The Pioneers; Or, The Sources of the Susquehanna

by James Fenimore Cooper

  CHAPTER XVII

  "I guess, by all this quaint array, The burghers hold their sports to-day." --Scott.

  The ancient amusement of shooting the Christmas turkey is one of thefew sports that the settlers of a new country seldom or never neglect toobserve. It was connected with the daily practices of a people who oftenlaid aside the axe or the scythe to seize the rifle, as the deer glidedthrough the forests they were felling, or the bear entered their roughmeadows to scent the air of a clearing, and to scan, with a look ofsagacity, the progress of the invader.

  On the present occasion, the usual amusement of the day had been alittle hastened, in order to allow a fair opportunity to Mr. Grant, whoseexhibition was not less a treat to the young sportsmen than the onewhich engaged their present attention. The owner of the birds was a freeblack, who had prepared for the occasion a collection of game that wasadmirably qualified to inflame the appetite of an epicure, and was welladapted to the means and skill of the different competitors, who were ofall ages. He had offered to the younger and more humble marks men diversbirds of an inferior quality, and some shooting had already taken place,much to the pecuniary advantage of the sable owner of the game. Theorder of the sports was extremely simple, and well understood. Thebird was fastened by a string to the stump of a large pine, the sideof which, toward the point where the marksmen were placed, had beenflattened with an axe, in order that it might serve the purpose of atarget, by which the merit of each individual might be ascertained. Thedistance between the stump and shooting-stand was one hundred measuredyards; a foot more or a foot less being thought an invasion of the rightof one of the parties. The negro affixed his own price to every bird,and the terms of the chance; but, when these were once established, hewas obliged, by the strict principles of public justice that prevailedin the country, to admit any adventurer who might offer.

  The throng consisted of some twenty or thirty young men, most of whomhad rifles, and a collection of all the boys in the village. The littleurchins, clad in coarse but warm garments, stood gathered aroundthe more distinguished marksmen, with their hands stuck under theirwaistbands, listening eagerly to the boastful stories of skill that hadbeen exhibited on former occasions, and were already emulating in theirhearts these wonderful deeds in gunnery.

  The chief speaker was the man who had been mentioned by Natty as BillyKirby. This fellow, whose occupation, when he did labor, was that ofclearing lands, or chopping jobs, was of great stature, and carried inhis very air the index of his character. He was a noisy, boisterous,reckless lad, whose good-natured eye contradicted the bluntness andbullying tenor of his speech. For weeks he would lounge around thetaverns of the county, in a state of perfect idleness, or doing smalljobs for his liquor and his meals, and cavilling with applicants aboutthe prices of his labor; frequently preferring idleness to an abatementof a little of his independence, or a cent in his wages. But, when theseembarrassing points were satisfactorily arranged, he would shoulder hisaxe and his rifle, slip his arms through the straps of his pack, andenter the woods with the tread of a Hercules. His first object was tolearn his limits, round which he would pace, occasionally freshening,with a blow of his axe, the marks on the boundary trees; and then hewould proceed, with an air of great deliberation, to the centre of hispremises, and, throwing aside his superfluous garments, measure, witha knowing eye, one or two of the nearest trees that were toweringapparently into the very clouds as he gazed upward. Commonly selectingone of the most noble for the first trial of his power, he wouldapproach it with a listless air, whistling a low tune; and wielding hisaxe with a certain flourish, not unlike the salutes of a fencing-master,he would strike a light blow into the bark, and measure his distance.The pause that followed was ominous of the fall of the forest which hadflourished there for centuries. The heavy and brisk blows that he struckwere soon succeeded by the thundering report of the tree, as it came,first cracking and threatening with the separation of its own lastligaments, then threshing and tearing with its branches the tops of itssurrounding brethren, and finally meeting the ground with a shock butlittle inferior to an earthquake. From that moment the sounds of theaxe were ceaseless, while the failing of the trees was like a distantcannonading; and the daylight broke into the depths of the woods withthe suddenness of a winter morning.

