CHAPTER XIX.
"And yet, poor Edwin was no vulgar boy." --Beattie.
The close of Christmas Day, A.D. 1793, was tempestuous, butcomparatively warm. When darkness had again hid the objects in thevillage from the gaze of Elizabeth, she turned from the window, whereshe had remained while the least vestige of light lingered over thetops of the dark pines, with a curiosity that was rather excited thanappeased by the passing glimpses of woodland scenery that she had caughtduring the day.
With her arm locked in that of Miss Grant, the young mistress of themansion walked slowly up and down the hall, musing on scenes that wererapidly recurring to her memory, and possibly dwelling, at times, in thesanctuary of her thoughts, on the strange occurrences that had ledto the introduction to her father's family of one whose Manners sosingularly contradicted the inferences to be drawn from his situation.The expiring heat of the apartment--for its great size required a dayto reduce its temperature--had given to her cheeks a bloom that exceededtheir natural color, while the mild and melancholy features of Louisawere brightened with a faint tinge, that, like the hectic of disease,gave a painful interest to her beauty.
The eyes of the gentlemen, who were yet seated around the rich wines ofJudge Temple, frequently wandered from the table, that was placed at oneend of the hall, to the forms that were silently moving over its length.Much mirth, and that, at times, of a boisterous kind, proceeded from themouth of Richard; but Major Hartmann was not yet excited to his pitchof merriment, and Marmaduke respected the presence of his clerical guesttoo much to indulge in even the innocent humor that formed no smallingredient in his character.
Such were, and such continued to be, the pursuits of the party, forhalf an hour after the shutters were closed, and candles were placed invarious parts of the hall, as substitutes for departing daylight. Theappearance of Benjamin, staggering under the burden of an armful ofwood, was the first interruption to the scene.
"How now, Master Pump!" roared the newly appointed sheriff; "is therenot warmth enough in 'Duke's best Madeira to keep up the animal heatthrough this thaw? Remember, old boy, that the Judge is particularwith his beech and maple, beginning to dread already a scarcity ofthe precious articles. Ha! ha! ha! 'Duke, you are a good, warm-heartedrelation, I will own, as in duty bound, but you have some queer notionsabout you, after all. 'Come, let us be jolly, and cast away folly."
The notes gradually sank into a hum, while the major-domo threw downhis load, and, turning to his interrogator with an air of earnestness,replied:
"Why, look you, Squire Dickon, mayhap there's a warm latitude roundabout the table there, thof it's not the stuff to raise the heat in mybody, neither; the raal Jamaiky being the only thing to do that,besides good wood, or some such matter as Newcastle coal. But, if I knowanything of the weather, d'ye see, it's time to be getting all snog, andfor putting the ports in and stirring the fires a bit. Mayhap I've notfollowed the seas twenty-seven years, and lived another seven in thesehere woods, for nothing, gemmen."
"Why, does it bid fair for a change in the weather, Benjamin?" inquiredthe master of the house.
"There's a shift of wind, your honor," returned the steward; "and whenthere's a shift of wind, you may look for a change in this here climate.I was aboard of one of Rodney's fleet, dye see, about the time we lickedDe Grasse, Mounsheer Lor Quaw's countryman, there; and the wind was hereat the south'ard and east'ard; and I was below, mixing a toothful of hotstuff for the captain of marines, who dined, dye see, in the cabin, thatthere very same day; and I suppose he wanted to put out the captain'sfire with a gun-room ingyne; and so, just as I got it to my own liking,after tasting pretty often, for the soldier was difficult to please,slap came the foresail agin' the mast, whiz went the ship round on herheel, like a whirligig. And a lucky thing was it that our helm was down;for as she gathered starnway she paid off, which was more than everyship in the fleet did, or could do. But she strained herself in thetrough of the sea, and she shipped a deal of water over her quarter. Inever swallowed so much clear water at a time in my life as I did then,for I was looking up the after-hatch at the instant."
