The Pathfinder; Or, The Inland Sea

by James Fenimore Cooper

  CHAPTER XXV.

  There was a roaring in the wind all night; The rain came heavily, and fell in floods; But now the sun is rising calm and bright; The birds are singing in the distant woods. WORDSWORTH.

  As the light returned, Pathfinder and Cap ascended again to the roof,with a view to reconnoitre the state of things once more on the island.This part of the blockhouse had a low battlement around it, whichafforded a considerable protection to those who stood in its centre; theintention having been to enable marksmen to lie behind it and tofire over its top. By making proper use, therefore, of these slightdefences,--slight as to height, though abundantly ample as far as theywent,--the two look-outs commanded a pretty good view of the island, itscovers excepted, and of most of the channels that led to the spot.

  The gale was still blowing very fresh at south; and there were places inthe river where its surface looked green and angry, though the windhad hardly sweep enough to raise the water into foam. The shape of thelittle island was nearly oval, and its greater length was from east towest. By keeping in the channels that washed it, in consequence of theirseveral courses and of the direction of the gale, it would havebeen possible for a vessel to range past the island on either of itsprincipal sides, and always to keep the wind very nearly abeam. Thesewere the facts first noticed by Cap, and explained to his companion forthe hopes of both now rested on the chances of relief sent from Oswego.At this instant, while they stood gazing anxiously about them, Cap criedout, in his lusty, hearty manner,

  "Sail, ho!"

  Pathfinder turned quickly in the direction of his companion's face;and there, sure enough, was just visible the object of the old sailor'sexclamation. The elevation enabled the two to overlook the low land ofseveral of the adjacent islands; and the canvas of a vessel was seenthrough the bushes that fringed the shore of one that lay to thesouthward and westward. The stranger was under what seamen call lowsail; but so great was the power of the wind, that her white outlineswere seen flying past the openings of the verdure with the velocity of afast-travelling horse--resembling a cloud driving in the heavens.

  "That cannot be Jasper," said Pathfinder in disappointment; for he didnot recognize the cutter of his friend in the swift-passing object."No, no, the lad is behind the hour; and that is some craft which theFrenchers have sent to aid their friends, the accursed Mingos."

  "This time you are out in your reckoning, friend Pathfinder, if younever were before," returned Cap in a manner that had lost none ofits dogmatism by the critical circumstances in which they were placed."Fresh water or salt, that is the head of the _Scud's_ mainsail, for itis cut with a smaller gore than common and then you can see that thegaff has been fished--quite neatly done, I admit, but fished."

  "I can see none of this, I confess," answered Pathfinder, to whom eventhe terms of his companion were Greek.

  "No! Well, I own that surprises me, for I thought your eyes could seeanything! Now to me nothing is plainer than that gore and that fish; andI must say, my honest friend, that in your place I should apprehend thatmy sight was beginning to fail."

  "If Jasper is truly coming, I shall apprehend but little. We can makegood the block against the whole Mingo nation for the next eight orten hours; and with Eau-douce to cover the retreat, I shall despair ofnothing. God send that the lad may not run alongside of the bank, andfall into an ambushment, as befell the Sergeant!"

  "Ay, there's the danger. There ought to have been signals concerted,and an anchorage-ground buoyed out, and even a quarantine station ora lazaretto would have been useful, could we have made these Minks-horespect the laws. If the lad fetches up, as you say, anywhere in theneighborhood of this island, we may look upon the cutter as lost. And,after all, Master Pathfinder, ought we not to set down this same Jasperas a secret ally of the French, rather than as a friend of our own? Iknow the Sergeant views the matter in that light; and I must say thiswhole affair looks like treason."

  "We shall soon know, we shall soon know, Master Cap; for there, indeed,comes the cutter clear of the other island, and five minutes must settlethe matter. It would be no more than fair, however, if we could give theboy some sign in the way of warning. It is not right that he should fallinto the trap without a notice that it has been laid."

  Anxiety and suspense, notwithstanding, prevented either from attemptingto make any signal. It was not easy, truly, to see how it could be done;for the _Scud_ came foaming through the channel, on the weather side ofthe island, at a rate that scarcely admitted of the necessary time. Norwas any one visible on her deck to make signs to; even her helm seemeddeserted, though her course was as steady as her progress was rapid.

