第18章

SlowlyitdawneduponWetzelthatthechiefcouldhardlyhaveanyreasonfortakingthiscirclingcoursesavethatofprideandsavagejoyinmisleading,infoolingthefoeoftheDelawares,indeliberatelyshowingDeathwindthattherewasoneIndianwhocouldlaughatandloosehimintheforests。ToWetzelthiswasbitterasgall。Tobeledawildgoosechase！Hisfierceheartboiledwithfury。Hisdark,keeneyessoughtthegrassandmosswithterribleearnestness。Yetinspiteoftheangerthatincreasedtothewhiteheatofpassion,hebecameawareofsomestrangesensationcreepinguponhim。HerememberedthattheDelawareshadofferedhislife。Slowly,likeashadow,Wetzelpassedupanddowntheridges,throughthebrownandyellowaislesoftheforest,overthebabblingbrooks,outuponthegolden—fleckedfields——alwayscloseonthetrail。

Atlastinanopenpartoftheforest,whereafirehadoncesweptawaythebrushandsmallertimber,WetzelcameuponthespotwheretheDelaware\'strailended。

Thereinthesoft,blackgroundwasamoccasin—print。Theforestwasnotdense;therewasplentyoflight;nologs,stonesortreeswerenear,andyetoverallthatgladenofurtherevidenceoftheIndian\'strailwasvisible。

Itfadedthereasthegreatchiefhadboasteditwould。

Wetzelsearchedtheburntground;hecrawledonhishandsandknees;againandagainhewentoverthesurroundings。Thefactthatonemoccasin—printpointedwestandtheothereast,showedthattheDelawarehadturnedinhistracks,wasthemostbafflingthingthathadevercrossedthehunterinallhiswildwanderings。

Forthefirsttimeinmanyyearshehadfailed。Hetookhisdefeathard,becausehehadbeensuccessfulforsolonghethoughthimselfalmostinfallible,andbecausethefailurelosthimtheopportunitytokillhisgreatfoe。Inhispassionhecursedhimselfforbeingsoweakastolettheprayerofawomanturnhimfromhislife\'spurpose。

Withbowedheadandslow,draggingstepshemadehiswaywestward。Thelandwasstrangetohim,butheknewhewasgoingtowardfamiliarground。Foratimehewalkedquietly,allthetimethefiercefeverinhisveinsslowlyabating。Calmhealwayswas,exceptwhenthatunnaturallustforIndians\'

bloodovercamehim。

Onthesummitofahighridgehelookedaroundtoascertainhisbearings。Hewassurprisedtofindhehadtraveledinacircle。AmileorsobelowhimarosethegreatoaktreewhichherecognizedasthelandmarkofBeautifulSpring。Hefoundhimselfstandingonthehill,undertheverydeadtreetowhichhehaddirectedGirty\'sattentionafewhoursprevious。

WiththeideathathewouldreturntothespringtoscalpthedeadIndians,hewentdirectlytowardthebigoaktree。OnceoutoftheforestawideplainlaybetweenhimandthewoodedknollwhichmarkedthegladeofBeautifulSpring。

Hecrossedthisstretchofverdantmeadow—land,andenteredthecopse。

Suddenlyhehalted。Hiskeensenseoftheusualharmonyoftheforest,withitsinnumerablequietsounds,hadreceivedasevereshock。Hesankintothetallweedsandlistened。Thenhecrawledalittlefarther。Doubtbecamecertainty。Asinglenoteofanoriolewarnedhim,anditneedednotthequicknotesofacatbirdtotellhimthatnearathand,somewhere,washumanlife。

OncemoreWetzelbecameatiger。Thehotbloodleapedfromhisheart,firingallhisveinsandnerves。Butcalmlynoiseless,certain,cold,deadlyasasnakehebeganthefamiliarcrawlingmethodofstalkinghisgame。

On,onunderthebriarsandthickets,acrossthehollowsfullofyellowleaves,upoverstonypatchesofgroundtothefern—coveredcliffoverhangingthegladeheglided——lithe,sinuous,atigerinmovementandinheart。

Hepartedthelong,gracefulfernsandgazedwithglitteringeyesdownintothebeautifulglade。

