CHAPTER XII
BACKWOODS JUSTICE
At daybreak on this very morning when the Yorkers attacked the Hardingplace, 'Siah Bolderwood returning from the direction of Old Ti, suddenlycame upon a little glade on the bank of the Walloomscoik Creek. With theinstinct long gained by his life as hunter and woodsman, he nevercrossed an open space in the forest without examining it well. In thisglade he saw, at first glance, the signs of recent occupancy. Thesmouldering ashes of a campfire and the marks on the creek bank told himthat a canoe party had camped there during the night and that they hadbeen under way but shortly. Making sure that they were now out of sighthe more closely examined the spot. The party numbered at least half adozen, and there had been two canoes. He had come up the creek bankhimself; therefore, not having seen the strangers, they had gone onahead of him. Five miles or so up the stream lay the ox-bow at which hisold friend Jonas Harding settled when he came into the Disputed Grounds,and where the widow and her brood now lived. After examining the camp hequickened his step toward the Harding place.
A mile further on, however, he heard the stroke of paddles and the soundof men's voices. He would have gone to the fringed river bank and peeredout upon the stream had not a figure suddenly risen before him as thoughfrom the ground itself and barred his way. "How d'ye, Crow Wing!" heexclaimed, yet showing no surprise at the Indian youth's appearance. Thelatter bore a brace of rabbits on his gun and Bolderwood guessed that hebelonged to the canoe party and had left them to get this game for theirdinner.
"Umph!" returned the Indian and looked at him stolidly.
"Your people?" asked the ranger, with a gesture toward the river.
"Umph!" was the reply. It might have meant yes or no. Crow Wing seemedundecided. "Why you no at Hardings?" he demanded finally.
"I'm bound that a-way now," said the white man.
"Hunting?" grunted Crow Wing.
"Been up to Old Ti. Bought some land up there."
Crow Wing seemed about to pass on. But over his shoulder he said: "Yougo to Hardings' farm. They want you--mebbe."
"What for?"
The Indian shrugged his shoulders and walked on. But Bolderwood strodeafter him. "What's going on?" he asked, anxiously. "Who's that outyonder?" nodding again toward the creek.
"Umph! Men hire Crow Wing to paddle canoe. They go to Hardings'."
"Yorkers!" exclaimed Bolderwood.
But the Indian youth said no more and quickly disappeared in the busheswhich overhung the creek. The ranger hesitated a moment, appeared tothink of following him, and then turned abruptly and plunged into theforest on a course diagonal from the river. Therefore, when Nuck andBryce were fighting the bears in the swamp he did not hear their guns,being by that time some miles away and striding rapidly towardArlington. He had suspected the truth and instead of wasting timeobserving the party of which Crow Wing was a member, he had it in hismind to rouse the neighbors to go to the aid of the widow and herchildren. After the affair at Otter Creek, which he was sorry indeed tohave missed, Bolderwood had expected something like the present raid.He, like the Hardings, believed that Simon Halpen would find the timeripe for the carrying out of his nefarious designs.
It was the season of the year when the farm work having been completed,the pioneers felt free to go about more, and hunting was popular. Manymen were off with their rifles; but Bolderwood picked up some half dozendetermined fellows and hastened back to the Harding place. While yetsome distance away they heard a rifle shot and so disturbed was theranger by this, that he started on the run for the ox-bow farm, and wasfar ahead of his friends when he broke cover at the edge of the forestand beheld the cabin.
His horror and despair when he saw the house wrapped in flames and theYorkers running across the fields toward the river, knew no bounds. Yeteven then he did not suppose that the widow and her family were withinthe burning dwelling. He presumed they must be hiding in theoutbuildings and he ran on after the fleeing Yorkers, thinking only totake vengeance upon them for their wanton cruelty in burning down thepoor woman's house at the beginning of winter.
One man kept turning back to look at the blazing structure which was nowmore than half consumed; and this fellow the ranger quickly overtook. Itwas the surveyor and he was wringing his hands and weeping as he ran.Bolderwood dashed past him without a word, seeing plainly that he wasnot armed and was sore frightened. "I'll attend to your case later," theranger muttered, and spurred on after the rest of the party. But theywere too quick for him, and having reached the bank of the creek leapedinto their canoes and the Indians pushed off. The fear of what they haddone pressed them hard and they had run like madmen from their singlepursuer. Now at an order from Halpen the Indians stolidly paddled downthe river again and were quickly out of sight around the nearest bend inthe stream.
Bolderwood went back and found the surveyor prone upon the ground andweeping like a woman. "Get up, you great ca'f!" cried the ranger."Nobody'll kill you for your part in this matter though you desarvelittle mercy.... Was that Simon Halpen?"
"It was indeed--the demon!" gasped the fellow, dragged unceremoniouslyto his feet by the borderer.
