HeopenedthedooramomentlaterandwhenJimGirtyandDeeringenteredheturnedtohisfriendswithadreaduncertaintyinhishaggardface。
Edwardslayonthebedwithwide—openeyesstaringattheintruders。Mr。Wellssatwithbowedhead。Zeisbergercalmlywhittledastick,andJimstoodboltupright,withahardlightinhiseyes。
Nellleanedagainstthesideofaheavytable。Wonderfulwasthechangethathadtransformedherfromatimid,appealing,fear—agonizedgirltoawomanwhoseonlyevidenceofunusualexcitementweretheflameinhereyesandthepeculiarwhitenessofherface。
Bennywasgone！
Heckewelder\'sglancereturnedtothevisitors。Hethoughthehadneverseensuchbrutal,hideousmen。
\"Wal,Ireckonapreacherain\'tagoin\'tolie。HevyouseenanyInjunChristiansroundhere？\"askedGirty,wavingaheavysledge—hammer。
\"Girty,wehavehiddennoIndianshere,\"answeredHeckewelder,calmly。
\"Wal,we\'llhevalook,anyway,\"answeredtherenegade。
Girtysurveyedtheroomwithwolfisheyes。Deeringwassodrunkthathestaggered。Bothmen,infact,reekedwiththevilefumesofrum。Withoutanotherwordtheyproceededtoexaminetheroom,bylookingintoeverybox,behindastoneoven,andinthecupboard。Theydrewthebedclothesfromthebed,andwithakickdemolishedapileofstovewood。Thentheruffianspassedintotheotherapartments,wheretheycouldbeheardmakingthoroughsearch。
Atlengthbothreturnedtothelargeroom,whenGirtydirectedDeeringtoclimbaladderleadingtotheloft,butbecauseDeeringwastoomuchundertheinfluenceofliquortodoso,hehadtogohimself。Herummagedaroundupthereforafewminutes,andthencamedown。
\"Wal,Ireckonyouwasn\'tlyin\'aboutit,\"saidGirty,withhisghastlyleer。
Heandhiscompanionstartedtogoout。DeeringhadstoodwithbloodshoteyesfixedonNellwhileGirtysearchedtheloft,andastheypassedthegirlontheirwaytotheopenair,therenegadelookedatGirtyashemotionedwithhisheadtowardher。Hisbesottedfaceexpressedsometerriblemeaning。
GirtyhadlookedatNellwhenhefirstentered,buthadnotglancedtwiceather。Asheturnednow,beforegoingoutofthedoor,hefixedonherhisbalefulglance。Hisaspectwasmorefullofmeaningthancouldhavebeenanywords。Ahorriblepower,ofwhichhewasboastfullyconscious,shonefromhislittle,pointedeyes。Hismerepresencewasdeadly。Plainlyasifhehadspokenwasthesignificanceofhislonggaze。Anyonecouldhavetranslatedthatlook。
OncebeforeNellhadfacedit,andfaintedwhenitsdreadmeaninggrewcleartoher。Butnowshereturnedhisgazewithoneinwhichflashedlightningscorn,andrepulsion,inwhichglowedawonderfuldefiance。
Thecruelfaceofthisman,theboastfulbarbarityofhismanner,thelong,dark,bloodyhistorywhichhispresencerecalled,was,indeed,terrifyingwithouttheaddedhorrorofhisintenttowardher,butnottheself—forgetfulnessofatruewomansustainedher。
GirtyandDeeringbackedoutofthedoor。Heckewelderclosedit,anddroppedthebarinplace。
Nellfelloverthetablewithalong,lowgasp。Thenwithonehandsheliftedherskirt。Bennywalkedfromunderit。Hisbigeyeswerebright。Theyoungwomanclaspedhimagaininherarms。Thenshereleasedhim,and,laboringunderintenseexcitement,rantothewindow。
\"Therehegoes！Oh,thehorriblebeast！IfIonlyhadagunandcouldshoot！
Oh,ifonlyIwereaman！I\'dkillhim。TothinkofpoorKate！Ah！heintendsthesameforme！\"
Suddenlyshefelluponthefloorinafaint。Mr。WellsandJimliftedheronthebedbesideEdwards,wheretheyendeavoredtoreviveher。Itwassomemomentsbeforesheopenedhereyes。
