occurred as fai
back as the reign of Queen Anne, and their desccndaqlt
were now living, in great peace and plenty, on the fertilt
borders of that beautiful stream.
TUB nOMEERS, tS
The Germans, or "High Butchers," as they were called,
to distinguish them from thp original, or Low Dutch, colo-
nists, were a very peculiar people. Tliey 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 de%l
suspicious of strangers ; of i.nmoYeable 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 hady
early in their acquaintance, formed an attachment for Mar-
maduke Temple, who was the only man that could not talk
High Dutch, that ever gained his entire confidence. Foqr
times in each year, at periods equidistant, he left his low
stone dwelling, on the banks of the Mohawk, and travelled
the thirty miles, through the hills, to the door of the man-
sion-house in Templeton. Here he generally staid a week,
and was reputed to spend much of that time in riotous living,
countenanced by Mr. liichard Jones. But eveiy one loved
]M,even to Remarkable Pretty boneS} to whom he occasioned
some additional trouble; he was so frank, so sincere, and,
at^times, so mirthful. He was now in his regular Christmas
visit, and had not been {n the village an hour, when Richard
summoned him to fill a seat in the sleigh, to meet the land-
lord 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 endea-
vour to provide for the wants of this world, before our at-
tention 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 introduc-
tion 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 among the tenantry of Marmaduke ; and, when we take
into consideration the variety of the religious instructioii
which they received, it can easily be seen thai \\. qqmX^ xtfstV
well be otherwise.
$4 THB PIOKEERS.
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 meaanre
originated Mrith 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 ap-
peared 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 tra-
veller might as often see stuck into the fissure of a stake
that had been erected, at the point where the footpath from
the log cabin of some settler entered the highway, as a post-
oflBce 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 pre-
cious commodity. To these flourishing resolutions, which
briefly recounted the general utility of education, the politi-
cal and geographical rights of the village of Templeton to a
participation in the favours of the regents of the university,
and 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 gene-
rosity, whenever there was the prospect of a donation to
second the request. Eventually Judge Temple concluded to
bestow the necessary land, and to erect the required edifice
chiefly at his own expense. The skill of Mr., or, as he was
now called, from the circumstance of his 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 these archi-
tects on the occasion ; nor would it be decorous so to do,
seeing that there was a convocation of the society of the an-
cient 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 plani
as, ;in their wisdom, they deemed to be for the best Tbf
knotty point was, however, soon decided ; and, on the ^-
lUB PIONEERS. 85
pointed day,"the brotherhood marched, in great state, dis-
playing 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 in-
tended edifice. Here Richard laid the corner-stone, with
great state, 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, Mhen 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 dusk of the eveningt
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 the 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 ofl*ered 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 day-
light shone with prodigious facility. On its front were divers
ornaments in wood, defigncd by Richard, and execut-
ed by Hiram ; but a window in the centre of the second
story immediately over tbe dooi or grand entrance,
and the *' steeple," were the pride of the building. The
former was, we believe, of composite order, for it in-
cluded in its composition a multitude of ornaments, and a
great variety in figure. It consisted of an arched compart-
ment in the centre, with a square, and smaller 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 dimen-
sions 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 contri-
buted 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 (Mf
lead colour with which they had been originally clothed
The ** steeple" was a little cupola, reared on \Xifc 'H^rt cwis^r
66 THB PtONfifiRS.
^re of theroof, on fear tall piUurs of pine, that were Bated
with a goage, and loaded with mouldings. On the tops of
the columns was reared a dome, or cnpola resembling in
shape an invefted tea-eup without its bottom, ttom the cen-
tre of which projected a 8pij^ ot rfiall of wood, transfixed
with two iron rods, that honS im their ends the Ittters N.
S. . and W*, in the same metal. The whole was snr^
mounted 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 favom'ite of^the epicures
in that country, which bore the title of^'^Make fish^' and
doubtless the assertion was true ; for although intended to
answer the purposes of a weathercock, the fish was observdl
invariably to look with a longing eye, in the directien of the
beautiful sheet of water that lay imbedded in the mountains
of Templcton.
For a short time after the charter of the regents was i^.
ceived, the trustees of this institution employed a Vraduate
of one of the eastern colleges, to instruct sucn youth as as.
plred to knowledge, within the walls of the edifice which we
have described. The upper part of the buitding was one
apartment and was intended for galA*days and J^ibitions ;
and the lower contained two, that were intended for !he
great divisions of Education, viz. the Latin lsttl the Eng-
lish scholar. The former were very numerous ; thougL 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 the temple of Minerva, however,
was known to get se far as to attempt a translation of Tiigill
He, indeed, appeared at the annual exhibition, to the pro,'
iligious exultation of all his relatives, a farmer'jft family ra
the vicinity, and repeated the whole of the first eclogue
from memory, observing the intonations of the dialogue with
Jndgm^it and effect. The sounds as they preeeeded kom
sis. mouth, of
** Titty-ree too patty-lee ree-coo-bang snb-ti^ me-nee taagy
Syl-ves-trem tea-oo-i-moo-sammed-itaa-ns aa-ve-ny.''^
were the last that had been heard in that building, as pro*
trably they were the first that had ever been, in that sam^
language, there or any where else. Tor by this fime
tiie trustees had diacovered that they had anticipatflJI
tiie tige, and the ifatruct$rf or principal, was superseded iij
THB PtONKrS ^7
a fiMtter, ^b^ went on to tcah tbe more humble lesson
ef ^ tbe more haste, the worse speed/' in good plain, En-
glish.
From this time until the date of oqr incidents, the Aca-
demy was a common country school ; and the great 'room of
the building was sometimes used as a court-room " on ex-
tniordinary|[trials ; sometimes for conferences of the religious
and the morally disposed in the evening; at others for a
liall, in the afternoon, given under the auspices of Richard :
and on Sundays, 'ivariably, as a place of public worshi.
When an itinerant priest, of the persuasion of the Metho-
dists. Baptists, Universalists, or of the more lumerous sect
of the Presbyterians, was accidentally in the neigh bourhood,
lie was ordinarily invited to officiate, and was commonly
rewarded for his services by a collection in a hat, before the
eongregation separated. When no such regular minister
coffered, a kind of colloquial prayer or two was made by somo
of tho more gifted members, and a sermon was usually read,
from Sterne, by Mr. Richard Jones.
The consequence of this desultory kind of priestlioc^d was,
as wo have already intimated, a great diversity in opinion
on tbe more abstruse points of our feith. Bach sect had its
adherents, though neither was reglarly organized and dis-
ciplined. Of the religious education of Marmaduke we h ive
already written, nor was the doubtful character of h js fai^h
completely removed by his marriage. The mo^b ir of Eliza-
beth was an Episcopalian, as, indeed, was tho nither of the
Judge himself; and the good taste of Marmaduke revoHol
at the familiar colloquies which the leaders of the conf*.*
cnccs 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 indexible in his opinions. Indeed, he had once or twice
essayed to introduce the Episcopal form of service, on tho
Sundays that their pulpit was vacant : but Richard was a
Pfood deal addicted to carr^'ing all things to an excess, and
then there was something so papal in his air that tho greater
part of his hearers deserted him on the seoon4 Sabbath on
tho third, his only auditor was Ben Pump ! Before the war
of the revolution, the English church was supported. In
their colonics, with much inter-ist, by some of its adherents
in the mother country, and a few of the congregations wero
very amply endowed. But, for a season, after the indcpen-
icnee of ihe states was established, this cct ?f ChnsU^jXA
anguished, for the want of the higt est oi dov :U\ft v^vi^^V^^^
68 THE PIONEKBS.
Pioas and suitable divines were as 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
"ame nation. But unexpected difficulties presented them-
selves, in the oaths with which the policy of England had
fettered their establishment; and much time was spent, be-
fore a conscientious sense of duty would permit the prelates
of Britain to delegate the authority which was 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 ordi-
nary ministrations 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 itself. A
small and humble dwelling was prepared for his family, and
the divine had made his appearance in the place but a few
days previously to 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 bOw
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 Protes-
tant 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
sectaries to whom it was made. 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 Marmadoke's
notions on the subject of sectarianism, thought it most pru-
dent to be silent.
The expected evening was, however, the wonder of the
hour; nor was the curiosity at all diminished, when Richard
ii/i^ JBenjafliinJ onjthej'morning 9f the eventful day, were
THB PI0MEBB8.
9een to issue firom the woods in the ndghbourhood of the
Tillage, each bearing on his shoulders a large bunch of ever-
greens. This worthy pair was observed to enter the academyy
find carefully to fasten the door, after which their proceedings
remained a profound secret to the rest of the village; Mr.
Jones, before ho commenced this mysterious business, having
informed the schoolmaster, to the great delight of the white*
headed flock he governed, that there could be no sdiool that
day. Marmftduke was apprised of all tiiese preparations, hf
letter, and it was especially arranged that he and Elisabeth
(hould arrive in season, to participate in the solemnities of
the evening.
After this digressiim we shall return to our oarfativa.
^*
CHAPTEtllSu
Now all admire, in each bigb-flavqBT*ddi|]i;
The capabiUtiet of eesb fowl fish;
In order doe each guest aaaumes bis atatteii
Tbrobs high bis breast with fond antkipMion.
Ai^d prelibates the joys of masticatioiu
BBLI0aABALX41.
The apartment to which Monsieur Le Quoi handed Slisi-
beth 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 pro*
portions; 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. There was an enormous glass, in a gilt
frame, hung against the wall, and % cheerful fire, of the
hard or sugar-maple, bumino^ on the hearth. The latter
was the first object that struck the attention of the Judge,
who on beholding it, exclaimed, rather angrily, to
IRiehard
'* How often have I forbidden the use of the sugar-maple
for fires, in my dwelling. The sight bf that sap, as it exudes
with the heat from the ends of those logs, is painful to me,
Richard. Beally, it behoves the owner of woods so exten-
sive as mine to be cautious what example he^ %\:& \&
bis people, who are already felling, the foxe^XA, i% VL \iQ ^"^^^
b3
THE nONEEft5
eoald be foand to tlieir treasures, nor any limits to their ex-
lent. If we go on in this way, twenty years hence, we shall
ipant fael'
' Foei on these hills, cousin 'duke !*' exclaimed Richard
n derision '*fael for our fires! why, you might as well
Iredict that the fish will die, for the want of water in the
hike, because I intend, when the frost gets out of the ground,
fc) lead one or two of the springs, through logs, into the yil-
JEige. But you are always a little wild on such subjects,
Uarmadnke."
* Is it wildness," returned the Judge, earnestly, " to con-
leron a practice which devotes these jewels of the forest,
Siese precious gifts of nature, these mines of comfort and
Irealth, to the common uses of a fire-place ? But I must,
Ind will, the instant that the snow is oif the earth, send out
i party into the mountains to explore for coal."
" Coal \" echoed Richard; ** who the devil do you think
jrill dig for coal, when, in hunting for a bushel, he would
lave to rip up more roots of trees, than would keep him in
hel for a twelvemonth ? Poh ! poh ! Marmaduke, you should
lave the management of these things to me, who have a
^tural tarn that way. It was I that ordered this fire, and a
oble one it is, to warm the blood in the veins of my pretty
ousin Bess.''
" The motive, then, must be your apology, Dickon," said
he Judge. " But, gentlemen, we are waiting. Elizabeth,
Hy child, take the head of the table ; Richard, I see, means
t 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
ay grace, sir P 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 i;.race. * For
what we are about to receive, the Lord make us thankful.'
Gome sit down, sit down. Do you eat wing or breast.
ousin Bess ?"
But Elizabeth had not taken her seat, nor was she ill
tidiness to receive cither the. wing or the breast. Heir
ughing, dark eyes, were glancing at the arrangements of
te table, and the quality and selection of the food. The
yes of her father soon met the wondering looks his
aughter, and he said, with a smile
* You perceive, my child, how much we are indebted to
aarkablc, for her skill in housewifery; she has indeed
TH PIONEBRS. 01
provided a nohJe repast ; sach as well might stop the crqyw
ings of hanger/'
*' Law !'* said Remarkable, '' I'm glad if the Judge is
pleased; bat I'm notional that you'll find the sa'ce overdo no.
I thought, as Elizabeth was coming home, that a body coukl
do no less than make things agreeable/'
** My daughter has now grown to woman's estate, and is
from this moment mistress of my hoase/' said the Judge,
sternly ; '' it is proper that all, who live with roe, address her
as Miss Temple/'
' Do tell I" exclaimed Remarkable, a little aghast ; '* well,
who ever heerd of a young woman's being called MissF
If the Judge had a wife now, I shouldn't thing - of calling
iier any thing but Miss Temple ; but "
^* Having nothing but a daughter, you will observe that
style to her, if you please, in future/' interrupted Manna-
duke.
As the Judge looked seriously displeased, and, at such
moments, carried a particularly commanding air with him,
the wary housekeeper made no reply ; and, Mr. Grant en-
tering the room, the whole party were soon seated at tho
table. As the arrangements of this repast were mush in
the prevailing taste of that period and country, we shall en-
deavour 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 of American commerce. The knives and
forks were of exquisitely polished steel, and were set in un-
clouded 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, how-
ever, 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
Tegetables that the season and country afibrded. The four
corners were garnished with plates of cake. On one was
piled certain ourioifsly twisted and complicated fi%jiix^^
M nu noH
aalkd ^ Diiteaket/' On mnotber wei iKmps of a blaek*
looking substance, which, receiying its hae from molasaei^
was properly termed '' sweet-cake ,-** a wonderful faTouritt
in the coterie of Remarkable. A third was filed, to nse the
language of the housekeeper, with ** cards of gingerteead ;"
and the last held a *' plnm-cake," so called from the nnm-
ber of large raisins that were showing their black heads, id
a substance of a wonderfully similar ooloor. At each eer-
ner of the table stood saucers, filled with a thick fluid, of
somewhat equivocal colour and consistence, Tarlegated with
small dark lumps of a substanco that resembled nothipg
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 aboTC it,
tood another, of smaller aise, containing a motley-looking
pie, oom posed of triangular slices of apple miaoe, pump-
kin,'cranbprry, and eusUrd, so arranged as to form an en-
tire whole. Decanters of brandy, rum, gin, and wine, with
aaiidry pitchers of cider, beer, and one hissing Tessel of
** flip," were put wherever an opening would admit of their
introduction. Notwithstanding the siae of the tables, there
was scarcely a spot where the rich damask could be seen,
so crowded were the dishes, and their associated bottles,
plates, and saucers. The object seemed to bo profusion^
and it was obtained entirely at the expense of order and
elegance.
All the guests, as well as the Judge himself, seemed per-
fectly familiar with this description of ikre, for each one
commenced eating, with an appetite that promised to do
great honour to Remarkable's taste and skill. What ren-
dered this attention to the repast a little surprising, was
the fact that both the Crcrroan and Richard had been sum-
moned from another table, to meet the Judge ; but Major
Hartmann both ate and drank without any rule, when on
his excursions i 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 flre-wood,
and when the party were comfortably seated, and engagc4
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
vou have noticed. I have seen a man fell a pine, when he
has been in want of fencing-stuff, and roll its first cots Into
the gap, where he left it to rot, though iU top would 'have
THl PIONEIM. M
made rails enough to answer his purpose, and its batt
would hare sold in the Philadelphia market for twenty
dollars." '
* And bow ^he devil I beg your pardon, Mr. Grant,"
interrapted Richard ; ** but how is the poor devil to get his
bgs to the Philadelphia market, pray? put them in his
pocket, ha! as yoa would a handful of chestnuts, or a banch
of chicker-berries P I should like to see you walking up
High-street, with a pine Jog in each pocket! Poh ! poh I
cousin 'duke, there are trees enough for us all, and some
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 bis 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 sar^
* 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-topy as I call the Squire's look-out, but I set my com-
pass, 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 hea-
ven. 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, bj
the lord Harry, as I was
'* It is well, Benjamin," interrupted Marmaduke, observ-
'ing his daughter, who manifested evident displeasure at the
major-domo's familiarity ; '* but yon 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 Re-
markable Prettybones ; just take the stopperoflf 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
Iho truth of Benjamin's assertion the housekeeper would
liave furnished, if she dare ; but the Judge looked sternly
at her, and, unwilling to incur his resentment, yet unable to
contain her anger, she threw herself owl ol ^Xv^ x^wsw^^SSs^
m TKB nOMBBM.
a tosft of her body, that nearly separated her firail wm in the
centre.
*' Richard/' said Marmaduke, obserring that his diaplea*
snre had produced the desired effect, ** can yon Inibrm rot
of any thing concerning the youth whom I so unfortunately
wounded? I found him on the mountain, hunting in com-
pany with the Leather-stocking, as if they were of the same
family ; but there is a manifest difference in their manners.
The youth deliTera himself in chosen language, such as is
seldom heard in these hills, and such as occasions great sur-
prise to me, how one so meanly clad, and following so lowly
a pursuit, could attain. Muhegan also knew him. Doubt-
less he is a tenant of Natty's hut. Did you notice the lan-
guage of the lad. Monsieur Le Quoi ?"
" Certainement, Monsieur Tempi*," returned the French-
nan, ** he deed conevairse in de most excellent Anglaise."
'* The boy is not a miracle,'' exclaimed Richard ; * T^e
known children that were sent to school early talk much
better, before they were twcWe years old. There was Za-
reed Coe, old Nehcmiah's son, who first settled on the
beaverdam meadow, he could wiite almost as good a hand
as n^self, when he was fourteen ; though it's true, I helped
to teach him a little, In the long oTenings, Bv|t this shoot-
ing gentleman ought to be put in the stocks, if he ever taki^
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
the blushes of a maiden, but Elisabeth started from the
reverie into which she had fallen, ind coloured to her ion-
head, as she answered
" To me, my dear sir, he appeared extremely skilfu), and
prompt, and courageous ; but perhaps cousin Richard will
say I am as ignorant as the gentleman himself.'^
** Gentleman !" echoed Richar') ; *' do you call such chaps
gentlemen, at school, Elisabeth ?"
'* Every man is a gentleman who knows how to treat a
woman with respect and consideration," returned the young
lady, promptly, and with an air of a little dignity.
*' So much for hesitatinf; to appear before the heiress in
his shirt sleeves," cried Richard, winking at Monsieur Le
Quoi, who returned the hint with one eye, while he rolled
the other, with an expression of great sympathy* towards
TflB nowaxL M
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
shootinfi^ a bucki ha ! Marmaduke ?"
^'Richart,* said Major Hartmann, turning his grave
countenance towards the gentleman he adcEessed, with
much earnestness, "ter poy is goot. Hesavet your life, and
my life) and ter life of Tominie Grant, and ter life of ter
Frenchman ; and, Richart, lie shall never vant a pet to sleep
in Tile olt Frits Hartmaan has a shingle to coTer his b^
mit*
**WelI, well as you please, old gentleman," returned Mr*
Jones, endeavouring to look excessively indifferent; ''put
hhn into your own stone house, if you will, Major. I dare
say the lad never slept in any thing Mtter than a oariL shanty
in his life, unless it was some such hut as the cabin c
Leather-stocking. I prophesy you will toon spoii him ; aaf
one could see how proud he grew, in a shoit time^ just
because he stood by my horses' heads, while I tuittad tiem
into the highway.*
*' No, no, my old friend," cried Marmaduke, ** it aiiall be
my task to provide in aome manner ftnr the youth: I owe
him a debt of my own, besides the aervioe he has done m%
^iirough my friends. And vet I antieipate aome little troobie,
in inducing him to accept or my services. He showed a marked
dis!3:, I thought, Bern, to my offsr of a nsideBea within theae
walls for life."
^ Really, deat !r,^ said Elizabeth, projecting her beantiful
under-lip, "I have not studied the gentleman so closely as
to read his feelings in his countenance. I thought he might
Tery naturally feel nain from his wound, and therefoie
pitied him; but" and as she ipoka dw glanced her eye,
with a conscious timidity, towards the major-domo-^'* I dans
say, sir, that Benjamin can teU you aomcthing about him. He
cannot have been in ^e tillage, and Benjamin not have seen
him often."
" Ay ! I have fteen the boy before," said Benfamin, who
wanted no other encmuragement to ipeak: ''he hafs been
backing and filling in the wake of Natfer Bnmpe, througli
the mountains, after deer, ISdo a Detdi Umg boat in tow
of an Albany rioop. He caftte a geod nfle too. llie
Leather-stocking said, in My tMamg, before Betty Hal-
lister'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 ude, since the hard frosU asA ^^^ ^sd^ss^k^
96 THB PIONEERS.
bave driven the deer to her, he will be doing the thing
that is good. Your wild-cat is a bad ship-mate, and
should be made to cruise out of the track of all Christian
men."
** Lives he in the hut of Bumppo?*' asked Marmaduke,
with some interest ; and the full black eyes of Elizabety
resting intently on the scorched visage of the steward, while
she waited his reply.
" Cheek by jowl," said Benjamin ; "the Wednesday wit
be three weeks since he first hove in sight, in company with
Leather-stocking. They had captured a wolf betweei
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, Fd bring him to
the gangway for it yet. There's a very pretty post rigged
along side 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
f a better."
** Yon are not to credit all the idle tales, sir, that you heal
of Natty," said the Judge ; " 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, senten*
tiously.
'*That for his rifle!" exclaimed Richard, snapping his
fingers ; " Ben is right, and T' He was stopped by the
sounds of a common shipbell, that had been elevated to th9
belfry of the academy, which now announced, by its inces-
sant ringing, that the hour for the appointed service hsui
arrived. ** ^ For this, and every other instance of his goodr
ness' I beg pardon, Mr. Grant ; will you please to ridturn
thanks, sir? it is time we should be moving, as v^e are *he
only Episcopalians in the neighbourhood ; that is, I, and
Benjamin, and Elizabeth."
The divine arose, and performed the office, meekly and
fervently, and the whole party instantly prepared themselves
for the ehurch, or rather academjr.
'^,a PIOMEJt. 07
CHAPTER X
AimI* ealling sinfal man to prAj,
Iioud, long, and deep the bell hid toll'd.
SCOTT'l BCKOHEt*
M hiUi Richard and Monsieur Le Qaoi, attended by Benja-
min, proceeded to the academy, by a foot-path that wai
trodden in the snow, across the grounds of the Mansion-
Jiouse, the Judge, his daughter, the Divine, and the Major,
took a more circuitous route to the same place, through the
treets of the village.
The moon had nsen, during the time that our travellers
were housed, and its orb was shedding a flood of light over
the dark outline of pines, which crowned the eastern moun-
tain. In other climates, the sky would have been thought
clear and lucid for a noon-tide. The stars twinkled in tiie
heavens, like the last faint glimmerings of distant fiire, 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 up-
wards a light that was brightened by the spotless colour if
the immense bodies of snow which covered the earth.
Elizabeth employed herself with reading the signs, one e/
which appeared over almost every door, while the slelgb
moved, steadily and at an easy gait, along the principal
street Not only new occupations, but names that wero
strangers to her ears, met her bewildered 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 taste e
Richard and Benjamin was to be made.
After viewing the buildings, which really appeared to
soaie advantage, under the bright but mellow light of tlie
moon, our heroine turned her eyes to a scrutiny of the dif*
fcrent figures that they passed, in search of any form that
she knew. But all seemed alike, as muffled in cleaks^
hoods, coats, or tippets, they glided aleng the narrow pas-
sages in the anew, which led under the houses, half hid b^
the bank that bad boon thrown up ia caNa\.\ia^ \k^ ^*^^'^.
98 THE PfONBEBS.
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 ano-
ther that intersected it at right angles, and which led direct-
ly 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
illage, and by its well-trodden door^way, 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 dormant iHudows in tberoo^
the paint, the window-shutters, and 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 ale-house post, and represented
the figure of a horseman, armed with Sabre and pistols, atad
surmounted by a bear-skin cap, with a fiery animal that he
bestrode *' rampant.*' All these particulars Were easily to
be seen, by the aid of the m6on, together With a tow of some-
what illegible writing, in black paint, but In wbleb Elim-
beth, to whom the whole was familiftr, read with faoilltyy
" The Bold Dragoon.''
A man and a woman were issuing from the doot ot this
habitation, as the, sleigh was passing. The fonher MOTed
with a stiff, military stepj that was a good deal heightened
by a limp that he had in one leg ; but the woman adv6eed
with a measure and an air that seemed not partienlafl^ re-
gardful of what she might encounter. The light of the mooa
fell directly upon her full, broad, and red yisage ; exhibiting
her masculine countenance, under the mockery of a ftrfiied
cap, that was intended evidently^ to soften the lineanHents of
her features. A small bonnet of black silk, and of a slightly
formal cut, was placed on the back of her head, but so at
not to shade her yisage in the least. Her face, as it encoun-
tered the rays of the moon from the east, seemed not onliire
a sun rising in the west. She adyanoed, with masocihae
strides, to intercept the sleigh, and the Judge, direetlttg the
namesake f the Grecian king, who held the lines, to eheok
his horses, the parties were soon near to each other.
' Good luck to ye^and a wiSeome home, Jooge V cried the
female, with a strong Irish accent ; ** and Fm sure it's .to me
that ye'r always wilcome. Sure ! and there's Miss *IAatf
Bd a fine young woman is she grown, Wliitt a 1 artaes
i
THB PlONESftS 19
friyiild A^ bo ipivipg the young men now, if there waf sM
Uiipg as a rigiment in the town. Och ! but it's idle to talk
of sicb vanities, when the bell is calling us to mateing, jist
as we shall be calFd away unexpictedly, some day, when we
are the laist cajkilating on it. Good even, Major ; will I
piake 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 yon, Mrs. HoUister," returned the voice
of EUaabeth. ** I have been tr^'ing to find a face that I knew ,
since wc left the door of the Mansion-house, but none have
I seen except your ewn. Your house, too, is unaltered^
vrhile all the others are so changed that, but for the places
where they stand, they would be utter strangers, I observe
you keep also the dear sign, that I saw cousin Richard paint,
and even the nave at the bottom, about which, you may re-
member, you had the disagreement^'
" Is it the bould dragoon ye mann 1 and what name woam
e have, who niver was known by any other, as my husband
here, thr captain, can testify to. He was a pleasure to wait
upon, and was iver the foremost in the hour of need. Oeh !
but he had a sudden indl But it's to be hoped that he was
justified by the c^use. And it's not Parson Grant there
who'll gainsay that same. Tes, yes the squire would paint,
and so I thought that we might have M face up there, who
had so often shared good and evil wid us. The eyes is not
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 powld, talking, but will drop in, the morrow, after
sarvice, and jist 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, M^jor?"
To this question the German replied, very sententiously,
in the affirmative ; and, afier a few words had passed be-
tween the husband of this fiery-faced hostess and the Judge,
the sleigh moved on. It soon reached the door of the aca-
demy, 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 be-
fore the appointed place several minutes sooner than the
party in the sleigh. Instead of hastening into the room,
m ordei to cnioy the astonishment of the settlers, Richard
placed a hand in either pocket of his surtout, and affected
tQ walk about, in front of th^ academyi with great indiiO&Bi\^
MO TBS nOHEERS. *
The Tillagers" proceeded uniformly into the bailding^, wHll
a decorum and gravity that nothing could move, on such oc-
casions ; but with a haste that was probably a little' height-
ened by curiosity. Those wlio came in from the adjacent
country, spent some little time in placing certain blue and
white blankets over their horses, before they proceeded t
indulge their desire to view the interior of the boose. 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 familiprly acquainted he was with their circum-
stances ; and the nature of the answers he received proved
that be was a general favourite.
At length one of the pedestrians from the village stopped
also, and Sxed an earnest gaze at a new brick edifice, that
was throwing a lon^i; 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 ftr a public
square. On the side opposite to where stood Mr. Jones,
Ihe new, and as yet un^nished, church of St. PauFs 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 it had cost came from
the pocket of the landlord. It had been built under the
strong conviction of the necessity of a more seemly place
of worship than the long room of the academy,'' and under
the 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 ex-
pectation 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 Tem-
ple espoused the cause of any particular sect, the question
uould have been immediately been at rest, for his influence
was too powerful to be opposed ; but he declined all inter-
ference 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
df the Protestant Episcopal Church. But when the neutra-
tity of the Judge was clearly ascertained, Mr. Jones discover-
ed that he had to contend with a stifif-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 nat a
THB P10KEilS. Uil
who d' elt on* tbc Patent attcrcd a word in reply, in
the way of argument: and Richard thought, by the
time that he had gone through the settlement, the thing was
' to be 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 oi the most anxious
afternoons that he had ever known was spent by Richard in
a vain discussion with Mrs. Hollister, who strongly contended
that tho Methodist (her own) church was t^3 best entitled
to, and most deserving 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 bimiicif, that
is, as well as he knew how, and proceeded, step by Ucp, to
advance his purpose. -
The task of erecting the building had been unanimously
transferred to Mr. Jones and Hiram Doolittle. Together
they had built tho mansion-house, the academy, and tkc
jail ; and they alone knew how to plan an4 rear such a
structure as was now required. Early in the day, these
architects had made an equitable division of their duties,
Tu the fominr was assigned the duty of making all tbc
plans, and to the Jatter, tho labour ot super! ntcmling the
execution.
Availing himself of this advantage, Richard silently deter-
mined that the windows should have the Roman areh as the
first positive step he would tak^ in eflccting his wishes. Ab
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 communi-
cated his wishes to Hiram with great caution; and, without
in the least adverting to the spiritual part of his piojcct, he
pressed the point a little warmly, on the score of architec-
tural beauty. Hiram heard him patiently, and without con*
tradicti n ; 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 ob
jcction was made in words, but numberless qnexpected dif*
liculties arose in the execution. At first, there was a scarcity
in the right kind of material necessary to form the frames;
/lut this objection was instantly silenced, by Richard run*
ninr his pencil through two feet of their length at one stroke.
Then tlic expense was mentioned ; but Rieha'd reminded
Hirani that his cousin paid, and that he was his trca%^\^x
This last intitoation had grei^t weight, aikd,i^V.:t ^xiW^vX'wgA
i3
102 THE PiONEIiRS.
protracted, but fruitlegs opposition, tbe work was suflbrcd to
proceed on the original plan.
Tbe next difficulty occurred in tbe steeple, wbicb Rlcbard
had modelled after one of tbe smaller of those spires that
adorn tbe great London Cathedral. The imitation was some-
what lame, it is true, tbe proportions being but indiflferently
observed ; but, after much difficulty, Mr. Jones badt'-e satis-
faction of seeing an object reared that bore, in its outlines,
a prodigious resemblance to an old-fashioned vinegar-cruet.
There was less opposition to this model than to the win-
dows, for the settlers were fond of novelty, and their steeple
was without a precedent.
Here the labour had ceased for the season, and the diffi-
cult question of the interior lemained for further delibera-
tion. 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 tbe country but hU
own. Presuming, however, on the advantages Le had al-
ready obtained, be boldly styled the building St. ifaars,and
Hiram prudently acquiesced in this appellation, making,
however, the slight addition of calling it ** tfeu St. Paul's,"
feeling less aversion to a name taken from the English Ca-
thedral, 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 Doclittle.
He^was of a tall, gaunt formation, with sharp featui. , and
a face that expressed formal propriety, mingled with low
unning. Richard approached him, followed by Monsieur
Le Quoi, and the Major domo.
" Good evening. Squire/' saia RiUiard, bobbing bis head,
btrt^fibotrhfiwr?ii;2:.liis .b?.ii:s froin his pockets.
'* Good evening/Squire efe.KCLEL':^;a^t';raiffg ^yJfrtVwTiy,
in order to turn his head
"A cold night, Mr. Doo-ittle, a cold night, sir."
* Coolish," said Hiram ; ** a tedious spell on't."
'* What, looking at our church, ha ! it looks well by moon-
light; how the tin of the cupola glistens. I warrant you,
the dome of the other St. Pauls never shines so in thesmvi.
of London."
"^ It is a pretty meeting-house to look on," returned
Hiram, '* and I believe that Monshure Ler Quow and Mr
Peitguilliam will allow it."
' ^* Sairtainiee ! " exclaimed the complaisant Fr^ chmaii
" it ees ver fine.'
^M.tbought the Monshure would say so/' ebsenrcd HiriT
TUK PIONEERS. 109
*' Them last molasses that we had was excellent good. It
isu likely that you have any more of it on hand V
""Ah! oui; ees, sair," returned Monsieur Le Qnoi, with
a slight shrug of his shoulder, and a trifling grimace, ** dere
is more. I feel ver happi dat you love eet. I hope dal
Madame Doleet' 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 hoiso
yet?"
No no no," returned Richard, speaking quickly, but
making a significant pause between each negative ** it re*
quires 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 difierent fashions in difierent countries."
" That there is," cried Benjamin ; ** now, in running down
the coast of Spain and Portingall, you may see a nunnery
stuck out on every head-land, with more steeples and out-
riggers, such as dog- vanes and weather-cocks, than you'll
find aboard of a three-masted schooner. If-so-bc 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 Radclifie-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 difl'erence in bulk. Mounsheer Ler Quaw here, has
been in foreign parts, and thof that is not the same as hav-
ing been at home, yet he must have seen churches in France
too, and can form a Sinall idee of what a church should be:
now, I ask the Mounsheer to his face, if it is not a clover
little thing, taking it by and large ?'*
* '* It ees ver apropos to saircumstouce,'' said the French-
man " ver judgement but it is in de catholique country
dat dey build ile vat youica]l ah a ah -ha la grande
oathedrale de big church. St. Paul, Londre is ver fine |
ver bootiful ; ver grand vat you call beeg ; but, Monsieur
Bsu, pardonnez moi, it is no vort so much as Notre
Dame'^
'' Ha ! Mounsheer, what is that you say ?" cried BetLi^r
mia^-'^ St. Paul's eburch not wortb so \si\M\k. a ^ )a
104 THE PIONEERS.
j|f ayhap yon may be thinking too, that tho itoyal Billy itn^
as good a ship as the Billy de Paris; bat she would bare
liok'd two of her, any day, and in all weathers."
As Benjamin bad assumed a very threatening kind of at-
titude, flourishing an arm, with a bunch at the end of 1%
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 misunder.
stand Monsieur Le Quoi and foi^get yourself. But here
comes Mr, Grant, and the service will commence. Let us
* t
go in.
The Frenchman, who receiTcd Benjamin's reply with a
well-bred good humour, that would not admjt of any feeling
)but pity for the other's ignorance, bowed in acquiescence,
and followed liis 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 along-side of Paul's, one might
put up with their jaw. It's more than flesh and blood can
Dear, 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 can-
nonades on their quarters such as, if they had only En-
glishmen aboard of them, would have font the devil."
With this ominous word in his mouth, Benjamin entered
thf 6harb !
CHAPTER XI.
And foolt, wbo came to scoflf, remained to praj.
Goldsuuth.'\
Notwithstanding the united labours of Richard and Ben-
jamin, the ** long-room " was but an extremelyj|plain and
inartificial temple. Benches, made in the coarsest*manner,
and entirely with a view to usefulness, were arranged in
rows, for the reception of the ^ngregation ; while a rough,
vnpainted box, was placed against the wall, in the centre of
the lenp;th of the apartment, as an apology for a pulpi).
Something like a reading-desk was in front of this rostriB),
and a small mahoganv table, from the mansion-house. '''
Tered with a *'^'%ess damask doth, stood a little "" one side,
THE PIONLbnS. 105
yj the'way of an altar. Branches of pines and hemlockj
were stuck in each of the fissures that offered, in the unsea-
soned, and hastily completed, wood-work, of both the build-
ing and its furniture ; while festoons and heiroglyphics met
the eye, in ^ast 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 with-
out shutters, it would ha^e 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
nir 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
ihe room, immediately before the pulpit, and a few benchei
jined this space, that were occupied by the principal per-
sonages 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 excep-
tion of Dr. Todd, no one else appeared willit;g to incur the
imputation of pride, by taking a seat in what was, literally,
tlic high place of the tabernacle.
Richard ' filled a chair, that was placed behind another
table, in the capacity of clerk; while Benjamin, after heap-
ing sundry logs on the fires, posted himself nigh by, in re
serve for any movement that might require his co-operation.
It would be greatly exceeding our limits to attempt a de-
scription of the congregation, for their dresses were as vari-
ous as there were individuals. Some one article, of more
than usual finery, and perhaps the relic of other days, waste
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, woollen,
black stockings ; that, a shawl, whose dies Vere as nume-
rous [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
nicmber, in the *'down countries,'' precisely for no other
reason than because it was the best suit he had. Several,
porticularly of the younger men, displayed paQta.lQ^\v& ^
blue, edged with red cloth down the seams, ^^\XqIV^cl^^^;k\^
106 THE PlbNEBM,
ments of the ** Templeton Light Infantry/' from little vanity
to he seen in ** boughten clothes/' There was also one nr.an
in a '^ rifle frock/' with its fringes and folds of spotless whitei
striking a chill to the heart with the idea of its coolness *
although the thick coat of brown '* home made/' that wi^
eoncealed beneath, preserved to the wearer a proper degree
of warmth.
There was a marked uniformity of expression in conn-
tenance, 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 com-
mon 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 euriosity. 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, un-
til dear-bought experience taught him the useful lesson that
a sagacious people knew what was suited to their circum-
stances better than a casual observer, or a sojourner, who
was, perhaps, too much prejudiced to compare, and, peradr
venture, too conceited to learn.
Elizabeth soon discovered that she divided the attention
of the congregation, equally with Mr. Grant Timidity,
therefore, confined her observation of the appearances which
we have described to stolen glances ; bqt, as the stamping
of feet was now becoming less frequent, and even the cou^Ih
ing, and other little preliminaries of a congregation settling
themselves down into reverential attention, were ceasing,
she felt emboldened to look around her. Gradually ail
noises diminished, .antil the suppressed cough denoted .that
TBI nO!VEBlS l0t
it waA neceflsary to aToid singalaritj, and the most pfofoatid
stillness pervaded the apartment The snapping of the
fires, as they threw a powerful heat into the room, was alolio
heard, and eaoh face^ and every eye, were turned in expec-
tation on the divinci
At this moment) a heavy stamping of feet was heard in the
passage below, as if a iiew corner 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 di
rectly Mohegan, followed by the Leather-stocking and the
yonrg hunter, made his appearance. Their footsteps would
Hot have been heard, as they trod the apartments in their
mocoassins, 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
mannei that manifested his sense of his own dignity. Here,
drawing his blanket closely around him, so as partly to con-
ceal his countenance, he remained during the service, im-
moveable, but deeply attentive. Natty passed the place that
was so freely taken by his red companion, and seated him-
self on one end of a log that was lying near the fire, where
he continued, with his rifle standing between his legs, ab-
sorbed in reflections, seemingly, of no very pleasing nature;
The youth found a seat among the congregation, and ano-
ther dead silence prevailed.
Mr. Grant Aow 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 exatuple of Mr. Jones was unnecessary to teach the
congregation to rise : the solemnity of the manner of the di-
vine 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 confes-
sion, the oong^gation so far imitated his example as to
resume their seats; whence no succeeding efibrt of the
divine, during the evening, was able to remove them In a
body. Some rose, at timeSj but by far the larger part conti-
nued 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 all were to ^^xVv^^^^Xj^
Thus deserted hj his elerk, 'Jir Grant ou\\si\itb^ \a xi5^\
108 THE PIONEERS.
but no response was audible. The short and solemn paasOi
that succeeded each petition, was made; still no voice re-
peated the eloquent language of the prayer.
The lips ot Elizabeth moved, but they moved in vain ;
and, accustomed as she was to the service in the charohes
of the metropolis, she was beginning to feel the awkward-
ness of the circumstance most painfully, when a soft, low
female voice repeated, after the priest, ** We have left un-
donethosc things which we ouglit to have done.'' Startled,
at finding one of her own sex in that place, whg could rise
superior to their natural timidity, Miss Temple turned her.
eyes in the direction of the humble 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 ap-
pearance of this strange r,ibr such she was, entirely to Eliza-
beth, was light and fragile. Her dress, without being either
rich or fasliionable, was neat and becoming; and her coun-
tenance, though pale, and slightly agitated, excited deep in-
terest, by its sweet, and perhaps melancholy, expression;
A second and third response were made by this juvenile as-
sistant, when the rich, manly sounds of a youthful, 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, Qenjamin stood thumbing the leaves of a
prayer-book with great industry, but some unexpected diffi-
cullies prevented bis finding the place. Before the divine
reached the close of the confession, however, Richard re-
appeared at the door, and, as he moved lightly acro&s 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 sjnall open box, with the figures of **8 by 10"
written in black paint, on one of its sides ;. which having
E laced in the pulpit, apparently as a footstoolfor the divine,
e returned to his station in time to say, most 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 corioas
attention.
The long experience of Mr. Grant had admirably qualified
him to perform with success his present duty. He well un-
derstood the character of his listeners, who were mostly a
Vrimitive people in their habits ; and who, being a good deal
Addicted to subtleties and nice distinctions in their
THB HOIfEKRM. lOf
opinions, viewed the introduction into their spiritaal worshij^
of any such temporal assistance as form, not only with jea-
lousy, but frequently with disgust. He had acquired mnclk
of bis knowledge from studying the great book of hum-iD
nature, as it lay open in the world ; and, knowing how dan*
gerous it was to contend with ignorance, uniformly endear-
voured to avoid dictating where his better reason taught hint
it was the most prudent to attempt to lead. His orthodoxy
had no dependence on his cassock ; he could pray, with fer-
iDur and with faith, if circumstances required it, without the
assistance of his clerk ; and he had even been known t
preach a most evangelical sermon, in the winning manner
of native eloquence, without the aid of a cambric handkev-
chief.
In the present instance he yielded, in many places, to tfce
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 oflfensive, and more conformant
to his or her own notions of devout worship, than they had
been led to expect from a service of forms. Truly, Richard
found in the divine, during the evening, a most powerful
co-operator in bis 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 contradictionsy
and those fluent rules for moral government which would
reduce the Saviour to a level with the teacher of a school of
ethics. Doctrine It was necessary for him 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 ackoowledgment of either the super-
ficial nature of his creed, or his own inability to defend it.
We have already said that^ among the endless variety o^
their 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, aU
Jiough none were entirely exempt from the influence of hisi
easons, 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, *^ \\. c;^xi ^^^^
surprise that eieeds, so very diffeient \i\ l\iw \.^tLCitiCv^^
K
110 TBI
sboald grow out of a feli^ioli, feTCwled^ it is t#tt, btft irBilto
reTelations are obscared by the lapse of tkgei a&d trkoae
doctrines were, after the fashion of the cotitStrfes In WhieB
they were first proranlgated, freqaentljr delivered idparables,
arid in a language abounding in metaphors, and loaded with
%ares. On points where the learned hare, in pctiity of
hearty been compelled to differ, the unlettered will oeees*
sarily be at variance. But, happily for us, my brethren, the
fountain of divine love fiows from a source too pure to admit
of pollation in its course ; it extends, to those Who drink of
its vivifying waters^ the peace of the righteous and life
everlasting ; it endures tbroiigh all time, and it pervades
creation. If there be mystery in its workings, it is the mys-
tery 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 reqaited to believe
in doctrines that seem not in conformity with the deductions
of human wisdom, let us never forget that such is the man-
date of a wisdom that is infinite. It is sufficient for us that
enough is developed to point our path aright, and to direet
oor wandering steps to that portal which shall opea oa the
Hght of an eternal day. Then, indeed, it may be hunbly
hoped that the film, which has been spread by the subtleties
of earthly arguments, will be dissipated by the spifUMl
tight of heaven ; and that our hour of probation, by the ai4
of divine grace, being once passed in triamph, wHI be fol-
lowed by an eternity of intelligence, and endless ages of
fraitioB. All that is now obscure shall become plain to einr
expanded faculties ; and what to otr present senses may
seem Irreconcileable to oar limited notions of tnercy, of jus-
tice, and of love, shall stand irradiated by the light of trutk',
confessedly the suggestions of Omnlsoieneey and lie aete eC
an All-powerful Berievolence.
** What a lesson of humility, my brethren, Aight Hot eaek
of us obtain from a review of his infant hours, flfid the reeol-
leetion of his juvenile passions! Hofv differetfUy do tiMt
same acts of parental rigour appear, in the eyes of tbe Mr^
fering child, and of the chastened man ! Wheti the soffhtat
Would supplant, with the wild theories of his Worldly wis^
dom, the positive mandates of inspiration, let hifti reuMiaMr
the expansion of his own fMble intellects, and paiHe-^tet
him feel the wisdom of Qod, in what is partially eoi0d^l6d,
as well as in that which is revealed ; in shorty let hiM sul^
stitute humility for pride of reason let him have luth^ HM
" The ccmsideraiicfa of thhi M^^ ia Ml ^
THB PIONEBM. U^
m hearers, and does not fail to bring with it lessons of hu*
milky and of profit, that, daly improved, would both chasten
the heart, and strengthen the feeble-minded man in his
coarse. It is 4 blessed consolation to be able to lay the
inisdoubtings of oqr 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 son* It teaches *ns a les-
son of humility, by impressing us with the imperfection of
human powers, ana by warning us of the many weak pointy
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 sooth 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 sav-
ing faith and the corollaries of a philosophical theology ;
and it teaches us to reduce oar self-examination to the test
of good works. By good works mu^t be understood the
fruits of repeatanee, the ebisfest of whieh is charity. Not
that charity only, which eauses as to help the needy and
comfort the suffering, but that feeling of universal philan-
thropy, 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, m;^ brethren, which I would
feather from the consideration of this subject, is most strongly
locnlcated by our humility. On the leading and essential
points of our faith, there is but little difference, among those
classes of Christians who acknowledge the attributes of the
. Saviour* and depend on his mediation. Bqt heresies have
polluted every cfiurch, and schisms are the fruits of dispu-
tation. In order to arrest these dangers, and to ensure the
anion of his followers, it would seem that Christ had esta-
blished his visible church, and delegated the ministry.
Wise and holy men, the fathers of our religion, have ex-
pended 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 evan-
gelical discipline. That this discipline must be salutary is
evident from the view of the weakness of human nature that
W0 have already taken : and ths^t 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,'' (kc.
With this ingenious reterence to his own forms aud ^OGOr
nbtry, Mr. Grant concluded his discout^^. ^Yi^ \SkilX'$i^^
113 THE PIONBEM.
found attention had been paid to the sermon during tite
whole of its delivery, although the prayers had not been re-
ceived with such a perfect demonstration of respect. This
was by no means an intended slight of that liturgy to which
the divine had alluded, but was the habit of a people who
owed their very existence, as a distinct nation, to the doc-
trinal character of their ancestors. Sundry looks of private
4lissatisfaction 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. Grants dispersed in silence,
and with great decorum.
CHAPTER XII.
Your creeds and dogmas of a learned cbaroh
May build a fabric, fair with moral beauty ;
But it would seem that the strong band of God
Can, only, 'rase the devil from the heart.
Ddo.
While the congregation was separating, Mr. Grant ap-
iproached the place where Elizabeth and her father were
'Seated, leading the youthful female, whom we have men-
tioned 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, conld
probably contribute largely to the pleasures of his own child,
during her first privations, on her removal from the associa-
tions of a city to the solitude of Templef^on ; while Elizabeth,
^ho had been forcibly struck with the sweetness and devo-
tion of the youthful suppliant, removed the slight embarrass-
ment of the timid stranger, by the ease and finish of her own
manners. They were at once acquainted, and, during the
ten minutes that the *' academy" was clearing, engagenaents
were made between the young people, not only for their
pursuits during the succeeding day, after the service, but
they would probably have embraced in their arrangements
balf of the winter, had not the divine interrupted them by
saying
turn neNBfiBB. 116
** Gently, gently, my dear Miss Temple, or yoa will nake
my girl too dissipated. You forget that she is my house-
l^eeper, and that my domestic affairs must remain unat-
tended tO| should Louisa accept of half the kind offers that
yon are po good as to make her/'
'* And why should they not be neglected entirely, sir?"
interrupted JSIi^ftbetb, '' There are but two of you ; and
certain I aqti that my father's house will not only contain
you both, blit will open its doors spontaneously to receive
Si|ph guests. Society is 9 good not to be rejected on account
of cold forfa9, ii| this wUderncss, sir ; and I have often
heard my lather say, that hospitality is not a virlue in
a new country, the favour being conferred on the host by
the guest."
'* The msipner IP which Jqdge Temple exercises its rites
would copQrm this opinion," said the diviqe ; ^ but we must
not trespass too freely. Doubt not that you will see us often,
ipy cbilo particularly, during^ the frequent visits that I shall
be compelled to niake to the distant parts of the country.
But to obtain an influer^oe with such a people," he continued,
glancing his eyes towards the few who were still lingering,
as (?urious ohservers of the interview, ** a clergyman must
no^ awaken envy or distrust, by dwelling under so splendid
a roof as that of Judge Temple."
** Yon like the roof, then, Mr. Grant," cried Richard, who
had been directing the extinguishment of the (ires, and
pther little pecessi^ry duties, and who now approached, so
as to bear 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 m^me he can invent ; but vhoagh
'duke is a very tolerable Judge, sir, he is a very poor car-r
penter, let me tell h|m. 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 J
ever knew it to be done in old Trinity that is, if we except
the organ. But there is the schoolmaster leads a psalm with
a very good ^ir. I qsed tp lead myself, hut latterly I have
fling nothing bpt b^ss. There is a good deal of science to
tie shown in the bass, and it affords a fine opportunity to
show off a full deep voice. Be9jamin too, sings a good bass,
thongb he is often out in the words. Did you ever hear
l^enj^min /iing the * Bay of Biscay, O V '*
''I believe be gave ns part of it this evening," sai^ Mar,
ipadul^et laughing, ' There WM, now and then, a tearful
altaT^r in bis voice, ^nd it seems that M r^ Pea^^v^Vvojiv \%
ke most others who do one thing p^itlV^^MVactVi Ni^\V%
x3
f\4 THE PIONEERS.
knows noniing^ else. He has certainly, a wonderful par-
tiality to one tuue, 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 disserta-
tion with Mr. Le Quoi, as they descended the stairs, on the
subject of psalmody, which he closed by a violent enlogiaa
on the air of the *' Bay of Biscay, O," as particularly con-
nected with his friend Benjamin's execution.
