The Last of the Mohicans

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Throughout the whole of this sudden and extraordinary operation, Magua,
though he had struggled violently, until assured he was in the hands of
one whose nerves were far better strung than his own, had not uttered
the slightest exclamation. But when Hawkeye, by way of making a summary
explanation of his conduct, removed the shaggy jaws of the beast, and
exposed his own rugged and earnest countenance to the gaze of the Huron,
the philosophy of the latter was so far mastered as to permit him to
utter the never failing:

"Hugh!"

"Ay, you've found your tongue," said his undisturbed conqueror; "now,
in order that you shall not use it to our ruin, I must make free to stop
your mouth."

As there was no time to be lost, the scout immediately set about
effecting so necessary a precaution; and when he had gagged the Indian,
his enemy might safely have been considered as "hors de combat."

"By what place did the imp enter?" asked the industrious scout, when his
work was ended. "Not a soul has passed my way since you left me."

Duncan pointed out the door by which Magua had come, and which now
presented too many obstacles to a quick retreat.

"Bring on the gentle one, then," continued his friend; "we must make a
push for the woods by the other outlet."

"'Tis impossible!" said Duncan; "fear has overcome her, and she is
helpless. Alice! my sweet, my own Alice, arouse yourself; now is the
moment to fly. 'Tis in vain! she hears, but is unable to follow. Go,
noble and worthy friend; save yourself, and leave me to my fate."

"Every trail has its end, and every calamity brings its lesson!"
returned the scout. "There, wrap her in them Indian cloths. Conceal all
of her little form. Nay, that foot has no fellow in the wilderness; it
will betray her. All, every part. Now take her in your arms, and follow.
Leave the rest to me."

Duncan, as may be gathered from the words of his companion, was eagerly
obeying; and, as the other finished speaking, he took the light person
of Alice in his arms, and followed in the footsteps of the scout. They
found the sick woman as they had left her, still alone, and passed
swiftly on, by the natural gallery, to the place of entrance. As they
approached the little door of bark, a murmur of voices without announced
that the friends and relatives of the invalid were gathered about the
place, patiently awaiting a summons to re-enter.

"If I open my lips to speak," Hawkeye whispered, "my English, which is
the genuine tongue of a white-skin, will tell the varlets that an enemy
is among them. You must give 'em your jargon, major; and say that we
have shut the evil spirit in the cave, and are taking the woman to the
woods in order to find strengthening roots. Practise all your cunning,
for it is a lawful undertaking."

The door opened a little, as if one without was listening to the
proceedings within, and compelled the scout to cease his directions. A
fierce growl repelled the eavesdropper, and then the scout boldly threw
open the covering of bark, and left the place, enacting the character of
a bear as he proceeded. Duncan kept close at his heels, and soon found
himself in the center of a cluster of twenty anxious relatives and
friends.

The crowd fell back a little, and permitted the father, and one who
appeared to be the husband of the woman, to approach.

"Has my brother driven away the evil spirit?" demanded the former. "What
has he in his arms?"

"Thy child," returned Duncan, gravely; "the disease has gone out of her;
it is shut up in the rocks. I take the woman to a distance, where I will
strengthen her against any further attacks. She will be in the wigwam of
the young man when the sun comes again."

When the father had translated the meaning of the stranger's words into
the Huron language, a suppressed murmur announced the satisfaction with
which this intelligence was received. The chief himself waved his hand
for Duncan to proceed, saying aloud, in a firm voice, and with a lofty
manner:

"Go; I am a man, and I will enter the rock and fight the wicked one."

Heyward had gladly obeyed, and was already past the little group, when
these startling words arrested him.

"Is my brother mad?" he exclaimed; "is he cruel? He will meet the
disease, and it will enter him; or he will drive out the disease, and
it will chase his daughter into the woods. No; let my children wait
without, and if the spirit appears beat him down with clubs. He is
cunning, and will bury himself in the mountain, when he sees how many
are ready to fight him."

This singular warning had the desired effect. Instead of entering
the cavern, the father and husband drew their tomahawks, and posted
themselves in readiness to deal their vengeance on the imaginary
tormentor of their sick relative, while the women and children broke
branches from the bushes, or seized fragments of the rock, with a
similar intention. At this favorable moment the counterfeit conjurers
disappeared.