JimsatholdingNell\'shand。Mr。Wellsagainbowedhishead。Zeisbergercontinuedtowhittleastick,andHeckewelderpacedthefloor。Christystoodbywitheveryevidenceofsympathyforthisdistractedgroup。Outsidetheclamorincreased。
\"Justlisten！\"criedHeckewelder。\"Didyoueverhearthelike？Alldrunk,crazy,fiendish！TheydrankeverydropofliquortheFrenchtradershad。
Cursesonthevagabonddealers！Rumhasmadetheserenegadesandsavageswild。
Oh！mypoor,innocentChristians！\"
Heckewelderleanedhisheadagainstthemantle—shelf。Hehadbrokendownatlast。Rackingsobsshookhisframe。
\"Areyouallrightagain？\"askedJimofNell。
\"Yes。\"
\"Iamgoingout,firsttoseeWilliamson,andthentheChristians,\"hesaid,risingverypale,butcalm。
\"Don\'tgo！\"criedHeckewelder。\"Ihavetriedeverything。Itwasallofnouse。\"
\"Iwillgo,\"answeredJim。
\"Yes,Jim,go,\"whisperedNell,lookingupintohiseyes。Itwasanearnestgazeinwhichafainthopeshone。
Jimunbarredthedoorandwentout。
\"Wait,I\'llgoalong,\"criedZeisberger,suddenlydroppinghisknifeandstick。
Asthetwomenwentoutafearfulspectaclemettheireyes。TheclearingwasalivewithIndians。ButsuchIndians！Theywerepainteddemons,maddenedbyrum。Yesterdaytheyhadbeensilent;iftheymovedatallithadbeenwithdeliberationanddignity。To—daytheywereayelling,running,blood—seekingmob。
\"Awful！Didyoueverseehumanbeingslikethese？\"askedZeisberger。
\"No,no！\"
\"Isawsuchafrenzyoncebefore,but,ofcourse,onlyinasmallbandofsavages。ManytimeshaveIseenIndianspreparingforthewar—path,insearchofbothwhitemenandredskins。Theywerefiercethen,butnothinglikethis。
Everyoneofthesefrenziedfiendsishonest。Thinkofthat！EverymanfeelsithisdutytomurdertheseChristians。Girtyhasleduptothisbycunning,andnowthetimeiscometoletthemloose。\"
\"Itmeansdeathforall。\"
\"Ihavegivenupanythoughtofescaping,\"saidZeisberger,withthecalmnessthathadcharacterizedhismannersincehereturnedtothevillage。\"Ishalltrytogetintothechurch。\"
\"I\'lljoinyouthereassoonasIseeWilliamson。\"
JimwalkedrapidlyacrosstheclearingtothecabinwhereCaptainWilliamsonhadquarters。Thefrontiersmenstoodingroups,watchingthesavageswithaninterestwhichshowedlittleornoconcern。
\"IwanttoseeCaptainWilliamson,\"saidJimtoafrontiersmanonguardatthecabindoor。
\"Wal,he\'sinside,\"drawledtheman。
Jimthoughtthevoicefamiliar,andheturnedsharplytoseethesun—burntfeaturesofJeffLynn,theoldrivermanwhohadtakenMr。Wells\'partytoFortHenry。
\"Why,Lynn！I\'mgladtoseeyou,\"exclaimedJim。
\"Purtyfairtomiddlin\',\"answeredJeff,extendinghisbighand。\"Say,how\'stheotherone,yourbrotheraswuscalledJoe？\"
\"Idon\'tknow。HeranoffwithWetzel,wascapturedbyIndians,andwhenI
lastheardofhimhehadmarriedWingenund\'sdaughter。\"
\"Wal,I\'llbedog—goned！\"Jeffshookhisgrizzledheadandslappedhisleg。\"I
jestknowedhe\'draisesomethin\'。\"
\"I\'minahurry。DoyouthinkCaptainWilliamsonwillstandstillandletallthisgoon？\"
\"I\'mafeerdso。\'
Evidentlythecaptainheardtheconversation,forheappearedatthecabindoor,smokingalongpipe。
\"CaptainWilliamson,IhavecometoentreatyoutosavetheChristiansfromthisimpendingmassacre。\"
\"Ican\'tdonuthin\',\"answeredWilliamson,removinghispipetopuffforthagreatcloudofsmoke。
\"Youhaveeightymenhere！\"
\"IfweinterferedPipewouldeatusaliveinthreeminutes。Youpreacherfellowsdon\'tunderstandthisthing。You\'vegotPipeandGirtytodealwith。
