Edgar Huntly; or, Memoirs of a Sleep-Walker

by Charles Brockden Brown

  Chapter XIX.

  Think not that I relate these things with exultation or tranquillity.All my education and the habits of my life tended to unfit me for acontest and a scene like this. But I was not governed by the soul whichusually regulates my conduct. I had imbibed, from the unparalleledevents which had lately happened, a spirit vengeful, unrelenting, andferocious.

  There was now an interval for flight. Throwing my weapons away, I mightgain the thicket in a moment. I had no ammunition, nor would time beafforded me to reload my piece. My antagonist would render my poniardand my speed of no use to me. Should he miss me as I fled, the girlwould remain to expiate, by her agonies and death, the fate of hiscompanions.

  These thoughts passed through my mind in a shorter time than is demandedto express them. They yielded to an expedient suggested by the sight ofthe gun that had been raised to destroy the girl, and which now lay uponthe ground. I am not large of bone, but am not deficient in agility andstrength. All that remained to me of these qualities was now exerted;and, dropping my own piece, I leaped upon the bank, and flew to seize myprize.

  It was not till I snatched it from the ground, that the propriety ofregaining my former post rushed upon my apprehension. He that was stillposted in the hovel would mark me through the seams of the wall, andrender my destruction sure. I once more ran towards the bank, with theintention to throw myself below it. All this was performed in aninstant; but my vigilant foe was aware of his advantage, and firedthrough an opening between the logs. The bullet grazed my cheek, andproduced a benumbing sensation that made me instantly fall to the earth.Though bereaved of strength, and fraught with the belief that I hadreceived a mortal wound, my caution was not remitted. I loosened not mygrasp of the gun, and the posture into which I accidentally fell enabledme to keep an eye upon the house and a hand upon the trigger. Perceivingmy condition, the savage rushed from his covert in order to complete hiswork; but at three steps from the threshold he received my bullet in hisbreast. The uplifted tomahawk fell from his hand, and, uttering a loudshriek, he fell upon the body of his companion. His cries struck upon myheart, and I wished that his better fortune had cast this evil from himupon me.

  Thus I have told thee a bloody and disastrous tale. When thou reflecteston the mildness of my habits, my antipathy to scenes of violence andbloodshed, my unacquaintance with the use of fire-arms and the motivesof a soldier, thou wilt scarcely allow credit to my story. That onerushing into these dangers, unfurnished with stratagems or weapons,disheartened and enfeebled by hardships and pain, should subdue fourantagonists trained from their infancy to the artifices and exertions ofIndian warfare, will seem the vision of fancy, rather than the lesson oftruth.

  I lifted my head from the ground and pondered upon this scene. Themagnitude of this exploit made me question its reality. By attending tomy own sensations, I discovered that I had received no wound, or, atleast, none of which there was reason to complain. The blood flowedplentifully from my cheek, but the injury was superficial. It wasotherwise with my antagonists. The last that had fallen now ceased togroan. Their huge limbs, inured to combat and _war-worn_, were uselessto their own defence, and to the injury of others.

  The destruction that I witnessed was vast. Three beings, full of energyand heroism, endowed with minds strenuous and lofty, poured out theirlives before me. I was the instrument of their destruction. This sceneof carnage and blood was laid by me. To this havoc and horror was I ledby such rapid footsteps!

  My anguish was mingled with astonishment. In spite of the force anduniformity with which my senses were impressed by external objects, thetransition I had undergone was so wild and inexplicable; all that I hadperformed, all that I had witnessed since my egress from the pit, wereso contradictory to precedent events, that I still clung to the beliefthat my thoughts were confused by delirium. From these reveries I was atlength recalled by the groans of the girl, who lay near me on theground.

  I went to her and endeavoured to console her. I found that, while lyingin the bed, she had received a blow upon the side, which was stillproductive of acute pain. She was unable to rise or to walk, and it wasplain that one or more of her ribs had been fractured by the blow.

  I knew not what means to devise for our mutual relief. It was possiblethat the nearest dwelling was many leagues distant. I knew not in whatdirection to go in order to find it, and my strength would not sufficeto carry my wounded companion thither in my arms. There was no expedientbut to remain in this field of blood till the morning.

  I had scarcely formed this resolution before the report of a musket washeard at a small distance. At the same moment, I distinctly heard thewhistling of a bullet near me. I now remembered that, of the fiveIndians whom I saw in the cavern, I was acquainted with the destiny onlyof four. The fifth might be still alive, and fortune might reserve forhim the task of avenging his companions. His steps might now be tendinghither in search of them.