During the preceding dialogue, Mohegan had retained his
seat, with his head shrouded in his blanket, as seemingly
inattentive to surrounding objects as the departing congre-
gation was, itself, to the presence of the aged chiet Natty,
also, continued on the log, where he had first placed him-
self, with his head resting on one of his hands, while the
other' held the rifle, which was thrown carelessly across his
Jap. His countenance expressed extraordinary uneasiness,
the occasional unquiet glances, that he had thrown around
him during the service, plainly indicated some unusual
causes for unhappiness. His continuing seated was, how-
ever, from respect to the !^dian 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, be exten-
ded his hand, and said solemnly
'* Father, I thank you. The words that have been said,
since the rising moon, have good upward, and the Great
Spirit is glad. What you have tcld your children, they will
remember, and be good." He paused a moment, and then
elevating himself to all the grandeur of an Indian chief, he
added ** If Chingachgook lives to travel towards the set*
ting 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 vnll believe hiin : for who can say that Mohegan ha
THE PIONEERS. HA
it
Let him place his dependeoce on the goodness ofDi-
t ine mercy/' said Mr. Grant, to whom the proud conscious-
ness of the Indian sounded a little heterodox, *' and it nevef
will desert him. When the heart is filled with love to God|
there is no room left 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 re-
spectful 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 yon appear to have
chosen. It is so unusual to find one of your age and appear-
ance in these woods, at all acquainted with our holy liturgy,
that it lessens at once the distance between us, and I feel
that 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 in
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
provedto the people here this evening."
" You give me great pleasure to hear you, 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
dissenting meeting-house T'
" No, no," interrupted the Leather-stocking, " I must
away to the wigwam : there's work there, and mus'n't be
orgotten, for all your churchings and merry-makings. Let
ae lad go with you and welcome; he is used to keeping com
^ny with ministers, and talking of such matters; so is oIl
John, who was christianized by the Moravians, aboutthe time
of the old war. But I am a plain, unlarned man, that has
sarved the king and his country in his day, ag'n 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
jieen the use of sitch in-door kind of work, though I have
lived to be partly bald, and, in my time, have killed two hun
di-ed beaver in a season, and that without counliii% 3ck^
rther game.- If you mistrust what I am leWm^ ^wjl,'^^^ ^'J^
116 THE riOKEBRS.
afik Chingacbgook there, for I did it in theheait of the ]f la-
ware country, and the old man is knowing to %he truth of
every word I say.*'
** I doubt not, my friend that yon havff been both a valiant
soldier and skilful hunter, in your day/' sai4 the divine ;
** but more is wanting, to prepare yoq for that end whiph
approaches. You may have heard the maxim that young
men may die, but that old men mwt.* "
* I'm sure I never was so great a fool as to expect to live
for ever," said Natty, giving one of his silent laugh* ' '* no
man need do that who trails the savages through tba 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 my-
self, as i plain to be seen ; for I've drqnK the Onondaga
water a hundred time?, while I've been watching the deer-
licksy when the fever-an-agy seeds was to be s^q in it, ap
plain and as plenty as you can see the rattle-snakes on old
Crumhorn. But then, I nevei expected to hold oat for e?er ;
though there's them living who have seen the Garman Flats
a wilderness; ay! and them that's larned, aqd acquainted
with religion too ; though you mip^ht look a week ppw, and
not find even the stupop of a pine on them { and that'p a
wood that lasts in the ground the better part of a hundred
years."
" This is but time, my good friend," returned Mr. Grant,
who began to take an interest in th^ welfare of his new
acquaintance, ^* but it is for eternity that I would have you
prepare. It is incumbent on you to attend places of pub-
lic worship, as I am pleased to see that yon haye 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 be-
hind you V
" It must be a young hand in the wooijs," 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 moun-
tains. No, no, I never expected to live for ever ; but I see,'
times be altering in these mountains from what ihey was
thirty years ago, or, for that matter, teu years, But might
makes right, and the law is stronger than ap old man, wber
ther he is one that has much larning, or only one like mc,
that is better now at standing at the passes than in followi-
ing the hounds, as I once used to could* Heigh ho } I p%
ver know'd preaching come into a settlement, bi|t it ma()e
game scarce, and raised the price of gunpowder; and ihaf's
a thing that's not as easily made as a ramrod or an Indian
lint.*'
THE PIONEERS. llT
The divine, perceiving that he had g^ven hi) opponent
argument, by his own unfortunate selection of a comparison,
very prudently relinquished the controversy, for the present ;
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
acccvoapany 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
;!be hut, and at the door of the building they separated.
After following the course of one of the streets of the vil-
lage for 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 of only one person to
walk in it, at a time. The moon had gained a height that
enabled her to throw her rays nearly perpendiculary on the
valley ; and the distinct shadows of the party flitted along
on the banks of the silver 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 to be 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
CI caking, at the impression of even her light footsteps.
The clergyman, in his dark dress of broad-cloth, with his
mild, benevolent countenance occasionally turned towards
his companions, expressing that look of subdue:! care that
was its characteristic, presented the first object of this singu-
larly constituted group. Next to him moved the Indian,
with his hair falling about his face, his head Uncovered, aifd
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 the air he breatlicd.
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 unensy
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 ditferencein the human
form, as the face of Mohegan, and the gentle counteuaiv^i^
of Miss Grant, with eyes that rivalled tl\e soU Vivx^ ^\ ^^
116 THE nOHBERS.
sky in colour, met his view, at the instant that each turned
to throw a glance at the splendid orb that lighted their path.
Their way, which led through fields, that lay at some dis*
tance in the rear of the house8,was cheered by a conversatioiv
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 an
idle curiosity to visit any other church than the one in whicl|
he has been educated, that I feel a strong curiosity to kpow*
the history of a life so fortunately regulated. Tour education
must have been an excellent one ; 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 to Judge Temple."
" Of this."
''Of this ! I was at a loss to conjecture, from your dialeot.
which does not partake, particularly, of the peculiariti^ or
any country with which I am acquadnted. xou have, tiieii|
resided much in the cities, for no other part of this country
is so fortunate as to possess the constat enjoymenf of oqr
excellent liturgy."
The young hunter smiled, as he listened to the divine,
while he so clearly betrayed from what part of the conntry
he had come himself; but for resins, probably connected
with his present situation, he made no answer.
" I am delighted to meet with you, my young friend, fo|r
I think an ingenuous mind, such as I doubt not years must
be, will exhibit ail the advantages of a settled doctrine and
devout liturgy. You perceive how I was coinpelled to bend
to the humours of n^y hearers this evening. Good Mn-Jones
wished me to re^d the communion, and in fact all the morn-
ing service ; but, happily^ the canons do not i^qire this in
an evening. It would have wearied a new congregation;
but to-morrow I purpose administeriqg the sacrament. Do
you commune, my ybuiig friend V*
*' T believe not, sir," returned the youth, with a little fin-
barrassment, that was not at all diminished by Miss Grant'^
pausing involuntary, and turning her eyes on him in evident
surprise '' I fear that I am not qualified ; I have never Jt^
approached the altar ; neither would 1 wish to do it, while \
find so much of the world clinging to my heart, as I npw
experience."
" Kacb must judge for himself " said Mr. Grant ; " thoPKh
I should think that a youth who had never been blown about
by the wind of false doctrines, and who has enjoyed tho ad-
THB PIONEERS. 119
Tsntages of oar litorgj for so many years in its purity, mifciit
Mfsly come. Yet, sir, it is a solemn festival, which none
sboaki celebrate nntiJ there is reason to hope it is not
lookery. I observed this evening, in your manner to Judge
Temple, a resentment that bordered on one of the worst of
fanmaii passions. We will cross this brook on the ice ; it
must bear ns all, I think, in safety. Be careful not to slip,
feiy ebild.'' While speaking, he descended a little bank by
the path, and crossed one of the small streatns that poured
tHeir waters info the lake ; and, turning to see bis daughter
pttss, obserred that the youth had advanced, and was kindly
diiecting her footsteps. When all were safely over, he
iMved up the opposite bank, and continued his didcourse.
'* It was wrong, my dear sir, very wrong, to suffer such feel-
ings 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 bis fathers have told him ; but the * Toung Eagle' has
the blood of a Delaware chief in his veins ; it is red, and
the stain it makc^ can only be washed out with the blood
of a Mingo."'^
Mr. G^rant was surprised by the interroption of the In.
dian, and, stopping, faced the speaker. His mild features
were eonfronted to the fierce and determined looks of the
ehief, and expressed all the horror that he felt at hearing
iseb sentiments from one who professed the religion of his
Saviour. Raising his hands to a level with his head, he
exelaimed
'* John, John I is this the religion that you have learned
from the Meratians? But no I will not be so uncharitable
as to suppose it. They are a pious, a gentle, and a mild
people, and eould nerer tolerate these passions. Listen to
the language of the Redeemer *But I say unto vou, love
your enemies, bless them that curse you ; do good to them
tbiil hilte you, and 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 klm."
The Indian heard the exclamation of the divine witk
attantioB; the unusual fire of his eye gradually softened,
and his muscles relaxed into their ordinary composuro;
baty slightly shaking his head, he motioned with dignity
* Hal eneifcy*
120 THE PIONBERfl.
for Mr. Grant to resume liis walk, and followed himself again
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 iu her steps, until
^ 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 yoath made
a tender of his assistance, by saying
''You are fatigued, Miss Grant; 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. Yon-
der 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, tremu-
lous voice; '*but I am startled by the manner of that In-
dian chief. 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 com-
panion to follow him. Drawing her arm through his own,
he lifted his cap from his head, allowing his 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 arc taught, from infancy, up-
ward, to believe it a duty, never to allow an injury to pass
unresisted ; and nothing but the stronger claims of hospita-
lity can guard one against their regentments, where they have
power to act their will."
" Surely, sir," said Miss Grant, involuntarily withdrawing
her arm from his, " you have not been educated with such
unholy sentiments."
'' It might be a sufiicient 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 heen taught deep and
practical lessons of forgiveness. I believe that, on this sub-
ject, I have but little cause to reproach myself; but it shall
be my endeavour that there yet be less."
While speaking he stopped, and stood with hU jm agaio
THEvPIONEBRi. 121
preferred to ber assistance. As he ended, she quietly ac-
cepted bb offer, and they resumed their walk.
Mr. Grant and Mohegan had reached the door of the for-
mer's residence, and stood waiting near its threshold for the
arrival of their younger companions. The former was ear-
nestly occupied in endeavouring to correct, by his precepts,
the evil propensities that he had discovered in the Indian,
during their conversation ; which the latter heard in pro-
found 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 neaily two feet
in thickness. Not a tree or a shrub was nigh it ; but the
house, externally, exhibited that cheerless, unfinished as-
pect, which is so common to the hastily-erected dwellings of
a new country. The uninviting character of its outside was,
however, happily contrasted 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 ap-
plied. The bright blaze from the hearth rendered the light,
that proceeded from the candle that Louisa produced, un-
necessary ; 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 manu-
facture 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 plain
est 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 defi-
cient in both.
One of the former represented a tomb, with a youthfuf
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 individu-
als, 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 iuikOQQuN. ^^^ assA.^
133 THB PIONEERS.
maideiiy who had been his companioDy was the only sar-
vivor of six children. The knowledge of the dependence,
which each of these meek Christians had on the other, for
happiness, threw an additional charm aroand the gentle,
bat 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 their 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
which you have received has eradicated most of those re-
vengeful 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
oonatitntes merit ; and I know not that he who claims affi-
nity to the proper owners of this soil, has not the best 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 arun,
from the head waters of the great spring, to where the
' crooked river ' is hid by the hills, is his. He has Dela-
ware blood, and his right is strong. But the brother of Mi-
quon is just : he will cut the country in two parts, as the
. river cuts the low -lands, and will say to the 'Tonng Eagle/
Child of the Dela wares ! 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 earnest manner of the
Indian. ** The wolf of .the forest is not more rapacious^ for
his prey, than that man is greedy for gold; and yet his glid-
ings into wealth are as. subtle as the movements of a ser-
pent."
"Forbear, forbear, my son, forbear,*' interrupted Mr;
Grant. ** These angry passions must be subdued. Tfio ac
oidental injury you have received from Judge Temple haa
keighteiied the sense of your hereditary wrongs. But re-
Ihat tbt one was unintentional, and that the othet
ft
THE PIONEERS. l23
b the effect of political changes, which have, iu 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 laxury and vice, and who
styled herself the Queen of Nations, in the drankenness of
her pride ? Remember the prayer of oar holy Litany, where
wetmplore the Divine Power ' that it may please thee to
forgive oar enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, and to turn
iheir hearts/ Thel^in of the wrongs which have been done
to the natives is shared by Judge Temple only in common
with a whole people, and your arm will speedily be restored
to its strength."
** This arm I " repeated the youth, scornfully, 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 there will a day of retribution come. No, no, no,"^
he continued, as he trod the floor more calmly * it is for
Mohegan to suspect him of such a crime, as an intent to in-
jure me : but the trifle is not worth a second thought.'^
He seated himself, and hid his face between his hands, as
hey rested on his knees.
*' It is the hereditary violence of a nativv^'s passion, my
child," said Mr. Grant, in a low tone, to his afi righted daugh-
ter, 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 advanta^yes of our ex
cellent Liturgy, have been able entirely to eradi cate the evij
But care and time will do much for him yet."
Although the divine spoke in a low tone, vet what he
nttered was heard by the youth, who raisej his head,
with a smile of indefinit'? 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 attri-
bute it, with your father, to the blood in my veins, although
I would not impeach my linkage willingly ; for it is all that
is left me to bosuit of. Yes ! I am proud of my descent from
a Delaware chief, who was a wamor 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 en-
tettd into a full and theological discussion of the dutx uC
124 THE PIONEERS.
forgiveness. 'Hie conyersation lasted for more than an hoot
when the yisiters 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 yean^
along the deep path ; his black, straight hair just visibJr
over the bundle formed by his blanket, which was son**.tim^
blended with the snow, under the silvery* ligh. o'the *ood
From the rear of the bouse 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 jhe spot, and saw
the tall 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
be knew the hut that was inhabited by the Leather-stocking
was situated on the margin ot the lake, under a rock, that
was crowned by pines and hemlocks. At the next instant,
the wildly-looking fornT entered the dark shadow that was
cast from the overhanging trees, and was lost to view.
'* It is marvellous how long the propensities of the savage
continue in that remarkable r^ce," said the good divine ;
*' but if he perseveres, as he has commenced, his triumph
shall yet be complete. Remember me, my child, to lend him
the homily ' against peril of idolatry,' at his next visit."
" Surely, father," cried the maiden, * you do not think
him in danger of relapsing into the worship of his ances-
tors ! "
'* 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 oar passions."
CHAPTER XIIL
And 111 drink out of the qaart pot,
, Here's a health to the barley mow.
Drinking Song*
On one of the corners, where the two principal streets of
Teropleton intersected each other, stood, aswc have already
mentioned, the inn, tliat was called the '^ Bold Dragoon.
THE HONKERS. 125
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 fre-
quently frustrates the best regulated plans. Thci 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 osten-
sibly 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 pas-
sage westward, until, in time, the regular highway was jaid
out along this courise, and houses were gradually built on
either side, so as efifectually to prevent any subsequent cor-
rection of the evil.
There were two material consequences which followed this
insiduous change in the regular plans of Marmaduke. The
one, that the main-street, after running about half its length,
was suddenly reduced to precisely that difference in its
width ; and the other that the *^ Bold Dragoon " became,
next to the Mansion-house, by far the most conspicuous edi-
fice 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 oc-
cupants 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 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 Templeton Coffee
House and Traveller's Hotel,'' and beneath them, *' By Hab-
Dakkuk Foote and Joshua Knapp/' T\i\^ nv^^ ^ V&^\?^
*3
THE PIODBERS.
^b\ to the " Bold Dragoon/' as^oar rea6t;rs vrlU Che laor*
readily perceive when we add that the same sonorous mimes
were to be seen over the door of a newly erected store in the
village, a iiatter's shop, and the gates of a tan-yard. But
either because too much was attempted to be well executed,
or that the ** Bold Dragoon " had established a reputation
that 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 con-
sort, were hardly housed, after their return from the academy^
when the sounds of stamping feet at their threshold announ-
ced the approach of visiters, vvho were probably assembling
with a view to compare opinions on the subject of the cere-
monies they had witnessed.
The public, or, as it. was called, the " bar-room," of the
** Ilold 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 minature palisadoes, and profusely garnished
with bottles and glasses. In the entraiice to this sanctuary,
Mrs. HoIIister 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 sh
thought the veteran had got the logs arranged in the mos I
judicious manner, '^ give over poking the fires, for it's no
good yee'll be doing, now that they burn so convaniently.
There's the glasses on the table fhere, and the mug that the
Doctor was taking his cider and ginger in, before the fire
here jist put them in the bar, will ye ? for we'll be having
the Jooge, and the Major, and Mr. Jones, down the night,
widout reckoning Benjamin Poomp, and the Lawyers ; so
yc'il 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
dancing up the kitchen, III jist turn her out of the house,
and flho may live wid the jontlemen that kape the Coffee-
bousf?,' good luck to 'em. Och ! Sargeant, sure it's a great
privilege to go to a mateing, where a body can sit aisj"^ wii
THE nONEERS. 1^
out joomping up and down so often as this Mr. Grant is do-
ing the same."
** it's a privilege at all times, Mistress Hollister, whether
we stand or be seated ; or, as good Mr. Whitfield 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 hus-
band, who composedly performed what she had directed to
be done. " It was a very pretty fight, Betty, that the Israel-
ites 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 laming, 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 infer, not only that they w^re horse, but well
disciplyn'd troops. Indeed, it says as much, as that they
were chosen men: quite likely volunteers; but raw dragoons
seldom strike with the edge of their swords, particularly if
the weapon be any way crooked."
** Pshaw ! why do ye bother 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, at first, 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 millaishy, 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."
" 1 must say, Mrs. HoUister," rejoined her husband, ** that
I have not often seen raw troops fight better than the left
flank of the militia, at the time you mention. They rallied
very 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 knew how to strike with the
edffe 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 it written, with the sword, and not with th^edgo ?
Now, a back-handed stroke, on the edge, takes long prac-
tice. 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 inimy what tUe^ ^^^^ cjH^vw^x^
128 Til PIONERfl.
; for^ althoag^h there was no oomniissfoned officer with
them, yet 1 think I may say,*' the veteran Jontinaed,
stiffening his cravat about the throat, and raising himsell
up, with the air of a drill-sergeant,-^'* they were Jed by a
man who know'd how to bring them on, in spite of the
ravine."
it
Is it lade on ye would V 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? OchI but iCs useless
tu talk, for he's gone this many a long 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 ihe liberty.
It's a poor tomb- stone they have given him, any way, ani
many a good one that died like himself: but the sign is very
like, and I will b^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 liltle 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 collec^
ting, until the benches were nearly filled with men of dif-
ferent occupations. Dr. Todd, and a slovenly-looking, half-
genteel young man, who took tobacco profusely, wore a coat
of imported cloth, cut with something like a fashionable airj
frequently exhibited a large French silver watch, with a chain
of woven hair, and who, altogether, seemed as much above
the artisans around him as he was inferior to the real gentle-
.man, occupied a high -back wooden settee, in the most com*
fortable corner in the apartment.
Sundry brown mugs, containing cider or beer, were
placed between the heavy andirons, and little groups wene
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 on
vessel^considered necessary for the same beverage ; but the
glass, or the mug, was passed from hand to hand, until a
ohaim in the line, or a regard to the rights of ownership,
would restore the dregs of the potation to Jiim who defrayed
the cost.
- Toasts were pnlformly drunk; and occasionally, so;ne
THE rioNEEns. ISg
ne, who conceived himself peculiarly endowed by nature
to shine in the way of wit, would attempt some such senti-
ment as ** hoping {hat he " who treated, ' mii^ht make a bet-
ter man than his father ;" or, ** live till all his friends wished
him dead;'' while the more humble pot.companion con-
tented himself by saying, with a most imposing gravity in
his air, " come, here's luck," or by expressing some other
equally comprehensive desire. In every instance, the veter-
an landlord was requested to imitate the custom of the cup-
bearers ttf kings, and taste the liquors he presented, by the
significalN. invitation of ''after you is manners;" with which
request he ordinarily complied, by wetting his lips, first ex-
pressing the wish of *' here's hoping," leaving it to the ima-
gination 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 com-
pounds required by her customers, with her own hands, and
occasionally exchanging greetings and inquiries concerning
the conditions of their respective families, with such of tho
yiilagers 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 con-
sidered 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. V A general silence was produced on all but the
two speakers, by the following observation from the practi-
tioner of the law
** So, Dr. Todd, I understand that you ha'vebeen perform-
ing an important operation, this evening, by cutting a
charge of buck-shot from the shoulder of the son of Leather-
stocking V*
** Yes, sir," returned the other, elevating his little head,
with an air of great importance. '' I had a small job up at
the Judge's in that way; it was, however, but a trifle te
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, wlcking wrth a shrewd look around the bar-io^ni
190 THE nONEElS.
'* There is sach a thing, I tappose, yon know, in law, as a
* filius nnllins/ ^
''Spake it ont, man/' exclaimed the landlady; ''spake
it oat in king's English ; what for should you 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 conversion of
the poor divils ; and then it will matter but little of wliat
colour is the skin, or wedder there be wool or hair on the
head."
" Oh 1 it is Latin, not Indian, Miss HoUister," 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
Einathan, 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 decree 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 learn-
ing 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. Ail
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 does," were
heard in difl'erent parts of the room, ai vouchers for the ad-
miration of his auditors. Thus encouraged, the lawyer rose
from his chair, and turning his back to the fire, 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
ot land, has any more right to shoot a body than another.
Wbat do you think of it, Dr. Todd ?"
" Ob, sir^ I am of opinion that the gentleman will soon be
THB PIONEERS. 13 *i
wetl, as I said Lefore ; the wownd isn't in a Tit al part ; ani
as the ball was extracted so soon, and the shoulder was wha
I call attended to, I do not think there is as much danger as
there might have been."
" I say, Squire Doolittle,*' continued the angry attorney,
" you are a magistrate, and know what is law and what it
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 me-
chanic like yourself, sir; and suppose that his family de-
pended 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 suppositious case was addressed to
the company generally, Hiram did not at first consider him-
self 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 in his manner.
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 greatest blessings that has been handed
down to us from our ancestors, that all men are equal in
the eye of the law, a^they are by nater. Though some
may get property, no one knows how, yet they are not privi-
leged to transgress the laws, any more than the poorest citi-
zen 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 Hjirtmann, and Miss Prettiy
bone, and one or two of the blacks by, when he said thathhi
pocket would amply reward me for what I did.''
** Was the promise made before or after the senrloQ
performed ?" asked the attorney.
132 THE PIONEERS.
** It mig^ht have been both," returned the discreet physi-
cian ; *' thoagh Tnt certain he said so, before I undertook
the dressing."
'^But it seems that he said his pocket should reward yon,
Doctor/' observed Hiram. *' Now I don't know that the
law will hold a man to such a promise ; he might give yoa
his pocket with sixpence in't, and tell you to take your pay
outon*t," ^
" That would not be a reward in the eye of the law," in-
terrupted 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 enume-
rate the witnesses, in order to substantiate this promise
also, at a future day, should it prove necessary. A subject
BO 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 com-
panion, his rifle ; and, although all of the company were
uncovered, excepting the lawyer, who wore his hat on one
tide, with a certain knowing 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 som^ little interest ; and the
landlord, between whom and Natty there existed much cor-
diality, on account of their both having been soldiers in
their 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 to
the fires, and the slight interruption produced by his en-
trance seemed to be forgotten.
" The testimony of the blacks could not be iAken, sir,*
continued the lawyer, ** for they are all the property of Mr.
Jones, who owns their time. But there is a wuy by which
Judge Temple, orany otber man, migbtbe made to pay for shoot-
ing 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, Misiei
THE PIONEERft. 133
l^odd," cried the landlady, " should yo be patting the matter
into the law at all, with Joodge Temple, who has a purse as
long as one of them pines on the hiil, 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 yo ^
would wish to tarrify him wid the law. I know of but one
objaclion to the same, which is an OTer-carelessness about
his sowl. It's nather a Methodic, nor a Papish, nor Pras-
betyrian, that he is, but jist nothing at ali : 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. ^ys 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*rou8," was heard from several mouths
at once, at this liberal ofier of the landlady ; while the hun-
ter, instead of expressing any of that indignation which he
might be supposed to feel, at hearing the liurt 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 weapon 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 iv Shirley's, and though they were nothing but bag-
gonet-mcb, 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 an overhand for the tomahawk, nevei tLivti^ iwq\^ ^^xk
IM THB PIONEERS.
ODce or twice, before lie was ranDing in for the scalps. Ah !
ham ! times is dreadfully altered since then. Why, Doctor,
there was nothing but a foot path, or at most a track for
pack-horses, along the Mohawk, from the Carman Flats
clean 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 sea-
son back of the Kaatskills, nigh-hand to the settlements, and
the do^s often lost the scent, when they com'd to them high-
ways, 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."
'Mt sames to me, Natty, but a sorry compliment, to call
your comrad after the evil one," said the landlady ; " and it's
no much like a snake that old John is looking now. Nim-
rood 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 be-
fore 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 reflections. " In the * fifty-eighth war,' he was
in the middle of manhood, and was 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 creater 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 bnghl as if theyiiad come from a pea-
cock's tail. He had coloured his sides, so that they looked
just like an atomy, ribs and all ; for Chingachg^ook bad a
great notion in such things : so that, what with his bokt^
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 that for the ' Big Snake,' that
he always dealt fair, and never scalped any that lie dida*t
kill with his own hands."
** Well, well," cried the landlady ; fighting is fighting, anj
way and pamr^ is different fashions in the thing; though I
TUB nONUSM* 196
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 hope, sargeant, ye niver was helping in sich evil worrek/'
* It was my daty to keep ray 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 lit-
tle of the savages, who kept on the flanks or in front, skrim-
maging. 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 en-
listed in the cause of Christianity, and civilized like old
John."
'^ Oh ! he wa9 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 them-
selves, 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, ioi-
lowed by the Indian himself.
CHAPTER XIV.
There's quart pot, pint pot, half-pint.
Gill pot, half-ffill, nipperkin.
And the brown bowl '
Here's a health to the barley mow.
My brave boys.
Here's a health to the barley mow,
DRINKING SONG.
SoMB little oommotien was produced by the appearance of
the new guests, during which the lawyer disappeared 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 to-
bacco-box was next produced, and a clean pipe was handed
him by the landlord. When he had sucoi^ed in raising a
196 THE PIONEERS
smoke, the Major gaye 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 saluta-
tions 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 Qnoi 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 indiTidual
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 ail rivals, and among all religions."
How liked you the sermon ?'*
'* Is it the sarmon ?'' ej( claimed 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 samcs 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. Aiv In-
dian 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 'spose 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 V*
**Well, well," cried Marmaduke, waving liis 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 imme-
diately behind Marmaduke ; and one, who was ignorant of
the extent of the Judge's observation, might have thought
be would have escaped notice. He was of a thin^ shapeless
THE PIONEERS. UtI
figure, with a discontented expression ot coantenance 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 Pum-
fret-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 Montagu, and he tuck
Absalom Bement, and they two tuck old Squire Napthali
Green. And so they hada 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 jist two hundred and eighty-six dollars and
9 half, after paying the men.'*
*' Hum,'* said Marmaduke : ^^ what did you give for the
place ?"
'' Why, besides what*s comin to the Judge, I g'in my bro-
ther 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 dol-
lars. But then I had a great crop off on't, and as I got jist
twenty-six dollars, and a half more than it cost, I conclude I
made a pretty good trade on'f
** 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 alookoi
sagacious calculation ; ** he turned out a span of horses,
that is with 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 vallood at
seven and a half so there was jist 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
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
cliurn, 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 oti'l, V "^^^^^^
3
188 THE PIONEERS.
to take the school in hand, till he conies back. If times
doesn't get wassin the spring, Fve some notion of going into
trade, or maybe I may move off to the Genessee ; they say
they are carry in on a great stroke of business that-a-way
If the wast comes to the wust, I can bat work at my trade
lor I was brought ap in a shoe m ana factory.''
It would seem that Marmaduke did not think his socie^
of sufficient value to attempt inducing him to remain when)
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 does the Judge bring us from the legislator?
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 hare
done nothing but fight," returned the Judge. '^ The charac-
ter of the nation seems cr:anged. I knew many French
gentlemen, during our war, and they all appeared to me to
be mt^n of great humanity and goodness of heart ; but these
Jacobins arc as blood-thirsty as bull-dogs,"
'^ There was one Roshambow wid us, down at Yorrek-
town,^' cried the landady ; ^* a mighty pratty man he was
too; and their horse was the very same. It was there that
the Sargant got the hurt in the leg, from the English bat-
teries, 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
for a moment, before he made this reply:
** You may make your laws. Judge, but who will you find to
watch the Jcriountains through the long summer days, or the
lakes at mght? Game is game, and he who finds may kill;
that has been the law in these mountains for forty years, to
my sartin knowledge ; and I think one old law is worth two
hew ones. None but a green-one would wish to kill a doe
with a fa'n by its side unless his moccassins was getting old,
or his leggins ragged, for the flesh is lean and coarse. But
a rifle rings along them rocks along the lake shore^ sometimes.
THk PIONEERS. 139
as if fifty pieces were fired at once : it would be bard to
tell where the man stood who pulled the trigger."
** Armed with the dignity of the law, Mr, Bumppo," re-
turned the Judge, gravely, " a vigilant magistrate can pre-
vent much of the evil that has hitherto prevailed, and which
is already rendering the game scarce. 1 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 fort-
night, and it floundered through the snow-bank 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 crcater
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 got another shot into it ; and I never draw'd
upon any thing that hadn't wings three times running, in
m}" born days. No, no. Judge, it's the farmers that makes
the game scarce, and not the hunters."
** Ter teer is not so plenty as in ter old war, Pumppo,"
said the major, who had been an attentive listener, admist
clouds of smoke; '* putter lant is not mate 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 stopt by sitch 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 be so prutent, as to look
ahet mit so much care."
** Maybe there wasn't so much 'casion," said the hunter, a
little sulkily ; when he sunk into a profound 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 Franco
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
th death of their Queen to the long list of their crimes."
\iO THF PIONEBRS.
** Les Betes !" ag^ain murmered Monsiear Le Quoi, tarning
himself saddenlj in his chair, with a convalsivc start.
** The province of La Vendue is laid waste, by the troops
of the republic, and hundreds of it's inhabitants, who are
royalists in their sentiments, are shot at a time. La Yend^
is a district in the southwest of France, that continues yet
much attached to the family of the Bourbons; doabtle^
Monsieur Le Quoi is acquainted with it, and can describe
it more faithfully."
'' Non, non, non, mon cher ami/' returned the French-
man, in a suppressed voice, but speaking rapidly, and gesti-
culating with his right hand, as if for mercy, while wiUi 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 seem to have a just right.*'
** Ah ha ! " exclaimed Monsieur Le Quoi, springing on
his feet, and flourishing both arms with great animation;
*' ces Anglais ! day be vipt I De French be one gallant peop',
if dere was gen'ral. Ah ha ! Toulon take ; c'est bon 1 I do
vish dat dey take Londre pardonnez moi ; mais, it ees bon I"
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
sj^n wading through the snow towards his little shop, waving
fiis arms on high, as if to pluck down honour from the moon.
His departure excited but little surprise, for the villagers ^ere
used to his manner; but, Major Hartmaan laughed outright,
for the first time during his visit, as he lifted the mug, and
observed
( Ter Frenchman is mat but he is good as for netting to
trink ; he is trunk mit joy/'
' The French are good soldiers," said Csqitain Hollister ;
* they stood us in hand a good turn, when at York town ;
nor do I think, although I am an ignorant man about the
great movements of the army, that his EKcellency would
have been able to march against Cornwallis, without their
reinforcements."
**Ye spake the trut*, Sargeant," interrupted his wife, " and
I would iver have ye be doing the same. I'ts varry pratty
man is the French ; and jist when I stopt the cart, the time
when ye was pushing on in front it was to, kape the riglcrs
THE PIONEERS. 141
Id, a riginient of the jontleman 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 hit of continental could they
muster among them all, for love nor money. Och ! the Lord
forgive me for swearing, and spakeing of sitch vanities : but
this I will say for the French, that they paid in good silver ;
and one glass would go a great way wld 'em, for the
ginVally handed it back wid a drop in the cup ; and thaf s
a brisk trade, Joodge, where the pay is good, ^nd the men
not over particular.'*
** 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 him-
self; ^'business will sometimes keep a man warm, the coldest
night that ever snapt in the mountains. Betty, your hus-
band 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. 1*11 bet a saddle of venison against a gray
squirrel that th^y are better in a week. And now, Mrs. Hol-
lister, I'm ready for a hissing mug of flip."
" Sure, I know'd yee'd be wanting that same," said the
landlady ; ** it's mixt and ready to the boiling. Sargeant,
dear, jist 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 flavourin it. Here, John, drink, man, drink. I,
and you, and Dr. Todd, have done a good thing ^i^ith 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 de
termined on the tune yet:
What is life bat a scene of care,
"Wbere each one mast toil in his way T ,
Then let as be jollj, and prove that we are
A set of good fellows, wbo seem verj lare.
And eii lang h and siof all the day, '^
\4St THE PIONEERS*
Then let ns be jollj,
Aod cast awajr follj.
For grief laros a black head to graj.
There, Muke, 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 yoa think of the
music ? as good as one of your war songs, ha V
*' Good,'' said Mohegan, who had been sharing too 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 Msgor, 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 he 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 nith 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 be-
tween 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 I merry Christmas to you, old boy ! Sunshine
and summer ! no I you are blind. Leather-stocking, 'tis
moonshine and winter; take these spectacles, and open
your eyes ^
So let ns.be jollr,
And cast away rollj, *
For grief taros a black head to gray.
^ Hear how old John turns his quivers. 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
attering jM^ monotonous tones, keeping time by a gentle
TH PI0NBB1 148
motion o( ttls head and body. He made use of bat few words
and such as he did utter were in his native language and
eonsequently only understood by himself and Natty. With-
out needing Richard, he continued to sing a kind of wild
melancholy air, that rose, at times, in sudden and quite ele
vated notes, and then fell again into the low, quavering
sounds that seemed to compose the character of bis 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 endeavour-
ing 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 heigth tliat 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, Cbingachgook, 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, ^'[1 am the Great Snake of the Dala-
wares ; I can track the Mingoes, like an adder that is steals
ing on the whip-poor-will'^ eggs, and strike them like the
rattlesnake, dead at a blow. The white man made the
tomahawk of Cbingachgook 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 shoald speak aloud, where his
Toice is now too low to be heard ?"
The appealof the hunter seemed, in some measure, tO' re-
eal the confused Ihculties of the Indian, who turned his faeo
towards the listeners, and gazed intently on the Judge. Ho
hook his head, throwing his hair back from his coiinto*
nance, and exposed Iris eyes, that were glaring ^UK^^tc^^
THE PtONREBS.
ei^ression of wild resentment. But the man was not him-
self. His hand , seemed to make a fruitless effort to release
his tomahawk, which was contined by its handle to his
belt, while his eyes gradually became again vacant. Rich-
ard at that instant thrasting 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 drank un-
til 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 ivhen 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 Rich-
ard 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 thnn 'duke, with all his lands, and
military lots,, and funded debts, and bonds, and mortgages.
Come let us be jolly.
And cast awaj folly
For grief
Drink, King Hiram drink, Mr. Doo-nothmg 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 re-
laxation. *' I rather guess we shall make a church on't yet.
Squire?"
^' A church, Mr. Doolittle! wc will make a cathedral of
t ! bishops, priests, deacons, wardens, vestry, and choir ;
^ gan, organist, and bellows ! By the lord Harry, as Benja-
.nin says, we will clap a steeple on the other end of it, and
make two churches of it. What say you, 'duke, will yoa
pay? ha! my cousin Judge, wilt pay?*'
" Thou makest such a noise, Dickon," returned Marma-
duke, *' it is impossible that I can hear what Dr: Todd is
saying. I think thou observedst, it is probable that the
ground will fester, so as to occasion danger to the limb, in
this cold weather?"
",Out of nater, sir, quite out of nater ;" said Elnathani
THB'nONEBRB 145
attempting to expectorate, bat sncceediDg onlj 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
nvith the ball in my pocket, should fester. I s*pose, as the
Judge talks of taking the young man into his house, it wilt
be most convenient if I make but one charge on't/'
'*I should think one would do,'' returned Marmadukev
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
hisown blanket, John continued forthe remainder of thenight.
In the mean time. Major Hartmann began to grow noisjr
and jocular ; glass succeeded glass, and mug after m^g wasr
introduced, until the carousal had run deep into the night,
cr rather morning ; when the veteran German expressed air
inclination to return to the Mansion-house. Most of the*
party had already retired, but Marmaduke knew the habitft
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 leavilig 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 Bouid Dragoon : and sure it's no baron
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-morronr
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 trac
them by one of these paths to a spot, where he discovered
em with nothing visible but their heads ; Richard singing;
in a most vivacious strain,
*' Come let ns he jolly.
And cast away folly, * ^
2, For grief tarns a black head to gmv."
145 THE PIONEERS.
CHAPTER XV.
As she Uj, M tint daj, IB the Bj af Bifcaj, O t"
Previously to the ocoarreoce of the scene at the ** Bold
Dragoon/' Elizabeth had been safely re-condacted to the
Mansion-hoase, where she was left, as its mistress, either to
amiue or employ herself daring the eyening, as best suited
her own inclination. Most of the lights were extinguished ;
but as Benjamin adjusted,, with gr^eat 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 soft*
ened by reflection and the worship: She recollected the
youth of Elizabeth, and thought it no difficult task, under
present appearances, to exercise that pqwer 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 gire
us to-night,'' said Remarkable. ^^'Them church ministers
be commonly smart sarmonfzers ; but they write down their
idees, which is a great privilege. I don't think that by nater
they are sitch tonguey speakers for an off-hand discourse aa
the standing-order ministers be.''
** And what denomination do you distinguish as the
standing-order?" inquired Miss Temple, with some surprise.
* Why, the Presbyterians, and Gongregationals, and
THS PIONKEilB. 147
Baptists too, forti-'now ; and all sitch as don't go on their
knees to prayer."
** Bj that rule, then, you woald call those who belong to
the persuasion of my father the sitting-order, obscrred
Elizabeth.*'
*' I'm sure I've never heer'n 'em spoken of by any other
name than Quakers, so called," returned Remarkable, be-
traving a slight uneasiness: '* I should be the last one to
call them otherwise, for I never io my life used a disparaging
tarm of the Judge, or any of his family. I've always set
store by the Quakers, they are sitch pretty-spoken, clever
people ; and it's a wonderment to me how your daddy 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,
tl.at has hitherto escaped me," said Miss Temple, ** I will
thank \ou to enquire whether the fire in my room bums : I
feel fatigued with my day's 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 her resent-
ment, and after pausing some little time, as a salvo 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 that the door closed on Miss Temple, Re-
markable commenced a sort of mysterious, ambiguous dis-
course, that was neither abusive nor commendatory of the
qualities of the absent personage ; but which seemed to be
drawing ni^b, by regular degrees, to a most dissatisfied des-
cription. The Majorrdomo 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
thd 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.
H8 . THfi nONEEKS.
''Come/' he cried, ''come, Mistress Remarkable, bring
yourself to an anchor in this here chair. It's a peeler *with*
oat, I can tell you, good woman; but what cares I? blow
high or blow low, d'ye see, itis 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
&we, but if there's any vartue in good maple wood, I'll wea
tlier upon it, before one glass, as much as ten points more
o that the Squire, when he comes home from Betty Hollis.
tor'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 it is you like oar 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 creater, Benjamin, when the notion takes you.
But as I was saying, I rattier guess that times will be al-
tered now in this house."
"Altered !" exclaimed the Major-Domo, eyeing the bot-
tle, that was assuming the clear aspect of cut class with
astonishing rapidity; 'Mt don't matter much. Mistress
Remarkable, so long as T keep the keys of the lockers in my
pocket."
** I can't say," continued the house-keeper, " 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 bad an un
eartian time on't in footer."
" Life is as unsartain as the wind that blows," said Beu-
jamin, with a most imposingly moralizing air; ^"and no-
thing is more variable 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 f
** but I expect there will be great changes made in the
hcuae to rights ; and that you will find a young man putovet
TH PIONB B&S. 14B
your head, as well as there is one that wants to be oyer mine;
and after having been settled as long as you have, Benjamin,
I should judge that to be hard."
I' Promotion should go according to length of sarvice,*^
said the Major-Domo ; *'and i^so-be that they ship a hand
for my birth, 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 ray head, why I shall resign. I began forrard,
Mistress Pretty bones, and worked my way afr, like a man.
1 was six months on aboarda Garnsey lugger, hauling in the
slack of the lee-sheet, and coiling up ligging. From that I
went a few tripsin a fore-and-after, in the same trade, which
after all was but a blind kind of sailing in the dark, where
a rtian lams but little, excepting how to steer by the stars.
Weil, then, d'ye see, I larnt how a topmast should be slushed
and how a top-gallaut-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 courtesv between the
worthy couple, the dialogue proceeded as follows
** You have had great experunces in your 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, th^y in brigs and schooners too ;
and it mought say, the works of the devil. The sea, Mis-
tress 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 eountry. Now, I suppose, for myself here, who
is but an unlarned man to some that follows the seas, I sup-
pose that, taking the coast from cape Ler-Hogue as low down
as Gape Finish-there, there isn't so much as a headland or
an island that I don't know either the name of it, or some-
thing 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 Prettybones. But,
M I was laying, take the whole coast aion^^l ^uci^vi V^^a^
K3
169 THE PIONEERS.
well as the way from here to the Bold Dragoon ; nod a detil
of an acquaintance is that Bay of Biscay. Whew! I with
you coald bat bear the wind blow there. It sometimes takes
two to hold one man's hair on his head. Scudding tbrougii
the Bay is pretty much the same thing as travelling Uie
roads in this country, up one side of a mountain, and down
t he other."
** Do tell r* exclaimed Remarkable ; ** and does the sea
run as high as mountains, Benjamin V '
*' Well, I will tell ; but first let's taste the grog. Hem 1
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-
Indies, 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 Uppers in the Bay of
Biscay, unless it may be a sow-wester, when they tumble
about quite handsomly ; thof its not in the narrow seas that
you are to look for a swell ; just go off the Western Islands,
in a westerly blow, keeping the land on your larboard band,
with the ship's head to the south'ard, and bring too, under
a close-reefd topsail ; or, mayhap, a reefd ioresail, with a
fore-top-mast-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 Boadisbey frigate when
you could see nothing but some such matter as a piece of
. ^y, mayhap, as big as the mainsail ; and then again, there
,i a hole under your lee -quarter, big enough to hold the
whole British navy."
** Oh ! for massy 's sake ! and wan't you afeard, Benjamin ?
and how did you get off?"
" Afeard ! who the devil do you think was to be frighten-
ed at a little salt water tumbling about his head? As for
getting off when we had enough of it, and had washed uur
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 watch-
ed for a smooth time ; clapt her helm hard a-weathcr, let fall
the foresail, and got the tack aboard ; and so, when we got
her afore it, I ask you. Mistress Pretty-bones, ifsbedid'nt
walk ? did'nt 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 tice
to tree."
^hat; clean out of water 1" exclaimed Remarkable
THE PIONEERS. ]5|
lifl'in^ 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 could'nt tell which
was sea and which was cloud. So there we kept her afore
it, for the matter of two glasses. The first lieutenant ho
cun'd the ship himself, and there was four quarter-masters
at the wheel, besides the master, with six fore-castle men in
the gun-room, at the relieving tackles. But then she beha-
ved herself so well ! Oh I 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 London bridge, and fit her up for a
palace; because why? if any body can aflford to live com-
fortably, his^ajesty can."
'*Well! but Benjamin," cried the listener, who was in
an ecstacy of astonishment at this relation of the steward's
dangers, ** what did you do ?"
'* Do ! why we did our duty, like good 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 un-
til we found her dead to leeward off the mountains of Pico,
and dam'me if I know to this day how we got there, wheth-
er we jumped over the island, or .hauled round it; but
there we was, and there we lay, under easy sail, fore-reach-
ing, 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 ^ale 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 qnit a comfortable home like this. Not that
a body cares much for't, as there's more houses than one to
live in. Why, when the Judge agreed with me to come and
Jive with him, Td 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 agin night; but the family was in sich a distressed
way that I conld'nt but stop awhile, and help 'em on. T
thought the sitooation a good one, seeing that I was an un-
married body, and they were so much iu want of help : so I
tarried."
' ** And a long tim hav^ jfou left your ancliota ^^-^Xk.SsBw
IIB THB nOKEEXt.
the same place, mistress. I think yon most find that the skip
rides easy ?*
'' How yoa talk, BenjaiLin ! there's no helie^ng a word
on say. I most say that the Judge and Squire Jones have
both acted qaite clever, so long ; but I see that now we shall
have a specimen to the contrary. I heer'n say that the
Judge was gone a great lroad, and that he meant to bring
his darter ham, but I didn't calcoolate on sitch cairins on.
To my notion, Benjamin, she's likely to torn out a desput
uglygall."
'* Ugly !" echoed the Major-domo, opening his 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 ? am't her eyes as bright as the
morning and evening stars ! and isn't her hair as black and
glistening as rigging that has jdst had a lick of tar 1 does'nt
she' move as stately as a first-rate in smooth water, on a bow^
line 1 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 am't Queens always
comely, woman? for who do you think would be a King, and
not choose a handsome bedfellow ?''
*' 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 Ukely to show but
poor conduct She seems to think herself too good to talk to
a poor body. From what Squire Jones bad 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 would'nt so much as hold discourse
with me, when I wanted to ask her how she felt, on coining
home and missing her mammy.'*
** Perhaps she didn't understand you, woman ; you are
none of the best .linguister ; and then Miss lixEy 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 foigot
your schooling, and the young mistress is a great scoUard."
** 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 no
body out of new England. I was born and raised in Essex
eounty ; and I've always heer'd say that the bay State was
provarbai for pronounsaiion !"
*' I've often heard of that Bay of State," said Benjamin,
THE PIONE&KS. IM
* oac cau't say that l*ve ever been in it, nor do I know
xactly where away it is that it lays ; but I suppose that
ere is good anchorage in it, and that it's no bad place for
taking of ling ; but for size, it can'^be so much as a yawl
a sloop of war, compared with the bayof Biscay, or, may-
hap. Tor-bay. And as for language, if you want to hear the
dictionary overhauled, like a long-line in a blow, you must
go to Wapping, and listen to the Lon'oners, as they deal out
their lingo. Howsome?er, 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
lionest soul.*'
'* No indeed ! and I shan't do sitch 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 mus'nt 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 Beoianiin,
* 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
olf. I say good woman, do they grow many monkeys along
the shores of that Bay of State ?"
" You're a monkey yourself, Mr. Pen.njuillum," cried the
enraged housekeeper, * or a bear I a black beastly bear! and
an't lit for a decent woman to stay with. I'll never keep
your company agin, 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 Prettyboncs, mayhap
I'm some such matter as a bear, d'ye see, as they Mill find
who comes 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 pariot ; that will hold a 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 wo-
man ? Tour 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 sto
inygrog,ifyou don'tfind all the Johnny-raws laughing atU
IM rai noNBun.
" Stop yoar grog, indeed l*^ cried Remarkable, riMng with
great indignation, and seizing a candle ; ''you're groggy now,
BcDJamio, and Til quit the room before I hear any of your
inisbcMComing words from you/^
The housekeeper retired, with a manner but little leas
dignified, as she thought, than the air of the stately heiress,
muttering, as she drew the door after her, with a noise like
the report of a musket, the opprobrious terras 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 alady! you*rejust fit to grum-
ble and find fault. Where the dcTil should you larn behavi-
our and dictionary ? in your damned 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 critics of the
present day, " in the arms of Morpheus,'' he spoke aloud, ob-
serving due pauses between his epithets, the impressive
terms of " monkey^" " parrot," " pio-nio," " tar-pot," and
' llngtiisters."
We will no attempt to explain his meaning, nor oonneothis
sentences, and oar readers must be satisfied with our inform-
ing them that they were expressed with all that coolness of con-
tempt, 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
Hartraann, and the master of the mansion. Benjamin so
far rallied his confused faculties as to shape the course of
the two former to their respecXive apartments, when he dis-
appeared himself, leaving the task of securing the house to
him who was most interested in his saftey. Locks and bars
were but little attended to in the early day of that settlement ;
and ao soon as Marmaduke had given an eye to the enormous
fires of his dwelling, he retired. And with this act of pm-
denoe closes the first night of our tale.
^
CHAPTER XVI.
