Wyandotte - James Fenimore Cooper
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"I suppose, Blodget, this is the first of your service," said captain
Willoughby, "and it is not easy to impress on a young man the
importance of unceasing vigilance against savage artifices."
"I admit the truth of all you say, sir," answered Blodget, "though I do
not believe any attempt will be made on the house, until the other side
has sent in what the serjeant calls another flag."
"What reason have you for supposing this?" asked the captain, in a
little surprise.
"It seems unreasonable for men to risk their lives when an easier way
to conquest may seem open to them. That is all I meant, captain
Willoughby."
"I believe I understand you, Blodget. You think Joel and his friends
have succeeded so well in drawing off my men, that they may be inclined
to wait a little, in order to ascertain if further advantages may not
be obtained in the same way."
Blodget confessed that he had some such thoughts in his mind, while, at
the same time, he declared that he believed the disaffection would go
no further.
"It is not easy for it to do so," returned the captain, smiling a
little bitterly, as he remembered how many who had eaten of his bread,
and had been cared for by him, in sickness and adversity, had deserted
him in his need, "unless they persuade my wife and daughters to follow
those who have led the way."
Respect kept Blodget silent for a minute; then uneasiness induced him
to speak.
"I hope captain Willoughby don't distrust any who now remain with him,"
he said. "If so, I know I must be the person."
"Why you, in particular, young man? With you, surely, have every reason
to be satisfied."
"It cannot be serjeant Joyce, for he will stay until he get your orders
to march," the youth replied, not altogether without humour in his
manner; "and, as for the Scotchman, he is old, and men of his years are
not apt to wait so long, if they intend to be traitors. The negroes all
love you, as if you were their father, and there is no one but me left
to betray you."
"I thank you for this short enumeration of my strength, Blodget, since
it gives me new assurance of my people's fidelity. You I _will_
not distrust; the others I _cannot_, and there is a feeling of
high confidence--What do you see?--why do you lower your piece, and
stand at guard, in this manner?"
"That is a man's form, sir, on the right of the gate, trying to climb
the palisades. I have had my eye on it, for some time, and I feel sure
of my aim."
"Hold an instant, Blodget; let us be certain before we act."
The young man lowered the butt of his piece, waiting patiently and
calmly for his superior to decide. There was a human form visible, sure
enough, and it was seen slowly and cautiously rising until it reached
the summit of the stockade, where it appeared to pause to reconnoitre.
Whether it were a pale-face or a red-skin, it was impossible to
distinguish, though the whole movement left little doubt that an
assailant or a spy was attempting to pass the outer defences.
"We cannot spare that fellow," said the captain, with a little regret
in his manner; "it is more than we can afford. You must bring him down,
Blodget. The instant you have fired, come to the other end of the
stage, where we will watch the result."
This arranged, the captain prudently passed away from the spot, turning
to note the proceedings of his companion, the moment he was at the
opposite angle of the gallery. Blodget was in no haste. He waited until
his aim was certain; then the stillness of the valley was rudely broken
by the sharp report of a rifle, and a flash illumined its obscurity.
The figure fell outward, like a bird shot from its perch, lying in a
ball at the foot of the stockade. Still, no cry or groan gave evidence
of nature surprised by keen and unexpected anguish. At the next instant
Blodget was by captain Willoughby's side. His conduct was a pledge of
fidelity that could not be mistaken, and a warm squeeze of the hand
assured the youth of his superior's approbation.
It was necessary to be cautious, however, and to watch the result with
ceaseless vigilance. Joyce and the men below had taken the alarm, and
the serjeant with his companions were ordered up on the stage
immediately, leaving the negro, alone, to watch the gate. A message was
also sent to the females, to give them confidence, and particularly to
direct the blacks to arm, and to repair to the loops.
All this was done without confusion, and with so little noise as to
prevent those without from understanding what was in progress. Terror
kept the negroes silent, and discipline the others. As every one had
lain down in his or her clothes, it was not a minute before every being
in the Hut was up, and in motion. It is unnecessary to speak of the
mental prayers and conflicting emotions with which Mrs. Willoughby and
her daughters prepared themselves for the struggle; and, yet, even the
beautiful and delicate Maud braced her nerves to meet the emergency of
a frontier assault. As for Beulah, gentle, peaceful, and forgiving as
she was by nature, the care of little Evert aroused all the mother
within her, and something like a frown that betokened resolution was,
for a novelty, seen on her usually placid face.