Ifyoudon\'tknowthem,you\'llbebetteracquaintedbysundown。\"
\"Idon\'tcarewhotheyare。Drunkenruffiansandsavages！That\'senough。Willyouhelpus？Wearemenofyourownrace,andwecometoyouforhelp。Canyouwithholdit？\"
\"Iwon\'thevnuthin\'todowiththisbizness。Thechiefshevcondemnedthevillage,an\'it\'llhevtogo。Ifyoufellarshedbeencareful,nowhitebloodwouldhevbeenspilled。Iadviseyoualltolaylowtillit\'sover。\"
\"Willyouletmespeaktoyourmen,totryandgetthemtofollowme？\"
\"Heckewelderaskedthatsamething。Hewaspersistent,andItookavoteferhimjusttoshowhowmymenstood。Eighteenofthemsaidthey\'dfollowhim;
therestwouldn\'tinterfere。\"
\"Eighteen！MyGod！\"criedJim,voicingthepassionwhichconsumedhim。\"Youarewhitemen,yetyouwillstandbyandseetheseinnocentpeoplemurdered！
Man,where\'syourhumanity？Yourmanhood？TheseconvertedIndiansaresavagesnolonger,theyareChristians。Theirchildrenareasgood,pure,innocentasyourown。Canyouremainidleandseetheselittleonesmurdered？\"
Williamsonmadenoanswer,themenwhohadcrowdedroundwereequallysilent。
Notoneloweredhishead。manylookedattheimpassionedmissionary;othersgazedatthesavageswhowerecirclingaroundthetreesbrandishingtheirweapons。IfanypitiedtheunfortunateChristians,noneshowedit。Theywereindifferent,withtheindifferenceofmenhardenedtocruelscenes。
Jimunderstood,atlast,asheturnedfromfacetofacetofindeverywherethatsameimperturbability。ThesebordermenwerelikeWetzelandJonathanZane。TheonlygoodIndianwasadeadIndian。Yearsofwarandbloodshed,ofmercilesscrueltyatthehandsofredmen,ofthehard,borderlifehadrenderedthesefrontiersmenincapableofcompassionforanysavage。
Jimnolongerrestrainedhimself。
\"Bordermenyoumaybe,butfrommystandpoint,fromanyman\'s,fromGod\'s,youarealotofcoldlyindifferentcowards！\"exclaimedJim,withwhite,quiveringlips。\"Iunderstandnow。FewofyouwillriskanythingforIndians。YouwillnotbelieveasavagecanbeaChristian。Youdon\'tcareiftheyareallmurdered。Anymanamongyou——anyman,Isay——wouldstepoutbeforethosehowlingfiendsandboldlydemandthattherebenobloodshed。Acourageousleaderwithabandofdeterminedfollowerscouldavertthistragedy。Youmightreadilyintimidateyonderhordeofdrunkendemons。CaptainWilliamson,Iamonlyaminister,farremovedfromamanofwarandleader,asyouclaimtobe,but,sir,Icurseyouasamiserablecoward。IfIevergetbacktocivilizationI\'llbrandthisinhumancoldnessofyours,asthemostinfamousanddastardlycowardicethateverdisgracedawhiteman。YouareworsethanGirty！\"
Williamsonturnedasicklyyellow;hefumbledasecondwiththehandleofhistomahawk,butmadenoanswer。Theotherbordermenmaintainedthesamecarelesscomposure。Whattothemwastheravingofamadpreacher？
Jimsawitandturnedbaffled,fiercelyangry,andhopeless。AshewalkedawayJeffLynntookhisarm,andaftertheywereclearofthecrowdoffrontiersmenhesaid:
\"Youngfeller,yougivehimpepper,an\'nomistake。An\'mebbeyou\'rerightfromyoursidethefence。Butyoucan\'tseetheInjunsfromourside。Wehuntershevn\'tmuchhumanity——Ireckonthat\'swhatyoucalledit——butwe\'velostsomanyfriendsan\'relatives,an\'hearnofsomanymurdersbythereddysthatwelookonallof\'emaswildvarmintsthatshouldbekilledonsight。
