The Pioneers; Or, The Sources of the Susquehanna

by James Fenimore Cooper

  CHAPTER X.

  "And calling sinful man to pray, Loud, long, and deep the bell had tolled." --Scotts Burgher

  While Richard and Monsieur Le Quoi, attended by Benjamin, proceeded tothe academy by a foot-path through the snow, the judge, his daughter,the divine, and the Major took a more circuitous route to the same placeby the streets of the village.

  The moon had risen, and its orb was shedding a flood of light overthe dark outline of pines which crowned the eastern mountain. In manyclimates the sky would have been thought clear and lucid for a noontide.The stars twinkled in the heavens, like the last glimmerings of distantfire, so much were they obscured by the overwhelming radiance of theatmosphere; the rays from the moon striking upon the smooth, whitesurfaces of the lake and fields, reflecting upward a light that wasbrightened by the spotless color of the immense bodies of snow whichcovered the earth.

  Elizabeth employed herself with reading the signs, one of which appearedover almost every door; while the sleigh moved steadily, and at an easygait, along the principal street. Not only new occupations, but namesthat were strangers to her ears, met her gaze at every step theyproceeded. The very houses seemed changed. This had been altered by anaddition; that had been painted; another had been erected on the siteof an old acquaintance, which had been banished from the earth almost assoon as it made its appearance on it. All were, however, pouring forththeir inmates, who uniformly held their way toward the point where theexpected exhibition of the conjoint taste of Richard and Benjamin was tobe made.

  After viewing the buildings, which really appeared to some advantageunder the bright but mellow light of the moon, our heroine turned hereyes to a scrutiny of the different figures they passed, in search ofany form that she knew. But all seemed alike, as muffled in cloaks,hoods, coats, or tippets, they glided along the narrow passages in thesnow which led under the houses, half hid by the bank that had beenthrown up in excavating the deep path in which they trod. Once or twiceshe thought there was a stature or a gait that she recollected; but thcperson who owned it instantly disappeared behind one of those enormouspiles of wood that lay before most of the doors, It was only as theyturned from the main street into another that intersected it at rightangles, and which led directly to the place of meeting, that sherecognized a face and building that she knew.

  The house stood at one of the principal corners in the village; and byits well-trodden doorway, as well as the sign that was swinging witha kind of doleful sound in the blasts that occasionally swept down thelake, was clearly one of the most frequented inns in the place. Thebuilding was only of one story; but the dormer-windows in the roof, thepaint, the window-shutters, and the cheerful fire that shone through theopen door, gave it an air of comfort that was not possessed by many ofits neighbors. The sign was suspended from a common ale-house post, andrepresented the figure of a horseman, armed with sabre and pistols,and surmounted by a bear-skin cap, with a fiery animal that he bestrode"rampant." All these particulars were easily to be seen by the aid ofthe moon, together with a row of somewhat illegible writing in blackpaint, but in which Elizabeth, to whom the whole was familiar, read withfacility, "The Bold Dragoon."

  A man and a woman were issuing from the door of this habitation as thesleigh was passing, The former moved with a stiff, military step, thatwas a good deal heightened by a limp in one leg; but the woman advancedwith a measure and an air that seemed not particularly regardful of whatshe might encounter. The light of the moon fell directly upon her full,broad, and red visage, exhibiting her masculine countenance, under themockery of a ruffled cap that was intended to soften the lineamints offeatures that were by no means squeamish. A small bonnet of black silk,and of a slightly formal cut, was placed on the back of her head, but soas not to shade her visage in the least. The face, as it encounteredthe rays of the moon from the east, seemed not unlike sun rising in thewest. She advanced with masculine strides to intercept the sleigh; andthe Judge, directing the namesake of the Grecian king, who held thelines, to check his horse, the par ties were soon near to each other.