A moment sufficed to let Joyce and his companions into the state of
affairs. There now being four armed men on the stage, one took each of
the three exposed sides of the buildings to watch, leaving the master
of the house to move from post to post, to listen to suggestions, hear
reports, and communicate orders.
The dark object that lay at the foot of the palisades was pointed out
to the serjeant the instant he was on the stage, and one of his offices
was to observe it, in order to ascertain if it moved, or whether any
attempts were made to carry off the body. The American Indians attach
all the glory or shame of a battle to the acquisition or loss of
scalps, and one of their practices was to remove those who had fallen,
at every hazard, in order to escape the customary mutilation. Some
tribes even believed it disgrace to suffer a dead body to be struck by
the enemy, and many a warrior has lost his life in the effort to save
the senseless corpse of a comrade from this fancied degradation.
As soon as the little stir created in the Hut by the mustering of the
men was over, a stillness as profound as that which had preceded the
alarm reigned around the place. No noise came from the direction of the
mill; no cry, or call, or signal of battle was heard; everything lay in
the quiet of midnight. Half an hour thus passed, when the streak of
light that appeared in the east announced the approach of day.
The twenty minutes that succeeded were filled with intense anxiety. The
slow approach of light gradually brought out object after object in the
little panorama, awakening and removing alike, conjectures and
apprehensions. At first the grey of the palisades became visible; then
the chapel, in its sombre outlines; the skirts of the woods; the
different cabins that lined them; the cattle in the fields, and the
scattering trees. As for Joyce, he kept his gaze fastened on the object
at the foot of the stockade, expecting every instant there would be an
attempt to carry it off.
At length, the light became so strong as to allow the eye to take in
the entire surface of the natural _glacis_ without the defences,
bringing the assurance that no enemy was near. As the ground was
perfectly clear, a few fruit-trees and shrubs on the lawn excepted, and
by changing positions on the stage, these last could now be examined on
all sides, nothing was easier than to make certain of this fact. The
fences, too, were light and open, rendering it impossible for any
ambush or advancing party to shelter itself behind them. In a word,
daylight brought the comfortable assurance to those within the
palisades that another night was passed without bringing an assault.
"We shall escape this morning, I do believe, Joyce," said the captain,
who had laid down his rifle, and no longer felt it necessary to keep
the upper portions of his body concealed behind the roof--"Nothing can
be seen that denotes an intention to attack, and not an enemy is near."
"I will take one more thorough look, your honour," answered the
serjeant, mounting to the ridge of the building, where he obtained the
immaterial advantage of seeing more at the same time, at the risk of
exposing his whole person, should any hostile rifle be in reach of a
bullet--"then we may be certain."
Joyce was a man who stood just six feet in his stockings, and, losing
no part of this stature by his setting up, a better object for a sharp-
shooter could not have been presented than he now offered. The crack of
a rifle soon saluted the ears of the garrison; then followed the
whizzing of the bullet as it came humming through the air towards the
Hut. But the report was so distant as at once to announce that the
piece was discharged from the margin of the forest; a certain evidence
of two important facts; one, that the enemy had fallen back to a cover;
the other, that the house was narrowly watched.
Nothing tries the nerves of a young soldier more than the whizzing of a
distant fire. The slower a bullet or a shot approaches, the more noise
it makes; and, the sound continuing longer than is generally imagined,
the uninitiated are apt to imagine that the dangerous missile is
travelling on an errand directly towards themselves. Space appears
annihilated, and raw hands are often seen to duck at a round shot that
is possibly flying a hundred yards from them.
On the present occasion, the younger Pliny fairly squatted below the
root Jamie thought it prudent to put some of his own masonry, which was
favourably placed in an adjacent chimney for such a purpose, between
him and the spot whence the report proceeded; while even Blodget looked
up into the air, as if he expected to _see_ where the bullet was
going. Captain Willoughby had no thought of the missile he was looking
for the smoke in the skirts of the woods, to note the spot; while
Joyce, with folded arms, stood at rest on the ridge, actually examining
the valley in another direction, certain that a fire so distant could
not be very dangerous.
Jamie's calculation proved a good one. The bullet struck against the
chimney, indented a brick, and fell upon the shingles of the roof.