Now,mebbeit\'llinterestyoutoknowIwasthefellerwhotookthevoteWilliamsontoldyouabout,an\'Ididit\'causeIhadaninterestinyou。Iwuswatchin\'youwhenEdwardsandtheothermissionarygotshot。Ilikegritinaman,an\'Iseenyouhaditclearthrough。SowhenHeckeweldercomesoverI
talkedtothefellers,an\'allIcouldgitinterestedwaseighteen,buttheywantedtofightsimplyferfightin\'sake。Now,oleJeffLynnisyourfriend。
Youjustlaylowuntilthisisover。\"
Jimthankedtheoldrivermanandlefthim。Hehardlyknewwhichwaytoturn。
Hewouldmakeonemoreeffort。Hecrossedtheclearingtowheretherenegades\'
teepeestood。McKeeandElliottweresittingonalog。SimonGirtystoodbesidethem,hishard,keen,rovingeyesonthescene。Themissionarywasimpressedbythewhiteleader。Therewasadifferenceinhisaspect,awilderlookthantheotherswore,asifthemanhadsuddenlyawakenedtothefuryofhisIndians。Neverthelesstheyoungmanwentstraighttowardhim。
\"Girty,Icome———\"
\"Gitout！Youmeddlin\'preacher！\"yelledtherenegade,shakinghisfistatJim。
SimonGirtywasdrunk。
Jimturnedfromthewhitefiends。Heknewhislifetothemwasnotworthapinchofpowder。
\"Lost！Lost！Alllost！\"heexclaimedindespair。
Ashewenttowardthechurchhesawhundredsofsavagesboundingoverthegrass,brandishingweaponsandwhoopingfiendishly。TheywereconcentratingaroundGirty\'steepee,wherealreadyagreatthronghadcongregated。OfalltheIndianstobeseennotonewalked。TheyleapedbyJim,andranoverthegrassnimbleasdeer。
Hesawtheeager,fireintheirduskyeyes,andthecruellyclenchedteethlikethoseofwolveswhentheysnarl。Hefeltthehissingbreathofmanysavagesastheyracedbyhim。MorethanonewhirledatomahawkclosetoJim\'shead,andutteredhorribleyellsinhisear。Theywereliketigerslustingforblood。
Jimhurriedtothechurch。NotanIndianwasvisiblenearthelogstructure。
Eventhesavageguardshadgone。Heenteredtheopendoortobeinstantlystruckwithreverenceandawe。
TheChristiansweresinging。
MiserableandfullofsickeningdreadthoughJimwas,hecouldnotbutrealizethatthescenebeforehimwasoneofextraordinarybeautyandpathos。ThedoomedIndianslifteduptheirvoicesinsong。Neverhadtheysungsofeelingly,soharmoniously。
WhenthesongendedZeisberger,whostooduponaplatform,openedhisBibleandread:
\"InalittlewrathIhidmyfacefromtheeforamoment,butwitheverlastingkindnesswillIhavemercyonthee,saiththeLord,thyRedeemer。\"
Inavoicelowandtremulousthevenerablemissionarybeganhissermon。
TheshadowofdeathhoveredovertheseChristianmartyrs;itwasreflectedintheirsombereyes,yetnotonewassullenorsad。Thechildrenwhoweretooyoungtounderstand,butinstinctivelyfeelingthetragedysoontobeenactedthere,coweredclosetotheirmothers。
Zeisbergerpreachedatouchingandimpressive,thoughshort,sermon。Atitsconclusionthewholecongregationroseandsurroundedthemissionary。Themenshookhishands,thewomenkissedthem,thechildrenclungtohislegs。Itwasawonderfulmanifestationofaffection。
SuddenlyGlickhican,theoldDelawarechief,steppedontheplatform,raisedhishandandshoutedoneIndianword。
Along,lowwailwentupfromthechildrenandyouths;thewomenslowly,meeklybowedtheirheads。Themen,duetothestoicismoftheirnatureandtheChristianitytheyhadlearned,stoodproudlyerectawaitingthedeaththathadbeendecreed。
Glickhicanpulledthebellrope。
Adeep,mellowtonepealedout。
ThesoundtransfixedalltheChristians。Noonemoved。
GlickhicanhadgiventhesignalwhichtoldthemurdererstheChristianswereready。
\"Come,man,myGod！Wecan\'tstayhere！\"criedJimtoZeisberger。