  "Good luck to ye, and a welcome home, Jooge," cried the female, with astrong Irish accent; "and I'm sure it's to me that ye're always welcome.Sure! and there's Miss Lizzy, and a fine young woman she is grown. Whata heart-ache would she be giving the young men now, if there was sicha thing as a rigiment in the town! Och! but it's idle to talk of sichvanities, while the bell is calling us to mateing jist as we shall becalled away unexpictedly some day, when we are the laist calkilating.Good-even, Major; will I make the bowl of gin toddy the night, or it'slikely ye'll stay at the big house the Christmas eve, and the very nightof yer getting there?"

  "I am glad to see you, Mrs. Hollister," returned Elizabeth. "I havebeen trying to find a face that I knew since we left the door of themansion-house; but none have I seen except your own. Your house, too, isunaltered, while all the others are so changed that, but for the placeswhere they stand, they would be utter strangers. I observe you also keepthe dear sign that I saw Cousin Richard paint; and even the name at thebottom, about which, you may remember, you had the disagreement."

  "It is the bould dragoon, ye mane? And what name would he have, whoniver was known by any other, as my husband here, the captain, cantestify? He was a pleasure to wait upon, and was ever the foremost inneed. Och! but he had a sudden end! but it's to be hoped that he wasjustified by the cause, And it's not Parson Grant there who'll gainsaythat same. Yes, yes; the squire would paint, and so I thought that wemight have his face up there, who had so often shared good and evil widus. The eyes is no so large nor so fiery as the captain's Own; but thewhiskers and the cap is as two paes. Well, well, I'll not keep ye in thecowld, talking, but will drop in the morrow after sarvice, and ask yehow ye do. It's our bounden duty to make the most of this present, andto go to the house which is open to all; so God bless ye, and keep yefrom evil! Will I make the gin-twist the night, or no, Major?"

  To this question the German replied, very sententiously, in theaffirmative; and, after a few words had passed between the husband ofthe fiery-faced hostess and the Judge, the sleigh moved on. It soonreached the door of the academy, where the party alighted and enteredthe building.

  In the mean time, Mr. Jones and his two companions, having a muchshorter distance to journey, had arrived before the appointed place someminutes sooner than the party in the sleigh. Instead of hastening intothe room in order to enjoy the astonishment of the settlers, Richardplaced a hand in either pocket of his surcoat, and affected to walkabout, in front of the academy, like one to whom the ceremonies werefamiliar.

  The villagers proceeded uniformly into the building, with a decorum andgravity that nothing could move, on such occasions; but with a hastethat was probably a little heightened by curiosity. Those who came infrom the adjacent country spent some little time in placing certain blueand white blankets over their horses before they proceeded to indulgetheir desire to view the interior of the house. Most of these menRichard approached, and inquired after the health and condition of theirfamilies. The readiness with which he mentioned the names of eventhe children, showed how very familiarly acquainted he was with theircircumstances; and the nature of the answers he received proved that hewas a general favorite.

  At length one of the pedestrians from the village stopped also, andfixed an earnest gaze at a new brick edifice that was throwing a longshadow across the fields of snow, as it rose, with a beautiful gradationof light and shade, under the rays of a full moon. In front of theacademy was a vacant piece of ground, that was intended for a publicsquare. On the side opposite to Mr. Jones, the new and as yet unfinishedchurch of St. Paul's was erected, This edifice had been reared duringthe preceding summer, by the aid of what was called a subscription;though all, or nearly all, of the money came from the pockets of thelandlord. It had been built under a strong conviction of the necessityof a more seemly place of worship than "the long room of the academy,"and under an implied agreement that, after its completion, the questionshould be fai
rly put to the people, that they might decide to whatdenomination it should belong. Of course, this expectation kept alivea strong excitement in some few of the sectaries who were interestedin its decision; though but little was said openly on the subject. HadJudge Temple espoused the cause of any particular sect, the questionwould have been immediately put at rest, for his influence was toopowerful to be opposed; but he declined interference in the matter,positively refusing to lend even the weight of his name on the side ofRichard, who had secretly given an assurance to his diocesan that boththe building and the congregation would cheerfully come within the paleof the Protestant Episcopal Church. But, when the neutrality of theJudge was clearly ascertained, Mr. Jones discovered that he had tocontend with a stiff necked people. His first measure was to go amongthem and commence a course of reasoning, in order to bring them roundto his own way of thinking. They all heard him patiently, and not a manuttered a word in reply in the way of argument, and Richard thought,by the time that he had gone through the settlement, the point wasconclusively decided in his favor. Willing to strike while the iron washot, he called a meeting, through the news paper, with a view to decidethe question by a vote at once. Not a soul attended; and one of the mostanxious afternoons that he had ever known was spent by Richard in avain discussion with Mrs. Hollister, who strongly contended that theMethodist (her own) church was the best entitled to and most deservingof, the possession of the new tabernacle. Richard now perceived that hehad been too sanguine, and had fallen into the error of all thosewho ignorantly deal with that wary and sagacious people. He assumed adisguise himself--that is, as well as he knew how, and proceeded step bystep to advance his purpose.