Joyce descended at the next instant, and he coolly picked up, and kept
tossing the flattened bit of lead in his hand, for the next minute or
two, with the air of a man who seemed unconscious of having it at all.
"The enemy is besieging us, your honour," said Joyce, "but he will not
attack at present. If I might presume to advise, we shall do well to
leave a single sentinel on this stage, since no one can approach the
palisades without being seen, if the man keeps in motion."
"I was thinking of this myself, serjeant; we will first post Blodget
here. We can trust him; and, as the day advances, a-less intelligent
sentinel will answer. At the same time, he must be instructed to keep
an eye in the rear of the Hut, danger often coming from the quarter
least expected."
All this was done, and the remainder of the men descended to the court.
Captain Willoughby ordered the gate unbarred, when he passed outside,
taking the direction towards the lifeless body, which still lay where
it had fallen, at the foot of the stockades. He was accompanied by
Joyce and Jamie Allen, the latter carrying a spade, it being the
intention to inter the savage as the shortest means of getting rid of a
disagreeable object. Our two old soldiers had none of the sensitiveness
on the subject of exposure that is so apt to disturb the tyro in the
art of war. With sentinels properly posted, they had no apprehensions
of dangers that did not exist, and they moved with confidence and
steadily wherever duty called. Not only was the inner gate opened and
passed, but the outer also, the simple precaution of stationing a man
at the first being the only safeguard taken.
When outside of the palisades, the captain and his companions proceeded
at once towards the body. It was now sunrise, and a rich light was
illuminating the hill-tops, though the direct rays of the luminary had
not yet descended to the valley. There lay the Indian, precisely as he
had fallen, no warrior having interposed to save him from the scalping-
knife. His head had reached the earth first, and the legs and body were
tumbled on it, in a manner to render the form a confused pile of legs
and blanket, rather than a bold savage stretched in the repose of
death.
"Poor fellow!" exclaimed the captain, as the three approached the spot;
"it is to be hoped Blodget's bullet did its commission faithfully, else
the fall must have hurt him sadly."
"By Jove, 'tis nothing but a stuffed soldier!" cried Joyce, rolling the
ingeniously contrived bundle over with his foot; "and here, the lad's
ball has passed directly through its head! This is Injin deviltry, sir;
it has been tried, in order to see whether our sentinels were or were
not asleep."
"To me, Joyce, it seems more like a white man's clumsiness. The fellow
has been made to resemble an Indian, but people of our own colour have
had a hand in the affair."
"Well, sir, let that be as it may, it is lucky our youngster had so
quick, an eye, and so nimble a finger. See, your honour; here is the
pole by which the effigy was raised to the top of the palisades, and
here is the trail on the grass yet, by which his supporter has crept
off. The fellow seems to have scrambled along in a hurry; his trail is
as plain as that of a whole company."
The captain examined the marks left on the grass, and was of opinion
that more than one man had been employed to set up the decoy figure, a
circumstance that seemed probable in itself, when the weight of the
image and the danger of exposure were remembered.--Let that be as it
might, he was rejoiced on reflection that no one was hurt, and he still
retained the hope of being able to come to such an understanding with
his invaders as to supersede the necessity of actual violence.
"At all events, your honour, I will carry the quaker in," said Joyce,
tossing the stuffed figure on a shoulder. "He do to man the quaker gun
at least, and may be of use in frightening some one of the other side,
more than he has yet frightened us."
Captain Willoughby did not object, though he reminded Joyce that the
desertions had probably put the enemy in possession of a minute
statement of their defences and force, including the history of the
wooden gun. If Joel and his fellow-delinquents had joined the party at
the mill, the name, age, character and spirit of every man remaining in
the garrison were probably known to its leaders; and neither quakers
nor paddies would count for much in opposing an assault.
The captain came within the gate of the palisades last, closing,
barring, and locking it with his own hands, when all immediate
apprehensions from the enemy ceased. He knew, certainly, that it would
probably exceed his present means of resistance, to withstand a
vigorous assault; but, on the other hand, he felt assured that Indians
would never approach a stockade in open day, and expose themselves to
the hazards of losing some fifteen or twenty of their numbers, before
they could carry the place. This was opposed to all their notions of
war, neither honour nor advantage tempting them to adopt it. As for the
first, agreeably to savage notions, glory was to be measured by the
number of scalps taken and lost; and, counting all the women left in
the Hut, there would not be heads enough to supply a sufficient number
to prove an offset to those which would probably be lost in the
assault.