  Cap stood in silent admiration of a spectacle so unusual. But, as the_Scud_ drew nearer, his practised eye detected the helm in play by meansof tiller-ropes, though the person who steered was concealed. Asthe cutter had weatherboards of some little height, the mystery wasexplained, no doubt remaining that her people lay behind the latter, inorder to be protected from the rifles of the enemy. As this factshowed that no force beyond that of the small crew could be on board,Pathfinder received his companion's explanation with an ominous shake ofthe head.

  "This proves that the Sarpent has not reached Oswego," said he, "andthat we are not to expect succor from the garrison. I hope Lundie hasnot taken it into his head to displace the lad, for Jasper Western wouldbe a host of himself in such a strait. We three, Master Cap, ought tomake a manful warfare: you, as a seaman, to keep up the intercourse withthe cutter; Jasper, as a laker who knows all that is necessary to bedone on the water; and I, with gifts that are as good as any among theMingos, let me be what I may in other particulars. I say we ought tomake a manful fight in Mabel's behalf."

  "That we ought, and that we will," answered Cap heartily; for he beganto have more confidence in the security of his scalp now that he saw thesun again. "I set down the arrival of the _Scud_ as one circumstance,and the chances of Oh-deuce's honesty as another. This Jasper is ayoung man of prudence, you find; for he keeps a good offing, and seemsdetermined to know how matters stand on the island before he ventures tobring up."

  "I have it! I have it!" exclaimed Pathfinder, with exultation. "Therelies the canoe of the Sarpent on the cutter's deck; and the chief hasgot on board, and no doubt has given a true account of our conditionfor, unlike a Mingo, a Delaware is sartain to get a story right, or tohold his tongue."

  "That canoe may not belong to the cutter," said the captious seaman."Oh-deuce had one on board when he sailed."

  "Very true, friend Cap; but if you know your sails and masts by yourgores and fishes, I know my canoes and my paths by frontier knowledge.If you can see new cloth in a sail, I can see new bark in a canoe. Thatis the boat of the Sarpent, and the noble fellow has struck off for thegarrison as soon as he found the block besieged, has fallen in with the_Scud_, and, after telling his story, has brought the cutter down hereto see what can be done. The Lord grant that Jasper Western be still onboard her!"

  "Yes, yes; it might not be amiss; for, traitor or loyal, the lad has ahandy way with him in a gale, it must be owned."

  "And in coming over waterfalls!" said Pathfinder, nudging the ribsof his companion with an elbow, and laughing in his silent but heartymanner. "We will give the boy his due, though he scalps us all with hisown hand."

  The _Scud_ was now so near, that Cap made no reply. The scene, just atthat instant, was so peculiar, that it merits a particular description,which may also aid the reader in forming a more accurate nature of thepicture we wish to draw.

  The gale was still blowing violently. Many of the smaller trees bowedtheir tops, as if ready to descend to the earth, while the rushingof the wind through the branches of the groves resembled the roar ofdistant chariots.

  The air was filled with leaves, which, at that late season, were readilydriven from their stems, and flew from island to island like flights ofbirds. With this exception, the spot seemed silent as the grave. Thatthe savages still remained, was to be inferred from the f
act that theircanoes, together with the boats of the 55th, lay in a group in thelittle cove that had been selected as a harbor. Otherwise, not a sign oftheir presence was to be detected. Though taken entirely by surprise bythe cutter, the sudden return of which was altogether unlooked-for, souniform and inbred were their habits of caution while on the war-path,that the instant an alarm was given every man had taken to his coverwith the instinct and cunning of a fox seeking his hole. The samestillness reigned in the blockhouse; for though Pathfinder and Cap couldcommand a view of the channel, they took the precaution necessary to lieconcealed. The unusual absence of anything like animal life on boardthe _Scud_, too, was still more remarkable. As the Indians witnessed herapparently undirected movements, a feeling of awe gained a footing amongthem, and some of the boldest of their party began to distrust the issueof an expedition that had commenced so prosperously. Even Arrowhead,accustomed as he was to intercourse with the whites on both sides ofthe lakes, fancied there was something ominous in the appearance of thisunmanned vessel, and he would gladly at that moment have been landedagain on the main.

