Ogniem i mieczem. English

by Henryk Sienkiewicz

  CHAPTER XLI.

  Bogun, though a brave, clear-sighted leader, had no luck in thisexpedition against the supposed division of Prince Yeremi. He wasmerely confirmed in the belief that the prince had really moved hiswhole force against Krivonos; for this was the information given by thecaptives from among Zagloba's men, who believed most sacredly that theprince was marching after them. Nothing remained then for theunfortunate ataman but to withdraw with all speed to Krivonos; but thetask was not easy. Scarcely on the third day was a party of two hundredand a few tens of Cossacks collected around him; the others had eitherfallen in the fight, were lying wounded on the field of struggle, orwere wandering yet among the ravines and reeds, not knowing what to do,how to turn, or where to go. Besides, the party left to Bogun was notgood for much; for it was beaten, inclined to flee at every alarm,demoralized, frightened. And it was made up too of chosen men; bettersoldiers it would be difficult to find in the whole Saitch. But theheroes didn't know with what a small force Pan Volodyovski had struckthem, and that, thanks only to the unexpected attack on sleeping andunprepared men, could he inflict such a defeat. They believed mostsacredly that they had been fighting, if not with the prince himself,at least with a strong detachment several times more numerous than itwas. Bogun raged like fire; cut in the hand, run over, sick, beaten, hehad let his inveterate enemy out of his hands, and belittled his ownfame. For now those Cossacks who on the eve of the defeat would havefollowed him blindly to the Crimea, to hell, and against the princehimself, had lost faith and courage, and were thinking only how tocarry their lives out of the defeat. Still Bogun had done everythingthat a leader was bound to do; he had neglected nothing, he hadestablished pickets at a distance from the house, and rested onlybecause the horses which had come from Kamenyets almost at one coursewere altogether unfit for the road. But Volodyovski, whose youth hadbeen passed in surprising and hunting Tartars, approached the picketslike a fox in the night, seized them before they could shout or fire,and fell upon them in such fashion that Bogun could escape only in hisshirt and trousers. When the chief thought of this the light grew darkin his eyes, his head swam, and despair gnawed his soul like a mad dog.He who on the Black Sea had rushed upon Turkish galleys, and gallopedon the necks of Tartars to Perekop, and lighted up the eyes of the Khanwith the blaze of his villages, and under the hand of the prince nearLubni itself had cut a garrison to pieces at Vassilyevka, had to fleein his shirt, bareheaded and without a sabre,--for he had lost that tooin his meeting with the little knight. So at the stopping-places wherethe horses were fed, when no man was looking, the chief seized himselfby the head and cried: "Where is my Cossack glory, where my sabrefriend?" When he cried in this way a wild raving carried him away, andthen he drank as if he were not a creature of God, and wanted to marchagainst the prince, attack all his forces,--perish and disappear forthe ages.

  He wished it, but the Cossacks did not. "Though you kill us, father, wewill not go!" was their gloomy answer to his outbursts; and vainly inaccesses of fury he cut at them with his sabre and singed their faceswith his pistol,--they would not, they did not go.

  You would have said that the ground was slipping away from the ataman'sfeet, for this was not the end of his misfortune. Fearing on account ofprobable pursuit to go straight to the south, and thinking that perhapsKrivonos had already given up the siege, he rushed straight to theeast, and came upon the party of Pan Podbipienta. Pan Longin, wakefulas a stork, did not permit an attack, but falling first on Bogun,defeated him the more easily because his Cossacks were unwilling tofight; when he had defeated him he turned him over to Skshetuski, whobeat him worst of all; so that Bogun, after long wanderings in thesteppes with a few horses only, without glory, without Cossacks,without booty, without informants, made his way back at last toKrivonos.

  But the wild Krivonos, usually so terrible to subordinates whom fortunedid not favor, was not angry this time. He knew from his own experiencewhat an affair with Yeremi meant; therefore he even petted Bogun,comforted him, quieted him, pacified him, and when he fell into aviolent fever, gave orders to nurse and cure him with all care.

  The four officers of the prince, having filled the country with terrorand dismay, returned safely to Yarmolintsi, where they remained severaldays to give rest to the men and horses. There, when they came into thesame quarters, they gave to Skshetuski, each in turn, an account ofwhat had happened to them and what they had accomplished; then they satdown by the bottle to relieve their hearts in friendly converse andsatisfy their mutual curiosity.