All this did the captain discuss in few words, with the serjeant, when
he proceeded to join his anxious and expecting wife and daughters.
"God has looked down upon us in mercy, and protected us this night,"
said the grateful Mrs. Willoughby, with streaming eyes, as she received
and returned her husband's warm embrace. "We cannot be too thankful,
when we look at these dear girls, and our precious little Evert. If
Robert were only with us now, I should be entirely happy!"
"Such is human nature, my little Maud"--answered the captain, drawing
his darling towards himself and kissing her polished forehead. "The
very thoughts of being in our actual strait would have made your mother
as miserable as her worst enemy could wish--if, indeed, there be such a
monster on earth as _her_ enemy--and, now she protests she is
delighted because our throats were not all cut last night. We are safe
enough for the day I think, and not another night shall one of you pass
in the Hut, if I can have my way. If there be such a thing as
desertion, there is such a thing as evacuation also."
"Hugh!--What _can_ you, _do_ you mean! Remember, we are
surrounded by a wilderness."
"I know our position reasonably well, wife of mine, and intend to turn
that knowledge to some account, God willing, and aiding. I mean to
place old Hugh Willoughby by the side of Xenophon and Washington, and
let the world see what a man is capable of, on a retreat, when he has
such a wife, two such daughters, and a grandson like that, on his
hands. As for Bob, I would not have him here, on any account. The young
dog would run away with half the glory."
The ladies were too delighted to find their father and husband in such
spirits, to be critical, and all soon after sat down to an early
breakfast, to eat with what appetite they could.
Chapter XXII.
Yet I well remember
The favours of these men: were they not mine?
Did they not sometimes cry, all hail! to me?
So Judas did to Christ: but he, in twelve
Found truth in all but one; I in twelve thousand none.
_Richard II_.
That which captain Willoughby had said in seeming pleasantry he
seriously meditated. The idea of passing another night in the Hut,
supported by only six men, with more than ten times that number
besieging him, and with all the secrets of his defences known, through
the disaffection of his retainers, was, to the last degree, painful to
him. Had his own life, alone, been at risk, military pride might have
tempted him to remain; but his charge was far too precious to be
exposed on account of considerations so vain.
No sooner, therefore, was the breakfast over, than captain summoned
Joyce to a consultation on the contemplated movement. The interview
took place in the library, whither the serjeant repaired, on receiving
his superior's orders. As to the party without, no apprehension was
felt, so long as the sentinels were even moderately vigilant, and the
day lasted.
"I suppose, serjeant," commenced captain Willoughby, "a soldier of your
experience is not to be taught what is the next resort of a commanding
officer, when he finds himself unable to make good his ground against
his enemy in front?"
"It is to retreat, your honour. The road that cannot be passed, must be
turned."
"You have judged rightly. It is now my intention to evacuate the Hut,
and to try our luck on a march to the rear. A retreat, skilfully
executed, is a creditable thing; and any step appears preferable to
exposing the dear beings in the other room to the dangers of a night
assault."
Joyce appeared struck with the suggestion; though, if one might have
judged from the expression of his countenance, far from favourably. He
reflected a moment ere he answered.
"Did your honour send for me," he then inquired, "to issue orders for
this retreat, or was it your pleasure to hear anything I might have to
say about it?"
"The last--I shall give no orders, until I know your opinion of the
measure."
"It is as much the duty of an inferior to speak his mind freely, when
he is called for an opinion, captain Willoughby, as it is to obey in
silence, when he gets nothing but orders. According to my views of the
matter, we shall do better to stand our ground, and try to make good
the house against these vagabonds, than to trust to the woods."
"Of course you have your reasons for this opinion, Joyce?"
"Certainly, your honour. In the first place, I suppose it to be against
the rules of the art of war to evacuate a place that is well
provisioned, without standing an assault. This we have not yet done. It
is true, sir, that our ranks are thinned by desertions; but I never
heard of a garrisoned town, or a garrisoned house, capitulating on
account of a few deserters; and, I take it, evacuation is only the next
step before capitulation."
"But our desertions, Joyce, have not been _few_, but _many._
Three times as many have left us, if we include our other losses, as
remain. It matters not whence the loss proceeds, so long as it is a
loss."