'* Watch, (aside Some treason, masters
Yet stand close*"
MUCH ADO ABOUT KOTHIMO*
t was ortunate for more than one of the bacchanaii
THB PIONEERS. 156
who left the Bold " Dragoon" late in the evening, that the
severe cold of the season was becoming, rapidly, less danger-
ous, as they threaded the different mazes, through the snow-
banks, that led to thsir respective dwellings. Thin, drivin(p
clouds began, towards morning, to flit across the heavens,
and the moon sat behind a volume of vapour, that was im*
pelled furiously towards the north^ carrying with it the softer
atmosphere from the distant ocean. The rising sun wai
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 observini^
the faint glow which appeared on the eastern mountain, long
after the light of the sun had struck the opposite hills, veii
tured 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 iheit
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 houses 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 M. Jones, ciying aloud
*' Merry Christmas, merry Christmas to you, cousin Bess.
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 Muke and the Major can sleep off Mrs. Hollister's
confounded distillations, and so Til 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 hia
zeal for pre-eminence, in defiance of the weather, had im-
pelled him to thrust it. She laughed, and, promising to
wait for his company, she re-%ntered 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 cned, drawing one of her ann#
through his own ; '' the snow begins to give, but it wUV^^'^ia.
at yet. Don't you snuff old Penns3fl\aiiV9L\u W^ ^^\^ ^cclK
tG6 THE PIONEERS.
This is % vile climate, girl ; now at sunset, last eyening;, it
was cold enougrh 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 Christ,
mas, 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 nie know. I wouldn't have
Muke 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 in
the air of twenty feet, and, catching it as it fell, in the palm
of his hand, he withdrew to the kitchen, to exhibit his pre-
sent, with a heart as light as his face was happy in its ex-
pression.
"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 honoars
of the season."
" Why, Muke 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 com-
petition; 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, like."
" Oh ! it's all very clear, sir," said Elizabeth ; '' you would
not care a ^g for distinction if there were no one in the
world but yourself; but as there happen to be a great many
others, why, yon 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 (bibles, sir; he is my father;
and if yon knew what he has been doing for you while we
were in Albany, you would deal more tenderly with his
character."
*' For me 1" cried Richard, pausing a moment in his walk
to reflect "Oh I he got the plans of the new Dutch meeta
iag-hou%^ for me, I suppose ; bat I care very little about it
THE PIONEERS. 157
A.
for a man of a certain kind^ of talent is jcldom aided by any
such 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 T' 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, show-
ing the packet in her hand, and then drawing it back, with
a coquettish air ; '* it is an office of both honour and emolu-
ment."
*' 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 ofifer you as a Christmas-box. *Surely, if any
thing will please Dickon/ he said, 'it will be to fill the exe-
cutive chair of th 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
eommission, appointing Richard Jones, Esquire, Sherift'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 much obliged to
him," continued Richard, using the skirt of his coat, uncon-
sciously, to wipe his eyes ; **. though I would do as much for
him any day, as he shall see, if I have an opportunity to
perform any of the dutieS'of my office on him. It shall be
done, cousin Bess it shall be done, I say. How this cur-
sed south wind makes my eyes water."
** Now, Richard," said the laughing maiden, '' now I think
you will find something to do. I have often heard you com-
plain, of old, that there was nothing to do in this new conn-
try, while to my eyes it seemed as if every thing remained to
bedone.''
Do ! " echoed Richard, who blew his nose, raised his e^
Jittle form to its greatest elevation, and looked prodigiously
serioas. '* Every thing depends on system^ my girl. I shaU
o
JM
THB PIONEERS.
sit down this afternoon, and systematize the ponnty, . j v^XQii
have deputies, you know. I wiU.didde Ijie countj into
dbtricts, over which I will place my deputies; and. I wi)l
^ave one for the village, which I will caii my home depart-
ment. Let me see oh ! . Benjamin ! yes, Benjamin wiU
make a good deputy ; he has been na&ralized, and would
answer admirably, if he could only ride on liorseback/'
. . ** Yes^ Mr. Sheriff/' said his companion, '* and, as he un-
derstands ropes 30 well, he would . be yery expert, should
occasion happen for his services, in the way of Jack Ketch^''
*' No," inteirupted the other, '* 1 flatter myself that no one
could hang a man better than that is ha oh ! yef,
Benjamin would do extremely wel), in such an unfortunate
dilemma, if he could be persuaded to attempt it. but I
should despair of the thing. I never, could induce .i^im to
iaibg, or teach him to ride on horseback. I must seek ano-
ther deputy.''
/'Well, sir, as you have abundant leisure for all these
important affairs, I beg that you will forget Qistit yQU are
High Sheriff^ and devote some littl e of your timf^ to'g^JOlantfy.
Where are the beauties and impio-^ements which you were
to showine?"
** Where? why every where. Hess I hi^y laid. pAt some
hew streets i and when they are opened, aod..tbe tj^ee^s feUed,
and they are all built up, will they not roake.i^fineitpwn?
Well, 'duke is a liberal-hearted fellow, with all hi^.^tqbl^rn-
ness. Yes, yes, I must have at least fear deputies, besides
a jailer." / . .
'* I see no streets in the direction of pqr walk/' said
Xllizabeth, ** unless you call the short aventiefl through these
pipe 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 compas^, coz, an4 dis-
regard 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." interrupti^d the lady,
with a tone which said very plainly to the gentleman that he
t .
Richard ; '' and if it werJP
ing. He is a noble-heartjpd
fellow, and would, make an excellent king ;, that is, if he
fMJh g^d prime minister. But who have we hfir^l voifiieifi
in the bushes ; a eombination about mischief^ I'll wager my
HIE PIONEERS. 159
eommission. Let as draw near, and examine a little of the
matter/'
llnring this dialogue, as the parties had kept in motion
RicLard and bis cousin advanced some distance from tU
honse, into the open space in the reat- of the village, wfiere,
as maybe gathered from the conversation, streets were
planned, and fortare dwellings' contemplated ; but where, in
fratb', the only mark of impi^ovement that was tot)e Seen was
a neglected clearing along the skirt of a dark forelit of
mi^ty pines, over which' the bushes or sprouts of the'samd
ft-eehad sprung up to a height that interspersed the fiblds of
ilnow with little thickets of everereen. The rushing of the
irlnd, as it ^btstled through the^topS of these mimic trees,
prevented the footsteps of the pair from being heard, while
iheir bratiches concealed their persons. ThuS aided, the
listeners drew nigh to a spot, where the young hunter,
Jjeather-stockin^, and the Indian chief, were collected in kn
earnest cbnsultsrtidn. The former was urgebt in his manner^
and seemed to 'think the subject of deep importance, while
Ntitty appeared td listen, with more than his usual attention,
to what the other was saying^ Mohe^an stood a Utile on one
side, with bis head stinken on his chest', his hair 'falling for-
ward, so as to conceal most of his features, and his whole
attitude expressive of deep dejection, if not of shame.
"Let us ' withdi-aw," whispnered Elizabeth V**" we are in-
truders, arid can have no right to listen to the secrets of these
mfen."
** No right!" returned Richard, a^little impatiently, in the
same tone, and drawing her arm so forcibly through his own
as td 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.
Foor fbllow 1 he was quite boozy last night, and hardly seems
to DC over it yet. Let us draw nigher, and hear wBht thVy
say."
Notwithstanding the lady's reluctance, Richard, stimu*
lated d;ubtless by his nice sense of duty, prevailed ; nnd
they were soon so near as distinctly to hear sounds.
** The bird must be had,'* said Natty, " by fair means or
foul. Heigho ! I\e known the time, lad, wh6n the wild tur-^
keys wasn't over scarce in the country ; though you must go
into the Yirginy gaps, if you want them for the feathers. To
be sure, there is a different taste to a partridge, and a wet|i
fattened turkey; though, to my eating, beaver's tail and
160 THE PIONEERS.
bear's hams makes the best of food. Bat then every one baa
bis own appetite. I gave the last farthing, all to that shil-
ling, to the French trader, this very morning, as I came
through the town, for powder ; so, as you have nothing, we
can have but one shot for it. I know that Billy Kirby is oal
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.''
'I 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 dependance on
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 month, because you set your mind so much * on't ;
and I'm sartain 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 creater, 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 wolfs howl. Is John old !
When was a Mohican a squaw, with seventy winters ! No !
tli3 white man brings old age with him ^rum is his toma-
hawk ! "
** 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 !"
THE PIONEERS. 161
''Beast! is John a beast?'' replied the Tndian, slowly;
" yes you say no He, child of the Fire-eater ! John is a beajsit.
The smokes were once few in these hills. The deer wotitd
lick the hapd 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 ruml They came
to their grandfather, and they lived in peace ; or, when they
did raise the hatchet, it was to strike it into the Train of a
Mingo. They gathered around the council-fire, and what
they said was done. Then John was a man. But warriors
and traders with light eyes followed them. One brought the
long knife, and one brought rum. They were more than tlie
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. Tes, yes ^you say no lie, Young Eagle ; Johii
IS a beast.'**
" Forgive me, old warrior," cried the youth, grasping hi^
hand ; '^' t shbuld be' the las^ to reproach you.' The curses of
lieayen light on'the cupidity that has destroyed such ^ra'ce^
Remiemb^, J^h'n, that I arik of your' family, and ft is now my
greatest pfide." *
Tlie musiiles of Mohegan relaxed a little, and he said more
mildly
'* Tou are a Delaware, my son ; ^our words are not heard.
John cannot shoo^;*'
^ I thougTit ihat lad had Indian blood in him," whispered
Richard, " by the awkw:ard way he handled my hordes last
ilight. ' You see, cdz, they never use harness^ put the poor
fellow shall have two shots at the turkey, if he wants it, for
ril give him anothef shilling myself; though, perhaps, I had
better ofler to shoot for him. They have got up their Christ-
mas sports, I find, in the bushes yonder, where you hear the
laughter ; though it is a queer taste this chap has for tur^
key ; not but what it is good eating, too."
'' Hold, coMsin Richard," exclaimed Elizabeth, clinging to
his aitn; '^ would it be delicate to offer a shilling to that gen-
tleman?"
'* Gentleman again ! do you think a half-breed, like him,
will refuse money ? No, no, girl ; he will take the shilling ;
ay I land even rum tbo, notivithstandihg he moralises so
mUch about it. But I'll give the lad a chance for his tur-
ktey, for th&ft Billy Kirby is one of the best marksmen in the
country ; that is, if we except the the gentleman."
* Thfen," Said Elizabeth, who found her strength unequal
to her will, " then, sir, I will speak." She advanced, with
an air of proud determination, in front of her cousin, and
102 THE PIONEERS.
*
entered the little circle of bushes, that surroonded the trio of
bonters. Her appearance startled the joath, who at fint
made an unequivocal motion towards retiring, but, recoiled
log himself, bowed, by lifting his cap, and resumed his atti-
tude of leaning on his rifle. Neither Natty nor Mohegan
betrayed any emotion, though the appearance of ElizalMih
was 8o entirely unexpected.
** I flnd,'^ she said, ** that the old Christmas sport of
shooting the turkey is yet in use among you. I feel in-
clined 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 f exclaimed the young hunter,
with amemphasis that could not well be mistaken, and with
a rapidity that showed he spoke without consulting any
thing but feeling.
" Why not, sir?" returned the maiden. " If it be inhu-
man, the sin is not confined to one sex only. But I have
my humour as well as others. I ask not your assistance,
sir ; but" turning to Natty, and dropping a dollar in his
band ** this old veteran of the forest will not be so ungal-
lant 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 them 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 maiden, who had so singularly in-
trusted him with such a commission, returned the bright
smile with which she had addressed him, by his own pecu-
THE nONEERS. 163
iar mark of mirth, and moTed across the sdow, towardi
ihe spot whence the sounds of boisterous mirth proceeded,
with the long strides of a hunter. His companions fol-
lowed in silence, the youth casting freciuent 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 tur-
key, you would not have taken a stranger for the ofiSce, 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 commis-
sioned 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,'' again interrupted the young
lady '' I know it all, my dear coz. But would it have been
decorous for the High Sheriff of to mingle in such sports
as these T
" Surely you did not think I intended actually to fire with
my own hands V said Mr. Jones. *' But let us follow, and
see the shooting. There is no fear of any thing unpleasant
occurring to any female in this new country, especially to
your father's daughter, and in my presence.'
** My father's daughter fears nothing, sir," returned Eliza-
oeth ; '* more especially when escorted by the highest exe-
cutive 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.
164 TH PIONEERS.
CHAPTER XVII.
..", t .. -
I guess by all this quaint array,
1 guess DT au tnis quaint array,
The tmreheni lidld thefr sborts to-day.
Scott.
The ancient amusement of shooting the Christmas turke;
is one of the few sports that the settlers of a new cottrttrj
seldom or never neglect to observe. It was connected wit&
the daily practices of a people who often laid aside the axe
or the scythe to seize the rifle, as the del^r glided through the
forests they were felling, or the bear entered their rough
meadows to scent the air of a clearing, and t6 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 oji^portu-
nity to Mr. Grant, whose exhibitibn was not l^ss'a'h^t to
the young sportsmen than the one which engaged tdeU pre-
sent attention. The o^^er of the birds was' a free black,
who had been preparing for the occasion a cibllectioh 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
offerdd to the younger and more humble marksmen diners
birds of an Inferior quality, and some shooting had already
taken place, much to the pecuniary advantage of the sabV
owner bf the game. The order of thfe spirts was exfrenieijf
simple, and well understood. The bird was fastened by a
String of tow, to the base of the stuntp of a large pine, th^
side of which, towards the point where the marksmen were
placed, had bedn flattened with an axe, in order that it might
serve the purpose of a target; by which the merit of each in-
dividual might be ascertained. The distance between the
stump and this point was one hundred measured yards ; a
foot more or a foot less being thought an invasion of the
right 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 princi-
ples of public justice that prevailed in the country, to ^dmit
any adventurer who might ofi'er.
The throng consisted of some twenty or thirty young men,
most of whom had rifles, and a collectioo of ail the boys in
the village. The little urchins, clad in coarse but warm gar-
ments, stood gathered around the more distinguished marks-
nen, with their hands stuck under their waistbands listen*
THE PIONEERS. 166
iAg eagerly to the boastful stories of the skill that had been
exhibited on former occasiouSy and were already emulating
ill their hearts these wonderful deeds in gunnery.
The chief speaker was the man who had been mentiontf^^
by Natty, as Billy Kirby. This fellow, whose occupatico,
when he did labour, was that of clearing lands, or chopping
lobs, 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 tayerns of the county, in a state of perfect idle-
ness, 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 once 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 would pace, occasionally freshening, with a blow
of his axe, the marks on the boundary trees ; and then he
would proceed, with an air of great deliberation, to the centre
of his premises, and, throwing aside his superfluous gar-
ments, he would measure, with a knowing eye, one or two
of the nearest trees, that were towering apparently into the
very clouds, as he gazed upwards. Commonly selecting
one of the most noble, for the first trial of his power, he
would approach 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. The pause that
followed was ominous of the fall of the forest, that 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
ihe separation of its own last ligaments, then thrashing and
tearing with its branches the tops of its surrounding bre-
thren, and finally meeting the ground with a shook but little
inferior to an earthquake. SrQm that moment the sound of
the axe would be ceaseless, viThile the falling ofthe trees was
like a distant cannonading; and the daylight broke into the
depths of the woods with almost the suddenness of a winter
morning.
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
100 THB PIONEERS.
nis stentorian langs could be heard emitting: sounds, as 1i
called to liis patient oxen, the assistants in his labour,
which run^ throngh the hills like the cries of an alatin.
He had been often heard, on a mild summer's eveninr, a
long: mile across the vale ofTempleton; when the echoes
from the mountains would take up his cries, until thej
died away in the feeble sounds from the distant rocks that
overhung the lake. His piles, or to'use the language of the
country, his legging 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, places the final torch of
destruction as the finishing blow to his conquest. For a
long time Billy Kirby would then be seen, sauntering about
around the taverns, the rider of scrub-horses, the bully of
cock-fights, and not unfrequentiy 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 their respective
skill in shooting. Notwithstanding the long practice of
Natty, it was commonly supposed that the steady nerves
and quick eye of the wood-chopper rendered him his equal.
Their competition had, however, been confined hitherto to
boastings, and comparisons made for their successes in
their various hunting excursions ; but this was the first time
they had ever come in opei\ collision. A good deal of higg-
ling, about the price of the choicest bird that had taken
Slace between Billy Kirby and its owner, before Natty and
is companions rejoined the sportsman. It had, however,
been settled at one shilling a shot, which was the highest
sum ever exacted, the black taking care to protect himself
from losses, as much aspossible,by the conditions of the sport.
The turkey was already fastened at the * mark," but its body
was entirely hid by the surrounding snow, nothing being visible
but its red swelling head, and long proud neck. If the bird was
injured by any bullet that struck below the snow, it was still
to continue the property of the owner, but if a feather was
touched in a visible part, the animal became the prize of
Ihe successful adventurer.
These terms were (oudly proclaimed from the mouth of
the negro, who was seated in the snow, in a somewhat
(lazardous vicinity to his favourite bird, as Elizabeth and
hei* cousin, the newly appointed executive chief of the
county, approached the noisy sportsmen. The sounds of
mirth and contention sensibly lowered at this unexpected
THE PI0NEEH4. 167
viait; but, after a moment's pause, the cnriovs 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 vehe-
mence, by the presence of such a spectator to their pro-
ceedings.
*' Stand . out of the way there, boys V cried the wood-
chopper, who was placing himself at the shooting point
*'Mand out of the way, you little rascals, or I will shoot
Ihrpugh you. Now, Brom, you may say good-by to that
tarMy.:'
''Stop!*' cried the young hunter; ''I am a candidate
for a chance too. 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 get to it I Is money
so plenty in your deer skin pocket that you pay for a chance
that you may never have V
** How know you, sir, how plenty mpne^^ is in my pocket P"
said the youth fiercly. " Here is my shilling, Brom, and I
claim a right to shoot."
" Don't be crabbpd^ my boy/' said the other,, who was
very coolly fixing his flint ** Thej say ^ou have a. -hole in
your left shoulder, yourself: so I think Bfom may give yon
a fii^e for half.. pijce. 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 a thing I. have no mind to do." ,
'* Don't be boasting, Billy Kirby," said Natty, throwing
the breech of his,|-ifle into the snofv, and leaning on its bar-
rel; " you'll get but .oi\e shot at the creater, for if the lad
niisse^ his aim, wluch wouldn't be a wonder if he did, with
his arm so stiff and sore, you'll find a good piec.e and an old
eye .coming a'ter ypn. . Iiiaybe it's true t^iat I can't shoot. . as
I iised to, could, but a hundred yards is but a short distance
for a lopg riSe."
" What, old Leather- stocking, are you oat this morning?.''
pried his. reckless .opponent. " Well, fair play's a j^wel.
But I've the lead of you, old fellow; so here goes, for a djy
throat or a gOQd diviner/' .
The countenance of the negro evinced npt only all .the ihr
terest which his pecuniary adventure migijit occasion, but
also, the keen excitement that the sport produced in the
others, though wjLthayery different wish a# to the rfiavifL
WHile the wood- chopper was slowly and steadily raising oil
lifle, he exclaimeNdr- . . i .. . .
** Fair play, Billy Kirby-*itand baok^-Huake Bi %\Ma&
108 THE PIONEERS.
lack boys ^ib a nigger fair play poss-up, gobbler ; shake
a head, fool-^on't a see 'em pokin gun at 'cm?"
These cries, which were intended as much to distract
the attention of the marksman, as for any thing else, were,
however, fruitless. The nerves of the wood-chopper were
not so easily shaken, and he took his aim with the utmost
deliberation. The dead stillness of expectation prevailed
for a moment, and he firie^d. The head of the turkey was
seen to dash on one side, and its wings were spread in mo-
mentary 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 bis body, with all kinds of
antics, rolling over in the snow with the excess of his delight.
** Well done a gobbler," he cried, jumping up, and af*
fecting to embrace his bird ; *' I tell 'em to poss-up, and yoa
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 prepara.
tionsof 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.
'' Tour hand shakes, lad," he said, " and yon seem 'over
eager. Bullet wownds are apt to weaken the 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."
" Fairplay," again shouted the negro ; " fair play gib a
nigger fair play. What right a Natty Bumppo tell a young
men? Let 'em shoot^clear a ground."
The youth fired with great rapidity ; but no motion was
.lis HbiikkKI. fO
made by the tarkey ; and if^htn the examinersr for the ball,
returned from (he ''mark/' they declared that he had mis-
sed the stump.
Elizabeth observed the change in his countenance, and'
could not help feeling iurprie that one so evidently supe-
rior to his companioi^s 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 that Natty took his-'
stand. His skin became mottled with large brown spots,
that sullied the lustre of his native ebony most fearfully,,
while his enormous lips gradually compressed around the*
two rows of ivory, that had hitherto been shining in his*
visage, like ^aris set in jet. His nostrils, at all times Xh^^
most conspicuous features of his face, dilated, until they
covered the greater part of the diameter of his countenance r
while his brown and bony hands unconsciously grasped the^
snow.crast near him, the excitement of the moment com-
pletely overcoming his native dread of cold.
Wb ile these indications of apprehension were exhibited*
in th e sable owner of the turkey, the man who gave rise to
thij', extraordinary emotion was as calm and collected, as^
it there was not to be a single spectator of his skill.
'* I was down in the Dutch settlements on the Scoharfe/^
*said Natty, carefully removing the leather guard from the^
lock of his rifle, '* jist before the breaking out of the last war,,
and there was a shooting-match among the boys; so I took:
a hand in it myself. I think I opened a good many Dutch
eyes that very day, for I won the powder-horn, three bars of
lead, and a pound of as good powder as ever flashed in the^
pan of a gun. Lord ! how they did swear in Garman ! They
did tell of one drunken Dutchman, who said he'd have the:
life of me, before 1 got back to the lake ag'in. But if he hadl
put his rifle to his shoulder with evil intent, God would hav
punished him for it; and even if the Lord didn't, and he had'
missed his aim, I know one that would have given as good as
he sent, and better too, if good shooting could come into thet;!
'count."
By this time the old hunter was ready for his business,,
and throwing his right leg far behind him, and stretchingr
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^
he report of the rifle, they were disappointed by the tickingr
sound of the flint only.
170 THE PI0KBEB5
it
A snap-*a snap,*' sbovted the nef^, spriBgiQi: from liH
croochini^ postare, like a madnaii, before his bird. *^ A
snap as good as a 6 re Natty Bamppo gan he snap Natty
Bomppo miss a turkey."
* Natty Bamppo hit a nigger," said the indignant oU
honter, " if yon don't get out of the way, Broin. It's co*
trary to the reason of the thing, boy, that a snap shooM
count for a fire, when one is nothing more than a fire-stone
striking a steel pan, and the other is good lead, ay ! and
with a good aim ; so get oat of my way, boy, and let e
show Billy Kirby how to shoot a Christmas turkey.**
" Gib a nigger fair play !" cried the black, who continaed
resolutely to maintain his post. '* Ebbery body knows dat
snap as good as fire. Leah it to Massa Jone leab it tolady ."
^^Sartain," said the wood-chopper; *ifs the law of the
game in this part of the country, Leather-stocking. If you
fire ag'in, you most pay up the other shilling. I VHeve I'll .
try lock onoe 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. ** Too oome in wit)i the
settlers, with an ox goad in your hand, and I come in with
mocassins on my feet, and with a good rifle on my shoaldipr,
so long back as afore the old war. Whath is likely to know,
the bestP 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 ling.*'
This appeal to the knowledge of Richard was too flattering
to be unheeded. He therefere advanced a little from the
spot whither the delicacy of Elisabeth had induced her to
withdraw, and gave the following opinion, with ail the
gravity that the subject and his own rank demanded :
'* There seems to be a difference in qsi^^ioo/* ^^ s^^
*' on the subject of Nathaniel Bumppo's right to shoot at
Abraham Igreeborn's turkey, without the said Nathaniel
paying one shilling for the privilege." This fact was too
self-evident to be denied, and,;alter pausing ^momeDt, that
the audience might digest his premises, Richard proceeded :
'' It seems proper that I should decide this^qaestion, as I
am bound to preserve the peace of the county ; and men
with deadly weapons in their hands* shootd not be heed-
lessly left to contention, and their own malignant passions.
It appears that there was no agreement, either in writing or
in words, on the disputed ^int ; therefore we must reason
from analogy, which is, as it were^ oeniiuurina' one thing
IHB nONEBRI. 171
wiib another. Now, in duels, where both parties shoot, it
U generally the mle that a snap is a fire ; and if such is the
rute, where the party has a right to fire back again, it seems
to me unreasonable to say that a man may stand snapping
at that tnrkey all day. I therefore am of opinion that Na-
thaniel Bumppo has lost his chance, and most pay another
ahilling before be renews his right."
As this opinion came from such a high quarter, and was
delivered with so much 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,*'
aid Natty. '^ I've known the squaws give very good counsel,
when the Indians have been dumb-foundered in their no-
tions. If she says that I ought to lose, J agree to give it up."
'* Then I adjudge 3 ou to be a loser, for this time," said
Miss Temple; ** but pay your money, and renew your
chance ; unless Brom will sell mc the bird for a dollar. I
will give him the money, and save the life of the poor
victim."
This proposition was evidently but little relished by any
of the listeners, even the negro feeling unwilling to lose the
aport, though he lost his turkey. In the mean while, as
Billy Kirby was preparing himself for another shot. Natty
left the goal, with an extremely dissatisfied manner, nratter-
ing to himself, and speaking aloud
'' There hasn't been surh a thing as a good flint sold at
the foot of the lake, since the time when the Indian traders
used to oome into the country *, and if a body should go
into the flats along the streams in the hills, to hunt for such
a thing, it's ten to one bat they ^vlU be all covered up with
the plough. Heigho! it seems to me that just as the same
the eye for such a mark, I know.
The wood-chopper seemed now entirely sensible that his
reputation in a groat measure depended on his care ; nor
did he neglect any means to ensure his 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 dis-
oharged his piece, with the same want of success as before
Then, indeed, the shouts of the negro rung through the
boshes, and sounded among the trees of the neigh bouiing
for*.t like the outcries of a tribe of Indians* L \^\x.^^^
1192 THE PfONBE&S.
moHUtsg bis bead, first on one side, then on tbe~ other, nntiY
i#(taffeseeBed exhausted with mirth. He danced, until his
Jk$B were wesiied with motion, in the snow ; and in short
Ae exhibited all that violence of joy that characterizes tiie
mrth of a thoughtless negro.
The wod-chopper had exerted his art, and felt a propor-
tionate degree of disappointment at bis failure. He first
examined the bird with the utmost attention, and more thax
once suggested that he bad touched its feathers ; but the
*voice of the multitude was against him, for it felt disposed
tto 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, Kir-
tfy turned fiercely to the black, and said
'' Shut your oven, you crow ! Where is the man that can
Ihit a turkey's head at a hundred yards ? I was a fool for
^trying. You needn't make an uproar, like a falling pine-
itree, 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
wbo'8 made better shots afore now, and that when he's been
ihard pressed by the savages and wild beasts."
** Perhaps there is one whose rights come before ours
ILeather-stocking," said Miss Temple ; '^ if so, we will waive
our privilege."
*' If it be me that you have reference to, madam," said the
:young hunter, '' I shall decline another chance. My shoul-
ider is yet weak, I find."
Elizabeth regarded his proud, but forced, manner, and
ven thought that she could discern a tinge on his cheek
that spoke the shame of conscious poverty. ' She said no
.snore, 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
bis distance ; and once because the bird, alarmed by the
deathlike stillness that prevailed, 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
tfuow, and open his mouth in one of its silent laughs, and
then proceeded very cooly to recharge his piece, knew that he
liad been jccessful. The boy rushed to the mark, and lift-
THC PI0NEEB8. 178
ed the turkey on high, lifeless, and with nothing but the
remnant of a head.
^ Bring in the creater/' 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 Kicnard, 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 ear-
nestness. She even blushed a little as she turned to the
Toung hunter, and, with the insinuating charm of a woman's
best 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 P"
The expression with which the youth received this pre-
sent was indescribable. He appeared to yield to the exqui-
site 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 remune-
ration for his loss, which had some effect in again unbending
his muscles, and then expressed to her companion her rea-
diness 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, gentle-
men, to wait on me this morning, I will draw up in writing
a set of regulations" He stopped, with some indigna-
tion, to see who it was that so familiarly laid his hand on the
shoulder of the High Sheriff of .
"A merry Christmas to you, cousin Dickon," said Judge
Temple, who had approached the party unnerceived. "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 greviously
as many a man would a much ereater misfortune ; " and X
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 the fire-arms, the same as if
fihe had been brought up in a camp, instead of a first-rate
boarding-school. I do think Judge Temple, that such dan-
gerous fuausemei^ts should be suppressed by law* nay^ I
174 THE noNEERS.
doabt whether they are not already indictable at comlMMi
law."
** Well, sir, as yon are sheriff of the county, it becomes
yimr duty to examine into the matter," returned the
smiiinf Marmadnke. '*. I perceive that Bess has execated
ker commission, and I hope it met with a faTourable recep-
tion/'
Richard g^lanced his eye at the packet, which he held in
bis hand, and the slight anger produced by his disappoint-
neot yaDished instantly.
*^ Ah ! 'duke, my dear cousin," he said, " step a little on
one side ; I have something I would say to yon." Manna-
duke complied, and the sheriff led him to a little dbtance
in the bushes, and continued '* First, 'duke, let me thank
you for your friendly interest with the Council and the Go-
vernor, 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 lij^e 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,
gravely, " and 1 will cure his appetite by indulgence. It is
with him that I would speak. Let us rejoin the sportsmen."
ff
CHAPTER XVIIL
Poor wretch ! the mother tbat him bare i
If tthe had been in presence there,^
In his wan face, and san bamt hair
She had not known her child.
Seoit.
It diminished, in no degree, the effect produced by the con-
versation which passed between Judge Temple and the young
hunter, that the former took the aim of his daughter, and
drew it through his own, when he advanced from the spot
whither Richard had led him to where the youth was stand
ing, in a musing attitude, leaning on his rifle, and appaisently
contemplating the dead bird that lay at his feet The pre*
sence of Marroaduke did not interrupt the sports, which were
resumed, by loud and clamorous disputes concerning the
eonditions of a chance that involved the life of a l^rd uf maoh
THE nONBERS. 176
inferior qaality to the last. Leather-stocking and Mohegan
had alone drawn aside to the place where stood their youth-
fat companion ; and, although in the immediate vicinity of
such a throng, the following conversation was heard only by
those who were interested in if :
" 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 in manifest surprise, also
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 kins-
man, 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. 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 of 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, as if 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
^^cy 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 mus't decline
your offer, and depend on my rifle, as before, for my subsist-
ence."
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, my young
friend, my experience is greater than thine, when I tell thee
that the unsettled life of these hunters is of vast disadvan-
taji^e for temporal purposes, and it totally removes one ffom
wjtbin the influence of more sacred things/'
IT
'* ^lo, no, Judge," intemipted the Leathci jiuu/vii^j ju
was hitherto anseen, ur disregardefl ; '* take lilm into yoni
hantj in welcome, but tell him the raal thing, I have fivw
In the woods for forty long years, and have spent five year
at a time without seeing the light of a clearing bigger thai
a wind-row in the trees ; and I should like to know when
you'll find a man, in his sixty-eighth year, who can get ai
easier living, for all your betterments, and your deer-laws
and, as for honesty, or doing whafs right between man ao(
man, I'll not turn my back to the longest winded deacon oi
your patent."
** Thou art an exception. Leather-stocking," returned tbt
judge, nodding good-naturedly at the hunter; * for thoi
bast a temperance unusual in thy class, and a hardihooi
exceeding thy years. But this youth is made of material
too precious to be wasted in the forest. I entireat thee t
join my family, if it be but till thy arm be healed. M;
daughter here, who is mistress of my dwelling, will tell the'
that thou art welcome."
" Certainly," said Elizabeth, whose earnestness wa
strongly checked by the assumption of a woman's dignity
'*Tbe unfortunate would be welcome at any time, bu
doubly so when we feel that we have occasioned the evi
ourselves."
** Yes," said Richard, *^ and if you relish turkey, youn
man, there are plenty in the coops, and those of the bes
kind, I can assure you."
Finding himself thus ably seconded, Marmaduke pushe
his advantage to the utmost. He entered into a detail of tb
duties that would attend the situation, and -circumstantiall
mentioned the reward, and all those points which are deena
ed of importance among men of business. The youth lis
tened in extreme agitation. There was an evident center
in his feelings ; at times he appeared to wish eagerly forth
change, and then again the incomprehensible expression c
disgust would cross his handsome featores, like a dark clou
obscuring a noonday sun.
The Indian, in whose manner the depression of sell
jibasement was most powerfully exhibited, listened to th
ofiers of the judge with an interest that increased with eac
syllable. Gradually he grew nigher to the group ; and wbei
with his keen glance, he detected the most marked evidenc
of yielding in the countenance of his young companion, li
changed at once, from his attitude and look of shame, i
Uip fearless and proud front of an Indian warrior.
THE PIONEERS. 177
moving, with great dignity, closer to the parties, he spoke in
his turn
** Listen to your Father," he said, " for his words are old
Let the Young Eagle and the great Land Chief eat together ;
let them sleep, without fear, near to each other. The chil-
dren of Miquon love not hlood; they are just and will do
right. The sun must rise and set often, hefore men can make
one family ; it is not the work of a day, hut of many winters.
The Mingoes and the Delawares are bom 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
trib : their fathers and mothers are one. Learn to wait, my
son : you have Delaware blood, and an Lidian 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 of the spectators to whom
he was a stranger ; and it left a slight impression to his dis-
advantage. 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 daughtei\ and
Richard, who were slowly pursuing the way back to the Man-
sion-house.
**I have surely endeavoured to remember the holy man-
dates of our Redeemer, when he bids us to * lof e them who
despitefully use you,* in my intercourse with this incompre-
hensible 6oy," said Marmaduke. " I know not what there is
in my A jsrelling to frighten a lad of his yeairs, unless it may be
thy presence and visage, Bess."
** No, no," said Richard, with great simplicity in his man-
ner ; ** it is not cousin Bess. But when did you ever know a
half-breed, *dnke, 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
jook he had in his eyes ?"
" I needed not his eyes, sir," returned the maiden, ** nor
his knees, which -would be all the better for a little humbling.
Really, my dear sir, I think you did exercise the Christiwi
^
178
nrtae of prtitnce to the utmost. I was diag^usled in& h
airs, long before he consented to make one in oar fiunilj.
Truly, we are mnch honoured by the associatioD ! In what
apartment is he to be placed, sir ; and at what taUe is he to
receive hb neetar and ambrosiji ?"
*^ With Benjamin and Remarkable,** intermpted Mr, Jones;
l^joii sorelj wonld not make the jonth eat with the blaek!
He is part Indian, it is true, but tiie natives hold the negroes
in great contempt No, no he would starve before he would
hrewk a crust with the negroes.**
'^ I am but too h^py, Dickon, to tempt him to eat with
ourselves,** said Marmaiiuke, '* to think of oferiiig 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 oppotioB
to her own will, '* it is your pleasure that he be a gentle-
man.**
** Certainly ; he is to fill the station of one ; lei Idm re-
ceive the treatment that is due to his place, until we ^nd him
unworthy of it.**
"" Weil, weD, *duke,'* cried the Sheriff; you will find it no
easy matter to make a gentleman of lum. The old proverb
says, * that it takes three generations to make a gentleman.*
l^re was my father, whom every body knew; mjr grand-
father 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.**
*' Here is a true American genealqgr to you,** said Mar
maduke, laughing. ** It does very well, till you get across
the water, where, as every thing is obecure, it is certain to
deal in the superlative. You are suie tiiat your English
progenitor was great, Dickon, whatev^ hia profession might
ber
** 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 honour-
able 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 etwl
mn noNKkRA 119
w4io know liow to conduct themselves with pmprietj ; and
Oliver Edwards oomes into my family on a footing with both
the High Sheriff and the Judge."
" Well, Make, 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 even of thiscoantry is under
wholesome restraint."
" Surely, Dickon^ you will not execute till I condemn!^
said Marmaduke. ** But what says Bess to the new in-
mate ? We most pay a deference to the ladies, in this mat-
ter, 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, althougli
I must think the introduction of a demi-savi^ into the familjr
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 great difference in character, well de-
served tiiis common name pursued their course along tho
skirts of the village in silence. It was not until tbeyliad
reached the lake, and were moving over its frozen surface,
towards the foot of the mountain, where their hut stood, that
the youth exclaimed
** Who could have foreseen this a month since ! I have
consented to serve Marmaduke Temple ! to be an inmato
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 xist, I will shake
it off, like the dust from my feet.''
'* Is he a Mingo, that you vrill call him enemy V said
Mohegan. '* The Delaware warrior sits still, and waits the
time (^ the Great Spirk. He is no woman, to cry out like a
child."
'' Well, Vm mistmstM, John,** aid Leather-stocking, la
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 sartain that there's new
ways in the mountains. One haidly knows the Jakes and
streams, they've altered the coontry so nrach. I must say
I'm mistrustful of svch smooth speatais ; for Tve known the
whiles talk foir, whes they wmnted the ladiaA lands mmiU
wamuL "I
finr I
aaon't & sMCHsi ou tnc^ onm ^rtmy bshh^p cone Wed-
wssmv fiiiuiDiva : aoit tiiis& I saac as fiit a taek, on the
PieofBrivaa Iijw a* van. tfvr isud It 'maid have,
done iiiiar ee raai ^god tD aave sees tihr Jhebvucs cmt .
ftir I wiis (luc SGtmitii^ uifti arrrniiagMig vilk their tnhe, at
tiitf vt?ni ^imc. Lord 1 the iTftait. &! bj at3y asd just*
watdsii oil PtQvuiinice shuoiii Koit tiwia tkcv gaae ; but L
fiirsg^ aJCKiaC ani p a deer a^ and pat hte down too,.
*1iire he aiaifthe a ihanr jampb. I wasliaMBhaBd too ra^
remits tu stup tur hfi desk ; ao 1 awk a faod dnak of his.
Wikjoi and the ladiaas cat af ha Beat lav;. Jahawas there,
aad Joha haow^L Bat thea amrina valid be apt to be
too vaeh fic aow^ I witt ova^ Tbiia|^h Tm. aa s'eat eater
at aBT tiiBe.
^ Eooa^ is nid^ Mj foeadek^ cried the jaatlh. 'lfeel
that everj where the sacriice is repaired at hj aaads, awl
it shall be Bade ; hat saj ao aMxe, I catieat joa ; I cannot
bear this sabjcct aow.*^
His compaaioas were sileat, aad thej aoea reaehed tiw
hat, which they catered, after rcmorii^eefftain compUcated
'^ingenioas ftsteninga, that were pot there, iqpparentlj to
~ a uroper^wof bat Tety little TataK. IfluaenM piles el
THE nONEBRS. Ittk
snow lay against the log^ wai'is of this secluded habitation'
on one side, while fragments of small trees, and branches
of oak and chesnut, that had been torn from their parent
stems by the winds, were thrown into a pile, on the other.
A small colnmn 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 nonrished
trees of a gigantic growth, that everhung the little bottom
beneath.
The remainder^of the day passed off as such days are com-
monly 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, notwithstand-
ing 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 clonds, that had
been gathering all the morning, were dense and dirty ; and
before half of the carious 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- brash, which before
had been only traced by the long lines of white mounds,
that ran across the valley and np the mountains, peeped
out, in spots, from their light covering; and the black
stubs were momentarity becoming more distinct, as large
masses of snow and ice fell from their sides, nnder the influ-
ence 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 their covering
of snow, and every thing seemed to be assuming its proper
hue, with a rapidity of transition that bordered/^ the su*
pernatural
4
THE nONESRS.
CHAPTER XIK.
And yet, poor Edwin was no Tolgar boy.
The close of Chmtmas day, A.D. 1793, was tempestooiMyliirt
comparatively warm. When darkness had afaki hid the
objects in the village from the game of Elisabeth, ^she tamed
from the window, where she had remained wbUe ^e 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 the had caught
during the day.
With her arm looked in that of Miss Chrant, the ' yonng
mistress of the mansion walked slowly ap and down the hall,
mosing on the scenes that were rapidly reeofriBg to her
memory, and possibly dwelling, at times, in thosanctnary of
her thoughts, on the strange occurrences that had led to the
introduction to her iath^s family of one, whose manners so
singularly contradicted the inferences to he drawn from his
situation. The expiring heat of the apartment, 4br its great
sise required a day to reduce its temperature, ^had given to
her cheeks a richness of bloom that exceeded their -natural
colour, while the .mild and melancholy features of Louisa
wepi3 brightened with a faint tinge ^at, like the hectic glow
of disease, gave a painful interest to her beauty.
Theeesof the gentlemen, who were yet seated around
the rich wines of Judge Temple, frequently wandered from
the table, that was plaoed at one end;itf the hall, to the lovely
forms that were silently moving over iii 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 Marmadoke -respected the
presence .of his dergical guest too much to indulge in even
the innooent humour that formed no small ingredient in his
character.
Such were, and such continued to be, the pursuits of the
party, jfbr 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 burthen of an armful of wood, was the
interruption to the scene.
** How now, Master Pump ! " roared the newly appointed
Sheriff; is there not warmth enough in Muke's best Maderia.
to keep up the animal heat through this thaw ? Remember,
This PtoNLEKS. 183
old boy, that tb Judge is particular with his beech ,and
maple, begijioing^ to dread, already, a scarcity of the precious
articles. Ha I ha ! ha ! Muke, you are a good, warm-hearted
relation, I will own, as in duty bound, but you have some
queer notions about you, after alJ. * Come, let us be jollU^
and cast awas^ folly' "
Tiie notes g^radually sunk into a hum, while the Major,
domo threw down his load, and turning to his interrogator
with an air of great earnestness, he replied
' Why, look you. Squire Dickens, mayhap there*s a warm
latitude round about the table there, thof it's not the stuff to
nuse the heat in my body, neither ; the raai Jamaiky being
the only thing to do that, beside good wood, or some such
matter as Newcastio coal. Bat, if I know anything of
weather, d'ye see, if s time to be getting all snug, and for
putting the porta in, and stirring the fires a bit. 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 Ben-
jamin P '* inquired the master of the house.
*' There's a shift of vnnd^ 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 Sect, d'ye see, about the tkne we lieked Pe Grasse,
Mounsheer Ler Qnaw'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 be 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 came the fore-saii ag'in tlie mast, whiz went the ship
round on her heel, like a whirligig. And a lucky thing
was it that our helm was down ; for as she gathered staril -
way 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 dear water at a time, id my life,
as I did then, for I was looking up the after-hatch at the in-
stant."
'I wonder, Benjamin, that you did not die vrith a dropsy/*
said Marnaduke.
'* 1 mought, Judge," said the old tar, with a broad grin ;
*'but there was no need of the roed'eine chest for a cure;
tor, as I thought the brew was spoilt for the marine's taste,
and there was no telling when another sea might come and
184 THE PIOXEEHS.
flfioil it for mioe, I finished the mag on the spot. 8a Aon
mil hands was called to the oamps, and then wc iN^gwi tb
plj the pomps "
^ Well, bat the weather f interrapted Manuidke, ** what
of the weather without doors f
** Why, here the wind has been all day at the sooth, and
DOW there's a loll, as if the last blast was oat of bellows {
and there's a streak alun^ the moantain, to the north'aid,
that, just now, wasn't wider than the bi^ess of yoor hand ;
and then the clouds drive afore it as you'd brail a main-
sail, and the stars are heaving in si^ht, fike so many lights
and beacons, put there to warn us to pile on the wood;
and, if so be that I'm a jud^ of weatiier, it's getting to be
time to build on a fire ; or you'll have half ol them there
porter bottles, and them dimmy -Johns of wine, in the locker
here, breaking with the frost, afore the morning wateh is
called."
" Thou art a prudent sentinel," said the Judge. ** Aet thy
pleasure with the forests, for this night at least."
Benjamin did as he was ordered ; nor had two hoars
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
had retired to rest, the cold had become cuttingly severe ;
and when Monsieur Le Quo! sallied forth, under a bright
moon, to seek bis own abode, he was compelled to beg a
blanket, in which be 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 ex-
cess of last night's merriment, induced the gentlemen to
make an early retreat to their several apartments. Long be-
fore midnight, the whole family were invirible.
Elizabeth and her friend had not yet lost their senses in
sleep, when the bowlings of the north-west wind were heard
around the buildings, and brought with them that exquisite
sense of comfort that is ever excited under such circum-
stances, in an apartment where the fire has not yet ceased
to glimmer ; and curtains, and shutters, and feathers, unite
to preserve the desired temperature in the air. 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
strongly resembled the cries of that faithful animal, when
night awakens his vigilance, and gives sweetness and so-
THE PIONEERS. lHi
femnity to bis alarms. The fonn of Louisa Grant iDStinc-
tWely pressed nearer to that of the young heiress, who, find-
ing her companion was yet awake, said, in a low tone, as if
afraid to break a charm with her yoice
'* Those distant cries are plaintive, and even beauti-
ful. Can they be the hounds from the hut of Leather-
stocking V
** They are wolves, who have ventured from the mountain,
OD 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 doors. Oh!
what a dreadful night it was I 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, proudly, throwing off the
covering, and partly rising in the bed. " How rapidly is
civilization treading on the footsteps of nature V she conti-
nued, 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 by her
side, 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 their fire, awoke the
young maidens who form such conspicuous subjects in our
tale. They arose, and finished the slight preparation of
their toilets in a clear, cold atmosphere, that penetrated
through all the defences of even Miss Tempts's warm room.
When Elizabeth was attired, she approached a window and
drew its curtain, and, throwing open its shutters, she en-
deavoured to look abroad on the village and the lake. II
a thick covering of frost, on the panes of glass, while
admitted the light, hid the view. She raised the sas
and then, indeed, a most glorious scene met her delighte
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 lis
position, shone like bright steel; while the enormous icicles,
that were pendant from every roof, caught the brilliant ii:ht,
apparently throwing it from one to tie other, as each glil-
q3
180 THE PIONEbRS.
tered, on the side next to the luminary, with a golden lustre,
that melted away, on its opposite, into the dusky shades of a
background. 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 Milt
Temple. The huge branches of the pines and hemlocks, on
the western mountains, 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 this direction, 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 western horizon. In the foreground of the pic-
ture, along the shores of the lake, and near to the village,
each tree seemed studded with diamonds, that emitted their
dancing rays, as the branches waved under the impulse of
the air. 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 fiist
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, moun-
tains, 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 silenc; 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 such a sceptical
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 recog-
ise the person of the young hunter, in a plain, but, assur^
ediy, the ordinary garb of a gentleman.
*' Every thing -in this nuigical country seems to border
on tl^e marvellous," said Elizabeth ; '* and among all the
ebaoges^ this is certainly not the least wonderful. 1 am not
I.
,THB PIONEEU. 197
arprised that yoar eye caught this transfonnation. without
noticing the changes in the view. The actors are as unique
as the scenery/'
Miss Grant coloured highly, and drew in her head, as she
answered
'* I am a simple girl, Miss Temple, and I am afraid yon
will find me but a poor companion. - I I am not sure that
I understand all that 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 certainly a genteel savage,*' returned the smiling
Elizabeth. ** 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 situa-
tion,'' continued Marmaduke; ' but I gather from his dis-
course, 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 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 con-
trol 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 ; but 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 be-
lieve him to be the child of Cornstalk, or Corn-planter, or
some other renowned chieftain ; possibly of the Big Snake
himself; and shall treat him as such, until he sees (it to
shave his good-looking head, borrow some half-dozen paii
of my best ear-rings, shoulder his rifle again, and disappear
as suddenly as he made his entrance. Bo come, my dear
r
Ig8 TH PIONSBRS.
sir, and let us not forget the rites of hospitality , for tbethott
time he is to remain with us
Judge Temple smiled at the graceful playfulness of his
thildy and taking her arm, they entered the breakfast par-
lour, where the young hunter was seated, with an air that
bowed his determination to domesticate himscif in the fa-
mily, with as little parade as possible.
Such were the incidents that led to this extraordinary
increase in the family ot 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 in-
telligence the employments that were assigned him by Mar-
maduke.
Major Hartmann made his customary yisit, and took bis
leave of the party, for the next three months. Mr. tirant
was compelled to be absent much of his time, in remote
parts of the country, and his daught^ became almost a con-
stant visiter at the Mansion-house. Hichard 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 amuse-
ments of the young people ; where the ladies, in their one-
horse cutter, drivei) 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
^ir 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
dijQerent settlers had, in the language of the country , **mado
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 tliriving 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 th3 excite-
ment of novelty ; or, with loads of produce, hastening to the
ccmmon market at Albany, that served as so many snares,
1o induce the emigrants to enter into those wild mountains
iu search of competence and happiness.
The village was alive with business; the artisans in-
THE PIONEERS. 189
creAsin ing wealth with the prosperity of the country, and
each aay witnessing^ some nearer approach to the manners
and nsasres of an old-settled town. The man who carried
the mail, or *' the post," as he was called, talked much or
runninf^ a stage, and, once or twice daring tlie winter, he
was seen taking a single passenger, in his cutter, through
the suow-banks, towards the Mohawk, along which a regu-
lar vehicle glided, semi-weekly, with the velocity of light-
ning, and under the direction of a knowing whip from the
"down countnes." Towards spring, divers families, who
had been into the */old states," to see their relatives, re-
turned, 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, and make a trial in the woods for fortune.