Hesawnottheshiningspringnorthepurplemoss,northeghastlywhitebones——allthatthebuzzardshadleftofthedead——noranything,saveasolitaryIndianstandingerectintheglade。

There,withinrangeofhisrifle,washisgreatIndianfoe,Wingenund。

Wetzelsankbackintothefernstostillthefuriousexultationswhichalmostconsumedhimduringthemomentwhenhemarkedhisvictim。Helaytherebreathinghard,grippingtightlyhisrifle,slowlymasteringthepassionthataloneofallthingsmightrenderhisaimfutile。

Forhimitwasthethirdgreatmomentofhislife,thelastofthreemomentsinwhichtheIndian\'slifehadbelongedtohim。Oncebeforehehadseenthatdark,powerfulfaceoverthesightsofhisrifle,andhecouldnotshootbecausehisoneshotmustbeforanother。Againhadthatlofty,haughtyfigurestoodbeforehim,calm,disdainful,arrogant,andheyieldedtoawoman\'sprayer。

TheDelaware\'slifewashistotake,andhesworehewouldhaveit！Hetrembledintheecstasyofhistriumphantpassion;hisgreatmusclesrippledandquivered,forthemomentwasentirelybeyondhiscontrol。Thenhispassioncalmed。Suchpowerforvengeancehadhethathecouldalmoststilltheverybeatsofhishearttomakesureanddeadlyhisfatalaim。Slowlyheraisedhimself;hiseyesofcoldfireglittered;slowlyheraisedtheblackrifle。

Wingenundstooderectinhisold,grandpose,withfoldedarms,buthiseyes,insteadofbeingfixedonthedistanthills,wereloweredtotheground。

AnIndiangirl,coldasmarble,layathisfeet。Hergarmentswerewet,andclungtoherslenderform。hersadfacewasfrozenintoaneternalrigidity。

Byhersidewasanewlydiggrave。

Thebeadonthefrontsightoftheriflehadhardlycoveredthechief\'sdarkfacewhenWetzel\'seyetookintheseotherdetails。HehadbeensoabsorbedinhispurposethathedidnotdreamoftheDelaware\'sreasonforreturningtotheBeautifulSpring。

SlowlyWetzel\'sforefingerstiffened;slowlyheloweredtheblackrifle。

WingenundhadreturnedtoburyWhisperingWinds。

Wetzel\'steetheclenched,anawfulstruggletorehisheart。Slowlytheriflerose,waveredandfell。Itroseagain,waveredandfell。Somethingterriblewaswrongwithhim;somethingawfulwasawakeninginhissoul。

Wingenundhadnotmadeafoolofhim。TheDelawarehadledhimalongchase,hadgivenhimtheslipintheforest,nottoboastofit,buttohurrybacktogivehisdaughterChristianburial。

WingenundwasaChristian！

Hadhenotbeen,oncehavingcasthisdaughterfromhim,hewouldneverhavelookeduponherfaceagain。

Wingenundwastruetohisrace,buthewasaChristian。

SuddenlyWetzel\'sterribletemptation,hisheart—rackingstruggleceased。Heloweredthelong,blackrifle。Hetookonelastlookatthechieftain\'sdark,powerfulface。

ThentheAvengerfledlikeashadowthroughtheforest。

ChapterXXX。

ItwaslateafternoonatFortHenry。Theruddysunhadalreadysunkbehindthewoodedhill,andthelongshadowsofthetreeslengthenedonthegreensquareinfrontofthefort。

ColonelZanestoodinhisdoorwaywatchingtheriverwitheagereyes。Afewminutesbeforeamanhadappearedonthebankoftheislandandhailed。ThecolonelhadsenthisbrotherJonathantolearnwhatwaswanted。Thelatterhadalreadyreachedtheothershoreinhisflatboat,andpresentlythelittleboatputoutagainwiththestrangerseatedatthestern。

"Ithought,perhaps,itmightbeWetzel,"musedthecolonel,"thoughIneverknewofLew\'swantingaboat。"

Jonathanbroughtthemanacrosstheriver,andupthewindingpathtowhereColonelZanewaswaiting。

"Hello！It\'syoungChristy！"exclaimedthecolonel,jumpingoffthesteps,andcordiallyextendinghishand。"Gladtoseeyou！Where\'sWilliamson。Howdidyouhappenoverhere？"