  The musket belonging to him who was shot upon the threshold was stillcharged. It was discreet to make all the provision in my power againstdanger. I possessed myself of this gun, and, seating myself on theground, looked carefully on all sides, to descry the approach of theenemy. I listened with breathless eagerness.

  Presently voices were heard. They ascended from that part of the thicketfrom which my view was intercepted by the cottage. These voices hadsomething in them that bespoke them to belong to friends and countrymen.As yet I was unable to distinguish words.

  Presently my eye was attracted to one quarter, by a sound as of feettrampling down bushes. Several heads were seen moving in succession, andat length the whole person was conspicuous. One after another leapedover a kind of mound which bordered the field, and made towards the spotwhere I sat. This band was composed of ten or twelve persons, with eacha gun upon his shoulder. Their guise, the moment it was perceived,dissipated all my apprehensions.

  They came within the distance of a few paces before they discovered me.One stopped, and, bespeaking the attention of his followers, called toknow who was there. I answered that I was a friend, who entreated theirassistance. I shall not paint their astonishment when, on coming nearer,they beheld me surrounded by the arms and dead bodies of my enemies.

  I sat upon the ground, supporting my head with my left hand, and restingon my knee the stock of a heavy musket. My countenance was wan andhaggard, my neck and bosom were dyed in blood, and my limbs, almoststripped by the brambles of their slender covering, were lacerated by athousand wounds. Three savages, two of whom were steeped in gore, lay ata small distance, with the traces of recent life on their visages. Hardby was the girl, venting her anguish in the deepest groans, andentreating relief from the new-comers.

  One of the company, on approaching the girl, betrayed the utmostperturbation. "Good God!" he cried, "is this a dream? Can it be you?Speak!"

  "Ah, my father! my father!" answered she, "it is I indeed."

  The company, attracted by this dialogue, crowded round the girl, whomher father, clasping in his arms, lifted from the ground, and pressed,in a transport of joy, to his breast. This delight was succeeded bysolicitude respecting her condition. She could only answer his inquiriesby complaining that her side was bruised to pieces. "How came youhere?"--"Who hurt you?"--"Where did the Indians carry you?"--werequestions to which she could make no reply but by sobs and plaints.

  My own calamities were forgotten in contemplating the fondness andcompassion of the man for his child. I derived new joy from reflectingthat I had not abandoned her, and that she owed her preservation to myefforts. The inquiries which the girl was unable to answer were now putto me. Every one interrogated me who I was, whence I had come, and whathad given rise to this bloody contest.

  I was not willing to expatiate on my story. The spirit which hadhitherto sustained me began now to subside. My strength ebbed away withmy blood. Tremors, lassitude, and deadly cold, invaded me, and I faintedon the ground.

  Such is the capricious constitution of the human mind. While dangerswere at hand, while
my life was to be preserved only by zeal, andvigilance, and courage, I was not wanting to myself. Had my perilscontinued, or even multiplied, no doubt my energies would have keptequal pace with them; but the moment that I was encompassed byprotectors, and placed in security, I grew powerless and faint. Myweakness was proportioned to the duration and intensity of my previousefforts, and the swoon into which I now sunk was, no doubt, mistaken bythe spectators for death.

  On recovering from this swoon, my sensations were not unlike those whichI had experienced on awaking in the pit. For a moment a mistinessinvolved every object, and I was able to distinguish nothing. My sight,by rapid degrees, was restored, my painful dizziness was banished, and Isurveyed the scene before me with anxiety and wonder.

  I found myself stretched upon the ground. I perceived the cottage andthe neighbouring thicket, illuminated by a declining moon. My headrested upon something, which, on turning to examine, I found to be oneof the slain Indians. The other two remained upon the earth, at a smalldistance, and in the attitudes in which they had fallen. Their arms, thewounded girl, and the troop who were near me when I fainted, were gone.

  My head had reposed upon the breast of him whom I had shot in this partof his body. The blood had ceased to ooze from the wound, but mydishevelled locks were matted and steeped in that gore which hadoverflowed and choked up the orifice. I started from this detestablepillow, and regained my feet.

  I did not suddenly recall what had lately passed, or comprehend thenature of my situation. At length, however, late events wererecollected.

