CHAPTER V.
THE STRANGE WOMAN.
We are now obliged to return to the Americans' camp. As we have said,Black and his son were mounting guard, and the pioneer was far fromeasy in his mind. Although not yet possessed of all the experiencerequired for a desert life, the four months he had spent in fatiguingmarches and continued alarms had endowed him with a certain degreeof vigilance, which, under existing circumstances, might prove veryuseful; not, perhaps, to prevent an attack, but, at least, to repulseit. The situation of his camp was, besides, excellent; for from it hesurveyed the prairie for a great distance, and could easily perceivethe approach of an enemy.
Father and son were seated by the fire, rising from time to time, inturn, to cast glances over the desert, and assure themselves thatnothing menaced their tranquillity. Black was a man gifted with an ironwill and a lion's courage; hitherto his schemes had been unsuccessful,and he had sworn to make himself an honourable position, no matter atwhat cost.
He was the descendant of an old family of squatters. The squatter beingan individuality peculiar to America, and vainly sought elsewhere, wewill describe him as he is, in a few words. On the lands belonging tothe United States, not yet cleared or put up for sale, large numbersof persons have settled, with the desire of eventually _purchasing_their lots. These inhabitants are called squatters. We will not saythat they are the pick of the western emigrants, but we know that,in certain districts, they have constituted themselves a regularGovernment, and have elected magistrates to watch over the executionof the Draconian laws they have themselves laid down to insure thetranquillity of the territories they have invaded. But by the side ofthese quasi-honest squatters, who bow their necks beneath a yoke thatis often harsh, there is another class of squatters, who understandthe possession of land in its widest sense; that is to say, wheneverthey discover, in their vagabond peregrinations, a tract of land thatsuits them, they instal themselves there without any further inquiry,and caring nothing for the rightful owner, who, when he arrives withhis labourers to till his estate, is quite annoyed to find it is in thehands of an individual who, trusting to the axiom that possession isnine points of the law, refuses to give it up, and if he insist, driveshim away by means of his rifle and revolver.
We know a capital story of a gentleman, who, starting from New Yorkwith two hundred labourers, to clear a virgin forest he had purchasedsome ten years previously, and never turned to any use, found, onarriving at his claim, a town of four thousand souls built on the siteof his virgin forest, of which not a tree remained. After numberlessdiscussions, the said gentleman esteemed himself very fortunate inbeing able to depart with a whole skin, and without paying damages tohis despoilers, whom he had momentarily hoped to oust. But there is nomore chance of ousting a squatter, than you can get a dollar out of aYankee, when he has once pocketed it.
John Black belonged to the former of the two classes we have described.When he reached the age of twenty, his father gave him an axe, a riflewith twenty charges of powder, and a bowie knife, saying to him--
"Listen, boy. You are now tall and strong; it would be a shame for youto remain longer a burden on me. I have your two brothers to support.America is large; there is no want of land. Go in God's name, andnever let me hear of you again. With the weapons I give you, and theeducation you have received, your fortune will soon be made, if youlike: before all, avoid all disagreeable disputes, and try not to behanged."
After this affectionate address, the father tenderly embraced his son,put him out of the cabin, and slammed the door in his face. From thatmoment John Black had never heard of his father--it is true that henever tried to obtain any news about him.
Life had been rough to him at the outset; but owing to his character,and a certain elasticity of principle, the sole inheritance his familyhad given him, he had contrived to gain a livelihood, and bring up hischildren without any great privations. Either through the isolation inwhich he had passed his youth, or for some other reason we are ignorantof, Black adored his wife and children, and would not have parted fromthem on any account. When fatality compelled him to give up the farm heoccupied, and look for another, he set out gaily, sustained by the loveof his family, no member of which was ungrateful for the sacrifices heimposed on himself; and he had resolved to go this time so far, thatno one would ever come to dispossess him, for he had been obliged tosurrender his farm to its legitimate proprietor, which he had done onthe mere exhibition of the title deeds, without dreaming of resistance--a conduct which had been greatly blamed by all his neighbours.
Black wished to see his family happy, and watched over it with thejealous tenderness of a hen for its chicks. Thus, on this evening,an extreme alarm had preyed on him, though he could not explain thecause: the disappearance of the Indians did not seem to him natural;everything around was too calm, the silence of the desert too profound:he could not remain at any one spot, and, in spite of his son'sremarks, rose every moment to take a look over the intrenchments.
William felt for his father a great affection, mingled with respect:the state in which he saw him vexed him the more, because there wasnothing to account for his extraordinary restlessness.
"Good gracious, father!" he said, "do not trouble yourself so much; itreally causes me pain to see you in such a state. Do you suppose thatthe Indians would have attacked us by such a moonlight as this? Look,objects can be distinguished as in broad day; I am certain you mighteven read the Bible by the silvery rays."
"You are right for the present moment, Will. The Redskins are toocrafty to face our rifles during the moonshine; but in an hour the moonwill have set, and the darkness will then protect them sufficiently toallow them to reach the foot of the barricade unnoticed."