  But Zagloba gave little chance to any man to speak. He had no desire tolisten, but wished only that others should listen to him,--in truth itcame out that he had the most to tell.

  "Gentlemen," said he, "I fell into captivity, it is true; but fortuneturns around. Bogun has been all his life victorious, but we beat himthis time. That is how it is usually in war. To-day you tan people,to-morrow they tan you. But God punished Bogun because he fell upon us,sleeping sweetly the sleep of the just, and roused us in such adishonorable way. Ho, ho! he thought to terrify me with his filthytongue; but I tell you here, gentlemen, that I cornered him so that helost his boldness, became confused, and said what he didn't want tosay. What's the use of talking long? If I hadn't got into captivity.Pan Michael and I would not have defeated him. I say both of us,because in this affair magna pars fui, and I shall not cease to insiston it to my death. So God give me health! Hear my reasons further: If Iand Volodyovski had not beaten him, then Podbipienta would not havebeaten him, and further Skshetuski would not have beaten him; andfinally if we hadn't beaten him he would have beaten us, and who wasthe cause that this didn't take place?"

  "Ah! it is with you as with a fox," said Pan Longin; "you wave yourtail here, slink away there, and always get out."

  "It's a foolish hound that runs after his own tail, for he will notcatch it and will not smell anything honorable, and besides will losehis wind. How many men have you lost?"

  "Twelve in all, and some wounded; they didn't strike us very hard."

  "And you, Pan Michael?"

  "About thirty, for I fell upon them unawares."

  "And you, Lieutenant?"

  "As many as Pan Longin."

  "And I lost two. See yourselves who is the best leader! That's thequestion. Why did we come here? On the service of the prince, to getnews of Krivonos. Well, I tell you, gentlemen, that I first got news ofhim, and from the best source, because I got it from Bogun; and I knowthat he is at Kamenyets, but he thinks of raising the siege, for he isafraid. I know this openly; but I know something else which will putjoy into your heart, and of which I have not spoken because I wantedthat we should counsel about it together. I was sick till now, forweariness overpowered me, and my bowels rose up against that villanousbinding on a stick. I thought my blood would boil over."

  "Tell us, for God's sake!" cried Volodyovski, "have you heard anythingof our unfortunate lady?"

  "Yes, God bless her," said Zagloba.

  Skshetuski rose to his full height and then sat down. There followedsuch a silence that the buzzing of the mosquitoes was heard on thewindows till Zagloba began again,--

  "She lives, I know that certainly; she is in Bogun's hands. Gentlemen,it is a terrible thing; however, God has not permitted harm or disgraceto meet her. Bogun himself told me this,--he who would rather boast ofsomething else."

  "How can that be? how can that be?" asked Skshetuski, feverishly.

  "If I lie, may a thunderbolt strike me!" said Zagloba, with importance,"for this is a sacred thing. Listen to what Bogun said when he wishedto jeer at me before I settled him at last. 'Did you think,' said he,'that you brought her to Bar for a peasant; that I was a peasant toconstrain her by force; that I was not to be married in Kieff in thechurch, and monks sing for me, and three hundred candles burn forme,--me, an ataman, a hetman!' And he stamped his feet and threatenedme with his knife, for he thought he was frightening me; but I told himto frighten the dogs!"

  Skshetuski h
ad now recovered himself. His monk's face lighted up;gladness and uncertainty played on it again. "Where is she now, whereis she?" he asked hurriedly. "If you have found that out, then you havecome from heaven."

  "He did not tell me that, but two words are enough for a wise head.Remember, gentlemen, he jeered me all the while till I planted him, andthen he went in. 'First I'll take you,' said he, 'to Krivonos, and thenI would invite you to the wedding; but now there is war, so it will notcome off soon.' Think of it, gentlemen,--'not come off soon;' thereforewe have plenty of time. Secondly, think,--'first to Krivonos, then tothe wedding;' therefore in no way is she at the camp of Krivonos, butsomewhere farther, where the war has not reached."

  "You are a man of gold," said Volodyovski.