  In the meantime the progress of the cutter was steady and rapid. Sheheld her way mid-channel, now inclining to the gusts, and now risingagain, like the philosopher that bends to the calamities of life toresume his erect attitude as they pass away, but always piling the waterbeneath her bows in foam. Although she was under so very short canvas,her velocity was great, and there could not have elapsed ten minutesbetween the time when her sails were first seen glancing past the treesand bushes in the distance and the moment when she was abreast ofthe blockhouse. Cap and Pathfinder leaned forward, as the cutter camebeneath their eyrie, eager to get a better view of her deck, when, tothe delight of both, Jasper Eau-douce sprang upon his feet and gavethree hearty cheers. Regardless of all risk, Cap leaped upon the rampartof logs and returned the greeting, cheer for cheer. Happily, the policyof the enemy saved the latter; for they still lay quiet, not a riflebeing discharged. On the other hand, Pathfinder kept in view the useful,utterly disregarding the mere dramatic part of warfare. The moment hebeheld his friend Jasper, he called out to him with stentorian lungs,--

  "Stand by us, lad, and the day's our own! Give 'em a grist in yonderbushes, and you'll put 'em up like partridges."

  Part of this reached Jasper's ears, but most was borne off to leeward onthe wings of the wind. By the time this was said, the _Scud_ had drivenpast, and in the next moment she was hid from view by the grove in whichthe blockhouse was partially concealed.

  Two anxious minutes succeeded; but, at the expiration of that briefspace, the sails were again gleaming through the trees, Jasper havingwore, jibed, and hauled up under the lee of the island on the othertack. The wind was free enough, as has been already explained, to admitof this manoeuvre; and the cutter, catching the current under her leebow, was breasted up to her course in a way that showed she would comeout to windward of the island again without any difficulty. Thiswhole evolution was made with the greatest facility, not a sheet beingtouched, the sails trimming themselves, the rudder alone controllingthe admirable machine. The object appeared to be a reconnoissance. When,however, the _Scud_ had made the circuit of the entire island, and hadagain got her weatherly position in the channel by which she had firstapproached, her helm was put down, and she tacked. The noise of themainsail flapping when it filled, loose-reefed as it was, sounded likethe report of a gun, and Cap trembled lest the seams should open.

  "His Majesty gives good canvas, it must be owned," muttered the oldseaman; "and it must be owned, too, that boy handles his boat as if hewere thoroughly bred! D---me, Master Pathfinder, if I believe, after allthat has been reported in the matter, that this Mister Oh-deuce got histrade on this bit of fresh water."

  "He did; yes, he did. He never saw the ocean, and has come by hiscalling altogether up here on Ontario. I have often thought he has anat'ral gift in the way of schooners and sloops, and have respected himaccordingly. As for treason and lying and black-hearted vices, friendCap, Jasper Western is as free as the most virtuousest of the Delawarewarriors; and if you crave to see a truly honest man, you must go amongthat tribe to discover him."

  "There he comes round!" exclaimed the delighted Cap, the _Scud_ at thismoment filling on her original tack; "and now we shall see what the boywould be at; he cannot mean to keep running up and down these passages,like a girl footing it through a country-dance."

  The _Scud_ now kept so much away, that for a moment the two observers onthe blockhouse feared Jasper meant to come-to; and the savages, intheir lairs, gleamed out upon her with the sort of exultation thatthe crouching tiger may be supposed to feel as he sees his unconsciousvictim approach his bed. But Jasper had no such intention: familiar withthe shore, and acquainted with the depth of water on every part of theisland, he well knew that the _Scud_ might be run against the bank withimpunity, and he ventured fearlessly so near, that, as he passed throughthe little cove, he swept the two boats of the soldiers from theirfastenings and forced them out into the channel, towing them with thecutter. As all the canoes were fastened to the two Dunham boats, by thisbold and successful attempt the savages were at once deprived of themeans of quitting the island, unless by swimming, and they appeared tobe instantly aware of the very important fact. Rising in a body, theyfilled the air with yells, and poured in a harmless fire. While up inthis unguarded manner, two rifles were discharged by their adversaries.One came from the summit of the block, and an Iroquois fell dead in histracks, shot through the brain. The other came from the _Scud_. The lastwas the piece of the Delaware, but, less true than that of his friend,it only maimed an enemy for life. The people of the _Scud_ shouted, andthe savages sank again, to a man, as if it might be into the earth.

  "That was the Sarpent's voice," said Pathfinder, as soon as the secondpiece was discharged. "I know the crack of his rifle as well as I dothat of Killdeer. 'Tis a good barrel, though not sartain death. Well,well, with Chingachgook and Jasper on the water, and you and I in theblock, friend Cap, it will be hard if we don't teach these Mingo scampsthe rationality of a fight."