Astheywentoutbothmenturnedtolooktheirlastonthemartyrs。ThedeathknellwhichhadrungintheearsoftheChristians,wastothemthevoiceofGod。Stern,darkvisagesofmenandthesweet,submissivefacesofwomenwereupliftedwithraptattention。AlightseemedtoshinefromthesefacesasifthecontemplationofGodhadilluminedthem。
AsZeisbergerandJimleftthechurchandhurriedtowardthecabins,theysawthecrowdofsavagesinablackmassroundGirty\'steepee。Theyellingandleapinghadceased。
Heckewelderopenedthedoor。Evidentlyhehadwatchedforthem。
\"Jim！Jim！\"criedNell,whenheenteredthecabin。\"Oh—h！Iwasafraid。Oh！I
amgladyou\'rebacksafe。See,thisnobleIndianhascometohelpus。\"
Wingenundstoodcalmanderectbythedoor。
\"Chief,whatwillyoudo？\"
\"Wingenundwillshowyouthewaytothebigriver,\"answeredthechieftain,inhisdeepbass。
\"Runaway？No,never！Thatwouldbecowardly。Heckewelder,youwouldnotgo？
Noryou,Zeisberger？Wemayyetbeofuse,wemayyetsavesomeoftheChristians。\"
\"Savetheyellow—hair,\"sternlysaidWingenund。
\"Oh,Jim,youdon\'tunderstand。ThechiefhascometowarnmeofGirty。Heintendstotakemeashehasothers,ashedidpoorKate。didyounotseethemeaninginhiseyesto—day？Howtheyscorchedme！Ho！Jim,takemeaway！Saveme！Donotleavemeheretothathorriblefate？Oh！Jim,takemeaway！\"
\"Nell,Iwilltakeyou,\"criedJim,graspingherhands。
\"Hurry！There\'sablanketfullofthingsIpackedforyou,\"saidHeckewelder。
\"Losenotime。Ah！hearthat！MyHeavens！whatayell！\"Heckewelderrushedtothedoorandlookedout。\"Theretheygo,ablackmobofimps;apackofhungrywolves！JimGirtyisinthelead。Howheleaps！Howhewaveshissledge！Heleadsthesavagestowardthechurch。Oh！it\'stheend！\"
\"Benny？Where\'sBenny？\"criedJim,hurriedlylacingthehuntingcoathehadflungabouthim。
\"Benny\'ssafe。I\'vehiddenhim。I\'llgethimawayfromhere,\"answeredyoungChristy。\"Go！Now\'syourtime。Godspeedyou！\"
\"I\'mready,\"declaredMr。Wells。\"I——have——finished！\"
\"TheregoesWingenund！He\'srunning。Followhim,quick！Good—by！Good—by！Godbewithyou！\"criedHeckewelder。
\"Good—by！Good—by！\"
JimhurriedNelltowardthebusheswhereWingenund\'stallformcoulddimlybeseen。Mr。Wellsfollowedthem。OntheedgeoftheclearingJimandNellturnedtolookback。
Theysawablackmassofyelling,struggling,fightingsavagescrowdingaroundthechurch。
\"Oh！Jim,lookback！Lookback！\"criedNell,holdinghardtohishand。\"Lookback！SeeifGirtyiscoming！\"
ChapterXXVII。
Atlastthefugitivesbreathedfreeunderthegoldandredcoverofthewoods。
Neverspeaking,neverlookingback,theguidehurriedeastwardwithlongstrides。Hisfollowerswerealmostforcedtoruninordertokeephiminsight。Hehadwaitedattheedgeoftheclearingforthem,and,relievingJimoftheheavypack,whichheswungslightlyoverhisshoulder,hesetapacethatwasmostdifficulttomaintain。Theyoungmissionaryhalfled,halfcarriedNelloverthestonesandroughplaces。Mr。Wellslaboredintherear。
\"Oh！Jim！Lookback！Lookback！Seeifwearepursued！\"criedNellfrequently,withmanyaearfulglanceintothedensethickets。
