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。