  "I thought at first," said the delightfully flattered Zagloba, "thatmaybe he had sent her to Kieff; but no, for he said he would go for thewedding to Kieff with her. If they will go, it means that she is notthere; and he is too shrewd to take her there now, for if Hmelnitskishould push into Red Russia, Kieff could be taken easily by theLithuanian forces."

  "Surely, surely!" cried Pan Longin. "Now, as God is just to me, no mancould change minds with you."

  "But I shouldn't change with every one, lest I might get soup insteadof reason,--a thing which might easily happen among the Lithuanians."

  "Oh, he is beginning again!" said Pan Longin.

  "Well, since she is not with Krivonos nor in Kieff, where is she?"

  "There's the difficulty."

  "If you have worked it out, then tell me quickly, for fire is burningme," said Skshetuski.

  "Beyond Yampol," said Zagloba, and rolled his one sound eyetriumphantly.

  "How do you know?" inquired Volodyovski.

  "How do I know? Here is how: I was sitting in the stable,--for thatbrigand had me shut up in the stable, may the wild boars rip him!--andthe Cossacks were talking among themselves all around. I put my ear tothe wall then, and what did I hear? 'Now maybe the ataman will gobeyond Yampol,' said one; and then the other answered, 'Be silent, ifyour young head is dear to you!' I'll give my neck that she is beyondYampol."

  "Oh, as sure as God is in heaven!" cried Volodyovski.

  "He did not take her to the Wilderness; therefore, according to myhead, he must have hidden her somewhere between Yampol and Yagorlik. Iwas once in that region when the judges of the king and the Khan met;for in Yagorlik, as you know, cattle questions of the boundary aretried, of which cases there is never a lack. Along the whole Dniesterthere are ravines, hidden places, and reeds in which living bythemselves are people who know no authority, dwell in the wilderness,and see no neighbors. He has hidden her surely among such wildsolitaries, for he would be surest of her there."

  "But how can we go there now, when Krivonos bars the way?" asked PanLongin. "Yampol too, I hear, is a nest of robbers."

  To this Skshetuski replied: "Though I had to risk my life ten times, Ishould try to save her. I will go disguised and look for her. God willhelp me, I shall find her."

  "I will go with you, Yan," said Volodyovski.

  "And I as a minstrel with my lute. Believe me, gentlemen, that I havemore experience than any of you; but since the lute has disgusted me tothe last degree, I'll take bagpipes."

  "I too shall be good for something," said Podbipienta.

  "Of course," added Zagloba. "Whenever we need to cross the Dnieper youwill carry us over, like Saint Christopher."

  "I thank you from my soul, gentlemen," said Pan Yan; "and I accept yourreadiness with a willing heart. There is nothing to be compared withtrusty friends, of whom as I see Providence has not deprived me. Maythe great God grant me to repay you with my health and property!"

  "We are all as one man!" shouted Zagloba. "God is pleased with concord,and you will find that we shall soon see the fruit of our labors."

  "Then nothing else remains to me," said Skshetuski, after a moment'ssilence, "but to deliver up the squadron to the prince, and start atonce. We will go by the Dniester, along through Yampol to Yagorlik, andlook everywhere. But if, as I hope, Hmelnitski is already crushed orwill be before we reach the prince, then public service will not be inthe way. Certain regiments will go to the Ukraine, to finish theremnant of the rebellion, but they will get on without us."

  "Wait!" said Volodyovski; "doubtless after Hmelnitski, Krivonos's turnwill come; maybe we shall go together with the regiments to Yampol."

  "No, we must go there before," answered Zagloba. "But first of all giveup the squadron, so as to have free hand. I hope, too, that the princewill be satisfied with us."

  "Especially with you."

  "That's true, for I shall bring him the best news. Believe me, I expecta reward."

  "When shall we take the road?"

  "We must rest till morning," said Volodyovski. "Let Skshetuski command,however, for he is chief here; but I forewarn you, if we start to-daymy horses will all give out."

  "I know that it is impossible to start to-day," said Skshetuski; "but Ithink after good oats we can go to-morrow."

  They started on the following day. According to the orders of theprince, they were to return to Zbaraj and wait further orders. Theywent consequently through Kuzmin, aside from Felstin, to Volochisk,from which the old highway led through Hlebanovka to Zbaraj. The roadswere bad; for rain was falling, though quietly. Pan Longin, going aheadwith one hundred horses, broke up a few disorderly bands that hadgathered around the rear of the forces of the commander-in-chief. AtVolochisk they stopped for the night.