  For days, weeks, nay months, Billy Kirby would toil with an ardor thatevinced his native spirit, and with an effect that seemed magical,until, his chopping being ended, his stentorian lungs could be heardemitting sounds, as he called to his patient oxen, which rang throughthe hills like the cries of an alarm. He had been often heard, on amild summer' evening, a long mile across the vale of Templeton; when theechoes from the mountains would take up his cries, until they died awayin the feeble sounds from the distant rocks that overhung the lake. Hispiles, or, to use the language of the country, his logging ended, with adispatch that could only accompany his dexterity and herculean strength,the jobber would collect together his implements of labor, light theheaps of timber, and march away under the blaze of the prostrate forest,like the conqueror of some city who, having first prevailed over hisadversary, applies the torch as the finishing blow to his conquest.For a long time Billy Kirby would then be seen sauntering around thetaverns, the rider of scrub races, the bully of cock-fights, and notinfrequently the hero of such sports as the one in hand.

  Between him and the Leather-Stocking there had long existed a jealousrivalry on the point of skill with the rifle. Notwithstanding the longpractice of Natty, it was commonly supposed that the steady nervesand the quick eye of the wood-chopper rendered him his equal. Thecompetition had, however, been confined hitherto to boasting, andcomparisons made from their success in various hunting excursions; butthis was the first time they had ever come in open collision. A gooddeal of higgling about the price of the choicest bird had taken placebetween Billy Kirby and its owner before Natty and his companionsrejoined the sportsmen It had, however, been settled at one shilling *a shot, which was the highest sum ever exacted, the black taking care toprotect himself from losses, as much as possible, by the conditions ofthe sport.

  * Before the Revolution, each province had its own money of account though neither coined any but copper pieces. In New York the Spanish dollar was divided into eight shillings, each of the value of a fraction more than sixpence sterling. At present the Union has provided a decimal system, with coins to represent it.

  The turkey was already fastened at the "mark," hut its body was entirelyhid by the surrounding snow, nothing being visible but its red swellinghead and its long neck. If the bird was injured by any bullet thatstruck below the snow, it was to continue the property of its presentowner; but if a feather was touched in a visible part, the animal becamethe prize of the successful adventurer.

  These terms were loudly proclaimed by the negro, who was seated inthe snow, in a somewhat hazardous vicinity to his favorite bird, whenElizabeth and her cousin approached the noisy sportsmen. The sounds ofmirth and contention sensibly lowered at this unexpected visit; but,after a moment's pause, the curious interest exhibited in the face ofthe young lady, together with her smiling air, restored the freedomof the morning; though it was somewhat chastened, both in language andvehemence, by the presence of such a spectator.

  "Stand out of the way there, boys!" cried the wood-chopper, who wasplacing himself at the shooting-point--stand out of the way, you littlerascals, or I will shoot through you. Now, Brom, take leave of yourturkey.

  "Stop!" cried the young hunter; "I am a candidate for a chance. Here ismy shilling, Brom; I wish a shot too."

  "You may wish it in welcome," cried Kirby, "but if I ruffle thegobbler's feathers, how are you to get it? Is money so plenty in yourdeer-skin pocket, that you pay for a chance that you may never have?"

  "How know you, sir, how plenty money is in my pocket?" said the youthfiercely. "Here is my shilling, Brom, and I claim a right to shoot."

  "Don't be crabbed, my boy," said the other, who was very coolly
fixinghis flint. "They say you have a hole in your left shoulder yourself, soI think Brom may give you a fire for half-price. It will take a keen oneto hit that bird, I can tell you, my lad, even if I give you a chance,which is what I have no mind to do."

  "Don't be boasting, Billy Kirby," said Natty, throwing the breech of hisrifle into the snow, and leaning on its barrel; "you'll get but oneshot at the creatur', for if the lad misses his aim, which wouldn't bea wonder if he did, with his arm so stiff and sore, you'll find a goodpiece and an old eye coming a'ter you. Maybe it's true that I can'tshoot as I used to could, but a hundred yards is a short distance for along rifle."

  "What, old Leather-Stocking, are you out this morning?" cried hisreckless opponent. "Well, fair play's a jewel. I've the lead of you, oldfellow; so here goes for a dry throat or a good dinner."

  The countenance of the negro evinced not only all the interest which hispecuniary adventure might occasion, but also the keen excitement thatthe sport produced in the others, though with a very different wish asto the result. While the wood-chopper was slowly and steadily raisinghis rifle, he bawled;

  "Fair play, Billy Kirby--stand back--make 'em stand back, boys--gib anigger fair play--poss-up,--gobbler; shake a head, fool; don't you see'em taking aim?"

  These cries, which were intended as much to distract the attention ofthe marksman as for anything else, were fruitless.