  All this time the _Scud_ was in motion. As soon as he had reached theend of the island, Jasper sent his prizes adrift; and they went downbefore the wind until they stranded on a point half a mile to leeward.He then wore, and came stemming the current again, through the otherpassage. Those on the summit of the block could now perceive thatsomething was in agitation on the deck of the _Scud_; and, to theirgreat delight, just as the cutter came abreast of the principal cove,on the spot where most of the enemy lay, the howitzer which composed hersole armament was unmasked, and a shower of case-shot was sent hissinginto the bushes. A bevy of quail would not have risen quicker than thisunexpected discharge of iron hail put up the Iroquois; when a secondsavage fell by a messenger sent from Killdeer, and another wentlimping away by a visit from the rifle of Chingachgook. New covers wereimmediately found, however; and each party seemed to prepare for therenewal of the strife in another form. But the appearance of June,bearing a white flag, and accompanied by the French officer and Muir,stayed the hands of all, and was the forerunner of another parley. Thenegotiation that followed was held beneath the blockhouse; and so nearit as at once to put those who were uncovered completely at the mercyof Pathfinder's unerring aim. Jasper anchored directly abeam; andthe howitzer, too, was kept trained upon the negotiators: so that thebesieged and their friends, with the exception of the man who held thematch, had no hesitation about exposing their persons. Chingachgookalone lay in ambush; more, however, from habit than distrust.

  "You've triumphed, Pathfinder," called out the Quartermaster, "andCaptain Sanglier has come himself to offer terms. You'll no' be denyinga brave enemy honorable retreat, when he has fought ye fairly, and doneall the credit he could to king and country. Ye are too loyal a subjectyourself to visit loyalty and fidelity with a heavy judgment. I amauthorized to offer, on the part of the enemy, an evacuation of theisland, a mutual exchange of prisoners, and a restoration of scalps. Inthe absence o
f baggage and artillery, little more can be done."

  As the conversation was necessarily carried on in a high key, both onaccount of the wind and of the distance, all that was said was heardequally by those in the block and those in the cutter.

  "What do you say to that, Jasper?" called out Pathfinder. "You hear theproposal. Shall we let the vagabonds go? Or shall we mark them, as theymark their sheep in the settlements, that we may know them again?"

  "What has befallen Mabel Dunham?" demanded the young man, with a frownon his handsome face, that was visible even to those on the block. "Ifa hair of her head has been touched, it will go hard with the wholeIroquois tribe."

  "Nay, nay, she is safe below, nursing a dying parent, as becomes hersex. We owe no grudge on account of the Sergeant's hurt, which comes oflawful warfare; and as for Mabel--"

  "She is here!" exclaimed the girl herself, who had mounted to the roofthe moment she found the direction things were taking,--"she is here!And, in the name of our holy religion, and of that God whom we professto worship in common, let there be no more bloodshed! Enough has beenspilt already; and if these men will go away, Pathfinder--if they willdepart peaceably, Jasper--oh, do not detain one of them! My poor fatheris approaching his end, and it were better that he should draw his lastbreath in peace with the world. Go, go, Frenchmen and Indians! We are nolonger your enemies, and will harm none of you."

  "Tut, tut, Magnet!" put in Cap; "this sounds religious, perhaps, or likea book of poetry; but it does not sound like common sense. The enemyis just ready to strike; Jasper is anchored with his broadside to bear,and, no doubt, with springs on his cables; Pathfinder's eye and handare as true as the needle; and we shall get prize-money, head-money, andhonor in the bargain, if you will not interfere for the next half-hour."

  "Well," said Pathfinder, "I incline to Mabel's way of thinking. There_has_ been enough blood shed to answer our purpose and to sarve theking; and as for honor, in that meaning, it will do better for youngensigns and recruits than for cool-headed, obsarvant Christian men.There is honor in doing what's right, and unhonor in doing what's wrong;and I think it wrong to take the life even of a Mingo, without a usefulend in view, I do; and right to hear reason at all times. So, LieutenantMuir, let us know what your friends the Frenchers and Indians have tosay for themselves."

  "My friends!" said Muir, starting; "you'll no' be calling the king'senemies my friends, Pathfinder, because the fortune of war has thrownme into their hands? Some of the greatest warriors, both of ancient andmodern times, have been prisoners of war; and yon is Master Cap, who cantestify whether we did not do all that men could devise to escape thecalamity."