  But they had barely begun a pleasant sleep after the long road, whenthey were roused by an alarm, and the guards informed them that cavalrydetachments were approaching. Immediately came the news that it wasVershul's Tartar squadron, therefore their own men. Zagloba, PanLongin, and Volodyovski met at once in Skshetuski's room; and rightafter them rushed in, like a storm, an officer of the light cavalry,breathless and covered with mud. When he had looked at him, Skshetuskicried out: "Vershul!"

  "Yes, it is I," said the newly arrived, unable to catch his breath.

  "From the prince?"

  "Yes. Oh for breath, breath!"

  "What news? All over with Hmelnitski?"

  "All--over with--the Commonwealth!"

  "By the wounds of Christ, what do you say? Defeat!"

  "Defeat, disgrace, shame!--without a battle--a panic--oh! oh!"

  Skshetuski could not believe his ears. "But speak! speak, in the nameof the living God! The commanders--"

  "Ran away."

  "Where is our prince?"

  "Retreating--without an army--I am here from the prince--the order toLvoff--at once--they are pursuing us--"

  "Who? Vershul, Vershul, come to your senses, man! Who is pursuing?"

  "Hmelnitski and the Tartars."

  "In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost!" cried Zagloba. "Theearth is opening."

  But Skshetuski understood already what the matter was. "Questions lateron; now to horse!"

  "To horse! to horse!"

  The hoofs of the horses under Vershul's Tartars were clattering by thewindows. The townspeople, roused by the arrival of troops, burst fromtheir houses with lanterns and torches in their hands. The news flewthrough the town like lightning. The alarm was sounded. The town,silent a moment before, was filled with yells, tramping of horses,shouting of orders, and wailing of Jews. The inhabitants wishing toleave with the troops got ready wagons, in which they put their wivesand children, with featherbeds. The mayor, at the head of a number ofcitizens, came to beg Skshetuski not to depart at once, but to convoythe inhabitants even to Tarnopol. Skshetuski would not listen; for theorder received was explicit, to go to Lvoff as fast as his breath wouldlet him. They hurried away therefore; and on the road Vershul,recovering breath, told what had happened, and how.

  "Since the Commonwealth has been a commonwealth," said he, "never hasit borne such a defeat. Tsetsora, Joltiya Vodi, Korsun, are nothing incomparison."

  Skshetuski, Volodyovski, and Pan Longin bent down to the necks of t
heirhorses, now grasping their own heads, now raising their hands toheaven. "The thing passes human belief," said they. "But where was theprince?"

  "Deserted by all, thrust aside on purpose; he did not command, in fact,his own division."

  "Who had command?"

  "No man, and all men. I have been long in service, I have eaten myteeth in war, and yet up to this day I have not seen such armies andsuch leaders."

  Zagloba, who had no great love for Vershul and knew him but little,began to shake his head and smack his lips; at last he said,--

  "My dear sir, either your vision is confused, or you have taken somepartial defeat for a general one; for what you relate passesimagination completely."

  "That it passes imagination, I confess; and I'll say more to you,--thatI should gladly give my head to be severed if by some miracle it shouldappear that I am mistaken."

  "But how did you get to Volochisk first after the defeat? For I don'twish to admit that you were the first to run away. Where, then, are theforces in flight? In what direction are they fleeing? What has happenedto them? Why didn't the fugitives get ahead of you? To all thesequestions I seek an answer in vain."

  Vershul at any other time would not have permitted such questions, butat that moment he could think of nothing but the defeat; therefore hemerely answered,--

  "I came first to Volochisk, for the others are retreating to Ojigovtsi,and the prince hurried me off on purpose toward the place in which hethought you were, so the avalanche might not catch you through hearingthe news too late; and secondly, because the five hundred horse whichyou have are no small comfort to him, for the greater part of hisdivision is killed or in flight."

  "Wonderful things!" said Zagloba.

  "It's a terror to think of! Desperation seizes one, the heart is cut,tears flow," said Volodyovski, wringing his hands. "The countrydestroyed; disgrace after death,--such forces dispersed, lost. Itcannot be that there is anything but the end of the world and theapproach of the last judgment."