  The nerves of the wood-chopper were not so easily shaken, and he tookhis aim with the utmost deliberation. Stillness prevailed for a moment,and he fired. The head of the turkey was seen to dash on one side, andits wings were spread in momentary fluttering; but it settled itselfdown calmly into its bed of snow, and glanced its eyes uneasily around.For a time long enough to draw a deep breath, not a sound was heard.The silence was then broken by the noise of the negro, who laughed, andshook his body with all kinds of antics, rolling over in the snow in theexcess of delight.

  "Well done, a gobbler," he cried, jumping up and affecting to embracehis bird; "I tell 'em to poss-up, and you see 'em dodge. Gib anodershillin', Billy, and halb anoder shot."

  "No--the shot is mine," said the young hunter; "you have my moneyalready. Leave the mark, and let me try my luck."

  "Ah! it's but money thrown away, lad," said Leather-Stocking. "Aturkey's head and neck is but a small mark for a new hand and a lameshoulder. You'd best let me take the fire, and maybe we can make somesettlement with the lady about the bird."

  "The chance is mine," said the young hunter. "Clear the ground, that Imay take it."

  The discussions and disputes concerning the last shot were now abating,it having been determined that if the turkey's head had been anywherebut just where it was at that moment, the bird must certainly have beenkilled. There was not much excitement produced by the preparations ofthe youth, who proceeded in a hurried manner to take his aim, and was inthe act of pulling the trigger, when he was stopped by Natty.

  "Your hand shakes, lad," he said, "and you seem over eager.Bullet-wounds are apt to weaken flesh, and to my judgment you'll notshoot so well as in common. If you will fire, you should shoot quick,before there is time to shake off the aim."

  "Fair play," again shouted the negro; "fair play--gib a nigger fairplay. What right a Nat Bumppo advise a young man? Let 'em shoot--clear aground."

  The youth fired with great rapidity, but no motion was made by theturkey; and, when the examiners for the ball returned from the "mark,"they declared that he had missed the stump.

  Elizabeth observed the change in his countenance, and could not helpfeeling surprise that one so evidently superior to his companions shouldfeel a trifling loss so sensibly. But her own champion was now preparingto enter the lists.

  The mirth of Brom, which had been again excited, though in a muchsmaller degree than before, by the failure of the second adventurer,vanished the instant Natty took his stand. His skin became mottledwith large brown spots, that fearfully sullied the lustre of his nativeebony, while his enormous lips gradually compressed around two rows ofivory that had hitherto been shining in his visage like pearls set injet. His nostrils, at all times the most conspicuous feature of hisface, dilated until they covered the greater part of the diameter of hiscountenance; while his brown and bony hands unconsciously grasped thesnow-crust near him, the excitement of the moment completely overcominghis native dread of cold.

  While these indications of apprehension were exhibited in the sableowner of the turkey, the man who gave rise to this extraordinary emotionwas as calm and collected as if there was not to be a single spectatorof his skill.

  "I was down in the Dutch settlements on the Schoharie," said Natty,carefully removing the leather guard from the lock of his rifle, "justbefore the breaking out of the last war, and there was a shooting-matchamong the boys; so I took a hand. I think I opened a good many Dutcheyes that day; for I won the powder-horn, three bars of lead, and apound of as good powder as ever flashed in pan. Lord! how they did swearin Jarman! They did tell me of one drunken Dutchman who said he'd havethe life of me before I got back to the lake agin. But if he had put hisrifle to his shoulder with evil intent God would have punished him forit; and even if the Lord didn't, and he had missed his aim, I know onethat would have given him as good as he sent, and better too, if goodshooting could come into the 'count." By this time the old hunter wasready for his business, and throwing his right leg far behind him, andstretching his left arm along the barrel of his piece, he raised ittoward the bird, Every eye glanced rapidly from the marks man to themark; but at the moment when each ear was expecting the report of therifle, they were disappointed by the ticking sound of the flint.

  "A snap, a snap!" shouted the negro, springing from his crouchingposture like a madman, before his bird. "A snap good as fire--NattyBumppo gun he snap--Natty Bumppo miss a turkey!"

  "Natty Bumppo hit a nigger," said the indignant old hunter, "if you don'tget out of the way, Brom. It's contrary to the reason of the thing, boy,that a snap should count for a fire, when one is nothing more than afire-stone striking a steel pan, and the other is sudden death; so getout of my way, boy, and let me show Billy Kirby how to shoot a Christmasturkey."

  "Gib a nigger fair play!" cried the black, who continued resolutely tomaintain his post, and making that appeal to the justice of his auditorswhich the degraded condition of his caste so naturally suggested."Eberybody know dat snap as good as fire. Leab it to Massa Jone--leab itto lady."