"If he ever comes into this colony again I doubt but he'll be hung ashigh as Haman," Bolderwood declared. "And you were the surveyor, eh? Oneof Duane & Kempe's men? Well, sir, your back will be well tickled, or myname's not 'Siah Bolderwood! But bear up, man--'tis no killingpunishment."
"What, sir?" cried the fellow. "Do you think I weep because of yourpromised punishment? I fear you not--I am a leal subject of the King andpeaceful. You cannot touch me. But I weep because of the work thatdastard has done this day."
"What do you mean?" cried Bolderwood, fiercely. "Where is the woman andher bairns?"
The surveyor pointed a shaking finger at the cabin, the smoking walls ofwhich were now all that were standing. "They are there. Wait! let metell you. I had nothing to do with the dreadful work. Nor, indeed, didSimon Halpen mean to destroy the house and the poor woman and children.They meant to burn the roof off to scare them out, and one man threwburning clods on it. But those inside tore off the flaming roof and itfell all around the cabin and set the walls afire. They dared not runout through that wall of flame and smothered to death they were--Godpity them!" and he began to weep aloud again.
Bolderwood was speechless--well-nigh overcome, indeed, with the horrorof this. He saw his friends appear from the wood on the other side ofthe house and he walked toward them like one in a dream. But still heclung to the surveyor's arm and forced him to approach the cabin. Theroof had, of course, been completely consumed, and the outside of thewalls was blackened and still blazed fiercely at the corners. The windowshutters and door were burned away and the interior of the place wasbadly demolished.
"Where's the widder and the boys?" shouted one of the newcomers toBolderwood. The old ranger did not answer, but his hand tightened uponthe surveyor's arm. Suddenly the latter shrieked and would have fallento the ground had not the grasp upheld him. In the door of the burningcabin stood the figure of Enoch Harding, his face covered with smut andhis clothing half burned off his back. For a moment the surveyorbelieved the dead had risen and he covered his face with his hands toshut out the sight of the boy.
"Are ye all alive, lad?" shouted Bolderwood, dropping the surveyor andrunning forward.
"We're all right, but well-nigh smothered," returned Enoch, hoarsely."Bring--bring some water!"
He staggered out of the cabin and fell upon the ground. In a moment thesurprised neighbors were running with buckets and pans from the well,for Mistress Harding's milk vessels had been left to dry outside thespringhouse. Bolderwood took it upon himself to revive thehalf-strangled Enoch, while the others dashed water over the smoulderinginterior of the cabin, putting out the fire on the floor which wasburning briskly, and finally being able to draw the widow and thesmaller children from the secret room under the hearth and carry them tothe outer air. Here they quickly revived and Mistress Harding with thegirls and little Harry took shelter in o
ne of the hovels.
The destruction of the cabin was practically complete. There was not alog that was not charred, and the interior furnishings of the house wereruined. The kind-hearted neighbors saved the chests of bedclothing andthe family's best garments, for the flames had not gotten at them. Buteverything was sadly smoked. And the house would have to be torn downand rebuilt with new timber throughout. It was a sad spectacle indeedfor Enoch and Bryce to look upon. "I wish I had shot them all!" criedthe latter in a rage. But Enoch said nothing. He would not whisper howhis anger had made him aim to kill Simon Halpen. Now, in cool blood, hewas glad that the bullet had not sped true.
But the condition of the house filled him with despair. Winter was athand and it would be next to impossible to build a good house beforespring, although the timbers could be drawn and squared while the snowwas on the ground. What would they do for a shelter until then? "We'llmake yonder hovel that you boys play in, all tight and warm for thewinter, Nuck," Bolderwood observed, seeing the tears running down theboy's cheeks. "Don't cry about it. And we'll have up a better house thanthis in the spring, lad. The neighbors will all help ye."
Meanwhile, however, Bolderwood had kept his eye upon the surveyor. Thelatter, seeing that the family had been so miraculously saved from thefire, sought to get away while the men were saving those goods whichwere unconsumed. But Bolderwood was after him with mighty strides anddragged him back, a prisoner. "Nay, friend, you'll be needed here as awitness," he said, grimly. "We don't allow such gentry as you in theHampshire Grants without presenting you with a token of our respect andconsideration. Ha!" he added, suddenly, "whom have we here?"
A horseman rode quickly out of the wood and approached the burned cabin.Before he pulled in his steed the men welcomed him vociferously, for itwas Captain Baker. "Look at this, 'Member!" cried Bolderwood, draggingthe trembling surveyor forward. "What a sight this is to blister theeyes of decent men! A poor widder's house burned about her ears and onlyby the mercy of God were she and her youngsters saved."
"The villains!" roared Baker. "And is that one of them?"
"He was with the party. But I truly believe that he had little to dowith this dastardly work. He's only a poor surveyor body."
"We'll find shelter with some neighbor for Mistress Harding and thelittle ones," said Baker, "and then attend to his case without delay."