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 mvstery, 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, throagh the snow, or, if detained
beyond the time at which the family retired to rest, with the
morning sun. These visits certainly excited much specula-
tion in those to whom they were known, but no comments
were made, excepting occasionally, in whispers from Rich-
ard, who would say
" It is not at all remarkable ; a half-breed can never be
weaned from the savage ways, any more than a full-blooded
Indian/'
CHAPTER XX;
''Awaj I nor let me loiter in my song, '
I'Vr we have many a mountain path to tread."
Byron
As the spring gradually approached, the immense piles of
snow, that by alternate thaws and frosts, and repeated
storms, had obtained a firmness that threatened a tiresome
190 TUB. PIONEERS.
darabiiitj, began to jrield to the inflaeDce of milder breeiei
and a warmer son. The gates of Heaven at times seemed to
open, and a bland air diffused itself over the earth, When ani-
mate and inanimate natore woold awaken, and for a few
koors, the g^aiety of spring shone ineverf eye, and smiled on
ereiy field. Bat the shivering blasts from the north woold
earry their chill infloence over the scene again, and the dark
and gloomy clouds that intercepted the rays of tiie sun were
not more cold and dreary than the reaction which crossed
the creation. These struggles between the seasons became,
daily, more frequent, while the earth, like a victim to con-
tention, slowly lost the animated brilliancy of winter, with"
ont obtaining the decided aspect of spring.
Several weeks were consumed in this cheerless manner,
during which the inhabitants of the country gradually chang-
ed tbeir 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 tSironged
with visiters ; the trade, that had enlivened the shops for se-
veral months, began 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 mighl^ change, not
only in the earth itself, but in those also who derived their
sources of comfort and happiness from her 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 flueluating 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 ttonntaelos, and through
every' valley within twenty miles of then, but divers and in-
genious and varied sources of pleasure, on the bosom of
their frozen lake. There had been rides in the equipage of
Richard, when, with his four horses, he had outstripped the
winds with its speed, as it flew over the glassy ice which in-
variably succeeded a thaw. Then the exciting and danger-
ous ** 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 their
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 compeUed to acknowledge to
her father that the season, with the aid of his library, was
nrach less irksome than she had anticipated.
THE nONEBRS. 191
Aa ejcercise 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 dangeroat
at the most favourable times, utterly impassable for wheels,
saddle horses were used as substitutes for their other convey-
ances. 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 excur-
sions 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 situ-
ation, and not unfrequently mingled in their parties, with an
uoconcern and gaiety, that for a short time, would, apparent-
ly, expel all unpleasant recollections from his mind. Habit,
and the buoyance of youth, seemed to be getting the ascen-
dency over the secret causes of his uneasiness ; though there
were moments when the same remarkable expression of dis-
gust 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 fore-castlemaa
does his marling spike, or a tailor his goose. '1 hey say he'll
lift a potash kettle off the arch with his own hands, thof I
can't say that I'vo ever seen him do it vidth my own eyes ;
but that is the say. And I've seen sugar of his making
which, maybe, was'nt as white as an old top-gallant sail,
but which my /riend Mistress Pretty-bones, vdthin 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 BenjamiOi and
192 TUB PIONBEBS.
in which he participated, with .no yery haimonioas wmnds,
himself, very folly iliastrated the congenial temper which
exLited 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 to do so, at the moment. When
all were safely in their saddles, the whole moyed through
the village in great order. They paused for a moment, be-
fore Mie door of Monsieur Le Qaoi, 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 cen-
tred in the village.
As each night brought with k a severe frost, which the
beat of the succeeding day served to dissipate, the eques-
trians were compelled to proceed singly along the margin of
the r')ad, where the turf, and firmness of the ground, gave
their horses a secure footing. Very trifling indications of
approaching vegetation were to be seen, the surface of the
earth presenting a cold, wet, and cheeriess aspect, that
almost chilled the blood of the spectator. The snow jet lay
scattered over most of those distant clearings that were visi-
ble in different parts of the mountains ; though here and
there an opening might be seen, where, as the white cover-
ing 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 invigor-
ating sun was dispensing his heats from a sky that con-
tained but a solitary cloud that lingered near the mountain,
and through an atmosphere that softened the colours of the
sensible horizon until it shone like a sea of virgin blue.
Richard led the way, on this, as on ail other occasions,
that did not require the exercise of unusual abilities ; and as
he moved along, he essayed to enliven the partv with the
sounds of his experienced voice :
" This is your true sugar weather, Muke," 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 manufactory of sugar among your tenants.
It might be done, sir, without knowing as much as Doctor
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,
THE PIONEERS*. 193
?t will be iu season to turn our attention to an improvement
in the manufacture of the article. But thou knowest,
Riciiard, 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 sac-
charine 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 yon 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 haycock."
*' And purchase the cargo of one of those ships that, they
say, are going to China," cried Elizabeth ; *Uurn your pot-
ash-kettle into tea-cups, thb scows on the lake into saucers :
bake your cake in yonder Hlinie-kiln, and invite the county
to a tea-party. How wonderful are the projects of genius?
Really, sir, the world are 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 extremely 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 illustra-
tion of preposition 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 yon
may, possibly, make loaf-sugar ; but I take the question to
be, whether you make the best possible sugar, and into the
best possible loaves."
*' Thou art very right, Richard," observed Marmadake^
with a gravity in his air, that proved how much he was in*
terested in the subject. *' Its very true that we manufacture
fugar, but the inquiry is quite useful to make, how iiulqIl
R
194 THE PIONEERS
and in w^at 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 the use of the hoe and plough.^
'* Hoe and plough," roared the sheriif ; ** would you iset
a man hoeing round the root of a maple like this,'' point-
ing to one of those noble tress, that occur so frequently in
that part of the country. Hoeing trees are yoti 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 la the
West Indies, and seen sugar made often. Let him give an
account of how it is made there, and jrou will bear the philo-
sophy 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 querry was put was mounted
on a small horse, of no very fiery temperament, and was
riding with bis stirrups so short, as to bring bis knees, while
the animal rose a small ascent in the wood-path they were
now travelling, into a ^somewhat hazai'dons yicinity to bis
chin. There was no room for gesticulation or grace in the
delivery of his reply, for the mountain was steep and slip
pery ; and although the Gaul had an eye of uncommon Aiag-
nitude on either side of his face, they did not aeem 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 ^angers
and the other grasping his bridle, to check an untoward
speed that his horse was assuming, the native of France res-
ponded as follows
'* Sucre ! dey do make eet in Martiniooe : mais mais eel
is not from yon tree ; eet is from ah aib vat you call Jo
voudrols que ces chemins fussent an diable vat yon call
von steeck pour le promenade/'
'^Cane," said Elizabeth, smiling at Uie imprecation
which the wary Frenchman supposed was undeistood onlj
by himself.
" Oui, Mam'selle, cane."
" Yes, yes," cried Richard, " cane is the vulgar name toi
it, but the real term is saccharum officinarum ; and what we
ciil the sugar or hard maple, is accr saccharinum. These
are the learned names, Monsieur, and are suob. as doubtless
THE MONEERS. 19^
heiress to the youth, who wJs 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 th^
ipai^en, with a keenness bordering on ferocity ; but ils ex-
pr^sion changed, in a moment, to the sailing playfulness of
h^r own face, as he answered
" T shall remember your doubts, Miss Temple, when uei^t
I visit my old friend Mohegan, and either his skill, or that ojf
Leather-stocking, shall solve them/*
" And are yon, then, really ignorant of their language ? "
asked Elizabeth, with an impetuosity that spoke a liyely in-
terest in the reply,
* Not absolutely; but the deep learning of Mr. Jones is
more familiar to me, or even the polite masouerade of Mon-
sieur Le Quoi."
" Do you speak French ?" said the lady, with a quickness
that equalled her former interest.
" It is a common language with the Iroquois, and
through the Canadas,'' he answered, with an equivocal
smile.
" Ah ! but tbey 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 thus 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 sum-
mit of the mountain, where the hemlocks and pines totally
disappearcL., 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 statelv pride. The un-
derwood had been entirely removed from this grove, or bush,
as, in conjunction with the simple arrangements for bqilinr,
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 with their stems 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 basswood, was lying at the
root of each tree, to catch the sap that flowed from this ex-
tremely wasteful and inartificial arrangement.
The party paused a moment, on gaining the flat, to breathe
tlieir horses, and, as the seen^ was entirely new to sCtK^t^k
196 THE PIONEEKS.
of their number, to view the manner of collccnng the fluid.
A fine powerful voice aroused them from their momentary
ilenct, as it rung under the branches of the trees, singing
the following ^rords 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 fa-
miliar air which, although it is said to have been first applied
to his nation in derision, circumstances have since rendered
80 glorious, that no American ever hears its jingling cadence
without feeling a thrill at his heart.
"The Eastern States be fall 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, nijr sweety sap.
And I will make joa boilj ;
Nor catch a woodman's hasty nap.
For fear you should get roily.
" The maple tree's a precioas one,
'Tis fuel, food, and timber ;
And when yonr stifT day's work is done.
Its juice will make yon limber.
Then flow away, &c.
" And what's a man witboat bis giass,
His wife witboat her tea, sir 1
Bat neither cup nor mug will pass,
Without this honey bee, sir {
Then flow away," &o.
During the execution of this sonorous ditty, Richard kept
time with his whip on the mane of his charger, accompany-
ing 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 prodi-
gious addition to the ** efiect " 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 turnish 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
Modiffcrenco, and isurveyed the party, as they approached.
THE PIONEERS 19
with admirable coolness. To each individaal, as he or she
rode close by bim, he ga^e 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, Sheriff? " said the wood-chopper ; ** what*i
the good word, to-day P ''
** Why, much as usual, Billy," returned Richard. '' But
how is this? where are your four kettles, and your troughs,
and your iron coolers ? Po 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 Kifby, who continued
his occupation. '* 1*11 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 pot-
ash, an^ parling too ; or hoeing corn. Though I keep my-
self, pretty qnifch, to the first business, seeing that the axe
comes most nateral to me.''
" You be von Jack All- trade, Mister Beel/' said Mousienr
Le Quoi.
*' How V said Kirby, looking up, with a simplicity which^
coupled with his gigantic frame and manly face, was f
little ridiculous. ''If you be for trade, Mounsber, here if
some as good sugar as you'll find the season through. It)
as clear ^om dirt as the Garman Flats is from stumps, and
It has the raal maple flavour. Such stuff would sell in York
for candy."
The Fienchman 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. Marmaduka
had dismounted, and was viewing the works and the trees
very closely, and not without frequent expressions of dissa-^
tisfaction at the careless manner in which the manufacture
was conducted. ,
"" 'VYou have much experience in these things, Kirby," be
said ; *' what is the course you pursne in making your sugar?
I see that yon have but two kettles."
''Two is as good as two thousand, Jndge ; I'm none of
your polite sugar-makers, that boils for the great folks ; bat
if the raal sweet maple is wanted, I can answer your turn.
First, I choose, and then I tap, my trees ; say along about
llio last of February, or in these mouiitaiiMi)\avj^k^ ^^\.^^x^
r3
196 THE PIONEERS.
the middle ot March ; hut any way, jost as the sap begins te
cleverly ran"
*^ Well, in this choice," interrapted Marmadake, ' are yoa
governed by any outward signs that proTe the quality of the
Ucef
* Why, there's judgment in all things," said Kirby, stir-
ring 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 built in a day, nor, tor
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 just like creaters ; 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 trae : but what are your signs of illness ?
how do you distinguish a tree that is well from one that is
diseased ? *'
'* How does the doctor tell who has fcTcr, and who colds P"
interrapted Richard : '* by examining the skin, and feeling
the pulse, to be sure.''
** Sartain," continued Billy, ^* the Squire an't 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 1
get the yartoo of the sap ; but when it begins to grow of a
molasses nater, like this in the kettle, one musn't drive the
fire9 too hard, or you'll burn the sugar : and buray sugar Is
always 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 careful 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 doesn't. Well, Mounsher, be we likely to make a
trade ? "
"I vill give you, Mister Beel, for yon pound dix
sous."
i
%
No, I expect cash for't: I never dicker away my sngar.
But seeing that it's you, Mounsher," said Billy, with a coax-
ing smile; " I'll agree $o take a gallon of ram, and cloth
enough for two shirts, if you will take the molasses in the
argain. It's raal good. I wouldn't deceive you or any
joan : and to my drinking it's about the best molasses I eter
Sficd come out q( a suz^xAyoA\k'*
THE riONEEIO. iPfi
** Mr. Lo Qaoi has ofiered yoa ten pence/' said joung
Edwards.
The manufacturer stared at the speaker, with an air ol
^reat freedom, but made no reply.
" Oui," said the Frenchman, ** ten penny. Je voua re*
mercie, Monsieur: ah! mon Anglois! je Toublie tou-
jours."
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 re-
mained, and offered the bowl to Mr. Le Quoi, saying
'* Taste that, Mounsher, and I guess you will say it is
worth more than you offer. The molasses itself would fetch
twice the money."
The complasant 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. J3ut it's a knowing one, from tho
old countries, that thinks to get his iokes smoothly over a
Yankee wood-chopper."
The air of innocence with which Kirby resumed the occu-
pation of stirring the contents of his kettle, would have com-
pletely deceived the spectators, as to his agency in the tem-
porary 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 true to nature. Mr. Le Quoi soon recovered his pre-
sence 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 background dur-
ing the remainder of their visit, the wit of Kirby putting a
violent termination, at once, to all negotiations on the sub-
ject of trade. During all this time, Marmaduke had been
waudering about the grove, making his observations on hia
^
THE PIOHeEIU.
lToiiiite trees, and the wasteful manner in wbicb il^e void-
ehopper ccndacted his manafacture.
*' It grieves me to witness tiie extravagance that pervades
this country/' said the Jndge, *' where the settlers trifle with
tliC blessings they might enjoy, with the prodigality of suc-
cessful 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 Hill 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," retut nod the man be ad-
dressed : ** It seeus to me, if there's a plenty of any thing in
this mountaynious 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 Yarmount and York states ; and
I hope to live to iinish the whull, before I lay up my 4xc.
Chopping comes quite nateral to me, and { wish no other
empl'yment ; but Jared Ransom said that he thought the su-
gar was likely to be scurce this season, seeing that so m^^ny
folks was coming into the settlement, and so I concluded to
take the * bush' on sheares^ for this oce spring. What's the
best news, Judge, consarning ashes? do pots hold so that a
man can live by them still 7 I s'pose th^t they will, if they
keep on fighting."
Thou reasonest with judgment, William,'' returned
Marmaduke. ** So long as the old world is to be convuhed
vith wars, so long will the harvest in 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 calkilate greatly on the trees. Setting a" much
atore by them as some men would by their children, yet, to
my eyeSf they are a sore sight at any time, unless I'm privi-
Jeged to work my will on them ; in which case, I can t say
but they are more to my liking. I have heer'n the settlers
^rom the old countries say that their rich men keep great
oaks and elms, that would make a barrel of pots to toe tree,
standing round their doors and humsteads, and scattered
over their farms, jus.t to look on. 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 be-
sides, if you dig them, they make a fence that will turn any
thing bigger than a hog, being grand for breachy cattle."
'* Our notions on such subjects vary macn^ in ditterent
THE nONEERS.
fountries/' said Marmaduke ; *' but it U not as ornaiiiDl
that I value the noble trees of this country ; it is for thctf
usefulness. We are stripping the forests, as if a single yeai
would replace what we destroy. But the hour approacbei
when the laws will take notice of not only the woods bat
the game they contain also."
With this consoling reflection, Marmaduke remounted,
and the equestrians passed the sugar-camp, 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 scien-
tific than the former. All that she understood of the words,
were
" And when the proad forest ! fftUiog
To my oxen cbeerfallj callioff.
From mom until night I am bawling
Woe, back there, and hoy and gee *
Till oar laboar is mataally ended.
By my strength and cattle befriended.
And against the masqaitoes defended.
By the bark of the walnat-tree.
'* Away ! then, von lads who would by land.
Choose the oak that grows on the hign land.
Or the silvery pine on the dry land.
It matters but little to me."
CHAPTER XXI.
** Speed Malise, speed I snco cause of haste
Thine active sinews never brao'd."
The roads of Otsego, if we except the principal higfaDia%s
.ere, at the early day of our tale, butV\VU V^^VX't^^^^^'^^'^''
203 THE nONEERS.
paths of anusual width. The high trees that were glowing
on the very verge of the wheel-tracks excluded the sun's
rajs^ aniess at meridian, and the slowness of the evapora-
tion, united with the rich mould of vegetable decomposition
that covered the whole country, to the depth of several inches
occasioned bat an indifferent foundation for the footing of
travellers. A^ded to these, there were the inequalities of a
natural surface, and the constant reearrence* of enormous
and slippery roots, that were laid bare by the removal of
the light soil, together with stumps of trees, to make a pas-
sage not only difficult but dangerous. Yet the riders, among
these numerou s obstructions, which were such as would
terrify an unpractised eye, gave no demonstrations of un-
easiness, as their horses toiled through the sloughs, or
trotted with uncertain paces along their dark route. In
many places, the marks on the trees were the only indica
tions of a road, with, perhaps, an occasional remnant of pine
that, ^y 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 t|)at it was the centre of the high way.
Into one of these roads the active Sheriff led the way,
first striking oqt of the footpath, by which they had de-
scended from the sugar-bush, across a little bridge, formed
of round logs laid loosely on sleepers of pine, in which large
openings were frequent and in one instance, of a formidable
width. The nag of Richard, when it reached this barrier,
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.
8he made a step or two with an unusual caution, and then,
on reaching the bioadest opening, obedient to the curb and
whip of her fearless mistress, she bounded across the dan-
gerous 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 practice
thy skill in horsemanship on the plains of New- Jersey with
safety, hut in the hills of Otsego they must be suspended foi
A time,"
**I may as well, then, relinquish my saddle at once,
dear sir,' returned his daughter; *' for if it is to laid
aside until this wild country be improved, old age wilf
overtake me, and put an end to what 3'ou terra my eques*
/rlan feats."
THE PldSEKRS. 203
"Say not so, my cbild/' returned her father; "but if
thou venturost again, as in crossing this bridge, old age will
never overtake thee but I shall be left to mourn ihee, cut oiT
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
and witnessed its rapid changes, as it awoke to supply the
wants of man, thou wouldest curb thy impatience for a little
time, though thou shouldst not check thy steed."
'* I have a remembrance of hearing yoa speak, sir, of your
first visit to these woods, but the recollection of it is faint,
and blended with the confused images of childhood. Wild
and unsettled as it may yet seem, it must have been a thou-
sand 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 interested 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 seeulied to read
his thoughts.
** Thou wast then young, my chtld, 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 lu&n
to endure privations in order to accamulate wealth. In
mv case they have not been trifling, and God has been
pioased to smile on my efibrts. If I have encountered pain,
famine, and 4esease, in aceoinplishing the settlement of
this rough territory, I hayo 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 fatlier. " 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 ^ve 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 liunt (he beasts as food for
their starving families."
" Ay I" cried Richard, who happened to overhear the la^t
of this speech, between the notes of the wood-chopper'd
long, which he was endeavouring to breathe aloud ; " that
was the starving-time, cousin Bess. I grew as lank as tt
weasel that fall, and my face was as pale as one of vour
fever. and- ague visages. Monsiear Le Quoi^ tbk%t^^ V^
VI4 . THE PIONEERS.
a'vay like a pumpkin in drying ; nor do I think yon have got
fairly over it yet. Monsieur. Benjamin I thought, bore it
wiih a worse grace than any of the family, for he swore it
was harder to endure than a short aJlowance in the calru
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 go into Pennsylvania to fatten ; but, damn it thinks
I, we are sister's children, and I will live or die with him
after all."
''I do not forget thy kindness/' said Maroiaduke, '^nor
that we are of one blood."
** But, my dear father," cried the wondering Elizabeth,
*^ was there actual suH'ering ? where were the beautiful and
fertile vales of the Mohawk? could they not furnish food for
vour wants ?**
** It was a season of scarcity ; the necessities of life com-
manded 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 subsistance like a swarm of
locusts. Nor were the people on the Flats in a much belter
condition. They were in want themselves, but they spared
the little excess of provisions, that nature tiid not absolutely
reqnire,.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
ander the load of the hag of meal, which he was carrying
from the hills 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 pur very infancy; we had neither mills, nor grain,
nor roads, nor often clearings : we had nothing of increase,
bat the mouths that were to be fed ; for even at that inauspi-
cious 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 all the responsibility, if not the sutt'o**-
ing."
'' 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 suiferings of their families, and the glot^m
THK PIONEERS. 205
pros{ect before them, had paralysed the enterprise and ef-
forts 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. 1 pnr-
thased cargoes of wheat from the granaries of Pennsylvania ;
they were landed at Albany, and brought up the Mohawk in
boats ; thence it was transported on pack-horses into the
wilderness, and distributed among my people. Seines were
made, and the lakes and rivers were dragged for fish. Some
thing like a miracle was wrought in our favour, for enormous
shoals of herring were discovered to have wandered fire
hundred miles, through the windings of the impetuous Sus-
quehanna, 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 be-
gan to prosper."
** Yes,'^ cried Richard, " and I was the man who served
out both 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 mat-
ter, 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, ut-
terly disregarding the interruption of his cousin, ** he who
hears of the settlement of a country knows but little of the
actual toil and suffering by which it is accomplished. Un-
improved 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, back near the farms of the Cherry
Valley, an-i, following a deer-path, rode to the summit -of
the moantain, that I have since called Mount Vision ; for
the sight that there met my eyes seemed to me as the decep-
tions 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
faei rvbs, descend to the shore to drink. I had met many
^eci, gliding through the woods, in my journey %V)iNs^.XknX^^^
S09 THB nONBERS.
Ycstige of a man coald I trace, during my progress, nor from
my elevated conservatory. No clearing, no hut, none of tLo
winding roads that are now to be seen, were there, nothing
bat mountains rising behind mountains, and the valley, with
its surface of branches, enlivened here and there with tho
&ded foliage of some tree that parted from its leaves with
more than ordinary reluctance. Even the little Susquehanoft
was then hid, by the height and densitv of the forest."
** Anil were yon there alone V 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 moun-
tain. My horse was left to browse on the twigs that grew
within his reach, while lexpiored the shores of the lake, and
the spot where Tempieton stands. A pine of more than or-
dinary growth stood where my dwelling is now placed ! a
wind-row had been opened through the trees thence to the
lake, and my view was but little impeded. Under the branch-
es of that tree I made my solitary dinner ; I had just finished
my repast as I saw a smoke curling from under the moun-
tain, 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 habitaition
of the Indians. But while I was lingering around the spot.
Natty made his appearance, staggering under the load of the
carcass of a buck that he had slain. Our acquaintance com-
menced at that time; before, I had never heard that such a
being tenanted tho 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 re-
turned 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 re-
sume her interrogatories ; but the youth himself continued
the discourse, by asking, with a smile lurking around his-
features
*' And how did the Leather-stocking discharge the datief-
of a host, sir ?"
*' Why, simply bat kindly, until late in the evening, wbeft
THE PIONEERS. Qffi
he discovered my name and object, and the cordiality of his
manner very sensibly diminished, or, I might better say, dis-
appeared. He considered the introdaction 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 ambigaous manner. I hardly understood his objections
nnrselfy but suppose they referred chiefly to an interraplion
of the hunting.*'
'' Had you then purchased the estate, or were you exa-
mining it with an intent to buy?" asked Edwards, a little
abruptly.
'* It had been mine for several years. It was with a view
io 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?" continued
Edwards. ''The Leather-stocking is much given to im-
peach 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 then 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 our country can
affect my title."
" Doubtless, sir, your title is both legal and equitable,"
returned the youth, coldly, reining his horse back, and re-
maining silent till the subject was changed.
It was seldom that Mr. Jones suffered any conversation to
continue, for a sreat length of time without his participa-
tion. It seems that be was of the party that Judge Templ6
had designated as his surveyors ; and he embraced the op-
portunity 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 de-
scription of the JudgC) we must decline the task of commit-
ting his sentences to paper.
They soon reached the point where the promised view nas
to be seen. It was one of those picturesque and peculiar
scenes that belong to the Otsego, but which required the ab-
sence of the ice, and the softness of a summer's landscape,
to be enjoyed in all its beauty* Marmadnke had early (ore-
308 fi\t PMNEER9.
warned his daughter of the season and of its effect en the
prospect, and, after casting a cursory glance at its capabiti*
ties, the party returned homeward, perfectly satisfied that its
beauties would repay them for the toil of a second ride, at a
more pk'opitioos 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 ex-
pcll&d, 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 made formidable sorties yon 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 foot-steps 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 lowcountrie, it ees
freeze up for half de year."
The error of Mr. Le Qnoi was not noticed by the Sheriff;
and the rest of the party were yielding to the influence of
the changeful season, that was already teaching the eques-
trians that a continuance of its mildness was not to be ex-
pected for any length of time. Silence and thoughtfulness
succee^lcd the gaiety and conversation that had prevailed
during the commencement of their 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 oc-
curred 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 al-
ready succeeded by the deadening influence of an approach-
ing north-wester.
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 animals, which often carried them over places that
f^ntiJd not admit of any gait faster than a walk.
TH PIONEERS. 300
Kichard continued in advance, and was followed by Mr.
Le Qiioi ; next to whom rode Elizabeth, who seemed to have
imbibed the distance which pervaded the manner of young
f^dwards, since the termination of the discourse between tlie
latter and her father. Marmaduke followed his daughter,
giving her frequent and tender Earnings as to her safety and
the management of her horse. It was, possibly, the evident
dependence that Louisa Grant placed on his assistance
which induced the Vouth to continue by her side, as they
pnrsued 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 reach-
ed the spot where the equestrians were in motion, but that
dead stillness that often precedes a storm contributed to ren-
der their situation more irksome than if they were already
subjected to the fury of the tempest. Suddenly the voice of
}'oung Edwards was heard shouting, in these appalling tones
that carry alarm to the very soul and which curdle the blood
of those that hear them
** A tree I a tree! whip spur for your lives! a tree! a
tree I "
"A tree ! A tree ! *' echoed Kichard, giving his. horse a
blow that caused the alarmed beast to jump nearly a rod,
throwing the m.ud and water into- the air like a huri
cane.
" 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 marvelloils speed.
Elizabeth checked her filly, and looked up, with an un-
Conscious, but alarmed air, at the very cause of their danger,
while she listened to the crackling sounds that awoke the
^illness of the forest ; but, the next instant, her bridle was
seized by her father, who cried
** God protect my child !" and she felt herself hurried on-
ward. Impelled by the vigour of his nervous arm.
Each one of the party bowed to their saddle bows, as the
tearing of branches was succeeded by a sound like the rush-
ing of the winds, which was followed by a thundering re-
port, and a shock that caused the verv earth to tremble, as
one of the noblest ruins in the forest fell directly across their
path.
One glance was enough to assure Judge temple that hi?,
daughter, and those in front of him^ were safe, and I^aI^ox^^^
s3
210 THE PIOKEERS.
his eyes, in dreadful anxiety, to learn the fate of the others.
Young Edwards was on the opposite side of the tree, with
, 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. The mai-
den 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 a\7fol
silence of that moment.
**By God's blessing," returned the youth; ''but if there
had been branches to the tree we must haye been lost "
He was interrupted by the figure of Louisa slowly yield*
ing in her saddle; and, but for his arm, she would have
sunken to the earth. Terror, however, was the only in-
jury that the cler^man's daughter had sustained, and
with the aid of Ehzabeth, 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. d
"Wards, she was enabled to follow the party in their slow
progress.
'* The sudden falling of the trees,^ said Marmaduke,
"is the most dangerous of our 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 obvi-
ous," 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 fails without its base, and then the
tree comes of a certainty; and I should like to know what
greater compulsion there can be for anything than a mathe-
matical certainty. I studied mathe "
"Very true, Richard," interrupted Marmaduke; "thy
reasoning is true, and if thy memory be not overtreacherous,
was furnished by myself on a former occasion. But how is
one to guard against the danger P 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 anything, sir. Do
THE PIONEERS. Sll
any trees fall in this manner but such as are decayed ? Take
care not to approach the roots of any rotten trees, and you
will be safe enough/'
** That would be excluding us entirely from the forest ; **
skid 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." x
Lonisa by this time had recovered so much of her 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 man-
sion-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 ma-
terial.
While Edwards was assisting Louisa from her horse, the
warm-hearted girl caught bis hand with fervour, and whis-
pered
** 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 boTS aud gir1s
Desert th' anpeopled villafi^e ; and wild crowds
Spread o*er the plain, by the sweet frenzy driven/'
SOMEBTILLB.
From this time, to the close of April the weather CQntinued
to be a succesion of great and rapid changes. One day, the
soft airs of spring would seem to be stealing along the valley,
and, in unision 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
Kciitle adversaries. The snow, however, finally disappeared,
and the green wheat field were seen in every direction, spot-
ted with the. dark and charred stumps that had, the prcc.e*
"%
tit THB nOfiEBlS.
diQg season, supported some of the proudest trees of tba
for^. Ploo^bs were in motion, wherever those asefal im-
plements coold be used, and the smokes of tbe sugar-camps
were no longer seen issuing from the summits of the woods
of maple. The lake had lost all tbe characteristic beauty of a
field of ice, but still a dark and gloomy coTcring concealed its
waters, for the absence of currents left them jet hid under
porous crust, which, saturated with the fluid, barely retained
nough of its strength to preserve the contiguity of its parts.
a rge flocks of wild geese were seen passing Over the country,
hich hovered, for a time, around the hidden sheet of water,
apparently seaicbing for an opening, where they might find
a resting place ; and then, on finding themselves excluded
by the chill covering, would soar anay to the north, filling
the air with their 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 possesion of two eagles, who alighted on the
centre of its field, and sat proudly eyeing the extent of 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 tdrned upward, with a look of
majestic contempt, as if penetrating to the very heavens with
the acuteness of their vision. 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 had prevented the formation of ice, during even the
coldest weather; and the fresh southerly winds, that now
breathed freely up the valley, obtained an impression on the
waters. Mimic waves began 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
strujTjrle of a few hours, the turbulent little bHlowssucceeded
ib setting the whole field in an undulating motion, when it
was driven beyotid 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 over the border of crystals, and soared with
a wide sweep far above the clodds, while the waves tossed
their little caps of snow into the ait, as if rioting in their re-
lease Irom a thaldtom of five moiitli*B daratioti.
THE PIONEERS 2*
The following morning EUzabeth was awakened by the
exhilarating sounds of the martins, who were quarrelling and
battering around the little boxes (hat were suspended above
Der windows, and the cries of Richard, who was calling, id
tones as animating as the signs of the season itself
" Awake ! awake ! my lady fair! the gulls are hovenng
over the lake already, and the heavens are alive with the
pigeons. You may look an hour before you can find a hole
through which ^o get a peep at the sun, Awake ! awake I
lazy ones ! Jieiijamin is overhauling the ammunition, and
we only wait for our breakfasts, and away for the mountains
and pigeon -shooting/'
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 artiflcial heat with such unremitted diligence.
The gentlemen were impatiently waiting for their morning's
repast, each being 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 county.
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 I away ! Bess ; I long to
pepper them from the mountain."
In this 'vish both Marmaduke and young Edwards seemed
equally to participate, for the sight was most 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 its barrel of 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 cross- bows, were carried by many of the latter.
The houses and the signs of life apparent in the village
pro t" tLe alarmed birds from the direct line of their flight,
towards the mountains, along the sides and near the Uqa^a^
'4l4 THE PIONEERS.
of which they were glaDciog in dense masses, that were
equally wonderful by the rapidity of their motion, as by their
incredible numbers.
We have already said that across the inclined plane, which
fell from the steep ascent of the mountain to the anks of
the Susquehanna, ran the highway, on either side of which
a clearing of many acres had been made at a Tery early
day. Over those clearings, and np the eastern mountain^
and along the dangerous path that was cut into its side, the
different individuals posted themselves, as suited their in-
clinations ; and in a few moments the attack commenced.
Among the sportsmen were to be seen the tall, gaunt form
of Leather.stocking, who was walking over the field, with
his riQe hanging on his arm, his dogs following close at his
heels, now scenting the dead or wounded birds, that were
beginning to tumble from the flocks, and then crouching un
der the legs of their master, as if they participated in his
feelings at this wasteful and nnsportsmanlike execution.
The reports of the fire-arms became rapid, whole volleys
rising from the plain, as flocks of more than ordinary num-
bers darted over the opening, covering the field with dark-
ness, like an interposing cloud ; and then the Nght smoke of
a single piece would issue from among the leafless boshes on
the mountain, as death was hurled on the retreat of the af-
frighted birds, who were rising from a volley, for many feet
into the air, in a vain effort to escape the attacks of man.
Arrows, and missiles of every kind, were seen 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 monntaifiy were used to strike
them to the earth.
During all this time, Mr. Jones, who disdained the horn-
ble and ordinary means of destruction used by his compa^
nions, wes 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 difierent
districts of the western part of New York, there had been
found in Templeton, at its settlement, a small swirel, 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,
their convenience or their necessities induced them to leave
such an incumbrance behind them in the woods. This
BDiniature cannon had been released from the riist. and,
mounted on little wheels^ Iras now in a state for ao-
- H i git
IRE nOMEBRS. 316
tufti service. For gCTeral years, it was tHe sole oi^n fof
extraordinary rejoicings that was ased in those monntainft.
On the morning^s of the Fourths of July, it would be heafA
with its echoes ringing among the hills, and telling forth its
sounds, for thirteen tipf\es, with all the dignity of a two-and-
thirty pounder ; and even Captain Hollister, who was the
highest authority in that part of the country on all such oc-
casions, affirmed that, eonsidering its dimensions, it was no
despicable gun for a salute. It was somewhat the worse for -
the service it had performed, it is tn;^e, there be'ing but a
trifling difference in size between the touch-hole and the
muzzle. Still, the grand conceptions of Richard had sug-
gested the importance of such an instrument, in hurling
death at his nimble enemies. The swivel was dragged by a
horse in!:a 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-doYiio soon
announced that his piece was ready for service.
The sight of such an implement collected all the idle spec-
tators to the spot, who, being mostly boys, filled the air witb
their cries of exultation and delight. The gun was pointed
on high, and Richard, holding a coal of fire in a pair of toDgs,
patiently took his seat on a stump, awaiting the appearance
of a flock that was worthy of his notice.
So*^prodigious was the number of the birds, that the scat-
tering 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
tJie valley, as if the whole creation of the feathered tribe
were pouring through that one pass. None pretended to -
collect the g^rae, 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 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 yoa
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 gartersnake. Bnt now it gives me sorp
thoughts wlien I bear the frighty things whizzing througo
^the air, for I know it's only a motion to ImaeLj^o^N.'oSiLVMk
.*
i
^16 THE PIONEERS*.
brats in the village at them. 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 ii
he was shooting down nothing bot the Mingo warriors."
Among the sportsmen was Billy Kirby, who, armed with
an old masket, 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's that, 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 1 have done, you wouldn't be so
massyfully feeling*d towards the divils. Hurrah, boys! scat-
ter 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 in.
dignant old hunter, *' and al^ them as don't know how to
put a ball down a rifle-barrel, or how to bring it up ag'n
with a true aim ; but it's wicked to be shooting into flocks
in this wasty 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 creater's, for men'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. But you couldn't do such a thing, Billy Kirby-
you couldn't do it if you tried,"
*' What's that you say, you old, dried corn-stalk ! you
sapless stub !" cried the wood-chopper. " You've growed
mighty boasting, sin you killed 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 had 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, 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 his
bird until it was too late for him to fire as it approached, and
be pulled his trigger at the unlucky moment when it was
darting immediately over his head. The bird continued itJ
course with incredi*'''* velocity.
THE PIOMSERI. 217
Natty lowered the rifle from bis arm, when the challenge
was made, and, waiting a moment, until the terrified victim
had got in a line with his eyes, 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 ot
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
bis 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 ga-
thered 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 V
'* 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 such a wicked man*
ner. 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 wasn't 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 harm-
less things thatkiver 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, stepping
acrossv the clearing with gredt caution, taking care not to
tread on one of the wounded birds that lay in his path. He
soon entered the bushes on the margin of the lake, and was
bid from view.
Whatever impression the morality of Natty made on tho
Judge, it was utterly lost on Richard. He availed himscK
of the gathering of the sportsmen, to lay a plan for oa&o
tli THE PIONEERS.
^ fell Bwoop'^ of destruction. The mosket-men were drawn
p in battle array, in a line extending on each side of bis
Jirtillery, with orders to await the signal of firing from him*
elf.
'' Stand by, my lads/' said Benjamin, who acted as an
aid-de-camp on tlHs momentous occasion, ** stand by, my
hearties, and when Squire Dickens heaves out the signal for
jo begin firing, d'ye see, you may open upon them in a broad-
side. Take care and fire low, boys, and you'll be sure to
hull the flock."
**Pire low!" shouted Kirby '*hear the old fool! If
we fire low, we may hit the stumps, but not raffle 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 jr Haven't I
sailed aboard of the Boadishy for five years? and wasn't it
a standing order to fire low, and to hull your enemy?
Keep silence at your guns, boys, and mind the order that ia
passed."
The loud laughs of the musket-men wertB silenced by the
authoritative voice of Richard, who called to them for atten-
tion and obedience to his signals.
Some millions of pigeons were suppoaed to have already
passed, that morning, over the valley fi 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 Irue but yery alightly indented,
so regular and even was the ^ight, ven Marmaduke
forgot the morality of Leather-stocking, as it approached,
and, in common with the rest, brought his musket to bia
shoulder."
*i Fire !" cried the Sherifl^, clapping his coal to the priminf
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 fiock darted up*
ward, while, at the same instant, myriads of those in their
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 glid-
ing over its point of direction. The roar of the gun echoed
tlong the mountains, and died away ^Uhe north, like dis*
TilE riONEEBft*
219
ant 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 irregolar flights, layer, rising
over layer, far above the tops of the highest pines, none
daring to advance beyond the dangerous pass ; when, sud-
denly, some of the leaders of the feathered tribe shot across
the vftlley, taking their flight directly over the village, and
the hundreds of thousands in their rear followed their ex-
ample,^ deserting the eastern side of the plain to their Dcise-
cutors and their fallen.
" Victory I" shouted Richard, ''victory ! we have driven
the enemy from the field."
** Not so, Dickon," said Marmaduke ; '' the field i^f
covered with them ; and, like the Leather-stocking, I see
nothing but eyes, in every direction, as the innocent snf-
ferers turn their heads, in terror, to examine my move*
raents. Full one half of those that have fallen are yet
alive : and 1 think it is time to end the sport, if sport
it be*"
"Sport!" cried the Sheriff'; " it is princely sport. Thcri?
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 the valley," said Marmaduke, " and our carnage must
of necessity end, for the present. Boys I will give you six-
pence a hundred for the pigeons' heads only ; so go to work,
and bring them into the village, where I will pay you.**
This expedient produced the desired eflect, for ever ur-
chin 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 a feeling that many a man
has experienced before him, who discovers, after the excite-
ment of the moment has passed, that he has purchased plea-
sure at the price' of misery to others. Horses were loaded
with the dead ; and, after the first burst of sporting, the
shooting of pigeons became a business, for the remainder of
the season, more in proportion to the people. Richard, how
ever, boasted, for many a year, of his shpt with the " cricket^
and Benjamin gravely asserted, that he thought they killed
nearly as many pigeons on that day as there were French*
men destroyed on the memorable occasion of Kodney't
Ictoi-y.
Ml THB PIOKEERS.
CHAPTER XXIIl.
Help, masters, hd^ ; here s a fish hangs in the net. Eke a poor
man's light in the law.
Pericias ov Ttbb*
The advance of the season now became as rapid as its firsl
approach had been tedious and lingering. The days were
uniformly mild, and genial to vegetation, while the nights,
though cool, were no longer chilled by frosts. The whip-
poor-will was heard whistling his melancholy notes along
tbe 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 mouatains began to lose their hue of brown, as
the lively green of the different members of the forest
blended their shades with the permanent colouis 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 soar-
ing fish-hawk was already hovering over the waters of the
Otsego, watching, with his native voracity, for the appear-
ance of his prey.
The tenants of the lake were far-famed for both their
quantities and their quality, and the ice had hardly disap-
peared, 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 un-
wary animals with every variety of bait that the ingenuity
or the art of man had invented. Bat the slow, though cer-
tain, adventures with a 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 ar-
rived when the bass-fisheries were allowed by the provKions
^ of the law that Judge Temple had procured, the Sheriff de-
clared his intention, by availing himself of the fira dark
night, to enjoy the sport in person *
*' And you shall be present, cousin Bess,'^ he added, when
he announced this intention, ''and Miss Grant, and Mr.
EdvfHriis; and I will show you what I call fishing not
nibble, nibble, nibble, as ^duke does when he goes after the
salr/riQ. trout. Tliere ho will sit for hours, in a broiling sun,
THE PIONEERS. S8i
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 i^is 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, and
with Benjamin to steer, and let us haul them in by thou-
sands, and I shall call that fishing.'*
** Ah ! Dickon," cried Marmadnke, '' thou knowest 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 hah
dozen famishing families."
** I sball not dispute the matter with you. Judge Temple,"
said the Sheriff with much dignity ; ^* this night will 1 go ;
and I invite the company to attend, and then let them de-
cide between us."
Richard was busy, during most of the afternoon, making
iiis preparations for the important occasion. Just as the
light of the setting sun had disappeared, and a new moon
had begun to cause faint shadows to be seen 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 dis-
tance 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
oi the placid sheet of water, watching the dark object that
was moving with great rapidity across the lake, until it en-
tered the shade of the western hills, and was lost to the eye.
The distance round by land to the point of their 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 in.
YJgorating, both to the mind and body. Inspirited by tho
scene and their anticipated amusement, the youthful com-
panions of the Judge followed his steps, as he led them along
the shores of the Otsego, and through the skirts of the little
village.
** See 1" said young Edwards, '' they are building their fire
already ; it glimmers for a moment, and then dies again like
thelightofafire-lly."
''Now it bUsMliko a boDfirol" cried &liw2bc^d^\'^^^^
^'
iS2 THE HONEERS*
ean see the 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 begins to fade 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 ; ob-
serve how beautifully it throws its little circle of light on Iho
water !"
The appearance of the fire urged the pedestrians on,' for
even the ladies had become eager to witness the draught of
the seine. 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 the clouds, there was
but little other light, by which to view the scene, than tbat
which proceeded from the large piles of brush, branches, and
roots, that had been collected, under the superintendanoe of
Richard. 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 was seated around the fire, on the
ground with the exception of Ricbard and Benjamin ;
the former of whom occupied the root of a decayed stump,
that had been drawn to the spot as part of their feul, and
the latter was standing with bis 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 light night-airs that swept gently over tbe surface of 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 offishing alter all."
**I don't know, Benjamin," returned the Sherift'; **a
haul of one thousand Otsego bass, without counting pike,
pickeral, perch, bull-pouts, salmon-trouts, and suckers, is
no bad fishing, let me tell you. There maybe 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."
f*We]], 8qmfegre\vini9d Benjamin, ''just {isten to the
TUB n01iBK8. 22^
philosophy of the thing. Would it stand to reason the
such fish should live and be catched in this here little pond
of water, where it*s hardly deep enough to drown a man, as
you will find in he ocean, wher^ as every body that is
every body that has followed the seas, knows whales and
grampuses are to be seen, that are as long as one of them
pine trees on yonder mountain V
**'Softly, softly, Benjamin,^' said the Sheriff, using a sooth-
ing manner, as if he wished to save the credit of his favour-
ite ; *' why some pines measure full two hundred feet, and
even more/'
If
''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-7-** 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 I'll stand to what I have once said."
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 pick-
ing his teeth with the splinters of the chips that were near
him, and occasionally shaking his head, with the distrust
that was engendered by the marvellous qualities of Benja-
min's assertions, it seems that he now thought it time to
advance his sentiments on the subject.
''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 ; and I have chopped many a one
that was sixty times the length of my helve, without count-
ing the eyes ; and I b'lieve, Benny, that if the old pine that
stands in the hollow of the Vision Mountain, just over the
village, and you may see the tree itself by looking up, for
the moon is on its top yet ; well, now I b'lieve, that if that
same tree was planted out in the deepest part of the lake,
ther.e would be water enough for the biggest ship that ever
was built to Hoat 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, 1 have," said the wood -chopper, stoutly ; " I can
iay that I have, and tell no lie."
** Did'ee ever see a British ship, Master Kirby ? an English
iine-of-battle ahip^ boy ? Where Away did'ee ^n^\ ^^^VV Vqw
t24t TIIR PIONEERS.
with a regular-bailt vessel, with starn-post and cutVi'^ery
garboard streak and plank-shear, gangways, and hatch4^ySy
and water- ways,.quarter-deck and forecajtle, ay, and iiusb.
deck? tell me that, man, if you ean ; where away did'ee
ever fall in with such a hooker; a full-rigged, regular-baiit,
decked vessel f '
The whole company were a good deal astounded with this
overwhelming question, and even Richard afterwards re-
marked that it ** was a thousand pilies that Benjamin could
not read, or he must have made a valuable officer to tho
British marine. It was no wonder that they overcome the
French so easily on the water, when even the lowest sailor,
80 well understood the different parts of a vessel. But Billy
Kirby was a fearless wight, and had great jealousy of for-
eign dictation ; he had arisen on his feet, and turned his
back to the fire, during the voluble delivery of this interro
gatory ; and when the steward ended, contrary to all ex-
pectation, he gave the following spirited reply:
** Where ! why on the North River, and maybe on Cham-
plain. There's sloops on the river, boy, that would give a
hard time un't to the stoutest veisel King George owns*
They carry masts of ninety feet in the clear, of good, solid
Iine, for I've been at the chopping of many a one in Var-
mount state. I wish I was captain of one of them, and you
was in that Board-dish that you tell 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 English-
man's."
The echoes from the opposite bills, whioh were more than
half a mile from the fishing point, Sent baok the discordant
laagh that Benjamin gave forth at this challenge ; and the
woods that covered their bides seemed, by the noise that
issued from their shades, to be full of mocking demons.
'* Let us descend to the shore/' whUpered Marmadukc,
** Or there will soon be ill blood between them. Benjamin
is a fearless boaster, and Kirby, ihough good-natured, is a
careless son of the forest, who thinks one American more
than a match for six Bnglishmen. 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,
}{ not a pacification, at least a cessation of hostilities. Obe-
dient to the directions of Mr. Jones, the fishermen prepared
to launch their boat, which had been seen in the back-
ground of the view, witii the net carefully disposed on a lit-
tle platform in itt* stern, ready for instant service. Richard
S'are veot to Mm reproaches at the tardiness of th^ ^des*
THE PIONEERS. 225
trians, when all the turbulent passions 'of the party wero
sueceeded 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 theYeach of the light from their fire, not only indis-
tinct, but, in must 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,
a boundary of impenetrable gloom opposed itself to the
vision. One or two stars were shining through the openings
of the clouds, and the lights were seen in the village, glim-
mering faintly, as if at an immeasurable distance. At times,
as their 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 waters, rendering the darkness,
in that direction, trebly deep.
Benjamin Pump was invariably the cockswain and net-
caster of Richard's boat, unless the Sheriflfsaw fit lo preside *
in person ; and, on the present occasion, Billy Kirby, and a
youth of about half his strength, were assigned to the duty
at the oars. The remainder of the assistants were stationed
at the ropes, for the laborious service of hauling the net to
land. 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 soon
disappeared in the darkness, when her ear was her only
guide to its evolutions. There was a 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
^ith 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 tho boat was
396 THE PIONEERS.
retarning to the shore ; when Richard seized a brand from
the fire, and ran to a point, as far above the ventre of tho
fishing ground as the one from which the battean had start*
ed was below it.
*' Stick her in dead for the Squire, boys,'' said the stew
ard, '* and we'll have a look at what there is tifat 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 ** hauling line/' and
both ropes being equally well manned, the fishermen com-
menced 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 the
occasion required. The visiters 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 adventuie, were ttow
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 in 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 effort in this
way, ** you did not throw your net clear. I can move it with
my little finder. The rope slackens in my hand/'
** Did you ever see a whale, Squire!" responded the stew,
ard : " 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 Biily
Kirby before him, standing with his feet to the water, at an
angle of forty-five degrees, inclining shorewards, and expend-
ing his gigantic strength in sustaining himself in that posture
He ceased his remonstrances, and proceeded fo 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 tlie men closed, near to each other, and
formed a deep bag of their net The exertions of the fisbef^
-niE flOKEEKfl. $BSt
then Feasibly increased, and the voice of Ricbard was beaid
encouraj^iug thein to make their greatest efforts at the pre-
sent moment.
" Now's the tirae, 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-
n-hoy, ho-a-hoy, ho-a!'*
" In with her," shouted Kirby, exerting himself in a
wanner that left nothing for those in his rear to do, but to
gather up the slack of the rope which he passed through
his hands.
' Staff, ho r 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
weep of the little balls that supported the seine in its per-
pendicular position, was plainly visible to the spectators,
and, as it rapidly lessened in size, the bag of the net ap-
peared, while an occasional flutter on the water announced
the uneasiness of the prisoners it contained.
"Haul in, my lads, ' shouted Richard "T can see the
dogs kicking to get free. Haul in, and here's a cast that
will pay you for the labour."
Fishes of various sorts now were 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 agitated 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 l" shouted Richard again ; *' one or two more
beavv drags, boys, and we are safe.''