  The task of erecting the building had been unanimously transferredto Mr. Jones and Hiram Doolittle. Together they had built themansion-house, the academy, and the jail, and they alone knew how toplan and rear such a structure as was now required. Early in the day,these architects had made an equitable division of their duties. To theformer was assigned the duty of making all the plans, and to the latterthe labor of superintending the execution.

  Availing himself of this advantage, Richard silently determined that thewindows should have the Roman arch; the first positive step in effectinghis wishes. As the building was made of bricks, he was enabled toconceal his design until the moment arrived for placing the frames;then, indeed, it became necessary to act. He communicated his wishesto Hiram with great caution; and, without in the least adverting to thespiritual part of his project, he pressed the point a little warmlyon the score of architectural beauty. Hiram heard him patiently, andwithout contradiction, but still Richard was unable to discover theviews of his coadjutor on this interesting subject. As the right to planwas duly delegated to Mr. Jones, no direct objection was made in words.but numberless unexpected difficulties arose in the execution. At firstthere was a scarcity in the right kind of material necessary to form theframes; but this objection was instantly silenced by Richard running hispencil through two feet of their length at one stroke. Then the expensewas mentioned; but Richard reminded Hiram that his cousin paid, and thathe was treasurer. This last intimation had great weight, and after asilent and protracted, but fruitless opposition, the work was sufferedto proceed on the original plan.

  The next difficulty occurred in the steeple, which Richard had modelledafter one of the smaller of those spires that adorn the great Londoncathedral. The imitation was somewhat lame, it was true, the proportionsbeing but in differently observed; but, after much difficulty, Mr.Jones had the satisfaction of seeing an object reared that bore in itsoutlines, a striking resemblance to a vinegar-cruet. There was lessopposition to this model than to the windows; for the settlers were fondof novelty, and their steeple was without a precedent.

  Here the labor ceased for the season, and the difficult question of theinterior remained for further deliberation. Richard well knew that, whenhe came to propose a reading-desk and a chancel, he must unmask; forthese were arrangements known to no church in the country but his own.Presuming, however, on the advantages he had already obtained, he boldlystyled the building St. Paul's, and Hiram prudently acquiesced in thisappellation, making, however, the slight addition of calling it "NewSt. Paul's," feeling less aversion to a name taken from the Englishcathedral than from the saint.

  The pedestrian whom we have already mentioned, as pausing to contemplatethis edifice, was no other than the gentleman so frequently named asMr. or Squire Doolittle. He was of a tall, gaunt formation, with rathersharp features, and a face that expressed formal propriety mingled withlow cunning. Richard approached him, followed by Monsieur Le Quoi andthe major-domo.

  "Good-evening, squire," said Richard, bobbing his head, but withoutmoving his hands from his pockets.

  "Good-evening, squire," echoed Hiram, turning his body in order to turnhis head also.

  "A cold night, Mr. Doolittle, a cold night, sir."

  "Coolish; a tedious spell on't."