"A retreat, with women and baggage, is always a ticklish operation,
your honour, especially if an enemy is pressing your rear! Then we have
a wilderness before us, and the ladies could hardly hold out for so
long a march as that from this place to the Mohawk; short of which
river they will hardly be as safe as they are at present."
"I have had no such march in view, Joyce. You know there is a
comfortable hut, only a mile from this very spot on the mountain side,
where we commenced a clearing for a sheep-pasture, only three summers
since. The field is in rich grass; and, could we once reach the cabin,
and manage to drive a cow or two up there, we might remain a month in
security. As for provisions and clothes, we could carry enough on our
backs to serve us all several weeks; especially if assisted by the
cows."
"I'm glad your honour has thought of this idea," said the serjeant, his
face brightening as he listened; "it will be a beautiful operation to
fall back on that position, when we can hold out no longer in this. The
want of some such arrangement has been my only objection to this post,
captain Willoughby; for, we have always seemed to me, out here in the
wilderness, like a regiment drawn up with a ravine or a swamp in its
rear."
"I am glad to find you relishing the movement for any cause, serjeant.
It is my intention at present to make the necessary arrangements to
evacuate the Hut, while it is light; and, as soon as it is dark, to
retreat by the gates, the palisades, and the rivulet--How now, Jamie?
You look as if there were news to communicate?"
Jamie Allen, in truth, had entered at that instant in so much haste as
to have overlooked the customary ceremony of sending in his name, or
even of knocking.
"News!" repeated the mason, with a sort of wondering smile "and it's
just that I've come to bring. Wad ye think it, baith, gentlemen, that
our people are in their am cabins ag'in, boiling their pots, and frying
their pork, a' the same as if the valley was in a state of
tranquillity, and we so many lairds waiting for them to come and do our
pleasure!"
"I do not understand you, Jamie--whom do you mean by 'our people'?"
"Sure, just the desairters; Joel, and the miller, and Michael, and the
rest."
"And the cabins--and the pots--and the pork--it is gibberish to me."
"I hae what ye English ca' an aiccent, I know; but, in my judgment,
captain Willoughby, the words may be comprehended without a dictionary.
It's just that Joel Strides, and Daniel the miller, and the rest o'
them that fleed, the past night, have gane into their ain abodes, and
have lighted their fires, and put over their pots and kettles, and set
up their domestic habitudes, a' the same as if this Beaver Dam was ain
o' the pairks o' Lonnon!"
"The devil they have! Should this be the case, serjeant, our sortie may
be made at an earlier hour than that mentioned. I never will submit to
such an insult."
Captain Willoughby was too much aroused to waste many words; and,
seizing his hat, he proceeded forthwith to take a look for himself. The
stage, or gallery on the roofs, offering the best view, in a minute he
and his two companions were on it.
"There; ye'll be seein' a smoke in Joel's habitation, with your own
een; and, yon is anither, in the dwelling of his cousin Seth," said
Jamie, pointing in the direction he named.
"Smoke there is, of a certainty; but the Indians may have lighted fires
in the kitchen, to do their own cooking. This looks like investing us,
serjeant, rather more closely than the fellows have done before."
"I rather think not, your honour--Jamie is right, or my eyes do not
know a man from a woman. That is certainly a female in the garden of
Joel, and I'll engage it's Phoebe, pulling onions for his craving
stomach, the scoundrel!"
Captain Willoughby never moved without his little glass, and it was
soon levelled at the object mentioned.
"By Jupiter, you are right, Joyce"--he cried. "It is Phoebe, though the
hussy is coolly weeding, not culling the onions! Ay--and now I see Joel
himself! The rascal is examining some hoes, with as much philosophy as
if he were master of them, and all near them. This is a most singular
situation to be in!"
This last remark was altogether just. The situation of those in the Hut
was now singular indeed. Further examination showed that every cabin
had its tenant, no one of the party that remained within the palisades
being a householder. By using the glass, and pointing it, in
succession, at the different dwellings, the captain in due time
detected the presence of nearly every one of the deserters. Not a man
of them all, in fact, was missing, Mike alone excepted. There they
were, with their wives and children, in quiet possession of their
different habitations. Nor was this all; the business of the valley
seemed as much on their minds as had been their practice for years.
Cows were milked, the swine were fed, poultry was called and cared for,
and each household was also making the customary preparations for the
morning meal.