"Cfheerily, boys, cheerily!" cried Benjamin; **I see a
salmon -trout that is big enough for a chowder."
"Away with you, you vatmint!*' {raid Billy Kirby, pluck-
ing a bull-pout from the meshes, and casting the animal
back into the lake with great 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
in the water, and began to dtive the reluctant animals bo-
Here him from their native element.
X
TtlE nONEERS.
** Pnll heartily, boys/' cried Marmaduke. yielding to the
e:(citcmcnt ol the moment, and laying his hands to the aet,
with no trifling addition to the force. Edwards had pie-
ceded him, for the sight of the immense piles of fish, that
urere slowly rolling over on the gravelly4each, had impelied
bim also to leave the ladies, and join the fishermen.
Great care was observed in bringing the net tj land,
and, after much toil, the whole shoal of victims wore safe
deposited in a hollow of the bank, where they were Jeft to
flutter away their brief existence in their new and fatal
clement.
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 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 ob-
served
''This is a fearful expenditure of the choicest gifts of Pro-
vidence. 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 epi-
cures. The world has no better fish than the bass of Otse-
go : it unites the richness of the shad to the firmness of the
salmon.^'
" But surely, dear sir," cried Elizabeth, they must provt,
a great blessing to the country, and a powerful friend to the
poor."
"The poor are always prodigal, my child, whf re there is
plenty, and seldom think of a provision against tie 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 ever 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, thy
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 waste-
ful extravagance of mac '*
*' Disappear 1" exclaimed the Sheriff; if you don't call
this appearing, I know not what you will. Here are a good
TUB PIOMBRS. 2-^9
thousand of the shiners, some hundreds of suckers^ and a
powerful quantity of other fry. But this is always the way
with youy 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 coirer some such matter
as this here lake. Tho'f I dar'st to say that the wood in
sight might serve them a good turn, seeing that the Lon'on-
ers mainly burn coal."
*' Now we are on the subject of coal, Judge Temple,"
interrupted the Sheriff, ** I have a thing of much import,
ancc 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, sir, for there are listeners ; but
a secret has this evening heen revealed to me, 'duke, that
is of more consequence to your welfare, than all your es-
tates 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 ano-
ther, under the superintendence of Benjamin, prepared the
seine for a second haul.
CHAPTER XXIV
XVhile from its margin, terrible to tell,
Tliree sailors with tbeir gallant boatswain fell.
FALCONER.
While the fishermen were employed in making^ theprepara-
V
%
2^ TilE PIOKLERS.
lions for an equitable diyUion of their spoils, Elizabeth and
her friend strolled to a short distance from the groap, alohj;
the shores of the lake The siMdesof evening had been
gradaally gathering aroondthe scene, during the draught of
the net, and, while the objects in the vicinity of the 6re were
still distinct, and CTen vivid, the surrounding darkness be-
came deeper, both bj the contrast, and the advancing do
minion of the night. After reaching a point, to which even
the brightest of the occasional gfeams of light from the fire
did not extend, the ladies 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 V exclaimed
Elizabeth. '* Observe the countenance of that wood -chop-
per, 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
really melancholy, as if he actually thought that a day of
retribution was to follow this hour of abundance and prodi-
gality ! Would they not make a fine picture, Louisa V*
" You know that I am ignorant of all such accomplish
raents. Miss Temple."
** Call me by my Christian name," interrupted Elizabeth ;
''this is not a place, neither is this a scene, for the observ-
ance of 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's
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 ex-
pressions."
There was certainly nothing harsh, nor even cold, in the
manner of the speaker, but still it repressed the conversation
for a moment, and the maidens continued to stroll still fur-
ther from their party, retaining each other's arm, but obser-
ving a profound silence. Elizabeth, perhaps, conscious of
the improper phraseology of her last speech, or perhaps ex-
cited by the new object that met her wandering gaze, was
the first to break the present awkward cessation in the dis-
course, by exclaiming, in all the richness of her animated
and animaiiogvoioe
THE PIONEERS. 231
" Look; Louisa ! we are not alone ; there are iisheriim
Jighting a fire on the other side of the lake, immediately
opposite to us ; it must be in front of the cabin of the Leather-
stocking !"
For some cause or other, Miss Grant had kept her eyes
bent in the direction of the pebbles, over which she was
walking; probably because, being less adventurous than her
companion, she was disposed to view what cottid be faintly
discerned, without attempting^the gloom, in a vain effort to
pierce its mysteries; or probably for some better reason,
that we leave our readers to imagine ; but, thus awakened,
she looked up, in the direction pointed out by her friend,
and saw, at once, the cause of her sudden exclamation.
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 its existence. They ob-
served 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 and glaring ball of fire.
Such an object, lighted as it were by magic, under the
brow of thcNnountain, 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 un-
steady light of their own Gre, being much more clear and
bright, and retaining its size and shape with perfect unifor-
mity.
I'here 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
thcra
** Did you ever hear the singular ways of this Natty
spoken of, Miss Temple? They say that, in his jouth, 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,'' retained Elizabeth
but he is not alone in that jparticular,''
233 THE PIONEERS*
** No, surely ; but is it Dot strange that he is so eaotiom
with his hut? he never leaves it, vtithoat 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 V
** It is certainly not being very hospitable ; but we must
remember his aversion to the customs of civilized life. Ton
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 iis
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 in-
verted 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 ad-
yanci ng across, or rather over the lake, for it seemed to be
several feet above its surface, in a direct line with them-
selves. Its motion was amazingly rapid, the ladies having
hardly discovered that it was moving at all, before the wav-
ing light of a flame was discerned, losing its regular shape,
while it increased in size, as it approached them.
** It appears to be supernatural I" whispered Louisa, be
ginning to retrace her steps towards the party.
*^ It is beautiful V' 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
liave the distinctness of material substances, as if the fire
were imbedded in a setting of ebony. This appearance,
however, gradually wore oft', and the rays from the torch
struck out, and enlightened the atmosphere in front of it,
feaving the back-ground in a darkness that was more im-
(rable than ever.
THE PIONEERS. 233
Ho! Natty, is that you ?" shouted the Sheriff" paddle
in, old boy, and I'll give you a raess 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-
slocking, whose tall person was seen erect in the frail vessel,
wielding, with all 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 propel-
ling the little canoe of bark, we will not say through, but
over, the water. At the farther end of the vessel, a form
Avas faintly seen, guiding its motions, and using a paddle
with the ease of one who felt there was no necessity for ex-
traordinary exertions. 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
to 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 regula-
ting its progress by its own volition. The water in front of
the canoe was hardly rufiled 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 bo^v, in order to facilitate the landing.
"Approach, Mohegan," said Marmaduke! " approach.
Leather-stocking, and load your canoe with 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 ray spear into the eels, or the trout,
when I crave the creaters, but I would'nt 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 moro
than can be cat.**
234 THE PI0NEE113.
^' Tour reasoning is mine/' cried Marmaduke ; ** for once,
old hanter, we agree in our opinions ; and I heartily wish
we could make a convert of the SheriflT. A net of half the
iiize of this would supply the whole village with fish, for i
week, at one haul."
The Leather-stocking did not relish this alliance in sen-
tiraent, and he shook his head doubtinglj, 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 llesh is sweeter
where the creater has some chance for its life ; for that rea-
son, 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 fur the divi-
sion, by carrying, with his own hands, a trout of a large size,
and placing it on four difi'erent piles in succession, as his
changeful ideas of justice required, he gave vent to bis spleen
by exclaiming
" 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 pre-
serve the game in the county ! But, 'duke, when I fish, I
fish, and don't play ; so, away, boys, for another haul, and
m'g'11 send out waggons and carts, in the morning, to bring
in our prizes I"
Marmaduke appeared to understand that all opposition
to the will of the Sheriff Mould 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 preced-
ed him.
Curiosity induced the females to approach this spot, but
it surely was a different motive that led the youth thither.
Elizabeth examined the light ash timbers, and thin bark co-
vering of the canoe, in admiration of its neat but simple exe-
cution, 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 tcrifks, a description of the manner in which
the fish were struck with the spear, that she changed sud-
denly, from an apprehension of the danger of the excursion,
a desire to participate in its pleasures. She even ventured
roposition to that efl'ect to her father, laughing at the same
THK PIONEERS. 236
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 ahove 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 Dela-
ware women be used to the paddle, and are down good
hands in a boat of this nater. If the young woman would
like to see an old man strike a trout for his breakfast, she is
welcome to a seat and a sight. John will say the same,
seeing that he built the canoe, which was only launched
yesterday ; for I'm not over curious at such small work
as brooms, and basket-making, and other like Indian
trades,"
Natty gave the heiress one of his significant laughs, with
a kind nod of his head, when he concluded this invitation ;
but Mohegan, with the native grace of an Indian, approach-
ed, 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
hurls his sister."
" Well, Mr. Edwards," cried Elizabeth, blushing slightly,
** your friend, Mohcgan, you see, has given a promise for
you. Do you redeem the pledge?"
"With my life, if necessary, Miss Temple," cried the
youth, with fervour. **Thc 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 suiely do you mean to trust yourself in that
slight canoe,"
** But I shall, for I have no apprchciftsions 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 mnn, springing
to her side, with a violence that nearly shook the weak fa-
bric of the vessel asunder;-*-" pardon me. Miss Temple, that
1 do not permit these venerable Charons to take you to the
shades unattended by your genius."
IB6 THB PIONEERS.
^ Is it a i^ood or oTil spirit ?" asked Elizabetfa.
" Good to you."
** And mine/' ad4ed the maiden, ti^ith an air that strange-
ly blended piqne with satisfaction. But the motion of Sie
canoe gave rise to new ideas, and fortanately afforded agnod
excuse to the young man to change the discourse.
It appeared to Elizabeth that they glided over the watetr
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 fish-
ery. The shore, at that point of the lake, ran gradually ofl,
and the water shoaled regularly, differing, in this particular,
altogether, from those parts where the mountains rose, near-
ly in perpendicular precipices, from the beach. There, the
largest vessels could have lain, with their yards locked in
the branches of the pines; while here, a scanty growth of
rushes lifted their tops above the lake, gently curling the
waters, as their bending heads slowly waved with the
passing breath of the night air. It was at the shallovT
points, only, that the bass could be found, or the net cast
with success.
Elizabeth saw thousands of these fish swimming in shdaJf
along the shallow and warm waters of the shore ; for the
flaring light of their torch exposed all the mysteries of the
lake, laying them open to the eye, with a slight variation in
colour, as plainly as if the limpid sheet of the Otsego ^as
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 obtain-
ed was worthy of the notice of any epicure. But Natty had
his peculiar habits, and, it would seem, his peculiar tastes.
His tall stature, and his erect posture, enabled him to sec
much further than those who, from motives of safety, were
seated in the bottom of the canoe ; and he turned his head
warily in every direction, frequently bending his body for-
ward, and straining his vision, as if desirous of penetrating
the darkness in 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,
1HK PIONEERS. 237
liat Las run out of the school. It's sildom one finds uch a
creator in the shallow waters, 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 of nearly twenty feet in depth. A few addi-
tional knots were laid on the grating, and the light from the
fire made to reach the bottom. Elizabeth then saw a fish of
unusual size, floating above the small pieces of logs and
sticks that were lying on the bottom. The animal was only
distinguishable, at that distance, by a slight, but almost im-
perceptible, 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 the
position of nature.
" 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 eager curiosity ; ** 'tis a skeary animal, and
it*s a far stroke for a spear. My handle is but fourteen foot,
and the creater lies at a good eighteen from the top of the
water ; but 1*11 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, di-
rection to the fish ; and she thought that the intended victim
sa*w 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 high,
into the air, by its own reaction, and its master, catching
i( in his hand, threw its tines uppermost, that Elizabeth
vas 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 ^
** enough is as good as a feast ; 1 shall not strike anotiier
blow to-night,*
2d8 THE PIONEERS.
Tbe 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 gating 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 its
toilsome way the folds of the net, which was already spread-
ing on the water.
*^ 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 tbe seine.''
Mohegan guided their little canoe to a point where the
movements of the fishermen could be observed, without in-
terruption to the business, and then suffered It to lie quietly
on the water, looking like an imaginary vessel floating in the
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 the
tones of dissatisfaction.
** Pull larboard oar, will ye, Master Klrby," 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 lan-
guage 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 or-
dered about like dumb cattle."
" Who's dumb cattle?" echoed Benjamin, fiercely turn-
ing his forbidding face to the glare of light from the canoe,
and exhibiting every feature teeming with the expression of
his di gust. *^ If you want to come aft and cun the boat
round, come and be damned, and a pretty steerage you'll
make of it too. 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/'
THJg PIONEBRS. *iS9
Probably encouraged by tlie prospect of a speedy termi-
cation to his labour, the wood-chopper resumed his oar, and;
ander the strong excitement of his feelings, gave a stroke
with it that not only cleared the boat of the net, but of the
steward, at the same instant, also. Benjamin had stood on
the little platform that held the seine, in the stern of the
6oat, 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 batteaa dis-
tinguishable, 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 laugh-
ter, 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 disap-
pear, as was expected ; but when the light waves, which had
been raised by his fall, began to sink in calmness, and the
water finally closed ovecJbis h^ad, unbroken and still, a very
different feeling perva4^d the spectators.
'*How fare you, Benjamin F" shooted Richard from the
shore.
** The dumb devil can't swim a stroke T' exclaimed Kirby,
rising, and beginning to throw aside his clothes.
"Paddle up, Mohegan,'' cried young Edwards, "where
the light will show us how he lies, and let me 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 svaeep of Mohegan*s paddle
s^;nt the canoe directly over the spot where the steward had
tHllen,and aloud shout from the Ijeatlier-stocking announced
ti;ctt he saw the body,
" Then steady the boat, while I dive,'' again cried Ed-
wards.
** Gently, lad, gently," said Natty ; " I'll spear the creater
up in half the time, and no risk to any body."
The form of Benjamin was lying, about half way to the
oottom, grasping with either hand the bottoms of some bro-
ken rushes, by whose strength it was maintained in that po-
sition. 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 nn-
dulatiooA of the dying WAY^ witll liM faee and hands, viewf4.
240 THE PIONFERS.
by that light, and through the mediam of the fluid, already
coloured with livid hues like death.
At iht-. same instant, she saw the shining tines of Nattyli
spear approaching the motionless 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 at-
mosphere was announced by a breathing that would have
done credit to a full grown porpoise. For a moment, Natty
held the steward suspended, with his head just above th
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 Jess
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 from its liquid ele-
ment into the boat, and for the whole party to gain the shore,
and land, required but a minute. Kirby, aided by Rich-
ard, 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, where he was
supported, 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 mak-
ing vinegar in cold weather, and be quick, boy, don't stay
to empty the vinegar ; and stop at Mr. Le Quoi's, and buy a
paper ot tobacco and half-a-dozen pipes; and ask Remark-
able for some salt, and one of her flannel pettjcoats; 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
this hand, that I may pat it."
All this time Benjamin sat, with his muscles fixed, hi9
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 pre-
venting 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 th^ minute of
inaction to which they had been subjected. As he kept his
iSps oompresscd, with a most inveterate determrnation, the
Rir was compelled to pass through his nostrils, and he rather
flnorted than breathed, and in such a manner that nothing
but the excessive agitation of the Shcrif could at aU 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 bhick glass ; his-
yes raised, from their horizontal stare, to the heavens ;:
end the whole man was lost, for a moment. In a new sensa*
lion. Unhappily for the propensity of the steward, breatb
was as necessary after one of these draughts as after his sub^
mersion, and the time at length arrived when he was com-
pelled to let go of the bottle.
"Why, Benjamin," roared the Sheriff, "you amaze me T
For a man of your experience in drownings, to act so fooU
ishly ! Just now, you were half full of water, and naw yott
are *'
** Full of grog," interrupted the steward, his features settl-
ing down, with amazing flexibility, into theirnatural econo-
my. " 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 followed the salt water for th&
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 ship-
mate may sail with you, and no thanks ; but dam'me if I
even walk on the lake shore in your company. For why T
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-boy 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 as 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 di-
rection of matters, with a dignify and discretion that at once
silenced all opposition from his cousin, Benjamin was des-
patched to the village by larid, and the net was hauled to
shore in such a manner that the fish, for once, escaped its
meshes with impunity.
f42 TUB PIOMEEU.
The diTision of tlie spoils was made in the ordiDafy mu-
ner, by placing^ one of the party with his back to the gave,
who declared the owner of each pile. Billy Kirby stielhed
bis large frame on the gmss, by the side of the fire, as s
sentinel until morning, over the net and the ish ; ad ^
remainder of the party embarked in the batteaa, to rttoiii
to the village.
The wood-chopper was seen broiling his supper tm tke
coals, as they lost sight of the fire; and when the boat ap-
proached the shore, the torch of Mohegan's canoe was shia
ing again under the gloom of the eastern mountain. Its
motion ceased suddenly ; a scattering of brands was exhi-
bited in the air, and then all remained dark as the oonjune-
tion of nighty forests, and mountains, could render tke
scene.
The thoughts of the heiress 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 sneh dif-
ferent habits and temperament were drawn together^ as if
by one common impulse.
"r
CHAPTER XXV.
Cease all this parlanoe about bills and dales ;
None listen to tb j scenes of bovish frolic^
Fond dotard ! with such tickled ears as tkoa dost ;
Come ; to tb J tale.
Duo.
Mk. Jones arose on the following momiag, with the sun,
and ordering his own and Marmaduke's steeds to be
saddled, he proceeded, with a countenance that was big with
with some business of unusual moment, to the apartment
of the Judge. The door was unfastened, and Richard en-
tered, with the freedon that characterized not only the in-
tercourse between the two cousins but the ordinary manners
of thjB 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 Psalmsno, it was Solomon, but it was all in the
family Solomon said there was a time for all things ; and
and in my humble opinion, a fishing party is not the moment
"^^ disscussing importantsubjects^Ha I why, what the devil
THE PIONEERS. !H3
ails yoa, Marmadake ? an't yoa well P let me feel your
pulse : my grandfather you know"
*' Quite well in the body, Richard/' interrupted the
iudge, repulsing bis cousin, who was about to assume the
tuDctioDS 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 Richa]:d 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 an im-
pression that had been made by a human form, but the cover-
ings were unmoved, and every thing indicated that the occu-
pant of the room bad passed a sleepless night. The candles
had burned 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, al-
together so very difl'erentan appearance from the usual calm
manly and cheerful aspect of the Judge, that the Sheriff
grew each moment more and more bewildered with his as-
tonishment At length Richard found time to cast his eyes
on the direction of the letter, which he.stili held unopened,
crumlling in his hand.
** What ! a ship-letter!'' he . exclaimed : "and from
England ha! 'duke, here must be news of impottance
indeed ?"
" Read it," said Marmaduke, waving his hand for silence,
and 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 north-west for six
weeks, until within the last fortnight.
** * Sir, your favours of August the 19th, 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 most
signilicant kind of humming noise made by the Sheriff. ' I
C44 rHk PIONEERS.
grkr\e t#-say that* ham, hum, bad enough to be sure ' bat
trust that a merciful Providence has seen fit' hum, ham
iium ; ^seems to be a pious sort of a man, 'duke, belongs to
ihe established church, I dare say ; hum, hum 'iressel
sailed from Falmouth on or about the 1st of September of
last year, and' hum, hum, hum. ' If any thing should
tnmspire on this afflicting subject, shall not fail' hum, hum;
jieaUy a good-hearted man, for a lawyer, ' but can oom-
municate nothing further at present' Hum, ham. Thd
national convention' , hum * unfortunate Louis hum,
jium' * example of your Washington' a very sensible man,
I declare, and noneof your crazy democrats. Hum, hum,
* our gallant navy, hum, hum * our most excellent mon-
arch' ay, a good man enough, that king George, bat bad
;advisers; hum, hum 'I beg to conclude with assurances of
4ny perfect respect* hum, hum * Andrew Holt.' Andrew
fiok a very sensible, feeling man, this Mr. Andrew Holt
but the writer of evil tidings. What will you do next,
rousin Marmaduke?"
Whatoan 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 a-way go all my plans of putting wings to the house, to
the devil. I bad made my arrangements for a ride, to intro-
iduce you to something of a very important nature. You know
huw much you think of mines'*
** Talk not of mines," interrupted the Judge ; *' there is a
."(acred duty to be performed, and that without delay. I must
devote this day to writing ; and thou must be my assistant,
Kichard : it will not do to employ Oliver in a matter of such
secrecy and interest."
** No, no, cried the Sheriff, squeezing his hand ; " I am
your man, just now ; wc 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 his
ide, and, repairing to the breakfast parlour, he despatched
a messenger to require the immediate presence of Dirck Y ao
ier School.
IBS PIONEERS. 246
The village of Tetnpleton, at that time snpported bat two
lawyers, one of whom was introduced to our readers in the
bar-room of the *'BoId Dragoon/' and the other was the gen-
tleman of whom Richard spoke, by the friendly yet familiar
appellation of Dirck, or Dirky Van. Great geod-nature^^ a
very tolerable share of skill in his profession, and, consider-
ing the circumstances, no contemptible degree of honesty,
were the principal ingredients to be found in the character
of tliis man, who was known to the settlers as Squire Van
der School, and sometimes by the flattering, though anoma-
lous, 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 invoWes qualities or character is
asserted, we must be understood to mean '* under the cir-
cumstances."
Daring the remainder of the day, the Judge was closeted
with his cousin and his lawyer; and no one else was admit-
ted to his apartment, excepting his daughter. The deep dis-
tress, that so evidently afflicted Marmaduke, was, in some
measure, communicated to Elizabeth also ; for a look of de-
jection shaded her intelligent features, and the buoyancy of
Iier animated spirits was sensibly softened. Once on that
day, young d wards, 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 the
heiress, and suffusing her bright eyes with a softness that
did not always belong to their proud and laughing expres-
ion.
*' Have any evil tidings been received. Miss Temple !" he
inquired, with an interest and voice that caused Louisa
Orant to raise her head from her needlework, m ith a quick-
ness 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 though tit would give you relief.''
* We have certainly heard bad news," returned Elizabeth,
'and it may be necessary that my father should leave his
\iome for a short period ; unless I can persuade him to trust
my cousin Richard with the business, whose absence from
ihe county, just at this time, too. might be inexpedient."
The youth paused a moment, and the blood gathered
lowly to his temples, as he continued
S40 THE ltOXBS.
'^ If h be of a nature that I coold excratc **
^ It is such as can only be confided to one wc know-
9t ourselves."
** Surely, you know me. Miss Temple !" be added, witli i
warmtb tbat be seldom exbibited, but which did somcthncs
escape him, in the moments of their fraok conimunica-
tion.s " Have I lived ^\q mootbs under your roof, and yet
a stran^^er V
Elizabeth was engaged with her needle also, and she bent
ber head to one Mdc, aflcctin^ to arrange her muslin : hut
ber hacd shook, her colour heightened, and her c3-rs lost
their moisture in an expression of un^^overnable interest, as
she said
** How much do we know of you, Mr.Edwards ?"
** How much !" echoed the 3'outh, gazing from the speaker
to the mild countenance of Louisa, that was also illuminated
with awakened curiosity ; ** how much ! have I been so Jong
an intimate with you, and not known V*
The head of Elizabeth turned slowly from its aflcctcd po-
sition, and the look of confusion, that had blended so strong-
ly with an expression of interest, changed to a smile of arch-
ness, as she answered
** Wc know you, sir, indeed : yon arc called Mr. Oliver
Edwards. I understand that you have informed my friend.
Miss Grasit, tliat you arc a native "
'' Elizabeth !'' exclaimed Louisa, blushing to her eyes,
, and trembling like an aspen ; '* you misunderstood me, dear
Miss Temple ; I I it was only conjecture. Besides, if Mr,
Edwards i related to the natives, why should we reproach
him ? In what arc wc 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 wliich
pervaded the countenance of her companion, who was
ihinking cf the poverty and labours of her father, she con.
tinued
'* Nay, Louisa, your 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 bc-
lausc perhaps he is only very, very distantly related to
' D Mohegan V
THE PIONEERS. 247
Glances of a very comprehensive meaning were exchang-
ed between the heiress and the young man, as Louisa be-
trayed,- while vindicating his lineage, the reluctance with
wliich she admitted his alliance to the old warrior; but not
even a smile at the simplicity of their companion wai ia-
dulged by either.
** On reflection, I must acknowledge that ray situation
here is somew hat 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, whose melancholy had vanished in the ex-
eitement of their dialogue.
** Do I bear the marks of my lineage so very plainly im-
pressed on my appearance ?'* asked the youth, witli a little
pique in his manner. *' I am dark, but not very led not
more sq than common?"
*' Rather more so, just now," said the heiress.
** 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 Oi* one of their ancient possessors, and
feel how small is my right to possess them."
**Do you?" cried the youth, with a vehemence that
startled the ladies.
** I do, indeed," returned Elizabeth, after suffering a mo-
ment to pass in her 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 sp^k the truth, Miss Temple," said Edwards,
" What caii^ou do, indeed ! But there is one thing thift I
am certain you can and will do, when you become the mis-
tress of these beautiful valleys use your wealth with indul-
jrence to the poor and charity to the needy \ indeed, you can
ilo no more."
"And that will be doing a good deal," said Louisa, smiU
mg in her turn. *' liut there will, doubtless, be one to take
Jie direction of such things from her hands."
*' I am not about to disclaim matrimony," cried the
heiress, 'Mike a silly girl, who dreams of nothing else from
morning till night; bat I am a nun, li\^) -9i^^^(^^a^. 'Iv^
918 TUS PIOX'SSBS.
TOW of celibacy. Where should I find a husband in thoe
forests ?"
'* There is none, Miss Temple,^ said Edwards, qoieklj,
** there is none who has a ri^ht to aspire to joa, and I know
&at yea will assert the dignity of 3 our sex, and wait to be
sought by your equal ; or die, as you liye, 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 conti-
nued fixed, for a minute, on the door through which the
youth had passed, then glanced quickly towards her com-
panion, 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 ra-
ther rushed than walked from the house, was the little,
square-built lawyer, with a large bundle of papers under hi5
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 a
slow comprehension, who had imbibed a wariness in his
speeches and actions, from having suffered by bis collisions
with his more mercurial and apt brethren who had laid the
foundations of thetr practice in the eastern courts, and who
had sucked in shrewdness with their mother's 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 most delightful
research after his meaning.
" A good morning to you, Mr. Van der School," said Ed-
wards ; ** 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
tt^to Judge Temple,) good morning, sir. It is^ appareutlv,
^^ day, but a man of your discretion need not be
having, doubtless, discovered iiofyouroujj nfrord,*
-y
TUB PIONEERS. 24d
Ihat appearances are often deceitful, up at the Mdifsrion-
iouse."
*' Have yovL papers of consequence, that will require copy-
ing ? can I be of assistance to you in any way ?"
** There are papers (as doubtless you see, for your eyes are
younsf, by the outsndes) that require copying."
" Well, then I will accompany you to your office, and re-
ceive 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 isacastle,
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 Templets solemn injunctions^ and are invisible to all
eyes ; excepting those whose duties (I mean assumed du-
ties) 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 ser-
vices, 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
parlies) 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 wil-
ling,) 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 suspi-
ion to the lawyer, and the youth was consequently too
%ch accustomed to similar equivocal and guarded speeches
1 any unusual disgust at the present dialogue. B^^
SftO THE PIONEERS.
saw, at once, that it was the intention of the practitioair
to conceal the nature of his business, even from the pi-ivate
secretary of Judge Temple ; and he knew too well the diffi-
culty of comprehending the meaning of Mr. Van der School,
when the gentleman most wished to be luminous in his dis-
course, 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 hur-
ried air, towards his office, keeping his right hand firmly
clenched on the bundle of papers that his left arm pressed to
his side with a kind of convulsive motion.
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, o^ing to some counteract-
ing cause, his sensations were those of powerful interest in
the state of his patron's present feelings, and in the cause 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 circles of
his family, his cheerfulness was tempered by a shade of
melancholy, that lingiered for many days around his manl^
brow ; but the magical progression of the season aroused
hi HI from his temporary apathy, and his smiles returned
lii'ith the animated looks of 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 pre-
sented every shade of gre^n that the American forests know.
The stumps in the cleared fields were already hid beneath
the tops of the stalks of rich wheat that were waving with
every breath of the summer air, shining, and changing
their 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 came of
Jotham, at the bar-room of the Bold Dragoon, was becom-
ing also of great importance.
THE PIONEERS. ^^^
At length the Sheriff yentared to allade again to ibe suh
ject, and one erening, in the beginning of July, Marmadu*^
made him a promise of devoting the following day to tl
desired excursion.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Speak on, my dearest father ;
Ihy words are like the breezes of the west.
MiLMAN.
It i9?as a mild and M^t morning, when Marmadnke and
Richard mounted their horses, to proceed on the expedi-
tion that had so long been uppermost in the thoughts of the
latter ; and Elizabeth and Louisa appeared at the same in-
stant in the hall, attired for an excursion on foot.
The head of Miss rrant was covered bj a neat little hat
of green silk, and her modest eyes peered from under its
shadp, with the soft langour that characterized her whole
appearance; bat Miss Temple trod her father's wide apart-
ments with the step of their mistress-, holding in her hand,
dangling by one of its ribands, the gipsy that was to con-
ceal the glossy locks that curled around her polished fore-
head, in richirofusion.
" What, are you for a walk, Bess I" cried the Judge, sus-
pending 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 re-
trace before the meridian. Where is thy parasol, girl ? thoa
wilt lose the polish of thy 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'
ehildren."'
*' Grand-children, you mean, cousin Bess," said the SheriQ
^ But on. Judge Temple ; time and tide wait for no man ;
and if you take my counsel, sir, in twelve months from thifl
day, you may make an umbrella for your daughter of her
camera*hair shawl, andhave its frame of solid silver. I ask
nothing for mvself, ' duke ; you have been a good friend to m
Already ;befiai| all that I have will goto Bess^ tl^m^ane f
^
254 THE 0ONER5.
jessed the motU)ii which proceeded from hltr own efibrts, he
was quite cooled in mind, though somewhat heated in bodj;
It is quite possible that the very same reason which guided
Ibe conduct of Miss Temple suggested itself to a man of the
breeding and education of the youth ; and it is very certaiv
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 in to the land, where it lay gently agitated by
waves of its own creating, while the young man, first cas-
ting 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 far 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 haying returned
to their kennel at the sounds of his voice.
Edwards pulled the bows of the boat on to the shore, and,
landing, ascended the beach and approached the door of
the cabin. The fastenings were soon undone, and he en-
tered, 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 inces-
sant motion in the village, were faintly heard across the
water ; but the dogs had crouched into their lairs, well satis-
fied that none but the privileged had approached the for-
bidden 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 her 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, my old veteran of the woods V
cried Edwards. *^ If a beast, it is a bold one, and if a man,
sin impudent.*'
He sprung through the top of a pine that had fallen near
the side of the hut, and ascended a small hillock that shel-
tered the cabin to the south, where he caught a glimpse of
the formal figure of Hiram Doolittle, as it vanished with an
Bnusual rapidity foi the architect, amid the trees and boshes*
THE PIONEERS. 255
" What can that fellow be' wanting here ?*' muttered
Oliver. *^ He has no business in this quarter, unless it be
his curiosity, which is an endemic in these woods. But
against that I will efectually 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 solilo-
quy, 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 was several places in the Otsego that were cele-
brated as fishing-ground for the 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 over 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 gaz-
jng 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 his little boat, in a very few
minutes, to the place where his friends were fishing and
fastened it to the light vessel of the Indian.
The old men received. Oliver with welcoming nods of
th*iir heads, but neither drew his line from the water, nor,
in the least, varied his occupation. When Edwards had se-
cured his own boat, he baited his hook and threvv it intu the
iakc: without speaking.
" Did you stop at the wigwam lad, as you rowed by ?**
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, nigh by. But I made sure of
the door, before I left the hut, and I think he is too great a
coward to approach the hounds."
" Therc/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 ^ut hxax 'q& m%V3cs. nssqc-
t&Q rB HONLKRS.
tartain answers, so that he is no wiser than Solomon. This
comes of having so many laws that such a man may be call*
ed on to iotarpret them."
'' I fear he is more knave than fool," cried Edwards ; ']
see that he makes a tool of that simple man, the Sheril^
and I dread that his impertinent cariosity may yet give us
much troable."
'* If he harbours too much about the cabin, lad, I'll shoot
the Greater," said the Leather-stockiog, qaite coolly.
** No, no. Natty, you must remember the law," said Ed-
wards, ** 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 sup-
port it, to the face of Judge Temple, or in aiQr court in the
country. How is it, John ? do I speak the true word ? is the
lad staunch, and of the right blood ?"
" He is a Delaware," said Mohegan, ** and ray 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. But now 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
ono who knew not what he said
** How beautifully tranquil and glassy the lake is. Saw
you it ever more calm and even at this moment, Natty."
" T have known the Otsego water for five-andrforty years,"
said Leather-stocking, " and I will say that for it, which is,
that a cleaner spring or a 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 as plenty as heart
could wish, and there was none to meddle with the ground,
unless there might have been a hunting party of the Dela-
wares crossing the hills, or, maybe, a rifling scoat 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,
ould come on to the lake, and borrow my canoe,, to take a
of perch, or drop a line for a salmon-trout * but. in th
^jroul
THE PIONEER*.
maiD, it \ras a cheerfal place, and I had bat little to disturb
tne in it. John would come, and John knows/'
Mobeg^an turned his dark face, at this appeal, and, mov
ing 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 counsel to the Fire-Eater ; and what the Dela-
wares give, last as long as the water run. Hawk-eye smoked
at that coansel 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 thb money
of Marmaduke Temple, and maybe 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 bills, where the cleanings groaning with the golden
corn, where cheering the forests with the signs of life, " to
ha^e 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 a cheerful l" said Leather-
stocking. ** Yes, yes when the trees begun to be kivcred
with the leaves, and the ice was out oT the lake, it was a
second paradise I have travelled the woods for fifty-three
years, and have made them my home for more than forty,
and 1 can say 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 upon the Cattskilis. I used often to go
up into the mountains after wolves* skins and bears* ; once
they brought me to get them a stuil'ed painier; 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 us a piece of clear sky and iiolding
the clouds on their tops, as the smoke curls over the head of
a Indian chief at a counsel 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 piuce i mean is next to the tiver, where one
of thu* lid^c;; juls out: a ii.tle from the rest, atid ^h^cQ \S&i.k
y 3
Sd8 rilE PIONEEKS.
rocks fall for the best part of a thousand feet, so macb 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
tne water, and sweeping one hand around bim in a circle
'* ail creation, lad. I was on that hill when Yaugban burnt
'Sopus, in the last war, and I seen the vessels come out oi
the Highlands as plain as I can see that lime-scow rowing
into the Susquehanna, though one was twenty times furthei
from me than the other. The river was in sight for seventy
miles, under my feet, looked like a curled shaving, though
It was eight long miles to the banks. T saw the hills in the
Hampshire grants, the high lands of the river, and all that
God had done or man could do, as 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 screeche of tire
women."
** It must have been worth the toil, to meet with snch a
glorious view l"
** If being the best part of a mile in the air, and having
men's farms and hcrusen 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 1 first come into the woods, to live, I used to have
weak spells, and I felt lonesome ; and then I would go
into the Catskills 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 them
rugged rocks. But there's a place, a short two miles bar.k
of that very hill that in late times I reUshed better than
the mountain ; for it was more kivcred with the trees, and
more nateral."
**And where was that?*' inquired Edwards, whose cu-
riosity was strongly excited by the simple description of th^
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 *Lcap' never made a railU Th*re ihf water
THB PIONEERS. 900
omes crooking and winding among the rocks, first so
slow that a trout could swim in it, and then starting and
running just iike any creater 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 itself together
again for a new start, and maybe flutters over fifty of flat
rock, before it fails 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."
" 1 have never heard of this spot before !" exclaimed Ed-
wards ; " it is not mentioned in the books."
*' I 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
liounds 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
ran ? 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 of the mountain. Vye sat od
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 wil-
derness, 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 tl e
High-Peak, where, in the fall of the year, thousands ot
acres of woods are before your eyes, in the deep hollow, and
along the side of the mountaip, painted )ike ten ^hoas^nd
d0O THE nONEERS.
rainbows, by no hand of man, though without tbe rff|*^.ff
of God*8 providence/'
" Why, you are eloquent, Leather-stocking,'^ exolaimed
the youth.
** Anan !" repeated Natty.
" The recollection of the sight has wanned your blood,
old man. How many years is it since you saw the place l"
The hunter made no reply ; but, bending his ear near to
the water, he sat for a minute holding his breath, and listen-
ing 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 moun-
tain."
" It is impossible," said Edwards. " It is not an boor
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 his arm raised to a level
with his face, holding the forefinger elevated as a signal for
attention, and laughed aloud at what he deemed to be their
imaginary sounds.
* Laugh if you will, Loy," said Leather-stocking ; ** the
hounds be out, and are hunting a deer. No man can de-
ceive me in such a manner. I wouldn't have had the thing
happen for a beaver's skin. Not that I care for the law !
but the venison is leau now, and the dumb things run
the flesh off their bones- for no use. Now do you hear the
hounds ?"
Edwards started, as a full cry broke on his car, changing
fronoi the distant sounds that were caused by some interven-
ing hill, to the 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
ihe margin of the water, a tearing of the branches of the.
alder and dog-wood caught his attention, at a spot neai
'4iem, and at the next moment a noble buck sprung on the
^hore and buried himself in the lake. A tull-mouUid ety^
directly from the lungs of the hounds, followed, when Hec-
tHfc PIONEERS. ^*
lor and the slut shot through the opening: in vne ba;Vic, and
darted into the lake also, bearing their breasl most gallanuy
to the wate
CHAPTER XXVIL
'Oft in tbe fall descending flood be triea.
To lose the scent, and lave his burning sides'
Thomson.
**I know'd it J know'd it!" cried Natty, when both der
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 ! oflf 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 tbe chase, and yet
afraid to persevere, they finally obeyed, and returned to
the land, where they filled the air with their bowlings and
cries.
In the mean time the deer, arged by his fears, had swam
over half the distance between the shore and the boats, be-
fore 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, how-
ever, effectually cut off, and turning a second time, he urged
his course obliquely for the centre of the lake, with an in-
tention 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,
throwing his legs forward, and gliding along with incredible
velocity, the Leather-stocking began to sit very uneasy in
his canoe.
"'Tis a noble creator l" he exclaimed ; "what a pair of
horns ! a man might bang up all his garments on the bran-
ches. Let me see- July is the last month, and the flesh miiftt
be getting good.'' While he was talking, Natty had instinc-
tively employed himself in fastening the inner end of the
bark rope, that served him for a cablo, to a puddle, and, ris.
ing suddenly on bis legs/ he cast this buoy a*"Mr from him.
%
ajMl cried ' Stnke oat, John ! let her ^o. The cieala^ a
fool to tempt a man in tbis way."
Mobegan threw the iiEtfteDing of the youth's boat off the
canoe, and with one stroke of his paddle sent the light bark
er the water like a meteor.
** Hold V exclaimed Edwards. "Remember the law, my
Id friends. Ton are in plain sight of the Tillage, and I
now that Jadge Temple is determined to prosecate all, in-
discriminately, who kill the deer out of season.''
But the remonstrance came too late : the canoe was al-
ready far from the skiff, and the two banters too mach en-
gaged in their pursuit to listen to his Foice.
The bock was now within fifty yards of his pursuers, cat-
ting the water most gallantly, and snorting at each breath
with bis terror and his exertions, while the canoe seemed ^
dance over the waves, as it rose and fell with the undula-
tions made by its own motion. Leather- stocking raised his
nfle and freshened the priming, but stood in suspense whe-
ther to slay bis 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 it's own nater, which is the neason
that God has given to a deer, and I'll give it the lake play ;
so, John, lay out your arm, and mind the tarn 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 con-
tinued to send the canoe forward with a velocity that pro-
ceeded much more from his skill than his strength. Both
of the old men now used the language of the Delawares
when they spoke.
*' Uooh !" 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
oursuiu. From his rifle he never parted ; and although in-
tending to fish with the line, the canoe was invariably fur-
nished with ail ot its utensils, even to its grate. This pre-
caution 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
Hhores of the Otsego, with his rifle and his hounds, for a few
day's hunting in the hills ; but before he returned he had
Keen the waters of the Ontario. One, two, or even three
hundred miles had once been nothihg to his sinews, which
vi/ero nowa little stiffened by age. The hunter did as Mo-
THE PIONEERS.
263
began advised, and prepared to strike aici ^nh Hie 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 speakings he raised the spear, and darted it from
him like an arrow. At that instant the buck turned, the
ong 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 reappeared, shooting upward from the lake,
and as the hunter seized it in his hand, the Indian whirled
the light canoe round, where it lay, 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 yonr
band ; remember it is out of season."
This remonstrance was made as the batteau arrived close
to 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 sustaining itself nobly
against the odds.
" Hurrah !" shouted Edwards, inflamed beyond prudencft
at the sight; "mind him as he doubles ^mind him as he
doubles ; sheer more to the right, Mohegan, more to thd
right, and Til have him by the horns; Til throw the rope
over his antlers."
The dark eye of the old warrior was dancing in his head
with a wild animation, as bright and natural as the rays that
shot from the glancing eyes of the terrified deer himself, and
the sluggish repose, in which his aged frame had been rest-
ing in the canoe, was now changed to all the rapid inflec-
tions 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,
for a short distance, of a straight course, the little bark
skimmed the lake with a velocity that urged the deer ta
seek its safety in some new and unexpected turn. It was
the frequency of these circuitous movements that, by con-
fining 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
breach of his oara. vatil he thought the best way to view the
iM, tUE PlONEEft^.
fclMit w.iA \o remiiin stationary, and, by watclilnp; a favow-
ahie {opportunity, assist as much as he could ia taking their
intended 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 iBr
tention of pushing for a point of land at some distance froiA
the hounds, who were still barking and howling on Wb
shore. Edwards caught the painter of his skiif, and, mak-
ing a noose, cast it from him with all his force, and luckily
succeeded in drawing its knot close around one of the ant-
lers of the buck.
For one instant, the skiflf was drawn through the water,
but in the next, the canoe glided before it, and Natty, bend-
ing low, passed his knife across the throat of the animal,
whose blood followed the wound, dyeing the waters for
many feet. The short time that was passed in the last
struggles of the animal was spent by the hunters in bring-
ing 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 pe-
culiar manner, saying
'* So much for Marmaduke Temple's law ! This warms a
body's blood, old John ; I havn't killed a buck in the lake
afore this, 'sin this many a year. I call that good venison,
lad ; and I know them that will relish the creater's steaks,
for all the betterments in the land."
The Indian had long been dropping with his years, and
perhaps under the calamities of his race, but this invigorat-
ing and exciting sport had caused a gleam of sunshine to
cross his swarthy face that had long been absent from his
features. It was evident that 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 reaction of his unusual exertions, and smiled with
a nod of approbation, as he said, in the emphatic and sen-
tentious 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
Viiivc all been equally transgressors of the law. But keep9
|iim o\^n counsel, and there uio none here to betray uu
THE PIONEERS. 205
Yet, how came those dogs at large ? I left tlieoi securely
fastened, I know, for I felt the thougs, and examined the
knots, when I was at the hut."
'* It has been too much for the poor things/' said Natty,
f*to have such a buck take the wind of them. See, lad, the
e'eces of the buck-skin are hanging from their necks yet.
it 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
^at 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
M'as 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 !" exclaimed
the impetuous youth.
*' Ay ! he durst to do any thing, where there is no dan-
ger," said Natty; *' he is a curious body, and loves to be
helping other people on with their consarns. 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 scrutinising it closely, he said, in
Delaware
**It was cut with a knife a sharp blade and a long handle
and the man was afraid of the dogs."
*' How is this, Mohegan ?" exclaimed Edwards ; '' You
0aw 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 that 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
ivas that 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, when a man is
so minded.
** And why should he do so?" asked Edwards ; "who has
lone him wrong, that he should trouble two old men lika
o'ji r
" It's a hard matter, lad, to know men's ways, I find,
%oc6 the settlers have brought in their new fashions. Bat
2X56 THE PfONEERS.
is there nothing to be found out in this place . and may be
he is troubled with his longings after other people's busi*
ness, as he often is."
" Your suspicions are just/* cried the youth. " Give me
the canoe : I am young and strongs and will get down there
yet, perhaps, in time to interrupt his plans. Heayen for-
bid that we should be at the mercy of such a man V
His proposal was instantly 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, shoul-
dering his rifle, he ascended the mountain, with an inten.
lion of going to the hut by land.
CHAPTER XXVITl;
" Ask me not wbat the maiden feels.
Left in that dreadful honr alone ;
Porcbance, her reason stoops, or reels ;
Perchance* a courage not her own
Braces her mind to desperate tone."
SCOTT.
While the chase was occurring on the Lake, Miss Temple
and her companion pursued their walk with the activity of
youth. Male attendants, on such excursions, were thought
to be altogether unnecessary, for none were ever known,
there, to offer an insult to a female who respected the dig-
nity of her own sex. After the embarrassment that had
been created by their parting discourse with Edwards had
dissipated itself, the girls maintained a conversation that
was as innocent and cheerful as themselves.
The path they had taken led them but a short distance
above the hut of Leather- st6cking, and there was a point in
he road which commanded a bird's-eye View of the seques-
tered spot.
From a feeling, that might have been natural, bat must
have been powerful, neitherof the maidens, 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,
bad been found. If Judge Temple had deemed it prudent
THE PIONEERS, '267
to make any inquiries on the subject, he had al4o thought it
proper to keep the answers to himself; though it \^ as so
common an occurrence to find the well-educated youth of
the eastern slates 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 breed-
ing, it might have been different ; but the youth himself had
so effectually guarded against any 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 as-
sociation. But women are always more alive to such sub-
jects than men ; and what the abstraction of the father had
overlooked, the observation of the daughter had easily de-
tected. 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 noShing to the disadvantage of
Mr. Edwards."
" Perhaps not ; but they might tell who he is."
" Why, dear Miss Temple, we know all that already,'*
returned the other ; ** I have heard it all very rationally ex-
plained by your cousin "
" The executive chief!" interrupted Elizabeth " yes, yes,
lie can explain any thing. His ingenuity will one day dis-
cover the philosopher's stone. But what did he say?"
" Say !" echoed Louisa, with a look of surprise ; " wh)'
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."
96d TH PlOlaAERS.
i
Indeed ! that was quite a inatter of fact tale for coaeia
iHckon. What came next?"
** I believe he accounted for their close intimacy, by some
story about the Leather-stocking saving the life of John in f
battle/'
Nothing more likely/' said Elizabeth, a little impatiently,
** but what is all this to the purpose P"
** Nay, Elizabeth, }ou must bear with my ignorance, aud
I will repeat all that I remember to have overheard ; for the
dialogue was between my father and the Sherifif, so lately as
the last time they met. He then added that the kings of
England used to keep gentlemen as agents among the dif-
ferent tribes of Indians, and sometimes officers in the army,
who frequently passed half their lives on the edge of the
wilderness."
'* Told with a wonderful historical accuracy ! And did he
end there?"
** Oh ! no then he said that these agents seldom mar-
ried ; and and they must have been wicked men, Eliza-
beth ! but then he said that that '*
Never mind," said Miss Temple, blushing and smiling,
though so slightly that both were unheeded by her compan-
ion" 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. Ed^
wards has been taught; for he acknowledges that he knows
almost as much as himself or your father or even
mine."
" Quite a climax in learning" cned the heiress "com-
mencing with the last, I suppose. And so he made Mohe-
gan the grand uncle or grandfather of Oliver Edwards V*
"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 explai/j the reason why that hut is the only habi-
tation within fifty miles of us whose doors are not open to
every person whf; 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 porr, they very naturally are anxious to keep
the little that t*iey honestly own. It is sometimes dangerous
to be rich, Ml^s Temple; but you cannot know how hard it
IS to be very, very poor."
^^ Nor you, neither, I trust, Louisa ; at least I should hope
THE lIONEEK8.' Ml
UMiifc, in Ibis land of abundance, no minister of the cbnr^
could be left to absolute suffering/'
** There cannot be actual misery/' returned the other, in
a low and bumble tone, ** where there is a dependence on
our Maker ; but there may be such sufifering as will cause
the heart to ache/'
" But not you not you," said the impetuous Elizabeth
not you, dear girl ; you hare never known the misery that is
connected with poTcrty/'
'^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 friends, to ride
on a duty which could not be neglected for domestic evils.
Oh I how hard it must be to preach consolation to others,
when your own heart is bursting with anguish 1*'
'* But it is all over now V* exclaimed Elizabeth, ' 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 eonceal 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,
who 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 moun-
tain, where thev left the highway, and pursued their course
under the shade of the stately trees that crowned the emi-
nence. 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 their ascent. The conversation, as if bjr
mutual consent, was entirely changed to the little incidents
and scenes of their walk, and every tall pine, and every
sbmb or flower, called forth some simple expression of ad
miration.
In this manner they proceeded along the margin of th^
prceipioe, catching ocoasional glimpses at the placid OtaecjH ^
z3
270 THE PIONEERS.
or panuDg to listen to the rattlio^ of wheels and the soolkb
of hammers, that rose from the Talley, to miogl^ the si^s of
men with the scenes of nature, when Elizabeth saddenly
started, and exclaimed
"* Listen ! there are the cries of a child on this moantun ;
is there a clearing near os ? or can some little one hate
strayed from its parents V
** Snch things frequently happen," returned Louisa. ''Let
us follow thcsounds ; it may be a wanderer starting on the
hijl."