  That I should be abandoned in this forlorn state by these men seemed toargue a degree of cowardice or cruelty of which I should have thoughtthem incapable. Presently, however, I reflected that appearances mighthave easily misled them into a belief of my death. On this supposition,to have carried me away, or to have stayed beside me, would be useless.Other enemies might be abroad; or their families, now that their fearswere somewhat tranquillized, might require their presence andprotection.

  I went into the cottage. The fire still burned, and afforded me a genialwarmth. I sat before it, and began to ruminate on the state to which Iwas reduced, and on the measures I should next pursue. Daylight couldnot be very distant. Should I remain in this hovel till the morning, orimmediately resume my journey? I was feeble, indeed; but, by remaininghere, should I not increase my feebleness? The sooner I should gain somehuman habitation the better; whereas watchfulness and hunger wouldrender me, at each minute, less able to proceed than on the former.

  This spot might be visited on the next day; but this was involved inuncertainty. The visitants, should any come, would come merely toexamine and bury the dead, and bring with them neither the clothing northe food which my necessities demanded. The road was sufficientlydiscernible, and would, unavoidably, conduct me to some dwelling. Idetermined, therefore, to set out without delay. Even in this state Iwas not unmindful that my safety might require the precaution of beingarmed. Besides, the fusil which had been given me by Sarsefield, andwhich I had so unexpectedly recovered, had lost none of its value in myeyes. I hoped that it had escaped the search of the troop who had beenhere, and still lay below the bank in the spot where I had dropped it.

  In this hope I was not deceived. It was found. I possessed myself of thepowder and shot belonging to one of the savages, and loaded it. Thusequipped for defence, I regained the road, and proceeded, with alacrity,on my way. For the wound in my cheek, nature had provided a styptic, butthe soreness was extreme, and I thought of no remedy but water, withwhich I might wash away the blood. My thirst likewise incommoded me, andI looked with eagerness for the traces of a spring. In a soil like thatof the wilderness around me, nothing was less to be expected than tolight upon water. In this respect, however, my destiny was propitious. Iquickly perceived water in the ruts. It trickled hither from the thicketon one side, and, pursuing it among the bushes, I reached the bubblingsource. Though scanty and brackish, it afforded me unspeakablerefreshment.

  Thou wilt think, perhaps, that my perils were now at an end; that theblood I had already shed was sufficient for my safety. I fervently hopedthat no new exigence would occur compelling me to use the arms that Ibore in my own defence. I formed a sort of resolution to shun thecontest with a new enemy, almost at the expense of my own life. I wassatiated and gorged with slaughter, and thought upon a new act ofdestruction with abhorrence and loathing.

  But, though I dreaded to encounter a new enemy, I was sensible that anenemy might possibly be at hand. I had moved forward with caution, andmy sight and hearing were attentive to the slightest tokens. Othertroops, besides that which I encountered, might be hovering near, and ofthat troop I remembered that one at least had survived.

  The gratification which the spring had afforded me was so great, that Iwas in no haste to depart. I lay upon a rock, which chanced to be shadedby a tree behind me. From this post I could overlook the road to somedistance, and, at the same time, be shaded from the observation ofothers.

  My eye was now caught by movements which appeared like those of a beast.In different circumstances, I should have instantly supposed it to be awolf, or panther, or bear. Now my suspicions were alive on a differentaccount, and my startled fancy figured to itself nothing but a humanadversary.

  A thicket was on either side of the road. That opposite to my stationwas discontinued at a small distance by the cultivated field. The roadcontinued along this field, bounded by the thicket on the one side andthe open space on the other. To this space the being who was nowdescribed was cautiously approaching.

  He moved upon all fours, and presently came near enough to bedistinguished. His disfigured limbs, pendants from his ears and nose,and his shorn locks, were indubitable indications of a savage,Occasionally he reared himself above the bushes, and scanned, withsuspicious vigilance, the cottage and the space surrounding it. Then hestooped, and crept along as before.

  I was at no loss to interpret these appearances. This was my survivingenemy. He was unacquainted with the fate of his associates, and was nowapproaching the theatre of carnage to ascertain their fate.

  Once more was the advantage afforded me. From this spot might unerringaim be taken, and the last of this hostile troop be made to share thefate of the rest. Should I fire, or suffer him to pass in safety?

  My abhorrence of bloodshed was not abated. But I had not foreseen thisoccurrence. My success hitherto had seemed to depend upon a combinationof fortunate incidents, which could not be expected again to take place;but now was I invested with the same power. The mark was near; nothingobstructed or delayed; I incurred no danger, and the event was certain.