TheIndiantookastraightcoursethroughthewoods。Heleapedthebrooks,climbedtheroughridges,andswiftlytrodthegladesthatwerefreeofwindfalls。Hishurryandutterdisregardfortheplaintrailleftbehind,provedhisbeliefinthenecessityofplacingmanymilesbetweenthefugitivesandtheVillageofPeace。Evidentlytheywouldbefollowed,anditwouldbeawasteofvaluabletimetotrytoconcealtheirtrail。Graduallythegroundbegantorise,thewaybecomemoredifficult,butWingenundneverslackenedhispace。Nellwasstrong,supple,andlightoffoot。SheheldherownwithJim,buttimeandtimeagaintheywereobligedtowaitforheruncle。Oncehewasfarbehind。Wingenundhaltedforthemattheheightofaridgewheretheforestwasopen。
\"Ugh！\"exclaimedthechieftain,astheyfinishedtheascent。Hestretchedalongarmtowardthesun;hisfalconeyegleamed。
Farinthewestagreatblackandyellowcloudofsmokerolledheavenward。Itseemedtorisefromouttheforest,andtohanglowoverthetrees;thenitsoaredaloftandgrewthinneruntilitlostitsdistinctlinefarintheclouds。Thesettingsunstoodyetanhourhighoveradistanthill,andburneddarkredthroughthegreatpallofsmoke。
\"Isitaforestfire？\"askedNell,fearfully。
\"Fire,ofcourse,but———\"Jimdidnotvoicehisfear;helookedcloselyatWingenund。
Thechieftainstoodsilentamomentaswashiswontwhenaddressed。Thedullglowofthesunwasreflectedinthedarkeyesthatgazedfarawayoverforestandfield。
\"Fire,\"saidWingenund,anditseemedthatashespokeasternershadowflittedacrosshisbronzedface。\"Thesunsetsto—nightovertheashesoftheVillageofPeace。
Heresumedhisrapidmarcheastward。Withneverabackwardglancethesaddenedpartyfollowed。NellkeptclosebesideJim,andtheoldmantrampedafterthemwithbowedhead。Thesunset,butWingenundneverslackenedhisstride。
Twilightdeepened,yethekepton。
\"Indian,wecangonofurtherto—night,wemustrest,\"criedJim,asNellstumbledagainsthim,andMr。Wellspantedwearilyintherear。
\"Restsoon,\"repliedthechief,andkepton。
DarknesshadsettleddownwhenWingenundatlasthalted。Thefugitivescouldseelittleinthegloom,buttheyheardthemusicofrunningwater,andfeltsoftmossbeneaththeirfeet。
Theysankwearilydownuponaprojectingstone。Themosswasrestfultotheirtiredlimbs。Openingthepacktheyfoundfoodwithwhichtosatisfythedemandsofhunger。Then,closeunderthestone,thefugitivessankintoslumberwhilethewatchfulIndianstoodsilentandmotionless。
Jimthoughthehadbutjustclosedhiseyeswhenhefeltagentlepressureonhisarm。
\"Dayishere,\"saidtheIndian。
Jimopenedhiseyestoseethebrightredsuncrimsoningtheeasternhills,andstreaminggloriouslyoverthecoloredforests。Heraisedhimselfonhiselbowtolookaround。Nellwasstillasleep。Theblanketwastuckedclosetoherchin。Herchestnuthairwastumbledlikeaschoolgirl\'s;shelookedasfreshandsweetasthemorning。
\"Nell,Nell,wakeup,\"saidJim,thinkingthewhilehowhewouldlovetokissthosewhiteeyelids。
Nell\'seyesopenedwide;asmilelaydeepintheirhazelshadows。
\"WhereaI？Oh,Iremember,\"shecried,sittingup。\"Oh,Jim,Ihadsuchasweetdream。IwasathomewithmotherandKate。Oh,towakeandfinditalladream！Iamfleeingforlife。But,Jim,wearesafe,arewenot？\"
\"Anotherday,andwe\'llbesafe。\"
\"Letusfly,\"shecried,leapingupandshakingouthercrumpledskirt。
\"Uncle,come！\"
Mr。Wellslayquietlywithhismildblueeyessmilingupather。Heneithermovednorspoke。
\"Eat,drink,\"saidthechief,openingthepack。
\"Whatabeautifulplace,\"exclaimedNell,takingthebreadandmeathandedtoher。\"Thisisalovelylittleglade。Lookatthosegoldenflowers,theredandpurpleleaves,thebrownshiningmoss,andthoselichen—coveredstones。Why！
Someonehascampedhere。Seethelittlecave,thescreensofplaitedferns,andthestonefireplace。\"