  "Sartain," said the wood-chopper; "it's the law of the game in this partof the country, Leather-Stocking. If you fire agin you must pay up theother shilling. I b'lieve I'll try luck once more myself; so, Brom,here's my money, and I take the next fire."

  "It's likely you know the laws of the woods better than I do, BillyKirby," returned Natty. "You come in with the settlers, with an ox-goadin your hand, and I come in with moccasins on my feet, and with a goodrifle on my shoulders, so long back as afore the old war. Which islikely to know the best? I say no man need tell me that snapping is asgood as firing when I pull the trigger."

  "Leab it to Massa Jone," said the alarmed negro; "he know eberyting."This appeal to the knowledge of Richard was too flattering to beunheeded. He therefore advanced a little from the spot whither thedelicacy of Elizabeth had induced her to withdraw, and gave thefollowing opinion, with the gravity that the subject and his own rankdemanded:

  "There seems to be a difference in opinion," he said, "on the subject ofNathaniel Bumppo's right to shoot at Abraham Freeborn's turkey withoutthe said Nathaniel paying one shilling for the privilege." The fact wastoo evident to be denied, and after pausing a moment, that the audiencemight digest his premises, Richard proceeded: "It seems proper that Ishould decide this question, as I am bound to preserve the peace ofthe county; and men with deadly weapons in their hands should not beheedlessly left to contention and their own malignant passions. Itappears that there was no agreement, either in writing or in words, onthe disputed point; therefore we must reason from analogy, which is,as it were, comparing one thing with ano
ther. Now, in duels, where bothparties shoot, it is generally the rule that a snap is a fire; and ifsuch is the rule where the party has a right to fire back again, itseems to me unreasonable to say that a man may stand snapping at adefenceless turkey all day. I therefore am of the opinion that NathanielBumppo has lost his chance, and must pay another shilling before herenews his right."

  As this opinion came from so high a quarter, and was delivered witheffect, it silenced all murmurs--for the whole of the spectators hadbegun to take sides with great warmth--except from the Leather-Stockinghimself.

  "I think Miss Elizabeth's thoughts should be taken," said Natty. "I'veknown the squaws give very good counsel when the Indians had beendumfounded. If she says that I ought to lose, I agree to give it up."

  "Then I adjudge you to be a loser for this time," said Miss Temple; "butpay your money and renew your chance; unless Brom will sell me the birdfor a dollar. I will give him the money, and save the life of the poorvictim."

  This proposition was evidently but little relished by any of thelisteners, even the negro feeling the evil excitement of the chances. Inthe mean while, as Billy Kirby was preparing himself for another shot,Natty left the stand, with an extremely dissatisfied manner, muttering:

  "There hasn't been such a thing as a good flint sold at the foot of thelake since the Indian traders used to come into the country; and, if abody should go into the flats along the streams in the hills to hunt forsuch a thing, it's ten to one but they will be all covered up with theplough. Heigho! it seems to me that just as the game grows scarce, anda body wants the best ammunition to get a livelihood, everything that'sbad falls on him like a judgment. But I'll change the stone, for BillyKirby hasn't the eye for such a mark, I know."

  The wood-chopper seemed now entirely sensible that his reputationdepended on his care; nor did he neglect any means to insure success. Hedrew up his rifle, and renewed his aim again and again, still appearingreluctant to fire, No sound was heard from even Brom, during theseportentous movements, until Kirby discharged his piece, with the samewant of success as before. Then, indeed, the shouts of the negro rangthrough the bushes and sounded among the trees of the neighboring forestlike the outcries of a tribe of Indians. He laughed, rolling his headfirst on one side, then on the other, until nature seemed exhausted withmirth. He danced until his legs were wearied with motion in the snow;and, in short, he exhibited all that violence of joy that characterizesthe mirth of a thoughtless negro.

  The wood-chopper had exerted all his art, and felt a proportionatedegree of disappointment at the failure. He first examined the bird withthe utmost attention, and more than once suggested that he had touchedits feathers; but the voice of the multitude was against him, for itfelt disposed to listen to the often-repeated cries of the black to "giba nigger fair play."

  Finding it impossible to make out a title to the bird, Kirby turnedfiercely to the black and said:

  "Shut your oven, you crow! Where is the man that can hit a turkey's headat a hundred yards? I was a fool for trying. You needn't make an uproarlike a falling pine-tree about it. Show me the man who can do it."