"CaptainWilliamsonandhismenwillmaketherivereightortenmilesabove,"

answeredChristy。"IcameacrosstoinquireabouttheyoungpeoplewholefttheVillageofPeace。WasgladtolearnfromJonathantheygotoutallright。"

"Yes,indeed,we\'reallglad。Comeandsitdown。Ofcourseyou\'llstayovernight。Youlooktiredandworn。Well,nowonder,whenyousawthatMoravianmassacre。Youmusttellmeaboutit。IsawSamBradyyesterday,andhespokeofseeingyouoverthere。Samtoldmeagooddeal。Ah！here\'sJimnow。"

Theyoungmissionarycameoutoftheopendoor,andthetwoyoungmengreetedeachotherwarmly。

"Howisshe？"askedChristy,whenthefirstgreetingshadbeenexchanged。

"Nell\'sjustbeginningtogetovertheshock。She\'llbegladtoseeyou。"

"JonathantellsmeyougotmarriedjustbeforeGirtycameupwithyouatBeautifulSpring。"

"Yes;itistrue。Infact,thewholewonderfulstoryistrue,yetIcannotbelieveasyet。Youlookthinandhaggard。Whenwelastmetyouwerewell。"

"Thatawfultimepulledmedown。Iwasanunwillingspectatorofallthathorriblemassacre,andshallnevergetoverit。Icanstillseethefiendishsavagesrunningaboutwiththereekingscalpsoftheirownpeople。Iactuallycountedthebodiesofforty—ninegrownChristiansandtwenty—sevenchildren。

Anhourafteryouleftusthechurchwasinashes,andthenextdayIsawtheburnedbodies。Oh！thesickeninghorrorofthescene！Ithauntsme！ThatmonsterJimGirtykilledfourteenChristianswithhissledge—hammer。"

"Didyouhearofhisdeath？"askedColonelZane。

"Yes,andafittingenditwastothefrontier\'SkullandCross—bones\'。"

"ItwaslikeWetzeltothinkofsuchavengeance。"

"HasWetzelcomeinsince？"

"No。JonathansayshewentafterWingenund,andthere\'snotellingwhenhe\'llreturn。"

"IhopedhewouldsparetheDelaware。"

"WetzelspareanIndian！"

"Butthechiefwasafriend。Hesurelysavedthegirl。"

"Iamsorry,too,becauseWingenundwasafineIndian。ButWetzelisimplacable。"

"Here\'sNell,andMrs。Clarketoo。Comeout,bothofyou,"criedJim。

NellappearedinthedoorwaywithColonelZane\'ssister。Thetwogirlscamedownthestepsandgreetedtheyoungman。Thebride\'ssweetfacewaswhiteandthin,andtherewasashadowinhereyes。

"Iamsogladyougotsafelyawayfrom——fromthere,"saidChristy,earnestly。

"TellmeofBenny？"askedNell,speakingsoftly。

"Oh,yes,Iforgot。Why,Bennyissafeandwell。HewastheonlyChristianIndiantoescapetheChristianmassacre。Heckewelderhidhimuntilitwasallover。Heisgoingtohavetheladeducated。"

"ThankHeaven！"murmuredNell。

"Andthemissionaries？"inquiredJim,earnestly。

"WereallwellwhenIleft,except,ofcourse,Young。Hewasdying。Theotherswillremainoutthere,andtrytogetanotherhold,butIfearit\'simpossible。"

"Itisimpossible,notbecausetheIndiandoesnotwantChristianity,butbecausesuchwhitemenastheGirty\'srule。ThebeautifulVillageofPeaceowesitsruintotherenegades,"saidColonelZaneimpressively。

"CaptainWilliamsoncouldhavepreventedthemassacre,"remarkedJim。

"Possibly。Itwasabadplaceforhim,andIthinkhewaswrongnottotry,"

declaredthecolonel。

"Hullo！"criedJonathanZane,gettingupfromthestepswherehesatlisteningtotheconversation。

Afamiliarsoft—moccasinedfootfallsoundedonthepath。AllturnedtoseeWetzelcomeslowlytowardthem。Hisbuckskinhuntingcostumewasraggedandworn。Helookedtiredandweary,butthedarkeyeswerecalm。