\"Itseemstomethisdarkspringandthosegracefullyspreadingbranchesarefamiliar,\"saidJim。
\"BeautifulSpring,\"interposedWingenund。
\"Yes,Iknowthisplace,\"criedNellexcitedly。\"IrememberthisgladethoughitwasmoonlightwhenIsawit。HereWetzelrescuedmefromGirty。\"
\"Nell,you\'reright,\"repliedJim。\"Howstrangeweshouldrunacrossthisplaceagain。\"
Strangefate,indeed,whichhadbroughtthemagaintoBeautifulSpring！Itwasdestinedthatthegreatscenesoftheirlivesweretobeenactedinthismossyglade。
\"Come,uncle,youarelazy,\"criedNell,atouchofheroldroguishnessmakingplayfulhervoice。
Mr。Wellslaystill,andsmiledupatthem。
\"Youarenotill？\"criedNell,seeingforthefirsttimehowpallidwashisface。
\"DearNellie,Iamnotill。Idonotsuffer,butIamdying,\"heanswered,againwiththatstrange,sweetsmile。
\"Oh—h—h！\"breathedNell,fallingonherknees。
\"No,no,Mr。Wells,youareonlyweak;youwillbeallrightagainsoon,\"
criedJim。
\"Jim,Nellie,Ihaveknownallnight。Ihavelainherewakeful。Myheartneverwasstrong。Itgaveoutyesterday,andnowitisslowlygrowingweaker。Putyourhandonmybreast。Feel。Ah！yousee！Mylifeisflickering。God\'swillbedone。Iamcontent。Myworkisfinished。MyonlyregretisthatIbroughtyououttothisterribleborderland。ButIdidnotknow。IfonlyIcouldseeyousafefromtheperilofthiswilderness,athome,happy,married。\"
Nellbentoverhimblindedbyhertears,unabletoseeorspeak,crushedbythislastoverwhelmingblow。Jimsatontheothersideoftheoldmissionary,holdinghishand。Formanymomentsneitherspoke。Theyglancedatthepaleface,watchingwitheager,wistfuleyesforasmile,orlisteningforaword。
\"Come,\"saidtheIndian。
Nellsilentlypointedtowardheruncle。
\"Heisdying,\"whisperedJimtotheIndian。
\"Go,leaveme,\"murmuredMr。Wells。\"Youarestillindanger。\"
\"We\'llnotleaveyou,\"criedJim。
\"No,no,no,\"sobbedNell,bendingovertokisshim。
\"Nellie,mayImarryyoutoJim？\"whisperedMr。Wellsintoherear。\"Hehastoldmehowitiswithhim。Helovesyou,Nellie。I\'ddiehappierknowingI\'dleftyouwithhim。\"
Evenatthatmoment,withherheartalmostbreaking,Nell\'sfairfaceflushed。
\"Nell,willyoumarryme？\"askedJim,softly。Lowthoughitwas,hehadheardMr。Wells\'whisper。
NellstretchedalittletremblinghandoverheruncletoJim,whoincloseditinhisown。Hereyesmethis。Throughhertearsshonefaintlyalight,which,butfortheagonythatmadeitdim,wouldhavebeamedradiant。
\"Findtheplace,\"saidMr。Wells,handingJimaBible。Itwastheonehealwayscarriedinhispocket。
WithtremblinghandJimturnedtheleaves。Atlasthefoundthelines,andhandedthebookbacktotheoldman。
Simple,sweetandsadwasthatmarriageservice。NellandJimkneltwithhandsclaspedoverMr。Wells。Theoldmissionary\'svoicewasfaint;Nell\'sresponseswerelow,andJimansweredwithdeepandtenderfeeling。BesidethemstoodWingenund,adark,magnificentfigure。
\"There！MayGodblessyou！\"murmuredMr。Wells,withahappysmile,closingtheBible。
\"Nell,mywife！\"whisperedJim,kissingherhand。
\"Come！\"brokeinWingenund\'svoice,deep,strong,likethatofabell。
Notoneofthemhadobservedthechiefashestooderect,motionless,poisedlikeastagscentingtheair。Hisdarkeyesseemedtopiercethepurple—goldenforest,hiskeenearseemedtodrinkinthesingingofthebirdsandthegentlerustlingofleaves。Nativetothesehauntsaswerethewildcreatures,theywerenoquickerthantheIndiantofeeltheapproachoffoes。Thebreezehadbornefaint,suspicioussounds。