  Why should he be suffered to live? He came hither to murder and despoilmy friends; this work he has, no doubt, performed. Nay, has he not bornehis part in the destruction of my uncle and my sisters? He will liveonly to pursue the same sanguinary trade; to drink the blood and exultin the laments of his unhappy foes and of my own brethren. Fate hasreserved him for a bloody and violent death. For how long a time soeverit may be deferred, it is thus that his career will inevitablyterminate.

  Should he be spared, he will still roam in the wilderness, and I mayagain be fated to encounter him. Then our mutual situation may be widelydifferent, and the advantage I now possess may be his.

  While hastily revolving these thoughts, I was thoroughly aware that oneevent might take place which would render all deliberation useless.Should he spy me where I lay, my fluctuations must end. My safety wouldindispensably require me to shoot. This persuasion made me keep asteadfast eye upon his motions, and be prepared to anticipate hisassault.

  It now most seasonably occurred to me that one essential duty remainedto be performed. One operation, without which fire-arms are useless, hadbeen unaccountably omitted. My piece was uncocked. I did not reflectthat in moving the spring a sound would necessarily be producedsufficient to alarm him. But I knew that the chances of escaping hisnotice, should I be perfectly mute and still, were extremely slender,and that, in such a case, his mo
vements would be quicker than the light:it behooved me, therefore, to repair my omission.

  The sound struck him with alarm. He turned and darted at me an inquiringglance. I saw that forbearance was no longer in my power; but my heartsunk while I complied with what may surely be deemed an indispensablenecessity. This faltering, perhaps, it was that made me swerve somewhatfrom the fatal line. He was disabled by the wound, but not killed.

  He lost all power of resistance, and was, therefore, no longer to bedreaded. He rolled upon the ground, uttering doleful shrieks, andthrowing his limbs into those contortions which bespeak the keenestagonies to which ill-fated man is subject. Horror, and compassion, andremorse, were mingled into one sentiment, and took possession of myheart. To shut out this spectacle, I withdrew from the spot, but Istopped before I had moved beyond hearing of his cries.

  The impulse that drove me from the scene was pusillanimous and cowardly.The past, however deplorable, could not be recalled; but could not Iafford some relief to this wretch? Could not I at least bring his pangsto a speedy close? Thus he might continue, writhing and calling upondeath, for hours. Why should his miseries be uselessly prolonged?

  There was but one way to end them. To kill him outright was the dictateof compassion and of duty. I hastily returned, and once more levelled mypiece at his head. It was a loathsome obligation, and was performed withunconquerable reluctance. Thus to assault and to mangle the body of anenemy, already prostrate and powerless, was an act worthy of abhorrence;yet it was, in this case, prescribed by pity.

  My faltering hand rendered this second bullet ineffectual. Oneexpedient, still more detestable, remained. Having gone thus far, itwould have been inhuman to stop short. His heart might easily be piercedby the bayonet, and his struggles would cease.

  This task of cruel lenity was at length finished. I dropped the weaponand threw myself on the ground, overpowered by the horrors of thisscene. Such are the deeds which perverse nature compels thousands ofrational beings to perform and to witness! Such is the spectacle,endlessly prolonged and diversified, which is exhibited in every fieldof battle; of which habit and example, the temptations of gain, and theillusions of honour, will make us, not reluctant or indifferent, butzealous and delighted actors and beholders!

  Thus, by a series of events impossible to be computed or foreseen, wasthe destruction of a band, selected from their fellows for an arduousenterprise, distinguished by prowess and skill, and equally armedagainst surprise and force, completed by the hand of a boy, uninured tohostility, unprovided with arms, precipitate and timorous! I have notedmen who seemed born for no end but by their achievements to belieexperience, and baffle foresight, and outstrip belief. Would to God thatI had not deserved to be numbered among these! But what power was itthat called me from the sleep of death just in time to escape themerciless knife of this enemy? Had my swoon continued till he hadreached the spot, he would have effectuated my death by new wounds andtorn away the skin from my brows. Such are the subtle threads on whichhang the fate of man and of the universe!

  While engaged in these reflections, I perceived that the moonlight hadbegun to fade before that of the sun. A dusky and reddish hue spreaditself over the east. Cheered by this appearance, I once more resumed myfeet and the road. I left the savage where he lay, but made prize ofhis tomahawk. I had left my own in the cavern; and this weapon addedlittle to my burden. Prompted by some freak of fancy, I stuck his musketin the ground, and left it standing upright in the middle of the road.