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 Toice
of bis young mistress lured him from his kennel, to the pre-
sent moment. His advanced age bad long before deprived
him of bis 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 listnessness 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
lising on his body, either 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 Iiis
good qualities.
" Brave I" 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 bo
some animal in sight/'
Hearing no answer from her companion, Miss Temple
turned her head, and beheld Louisa, standing with her fact
whitened to the colour of death, and her finger pointing
upward, with a sort of flickering, convulsed motion. Thf
THE HOKEERS. 971
quick eye of Elizabeth glanced in the direction indicated
by her friend, when she saw the fierce front and glaring eyes
of a female panther, fixed on them in horrid malignity, and
threatening instant destruction.
*' Let us fly !" exclaimed Elizabeth, grasping the arm of
Louisa, whose form yielded like melting snow, and sunk life-
less to the earth."
There was not a single feeling in the temperament of
Elizabeth Temple that could prompt her to desert a com-
panion in such an extremity; and she fell on her knees, by
the side of the inanimate Louisa, tearing from the person of
her friend, with an 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 vicious creature, approached the dog,
imitating the actions and sounds of its parent, but exhibit-
ing 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 all the
antics of a cat, for a moment ; 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 hor-
rid 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 fiom 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 mastifi*. No
words of ours can describe the fnry of the conflict that ful
2t2 THE PIONEERS;
lowed. It was a confased straggle on the dried leareSy ae
companied by load and terrific cries. Miss Temple oonti*
Dued on her kn^eti, bending over the form of Ijoaiaa, 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 in*
habitant of the forest, that its active frame seemed constantly
in the air, while the dog nobly faced his foe at each succes-
sive leap. When the panther lighted on the shoulders of
the mastiff, which was its constant aim, old Brave, though
torn witlT her talons, and stained with his own blood, that'
already flowed from a dozen wounds, would shake off hni
furious foe, like a feather, and, rearing on his hind legs,
rush to the fray again, with his jaws distended, and a daunt-
less eye. But age, and his pampered life, greatly disquali-
fied 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 furi-
ous 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 sido
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 stiUoess that suc-
ceeded announced the death of poor Brave.
Elizabeth now lay wholly at the merey 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 ^)resent 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 examina-
tion, it turned, however, with its eyes apparently emitting
flashes of fire, its tail lashing its sides furiously, and its claws
projecting for inches from its broad feet.
Miss Temple did not, or could not, move. Her handfl
were clasped in the attitude of prayer, but her eyes wer9
THE riONEEBS. 273
still drawn to her terrible enemy her cheeks were blanched
to the whiteness of marble, ana her lips were slightly sepa-
rated with horror. The moment seemed now to have arrived
for the fatal termination, and the beautful figure of Eliza-
beth was bowing meekly to the stroke, when a rustling of
leaves from behind seemed rather to n^ock the organs, than
to nieet her ears.
"Hist! hist!" said a low voice "steep lower, gal; your
bonnet hides the creater'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, you old fool ; 'tis a hard lived
animal,. and may jump ag'in. "
Natty maintained his position in front of the maidens,
most fearlessly, nothwithstanding the violent bounds and
threatening aspect of the wounded panther, which gave
several indications of returning strength and ferocity, until
bis rifle was again loaded, when he stepped up to the en-
raged 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 to the senses her appre-
hensions came, the more her nature had struggled to over-
come them. But still she was woman. Had she been left
to herself, in her late extremity, she would probably have
use4 her faculties to the utmost, and with discretion, in pro-
tecting her person, but, encumbered "(^ith her inanimate
friend, retreat was a thing not to be attempted. Notwith-
standing 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 disturded, as her
active fancy conjured in dreams the most trifling movements
of savage fury that the beast had exhibited in its moment
of power.
\Ve shall leave the reader to imagine the restoration- of
Louisa's senses, and the expressions of gratitude which fell
irom the young women. The former was efiected by a little
I
THE nONEEBB.
trater, that was brought from one of the thousand springi
of those mountains, in the cap of the Leather-stocking ; ani
the latter were ottered with all the warmth that might be
expected from the character of Elizabeth. Natty received
her Tehement protestations of gratitude with a simple ex-
pression of good-will^ and with indulgence for her preseq^
excitement, but with a carelessness that showed how littk
he thought of the service he had rendered.
" Well, well," he said, ** be it so, gal ; let it be so, if joa
wish it we'll talk the thing over another time ; but I*m sore
afeard you'll find Mr. Oliver a better companion than an old
hunter like me. Come, come let us get into the road, for
you've had tirror enough to make you wish yourself in your
lather*8 house ag'in."
This was uttered as they were proceeding, at a pace that
was adapted to the weakness of Louisa, towards the high-
way; on reaching which the ladies separated from their
guide, declaring themselves equal to th^ remainder of their
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, ingenious, 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 re-trod 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
soonei than in the forehead ! but they are hard-lived anl-
mala, and it was a good shot, consid'ring that I could se*
TBE PI0MBIR8. 275
nothing but the head and peak of its tail. Hah ! who goes
there T
** How goes it, Natty ?" said Mr. Doolittle, stepping ont of
the bushes, with a motion that was a good deal accelerated
by the sight ot the riile, that was already lowered in his di-
rection. *' What ! shooting this warm day ! mind, old man,
the law don't get hold on yon.'^
*^ 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 venison. I s'pose you know, Leather-stocking,
that there is an act passed to lay a fine of five pounds cur^
rency, or twelve dollars and fifty cents, by decimals, 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 be-
lieve 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
heerd your hounds out on the scent of so'thing this
morning : I didn't know but they might get you into dif-
ficulty."
" They know their manners too well," said Natty, care-
lessly. * A.nd how much goes to the state's evidence,
Squire?"
** How much I" repeated Hiram, quailing under the ho-
nest, but sharp, look of the hunter ** the informer gets half,
II b'Jieve ; 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."
^* H-e-m !'' ejaculated the magistrate ** and where is the
game? Is'pouse it's of agood nater, for your dogs won't hunt
at any thing that isn't choish."
'* They'll hunt any thing I tell them to Squire,"
wed Natty, favouring the other with his laugh. "They'll
huntyou, if I say so. He-e-e-re, he-e-e-re. Hector he-e-e-re|
.slut come this a-way, pups come hither."
" Oh ! I've always heard a good character of the dogs,"
returned Mr. Doolittle, quickening his pace by raising
each leg: in rapid succession as the huuuds scented
around his person. " A.nd where is the game Leathei-
ttockin&' "
\
276 THE nON'EEBS.
Doring this dialogue, the speakers had been walking at
irery fast gait, and Nattj swung the end of his lifle roand
pointing through the bashes and replied
" There lays one. How do you like soch meat V*
'* This V* exclaimed Hiram, *' why this v& Judge Temple's
dog Braye. Take kear, Leather-stocking, and don't make
an inimy of the Judge. I hope you haven't harmed the
animal f
'*Look for yourself, Mr. Doolittle," said Natty, draw-
ing his knife from his girdle, and wiping it, in a know^
ing manner, once or twice across his garment of bncK
skin ; *' does his throat look as if I had cut it with \h\%
knife V
** It is dreadfully tore ! its an awful wound no knife
never did this deed. Who could have done it ?"
'* That painter behind you. Squire look, there's two of
them."
'* Painters !" echoed Hiram, whirling on his lieel, with
an agility that would have done credit to a dancing master ;
" Where's a painter ?"
"Be easy, man," said Natty: "there's two of the vin-
imous things ; but the dog finished one, and I have fastened
the other's jaws for her ; so you needn't look so skeared,
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 did'nt 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 bat will your dogs
hunt painters, Natty ?"
" Any thing ; did'nt 1 tell you they'd hunt a man ? He-
e-re, he-e-re, pups"
" Oh ! yes, yes, I remember. Well they are strange dogs,
1 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 has to preserve their connexion, when he answered
" What at. Squire ? did you never see a painter's scalp
*Core P Come you be a magistrate, I wish you'd make out an
ruer for the bounty."
THE riONIOLRS. '277
ft
'Tite bounty l" repeated Hiram, holding the ears on the
end of his finger, for a moment, as if ancertain how to pro-
ceed. ** 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
iiavc a bible P all the law wants is the Four Evangelists and
the Lord's prayer."
** I rather guess not,*' said Natty, a little coldly ; " not
su*h a bible as the law needs,"
'' Oh ! there's but one sort of bible, at least that's good in
law/' returned the magistrate; '*andyourn 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 tro-
phies very deliberately from the ground, and shouldering
his rifle; *' Why do you want an oath at all, for a thin^
that your own eyes has seen.' wont you believe yourself
that another man must swear to a fact that you know to
be true ! You seen me scalp the creatures, 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 1 write the
order ?"
Natty turned his simple feature on the cunning magistrate
with another of his laughs, as he said
'* And what should 1 be doing with such scholars' tools?
I want no pens or paper, not knowing the use of 'ither ;
and so 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 stran-
gle 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 retur-
ned the knife to its owner, carelessly remarked
*' 'Tis a good bit of steel, and has cut such leather as this
rery same before now, 1 dare say."
" JDo you mean to charge me with letting your hounds
joose?" exclaimed ^Hiram, with a consciousness that dis-
armed his caution.
" IjOosc !" repeated the hunter " I let them loose myself.
I always let thenf loose before I leave the hut."
The ungovernable amazement with which Mr. Doolittle
fistened to this falsehood^ would haye betrayed his agency
ID the liberation of th doffti had Natty wanted any farther
4
278 niE PIONEERS.
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 can tell you to your face,
that you never shall put a 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
won't over and above relish/*
" And let me tell you, Mr. Bumppo/' said Hiram, re-
treating, 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 in-
dignation, and Hiram did not stay to provoke the w rath of
the old hunter to extremities. When the intruder was out
of sight, Natty proceeded to the hut, where he found al
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 at-
tempted the lock, but it was too strong for him."
" I know the creater," said Natty, ** but he'll not trust
himself within reach of my lifle ag'in very soon, for I'll
" 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 or ireasare.'
TIHON OF ATHENS.
When Marmaduke Temple and his cousin rode thtough the
gate of the former, the heart of the father had been too re-
cently touched with the best feeling of our nature, to leave
inclination for immediate discourse. There was an impor-
lanoe in the air, of Richard, which would not have admitted
THE nONEERd../ '^279
of the ordinary informal conversation of Ibo Sheriff, without
violating all the lules of consistency ; and the eques rians
pursued their ^ay with great diligence, for more than a
mile, in profound silence. At length the soft expression of
parental care, blended with aifection, was slowly chased from
the handsome features of the Judge, and was gradually sup-
planted 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 lo 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,
which they had now entered, and, keeping his eyes fixed on
objects before him, like a man who is looking deep into
futurity, he replied as follows :
'' There has always been one point of difference between
us, Judge Temple, I may say, since our nativity ; not that I
would insinuate that you are at all answerable for the acts
of nature ; (or 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 proceeded from one cause, and that is,
our opinions of the universal attainments of genius.'*
*' In what, Dickon !" exclaimed the Judge.
" I speak plain English, I believe. Judge Temple ; at
least I ought; fur 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 wiJ supply the place of learn-
ing, and that a certain sort of man can do any thing and
every thing."
^ ** Like yourself, I suppose," said Marmaduke, smiling.
''1 scorn personalities, sir," returned the Sheriff; " I say
^
280 TIIE PIONEERS.
nothing of myself; bat there are three men on your patent df
the kind that I should term talented by nature for her gene*
ral purposes, though acting under the influence of different
situatlcns/'
'* We are better off then, than I supposed/' said Marma-
duke. " Who are they T
** Why, sir, one is Hiram Doolittle ; he is a carpenter bj
trade, as you know, and I need only point to the village to
exhibit his merifs. Then he is a magistrate, and might
shame many a man, in his distribution of justice, who has
had better oppoitunitics than himself."
** Well, he is one," said Marmaduke, with the air of a man
that was determined not to dispute the point.
" Yes, sir, and Jotham Riddel is another."
" Who V exclaimed the Judge.
" Jotham Riddel."
^* What, that dissatisfied, shiftless, lazy, speculating fel-
low ! he who changes his county every three years, his farm
every six months, and his occupation every season ! an agri-
culturist yesterday, a shoemaker to-day, and a schoolmaster
to-morrow I that epitome of all the unsteady and ' profitless
propensiiics of the settlers, without one of their good quali-
ties to counterbalance the evil { Nay, Richard, this is too
bad for even but who is the third ?"
As the third is not used to hearing such comments on his
character. Judge Temple, I shall not name him," said the
indignant Sheriff.
^* 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 liave not said that I am one, Judge Temple. As I told
you before, I say nothing of myself. But a discovery has
been made, and you arc deeply interested in it."
" Proceed I am all ears."
** No, no, Muke, you are bad enough, I own, but not so
Dad as that either ; your ears are not quite full grown."
Tiie Sheriff laughed heartily at his own wit, and put him-
self in good humour thereby, when he gratified his patient
couftin with the following explanation :
" You know, 'duke, that there is a man living on your
estate that goes by the name of Natty Bumppo. Here has
this man lived, by what f can learn, for more than forty
jears by himself, until lately ; and now with strange com-
panions."
** Part very true, and all very prohable," said the Judge.
** All true, sir ; all true. Well, within these last few
THE llONBERfl. 281
montUs hav9 appeared, as his companions, an old I/idiaa
chief, 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 au interest
that he had not manifested before.
** Who ! why common sense common report. But listen
till you know all. This youth has \ery pretty talents ^yes,
what I call very pretty talents and has been well educated,
has seen \ery tolerable company, and knows how to behave
himself, when he has a mind to. Now, Judge Temple, can
you tell mo what has brought three such men as Indian
John, Natty Bumppo, and Oliver Edwards, together?**
Marmadnke 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. Bat knowest thou any thing
of this mystery, or are ihey only the crude conjectures of "
*' Crude nothing, 'duke, crude nothing: but facts, stubborn
facts. You know there are mines in these mountains ; I
liavc often heard yoa say that you believed in their exis-
tence"-^
*' Reasoning from analogy, Richard, but not with any cer-
tainty of the fact."
*'' You have heard them mentioned, and have seen speci-
mens of the ore, sir ; }ou will not deny that ! and, reasoning
from analogy, as you say, if there be mines in South Ameri-
ca, ought there not to be mines ip North America too V*
*' 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, sir," 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 are 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 Mo-
hegan and the Leather-stocking have been privy to the exis-
tence of a mine in this very mountain, for many years."
The Sheriff had now touched his cousin in a sensitive spot
and Maimaduke lent a more attentive car to the speaker
2a3
^&!t THE PIONEERS.
whO( after waiting a moment, to see the effect oFthis extim
ordinary developementy proceeded
*' Yes, sir, I have my reasons, and at a proper time yoa
shall know them/'
^* No time is so good as the present," exclaimed Marma-
dukc.
" Well, well, be attentive,*' continued Richard, looking
cautiously about him, to make certain that no eaves-dropper
was hid in the forest, though they were in constant motion.
** I have seen Mohegan and the Leather-stocking, with my
own eyes and ray eyes are as good as any body's eyes f
have seen them, I say, both going up the mountain and com-
ing down it, with spades and picks ; and others have seen
them carrying things into their hut, in a secret and mysteri-
ous manner, after dark. Do you know what they could be !"
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 house-
hold since last 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 edu-
cated we know. But as to his business here do you re-
member that, about a month before this young man made
his appearance among us, Natty was absent from home se-
veral days ? You do ; for you inquired for him, as you want-
ed 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 jump-
ers that they carry their grain to mill in, and take out some-
thing, with great care, that he had eovered 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 no-
thino; 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 ho brought back some secret utensils is alao
THE PIONEERS. 2^1
certain ; and since then he has not allowed a soul to approach
is hat."
" He was never fond of intruders"
[ ** I knonv it/' interrupted Richard ; " but did he drive thein
from his cabin morosely? Within a fortnight of his return,
this Mr. Edwards appears. They spent whole days in the
mountains, pretending to be shooting, but in reality explor-
mg ; the frosts prevented their digging at that time, and he
Availed himself of a lucky accident to get into good quaiteis.
But even now, he is quite half of his time in that hut many
hours in each night, v They are smelting, 'duke, they arc
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 chafi."
" 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 ar-
rival with the sled, and very good-naturedly oflered 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 watch-
ful eye on the gentlemen, in which we have found Jotham
very 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 mys-
terious, not only in the connexion between the old hunters
and Edwards, but in what his cousin had just related, he be-
gan 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
leadily to their impression. The mind of Judge Temple, at
all times comprehensive, had received, from his peculiar oc-
cupations, a bias to look far into futurity, in speculations on
the improvements that posterity were to make in his lands,
lb his eye, where others saw nothing but a wilderness, towns,
Ibanufactories, bridges, canals, mines, and all Ihe other re-
sources of an old country, were constantly presenting them-
selves, though his good sense suppressed^ in some degree, tha
exhibition of these expectations.
JU.the Sheriff allowed his cousin full time to reflaot ^
i!i THE PIONBEftd.
ivhat be had heard, the probability of some pecaniary adven-
ture being the connecting link in the chain that brought
Oliver Edwards into the cabin of Leather-s(ocking, appear-
ed 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 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 P" cried the Sheriff.
** Besides, there is an elevation of character about Oliver
that proceeds from education, which would forbid so clan-
destine a proceeding."
** Could an ignorant fellow smelt?" continued Richard.
** Then Bess hints that he wns reduced to his last shilling,
when we took him into our dwelling."
" He had been buying tools. And would he spend his last
{.ixpence for a shot of 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 con-
ceiving 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
J 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
cath ; but the amount is that he knows where the ore lies,
and he has tliis 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. Don't you
call this a countermine for their mine, ha !"
*' And where is the aesirablcspotp" asked the Judge, with
an air half comical, and half serious.
** CJoso hy ; and when \vc have visited tljat, I will ^how
THB Flu^tEK^. Zfi
you oneoftbe places that we have fcuni w thin a week
where our gentlemen hunters have been amusing themselves
for six months past."
The gentlemen continued to discuss the matter? while thel
horses picked their way under the branches ok' trees, and
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
reason for believing in the existence of any of the precious
metals near that particular spot; but the fellow main-
tained an obstinate mystery in his answers. He asserted
that he had the bestt of reason for what he did, and in-
quired of the Judge what portion of the profits would fall
to hi^ own share, in the event of success, with an earnest-
ness that proved his faith. After spending an hour near
the place, examining the stones, and searching for the
usual indications ot the proximity of ore, the Judge re-
mounted, 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 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 ex-
peditious, 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 his finger on his lip, and
leading the way down a very difficult descent to a sort of
natural cavern, which was formed in the face of the rock,
and not unlike a fireplace 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 yH fresh. An examination
of the exterior of the cavern left the Judge in doubt whether
28G THE PIONEERS.
it was one of natare'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 lictle
terrace partly formed by nature, and partly by the earth
that had been carelessly thrown aside by the labourers.
The mountain fell precipitately in front of the terrace, and
the approach by its sides under the ridge of the rocks, was
diflicult and a little dangerous. The whole was wild, rude,
and apparently incomplete : for while looking among the
buslies, 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 cried
" WeJJ, Judge Temple, are you satisfied?"
i^ Perfectly that there is something mysterious, and
to me 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
leady coined to your hands! No, no, the treasure must
be sought aftei to be won. But let them mine ; I shall
countermine,"
The Judge took an accnrate survey of the place, and no-
ted in his memorandum-book such remarks as were neces-
sary 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 at the
inquest of the country, 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 ilie spot where the
highway fell towards the valley, the eye of Marmaduke rested.
Ik
THE PIONEERS. 781
It is true, on the same scene that had, ten minutes before,
been so soothing to ihe feelings of liis daughter and her
fiiend, as they emerged from the forest ; bi't it rested in
vaeancy. He threw the reins lo his sure-footed beast, and
suffered the animal to travel at his own gait, while he solilo*
quized as follows :
" There may be more in this than I at first supposed,
thave suflered 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. 1 will have the Leather-stock-
ing before me, and, by a direct questions, extract tlie truth
from the simple old man."
At that instant the Judge caught a glimpse of the figures
of Elizabeth and Louisa, who weie slowly descending the
mountain, but 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 examin^iiions, were .absorbed in
his emotions ; 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.
' Tlie court awards itt and the law doth give it."
Merchant of Vlmci:.
Kemaukablb PETTfBONE, who had forgotten the wound re-
ceived by her pride, in the contemplation of the ease and
comforts of her situation, and who still retained her station
in the family of Judge Temple, was dispatched to the humble
dwelling which Richard styled " the Rectory,'* in attend-
ance on Lousia, who was soon consigned to the arms of hci
father.
In the mean tjme, Marmaduke and his daughter were
closeted for more than an hour, nor sball we invade the
sanctuary of parental love, by relating the conversation for
that period. At its expiration, when the curtain uses on
the reader, the Judge is seen walking up and down the
apartment, with a tender melancholy in his air, softening
the manly expression of his features, and his child recilniDg
88 rHE PIONEERS.
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 V*
*' I believe 1 may as well take the credit of fortitude,'' said
Elizabeth, * though I much doubt if flight would have
availed me anything, 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 thought
dwell most, at that fearful moment ?''
" The beast ! the beast !" cried Elizabeth, veiling her fa(\
with her fair 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
jet remained in our forests; but they will stray fai from their
haunts when pressed by hunger, and "
A loud knocking at the door of the apartment inter-
rupted what he was about to utter, and he bid the ap-
plicant enter. The door was opened by Benjamin,
who came in with a discontenied 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, maybe for the matter of a glass ; and he has
sum'mat on his mind that he wants to heave up, d*yc see ;
but I tells him, says I, man, would you be coming aboard
with your complaints, said J, when the Judg^ has
{gotten his own child, as it were out of the jaws of a
ion? But damn the bit of manners has the fellow any
more than if he wa9, one of them Guineas, down in the
kitchen there ; and so, as he was shearing along-side,
every stretch he made towards the house, I could do no
better than to let your honour know that the chap was in the
fling."
*'He must have business of importance/' said Marma-
duke ; '* something in relation to his oflice, most probably,
IS the court sits so shortly."
* Ay, ay, you have it, sir," cried Benjamin, " it'ssum*mat
about a complaint that he has to make of the old Leather-^
i^kitig^ whO) to my judgment^ ii the better man of tli*
THE PIONEERS. 289
t\vo. It*s a very good sort of a man is tbis Master Oumppo,
and lie lias 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/' said the Judge, smiling, ** it is
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 ap-
pearance.
All the impatience of Hiram seemed to vanish, the in-
stant he entered the apartment. After saluting the J(iJ';c
and his daughter, he took the chair to which Marmadukc
pointed, and sat for a minute, composing his straight black
hair, with a gravity in his demeanour that was intended to
do honour to his ofiicial station. At length he snid
** It's likely, from what I hear, that Miss Temple had
a pretty narrow chance witii the painters, on the moun-
tain."
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," conti-
nued Hiram, '*in which case the Leather-stocking will make
a good job on't,"
** It shall be my care, sir, to see that he is regarded," re-
turned the Judge.
** Y( s, yes, I rather guess that nobody hereabouts doubts
the Judge's generosity. Does he know w hether 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 Jothani Riddel,
and the man who bought his betterments, have agreen to
leave their diflerence 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 gueM 'twill be left out to meo/' added HiraiUy
2b
f90 TBK
wtth an air eqoallj balanced between dccbt and a55iirance,
but which Judg^e Temple anderstocd to mean certaictj ;
** I some tbiok that I am appoicted a referee in the case
mjself; Jotbam as much as told me that be shoald take
me. The defendant, I gaess, means to take Captain Hoi-
lister, and we two have partly a^een on Squire Jones for the
third man."
**Are there anj criminals to be tried!" asked Marma-
duke.
"There's the coanterfeiters," 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 these men. There are
no more, I hope/'
" Why, there is a threaten to come forrad with an assault
that happened at the last independence day ; but I'm not
sartain that the law'll take hold on't. There was plaguey
hard words passed, but whether they struck or not I haven't
lieern. 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 1 do you know that the law exacts an
oath, before 1 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
Immovable Hiram ; " and Jotham is in the street, ^nd
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 V
" 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 search shoald come from himself.
We5 fls I'm much in the woods, among the timber, I
THE PIONEERS. 291
dor/t altogether like making an enemy of the Leather-
slocking. Now the Judge has a weight in the county that
puts him above all fear."
Miss Temple turned her beautiful face to the callous archi-
tect, with a scornful smile, as she said
** And what has any honest person to dread, from so
kind a man as poor 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 con.
elude to issoe the warranty I must go home and make it out
myself."
** I have not refused your application, sir," said Marma-
duke, 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 playfully on her mouth, and saying
" It is more terrific in sound than frigiitful in reality, my
child. I suppose that the Leather-stocking has shot a deer,
fot the season is nearly over, and you say that he was hunt-
iiig with his dogs, when he came so timely to your assist-
ance. 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 suflered her father to leave her, to fulfil his promise to
Hiram.
When Marmaduke left his office, after executing his disa
greeable duty, he met Oliver Edwards, walking up the gra-
velled walk in front of the Mansion-house, with great strides,
and with a face agitated by some powerful passion. On
seeing Judge Temple, the youth turned aside, and with a
warmth in his manner that was not often exhibited to Mar-
maduke, 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 shoving me his scalps, old Natty
told me of the escape of the ladies, as a thing to be men-
tioned last. Indeed, indeed, sir, no words of mine can ex-
press half of what 1 have felt" the youth paused a moment
as if suddenly recollecting that he was overstepping limits,
and concluded wiib a god deal of embarrassment ' what
*M^*Z Ttlfi I'lUAt.KKS.
I have felt at this danger to Miss Grant, and and yom
daughter, sir,"
But the henrt of Marmaduke was too much softened
by his recent emotions, to admit of his caviiiing at trifles,
and without regarding the confusion of the other, he re-
plied
"I thank thee, thank thee, Oliver; as thou sayest, it is
almost too horrid ^to bo remembered. But come, let us
hasten to Bess, for Louisa has already gone to the Rec-
tory."
The young man sprang 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 en-
tirely 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 suspi-
cions engendered during his morning's ride, and the youth
and maiden conversed, laughed, and were sad by turns, as
if directed by a common impulse. At length Edwards, after
lepeating his intention to do so for the third iihie, 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-stocking, and at
once destroyed the short-lived harmony between the youtk
and Marmaduke.
When Hiram Doolittle had obtained his search-warrant,
bis first business was to procure a proper officer to sec 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 one leg, and an invalid. Hiram in-
tended to accompany the officer as a spectator, but 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 nn expe-
dition 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
KJrby met his eye, and Hiram, at all times fruitful in simi-
THE nOXEERS. 293
lar expedients, saw his way clear at once. Jothani, 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 par-
ticular 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 issood a sarch-warrant, and sent
for me to get somebody to execute it."
Kirby, who had no idea of being excluded from the deli-
berative part of any aii'air 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 Sherifl' is gone out of the way ?"
"Not to be found."
" And his deputy too V
" Both gone on the skirts of the patent."
" Jiut 1 seen the constable hobbling about town an hoar
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 heerd him brag once," said Jotharo, "that taerc
wasn't a man Hwixt the Mohawk Flats and the Pennsylvany
line, that was his match at a close hug,"
** Did you !" exclaimed Kirby, raising bis huge frame in
his seat, like a lion stretching in his lair, " I rather guesa
be never felt a Varmounter's knuckles on his backoone.
But who is the chap P"
* Why," said Jotham, " it's"
"It's agin law to tell," interrupted Hiram, ** unless you'll
qualify to sarve. 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 the statute-book, that Hiram had opened,
in order to give dignity to his o&ce, which he turned over
b3
Ik
2l4 THE PlONEEllS.
iu his rough manner, as if he were reflecting on a subject^
about which he had, in truth, already decided ; " will thej
pay a man for a broken head P*'
** Theyll be something handsome,'* said Hiram.
' Damn the fees," said Billy, again laughing " does the
fellow think he*s the best wrestler in the country, though ?
what's his inches?'*
'* He's taller than you be," said Jotham, " and one of thfl
biggest"
Talkers, he was about to add, but the impatience of Kir by
interrupted him. The wood-chooper had nothing fierce, or
even brutal in his appearance ; the character of his expres-
sion 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. 1*11 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 delivered without any 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,
iOffore Kir by 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?" excluimcd 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 nie
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 from Templeton."
** This is the way," said Hiram, pointing forward, and
quickening his step, as if apprehensive that Kirby would de-
sert, ** and Bumpoo is the man."
Kirby stopped short, and looktd fr ni one (f his com-
panions to the other in astonishment. lie then ! ur t into a
laugh, and ciicd
** Who? Leather-stocking! he may brag of his aim and his
rifle, for he has the best of both, as I will ow r myself for 'sin
ho shot the pigeon, I knock under to him ; but for a
THE PIONEERS. 295
wrestle! why, I would take the divil between my finger atid
thumb, and tie him in a bow-knot around my neck foi a
Barcelony. Why, Jotham, you could take him down your-
self as you'd take down a two years' pine with an axe Tlie
man is seventy, and was never any thing particular ibr
strength.*'
" He's a deceiving man," said Hiram, " like all the hun-
ters ! he is stronger than he seems; besides he has his
lifle."
" That for his rifle !" cried Billy, " he'd no more hurt me
with his rillc than he'd fly. He is a harmless creater, and I
must say that I think he has as good a right to kill deer as
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 Jotbam, " 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 him,"
" 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, " 1 don't care the valie of a beetle-ring for you
and your pargury too. But as I have come so far, I'll go
down and hnvc a talk with the old man, and maybe wc'hi
fry a steak of the deer together."
" Well, if you can get ia peaceably, so much the better "
said the magistrate. " To my notion, strife is very un-
popular ; I prefar, at all times, clever conduct to an ugly
temper."
As tlic whole party moved at a great pace, they soon
reached the hut, were Hiram thought it prudent to halt on
the outside of the top of the fallen pine, which formed a
elievaux-de-frize, to defend the approach to the fortress, on
tlie side next to the village. The delay was but little relished
by Kirby, who clapped iiis hands to his mouth, and ga^c a
loud halloo, that brought the dogs out of their kennel, and,
almost at the same instant, the scantily covered head o^
Natty also from the door,
** Lie down, you old fool," cried the hunter; **tIo yoa*
think there's more painters about you?'*
*' Ha ! Leather-stocking, I've an errand with you,** cried
Kirby ; ** hcre*s the good people of the state have been writ
ing you a small letter, and they've hired mr. to ride \)QSt.%
\
20Q THE PIONEERS.
What would you have with me, Billy Kirby ? " ai*l
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 visiter. " I've no land to clear ;
and heaven knows I would set out six trees afore I would
cut one down. 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 that you mistook the twen-
tieth 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 bead
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 Eirby, and
what for should you trouble an old man, who has done yoa
no harm ? "
Kirby advanced through the top of the pine, to within a
few feet of the hunter, where he scaled himself on the end
of a log with great composure, and began to examine the
nose of Hector, with whom he was familiar, from their fre-
quently meeting in the woods, where he sometimes fed the
,og from his own basket of provisions.
'^'You've outshot me, and I'm not ashamed to say it,"
iid the wood -chopper, " but I don't owe you a grudge for
that, Nalty ! 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 tlic
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 cars to Kirby,
who continued playing with them, with a careless air, hold-
ing them to the doss, 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 tlic air of authority that became his commis-
sion. ITis (irst measure was to read the warrant aloud, tak-
ing care? to ^]\o duo emphasis to ilic most m.Ucnal partM,
THE PIONEERS. 297
and conchulipg with the name of the Jud^e in very audible
and distinct tones.
*' Did Marmaduke Temple put his name to that bit of
paper V 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
gal : 3he has an eye like a full-grown buck ! poor thing, she
didn't choose her father, and can't help it. I know but lit-
tie of the law, Mr. Doolittle; what is to be done, now you
have read your commission ?"
''Oh ! i's nothing but form, Natty,** said Hiram, en-
deavouring 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, though I 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 visiters, 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 ex-
pecting that 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 ho
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 de-
mand, and the county should forgive him the fine ; it's what
1 call an eveti 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, sum-
moning all the dignity he could muster to his assistance,
"in the name of the people, and by vartoo of this warrant,
andof 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 your testimony.**
Hiram had mistaken the mild determined air of Natty
for submission, and had already put his foot on the threshold
to cnieif when he was seized unexpectedly by his shoulders
and hurled over the little bank towards the lake, to the
%
298 THE PI0NEEA8.
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 loud peals of laughter.that he seemed to
heave up from his very soul.
" Well done, old sliib !" he shouted ; " the Squire know'd
you better than I did. Come, oome, here's a green spot;
take it out like men, while Jothani and I see fair play."
"William Kirb, 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 lifle was in his hand, and it*s muzzle was di-
rected towards the wood-chopper.
"Stand oif, 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 your foot
into the hut."
While the affair appeared trifling, the wood-chopper seem-
ed 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 vallie the hollow piece of iron in your hand so much
as a broken axe-helve ; so, Squire, say the word, 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 ai receiv-
ing no answer, he discovered their retreating figures, .moving
lowards 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 soon be trouble 'twixt us."
Natty dropped his rifle, and replied
" I wish you no harm, Billy Kirby ; but I leave it to your-
self, whether an old man's hut is to be run down by such
varmint as them. I won't deny the buck to you, Billy, and
you may take the skin in, if you please, and show it as a
testimony. The bounty w'll pay the fine, and that ought to
$atisfy any man."
THE PIONEERS. 709
***TwiIl, old boy, 'twill/* cried Kirby, every shade ofdis*
pleasure vanishing from his open brow at the peace-oCering ;
*' 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 livood-chopper departed,
as thoroughly reconciled to the hunter as if nothing had hap-
pened. 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 af-
fair a very capital joke.
Long before Billy reached the village, however, the n^ws
of his danger, and of Natty's disrespect to 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 re-
moving 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 succeed-
ing Monday as on a Saturday night, a time kept sacred by a
large portion of the settlers. Accordingly, all further pro-
ceedings were suspended for six-and-thirty hours.
CHAPTER XXXI.
'' Aud dar'st tLon, then,
* To beard tbe lion in his den
The Douglas in bis hall V* M ARMIOK
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 Ifome, and closing his
door after him, with tlio grave air of a man who consulted
public feeling in his exterior deportment, when Oliver Ed^
wards, on his return from the dwelling of Mr. Grant, encoun-
tered the young lawyer, who Is known to the reader as Mr.
Lippct. There was very little similarity in the manners or
opinions of the two ; but as they both belonged to the mor*
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 :
Tf
300 THE PIONEERS.
*' A fine evening, Bf r. Edwards,** commenced the lawyei,
wbose disinclination to the dialogue was, to say the least,
Tery donbtfu] ; ** we want rain sadly ; that'll the worst o1
this climate of ours, it's either a drought or a deluge. It's
likely youVe been used to a more equal temperatoore V
** I am a native of this state/' returned Edwards, coldly.
''Well, Fve often heerd that point disputed, but it's so
easy to get a man naturalized, that it's of little consequence
Irhere he was born. I wonder what course the Judge means
Jb take in this business of Natty Bunippo V
** Of Natty Bumppo " echoed Edwards ; " to what do
you allude, sir?'*
'* Haven't you heerd !" exclaimed the other, with a look
of surprise, so naturally assumed as completely to deceive
theotner? **why, 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 crimi-
nal 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," saidf the lawyer ; ** could
Natty muster so much money at once P"
** Could he !" cried the youth. **Iam 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 be-
fore that old man should lie one hour in a jail, 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 P I must beg an explanation."
" Why, killing the buck is but a small matter compared
to what took place tfeis afternoon," continued Mr. Lippet
ivith a confidential and friendly air, that insensibly won
upon the youth, little as he liked the man. '' It seems that
complaint was made of the fact, and the suspicion that
there was venison in the hut was swoin 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 hor-
ror, and with a face that should have been again averted,
to conceal its paleness ; ''and how much did they discover
T^ did tbej see P"
THB PIONEERS. 901
" They saw old Bumppo*s rifle ; and that is a sight which
wiil quiet most men's curiosity in the woods."
** Did they ! did they !" shouted Edwards, hursting 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 tft 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 reduced before you can 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 is 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."
** Weil, Mr. Edwards,'* said Lippet, dropping all reserve
from his manner, '' you are called a curious man ; bat 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 tnat 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 as-
cendency of his feelings ; and, as he began to see the real
difficulties in the case, he listened more readily to the con-
versation of the lawyer. The ungovernable emotion that
escaped the youth, in the first moment of his surprise, en-
tirely passed away, and, .although it was still evident that
he continued to be much agitated by what he had heard, he
succeeded in yielding a 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
^0 execute them in that neither suited his disposition nor
/lis emergencies. After, however, giving Mr. Lippet to un-
derstand 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 tne direc-
tion of the little building that had a wooden sign over its
dour, with ' Chester Lippet, Attorney at Law/' painted on
2o
902 TUB PIONEERS.
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 reader to his
client.
When Edwards entered the ball, whose enormous doors
vreie 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 just stepped into his office, wilh
that Master carpenter. Mister Doolittle ; 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 is 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 the open water, where a man
could see where and how 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 qf 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. Oh ! 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 wank your friendship, in which case you shall
know it."
Without waiting to hear the earnest reply that Benja-
min meditated, the youth extricated himself from the vigor-
ous grasp of the steward, and entered the parlour.
Elizabeth was alone, and still reclining on the sofa,
we last left her. A hand, which exceeded all that
jiuitj of axt could model, in shape and colour, veiled
THB nONBBltS. 806
ber eyes ; and the maiden was sitting in an abstracted pos-
ture, as if communing deeply with herself. Struck by the
attitude and loveliness of the form that met bis eye, the
young man checked his impaticDce, and approached her
with respect and caution.
" Miss Temple Miss Temple," he said, " I hope I do
not intrude j but I am anxious to see you^ if it be only for
a moment."
Elizabeth raised her face, and exhibited her dark eyes
swimming in moisture ; but a flush crossed her cheeks that
resembled the tints which the setting. sun throws over the
neighbouring clouds.
"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 P'*
** She is with her father, happy and grateful," said Oli-
ver. ** I never witnessed more feeling than she manifested,
when I ventured to express my pleasure at her escape. I
know not how it was, Miss Temple, but when I first neard
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 roe time to collect myself.
I believe 1 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 ac-
tion, however, soon passed away, and, raising her face s^ain
to his gaze, she continued, with a smile
" Your friend, the Leather-stocking, has now become
my friend, Edwards ; I have been thiuKing 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
the maiden '* 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 1 was an accomplice
throughout. A complaint has been made to your father,
and he has granted a search "
"I know it all," interrupted Elizabeth, beckoning with
her hand for silence; "I know it I know it all. The
foims of the law must be complied with, however; the
search must be made, the deer found, and the penalty piid.
a04 THE nOMCERS.
fiat I most retort your own question. Have you lived so
long in oar family, not to know as ? Look at me, Oliver
Edwards. Do I appear like the girl who would permit the
man who has just saved her life to linger in a jail, 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 re-
move I" exclaimed Edwards. " He shall not be disturbed
again ! yoar father will protect him ! 1 have your assur-
ance. Miss Temple, that he will, and I must believe it."
" You may have his own, Mr, Edwards," returned Eliza-
beth, * 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 with a look of care,
and his manner was 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 devoted head, and it is out of my power to
avert it."
**HowP in what manner?" cried Elizabeth; * the fine
is nothing j surely "
" I did not 1 could not anticipate that an old, a friend-
less man like him, would dare to oppose the officers of jus-
tice," 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 P" asked Ed-
wards, in an agitated voice.
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 toe 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
THE PIONE1R8. "Mb
Judge Temple entertains," returned d wards, bitterly.
*' But let us converse calmly, sir. Will not the years, the
habits, nay, the ignorance of my old friend, avail him any
thing a^inst such a charge ?"
"Ought they P I may ask," returned Marmaduke.
" They may extenuate, but can they acquit P Would any
society be tolerable, young man, where the ministers of jus-
tice are to be opposed oy men armed with riftes P Is it for
this that I have tamed the wilderness P"
** 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 her father; ''the youth
is unjust ; but I have not given him cause. I overlook thy
remark, Oliver, for I know thee to he the friend of Natty,
and thy 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 ; preju-
diced, 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
deserti them, even if it be his dog."
" This is a good character, Mr.-Edwards," returned Mar-
maduke, mildly; *' but I have never been so fortunate as to
secure his esteem, for to me he has been uniformly repul-
sive ; yet I have endured it, as an old man's whim. How-
ever, 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 pry-
ing miscreant from his door? Crime I 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, with his fine, manly 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 con-
science, Judge Temple. Walk to that door, sir, and look
out upon the valley, that placid lake, and those dusky moun-
tains, and say to your own heart, it heart you have, whence
came tlicse riches, this vale, those hills, and why am I their
owner? I should think^sir, that the appearance of Mohegan
2c3
06 THE RONEERS.
tnd the Leather-stocking, stalking through the coantry, im-
poTerished and forlorn, would wither your sight.''
Mannaduke heard this burst of passion, at first with deep
amazement; but, when the youth had ended, he beckoned
to bis impatient daughter for silence, and replied
'* Oliver Edwards, thou forgettest in whose presence thou
standest. I have heard, young man, that thou claimesi
descent from the native owners of the soil ; but surely thy
education has been given thee to no effect, if it has not
taught tbee the validity of the claims that have transferred
the title to the whites. These lands are mine by the yery
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. Ck)me to my oflSce, and I
will discharge the debt I owe thee. Neither shall ^thy
present intemperate language mar thy future fortunes, i{
thou wilt hearken to the advice of one who is by many years
thy senior.'*
The ungoverning feeling that caused the violence of the
youth had passed away, and he stood gazing after the
retiring figure of Mannaduke, with a vacancy in his eye,
that denoted the absence of his mind. At length he recol-
lected 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 I would part in amity."
Elizabeth slowly raised her face, across which a momen-
tary 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 I" interrupted the youth : '' I "
*^ I would speak, sir, and not listen. There is something
in this affair that I do not yet comprehend ; but tell the
r^eather-stocking he has friends as well as judges in us.
Do not let the old man exper'f'Ti'?'* unnecessary uneasiness
THE PI0KEER5. )7
at this raptare. It is impossible that they could fncreaso
his claims here ; neither shall tney 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 light form
was no where to be seen. He paused a moment, in a stupor,
and then, rushing from the house, instead of following
Marmaduke to his " oflBce," he took his way directly for
the c.ibin of the hunters.
CHAPTER XXXTI
** Wno measured earth, described the starry spheres.
And traced the long records of lunar years.'^
POPE.
RiCHAAD did not return from the exercise of his ofiScial
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 manu-
facture 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, foul
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-jail, while he pursued his own
way up the gravelled walk, with that kind of self-satisfaction
that a man of his organization would feel, who had, really,
for once done a yery clever thing.
' Holla! AggyT shouted the Sheriff^ when be 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 I 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 Aganeronon \ where are you ? Oh 1 here comes the dog
at last
a03 THB noHSEM.
By this time the Sheriff had dismounted, and observed
m 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 ras-
cal ?" 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 bis straw?*'
By this time the boy was quite awake, and, with a blub-
bering whine, be attempted to reply to bis master :
*' Ob ! masser Richard ? masser Richard ! such a ting! such
a ting 1 I neber tink a could ''appen ! neber tink he die !
Ob, Lor-a-gor ! an't 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.
**h! what! buried ! grave ! dead!" exclaimed Richard,
with a tremour in his voice ; *' Nothinr serious ? Nothing
has happened to Benjamin, I hope ? I know he has been
bilious ; but gave him "
** Oh I worser'an a dat I'Vorser an a dat !'^ sobbed the negr.
" Oh ! de Lor 1 'Miss Lizzy an a Miss Grant walk moun-
tain poor Bravy kill a lady painter Oh ! Lor, Lor! Natty
Bumppo tear he tract all open come a see, masser Richard
sucha booful copse here be 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 bLs
blood, stiff and cold, but decently covered with the great-coat
of the negro. He was on the point of demanding an explan-
ation ; 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 bouse opened and th^
coarse features of Benjamin were thrust over the thres-
hold, with a candle elevated among 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 blacky and, bidding him look to the horse he entered the
hail.
"What is the meaning of the dead dog?" he cried..
' Where is Miss Temple V
THE PI0NBBR9.
Benjamin made one of his square guestares, with the
thomb of his left hand pointing over his right shoulder, ae
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 V
" 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, it was 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, em-
braced not only such circumstances as affected himself, but
observations on the weather, and all the occurrences of tiiti
family, and frequently of the village. Since his appointm.;nt
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 worth remembering, which on
his return were regularly transferred to the journal, with
proper notations of the time, manner, and other little parti-
culars. 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 shono
or whether it rained, the hours, &c. ; and for the extraordin-
ary, 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 the
chronicle that Benjamin pointed, instead of directly ans-
wering the Sheriff's interrogatory.
When Mr. Jones had drunk a glass of the 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 forefinger, that was^ bent lik
31) THB PIONBBRS,
iome of his ohftracters, as an index to point out his mean-
ing.
The first thing referred to by the Sheriff was the diagram
of a compass, that was cut in one corner of the slate for
permanant use. The cardinal points were plainly marked
on it, and all the usual divisions were indicated la soo.h a
manner that no man who had ever steered a ship could mis-
take them.
" Oh \" said the Sheriff, settling himself down comfortably
in bis chair *'youM 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 th^i
cuttle-butt up aloft is emptied, for there hasn*t so much
water fell in the country 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 hav'nt I logged it as a
shift of the wind."
** I don't see where Benjamin ; I "
*' Don't see!" interrupted the steward, a little crustily;
** an't there a mark ag'in east*and-by-notbe-half-nothe, with
sam'mat like a rising sun at the end of it, to shew /twas in
the morning watch ?"
'* Yes, yes, that is very legible ; but where is the change
noted ?"
"Where! why doesn't it see this here tca-ketUo, with
a mark run from the spout straight, or mayap 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, along side 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 do 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 t
clean drizzle in which you might wash your face and
hands, without the trouble of hauling in water from along-
side."
^-^ Very well, Benjamin," said the Sheriff, writing in hii
Joarnal; **l believe I have caught the idea Oh {here's
THE PIONEERS, 311
a cload oTor tlie rising sun ; so yon had it hazy in the morn-
ing."
** Ay, ay, sir," said Benjamin.
*' Ah, it's Sunday, and these 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 leeway in not being over smart
about it."
** But, Benjamin, this is as long as a Presbyterian ser-
mon ; you never could have been ten minutes in turning the
glass V*
" Why, do you see. Squire, the parson was very solemn,
and I just closed my eyes in order to think the belter with
myself, just the same as you'd put in the dead -lights to
make ail snug, and when I opened them ag'ln I found the
congregation were getting under weigh for home, so I ca!
culated 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, oh ! master Benjamin, you were asleep, were you !
but I'd set down no such slander against an orthodox di-
vine." Richard wrote twenty-nine minutes in his jour-
nal, 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 ! 1 have heard of such portents before now, but eh !
what's this along side of it ? an hour glass ?"
" That!" said Benjamin^ looking coolly over the SherifTs
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, bearing all the same as if she had got 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, wasit?" said the Sheriff, with some dis-
pleasure 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 thiee at once, your honour may as well ran
the sponge over the whole business.^'
319 THE PIONEERS
^* I will bay yoa a slate for your own affairs, Benjamin,"
iaid the Sheriff; ^' for I don*t like to have the journal mar-
ked 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
her 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 honest, large notches were apparent. The
Sheriff cast his eyes on this new ledger, 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 toother is the parson's young'un."
** Cousin Bess and Miss Grant 1" exclaimed the Sheriff,
in amazement; ''why, what have they to do with my jour-
nal V
'' 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 pour old Brave, who died nobly, all the same
as an admiral fighting for his king and country ; and Chat
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 kil-
led that there dog, who would have eaten or done worse to
them here young ladies."
'' And what the devil does all this mean V cried Richard
impatiently.
** Mean!" echoed Benjamin ; "it's as true as the Boad*
ishey'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
hieroiclyphics met his view.
* What have we here !" he cried; " two men boxing ! hat
THE M^KEBRS. 319
there been a breach of the peace ? ah ! that's the uray, the
moment my back is turned "
" That's the Judge and young Master Edwards/^ inter-
rupted the steward, very cavalierly.
** How ! 'duke fighting with Oliver ! what the devil ha*
cot into you all ? more things have happened within the
st thirty-six hours than in the preceeding 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. How-
somnever, 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-
thcm 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 V* demanded Richard^
peremptorily.
" He has," said the steward.
Richard pursued this advantage, and, after a long and!
close examination, he succeeded in getting out of Benjamii
all that he knew, not only concerning the misunderstand-
ing, but of the attempt to search. the hut, and Hiram's dis*
comfiture. The Sheriff was no sooner possessed of these
facts, which Benjamin related with all possible tendernessi
to the Leather-stocking, than, snatching up his hat, and
bidding the astonished steward to secure the doors and go
to his bed, than he left the house.
For at least five minutes after Richard disappeared, Ben^^
jamin stood with his arras 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 com-
monly called, the " county court," over which Judge Templ'o
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 tlveff usual
Uuties at this court, as to escort the prisonet^;;; and thr;
2n
314 THB PIOliEUflb
Sheriff knew their habits too well^ not to feel confident be
should find most, if not all, of them in the public roon^ of
the jail, discussing the qualities of the keeper's liquors.