Hawkeye, at the same time that he had presumed so far on the nature
of the Indian superstitions, was not ignorant that they were rather
tolerated than relied on by the wisest of the chiefs. He well knew the
value of time in the present emergency. Whatever might be the extent of
the self-delusion of his enemies, and however it had tended to assist
his schemes, the slightest cause of suspicion, acting on the subtle
nature of an Indian, would be likely to prove fatal. Taking the path,
therefore, that was most likely to avoid observation, he rather skirted
than entered the village. The warriors were still to be seen in the
distance, by the fading light of the fires, stalking from lodge to
lodge. But the children had abandoned their sports for their beds of
skins, and the quiet of night was already beginning to prevail over the
turbulence and excitement of so busy and important an evening.

Alice revived under the renovating influence of the open air, and,
as her physical rather than her mental powers had been the subject of
weakness, she stood in no need of any explanation of that which had
occurred.

"Now let me make an effort to walk," she said, when they had entered the
forest, blushing, though unseen, that she had not been sooner able to
quit the arms of Duncan; "I am indeed restored."

"Nay, Alice, you are yet too weak."

The maiden struggled gently to release herself, and Heyward was
compelled to part with his precious burden. The representative of the
bear had certainly been an entire stranger to the delicious emotions of
the lover while his arms encircled his mistress; and he was, perhaps,
a stranger also to the nature of that feeling of ingenuous shame that
oppressed the trembling Alice. But when he found himself at a suitable
distance from the lodges he made a halt, and spoke on a subject of which
he was thoroughly the master.

"This path will lead you to the brook," he said; "follow its northern
bank until you come to a fall; mount the hill on your right, and you
will see the fires of the other people. There you must go and demand
protection; if they are true Delawares you will be safe. A distant
flight with that gentle one, just now, is impossible. The Hurons would
follow up our trail, and master our scalps before we had got a dozen
miles. Go, and Providence be with you."

"And you!" demanded Heyward, in surprise; "surely we part not here?"

"The Hurons hold the pride of the Delawares; the last of the high blood
of the Mohicans is in their power," returned the scout; "I go to see
what can be done in his favor. Had they mastered your scalp, major, a
knave should have fallen for every hair it held, as I promised; but if
the young Sagamore is to be led to the stake, the Indians shall see also
how a man without a cross can die."

Not in the least offended with the decided preference that the sturdy
woodsman gave to one who might, in some degree, be called the child of
his adoption, Duncan still continued to urge such reasons against so
desperate an effort as presented themselves. He was aided by Alice, who
mingled her entreaties with those of Heyward that he would abandon a
resolution that promised so much danger, with so little hope of success.
Their eloquence and ingenuity were expended in vain. The scout heard
them attentively, but impatiently, and finally closed the discussion,
by answering, in a tone that instantly silenced Alice, while it told
Heyward how fruitless any further remonstrances would be.

"I have heard," he said, "that there is a feeling in youth which binds
man to woman closer than the father is tied to the son. It may be so.
I have seldom been where women of my color dwell; but such may be the
gifts of nature in the settlements. You have risked life, and all that
is dear to you, to bring off this gentle one, and I suppose that some
such disposition is at the bottom of it all. As for me, I taught the lad
the real character of a rifle; and well has he paid me for it. I have
fou't at his side in many a bloody scrimmage; and so long as I could
hear the crack of his piece in one ear, and that of the Sagamore in the
other, I knew no enemy was on my back. Winters and summer, nights and
days, have we roved the wilderness in company, eating of the same dish,
one sleeping while the other watched; and afore it shall be said that
Uncas was taken to the torment, and I at hand--There is but a single
Ruler of us all, whatever may the color of the skin; and Him I call
to witness, that before the Mohican boy shall perish for the want of
a friend, good faith shall depart the 'arth, and 'killdeer' become as
harmless as the tooting we'pon of the singer!"

Duncan released his hold on the arm of the scout, who turned, and
steadily retraced his steps toward the lodges. After pausing a moment to
gaze at his retiring form, the successful and yet sorrowful Heyward
and Alice took their way together toward the distant village of the
Delawares.