  "Don't interrupt him," said Skshetuski; "let him tell all."

  Vershul was silent for a time, as if collecting his strength; nothingwas heard but the plashing of hoofs in the mud, for rain was falling.It was still the depth of night, and very dark, because cloudy; and inthat darkness and rain the words of Vershul, who began thus to speak,had a wonderful sound of ill-omen,--

  "If I had not expected to fall in battle, I should have lost my reason.You speak of the last judgment,--and I think it will come soon, foreverything is going to pieces; wickedness rises above virtue, andantichrist is walking through the world. You have not seen what tookplace; but if you are not able to bear even the story of it, how is itwith me, who saw with my own eyes the defeat and measureless disgrace?God gave us a happy beginning in this war. Our prince, after gettingsatisfaction at Cholganski Kamen from Pan Lashch, gave the rest tooblivion, and made peace with Prince Dominik. We were all pleased withthis concord,--really a blessing of God. The prince gained a secondvictory at Konstantinoff, and took the place; for the enemy left itafter the first storm. Then we marched to Pilavtsi, though the princedid not advise going there. But immediately on the road variousmachinations were manifest against him,--ill-will, envy, and evidentintrigue. He was not listened to in councils, no attention was paid tohis words, and above all, efforts were made to separate our division,so that the prince should not have it all in hand. If he should oppose,the blame of defeat would be thrown on him. He was silent, therefore,suffered and endured. By order of the commander-in-chief the lightcavalry, together with Vurtsel and the cannon. Colonel Makhnitski,Osinski, and Koritski, were detached, so that there remained with theprince only the hussars and Zatsvilikhovski, two regiments of dragoons,and I, with a part of my squadron,--altogether not more than twothousand men. And they paid no attention to the prince; he wasdespised; and I heard how the clients of Prince Dominik said: 'Theywon't say now, after the victory, that it came through Vishnyevetski.'And they said openly that if such immeasurable glory covered Yeremi,his candidate, Prince Karl, could carry the election, and they wantKazimir. The whole army was infected with factions, so that harangueswere held in circles, as if they were sending delegates to the Diets;they were thinking of everything but battle, just as if the enemy hadbeen beaten already. But if I were to tell you of the feasting and theapplauding, you would not believe me. The legions of Pyrrhus werenothing in comparison with those armies, all in gold, jewels, andostrich feathers, with two hundred thousand camp followers. Legions ofwagons followed us, horses dropped dead under the weight of gold-tippedand silken tents; wagons were breaking under provision chests. Youwould have thought we were going to the conquest of the world. Noblesof the general militia shook their sticks, saying, 'This is how we willpacify the trash, and not kill them with swords.' We old soldiers,accustomed to fighting without talking, had a foreboding of evil at thesight of this unheard of pride. Then began tumults against Kisel,--thathe was a traitor; and tumults for him,--that he was a worthy senator.They cut one another with sabres when they were drunk; there were nocommanders of camps, no one looked after order; there was no general.Each one did what he liked, went where it pleased him best, stopped,took his place where it suited him; and the camp followers raised suchan uproar! Oh, merciful God! that was a carnival, not a campaign,--acarnival at which the salvation of the Commonwealth was danced away,drunk away, ridden away, and chaffered away, to the last bit."

  "But we are still alive," said Volodyovski.

  "And God is in heaven," added Skshetuski.

  A moment of silence followed; then Vershul said,--

  "We shall perish totally, unless God performs a miracle and ceases tochastise us for our sins and shows us unmerited mercy. At times I donot believe myself what I saw with my own eyes, and it seems to me thata nightmare was choking me in my sleep."

  "Tell further," said Zagloba; "you came to Pilavtsi, and then what?"