Accordingly he held his way through the sil^it streets of
the tillage, directly to the small and insecare building
that contained all the unfortunate debtors, and some of the
criminals, of the county, and where justice was adminis*
tered to such unwary applicants as were so silly as to
throw away two dollars, in order lo obtain one from their
neighbours. The arriyal of four malefactors, in the custody
of a dozen officers, was an event, at that day, in Temple-
ton ; and, when the Sheriff reached the jail, he found every
indication that his subordinates intended to make a iugfat
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 Uie con-
stables. 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 ran 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 tfie
Susquehanna, they left the highway, and struck into that
field which had been the scene of the yidoty 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 deep forest it"
self. Here Richard paused, and collected his troop around
him.
I have required yotir assistance, my friends," he said, in a
low voice, '* in order to arrest Nathaniel Bumppo, commonly
called the Leather-stocking. He has assaulted a magis*
trate, and resisted the execution of a search-warrant, by
threatening the life of a constable with his rifle. In shorty
my friends, he has set an example of rebellion to the
laws, and has become a kind of out-law.- He is sus-
pected 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 t^ the county jail, that he may be present and forthcom-
ing to answer to these heavy charges before the court to^
morrow morning. In executing this duty, my friends and
fellow-citisenS; you are to nse courage and discretion.
THB fkft(tEM. 8i&
Courage, that yoa may not be daanted by any lawless at-
tempts 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 foe made directly
to me, under the bank in front of the hut, where I shall sta-
tion myself, and remain in order to receive them."
This speech, which Richard had been studying during his
walk, had tiie 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 with-
out 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 plans to repulse the attack of a dog, or
escape a rifle-bullet. It was a moment of dread expecta-
tion 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 waich-word. 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 ex-
pected howls o'f 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, wlien the
curiosity and impatience of the Sheriff getting the complete
ascendency over his discretion, he rushed up the bank, and
in a moment stood on the little piece of cleared ground in
front o^ the spot where Natty had so long lived. To his
utter amazement, in place of the hut, he saw only its smoul-
dering ruins I
The party gradually drew together about the heap of ashes
and ends of smoking logs, while a dim Hame 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 csouiie^
910 THE PIONEERS.
tenance, leaving the former shaded in the obscaritj of night
Kot a voice was raised in inquiry, nor an exclamation mads
in astonishment. The transition from excitement to dis-
appointment was too powerful in its effects for speech, antf.
even Richard lost the use of an organ that was seldom
known to fail him.
The whole group were yet in the fulness 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 ex-
posed the bare head and weatlier-beaten features of the
licather-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?''
basald. '* You've driven God's creater's trom the wilde
aess, where his providence had put them for his own plea-
sure, and you've brought in the troubles and divilties of the
law, where no man was ever known to disturb another.
You have diiven me, that have lived forty long years of mj
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 your'n, 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 fami-
lies, 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 1 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 glim-
mering around his thinly-covered head, looking earnestly
at the group, which receded from the pile, with an instinc-
tive and 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 fruit*
jb9 JNfatty seemed not to regard this advantage, bat stood
THB PIONBEtiS. 317
facing each individual in the circle, in suoeessiou, as ii to
see who woald be the first to arrest him. After a pause of a
few moments, Richard began 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 to-
wards the village.
During the walk, divers questions were put to the pri-
soner 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 p-evious duties,
and the lateness of the hour, the Sheriff and his followeis
reached the village, and dispersed to their several places of
rest, after turning the key of a jail on the aged and appa-
rently friendless Leather-stocking.
CHAPTER XXXTIL
*' Fetch here the stocks, ho I
Yoa stubborn aBcient knave, yon reverend braggarty^
We'll teach jon." Lear,
The long days and early sun of July allowed timo for a
gathering of the interested, before the little bell of the aca-
demy announced that the appointed hour had arrived foi
administering right to the wronged, and punishment to the
guilty. Ever since the dawn of day, the highways and
woodpaths, that, issuing from the forests, and winding along
the sides of the mountains, centered in Templeton, had been
thronged with equestrians and footmen, bound to the haven
of justice. There was to be seen a well-clad yeoman, moun-
ted on a sleek, switch-tailed steed, ambling along the hij;h-
way, 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 conscious 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 infe-
rior 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 multi-
lifarons expedients of a settler's changeable habits, was
wasted in fiseding the harpies of the courts. He was en-
deaTouring to impress the mind of the grand juror with the
merits of a causa that was aow at issue. Along witk tii6/
2d3
318 THE PIONEERS.
two was a pedestrian, who, having thrown a rifle frock over
bis shirt, and placed his best wool hat above his sunburnt
visage, had issued from his retreat in the woods by a foot-
path, and was striving to Iceep company with the others, at
an unequal gait, on his way to hear and to decide the dis-
putes of his neighbours as a petit juror.
By ten o'clock the streets of the village were filled with
groups of men 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 manu-
factures as attracted their cariosity or excited their admi-
ration. A few women were to be observed in the crowd,
mostly carrying infants in their arms, and followed, at a
lounging, listless gait, by their rustic lords and masters.
There was one young couple, in whom the warmth of con-
nubial love was yet new, walking among the moving throng,
both dressed in their back-wood finery, at a respectful dis-
tance from each other, while the swain directed the timid
steps of his bride by the unbending motions of an extended
arm, to which she was appended by grasping his thumb.
At the first stroke of the bell, Richard issued from the
front door of the ** Bold Dragoon," flourishing in his hand 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 mem-
bers 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 hail
so big as a modern pair of shoulder knots. This gentleman
was a colonel of the militia, in attendance on a court-mar-
tial, who found leisure to steal a moment from his military
to attend to his civil, jurisdiction. But this incongruity vrai
nothing ; it excited neither notice nor comment. Three or
four clean-shaved lawyers followed, as meekly as if thej
were lambs going to the slaughter, one or two of whom had
contrived to obtain an air of scholastic gravity, by wearing
MpeotacleB. The rear was brought up by another posse
TIIB PIONEERS. Sl^
Gon8tab]es,''and the mob followed the whole into the room
where the coart 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 which were the guilty, downcast counten-
ances 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 spikes that were driven into the logs as a
protection against the illegal use of edge-tools. The uppei
story was of frame-work, regularly covered with boards, and
contained one room decently fitted up for the purposes ot
justice. A bench ran along one of its sides, and was raised
on a narrow platform to the height of a man above the floo*
and was protected in front by a light railing. 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
placed rows of seats rising one over the other, for jury boxes.
Each of these several divisions was surrounded by a railing.
The remainder of the room was an open space appropriated
^o the spectators.
When the judges were seated, the lawyers had taken pos-
session 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
captions 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, recommen-
ding to their notice, from motives of humanity, the prisoners
in the jail, as the first objects of their attention. Accor-
dingly, after the period we have mentioned had elapsed, the
cry of the oflScer to " clear the way for the grand jury," an.
nounced 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,
%nd in a very few minutes the silence that prevailed there
was interrupted by a general movement in the outer crowd ;
wbeo vremkf0dj the Leailter-stod^iiip made his appearance
ttsbered into the criminal's bar ander the custody of two eon-
stabien. The horn ceased, the people closed into the open
space ag^iD, and the silence soon became so deep that the
hard breathing of the prisoner was audible.
Natty was dressed in his buek-sktn garments, without hit
eoat, in place of which he wore only a shift of coarse limn-
ebeck, fattened at ^is throat by the sinew of a deer, leatiM
his red neck and weather-beaten face exposed and bare, fi
was the first time that he had CTor crossed the threshold of
a coart of justice, and curiosity seemed to be strongly blen-
ded with his personal feelings. He raised his eyes to the
bench, Ihence to the jury-boxes, I he bar, and the crowd
without, meeting CTcry where looks that were fastened ou
himself. After surveying his own person, aa if in search of
the cause of this unusual attraction, he once more tamed
his face around the assemblage, and then 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 whis-
pered in the ear of the prisoner, when Natty |^ave 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 the public prosecutor were discharged by
Pirck 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 bat-
tery 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 olfensive 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
ameb m *' pick a hole in that if you can."
niE PIONKfcKS. 831
i^Iatty listened to the charge against him with great atten-
tion, 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 sigL. All eyes
were turned to the prisoner, whose voice was vainly ex-
pected to break the stillness of the room.
"You have heard the presentment that the grand jury
have niade, Nathaniel Bumppo," said the Judge ; *' what do
you plead to the charge V
The old man dropped his head for a moment in a reflect-
ing attitude, and then raising it, be laughed again 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 Tm get-
ting old ; but I was out among the Scotch-lrisbers let 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,'* inter-
rupted Judge Temple, "instruct your client how to plead;
if not, the court shall 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 notguilty ?" 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 sig-
nilicantly on Hiram, who returned the look with a slight
movement of his eyebrows alone.
"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 backward
in the business." When he had done, and the District At-
'ri'ii65 declined putting any further interrogato-'va, Mr.
d24 TUB PIONEERS.
on his head again, he threw up the bar of his attie prison,
and said feelingly
** 1 must say tliis for you. Judge Temple, that the law
has not been so hard on me as i dreaded. I hope God
will bless yon for the kind things you hav 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, whe**
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 riUe. This was indeed a more seri-
ous chaige than an ordinary assault and battery, and a
corresponding degree of interest was manifested by the spec-
tators 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. 1 have fought as a soldier that
feared his Maker and his officer, but I never pulled a trigger
ors any but a warrior that was up and awake. No m.an
can suy that I ever struck even a Mingo in his blanket. I
b'lieve there's some who think there's no God in a wilder-
ness !"
" Attend to your plea, Bumppo," said the Judge. " Yoa
hear that you are accused of using your ritle against an offi-
cer of justice; are you guilty oi not guilty?"
By this time the irritated feelings of Natty had found a
vent; and he rested on the bar for a moment, in a musing
posture, when he lifted his face, with a silent laugh, and,
pointing to where the wood-chopper stood, he said
"Would Billy Kirby be standing there, d'ye think, if!
had used the rifle ?'*
TUB PIONEERS. 325
"Then you deny it," said Mr, Lippct; "you plead not
guilty r
"Sartam,** said Natty; " Billy knows that I never fir?d
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
necond 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 magistratCu
Mr. Lippet conducted an artful cross-examination of these
two witnesses, but, after consuming much time, was com-
pelled 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 affair, although he evidently aimed at the truth, until
Mr. Van der School addressed him, by asking some direct ,
questions
** It appears, from examining the papers, that you de-
manded 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 such a one as old
Leather-stocking."
"I understood j'ou 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 thoug^it 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
ended."
h Billy," said Natty, shaking his head, " 'twa& ^
2 B
326 THE PIONEERS.
lucky thought io me to throw out the hide, or there might
have been blood spilt ; and Fm sure, had it been youPo,
I should have mourned it sorely the little while I have to
stay."
*' Well, Leather-stocking," returned Billy, facing the pri-
soner with a freedom and familiarity that utterly disregarded
the presence of the court, *' as you are un the subject, it may
be that you've no "
" Go on with your examination, Mr. District Attorney."
That gentleman eyed the familiarity between his witi^ess
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 boro,
sir?"
'* Yarmount state ; 'tis a mountaynious place, but there's
a stifi' soil, and it's pretty much wooded with beech and
maple."
*' I have always heerd 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 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 exer-
cising her influence over the two ; but the Judge interposed
his authority by saying
" This is an improper place for such dialogues. Proceed
with your examination of this witness, Mr. Lippet, or I shall
order the next."
The attorney started, as if he were unconscious of any im
propriety, and continued
*' So you settled the matter with Natty amicably on thft
spot, did you?"
'' He gin me the skin, and I didn't want to quarrel witk
an old man ; for my part I see no such mighty matter Jn
shooting a buck !"
** And ycu parted friends ? and you would never hayo
THE I'lONEERS, 92|
thb.g;\if, of brinfi^ing; the business up before a court hadn"
you been subpoenaed V
**l don't think I should; he gi*n the skin, and I didn't
feel a hard thought, though Squire Doolittle got som
affronted."
'*I have done, sir," said Mr. Lippet, probably relying
on the charge of the Judge as he again seated him-
self, with the air of a man who felt that bis success was
certain.
When Mr. Van der School arose to adress the jury he com-
menced by saying
** Gentlemen of the jury, I should have interrupted the
leading questions put by the prisoner's counsel, (by lead-
ing questions I mean telling him what to say,) did I not feel
confident that the law of the land was superior to any ad-
vantages (I mean legal advantages) which he might obtain
by his art. The counsel forthe prisoner, gentlemen, has en--
deavoured 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 endan-
gered thereby. But let me claim your attention, while we
look over the particulars of this beinons offence.'' Here Mr*
Van der School favoured the jury with an abridgment ot
the testimony, recounted in such a manner as utterly to con-
fuse the faculties of his worthy listeners. After this exhi-
bition he closed as follows: *'and now, gentlemen, having
thus made plain to your senses the crime of which
this unfortunate mau has been guilty, (unfortunate both
on account of his ignorance and his guilt,) I shall
leave you to your own just 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 punish,
ing 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 counsci
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 constablr but was acting more wxd&x. ihA J^ssSkssB-
928 .na .'lONECRS.
ence of habit than by the instigations of 'malice, it will bo
your duty to judge him, but to do it with lenity."
As before, the jury did not leave their box, after a con-
sultation of some* Jittle time, their foreman arose and pro-
nounced their 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 bo
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 prepa-
ratory 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 go-
verned as much by the consideration of your ignorance of
the laws, as by the strict sense of the importance of punish-
ing 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 exhi-
bition 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 jail of this county for one calendermonlh ;
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
ijeather-stocking, eagerly ; " where should 1 get the money ;
you'll take a\Vay 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 jail 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 siy ag'in it," cried Nttv. grasping
rhc i'iune::rs. 32D
the h'AT on which bis fingers were working with a convulsed
motion. *' Where am I to get the money? Let me out inti
the woods and hills, where Tve been used to breathe tb
cfear air, and, though Fm threescore 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 bis da^s, 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, Marmakuke 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 Grod 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 a melancholy tone of voice, "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 even a jail to lodge in ; and didn't I give you
ray 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 thus I did, though I ha!
no reason to love you, for you bad 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 fin/
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 thatthe 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
hcm^ ^^cw p" 'tyds to another part of the room
2e3
330 THE PIONEKRS
Benjamin hi\jl succeeded in edging his way througb the
people, and was now seen balancing his short body, with
Sae foot in a window and the other on the railing of the
jury-box. To the amazement of the whole court, the stewanl
was evidently preparing to speak. After a good deal of
difficulty, he succeeded in drawing from his pocket a small
Mg, 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 beasb,
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 overbaoi
this small bit of an account, and take enough from the bag
to settle the same, he's welcome to hold 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 bjr the Sheriff who
struck his sword on the table, and cried
" Silence I*'
" There must be an end to this," said the Judge, strug-
gling to overcome his feelings. '* Constable, lead the pri-
soner to the stocks. Mr. Clerk, what stands next on the
calendar?
Natty seemed to yield to his destiny, for he sunk bis head
on his chest, and followed the officer froni 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 disgrace
followed
CHAPTER XXXIV.
*' Ha 1 ha ! look ! he wears cruel garters !"
XEAR.
The punishments of the common law were still known, at
the time of our tale, to the oeople of New-York ; and the
THX ^lOni&KS,^ 331
whipping- ppit, with its companion, the stocks, were not yet
supplanted by the more modern but doubtful expedients oi
the public prisons. Immediately in front of the jaiJ those
relics of the elder times were situated, as a lesson of pre*
cautionary justice to the evil-doers of the settlement.
Natty followed the constables to this spot, bowing bis
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 a 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 him-
self on the ground, and suffered his limbs to be laid in the
openings, without even a murmur ; though he cast one glance
about him, as if in quest of that sympathy that human
nature always seem to require under sull'ering. If he met
no direct manifestations of pity, neither did he see any
savage exultation expressed, nor 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 to be found 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 docs no harm, and it
only keeps a man by the heels for the small matter ot
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 1
tame bear, for the settlers to look on I Is it no harm to put
an old soldier, that has sarved through the war of 'fifty-six,
and seen the inimy in the 'seventy-six. business, into a place
like this, where the boys can point at him and I say, I have
known the time when he was a spictacle for the country!
Is it no harm to bring down the pride of an honest man to
be the equal of the beasts of the forest?"
^en^amin stared ^boqt hi^ i^ercply. and could he have
?83 THE PKPNFERS.
found a single face that expressed contomely, he would haw
been prompt to quarrel with its owner ; but meeting evciy
where with looks of sobriety, and occasionally of commisera-
tion, lie very deliberately seated himself by the side of the
hunter, and placing his legs in the two yacant holes of the
stocks, he said
** Now lower away, master constable, lower away, I itli
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."
" Bat IVe no orders to put you in the stocks, Mr. Pump,"
^dfied the'conslable ; " you must get up, and let me do mj
duty."
*' You've my orders, and what do you need better to med-
dle \i Ith my own feet ?. so lower away, will ye, and let
rne see the man that chooses to ooen his mouth with a grio
on it"
'* There can't be any harm in locking up a creater 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
assame the position he took, felt an inclination for merri-
nicnt, which few thought it worth their efibrts 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
efibrts were made in vain.
" Haik ye, master constable,'* he cried, "just clear away
your bilhocs for the small matter of a log-glass, will ye, and
let me show some of them there chaps who it is that they
are so merry about.'*
** No, no, you would go in, and you can't come out," re-
turned the officer, *' until the time has expired that the Judge
directed for the keeping of the prisoner."
Benjamin, finding that his threats and his straggles 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 contemptoousness ex-
pressed in his hard features, that showed he had substituted
disgust for rage. When the violence of the steward's feel-
ings had in some measure subsided, he turned to bis fellow-
suITerer, and, with a motive that might have vindicated a
vorse efiusion, he attempted the charitable office of conso
!atioa.
THE PIONEERS. S33
Taking it by and large, Master Bump-ho, 'tis bat a
gmall 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 drank 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 Tve seen many a man, for over-shooting
his reckoning, as I told ye, moored head and stam, where
he couldn't so much as heave his broadside round, and may-
hap a stopper clapt on his tongue too, in the shape of a
pump-bolt lashed athwart-ship his jaws, ^all the same as an
out-rigger along side 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
in vain, as he said
*'Ananr
'^'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 mustl)e all the same as nothing ;
thof, seeing that Fm a little short in my lower timbers,
they\e triced my heels up aloft in such a way as to give me
a bit of a slue. But what cares I, Master Bump-ho, if the
ship strains a little at her anchor ; its only for a dog-watch,
and dam'me but she'll sail with you then on that cruise after
.hem 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 th's 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
s:i!00th water. Wlien I find a friend, I sticks by him, d'ye
sec. Now, there's no better man a- going than Squire Dick-
ens, and 1 love him about the same as I loves Mistres
HolHster's new keo* of Jamaiky." The steward paused. ani .
S94 THE PIONEERS.
taminjr his nncouth visage on the hunter, he surveyed bim
with a rogaish leer of his eye, and gradually suffered the
muscles of his hard features to relax, until his face was if-
inminated by the display of his white teeth, when he drop-
ped his voice, and added " I say. Master Leather-stocking,
Ws fresher and livelier than any Hollands, you'll get in
Oarnsey. But we'll send a hand over and ask the woman
for a taste, for Vm so jamVd in these here bilboes, that I
be^n to want sum'mat to lighten my upper works/'
"Natty sighed, and gazed about him on the crowd, that
already began to disperse, and which had now diminished
greatly, as its members scattered in their various pursuits.
He looked wistful!^ 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
lippToaehed the stocks. The magistrate passed by the end
wllhere 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 embar-
rassment 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 scarcity 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
^arth is dreadfully parched. To my judgment, there'll be
short crops this season, if the rain doos'n't fall quitespeedily.''
The air with which Mr. Doolittle delivered this propheti-
cal 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
barst out into a warm dow of indignation.
THE PIONEERS 885
'Whysbou]d the raia fall from the clouds" he cried^
when you force the tears from the eyes of the old, the sick,
and the poor ! Away wiih ye away with yo ! you may be
formed with the image of the Maker, but Satan dwells in
^our 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 of his guard by
the invectives of the hunter, unluckly trusted his person
within the 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 exercise the strength he did really possess
Benjamin wanted neither proportions nor manhood in his
bead, shoulders, and arms, though ail 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 their positions were
a great disadvantage to his antagonist, without at all dis-
composing the steward, 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 Doobut-little,'^
roared the steward ** some such matter as a ship's cousin,
sir. I know you, 1 do, with your fair-weather speeches to
Squire Dickens, to his face, and then you go and sarve mit
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 tile 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. Penguillium, 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 equivocal demonstra-
tions towards hostility; ''so mind yourself! square your-
self, I say ! do you smell this here bit of a sledge-hammer 1*^
*' Lay hands on me if you dare 1" exclaimed HiraUi^ fl
well as he could under the grasp which the steward held ;ai
his throttift " lay hands on me if you darel"
iw
836 THE PIONf^ERS.
** If ye call this layins:, master, you are welcome to the
egjcs,*' roared the steward.
It becomes our disagreeable duty to record here that the
acts of Benjamin now became perfectly unequivocal ; 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 ran to the court-
room to g;ive 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 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 con-
siderate arrangement he found means, however, to hammer
the visage. of Hiram out of all shape by the time that
Richard succeeded in forcing his way through the throng
to the point of combat. The Sheriff afterwards declared
that, independent of his mortification as preserver of the
Seace of the county, at this interruption of its harmony,
e was never so grieved in his life, as when he saw this
breach : of unity between his favourites. Hiram had in
softie degree become necessary to his vanity, and Benja-
min, strange as it may appear, he really loved. This
attach n^ent was exhibited in the first words that he uttered.
" Squire Doolittle ! Squire Doolittle I 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 Benja-
min 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 meditator. 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. She-
riff, to seize this man, and I demand that you take his body
nto custody."
By this time Bichard was master of the true state of the
case, and turning to the steward, he cried
*^ Benjamin, how came you in the stocks ? I alwayf
thought you were as mild and docile as a lamb. It was
THE PlONiiEllS. 337
for j^our docility thai I most esteemed you. Benjamin ! Ben-
jamin! you have nut only disgraced yourself, but your friends,
by this shameless conduct. Bless me ! bless me ! Mr. Doo-
little, he seems to have knocked your face all of one side.''
Hiram bj this time had got on his feet again, and witL-
out the reach of the steward, when he broke forth in vio-
lent appeals for vengeance. The ofi'ence 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 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 jail, 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 a 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-oucside, as you call it,
I'll maintain it's ag'in reason and Christianity. If there's
a blood-sucker in this 'ere country, 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 mighiy harm. Squire, that you take it so much to heart?
It*s all the same as any other battle, d'ye see, sir, being fair
broadside to broadside, only that it was font at anchor, which
was what we did at Port Pray a roads, when SufTring cam
in among us and a suffering 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 dif
ferent people, through the iron gratings, during the aftc
noon ; but his companion paced their narrow limits, in
his moccasins, with quick, impatient treads, his face hang-
ing on his breast in dejection, or when lifted, at moments,
to the idlers at the window, lighted, perhaps, for an in-
stant, with the childish aspect of aged forgetfulness, which
would vanish directly in an expression of deep and obvious
anxietv '
J5$ THE PIONKERS.
At the close of the day, Edwaids was seen at the wib*
dow, in close and earnest diaIo;:uc with his frientl ; and
after he departed, it was thought that he had communicated
words of comfort to the hunter, who threw himself od his
pallet, and was soon in a deep sleep. The curious spectators
had exhausted the conversation of the steward, who had
drunk good fellowship with half his acquaintance, and as
Natty was no longer in motion, hy eight o'clock, Billy Kirhy,
who was the last lounger at the window, retired into the
* Templeton Coffee-house," when Natty rose and hung a
blanket before the ooening, and the prisoners apparently
retired for the night
CHAPTER XXXV.
I ''And to avoid the foes pursoit,
With sparring put their cattle to't
And till all Toar were out of wiod,
And danger too, ne'er look'd behind.
HDDIBRAS*
4s the shades of the evening approached, the jurors, wit-
nesses and other attendants on the court, began fo di^
perse 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 liousia
Grant, walked slowly down the avenue, under the slight
shadows of the young poplars, holding the following dis*-
course :
"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 re-
pected,**
* Surely, sir," cried the impatient Elizabeth, " those
jws that condemn a man like tne Leather- stocking to so
jevere a punishment, for an offence that even I must tdink
very venial, cannot be perfect in themselves."
** Thou talkest of what thou dost not understand, Eliza-
oeth," returned her father. ** Society cannot exist without
wholesome restraints. Those restraints cannot be inflicted
without security and respect to th'j persons of those who
administer them ; and ii would sound ill indeed to report
that a judge had extended favour to a convicted criminalt
because he had saved the life of his child "
THE PI0MEBR8. ^30
I gee ^Isee the difficulty of your situation, deai sir,"
cried the daughter ; *' but in appreciating the offence of
fioor 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/' inter-
rupted Miss Temple, with a logic that contained more feel*
ing than reason ; " I know Natty to be innocent, and, think-
ing so, I must think all wrong who oppress him."
" His judge among the number ! thy father, Elizabeth P"
'* 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 Ihy
heart Hes too near thy head. But listen : in this pocket -book
are two hundred dollars. 60 to the prison there are none
in this place to harm thee give this note to the sailor, and
when thou seest Bomppo, 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 dis-
cernible by the dim light, lounging by their side, with a
listless air, as if equally fatigued with his beasts, by the
toil of the day. At the corner, where the jarl 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
f iven a lock uf hay, which they had carried on their necks^
oM a reward for their patient labour. The whole of this wa
M natural, and so common^ that Elizabeth saw notbiny !
^lO THE PIONEERS.
induce a second glance at the team, until she heard the
teamster speakinp: 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 anew country arc familiar; but there was
something in the voice also, that startled Miss Temple. Oo
turning the corner, she necessaiily approached near to the
man, and her searching look was enabled to detect the per-
son of Oliver Edwards, concealed under the coarse garb of
a teamster. Their eyes met at the same instant, and, not^
withstanding the gloom, and the enveloping cloak of Eliza-
beth, the recognition was mutual.
" Miss Temple!" **Mr. Edwards!" were exclaimed
simultaneously, though a feeling that seemed common to
them both rendered their tones nearly inaudible.
** Is it possible !" exclaimed Edwards, after the moment
of doubt had passed ; **do I see you so nigh the jail ! bat
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 jail, 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 pre-
cede you ten minutes. Good night, sir; I I am quite
soiry, Mr. Edwards, to see you reduced to such labour; 1
am sure my father would '
'^I shall wait your pleasure, madam," interrupted the
youth, t;oldly. *May I beg that you will not mention luy
being here V
'^Certainly, sir," said Elizabeth, returning his bow by
a slight inclination of her head, and urging the tardy Louisa
forward. As they entered the jailer'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 \\ill 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 transient as a gleam of flitting light, and was
blended with an expression of deep and heart-felt pity.
She did not reply, however, and the appearance of the iaUei
THE PIOKEEAf. 341
soon recalled the thoughts of both to the immediate object of
their visit.
The rescue of the ladies, and their consequent interest
in his prisoner, together with the informal manners tha
prevailed in .the country, all united to prevent any surprise,
on the part of the jailer, 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 he
way without hesitation to the apartment that held the priso-
ners. The instant the key was put into the lock, the hoarse
voice of Benjamin was heard demanding^
" Yo ! hoy I who comes there V*
*^ Some visitors that you'll be glad to see," returned
the jailer, ** 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 a banyan with me soon, see-
ing 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 yeP 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 tkt 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 fa^
vourite 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 thinjr
to destroy the balance of the old tar by the effects of liquor,
for, as he expressed it himself, '' he was too low-rigged not
to carry sail in all weathers;" but he was precisely in
that condition which is so expressively termed '* muddy."
When be perceived who the visitors were, h6 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 jailer, ** 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 heeb
2f3
342 THE PIONEERS.
and I wants no more of them. Where's the harm of do*
ing all the same as yoarscif ? Leave that there door
free outboard, and you'll find no locking inboard, I'll pro-
mise ye.*'
'* I mast shut up for the night at nine/' said the jailer,
''and it*s now forty-two minutes past eight." He placed
the little candle he carried on a rough pine table, and with-
drew.
" Leather-stocking !" said Eiizabetli, when the key of the
door was turned on theiu again, "my good friend Leather-
stocking ! I have come on a message of gratitude to yoo.
Had you submitted to the search, worthy old man, the deatii
of the deer would have been a trifle, and all would have been
well"
** Submit to the sarch !*' interrupted Natty, raising his
fabe from resting on his knees, without rising f^iom the cor-
ner where he had seated himself; *' d'ye think, gal, 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
pot-ashcry in the mountains."
The old man dropped his face again on one hand, and
seemed to be lost in a melancholy musing.
"The hut can be rebuilt, and made better than before,"
returned Miss Temple; ''and it shall be my ofDce to see it
done, when your imprisonment is ended."
"Can 3e raise the dead, child?" said Natty, in a sorrow-
ful 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 years 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 pre-
cious of God's cr^aters. 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 bettei than the ottier listeners; for, while Louisa
stood innocently by her side, commiserating the griefs of
the hunter, the heiress bent her head aside, so as to conceal
her features from the dim light, by her dark tresses. The
action and the feeling that caused it lasted but a moment,
when she faced the party, and continued
'* Otiicr logs, and better, though, can be had^ and shall bo
THE PIONF.HRS. 343
found for you, Jiy old defender. Your confinement will soou
be over, and, before that tioic arrives, I shall have a hous(t
prepared for you, where you may spend the close of your
liarinless life in ease and plenty."
** Ease and plenty ! house ! '* repeated Natty, slowly.
" You mean well, gal, you mean well, and 1 quite mourn
that it cannot be ; but he has seen me a sight and & laugh-
ing. 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 jib-boom for an hour, d'ye 5ce,
and what's it the worse for't, ha! canst tell me, what's it
the worse r, ha ?"
** I believe you forget, Mr. Pump, in whose presence you
sit with so much composure," said Elizabeth.
** Forget you, Miss 'Lizzy," returned the steward ; "if I
do, dara'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 otoniy
with another man's jacket on. Now, for the skin of her
face, it's ail the same as a new top-sail with a taught bolt-
rope, being snug at the leaches, but all in a bight about the
inner cloths."
" Peace I comm^pd you to be silent sir !" said Eliza-
beth.
*' 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 shah be my care to see that you
pass the rest of your days in ease and plenty."
'* Ease and plenty I" bgain repeated the Leather-stocking
" what ease can there be to an old man, who mu:it 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
(vhere you may hunt a day, and not start a buck, or see any
thing bigger than a mink, or maybe a stray fox ! Ah 1 J
shall have a hard time after them very beavers, for this
fine. 1 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 clear-
ings have druY the knowing things out of the country ;
atid instead of beaver-dams, which is the nater of the
|4 THE PIONCns.
uiiiiAhl, and according to ProyideneCy jovl turn back tlie
waters over the low grounds with yonr mill-dams, as if 'twai
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
jail."
'* Well, say the word, and then heave a-head, shipmntei''
said Benjamin.
** You won't betray us, gai J** said Natty, looking up simply
into the face of Elizabeth-r-'* 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 dol-
lars, 1*11 take the season through, but it shai^ ! t forthcoming ;
and this good man will help me."
'* You catch them," said Benjamin, with a sweeping ^cs*
tarif of his arm, '^ and if they get L^9.y again, call me a slink,
w^ all."
If ut what mean yoii*:*' tr.^d the wondering Blizabeth.
'* Here you must stay for thirty days ; but I have the mont*y
for your fine in this purse. Take it; pay it in the morn-
ing, and summon patience for your month. I will come
often to see you, with my friend ; we will make up vour
clothes with our own hands ; indeed, indeed, you shall bo
comfortable."
'* Would ye, children ?" said Natty, advancing across the
floor witti an air of kindness, and taking the hand of Eliza-
beth ; '* would you be so kearfbl of an old man, and just ior
shooting the beast which cost him nothing! Such things
doesn't run in the blood, I believe, for you seem not to for-
get 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
asn'tgot past hearing, he shall hear it and know it, that ho
may see, like me, there is some who know how to remember
a kindness."
''Tell him nothing," cried Elizabeth, earnestly; *'ifyou
love me, if yon regard my feelings, tell him nothing. It is
of 3 ourself only I would talk, and tor yourself only I act.
I gricvt;, Lcather*8tookiiip, that the law requires that you
THB PIONEERS. 345
* sbould be detained here so long ; but, after all, it will be
' only a short month, and "
^ ** A month!" exclaimed Natty, opening his mouth with
V his usual laugh ; *' not a day, nor a night, nor an hour, gal.
' Jud^c 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 Fruutiuac; 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 '*
** 0f ! 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," conti-
nued 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 catched here, gal ?"
** 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 wag
killed, who had a dozen of the shining things sewed up in
his shirt. 1 didn't handle them myself, but I seen them cut
out with my own eyes j they was bigger and brighter than
them be."
** These are English guineas, and are yours," said Eliza-
beth ; ** an earnest of what shall be done for you."
*' Me ! why shonld you give me this treasure ?" said Natty,
looking earn^^,* ' at the maiden.
"Why ! ^'* - -' r not saved my life? did you not rescue
^40 THE WONEEHS,
me from the jaws of the beast?" exclaimed Elizabeth,
veiling her eyes, as if to hide some hideous object from hm
view.
The hunter took the money, and continued turning it !b
his hand fur some time, piece by piece, talking aloud daring
the operation.
** There's a rifle, they say, out on the Cherry Valley thai
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 sartainty is, great shooting! Well, well I'm old, and
the gun 1 have will answer my time. Here, child, take baok
your gold. But the hour has come ; I hear him tcilking to
the cattle, and I must be going. You won't tell of us, gal-^
you won't tell of us, will ye V*
*' Tell of you !" echoed Elizabeth, ** But take the money,
old man ; take the money, even if you go into the moun-
tains.'^
"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, gal ? 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
^ou, 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
once."
" 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 tenmster.
" Oome, 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
THE PI0KEBR8. 347
tbat yovL escaped in the presence of the daughter of Judge
Temple. Return, Leather-stocking, and let us retire hefore
you execute your plan/'
Natty AK^as about to reply, when the approaching footsteps
of the jailor announced the necessity of his immediate re-
turn. He had barely time to regain his feet, and to conceal
the hole with the bed-clothes, across which Bcrjamin 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 jailor
it's the usooal hour for locking up."
''I follow you, sir/' returned Elizabeth. ''Good night,"
Leather-stocking.*'
'' It's a fine grain, gal, 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 jailor retired to his dungeons, and the ladies walked,
with throbbing hearts, towards the corner.
*' Now the Leather-stocking refuses the money/' whis-
pered Louisa, '' it can all be given to Mr. Edwards, and that
added to"
' Linen!" 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 jail, exclaiming foi his
prisoners. ^
" What is to be done now ?" said Edwards" this drunken
fellow will cause our detection, and we have not a moment
o spare."
'' Who's drunk, ye lubber !'' mattered the steward.
848 THE PIONEERS.
" A break-jail ! a break-jail !*' shouted &ye or six voic#s
from within.
" Wc must leave him/' said Edwards.
"'Twouldn't be kind, lad/' returned Natty; "he took
half the disgrace of the stocks on himself, today, and tbe
creator 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, moonshiny night. Come, who's for home?
Hark ! what a rumpus they're kicking up in the jail 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 Elizabetli moved close to him, and said
rapidly, in a low voice
" Lay him in the cart, and start the oxeu; no one will
look there/'
" By heaven, 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 hsiy, and bid 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 Mas
completed, Edwards and the hunter stole along the bouses
for a slort distance, when they disappeared through an
opening that led into the rear of the buildings. The oxen
were in brisk motion, nnd presently the cries of pursuit were
beard 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 Kirhy
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, with 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 months, for not only
the jail, 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 thfl
THE nONEBlU. 349
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 the 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."
"FiyI lly!" cried Elizabeth ' the village is alarmed.
Do not be found conversing with me at such a mament, 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
It"
" If what V 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 for you to land from it where
you pleased 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 heiress, 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 an^munition."
** 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 lost sight of the retreating
figures, when they immediately entered the Mansion-house.
While this scene was passing in the walk, Kirby had over-
taken the cart, which was his own, and bad been driven by
Edwards without asking the owner, from the place where
the patient oxen usually stood at evening, waiting tin)
pleasure of their master.
* Woa come hither. Golden," he cried ;" " why, how
come yon oft' the end of the bridge, where I left you,
dummies V*
' Heave ahead," muttered Benjamin, giving a random
({low with his lash, that alighted on the shoulder of the
other.
20
960 THB I0MBR8
^'^ Who the devil be yon V cried Biiiy, torniiag rband fai
surprise, bat unable to distinguish, in the dark, the hard
visage that was just peering over the cart-rails.
*' Who be 1 1 why I'm helmsman aboard of (his here craft,
d'ye see, and a straight wake I'm making of it. Ay ! ay !
Tve 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 I"
" Ay, my cart and oxen.'*
** Why, you must know. Master Kirby, that the Leather-
stocking and I that's Benny Pump you knows Ben ?-t-
well, Benny and I no, me and Benny ; dam-me if I know
bow '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 with
himself, when he took the goad from Benjamin, (who tcli
back on the hay, and was soon asleep,) and drove his eattle
down the street, over the bridge, and up the mountain,
towards a clearing in which he Mas 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 ; bat, at
the end of that time, the last party returned, wearied and
disappointed, and the village became again still as when she
isiaed from t^e gate on her mission to the jail.
CHAPTER XXXVL
** * 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.'
GERTRUDE OF WYOMINa
ir was yet early on the following morning, when ElioalMlk
and Louisa met by appointment/ and proceeded to. the store
of Monsieur Le Quoi, in order to redeem the pledge that
the former had given to the Leather-stocking. The people
were again assembling for the businesr4 of the day, but the
hour was too suon for a crowd, and the ladies found the
place in possession only of its polite owner, Billy Kirby,
one female customer, and the boy who did the duty off
helper or clerk.
Monsieur Le Quoi was perusing a packet of letters with
manifest delight, while the wood-chopper, with one hand
thrust into his bosom, and the other in the folds of his
jacket, holding an axe under his right arm, stood sympa-
thizing in the Frenchman's pleasure with a 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 in-
telligence. 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 chore France ! I vill see yon
aga'n.*'
'* I rejoice, Monsieur, at any thing that contribntes to yovr
happiness,*' cried Elizabeth, *'but must hope tfe are not
going to lose you entirely.*'
** Ah I Ma*mselle Tempi*, vat honneur I feel to me ; mais
I*ave lettair, dat mak-a mon coeur sautez de joie. Ah I
Ma*mselle Tempi', if you *ave pere, *ave mere, *ave leetl'
Jean-tone, vy you don't 'and de ladi a pins, eh ! if you ave
amis beeg and leetl' you voud be glad to go back. Attendee
vous, Ma'mselle, si vous plais : je vous lirai. * A Mon-
sieur Le Quoi, de Mersereau a Templetone, Noo Yorck,
les Etats Unis d'Amerique. Tres cher ami. Je suis
ravis"
'^ I apprehend that my French is not equal to your letter,
Monsieur,'* said Elizabeth, glanoing her eye expressively at
her companion ; ^* WiH you favour us with its substance in
English P"
** Oh ! pardonnez moi- I 'ave been so long from Paris
dat I do forget de a a a pronunshasshong. You will
'ave consideration pour moi, and will excusez my read in
France," returned the polite Gaul, bowing with deep
humility, as if lamenting his ignorance of his own lan-
guage; ^'mais I shall tell ou en bon Anglois. I *ave
offeece a Paris, in Bureau, dans le temps du bon Louis ; I
fly ; run avay to sav-a my 'ead. I 'ave in Martinique von
leetl' plaBlatlon pour OGre**^h ! ha ! vat you call in dis
852 THE PIONEERS.
country ah! Iia ! ^IVIou&icar Beel, vat you call do plaee
vcre you vork-a ! oh .'"
** Clearing said the wood-chopper, with a Irmd nod.
"No, no, clear vera you burn amy troat, eh V*
Billy hitched up his shoulder, and turned his eyes
askance at the ladies, with a broad grin on his face, as he
answered
*' I guess 'tis a sugar-bush tnat the Mounsheer means ;
but you musn't take that to heart man ; '* His the law of
the woods."
** Ah ! coquin, I pardonne you,'' returned the Frenchman,
placing his hand involuntarily on his throat "diable de
law should bealtair. Mais, 1 'avesucrc-boosh in Martinique :
I fly dare too ; I come ici ; votre pere help- a me ^T grow
reech ; vais I grow reech ; mais I 'avc not France! L*As-
sembl6e Nationale pass von edict''
** What's that?'' interrupted-Billy, who was endeavouring
with much interest to comprehend the story.
" Eh ! vat dat ? vy vat you call ven de Assemblee d' Alban*
mak-a de law V
" That's an act of the Legyslatoore," said Kirby with the
readiness of an American on such a subject.
* Veil ! dis vas act of Legyslatoore, to restorer my land ;
my charactair; my sucre-boosh ; and ina country. Ah!
Ma'mselle TempV je suis enchant^e! mais I 'ave grief to
leav-a you ; oh ! yais ! 1 'ave grief ver mooch,"
The amount of all this was that Mr. Le Quoi, who had
fled from his own native 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 French,
man who had sunk into the character of a country shop-
keeper, 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 re-
petitions 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 pri-
vate interview with the heiress, with a gravity in his air that
announced the importance of the subject. After conceding
/li'0 /a voar and appointing a more favourable time for this.
THE PIONEERS. 363
nteetin^, EHcabetb succeeded in getting out of the store,
into wliicb the countrymen now began to enter^ as usual when
they met with the sanle attention and bicnseancc as
formerly.
Elizabeth and Louisa pursued their walk as far as the
bridge in profound silence, but, when tbey reached that
place the latter stopped, and appeared anxious to utter some-
thing that her feelings suppressed.
'* Are you ill Lousili f exclaimed Miss Temple ; " had we
not better return, and seek another opportunity to meet the
old man V
* Not ill but terrified. Oh f 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 Elisabeth, who
although she experienced no idle apprehensions of a dan-
ger that no longer existed, felt most sensitively all the
delicacies of maiden modesty. She stood for some time,
deeply reflecting within herself, the colour gradually
gathering over her features at her own thoughts ; but as if
sensible that it was a time for action instead of reflection,
she struggled to shake of her hesitation^ and replied
firmly
'* Well then it must be done by me, and alone. There
is no other than yourself to be trusted, or poor old Leather-
stocking will be dbcovered, 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. Lousia if if You Will wait for me, dear
girl?"
** A year in sight of the village, Miss Temple," returned
the agitated Loasia, " but do not, do not, ask me to go on
that hill."
Elizabeth found that ber companion was really unable
to proceed, and they completed tneir arrangement by post-
ing L( uisa out of the observation of the people who occa-
sionally passed, but nigh to 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 tne time neces-
sary for reaching the summit, would prevent her being
piuictual to the appointmen\ Whenever she passed an
opininp: in the bushes, she would pause for breath, or, vei'
l:\ys, (innvn frOiii her pursuits by the picture at her feet,
would linger a moment to gaze at the beauties of th^valU^*
203
T(fe. PIONEERS.
The lo\ig drought had however, changed its coat of verdore
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 thin^ was
possible. The blue sky was scarcely to be seen, though now
and than there was a faint lighting up in spots, through which
masses of rolling vapour could te 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 ihe time she
reached the point where the course led her from the high-
way she experienced a sensation like suffocation. But, dis-
regarding her feelings, the heiress hastened to execute her
mission, dwelling in her thoughts on nothing but the disap-
pointment, and even the helplessness, the hunter would ex-
perience 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. It was at this point that 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 im-
pediments of a forest in a state of nature would admit.
Numberless were the fragments of rocks, trunks of fallen
trees, and branches, that she had to contend against; but
every difficulty vanished before her resolution, and, by her
own watch, she stood on the desired spot several minutes
before the appointed hoar.
After resting a moment on the end of a log. Miss Temple
cast a scrutinizing glance about her in quest of her old
friend, but he was evidently not in the clearing ; when she
arose and walked round 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, hut her thoughts, 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,
ia every direction ; but no answer was given, excepting the
reverberations of her own clear tones, as They were echoed
in the parched forest.
THE PIONEERS d6i
While calling, Elizabeth graduall]^ 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. Miss Temple
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.
On the trunk of a fallen oak Mohegan was seated, with
his tawny visage turned towards her, and his glaring eyes
fixed on her face with an expression of wildness and fire,
that would have terrified a lesa 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 Elizaoeth well knew he
only produced on great and solemn occasions. But the
whole appearance of the aged chief was more studied than
common, and was in some particulars terrific. The long
black hair was plaited on his head, falling either way so
as to expose bis bigh forehead and piercing eyes, without
their usual shading. In the enormous incisions of bis ears
were entwined ornaments of silver, beads, and porcupine's
quills, mingled in a rude taste, and after the Indian fasnions.
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 either cheek, with
such variations in the lines as caprice or custom suggested.
H is 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 P*' said Elizabeth,
iis pbe approached him ; " you have long been a stranger
') he village. You promised me a willow basket, and I
3dU tHS PIOMBBBB*
have had a shirt of calico in readineti for yo this mOBto
pat."
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 bo
hirt."
** But if he should, he will know where to come lor 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 nis 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 Min-
goes but he made no baskets."
** Those times have gone by, old warrior," returned Eli-
zabeth ; " 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 yet young, when his tribe gave
away the country, in council, from where the blue moun-
tain stands above the water, to where, the Susquebanoah 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, ani 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 Qod ? He has seen his English and his American
Fathers burying their tomahawks in each other's brains
THE PIONEERS. 357
for this very land. Did they fear God, and live in peace
He has seen the land pass away from the Fire-eater, and
Lis children, and the child of nis child, and a new chief
set over the country. Did they live in peace who did this?
did Lhey fear God ?"
'* Such is the custom of the whites, John. Do not the
Dchiwates light, and trade their land for povidcr, and blan-
kets, and merchandise V*
The Indian turned his dark eyes 'on the heiress, and kept
them there, with a scrutiny that alarme 1 her a little, as he
replied, in a louder and more animated voice
*' Where are the blnnkets and merchandise tBat bought
the right of the Fire-eater? are they with him in his wig-
wam? did they say to him. Brother, sell us your land, and
take tills gold, this silver, these blankets, these ritles, or even
this rum, fur it? No ; they tore it from him, as a bcalp is
torn I'rom 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. **lf you knew our laws and customs better, you
would judge diflerently of oui yts. Do not believe evil of
my fiither, old Mobegan, for h '^ 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 Jived 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 reflec-
tion ; but, after struggling a moment with her shame, she
/aughed, as if unwilling to understand him seriously, and
replied in atone of pleasantry
'* Not to make me the mistress of his secret. He is too
much of a Delaware to tell his secret thoughts to a woulqui^'
M^ THE PIONEERS.
c
Daughter, the Great Spirit made your father with a
white skin, aod he made mine with a red ; but he coloured
both their hearts with blood. When 30ung, 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 railed his hand with three
fingers elevated ** and she had daughters that would haYe
made the young Delawares hrappy. 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 melan-
choly of 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 ; but 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 re-
collections, but there was a dignity in his sorrow, and in his
fortitude, that repressed her efforts to speak again for some
time. After a long pause, however, she renewed the dis-
course, by asking
''Where is the Leather stocking, John P this canister of
powder I have brought at his request ; but he is nowhere
to be seen. Will you take charge of it, and see it de-
Uvcf ed r
The Indian raised his head slowly, and ooiced earnestly
at the gift of the heiress, which she put in 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 bills, and all
his family will be dead." The aged warrior stretched his
body forward, leaning his 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 respira-
tion. The eye of Mohegan changed gradually from its sor-
rowfal expression to a look of wildness, that might be sup-
posed to iharder on the wpiia\^ii ol ^ ^loi^tket^ aa he eo-
THIS PlpNEEHS. ^0
tioucd " 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 over come.
Tha chase shall be for children, and all ju:$t 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
forefathers.''
" Fathers ! sonsl" said Mohegan with firmness^^' ail 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 secret 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 re-
called his recollection to the earth, and, taking her hand, he
drew Miss Temple to a seat beside him, and pointed to the
country beneath them, before he answered
''See, daughter," he said, direciiag her looks towards
the north ; " ^ far as your young eyes can see, was the land
of his"
But immense volumes of smoke at that moment rolled
over their headp, and, whirling in the eddies formed by the
mountains, interposed a barrier to their sight, while he was
speaking. Startled by this 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 furious winds.
" What means it, John?" she exclaimed; ''we are en-
veloped in smoke, and 1 feel a heat like the glow of a fur-
nace."
Before the Indian could reply, a voice was heard, crying
in the woods, with a painful anxiety
" John I where are you, old Mohegan ! the woods are
on fire, and you have but a few minutes for escape."
The chief pat his hand before his mouth, and making it
play on his lips, produced the kind of noise that had at-*
tracted Elizabeth to the place, when a quick and hurried
step was heard dashing through the dried nndeibrush and
bushes, and presently Edwards rushed to bis side, with hor-
ror painted in every feature.
950 THE PIONEERS.
CHAPTER XXXVTI.
LoTe roles the court, the camp, the gnrt*
8C0TT.
'* It would have been sad, indeed, to lose you in such a man-
ner, 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,
for now is the time 'of need."
Mohegan pointed towards Elizabeth, who, forgetting her
danger, had shrunk back to a projection of the rock', so soon
as she recognised the sounds of Edward's voice, and said
with something like awakened animation
" Save her leave John to die."