CHAPTER 26

"Bot.--Let me play the lion too."
--Midsummer Night's Dream

Notwithstanding the high resolution of Hawkeye he fully comprehended all
the difficulties and danger he was about to incur. In his return to
the camp, his acute and practised intellects were intently engaged in
devising means to counteract a watchfulness and suspicion on the part
of his enemies, that he knew were, in no degree, inferior to his own.
Nothing but the color of his skin had saved the lives of Magua and the
conjurer, who would have been the first victims sacrificed to his own
security, had not the scout believed such an act, however congenial it
might be to the nature of an Indian, utterly unworthy of one who boasted
a descent from men that knew no cross of blood. Accordingly, he trusted
to the withes and ligaments with which he had bound his captives,
and pursued his way directly toward the center of the lodges. As he
approached the buildings, his steps become more deliberate, and his
vigilant eye suffered no sign, whether friendly or hostile, to escape
him. A neglected hut was a little in advance of the others, and appeared
as if it had been deserted when half completed--most probably on account
of failing in some of the more important requisites; such as wood
or water. A faint light glimmered through its cracks, however, and
announced that, notwithstanding its imperfect structure, it was not
without a tenant. Thither, then, the scout proceeded, like a prudent
general, who was about to feel the advanced positions of his enemy,
before he hazarded the main attack.

Throwing himself into a suitable posture for the beast he represented,
Hawkeye crawled to a little opening, where he might command a view of
the interior. It proved to be the abiding place of David Gamut. Hither
the faithful singing-master had now brought himself, together with
all his sorrows, his apprehensions, and his meek dependence on the
protection of Providence. At the precise moment when his ungainly person
came under the observation of the scout, in the manner just mentioned,
the woodsman himself, though in his assumed character, was the subject
of the solitary being's profounded reflections.

However implicit the faith of David was in the performance of ancient
miracles, he eschewed the belief of any direct supernatural agency in
the management of modern morality. In other words, while he had implicit
faith in the ability of Balaam's ass to speak, he was somewhat skeptical
on the subject of a bear's singing; and yet he had been assured of
the latter, on the testimony of his own exquisite organs. There was
something in his air and manner that betrayed to the scout the utter
confusion of the state of his mind. He was seated on a pile of brush,
a few twigs from which occasionally fed his low fire, with his head
leaning on his arm, in a posture of melancholy musing. The costume
of the votary of music had undergone no other alteration from that so
lately described, except that he had covered his bald head with the
triangular beaver, which had not proved sufficiently alluring to excite
the cupidity of any of his captors.

The ingenious Hawkeye, who recalled the hasty manner in which the other
had abandoned his post at the bedside of the sick woman, was not without
his suspicions concerning the subject of so much solemn deliberation.
First making the circuit of the hut, and ascertaining that it stood
quite alone, and that the character of its inmate was likely to protect
it from visitors, he ventured through its low door, into the very
presence of Gamut. The position of the latter brought the fire between
them; and when Hawkeye had seated himself on end, near a minute elapsed,
during which the two remained regarding each other without speaking.
The suddenness and the nature of the surprise had nearly proved too much
for--we will not say the philosophy--but for the pitch and resolution
of David. He fumbled for his pitch-pipe, and arose with a confused
intention of attempting a musical exorcism.

"Dark and mysterious monster!" he exclaimed, while with trembling hands
he disposed of his auxiliary eyes, and sought his never-failing resource
in trouble, the gifted version of the psalms; "I know not your nature
nor intents; but if aught you meditate against the person and rights
of one of the humblest servants of the temple, listen to the inspired
language of the youth of Israel, and repent."

The bear shook his shaggy sides, and then a well-known voice replied:

"Put up the tooting we'pon, and teach your throat modesty. Five words
of plain and comprehendible English are worth just now an hour of
squalling."

"What art thou?" demanded David, utterly disqualified to pursue his
original intention, and nearly gasping for breath.

"A man like yourself; and one whose blood is as little tainted by the
cross of a bear, or an Indian, as your own. Have you so soon forgotten
from whom you received the foolish instrument you hold in your hand?"

"Can these things be?" returned David, breathing more freely, as the
truth began to dawn upon him. "I have found many marvels during my
sojourn with the heathen, but surely nothing to excel this."