But the widow was not minded to leave her homestead. It was not yet verycold and the hovel in which the children had had their frolic afortnight before was easily made comfortable for the family. She setabout this at once while Captain Baker and the neighbors sat in judgmentupon the trembling surveyor. These impromptu courts held by the GreenMountain Boys when they happened to capture a Yorker guilty of meddlingwith the settlers, were in the nature of a court martial. Sometimes thesentences imposed were doubtless unjust, for the judges and juries werenaturally bitter against the prisoners; but the punishment seldom wentbeyond a sound whipping, and in this case the surveyor, still sputteringand objecting to the illegal procedure, was sentenced to two scorelashes, save one, and Enoch and Bryce selected the blue beech wands withwhich the sentence was to be carried out.
The surveyor was taken behind the log barn, his coat and shirt strippedfrom his back, and Bolderwood and one of the other neighbors fulfilledthe order of Captain Baker as judge of the military court. Bolderwood,remembering the tears the prisoner had shed when he thought the familyburned alive, could not be too hard upon him, and although the woodsmanmade every appearance of striking tremendous blows, he scarce raised awelt upon the man's back. But when the other executioner laid on for thelast nineteen strokes, the surveyor roared with pain and without doubtthe lesson was one which did him good. It would be many a day before heventured to survey the lands east of the Twenty-Mile Line--at least, notuntil his back stopped smarting. Finally he was given his clothing, andpart of the band marched him across country to the New York border andturned him loose.
The attack of Simon Halpen upon the Hardings had practically failed. Yetthe loss of their home was a sore blow. In a couple of days, with thehelp of Bolderwood, the old hovel was made very habitable. But it wassmall and so many of their possessions had been burned that even Brycecried about it. Nevertheless their supply of food was all right, and thecattle had not been injured. Also, with Bolderwood's assistance, thethree bears which the boys had so happily killed, were brought home, thehams smoked, some of the meat salted, and the pelts stretched and driedfor winter bed coverings. By the time the snow lay deep upon the earththe Hardings were once more comfortable.
The boys did very little trapping and hunting that winter of '72-'73 forthey could not attend to traps set very far from the ox-bow, and theWalloomscoik country was becoming scarce of game. 'Siah Bolderwood didnot go back to Old Ti, either, but contented himself with making shorthunting trips around the lower part of the lake, for he spent all thetime he could spare in helping the widow and her boys to get the timberready for their new abode. Enoch and Bryce were determined that this newstructure should be much better than the log cabin which their fatherhad erected ten years before, and every timber dragged to the site bythe slow moving oxen was squared with the broad ax and carefully fittedso as to "lock" at the corners. Some planks were sawed at the mill andsledded to the ox-bow on the ice, too, and when the plaintive call ofthe muckawis--the Indian name for the "whip-poor-will,"--ushered in thespring, a noble company of Green Mountain Boys gathered to build thewidow's house again.
Although the new house was put up and made habitable in about ten days,it took some time to fit window-frames, build two partitions, for therewere to be two sleeping chambers on the ground floor in this house,which was larger than the old structure, and lay the floor of the loft,build bunks to sleep in, make a new meal chest and dresser, andconstruct other articles of furniture which were needed to replace thestuff burned in the fire. Enoch had a mechanical turn of mind and Brycemade an able assistant. Between them they turned out a new table,several chairs with hide backs and seats, and even essayed a "rocker"for their mother which, although rudely built and with its rockers notexactly even, was declared by Mrs. Harding to be a marvel ofworkmanship.
All these things had to be done besides the regular work of the farmduring the spring and summer, and the studies of the older boys wererather neglected that year, greatly to the delight of Bryce. Indeed,several of their mother's precious books had been destroyed by theflames, and had it not been for the sorrow he knew she felt at theirloss, Bryce would have openly expressed his satisfaction. He was bornfor the woods and fields, and although he made no objection to farmwork,it was plain that his father's roving disposition had entered stronglyinto the make-up of the lad.
He still felt injured--indeed, the feeling grew with his owngrowth--because he was not allowed to join the military companies; butMistress Harding had finally promised that if he could trap enough gamethe next winter to pay for a new gun--a rifle instead of the old musketwhich had once been Nuck's and which their father had brought with himon his return from the French wars--he should be allowed to attend theBennington drills. That was putting the privilege a year ahead, butBryce was partially contented with it.
Lot Breckenridge had finally been allowed to join the Green MountainBoys and so Enoch had somebody in his company near his own age. Onseveral occasions there were frolics in the neighborhood to which theyoung people foregathered, and before the new house was built Lot andEnoch had gone on a very brief hunting trio. But as fall againapproached the two friends, Lot and Enoch, planned to go trapping on theupper waters of the Otter and its branches as soon as harvest andhog-killing should be over and the winter really set in. Lot had severalsteel traps which had belonged to his father, and Enoch was likewisesupplied. Both had canoes, but they agreed to use Enoch's only, as onewas all they cared to "pack" over the portage to the upper Otter.
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