^' Her ! whom mean you V cried the youth, turning quickly
to the place the other indicated*, but when he saw the figure
of Elizabeth, bending toward him in an attitude that power-
fully spoke her terror, blended with her reluctance to meet
him in such a place, the shock for a moment 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. Ed-
wards,'* she replied, endeavouring to speak calmly, and
rallying her thoughts for the emergency. " There is smoke,,
but still no fire to harm us. Let us endeavour to retire."
" Take my arm," said Edwards ; " there must be an open-
ing in some direction for your retreat. Are you equal to the
effort r
"Certainly. You surely magnify the danger, Mr. Ed-
wards. Lead me out the way you came.'*
** I will I will," cried the youth, with a kind of hyste-
rical utterance. " No, no there is no danger I have
alarmed you unnecessarily."
** But shall we leave the Indian can we leave him here,
18 he says to die ?',
An expression of painful emotion crossed the face of the
young man, who stopped, and cast a longing look at Mo-
hegan ; but, dragging his companion after him, even against
her will, he pursued his way, with enormous strides, to-
ward the pass by which he had just entered ^the circle af
flame.
THE PIONEERS. 5^
** Do not regard him/* he said, in those horrid tones that
denote a desperate calmness ; '* He is used to the woods, and
such scenes ; 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 Eliza-
beth, 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 P an Indian cannot burn ; the idea is ridiculous. Hasten,
bastpu. Miss Temple, or the smoke may incommode you."
** Edwards ! youi look, your eye terrifies me ! tell me
the danger ; is it greater than it seems ? 1 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 lorced com-
posure. " Fly ! the struggle is for your life?"
The place of the interview between Miss Temple and
the Indian has been already described as one of those plat-
forms of rock, which form a sort of terrace in the moun-
tains 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 mouhtain, 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 toward the same
place that he urged Elizabeth to a desperate exertion of her
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 oy the
yonngman,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,
eeming to light into combustion every stick and shrub
on which they breathed. The sight aroused them both to
redoubled efforts ; hut unfortunately, there was a collection
of the tops of trees, old and dried, which lay directly acres.
their coarse ; and, at the very moment when both hac
thought their safety ensured, an eddying of the warm cur-
rants 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
2 a
902 THE nONEKRS.
path. They recoiled from the heai, and stood on the point
of the rock, gazing in a sort of stapor at the flaraes, which
were spreading rapidly on the mountain, whose side soob
became a sheet of living fire. It was dangerous for one
clad in the light and airy dress of Elizabeth to approacii
even to the vicinity of the raging element ; and those
flowing robes, that gave such softness and grace to bet
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 Ihdr
usage to take only the bodies of the trees, leaYing the tops
and branches to decay under the operations of the weather.
Much of the hill was, consequently, covered with such light
fuel for the flames, which, having been scorching under
the sun for the last two months, ignited with a touch.
Itideed in some cases, there did not appear to be any con-
tact between the firr and these piles, but the flames seenicif
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
Elizabeth and the youth stood viewing the progress of
the desolation^ with a strange mixture of horror and in-
terest. Edwards, however, shortly roused himself to new
exertions, and drawing his companion after him, they
skirted the edge of the smoke, the young man penetra-
ting 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 ter-
race, until, arriving at the verge of the precipice, opposite
to the point where Edwards had ascended, the horrid con-
viction 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, hope nad in-
vigorated them with her secret influence ; but when retreat
seemed to ]je absolutely impracticable, the horror of their
situation broke upon Elizabeth as powerfully as if she had
hitherto considered the danger nothing.
** This mountain is doomed to be fatal to me !** she whis-
pered, rather than uttered aloud; ** we shall find our
graves on it !"
' Say not so, Miss Temple ; there is yet hope,'* leturned
Ihe youth, in the same tone, while the vacant, horrid ex-
pression of his eye contradicted his words ; ** let us return
to the point of the rock ; there is, there must be, some place
'^*^ ut it where we can descend*'*
-THE PIOVBBBi. mt
"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 into every fissure in the crags, in quest
01 some opening that might offer the facilities of flight.
But the smooth, even surface of the rocks afforded hardly a
resting place for a foot, much less those continued pro-
jections which w^ald 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,'* lie said in a hollow
accent, " but to lower you from this place to the rock be-
neath. If Natty were here, or even that Indian could be
roused, their ingenuity and long practice would easily de-
vise methods by which 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 shall become of you V said Elizabeth. " In-
deed, indeed, neither you nor John must be the sacrifice to
iny safety."
He heard her not, for he was already by the side of Mo-
hegan, 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 ot lightning;
bat 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 I it destroys the very earth before it !''
Had the flames spread on the 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 swept off the victims, who were suffering
doubly under the anticipations of their approaching fate.
But tho peculiarity of their situation afforded Elizabeth ant/
304 THE noiiEEIt.
her companioo the respite, of whicb thej availed them-
selves to make the efforts we haTe recorded.
The thin covering of earth over the rock on which thef
Ktood supported bat a scant j and faded herba^. and moit
of the trees that had found root in the fissores had alrcadjf
died, during: the intense heats of preceding sammeia. Those
which still retained the appearance of life, bore a few dij
and withered leaves, that were drained of thoirnoorisiiHieBt;
while the others were merely the wrecks of pines, oaks astf
maples. No better materials to feed the fire coold be Ibod,
had there been a communication with the flames; but tkc
ground was destitute of the leaves and boughs that led the
destructive clement like a torrent over the remainder of the
hill. As auxiliarly to this scarcity of fuel, there was oseoif
the large springs which abound in that coontry, g^oshia;
out of the side of the ascent above, which, after creefia^
sluggishly along the level land, saturating the mossy coveiiig
of the rock with moisture, swept round the base of the lit-
tle cone that formed the pinnacle of the mountain, and, es*
entering the canopy of smoke near one of the terminations
of the terrace, found its way to the lake, not by dashiiq^
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, when it exhibited a mimic torrent, overflowing the
ground for some distance ; but in the droughts of snmmer, 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 impatiently
waiting the operations of a battering train, to open its way
to death and desolation.
That fatal moment seemed now to have arrived : for the
hissing streams of the spring appeared to be nearly ex-
hausted, and the moss of the rocks was already curling
under the intense heat that was thrown across the little spot
of wet ground, while the 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 t?!0 parched stems of the trees. The excited imagi-
nation of Elizabeth, as she stood on the veige of the preci-
pice, and gazed about her, viewing the approach of their
powerful enemy, fancied every tree and herb near her on
the point of ignition. There were moments when dark
ds of smoke would sweep along the little terrace, and
eye lost its power the other senses contributed to
^^i^^oadi
tHftPIONKBRa. 801
ittsci to the fbarful horror of the soeuo. At sach mo*
;, the roaring of the flames, the crackling of the furioui
!nt, with the tearing of falling branches, and, occasion-
the thundering echoes of some prostrated tree, united
irm the yictims. Of the three, however, the youth ap*
d much the most agitated. Elizabeth, haWng relin-
ed entirely the idea of escape, was fost obtaining that
aed composure, with which the most delicate of her
re known to meet unavoidable evils ; while Mohegan,
ff^as much nearer to the danger, maintained his seat
the invincible resignation of an Indian warrior. Once
ice the eye of the aged chief, which was ordinarily
in the direction of the distant hills, turned towards the
^ pair, who seemed doomed to so early a death, with a
indication of pity crossing his composed features, but
lid immediately revert again to its former gaze, as if
ly looking into the womb of foturity. Much of the
be was chanting a kind of low oirge, in the Delaware
e^ using the deep and remarkably guttural tones of his
e.
t such a moment, Mr; Edwards, all earthly distinctions
whispered Elizabeth ; "persuaJe John to move nearer
let us die together."
cannot he will not stir/' returned the youth, in the
horridly still tones. ** He considers this as the hap
moment of his life. He is past seventy, and has been
ing rapidly for some time ; he received some injury in
tg that unlucky deer, too, on the lake. Oh ! Miss
le^ that was an unlucky chase indeed! it has led, I
x this awful scene.''
) smile that beamed on the lovely features of Elizabeth
elestial, as she answered in a soft, soothing voice,
f name such a trifle now at th] momeiit the heart is
to all earthly emotionsi"
' any thing could reconcile a man, in the vigour and
of manhood, to this death,'' cried the youth with fer-
'' it would be to meet it in such company !''
alk not so, Edwards, talk not so," interrupted Miss
le, '' I am unworthy of it; and it is unjust to yourself.
lUst die ; yes yes we must die it is the will of Sod,
a us endeavour to submit like his own children."
ie !" the youth rather shrieked than exclaimed, '^ No
-there must be hope yet ^you must not, shall not die."
1 what way can we escape ?" asked Elizabeth, pointing,
I look of heavenly composure, towards tiie fire. ^ Ob-
I the flame is crossing the barrier of wet grooniU-il
2h3
d06 THE PIONEERS.
comes slowly, Edwards, but surely. Ah !
tree is already lighted!"
Her words were too true. The heat of the conflagration
had, at length, overcoroe the resistance of the spring, and
the fire was slowly stealing along the half-dried moss ; while
H dead pine kindled with the touch of a forked llame, that,
for a moraenty 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 and magical. The flames
danced along the parched trunk of the pine, like lightning
quivering on a chain, and immediately a colunin 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 the fire. Still
he was unmoved. As his body was unprotected, his suffer-
ings must have been great, but his fortitude was superior to
all. His voice could yet be heard, raising its tones, 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 cano-
py 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 bat I submit."
The distance was not too great for the figure of Judge
Temple to be seen, standing in his own groands, and appa-
rently 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 Eliza-
beth 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 nst 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 fbtal as mine. Fly I 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 1 Say to him, then, Edwards,
say to him, all that can appease his anguish. Tell him that
1 died happy and collected ; that I have gone to my beloved
mother ; that the hours of this life are as nothing when bal-
Huced in the scales of eternity. Say how we shall meet
MONEBHS. 3I7
Agaiii. And say/' she continued, dropping Ler voice, that
oad risen with her feelings, as if conscioas of her worldly
weaknesses, '* how dear, how very dear, was my love fo^
him ; that it was near, too near, to my love for God/'
The youth listened to Ber touching accents, but moved
not. In a moment he found utterance, and replied :
** And is it me that you bid to leave you ! me, to leave yon
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
ha?e forgotten my wrongs, 'twas you^hat 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 of heaven. The recollection of her
father, and her regrets at their separation, had been mel-
lowed 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 the maiden, stand-
ing in her extremity, listened to these words, she became
once more woman. The blood gathered slowly again in
those cheeks, that had, in anticipation of the tyrant s triumph,
assumed the livid appearance of death, until they glowed
. with the loveliness of her beauty. She struggled with her*
self against these feelings, and smiled, as she thought she
I was shaking off the last lingering feeling of her nature, when
the world, and all its seductions, rushed again to her heart,
with the sounds of a human voice, crying in piercing
tones
*' Gal ! where be ye, gal ! gladden the heart of an old
man if ye yet belong to 'arth !*'
^"^ List !" said Elizabeth, * 'tis the Leather-stocking ; he
seeks me !"
'''Tis Natty !" shouted Edwards, springing on his feet,
and we may yet be saved !"
A wide and circling flame glared on their eyes for a mo-
ment, even above the fire of the woods, and a loud report
(bllowed, that was succeedei by a comparative stillness.
*' 'Tis the canister ! 'tis the powder,** cryrd the same voice,
evidently approaching them. 'Tis tl^canister/ and tht
precious child is lost !"
#68 THE PIONEEr%0(
At the neict instant Natty rushed througli tho steams at
the springy, 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 ooloar than ever, by the heat he had encountered.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
** Even from ihe land of sbadows, now,
My falher'n awfal ghost appears/'
GERTRUDE OF WTOMINO.
For an hour atier Lousia 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
terrors of Lousia gradually increased, until her alarmed
fiuicy 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
- smoke were pouring over the valley ; but the thoughts of
f. msia were still recurring to beasts, without dreaming of
tlie real cause for apprehension. She was stationed in the
edge of the low pines and chestnuts that succeeded the first
or isLt^a growth of the forest, and directly above the angle
y'here the highway turned from the straight course to the
v^ilage, 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
ot)served, were engaged in earnest conversation, and fre-
quently, 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 Xo
remain, Lousia was startled by the low, cracking, bat
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, and
said^
^'lamgiadto meet you here, child, for the back of the
mountain is a-fire, and it would be dangerous to go up it
mow, till it has been burnt over ance, and the dead wood is
Ifone, There's a foolish man, the comrade of that varmint
THE r:oM:; KS. ^i
who iias given me all this lrou])Ic, dijrglng for ore on the
east 8iiic. I told him that the kearless ieilows, who thouj^tat
to catch a practys*d hunter in the woods after dark, had
thrown the lighted pine knots in the hrush, and that 'twould
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 some 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 V
*' The hill ! the hill !" shrieked Louisa ; ** she seeks you
on the hill with the powder !"
Natty recoiled for several feet, at this unexpected intelli-
gence, and exclaimed
**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 iove
the dear one, and hope to find a friend when you 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 injunc*
tion, than he disappeared in the bushes, and when last seen
by Lousia, was rushing up the mountain with the activity of
youth, and with a speed that none but those who were
accustomed to the toil could attain.
" Have 1 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 left 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's
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 cried in Dela-
ware
"Up and away, Chingachgook ! will ye slay here to burn,
like a tortured Mingo, at the stake ? The Moravians hnv
^0 THE PIONEERS.
9acbed ye better, I hope ; the Lord preserve me if the
ft owder hasn't flashed atwcen )iis legs, and the skin of In
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 eyiB 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 trib^, say, coioft
The Great Spirit says, come. No-^let Mohegan die."
*' But you forget your iriend," cried dwards.
'' 'Tis useless to talk to an Indian with the death*fit on
him, lad," interrupted Natty who seiaed 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. Even as they crossed the little terrace of rock, one
of the dead trees, that had been tottering for several minutes,
fell on Ae spot where they had stood, and filled the air with
its cinders*
Such an event quickened the steps of the part^, 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; sbe*8
a precious one, I tell you sich another will be hard to be
found.'*
Obedient to the hunter's directions, they followed bis
steps and advice implicitly and although the narrow passage
along the winding of the spring led amid burning logs and
falling branches, yet 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 ^ little difiSculty, they soon descended to another
terrace, and emerged at once into a tolerable clear atmos-
phere.
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 stki idshed to his back, and laughing in his o*ra
manner, said
**l kuow'd 'twas the Frenchman's powder, gal ; It went %
THE PIONEERS.
ailfogetlicr like ; your coarse grain will squib for a mmutc
The Iroquois had none of the best powder when I went
ttj^'in the Canada tribes, under Sir William. Did I ever tcl.
you the story, lad, consarning the skrimmage wiih"
*' For God's sake, tell me nothing now, Natty, until wo
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 with a
strong emotion, bat, looking around him with an anxious
eye, said quickly
** Shall we be safe on the rock ? cannot the fire reach us
there, too V
** Can't the boy see?" said Natty, with the coolness of one
who was 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 pro-
ceeded 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, leave me,'* she said, raising her beaming eyes
for a mcmenl 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
ray berth, d'ye see, and if-so-be that Leather-stocking has
got much overhauling to do before he sails after them said
6eaver, I'll go into dock again, and ride out my quarantine
'ill I can get pro ttrick. from the law, and so hold 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
yuu/*
I knows Hut little of your small drink, master Oliver/*
c / i
THE PIONEERS,
returned the steward, his voice issuing out tbe cave intc
til 3 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 tbe 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 into a debauch and
that lately.
Elizabeth took from the hand of Edwards the liquur
which he offered, and then motioned to be left again to
herself.
The youth turning at her bidding, and observed Natty
kindly assiduous around tbe person of Mohegan. When
their eyes met, the hunter said sorrowfully
** His time has come lad ; I see it in his eye ; when an
Indian fixes his eye he means to go but to one place;
and what the wilful crcaters put their minds on, they're
sure to do/'
A quick tread diverted the reply of the youth, 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 wortliy
divine was soon placed among them.
" How came you added to our number ?" cried Ed-
wards. *' Is the hill alive with people, at a time like
this P"
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 moun-
tain ; and when the fire broke oyer its summit, my uneasi-
ness 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, though
the dogs of Natty, I should have perished in the flames
myself."
scent
same as man's reason.'
Ay I follow the hounds, and if there's an opening they*U
nt it out," said Natty ; *' their noses be given them the
THB PIONEERS. 3
'^ 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. hanter ; *^ 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 Im last look at the
'arth'
*' He speaks the truth I" 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 pluck-
ed 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 four-
score 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 to the speaker, and
fastened his dark eyes on him steadily, but vacantly. No
ign of recognition was made ; and in a moment he moved
his head again slowly towards the vale, and began 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 to fulness if not to harmony :
** I will come ! I will come ! to the land of the just I will
eome ! No Delaware fears his end ; no Mohican shrinks
from death ; for the Great Spirit calls, and he goes. My
father I have honoured; I have cherished my mother; to
my tribe I've been faithful and true. The Maquas I have
flain !~I have slain the Maquas! and the Great Spirit calls
to his son. I will come! I will come! to the land of the
lust I will come !"
" What says he. Leather-stocking?" inquired the priest,
k^ith tender interest ; " sings he the Redeemer's praise?"
** No, no, 'tis his own praise that he speaks now,*' said
Katty, turning in a melancholy manner from the sight of his
2x
^4 THE PIONEEBS.
dying friend ; "and a good right he has to sslj it all, for 1 know
every word of it to be true."
*' May Heaven avert such self-righteousness from his heart V* ex-
claimed the divine. " Hamility 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 himselfl
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 ipultitude of sinners and pagans, and, I trait,
for a wise and gracious purpose. Do you now feel what it is to be
justified by our Saviour's death, and reject all weak and idle depen*
deuce on good works, that spring from man's pride and vainglory?"
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
hira did not see the morning ? What Mingo that he chased ever sung
the song of triumph ? Did Mohegan ever lie ? No ; for 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,
ho was wise ; and his words at the council fire did not hiow away
with the winds."
" Ah I he has abandoned that vain relic of paganism, his songs," cried
the good 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 tp him, he believes it to
be a great gain. He is now old and stiff^ and you*ve made the game
so scarce 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
food hunting ; where no wicked or unjust Indians can go; and where
e shall meet all his tribe together ag^in. There's not much loss ia
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 to do 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 re*
flection 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 burthen of your sins at his feet, and you have his own blessed
assurance that he will not desert you."
** Thoij'*h all you say be true, and you have scripter gospel for it,
too," said Natty, " you will make nothing of the Indian. He hasn't
seen a Ms fravian priest sin' the war *, and its hard to keep them from
going bac k to their native ways. I should think 'twould be as well
to let the o\d man pass in peace. He's happy now ; I know it by his
eye ; and th at's more than I would say for the chief, sin' the time the
Delaware ) broke up from the head- waters of their river, and went
west. All's me ! 'tis a grievous long time that, and many dark days
have we 1i( th seen together sin' it."
THE PIOKEERS. S75
** Hawk-eye !** said Mohegan, ronsing with the last glimmering of
life. ** Hawk-eye ! listen to the words of your brother."
"Yes, John," said the hunter in English, strongly aSccted 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 I 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 one heaven ; and when the strong feeling
excited by the leave taking of his old companion, which was exhi-
bited 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 co-
lours, 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 scaled with the sign of the cross!" cried the minister, in holy
fervour. ** John"
He paused ; for the scene, and the elements, seemed to conspire to
oppress the powers of humanity. During the period occupied by
the events which we have related, the dark clouds in the hoiizon
had continued to increase in numbers and magnitude; and the awl'ul
stillness that now pervaded the air anaouuced 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 curreuts of
their own eddies, but blazed liigh and steadily towards the heavens.
There was even a quietudv.* 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 inipended over the western hills. When Mr. Grant was speak-
ing, a flash, which sent its quivering light through the gloom, laying
bare the whole opposite horizon, was followed by a loud crash of
376 THE PIONEERS.
thmider, that rolled away among the hills, seeming to shake the
foundations of the earth to their centre. Mohegan raised himself,
as if in ohedience to a signal for his departure, and stretched forth
bis 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 con-
vulsion played, for a single instant, ahout his lips; and his arm slowly
dropped, rigid and motionless, 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, ricn tones of assured faith
** O Lord ! how unsearchable are thy judgments, and thy ways past
finding out I I know that my Redeemer livetb, and that he shall
fitand at the latter day upon the earth. And though after my skin,
worms destroy this body,^et 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 I 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 will be left
to me and the hounds. Ah's me! a man must wait the time of
God's pleasure, but I begin to weary of my life. There is scarcely
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 raiu 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 salu-
tations 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 under-
stood about its darkness, and the unpleasantness of being with the
dead body. Miss Temple, however, found a sufficient shelter against
th^ torrent of rain that i'ell, under the projection of a rock which
GTerhung them. But long before the shower was over, the sounds
of voices were heard below 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 shi^rt cessaiion of the rain, Oliver conducted the heiresi
THE PIOKEEB9. S77
to tbe rOKkd, where he left her. Before pariint?, ho'wevct, he found
time to say, in a ferycnt maQner, that his companioa was at no loss
to interpret ^ The moment of concealment is over, Mii^s Temple.
By this time to-morrow, I shall remove a veil that, perhnps, it has
been weakness to keep around me and my affairs so long. But I
have had romantic and foolish wishes and 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 1
you are safe again, and that alone removes the weight of a world
from my spirit I"
He waited for no answer, but sprang into the woods; Elizabeth,
notwithstanding she heard the piercing 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, to remove her body, living or dead,
as Heaven had directed her fate, into which Miss Temple hastily
entered; when theicry 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 Drom so horrid and untimely an end.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
** Sellctar 1 unsheath, then our chiefs sdmetar ;
Tambourgi 1 thy 'larum gives promise of war ;
Ye mountiuns ! that see us descend to the dhore,
Shall view us victors, or view us no more." BiBoir.
Thb 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,
whenever there was a collection of fuel to feed the element. The
next day the woods, for many miles, were black and smoking, and
were stript of every vestige of brush and dead wood, but the piaes
and hemlocks still reared their heads proudly along 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 perished in tbe flames. This belief became con-
firmed, and was indeed rendered probable, when the direful intelli-
gence reached the village, that Jotham Riddell, 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 tbe last
few days, and just at this crisis, the convicted counterfeiters took the
hint from Natty, and, on the night succeeding the Are, found means
to cut through their log pr.\son also, and to escape unpunished.
X X 3
378 TBB PI0KEBB8.
When this Aews hegan to circalate through the Tillage, blended widi
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 rumours of ores and metals found its way into the confused
medley of conjectures, counterfeiting, and ever}-thiiig else that vas
wicked and dangerous to the peace of society, suggested themseWes
to the busy fancies of the populace.
While the public mind was in a feverish state, it was hinted that
the wood had been set on fire by Edwards and the Leather-stocking,
and consequently they alone were responsible for the danaages. Thn
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 be set about in earnest to see the laws executed.
Several stout young men were selected, and aken apart with an
appearance of secresy, where they received some important charge
irom the Sheriff, immediately nnder the eyes, but far removed from
the ears, of all in the village. . Possessed with 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 occa
sion, but they are preserved in the columns of the little blue news-
paper, 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. Everything 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.
Ab 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 aod appearance to any
troops in the known world ; in physical endowments they were, cer-
tainly much superior! To this assertion there were but three dis-
senting 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 hnsband
for condescending to lead such an irregular band of warriorsy after
THE PI01VEEB8. 379
lie bad filled the honoarable station of sergeant-major to a dashing
corps of Virginian caTalry through mnch of the recent var.
Another of these sceptical sentimeots was invariably expressed bj
Mr. Pamp, whenerer the companj paraded, generally in some such
terms as these, which were nttered with that sort of meekness that a
native of the island of our forefathers is apt to assume, when he con-
descends to praise the customs or characters of her truant progeny
'*It's mayhap that they knowsum'mat about loading and firing d*ye
see ; but as for working ship I why a corporal's guard of the B(ia-
dishey's marines wonld 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 whis-
pered to the sheriff, that the corps was one of the finest he had ever
seen, second only to the Mousquetaires of Le Bon Louis I However,
as Mrs HoUister thought there was something like actual service in
the present appearances, and was, in consequence, too busily en-
gaged with certain preparations of her own to make her comments ;
as Benjamin was absent, and Monsieur Le Quoi too happy to find
^nlt 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. Mar-
madake 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 shouldared arms, beginning on the right
wing, next to the veteran, and carrying the motion through to the
left with great regnlarity. When each musket Vas 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 manflsuvre was executed with their
nsnal 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 HoUister led on, with his
head elevated to forty-five degrees, with a little low cocked hat
perched on its 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 aU
the platoons (there were six) to look the same way $ but, by the time
they reached the defile of the bridge, the trooi^ were in excellent
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 b^en
anticipated, the fugitives had evidently gained a knowledge of the
attack, and were fortifying for a desperate resistance. This iutelli-
gvnoe certainly made a material change, not only in the plans of the
980 THB PIONBBB8.
leaders, but in the coantenances of the soldiery also. The men
looked at one another with serious faces, and Hiram and Richard
began to consult together, apart. ,
At this juncture, they were joined by Billy Kirby, who came aloog
the highway, with his aze under his arm, as mi|ch in advance of his
team as Captain Hollister had been of his troops in the ascent Tht
wood-chopper was amaaed at the military array, but the sheriff
eagerly availed himself of this powerful reinforcement, and comman-
ded his assistance in putting the laws in force. Billy held Mr. Jonei
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 dirided ; ooe
party being led by the captain, over the Vision, and were brought ia
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 ol
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 dii-
tauce of (he fortifications, where he took shelter behind a tree. Most
of the men discovered a wonderful accuracy of eye in bringing some
object in range between them and their enemy, and the only two of
the beseigers, who were left in plain sight of the beseiged, 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 belligerentSi
The besieged had drawn together a pile of black logs and braaohet
of trees, which they had formed into a chevaux-de-frise, m^ing 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 advanc^ 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 I 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, *' dont be orabbed^
but hear what a man has got to say. I've no consarn in the busiuess
-only to see right 'twixt man and man ; and I dont kear the valie of a
Jbeetle-nng which gets the better ; but there's Squire X)ooUjttle oat
THE PIOIYEEBS; 381
yonder liehind the beocli 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 I" cried the indignant Natty ;
and if he*II only show so much flesh as will bury a rifle butlrtt, thirty
to the pound, Til 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 step-
ped behind a pine that stood near him, '* if you think to shoot a man
through a tree with a three foot ; but I can lay Uiis tree 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 se^ and blood to staunch, I tell you. 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 yon 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 therell
be dead without as well as within."
The wood-chopper stent out fearlessly from his cover, and cried
*^ That's fair j 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 dont crowd him too hard ; but
you crowd a man, and he gets to be like a stubborn ox the more
you beatf 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 surren-
der your person to the law," he cried. ** And I command you, gen-
tlemen, to aid me in performing my duty. Benjamin Penguillan, I
Arrest yon, and order you to follow me to the jail of the county, by
virtue of this warrant."
" I'd follow ye. Squire Dickens," said Benjamin, removing the pipe
from bis mouth, (for during the whole scene the ex-major domo had
been very composedly smoking), "ay I I'd sail iu your wake, sir, to
the end of the world, if-so-be that there was such a place, which there
isn't, seeing that its round. Now, mayhap Master Hollister, having
lived all your life on shore, you isn't acquainted that the world
d'ye see
* Surrender !" interrupted the veteran, in a voice that startled his
bearers and which actually caused his own forces to recoil several
paces ; " Surrender, Benjamin Pengullam, or expect no quarter."
" Damn your quarter," said Benjamin, rising from the log on which
be was seated, and taking a squint along the barrel of the swivel^
which had been brought on the hill, during the night, and now
382 THB PIOMEEBS.
'. -'
formed the means of defence on his side of the works. " Look you
Master, or Captain, thof I qaestions if ye know the name of a rope*
except the one that's to hang ye, there's no need of singing out, just
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 Brit-
ish 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
enemy 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 bis little iron tube
with great steadiness
" I give you but one moment to yield in," cried Richard. " Beu-
Jamin ! Benjamin ! this is not the gratitude I expected from you,"
" I tell you, Richard Jones," said Natty, who dreaded the SherifiTg
influence over his comrade ; '* though the canister the gal brought be
lost, there's powder enough in the cave to lift the rock you stand on.
FU take off my roof, if you dont 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 Hollister mistook for the
signal to advance.
'Charge baggonetl" shouted the veteran ; " march 1"
Although the signal was certainly expected, it took the assailed a
little by surprise, and the veteran approached the works, crying,
* courage, my brave lads 1 give them no quarter unless they surrea-
der," and struck a furious blow upwards with his sabre, that would
have divided the steward in moieties, by subjecting him to the pro-
cess of decapitation, but for the fortunate interference of the muisle
of the swivel. As it was, the gun was dismounted at the critical
moment that Benjamin was applying his pipe to the piiming, and in
consequence, some five or six dozen 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 troojs stationed in the rear
of their captain. Much of the' success of an attack, made by irregu-
lar soldiers, depends on which way they are first got in motion.
In the present instance, it was retrograde, and in less than a minute
after the loud bellowiog report of the swivel among the rocks and
caverns, the whole weight of the attack, from the lef^ rested on the
prowess of the single arm of the veteran. Benjamin received a
severe contnsi'^n from the recoil of his gun, which produced a short
.stupor, durirg which period the ex-steward was prostrate on the
^roand. Ci^ptain HoUi&tAiT availed biiuself of this circumstance to
tcramble over the \)re&st-woiV) axi^ Q\)\a\\v a footing in the bastion-*
THS PI0HEBS8* 889
for sach wai tlie 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 1 come on, my brave boys,
the work's our own T
All this was perfectly military, and was soch 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 vete-
ran standing on his own bulwark, giving forth the cry of victory I
The mussle of the long rifle was turned instantly towards the cap-
tain. There was a moment when the life of the old soldier was in
jeopardy ; but the object to shoot at was both too large and too near
for the Leather*stocking, who, instead of pulling his trigger, ap-
plied 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
entered them. The spot on which Captain Hollister alighted was
directly in front, where, as his feet touched the ground, so steep and
slippery wy the side of the mountain, it seemed to recede from under
them. His motion was wonderfully swift, and so irregular, as
utterly to confuse the faculties of the old soldier. During its con-
tinuance, he supposed himself to be mounted and charging througk
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. (jeorge"
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 hoys,
leaning one hand on the staff with which she ordinarily walked, and
bearing in the other an empty bag, witnessed this exploit of her hus-
band, indignation immediately got the better, not only of her religion
but of her philosophy.
* Why, sargeantl is it flying ye are?" she cried-;-*; That I should
live to see a husband of mine turn his back to the inimy I and sich a
one I Here have I been telling the b'ys, as we come along, all about
the saige of Yorrek-town, and how ye was hnrted \ and how ye'd be
acting the same ag*in the day ; and I mate ye retraiting jist as the
first gun is fired. Ochl I may trow away the bag! for if there's
{1under, 'twill not he the wife of sich as yeerself that will be privi-
eged to be getting the same. They do say, too, there is a power of
goold and silver in the place the Lord forgive me for setting mr
heart on sich worredly things ; but what falls in the batile, there s
Bcripter for believing it 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 a horse do ye
own, sargeant, and yee're nothing but a shabby captain of malaishy.
Och I if the ra'al captain was here, 'tis the other way ye'd be riding,
dear^ or you would not follow yoor lader I"
884 "^HS PI0NSBB9.
While tbis worthy coaple were thus discassing events, the battU
hegan to rage more violently than ever, above them. When the
Leather-stocking saw his enemy fairly under bead- way, as Beigamio
would express it, he gave his attention again to the right wing of the
assailants. It would have been easy for Kirby with his powerfiil
frame, to have seized the moment to scale the bastion, and, with bis
great strength, to have sent both its defenders in pursuit of the vete-
ran ; but hostility appeared to be the passion that the wood-ohopper
indulged the least in, at that moment, for, in a voice that was heaxd
even by the retreating left wing, he shouted ** Hurrah I well done,
captain ! keep it up ! how he handles his brush hook ! he makes
nothing of a sapling;" and such other encouraging exclamations to
the flying veteran, until, overcome by his mirth, the good natored
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 ov^r his breast work, watching with a quick and cautions
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, Jie left, like
many a better commander, his rear exposed to the attacks of hit
enemy. Mr. Doolittle belonged physically to a class of his country-
men, to whom nature has denied, in their formation, the use of curved
lines. Everything about him was straight or angular. But his tailor
was a woman who worked like a regimental contractor, by a set of
roles that gave the same configuration to the whole human species.
Consequently, when Mr. Doolittle leaned forward in the manner de
scribed, a loose drapery appeared behind the tree, at which the rifle
of Natty was pointed with the quickness of lightning. A less expe*
rienced man would have aimed at the flowing robe, which hung like
a festoon half way to the earth ; but the Leather-stocking knew hoik
the man and his female tailor better, and when the smart report ti
the rifle was heard, Kirby, who watched the whole mancenvre ia
breathless expectation, sav^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 ad-
vanced from behind the tree, at this summons.
He made tw^ or three steps, with great precision, to the front, and
placing one hand on the afflicted part, stretched forth the other, witk
a menacing air, towards Natty, and cried aloud ** Gawl darn ye
this shan't be settled so easy. Til follow it up from the common *pleas
to the * court of errors.* **
Such a shocking imprecation, from the month 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 their rear, who gave a loud shout,
and fired a volley into the tree-tops after the contents of the swivel
Aninated by their own noise, the men now rushed on in earnest,
and Billy Kirby, who thought the joke, good as it was, had gone ftr
THE PIONEERS. 885
noagb, 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 I"
** 'Tis the posse comitatus," shoated the Sheriff ft^m a distant
rock, ** who" -
** Say rather a posse of demons. I command tne peace."
**Hold! shed not blood!*' cried a voice from the top of the
Vision ^ Hold I for the sake of Heaven, fire no more I all shall be
yielded, you shall enter the cave 1"
Amazement produced the desired effect. Natty, who had reloaded
his piece, quietly seated himself on the logs, and rested his head on
bis hand, while the ** Light Infantry" ceased their military move-
ments, and waited the issue in deep suspense.
In less than a minute Edwards came rushing down the hill, fol*
lowed by Major Hartmann with a velocity that was surprising for
bis years. They reached the terrace in an instant, from which the
youih 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 afker them with astonishment.
CHAPTER XL.
"I am dumb.
Were you the Doctor and I knew you not ?*'--Shakes?babe.
During the five or six minutes that elapsed before the yontb and
Msyor reappeared, Judge Temple and the Sheriff, together wHh most
of the volunteers, ascended to the terrace, where the latter began 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 deerskins, they supported
a human being, idiom they seated carefully and respectfully in the
midst of the assembly. His head was covered by long smooth locki^
of the colour of snow. His dress, which was studiously neat and
clean, was composed of such fabric as none but the wealthiest classes
wear, but was threadbare and patched ; and on his feet were placed a
^ir 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 childhooid.
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
which showed that heavier interests than those which affected himself
were to be decided. Major Hartmann placed, himself beside the aged
886 THB PIOITEEBS.
man, nneoTeredi with his -whole soal beaming fhrongh those eyei
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 decrepid stranger, turning his yacant looks from face
to face, made a feel^fe 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 Yirtuoos
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 I" said Marmaduke; **wbe
will explain this scene ?"
" No, sir," said Edwards, firmly, "Vis only the decay of nature;
who is answerable for its pitiful condition, remains to be shown.**
** Will the gentleman dine with us, my son ?'* said the old stranger,
taming 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 our command.**
*^ Who is this man ?** asked Marmaduke, in a hurried voice, is
which the dawnings of conjecture united with interest to put the
question.
"This man I** returned Edwards, calmly, his voice, however,
gradually rising as he proceeded ; ** this man, sir, whom you behold
hid in caverns, 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 na-
tives gave him the name of the Fire-eater. This man, whom yoa
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 powerful emotion, ** OnS,
then, is the lost Major Effingham V*
** Emphatically so," sud the youth, fixing a piereiog eye on the
other.
** And yott I and yoa l" 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. Idarmadake
raised his head from his bosom, where it had sunk, not in shame, but
in devout mental thanksgiving, and, as large tears fell over his fine
manly &ce, he grasped the hand of the youth warmly, and said
*' Oliver, I forgive all thy harshness all thy suspicions. I now sea
it all. I forgive &ee everything, but suffering this aged man to dwell
in such a place, when not only my habitatioiiy bat my fortaae wen
at bis and thy command.**
THE PIONESmS. 387
** He's true as ter steel 1" shoated Major Hartmann $ ** tif nt I tell't
you* lat, dat Marmadhke Temple vast a frient dat woalt never ful in
ter time as of neet ?'*
' * It is tme, 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 com-
rades, 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 yon harshly."
" You name your father I" said Marmaduke tenderly ** Was he,
indeed, lost in the packet ?"
" He was. He 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 goverment, 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 I" 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
ommand, 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 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 sus-
picion 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 when-
ever 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 intrusted his fortune to my care.
Wheu we separated he had such confidence in me, that he wished no
security, no evidence of the trust, even had there been time or con-
venience for exacting it. This thou hast heard ?"
" Most truly, sir," said Edwards, or rather Effingham, as We must
now call him, with a bitter smile.
888 TH PI0NEEB8.
We divided in politics. If the cause of this country wai
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 Colonel 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 MarmadDke,
disregarding both. ** Thy grandfather was left in Connecticat,
regularly supplied by thy father with the means ot such a subsistence
as suited his wants. This I well knew, though I never had inter-
course with him, even in our happiest days. Thy father retired with
the troops to prosecute his claims on England. At all events, bis
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 his 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 knowest that I supplied him with considerable sums imme-
diately 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 a-head, 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 be 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 Pro-
vince to wait for his return, and when the sad news of his loss
reached me, I was nearly penniless."
" And what didst thou, boy f" asked Marmadukc, 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 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 otteiv ^
THB PI0NEEB8. 389
" Was Natty a servant to thy grandfather ?" exclaimed the Judge.
*'0{ that, too, vere you ignorant?'^ said the yonth, in evident
surprise.
" How should I know it ? I never met the Migor, 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 Mohegau (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," ssdd 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! J 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, reproach-
fully ; " 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
hare 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 con-
versing 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 anti-
pathy of the youth to Marmaduke. He no longer objected to the
removal of his grandfather, who displayed a childish pleasure when
kk2
890 THE PIONEEaS.
he fond himself once more seated 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 inyariably 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 contioae
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 provide 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 in-
genuity 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 reconnted his obliga-
tions to Colonel Effingham, the nature of their connexion, and the
circumstances in which they separated. He then proceeded to relate
the motives for 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 Colonel
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 Effing-
ham, 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 till 1810, when, if no person appeared,
or could be found, after sufficient notice, to claim the moiety so
devised, then a certain sum, calculating th6 principal and interest tf
his debt to colonel Effingham, was to be paid to the heirs-at-law of
the Effingham family, and the bulk of bis estate was to be conveyed
xo fee to his daughter, or her heirs.
THE PI0MB8. 891
The tears fell from the eyes of the young man, as he read thin
imdeniable testimony of the good faith of Marmaduke, and his
bewildered gaze was still fastened on the paper, when a sweet voice,
that thrilled on every nerve, spoke near him, saying,
'Do yoa yet doubt us, Oliver?"
* I have never doubted you I" cried the youth, recovering his
reoollection and his voice, as he sprung to seize the hand of Eliza-
"beth ; " no, not for one moment has my faith in you wavered."
** And my father'*
"God bless him I"
"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
3fijor.
" I tell you vat, gal I" said the old German, good humourcdly ;
''if I vast ast I vast yen I servit mit his grantfader on ter lakes, ter
lazy dog shouldn't vin ter prize as for nottin."
* Come, come, old Fritz," cried the Judge ; " you are seventy, not
eventeen ; Richard waits for you with a bowl of egg-nog in the hall."
"RichartI ter duyvel I" exclaimed the other, hastening out of the
room ; ** he makes ter nog ast for ter horses, I vilt show ter sherriff
mit my own hantsi Ter duyvel I believe he sweetens mit ter
yankee melasses !"
Marmaduke smiled and nodded affectionately at the young couple,
and closed the door after them. If any of our readers expect tiiat
we are going to op*en it again for their gratification, they will soon
find themselves in a mistake.
The tete-a-tete 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 ears 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 pere,
his mere, and his sucre-boosh." Elizdbeth 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
ball, who compelled him to take a seat with them at the table,
where, by the aid of punch, winf", and egg-nog, they soon extracted
from the complaisant Mr. Le Quoi the nature of bis 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
392 THE PIONEERS
Frenchman that there was an inexcusable partiality in ofifering to
one lady, and not extending a similar courtesy to another. Conse-
quently, 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 that he should next try Remarkable Pettibone. But,
though he was 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-sobe, 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 fashi4n ; when you once takes 'em in tow, they doesn't like
to be cast off again."
CHAPTER XLL
**Te8, sweep ye on I We will not leave.
For them who triumph, those who grieve t
With that armada gay
Be laughter loud, and Jocund shout
But with that skiff
Abides the minstrel tale."
Lord of tub Islss.
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 j 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 Marmadnke 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 jail 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 meantime, proper means were employed
to satisfy Hiram for the Assaults on his person ; and on the same
THE PI0KEEB8. 399
day, the two comrades issued together into society again, with their
characters not at all affected by their imprisonment.
Mr. Doolittle began to discover, that neither his architecture nor
bis 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 bis folly, acknow-
ledged 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 con-
veyed a mortifving 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 Qaoi, who has been introduced to our readers
because no picture of that country would be faithful without such a
Gaul, found the island of Martinique and his " sucre-boosh" in pos-
session of the English ; but Marmaduke and his family were much
f ratified in soon hearing that he had returned to his bureau, in
*aris; 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 inhaltd; 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 briogiag the lassi-
tule 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 iu a short excur-
sion 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 shavrl across her shoulders, and conceal-
ing her raven hair under her gipsy, 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 they took, the object of their walk, and respected the feel-
ings 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
^4 THB FI0NEBS8*
great northern waters, to seek a warmer sun, but lingering to plaj
m 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 V* she said, clinging more
fondly to his arm; *' ererythiog in nature seems to speak &e praises
of the Creator; why should we, who have so much to be grateivl
for, be silent?"
** Speak on I" said her husband, smiling ; ** I lovo the sounds of
your Toice. 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 Katty,
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 ; ** hot
poor Louise 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 I 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 clergy
man toil in the fields?"
** Where can he go ? you forget Louisa."
" No, I do not forget Louisa," said Elizabeth, again compressing
her beautiful lips. ** Yon 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."
** Anything, anything, 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.**
'*Jt 13 our duty to sUugg\i V\l\i o\it natural feelings/' returned
THE PT017EER8. 395
t)ie lady; " and there is bat 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."
*' Why, Bess, you amaze me ! I did not think yon had been such
a manager I"
" Ob ! 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 bughed ; 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 Leather-stocking had so long stood. Elizabeth
found it ientirely 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
^te, near which, to the surprise of both, the rifle of Natty was lean-
ing against the wall. Hector and the slut reposed on the grass by
its side, as if conscious that, however altered, they were laying on
ffTOund, and were surrounded by objects, with which they were
Similiar. The hunter himself was stretched on the earth, before a
headstone 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 that was there engraven.
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 oma*
mented tastefully with the chisel.
Oliver and Elizabeth approached the graves with a light tread,
unheard by the old hunter, whose sunburnt face was working with
his feelings, and whose eyes twinkled as if something impeded their
vision. After some little time, Natty raised himself slowly ttom the
f round, and said aloud ** Well, well I'm bold to say it's all right!
'here's something thct 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. A.h*8 me I there they lie, side by side,
happy enough I Who will there be to put me in the 'arth, when my
time comes ?^
" When that unfortsnate hour arrives. Natty, friends shall not be
-wanting to perform the hut offices for yon," said Oliver, a little
touched at the hunter's soliloquy.
The old man turned, without manifesting any surprise, for he had
gd tlie In^m habtti kt tUi ptftienlar, and riuuuog hit hand vidst
^
:896 THB PIONBEBS.
the bottom of his nose, seemed to wipe away his sorrow witH ihe
action.
" You've come out to see the graves, children, have ye ?'* he said;
** well, well, they are wholesome to young as well as old." '
** I hope they are fitted to your liking," said Effingham ; ^^uo one
has a better right than yourself to be consulted in the matter."
** Why, seeing that I an't used to fine graves," returnC-l'theold
man, "it is but little matter consarning my taster Ye laid the
Major's head to the west, and Mohegan's to the easf, v.^ % lad?"
** At your request it was done."
** It's so best," said the hunter; *Uhe^ thought they had to journey
different ways, children; though there is One greater than all, who'll
bring the just together ag'in at his own time, and who'll whiten the
skin of a black-moore, 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; bat
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 chivalric loyalty ; and a man of honesty.
To these virtues, he added the graces of a Christian. The morning
oi 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 stared at the sound of his own name, and a
smile of joy lumined his wrinkled features as he said " And did ye
say it, lad ? Have yon then got 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, but the pure cambric,
that contrasted to her dark eyes, attested the feelings of the youthful
bride. Effingham made a fruitless effort to speak before he suc-
ceeded 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 g^n'rous
gift to a man, who leaves none of his name and fiimily behind him
m a country where he has tarried so long."
EMogham guided his finger to the spot, and Natty followed the
miadinga of ike letters to the end, ^V\]b^de^ interest, when he raised
THS PIONEBR8. dl&t
himself from the tomb, and said ** I suppose it*8 all right, and it*s
kindly thought, aod kindly done. But ithat have ye put over the
Red.jskin?"
**Tou shall hear. 'This stone is raised to the memory of an
Indiau Chief, of the Delaware tribe, who was known by the several
names of John Mohegan ; Mohican* '*
*Mo-h*-.can, lad, they call themselves heoan."
" * Mohican^ and Chingagook* "
"Gach, h \^ gach-gook) Chingacbgook, which, intarpreted,
means Big e.^i-pent. The name should be set down r^ht, for an
Indian's name has always some meaning in it."
** I will see it altered," said Edwards. ** He was the last of his
people who continued to inhabit this country; and it may be said of
him, emphatically, 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
known him, as I did, in his prime, in that very battle, where the old
gentleman, who sleeps by his side, sav*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
&v'rite weapon. 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 Effinghami for they was all
firom shav'd heads and warriors. When I look about me, at these
hills, where I used to could count 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 Ooedias, or them Yankee Indians, who,
ihey say, be moving up from the sea-shore ; and who belong to none
of God s creater's to my seeming; being, as it were, neither fish nor
flesh neither white man nor savage. Well, veil, the time has come
at last, and I must go"
" Go !" echoed Edwards; ** whither do yon go?"
The Leather-stocking, who had imbibed, unconsciously, mapy of
the Indian qualities, though he always thought of himself as of a
civilised being, compared witli 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
juurdships now. So throw aside your pack, and confine your hunt to
the mountains ueas^us, if you will go."
** Hardship I 'Tis a pleasure, children, and the greatest that is
left me on thii side of the grave."
L Xi
898 THE PI0NEEB8.
" No, no ; you shall not go to such a distance,** cried Elizabeth,
smiling, and laying her white hand on his deer-skin pack. "I am
right! I feel his camp-kettle and a canister of powder! He mast
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 keepsake which the Major gave
me, when we first parted in the woods, ye wouldn't take it ankind,
but would know that, let the old man's body go where it might, his
feelings stayed 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 huntiug,
and a great range, without a white man on it, unless it may be one
like myself. Fm weary of living in clearings, and where the hammer
is sounding in my ears from sunrise to sund Dwn. And though Tin
much bound to ye both, children 1 wouldn't say it if it was not 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 wQods ?**
" Ah I child, these be nothing to a man that's used to the wilder*
ness. 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 call these woods, Madam Effingham,
where I lose myself, every day of my life, in the clearings."
"If there be anything wanting to your comfort," cried Oliver,
** name it. Leather-stocking ; and, 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 m them, that one went east, and one
went w^st to find their heavens; but they'll meet at last, and so
shall we, child^'en. 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."
"Xon't fear the Leather-stocking, children ; God will see that his
days bft provided fof, and his ind n&pvy^ I know you mean all for
THE PIONEERS. 399
the best, but our ways doesn'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 weU,
The meanest of God's creaters be made for some use, and I am
formed for the wilderness ; and, if ye love me, let me go where my
soul craves to be ag'in I"
The appeal was decisive ; not another word of entreaty for him to
remain was then uttered; but Elizabeth bent her bead 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 pro-
duced 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, when he said ** This, then, is some of the new-fashioned money
that they've been makin' at Albany, out of paper ! It can't be worth
much to they that hasn't laming! No, no, lad take back the stuff;
it will do me no sarvice. I took kear to get all the Frenchman's
powder, afore he broke up, and they say that 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 night, 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 old 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, 'lis not for my sake, but to show
the power of Him that led me there to save you. Trust in God,
Madam, and your honourable husband, and the thoughts of 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 clearing as well as in
the wilderness and bless you, and all that belongs 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 ofiTered 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 move-
anent of a sorrpwfjal departure. Qace or twice he essayed to speak,
400 THE PIONEBBf .
but a rising in his throat prevented it. At length, he shouldered hit
rifle, and cried with a clear hantsman's call that echoed through the
voods "He-e-e-re, he-e^e-re, pups away, dogs, away; ^ye'il be
foot* sore afore ye see the ind of the joarnej !"
The hounds leaped from the earth at his ory, and scented around
the gn.Ye of 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 eoneealed 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,
hut 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 uttered 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 our nation across the continent.