"I wonder, Benjamin, that you did not die with a dropsy!" saidMarmaduke.
"I mought, Judge," said the old tar, with a broad grin; "but there wasno need of the medicine chest for a cure; for, as I thought the brew wasspoilt for the marine's taste, and there was no telling when anothersea might come and spoil it for mine. I finished the mug on the spot.So then all hands was called to the pumps, and there we began to ply thepumps--"
"Well, but the weather?" interrupted Marmaduke; "what of the weatherwithout doors?"
"Why here the wind has been all day at the south, and now there's alull, as if the last blast was out of the bellows; and there's a streakalong the mountains, to the northard, that, just now, wasn't wider thanthe bigness of your hand; and then the clouds drive afore it as you'dbrail a mainsail, and the stars are heaving in sight, like so manylights and beacons, put there to warn us to pile on the wood; and, ifso be that I'm a judge of weather, it's getting to be time to build ona fire, or you'll have half of them there porter bottles, and themdimmyjohns of wine, in the locker here, breaking with the frost, aforethe morning watch is called."
"Thou art a prudent sentinel," said the Judge. "Act thy pleasure withthe forests, for this night at feast."
Benjamin did as he was ordered; nor had two hours elapsed, before theprudence of his precautions became very visible. The south wind had,indeed, blown itself cut, and it was succeeded by the calmness thatusually gave warning of a serious change in the weather. Long before thefamily retired to rest, the cold had become cuttingly severe; and whenMonsieur Le Quoi sallied c forth under a bright moon, to seek his ownabode, he was compelled to beg a blanket, in which he might envelop chis form, in addition to the numerous garments that his sagacity hadprovided for the occasion. The divine and his daughter remained asinmates of the mansion-house during the night, and the excess of lastnight's merriment c induced the gentlemen to make an early retreat totheir several apartments. Long before midnight, the whole family wereinvisible.
Elizabeth and her friend had not yet lost their senses in sleep, andthe howlings of the northwest wind were heard around the buildings, andbrought with them that exquisite sense of comfort that is ever excitedunder such circumstances, in an apartment where the fire has not yetceased to glimmer, and curtains, and shutters, and feathers unite topreserve the desired temperature. Once, just as her eyes had opened,apparently in the last stage of drowsiness, the roaring winds broughtwith them a long and plaintive howl, that seemed too wild for a dog, andyet resembled the cries of that faithful animal, when night awakens hisvigilance, and gives sweetness and solemnity to its charms. The form ofLouis Grant instinctively pressed nearer to that of the young heiress,who, finding her companion was yet awake, said in a low tone, as ifafraid to break a charm with her voice:
"Those distant cries are plaintive, and even beautiful. Can they be thehounds from the hut of Leather-Stocking?"
"They are wolves, who have ventured from the mountain, on the lake,"whispered Louisa, "and who are only kept from the village by the lights.One night, since we have been here, hunger drove them to our very door.Oh, what a dreadful night it was! But the riches of Judge Temple havegiven him too many safeguards, to leave room for fear in this house."
"The enterprise of Judge Temple is taming the very forests!" exclaimedElizabeth, throwing off the covering, and partly rising in the bed. "Howrapidly is civilization treading on the foot of Nature!" she continued,as her eye glanced over not only the comforts, but the luxuries of herapartment, and her ear again listened to the distant, but often repeatedhowls from the lake. Finding, how-ever, that the timidity of hercompanion rendered the sounds painful to her, Elizabeth resumed herplace, and soon forgot the changes in the country, with those in her owncondition, in a deep sleep.
The following morning, the noise of the female servant, who entered theapartment to light the fire, awoke the females. They arose, and
finishedthe slight preparations I of their toilets in a clear, cold atmosphere,that penetrated through all the defences of even Miss Temple's warmroom. When Elizabeth was attired, she approached a window and drew itscurtain, and throwing open its shutters she endeavored to look abroadon the village and the lake. But a thick covering of frost on the glass,while it admitted the light, shut out the view. She raised the sash, andthen, indeed, a glorious scene met her delighted eye.