"Come, come," returned Hawkeye, uncasing his honest countenance, the
better to assure the wavering confidence of his companion; "you may see
a skin, which, if it be not as white as one of the gentle ones, has no
tinge of red to it that the winds of the heaven and the sun have not
bestowed. Now let us to business."

"First tell me of the maiden, and of the youth who so bravely sought
her," interrupted David.

"Ay, they are happily freed from the tomahawks of these varlets. But can
you put me on the scent of Uncas?"

"The young man is in bondage, and much I fear his death is decreed. I
greatly mourn that one so well disposed should die in his ignorance, and
I have sought a goodly hymn--"

"Can you lead me to him?"

"The task will not be difficult," returned David, hesitating; "though
I greatly fear your presence would rather increase than mitigate his
unhappy fortunes."

"No more words, but lead on," returned Hawkeye, concealing his face
again, and setting the example in his own person, by instantly quitting
the lodge.

As they proceeded, the scout ascertained that his companion found access
to Uncas, under privilege of his imaginary infirmity, aided by the favor
he had acquired with one of the guards, who, in consequence of speaking
a little English, had been selected by David as the subject of a
religious conversion. How far the Huron comprehended the intentions of
his new friend may well be doubted; but as exclusive attention is
as flattering to a savage as to a more civilized individual, it had
produced the effect we have mentioned. It is unnecessary to repeat the
shrewd manner with which the scout extracted these particulars from the
simple David; neither shall we dwell in this place on the nature of the
instruction he delivered, when completely master of all the necessary
facts; as the whole will be sufficiently explained to the reader in the
course of the narrative.

The lodge in which Uncas was confined was in the very center of the
village, and in a situation, perhaps, more difficult than any other to
approach, or leave, without observation. But it was not the policy of
Hawkeye to affect the least concealment. Presuming on his disguise, and
his ability to sustain the character he had assumed, he took the most
plain and direct route to the place. The hour, however, afforded him
some little of that protection which he appeared so much to despise. The
boys were already buried in sleep, and all the women, and most of the
warriors, had retired to their lodges for the night. Four or five of
the latter only lingered about the door of the prison of Uncas, wary but
close observers of the manner of their captive.

At the sight of Gamut, accompanied by one in the well-known masquerade
of their most distinguished conjurer, they readily made way for them
both. Still they betrayed no intention to depart. On the other hand,
they were evidently disposed to remain bound to the place by an
additional interest in the mysterious mummeries that they of course
expected from such a visit.

From the total inability of the scout to address the Hurons in their own
language, he was compelled to trust the conversation entirely to David.
Notwithstanding the simplicity of the latter, he did ample justice to
the instructions he had received, more than fulfilling the strongest
hopes of his teacher.

"The Delawares are women!" he exclaimed, addressing himself to the
savage who had a slight understanding of the language in which he spoke;
"the Yengeese, my foolish countrymen, have told them to take up the
tomahawk, and strike their fathers in the Canadas, and they have
forgotten their sex. Does my brother wish to hear 'Le Cerf Agile' ask
for his petticoats, and see him weep before the Hurons, at the stake?"

The exclamation "Hugh!" delivered in a strong tone of assent, announced
the gratification the savage would receive in witnessing such an
exhibition of weakness in an enemy so long hated and so much feared.

"Then let him step aside, and the cunning man will blow upon the dog.
Tell it to my brothers."

The Huron explained the meaning of David to his fellows, who, in their
turn, listened to the project with that sort of satisfaction that
their untamed spirits might be expected to find in such a refinement in
cruelty. They drew back a little from the entrance and motioned to the
supposed conjurer to enter. But the bear, instead of obeying, maintained
the seat it had taken, and growled:

"The cunning man is afraid that his breath will blow upon his brothers,
and take away their courage too," continued David, improving the hint he
received; "they must stand further off."

The Hurons, who would have deemed such a misfortune the heaviest
calamity that could befall them, fell back in a body, taking a position
where they were out of earshot, though at the same time they could
command a view of the entrance to the lodge. Then, as if satisfied of
their safety, the scout left his position, and slowly entered the place.
It was silent and gloomy, being tenanted solely by the captive, and
lighted by the dying embers of a fire, which had been used for the
purposed of cookery.