  "Look this a-way, Billy Kirby," said Leather-Stocking, "and let themclear the mark, and I'll show you a man who's made better shots aforenow, and that when he's been hard pressed by the savages and wildbeasts."

  "Perhaps there is one whose rights come before ours, Leather-Stocking,"said Miss Temple. "If so, we will waive our privilege."

  "If it be me that you have reference to," said the young hunter, "Ishall decline another chance. My shoulder is yet weak, I find."

  Elizabeth regarded his manner, and thought that she could discern atinge on his cheek that spoke the shame of conscious poverty. She saidno more, but suffered her own champion to make a trial. Although NattyBumppo had certainly made hundreds of more momentous shots at hisenemies or his game, yet he never exerted himself more to excel. Heraised his piece three several times: once to get his range; onceto calculate his distance; and once because the bird, alarmed by thedeath-like stillness, turned its head quickly to examine its foes. Butthe fourth time he fired. The smoke, the report, and the momentary shockprevented most of the spectators from instantly knowing the result; butElizabeth, when she saw her champion drop the end of his rifle in thesnow and open his mouth in one of its silent laughs, and then proceedvery coolly to recharge his piece, knew that he had been successful. Theboys rushed to the mark, and lifted the turkey on high, lifeless, andwith nothing but the remnant of a head. "Bring in the creatur'," saidLeather-Stocking, "and put it at the feet of the lady. I was her deputyin the matter, and the bird is her property."

  "And a good deputy you have proved yourself," returnedElizabeth--"so good, Cousin Richard, that I would advise you to rememberhis qualities." She paused, and the gayety that beamed on her face gaveplace to a more serious earnestness. She even blushed a little as sheturned to the young hunter, and with the charm of a woman's manneradded: "But it was only to see an exhibition of the far-famed skill ofLeather-Stocking, that I tried my fortunes. Will you, sir, accept thebird as a small peace offering for the hurt that prevented your ownsuccess?"

  The expression with which the youth received this present wasindescribable, He appeared to yield to the blandishment of her air, inopposition to a strong inward impulse to the contrary. He bowed, andraised the victim silently from her feet, but continued silent.

  Elizabeth handed the black a piece of silver as a remuneration for hisloss, which had some effect in again unbending his muscles, and thenexpressed to her companion her readiness to return homeward.

  "Wait a minute, Cousin Bess," cried Richard; "there is an uncertaintyabout the rules of this sport that it is proper I should remove. If youwill appoint a committee, gentlemen, to wait on me this morning, Iwill draw up in writing a set of regulations--' He stopped, with someindignation, for at that instant a hand was laid familiarly on theshoulder of the High Sheriff of--.

  "A merry Christmas to you, Cousin Dickon," said Judge Temple, who hadapproached the party unperceived: "I must have a vigilant eye to mydaughter, sir, if you are to be seized daily with these gallant fits. Iadmire the taste which would introduce a lady to such scenes!"

  "It is her own perversity, 'Duke," cried the disappointed sheriff, whofelt the loss of the first salutation as grievously as many a man woulda much greater misfortune; "and I must say that she comes honestly byit. I led her out to show her the improvements, but away she scampered,through the snow, at the first sound of fire-arms, the same as if shehad been brought up in a camp, instead of a first-rate boarding-school.I do think, Judge Temple, that such dangerous amusements should besuppressed, by statute; nay, I doubt whether they are not already indictable at common law."

  "Well, sir, as you are sheriff of the county, it becomes your duty toexamine into the matter," returned the smiling Marmaduke, "I perceivethat Bess has executed her commission, and I hope it met with afavorable reception." Richard glanced his eye at the packet whichhe held in his hand, and the slight anger produced by disappointmentvanished instantly.

  "Ah! 'Duke, my dear cousin," he said, "step a little on one side; I havesomething I would say to you."

  Marmaduke complied, and the sheriff led him to a little distance in thebushes, and continued: "First, 'Duke, let me thank you for your friendlyinterest with the Council and the Governor, without which I am confidentthat the greatest merit would avail but little. But we are sisters'children--we are sisters' children, and you may use me like one of yourhorses; ride me or drive me, 'Duke, I am wholly yours. But in my humbleopinion, this young companion of Leather-Stocking requires lookingafter. He has a very dangerous propensity for turkey."

  "Leave him to my management, Dickon," said the Judge, "and I will curehis appetite by indulgence. It is with him that I would speak. Let usrejoin the sportsmen."