  "What, looking at our church, ha! It looks well, by moonlight; how thetin of the cupola glistens! I warrant you the dome of the other St.Paul's never shines so in the smoke of London."

  "It is a pretty meeting-house to look on," returned Hiram, "and Ibelieve that Monshure Ler Quow and Mr. Penguilliam will allow it."

  "Sairtainlee!" exclaimed the complaisant Frenchman, "it ees ver fine."

  "I thought the monshure would say so. The last molasses that we had wasexcellent good. It isn't likely that you have any more of it on hand?"

  "Ah! oui; ees, sair," returned Monsieur Le Quoi, with a slight shrug ofhis shoulder, and a trifling grimace, "dere is more. I feel ver happidat you love eet. I hope dat Madame Doleet' is in good 'ealth."

  "Why, so as to be stirring," said Hiram. "The squire hasn't finished theplans for the inside of the meeting house yet?"

  "No--no--no," returned Richard, speaking quickly, but making asignificant pause between each negative--.. "it requires reflection.There is a great deal of room to fill up, and I am afraid we shall notknow how to dispose of it to advantage. There will be a large vacantspot around the pulpit, which I do not mean to place against the wall,like a sentry-box stuck up on the side of a fort."

  "It is rulable to put the deacons' box under the pulpit," said Hiram;and then, as if he had ventured too much, he added, "but there'sdifferent fashions in different Countries."

  "That there is," cried Benjamin; "now, in running down the coast ofSpain and Portingall, you may see a nunnery stuck out on every headland,with more steeples and outriggers such as dog-vanes and weathercocks,than you'll find aboard of a three-masted schooner. If so be that awell-built church is wanting, old England, after all, is the countryto go to after your models and fashion pieces. As to Paul's, thof I'venever seen it, being that it's a long way up town from Radcliffe Highwayand the docks, yet everybody knows that it's the grandest place in theworld Now, I've no opinion but this here church over there is as likeone end of it as a grampus is to a whale; and that's only a smalldifference in bulk. Mounsheer Ler Quaw, here, has been in foreign parts;and thof that is not the same as having been at home, yet he must haveseen churches in France too, and can form a small idee of what a churchshould be; now I ask the mounsheer to his face if it is not a cleverlittle thing, taking it by and large."

  "It ees ver apropos of saircumstance," said the Frenchman--"verjudgment--but it is in the catholique country dat dey build dc--vat youcall--ah a ah-ha--la grande cathedrale--de big church. St. Paul, Londre,is ver fine; ver belle; ver grand--vat you call beeg; but, Monsieur Ben,pardonnez-moi, it is no vort so much as Notre Dame."

  "Ha! mounsheer, what is that you say?" cried Benjamin; "St. Paul'schurch is not worth so much as a damn! Mayhap you may be thinking toothat the Royal Billy isn't so good a ship as the Billy de Paris; but shewould have licked two of her any day, and in all weathers."

  As Benjamin had assumed a very threatening kind of attitude, flourishingan arm with a bunch at the end of it that was half as big as Monsieur LeQuoi's head, Richard thought it time to interpose h
is authority.

  "Hush, Benjamin, hush," he said; "you both misunderstand Monsieur LeQuoi and forget yourself. But here comes Mr. Grant, and the service willcommence. Let us go in."

  The Frenchman, who received Benjamin's reply with a well-bred good-humorthat would not admit of any feeling but pity for the other's ignorance,bowed in acquiescence and followed his companion.

  Hiram and the major-domo brought up the rear, the latter grumbling as heentered the building:

  "If so be that the king of France had so much as a house to live in thatwould lay alongside of Paul's, one might put up with their jaw. It'smore than flesh and blood can bear to hear a Frenchman run down anEnglish church in this manner. Why, Squire Doolittle, I've been at thewhipping of two of them in one day--clean built, snug frigateswith standing royals and them new-fashioned cannonades on theirquarters--such as, if they had only Englishmen aboard of them, wouldhave fout the devil."

  With this ominous word in his mouth Benjamin entered the church.