  "We stopped. What the commanders counselled I know not. At the lastjudgment they will answer for that; if they had struck Hmelnitski atonce he would have been shattered and swept away, as God is in heaven,in spite of disorder, insubordination, tumult, and want of a leader. Ontheir side was panic among the rabble; they were already taking counselhow to give up Hmelnitski and the elders, and he himself was meditatingflight. Our prince rode from tent to tent, begged, implored,threatened. 'Let us strike,' said he, 'before the Tartar comes!' Hetore the hair from his head. Men looked at one another, but did nothingand nothing. They drank, they had meetings. Reports came that theTartars were marching,--the Khan with two hundred thousand horsemen.The commanders counselled and counselled. The prince shut himself up inhis tent, for they had set him aside altogether. In the army they beganto say that the chancellor had forbidden Prince Dominik to give battle;that negotiations were going on. Still greater disorder appeared. Atlast the Tartars came, but God gave us luck the first day. The princeand Pan Osinski fought, and Pan Lashch did very well. They drove theTartar horde from the field, cut them up considerably; but afterward--"Here Vershul's voice died in his breast.

  "But afterward?" asked Zagloba.

  "--came the terrible, inexplicable night which I remember. I was onguard with my men by the river, when on a sudden I heard firing ofcannon in the Cossack camp as if in applause, and I heard shouts. Thenit occurred to me that yesterday it was said in the camp that the wholeTartar force had not arrived yet,--only Tugai Bey with a part. Ithought then: 'If they are making such uproarious applause, the Khanmust have come in his own person.' Then in our camp rose a tumult. Ihurried thither with a few men. 'What's the matter?' They shout to me:'The commanders have gone!' I hasten to Prince Dominik's quarters,--heis not to be found; to Ostrorog,--he is gone; to Konyetspolski,--he isnot there! Jesus of Nazareth! Soldiers are flying over the square;there are shouts, tumult, yells, blazing torches. 'Where are thecommanders? where are the commanders?' cry some. 'To horse! to horse!'cry others. Still others: 'Save yourselves, brothers! Treason!treason!' Hands are raised to heaven, faces are pale, eyes
wild. Theyrush, trample, suffocate one another, mount their horses, fleeweaponless at random. Others leave helmets, breastplates, arms, tents.The prince rides up at the head of the hussars in his silver armor,with six torches around him. He stands in the stirrups and cries: 'I amhere, gentlemen! Rally around me!' What can he do? They don't hear him,don't see him; they rush on his hussars, break their ranks, overturnhorses and men. We were barely able to save the prince himself. Thenover the trampled-out fires, in darkness, like a dammed-up torrent,like a river, the whole army in wild panic rush from the camp, flee,scatter, disappear. No more an army, no more leaders, no more aCommonwealth,--nothing but unwashed disgrace and the foot of theCossack on your neck!"

  Here Vershul began to groan and to pull at his horse, for the madnessof despair had caught him. This madness he communicated to the others,and they rode on in that rain and night as if bewildered. They rode along time. Zagloba broke silence first,--

  "Without battle. Oh, the rascals! Oh, such sons of-- You remember whatlordly figures they cut at Zbaraj,--how they promised to eat Hmelnitskiwithout pepper and salt. Oh, the scoundrels!"

  "How could they?" shouted Vershul. "They ran away after the firstbattle gained over the Tartars and the mob,--after a battle in whichthe general militia fought like lions."

  "The finger of God is in this," said Skshetuski; "but there is somesecret too, which must be explained."

  "If the army had fled, why that sort of thing happens in the world,"said Volodyovski; "but here the leaders left the camp first, as if onpurpose to lighten the victory for the enemy and give the army toslaughter."

  "True, true!" said Vershul. "It is said even that they did this onpurpose."

  "On purpose? By the wounds of Christ, that cannot be!"

  "It is said they did so on purpose; but why? Who can discover, who canguess?"

  "May their graves crush them, may their race perish, and only a memoryof infamy remain behind them!" said Zagloba.

  "Amen!" said Skshetuski.

  "Amen!" said Volodyovski.

  "Amen!" repeated Pan Longin.

  "There is one man who can save the fatherland yet, if they give him thebaton and the remaining power of the Commonwealth. There is only one,for neither the army nor the nobles will hear of another."

  "The prince!" said Skshetuski.

  "Yes."

  "We will rally to him; we will perish with him. Long live YeremiVishnyevetski!" cried Zagloba.

  "Long life!" repeated a few uncertain voices. But the cry died awayimmediately; for when the earth was opening under their feet and theheavens seemed falling on their heads, there was no time for shouts.

  Day began to break, and in the distance appeared the walls of Tarnopol.