  "Ay, ay," drily answered Cap; "escape is the proper word. We ran belowand hid ourselves, and so discreetly, that we might have remained in thehole to this hour, had it not been for the necessity of re-stowing thebread lockers. You burrowed on that occasion, Quartermaster, as handilyas a fox; and how the d---l you knew so well where to find the spot is amatter of wonder to me. A regular skulk on board ship does not trail aftmore readily when the jib is to be stowed, than you went into that samehole."

  "And did ye no' follow? There are moments in a man's life when reasonascends to instinct--"

  "And men descend into holes," interrupted Cap, laughing in hisboisterous way, while Pathfinder chimed in, in his peculiar manner.Even Jasper, though still filled with concern for Mabel, was obligedto smile. "They say the d---l wouldn't make a sailor if he didn't lookaloft; and now it seems he'll not make a soldier if he doesn't lookbelow!"

  This burst of merriment, though it was anything but agreeable to Muir,contributed largely towards keeping the peace. Cap fancied he had saida thing much better than common and that disposed him to yield his ownopinion on the main point, so long as he got the good opinion of hiscompanions on his novel claim to be a wit. After a short discussion, allthe savages on the island were collected in a body, without arms, atthe distance of a hundred yards from the block, and under the gun ofthe _Scud_; while Pathfinder descended to the door of the blockhouse andsettled the terms on which the island was to be finally evacuated by theenemy. Considering all the circumstances, the conditions were not verydiscreditable to either party. The Indians were compelled to give upall their arms, even to their knives and tomahawks, as a measure ofprecaution, their force being still quadruple that of their foes. TheFrench officer, Monsieur Sanglier, as he was usually styled, and choseto call himself, remonstrated against this act as one likely to reflectmore discredit on his command than any other part of the affair; butPathfinder, who had witnessed one or two Indian massacres, and knewhow valueless pledges became when put in opposition to interest where asavage was concerned, was obdurate. The second stipulation was of nearlythe same importance. It compelled Captain Sanglier to give up all hisprisoners, who had been kept well guarded in the very hole or cave inwhich Cap and Muir had taken refuge. When these men were produced, fourof them were found to be unhurt; they had fallen merely to savetheir lives, a common artifice in that species of warfare; and of theremainder, two were so slightly injured as not to be unfit for service.As they brought their muskets with them, this addition to his forceimmediately put Pathfinder at his ease; for, having collected all thearms of the enemy in the blockhouse, he directed these men to takepossession of the building, stationing a regular sentinel at the door.The remainder of the soldiers were dead, the badly wounded having beeninstantly despatched in order to obtain the much-coveted scalps.

  As soon as Jasper was made acquainted with the terms, and thepreliminaries had been so far observed as to render it safe for him tobe absent, he got the _Scud_ under weigh; and, running down to the pointwhere the boats had stranded, he took them in tow again, and, makinga few stretches, brought them into the leeward passage. Here all thesavages instantly embarked, when Jasper took the boats in tow a thirdtime, and, running off before the wind, he soon set them adrift fulla mile to leeward of the island. The Indians were furnished with buta single oar in each boat to steer with, the young sailor well knowingthat by keeping before the wind they would land on the shores of Canadain the course of the morning.

  Captain Sanglier, Arrowhead, and June alone remained, when thisdisposition had been made of the rest of the party: the former havingcertain papers to draw up and sign with Lieutenant Muir, who in his eyespossessed the virtues which are attached to a commission and the latterpreferring, for reasons of his own, not to depart in company with hislate friends, the Iroquois. Canoes were detained for the departure ofthese three, when the proper moment should arrive.

  In the meantime, or while the _Scud_ was running down with the boats intow, Pathfinder and Cap, aided by proper assistants, busied themselveswith preparing a breakfast; most of the party not having eaten forfour-and-twenty hours. The brief space that passed in this manner beforethe _Scud_ came-to again was little interrupted by discourse, thoughPathfinder found leisure to pay a visit to the Sergeant, to say a fewfriendly words to Mabel, and to give such directions as he thought mightsmooth the passage of the dying man. As for Mabel herself, he insistedon her taking some light refreshment; and, there no longer existing anymotive for keeping it there, he had the guard removed from the block,in order that the daughter might have no impediment to her attentionsto her father. These little arrangements completed, our hero returnedto the fire, around which he found all the remainder of the partyassembled, including Jasper.