"Do not imagine they will attempt it, my dear father! Those red devilshave seen us sufficiently close to know that they can only expect avolley of bullets from us."
"Hum! I am not of your opinion; our beasts would be riches to them: Ido not wish to abandon them, as we should then be compelled to returnto the plantations to procure others, which would be most disagreeable,you will allow."
"It is true; but we shall not be reduced to that extremity."
"May Heaven grant it, my boy; but do you hear nothing?"
The young man listened attentively.
"No," he said, at the end of a moment.
The emigrant proceeded with a sigh: "I visited the river bank thismorning, and I have rarely seen a spot better suited for a settlement.The virgin forest that extends behind us would supply excellentfirewood, without reckoning the magnificent planks to be obtained fromit: there are several hundred acres around, which, from their proximityto the water, would produce, I am certain, excellent crops."
"Would you feel inclined to settle here, then?"
"Have you any objection?"
"I--none at all! provided we can live and work together. I care littleat what place we stop: this spot appears to me as good as another, andit is far enough from the settlements to prevent our being turned out,at least for a great number of years."
"That is exactly my view."
At this moment a gentle quivering ran along the tall grass.
"This time I am certain I am not mistaken," the emigrant exclaimed; "Iheard something."
"And I too!" the young man said, rising quickly, and seizing his rifle.
The two men hurried to the entrenchments, but they saw nothing of asuspicious nature: the prairie was still perfectly calm.
"'Tis some wild beast going down to drink, or returning," Will said, toreassure his father.
"No, no," the latter replied, with a shake of the head; "it is not thenoise made by any animal--it was the echo of a man's footfall, I amconvinced."
"The simplest way is to go and see."
"Come then."
The two men resolutely climbed over the intrenchments, and with riflesoutstretched, went round the camp, carefully searching the bushes, andassuring themselves that no foe lurked in them.
"Well!" they ex
claimed, when they met.
"Nothing--and you?"
"Nothing."
"It is strange," John Black muttered, "and yet the noise was verydistinct."
"That is true; but I repeat, father, that it was nothing but an animalleaping somewhere near. In a night so calm as this, the slightest soundis heard for a great distance; besides, we are now certain that no oneis concealed near us."
"Let us go back," the emigrant said, thoughtfully. They began climbingover the entrenchments; but both stopped suddenly, by mutual agreement,hardly checking a cry of amazement, almost of terror. They had justperceived a human being, whose outline it was impossible to trace atsuch a distance, crouched over the fire.
"This time I will have it out," the emigrant exclaimed, taking aprodigious bound into the camp.
"And I, too," his son murmured, as he followed his example.
But when they came opposite their strange visitor, their surprisewas redoubled. In spite of themselves, they stopped to gaze on thestranger, without thinking to ask how he had entered their camp, and bywhat right he had done so.
As far as they could form a judgment, they soon began to considerthe extraordinary being before them--a woman; but years, the mode oflife she led, and perchance cares, had furrowed her face with such amultitude of cross hatchings, that it was impossible to conjecture herage, or whether she had formerly been lovely. The large black eyes,surmounted by thick brows crossing her curved nose, and deep sunk,flashed with a gloomy fire; her salient and empurpled cheekbones, herlarge mouth studded with dazzling teeth, and her thin lips and squarechin, gave her at first an appearance which was far from arousingsympathy and exciting confidence; while her long black hair, mattedwith leaves and grass, fell in disorder on her shoulders. She wore acostume more suited for a man than a woman. It was composed of a longrobe of buffalo hide, with short sleeves, fastened on the hips by agirdle bedizened with beads. This robe had the skirt fringed withfeathers, and only came down to the knee. Her _mitasses_ were fastenedround the ankles, and reached slightly above the knee, where they wereheld up by garters of buffalo hide. Her _humpis_ or slippers were plainand unornamented. She wore iron rings on her wrist, two or three beadcollars round her neck, and earrings. From her girdle hung on one sidea powder flask, an axe, and a bowie knife; on the other, a bullet pouchand a long Indian pipe. Across her knees lay a rather handsome gun, ofEnglish manufacture.
She was crouching over the fire, which she gazed at fixedly, with herchin on the palm of her hand.
On the arrival of the Americans, she did not rise, and did not evenappear to notice their presence. After examining her attentively forsome time, Black walked up, and, tapping her on the shoulder, said--
"You are welcome, woman; it seems as if you were cold, and the firedoes not displease you."
She slowly raised her head on feeling the touch, and, fixing on herquestioner a gloomy glance, in which it was easy to perceive a slightwildness, she replied in English, in a hollow voice, and with gutturalaccent--
"The Palefaces are mad; they ever think themselves in their towns; theyforget that in the prairie the trees have ears and the leaves eyes tosee and hear all that is done. The Blackfeet Indians raise their hairvery skilfully."