ItwastheWetzelwhomtheyallloved。

Theygreetedhimwarmly。Nellgavehimherhands,andsmiledupathim。

"I\'msogladyou\'vecomehomesafe,"shesaid。

"Safean\'sound,lass,an\'gladtofindyouwell,"answeredthehunter,asheleanedonhislongrifle,lookingfromNelltoColonelZane\'ssister。"Betty,Iallusgaveyoufirstplaceamongborderlasses,buthere\'soneascouldrunyoumostanykindofarace,"hesaid,withtheraresmilewhichsowarmlylightedhisdark,sternface。

"LewWetzelmakingcompliments！Well,ofallthings！"exclaimedthecolonel\'ssister。

JonathanZanestoodcloselyscanningWetzel\'sfeatures。ColonelZane,observinghisbrother\'sclosescrutinyofthehunter,guessedthecause,andsaid:

"Lew,tellus,didyouseeWingenundoverthesightsofyourrifle？"

"Yes,"answeredthehuntersimply。

Achillseemedtostriketheheartsofthelisteners。Thatsimpleanswer,comingfromWetzel,meantsomuch。Nellbowedherheadsadly。Jimturnedawaybitinghislip。Christylookedacrossthevalley。ColonelZanebentoverandpickedupsomepebbleswhichhethrewhardatthecabinwall。JonathanZaneabruptlyleftthegroup,andwentintothehouse。

Butthecolonel\'ssisterfixedherlarge,blackeyesonWetzel\'sface。

"Well？"sheasked,andhervoicerang。

Wetzelwassilentforamoment。Hemethereeyeswiththatold,inscrutablesmileinhisown。Aslightshadeflittedacrosshisface。

"Betty,Imissedhim,"hesaid,calmly,and,shoulderinghislongrifle,hestrodeaway。

NellandJimwalkedalongthebluffabovetheriver。Twilightwasdeepening。

Theredglowinthewestwasslowlydarkeningbehindtheboldlydefinedhills。

"Soit\'sallsettled,Jim,thatwestayhere,"saidNell。

"Yes,dear。ColonelZanehasofferedmework,andachurchbesides。Weareveryfortunate,andshouldbecontented。Iamhappybecauseyou\'remywife,andyetIamsadwhenIthinkof——him。PoorJoe！"

"Don\'tyoueverthinkwe——wewrongedhim？"whisperedNell。

"No,hewishedit。Ithinkheknewhowhewouldend。No,wedidnotwronghim;

welovedhim。"

"Yes,Ilovedhim——Ilovedyouboth,"saidNellsoftly。

"Thenletusalwaysthinkofhimashewouldhavewished。"

"Thinkofhim？ThinkofJoe？Ishallneverforget。Inwinter,springandsummerIshallrememberhim,butalwaysmostinautumn。ForIshallseethatbeautifulgladewithitsgorgeouscolorandthedark,shadedspringwhereheliesasleep。"

Theyearsrolledbywiththeirchangingseasons;everyautumnthegoldenflowersbloomedrichly,andthecoloredleavesfellsoftlyupontheambermossinthegladeofBeautifulSpring。

TheIndianscampedtherenomore;theyshunnedthegladeandcalledittheHauntedSpring。Theysaidthespiritofawhitedogranthereatnight,andtheWind—of—Deathmournedoverthelonelyspot。

AtlongintervalsanIndianchiefofloftyframeanddark,powerfulfacestalkedintothegladetostandformanymomentssilentandmotionless。

Andsometimesattwilightwhentheredglowofthesunhadfadedtogray,astalwarthunterslippedlikeashadowoutofthethicket,andleaneduponalong,blackriflewhilehegazedsadlyintothedarkspring,andlistenedtothesadmurmurofthewaterfall。Thetwilightdeepenedwhilehestoodmotionless。Theleavesfellintothewaterwithasoftsplash,awhippoorwillcaroledhismelancholysong。

Fromthegloomoftheforestcamealowsighwhichswelledthrillinglyuponthequietair,andthendiedawaylikethewailingofthenightwind。

Quietreignedoncemoreoverthedark,murkygraveoftheboywhogavehisloveandhislifetothewilderness。