Uncas occupied a distant corner, in a reclining attitude, being rigidly
bound, both hands and feet, by strong and painful withes. When the
frightful object first presented itself to the young Mohican, he did not
deign to bestow a single glance on the animal. The scout, who had left
David at the door, to ascertain they were not observed, thought it
prudent to preserve his disguise until assured of their privacy. Instead
of speaking, therefore, he exerted himself to enact one of the antics of
the animal he represented. The young Mohican, who at first believed his
enemies had sent in a real beast to torment him, and try his nerves,
detected in those performances that to Heyward had appeared so accurate,
certain blemishes, that at once betrayed the counterfeit. Had Hawkeye
been aware of the low estimation in which the skillful Uncas held his
representations, he would probably have prolonged the entertainment
a little in pique. But the scornful expression of the young man's eye
admitted of so many constructions, that the worthy scout was spared the
mortification of such a discovery. As soon, therefore, as David gave the
preconcerted signal, a low hissing sound was heard in the lodge in place
of the fierce growlings of the bear.

Uncas had cast his body back against the wall of the hut and closed
his eyes, as if willing to exclude so contemptible and disagreeable
an object from his sight. But the moment the noise of the serpent was
heard, he arose, and cast his looks on each side of him, bending his
head low, and turning it inquiringly in every direction, until his keen
eye rested on the shaggy monster, where it remained riveted, as though
fixed by the power of a charm. Again the same sounds were repeated,
evidently proceeding from the mouth of the beast. Once more the eyes of
the youth roamed over the interior of the lodge, and returning to the
former resting place, he uttered, in a deep, suppressed voice:

"Hawkeye!"

"Cut his bands," said Hawkeye to David, who just then approached them.

The singer did as he was ordered, and Uncas found his limbs released. At
the same moment the dried skin of the animal rattled, and presently
the scout arose to his feet, in proper person. The Mohican appeared to
comprehend the nature of the attempt his friend had made, intuitively,
neither tongue nor feature betraying another symptom of surprise. When
Hawkeye had cast his shaggy vestment, which was done by simply loosing
certain thongs of skin, he drew a long, glittering knife, and put it in
the hands of Uncas.

"The red Hurons are without," he said; "let us be ready." At the same
time he laid his finger significantly on another similar weapon, both
being the fruits of his prowess among their enemies during the evening.

"We will go," said Uncas.

"Whither?"

"To the Tortoises; they are the children of my grandfathers."

"Ay, lad," said the scout in English--a language he was apt to use
when a little abstracted in mind; "the same blood runs in your veins,
I believe; but time and distance has a little changed its color. What
shall we do with the Mingoes at the door? They count six, and this
singer is as good as nothing."

"The Hurons are boasters," said Uncas, scornfully; "their 'totem' is
a moose, and they run like snails. The Delawares are children of the
tortoise, and they outstrip the deer."

"Ay, lad, there is truth in what you say; and I doubt not, on a rush,
you would pass the whole nation; and, in a straight race of two miles,
would be in, and get your breath again, afore a knave of them all was
within hearing of the other village. But the gift of a white man lies
more in his arms than in his legs. As for myself, I can brain a Huron as
well as a better man; but when it comes to a race the knaves would prove
too much for me."

Uncas, who had already approached the door, in readiness to lead the
way, now recoiled, and placed himself, once more, in the bottom of the
lodge. But Hawkeye, who was too much occupied with his own thoughts
to note the movement, continued speaking more to himself than to his
companion.

"After all," he said, "it is unreasonable to keep one man in bondage to
the gifts of another. So, Uncas, you had better take the lead, while I
will put on the skin again, and trust to cunning for want of speed."

The young Mohican made no reply, but quietly folded his arms, and leaned
his body against one of the upright posts that supported the wall of the
hut.

"Well," said the scout looking up at him, "why do you tarry? There will
be time enough for me, as the knaves will give chase to you at first."

"Uncas will stay," was the calm reply.

"For what?"

"To fight with his father's brother, and die with the friend of the
Delawares."

"Ay, lad," returned Hawkeye, squeezing the hand of Uncas between his own
iron fingers; "'twould have been more like a Mingo than a Mohican had
you left me. But I thought I would make the offer, seeing that youth
commonly loves life. Well, what can't be done by main courage, in war,
must be done by circumvention. Put on the skin; I doubt not you can play
the bear nearly as well as myself."