The lake had exchanged its covering of unspotted snow for a face of darkice, that reflected the rays of the rising sun like a polished mirror.The houses clothed in a dress of the same description, but which, owingto its position, shone like bright steel; while the enormous iciclesthat were pendent from every roof caught the brilliant light, apparentlythrowing it from one to the other, as each glittered, on the side nextthe luminary, with a golden lustre that melted away, on its opposite,into the dusky shades of a background. But it was the appearance of theboundless forests that covered the hills as they rose in the distance,one over the other, that most attracted the gaze of Miss Temple. Thehuge branches of the pines and hemlocks bent with the weight of the icethey supported, while their summits rose above the swelling tops of theoaks, beeches, and maples, like spires of burnished silver issuing fromdomes of the same material. The limits of the view, in the west, weremarked by an undulating outline of bright light, as if, reversing theorder of nature, numberless suns might momentarily he expected to heaveabove the horizon. In the foreground of the picture, along the shoresof the lake, and near to the village, each tree seemed studded withdiamonds. Even the sides of the mountains where the rays of the suncould not yet fall, were decorated with a glassy coat, that presentedevery gradation of brilliancy, from the first touch of the luminary tothe dark foliage of the hemlock, glistening through its coat of crystal.In short, the whole view was one scene of quivering radiancy, as lake,mountains, village, and woods, each emitted a portion of light, tingedwith its peculiar hue, and varied by its position and its magnitude.
"See!" cried Elizabeth; "see, Louisa; hasten to the window, and observethe miraculous change!"
Miss Grant complied; and, after bending for a moment in silence from theopening, she observed, in a low tone, as if afraid to trust the sound ofher voice:
"The change is indeed wonderful! I am surprised that he should be ableto effect it so soon."
Elizabeth turned in amazement, to hear so skeptical a sentiment from oneeducated like her companion; but was surprised to find that, instead oflooking at the view, the mild blue eyes of Miss Grant were dwelling onthe form of a well-dressed young man, who was standing before the doorof the building, in earnest conversation with her father. A second lookwas necessary before she was able to recognize the person of the younghunter in a plain, but assuredly the ordinary, garb of a gentleman.
"Everything in this magical country seems to border on the marvellous,"said Elizabeth; "and, among all the changes, this is certainly not theleast wonderful, The actors are as unique as the scenery."
Miss Grant colored and drew in her head.
"I am a simple country girl, Miss Temple, and I am afraid you will findme but a poor companion," she said. "I--I am not sure that I understandall you say. But I really thought that you wished me to notice thealteration in Mr. Edwards, Is it not more wonderful when we recollecthis origin? They say he is part Indian."
"He is a genteel savage; but let us go down, and give the sachem histea; for I suppose he is a descendant of King Philip, if not a grandsonof Pocahontas."
The ladies were met in the hall by Judge Temple, who took his daughteraside to apprise her of that alteration in the appearance of their newinmate, with which she was already acquainted.
"He appears reluctant to converse on his former situation," continuedMarmaduke "but I gathered from his discourse, as is apparent from hismanner, that he has seen better days; and I am really inclining to theopinion of Richard, as to his origin; for it was no unusual thing forthe Indian agents to rear their children in a laudable manner, and--"
"Very well, my dear sir," interrupted his daughter, laughing andaverting her eyes; "it is all well enough, I dare say; but, as I do notunderstand a word of the Mohawk language he must be content to speakEnglish; and as for his behavior, I trust to your discernment to controlit."
"Ay! but, Bess," cried the judge, detaining her gently by the hand,"nothing must be said to him of his past life. This he has beggedparticularly of me, as a favor, He is, perhaps, a little soured, justnow, with his wounded arm; the injury seems very light, and another timehe may be more communicative."
"Oh! I am not much troubled, sir, with that laudable thirst afterknowledge that is called curiosity. I shall believe him to be thechild of Corn-stalk, or Corn-planter, or some other renowned chieftain;possibly of the Big Snake himself; and shall treat him as such until hesees fit to shave his good-looking head, borrow some half-dozen pair ofmy best earrings, shoulder his rifle again, and disappear as suddenlyas he made his entrance. So come, my dear sir, and let us not forget therites of hospitality, for the short time he is to remain with us."
Judge Temple smiled at the playfulness of his child, and taking her armthey entered the breakfast parlor, where the young hunter was seatedwith an air that showed his determination to domesticate himself in thefamily with as little parade as possible.
Such were the incidents that led to this extraordinary increase in thefamily of Judge Temple, where, having once established the youth, thesubject of our tale requires us to leave him for a time, to pursue withdiligence and intelligence the employments that were assigned him byMarmaduke.
Major Hartmann made his customary visit, and took his leave of the partyfor the next three months. Mr. Grant was compelled to be absent most ofhis time, in remote parts of the country, and his daughter became almosta constant visitor at the mansion-house. Richard entered, with hisconstitutional eagerness, on the duties of his new office; and, asMarmaduke was much employed with the constant applications of adventuresfor farms, the winter passed swiftly away. The lake was the principalscene f or the amusements of the young people; where the ladies, intheir one-horse cutter, driven by Richard, and attended, when the snowwould admit of it, by young Ed wards on his skates, spent many hourstaking the benefit of exercise in the clear air of the hills. Thereserve of the youth gradually gave way to time and his situation,though it was still evident, to a close observer, that he had frequentmoments of bitter and intense feeling.
Elizabeth saw many large openings appear in the sides of the mountainsduring the three succeeding months, where different settlers had, in thelanguage of the country "made their pitch," while the numberless sleighsthat passed through the village, loaded with wheat and barrels ofpotashes, afforded a clear demonstration that all these labors werenot undertaken in vain. In short, the whole country was exhibiting thebustle of a thriving settlement, where the highways were thronged withsleighs, bearing piles of rough household furniture, studded, hereand there, with the smiling faces of women and children, happy in theexcitement of novelty; or with loads of produce, hastening to the commonmarket at Albany, that served as so many snares to induce the emigrantsto enter into those wild mountains in search of competence andhappiness.
The village was alive with business, the artisans in creasing in wealthwith the prosperity of the country, and each day witnessing some nearerapproach to the manners and usages of an old-settled town. The man whocarried the mail or "the post," as he was called, talked much of runninga stage, and, once or twice during the winter, he was seen taking asingle passenger, in his cutter, through the snow-banks, toward theMohawk, along which a regular vehicle glided, semi-weekly, with thevelocity of lightning, and under the direction of a knowing whip fromthe "down countries," Toward spring, divers families, who had been intothe "old States" to see their relatives, returned in time to savethe snow, frequently bringing with them whole neighborhoods, who weretempted by their representations to leave the farms of Connecticut andMassachusetts, to make a trial of fortune in the wo
ods.
During all this time, Oliver Edwards, whose sudden elevation excited nosurprise in that changeful country, was earnestly engaged in the serviceof Marmaduke, during the days; but his nights were often spent in thehut of Leather-Stocking. The intercourse between the three hunters wasmaintained with a certain air of mystery, it is true, but with much zealand apparent interest to all the parties. Even Mohegan seldom came tothe mansion-house, and Natty never; but Edwards sought every leisuremoment to visit his former abode, from which he would often return inthe gloomy hours of night through the snow, or, if detained beyond thetime at which the family retired to rest, with the morning sun. Thesevisits certainly excited much speculation in those to whom they wereknown, but no comments were made, excepting occasionally in whispersfrom Richard, who would say:
"It is not at all remarkable; a half-breed can never be weaned fromthe savage ways--and, for one of his lineage, the boy is much nearercivilization than could, in reason, be expected."
The Pioneers; Or, The Sources of the Susquehanna Page 20