The two men looked at each other on hearing these words, whose meaningthey were afraid to guess, though they seemed somewhat obscure.
"Are you hungry? Will you eat?" John Black continued, "or is it thirstthat troubles you? I can, if you like, give you a good draught offirewater to warm you."
The woman frowned.
"Fire-water is good for Indian squaws," she said, "what good would itdo me to drink it? Others will come who will soon dispose of it. Do youknow how many hours you still have to live?"
The emigrant shuddered, in spite of himself at this species of menace.
"Why speak to me thus?" he asked; "have you any cause of complaintagainst me?"
"I care little," she continued. "I am not among the living, since myheart is dead."
She turned her head in every direction with a slow and solemn movement,while carefully examining the country.
"Stay," she continued, pointing with her lean arm to a mound of grass ashort distance off, "'twas there he fell--'tis there he rests. His headwas cleft asunder by an axe during his sleep--poor James! This spot isill-omened: do you not know it? The vultures and the crows alone stayhere at long intervals. Why, then, have you come here? Are you weary oflife? Do you hear them? They are approaching; they will soon be here."
Father and son exchanged a glance.
"She is mad. Poor creature!" Black muttered.
"Yes; that is what they all say on the prairies," she exclaimed, withsome accusation in her voice. "They call me _Ohucahauck Chike_ (theevil one of the earth), because they fear me as their evil genius. You,also, fancy me mad, eh? ah! ah! ah!"
She burst into a strident laugh, which ended in a sob; she buriedher face in her hands, and wept. The two men felt awed in spite ofthemselves; this strange grief, these incoherent words, all arousedtheir interest in favour of this poor creature, who appeared sounhappy. Pity was at work in their hearts, and they regarded hersilently without daring to disturb her. In a few moments she raised herhead, passed the back of her hand over her eyes to dry them, and spokeagain. The wild expression had disappeared; the very sound of her voicewas no longer the same; as if by enchantment, a complete change hadtaken place in her.
"Pardon," she said mournfully, "the extravagant words I have uttered.The solitude in which I live, and the heavy burden of woe which hascrushed me so long, at times trouble my reason; and then the placewhere we now stand reminds me of terrible scenes, whose cruel memorywill never be erased from my mind."
"Madam, I assure you--," John Black continued, not knowing what hesaid, so great was his surprise.
"Now the fit has passed away." She interrupted him with a gentleand melancholy smile, which gave her countenance a very differentexpression from that the Americans had hitherto remarked; "I have beenfollowing you for the last two days to come to your help; the Redskinsare preparing to attack you--"
The two men shuddered: and, forgetting all else to think only of thepressing danger, they cast a restless glance around them.
"You know it?" Black exclaimed.
"I know all," she answered; "but reassure yourselves. You have stilltwo hours ere their horrible war cry will sound in your ears; that ismore than enough to render you safe."
"Oh! we have good rifles and keen sight," said William, clutching hisweapon in his nervous hands.
"What can four rifles, however good they may be, do against two orthree hundred tigers thirsting for blood, like those you will have tofight? You do not know the Redskins, young man."
"That is true," he answered; "but what is to be done?"
"Seek a refuge?--where find help in these immense solitudes?" thefather added, casting a despairing glance around him.
"Did I not tell you I wished to help you?" she said, sharply.
"Yes; you told us so; but I try in vain to detect of what use you canbe to us."
She smiled a melancholy smile.
"It is your good angel that brought you to the spot where you now are.While I was watching you all the day, I trembled lest you might notencamp here. Come!"
The two men, surprised by the ascendancy this strange creature hadgained over them in a few minutes, followed her without reply. Afterwalking about a dozen steps, she stopped, and turned toward them.
"Look," she said, stretching out her thin arm in a north-westdirection, "your enemies are there, scarce two leagues off, buried inthe tall grass. I have heard their plans, and was present at theircouncil, though they little suspected it. They are only waiting for themoon to set, ere they attack you. You have scarce an hour left."
"My poor wife!" Black murmured.
"It is impossible for me to save you all: to fancy it would be madness;but I can, if you wish it, attempt to save your wife and daughter fromthe fate that menaces them."
; "Speak! speak!"
"This tree, at the foot of which we are now standing, althoughapparently possessing all the vigour of youth, is internally hollow,so that only the bark stands upright. Your wife and daughter, suppliedwith some provisions, will get into the tree and remain there in safetytill the danger has passed away. As for ourselves--"
"As for us," Black quickly interrupted her, "we are men accustomed todanger: our fate is in the hands of God."
"Good; but do not despair: all is not lost yet."
The American shook his head.
"As you said yourself, what can four men do against a legion of demonslike those who menace us? But that is not the question of the moment. Ido not see the hole by which my wife and daughter can enter the tree."
"It is twenty to twenty-four feet up, hidden among the branches andleaves."
"The Lord be praised! they will be sheltered."
"Yes; but make haste and warn them, while your son and I make all thepreparations."
Black, convinced of the necessity of haste, ran off, while the strangerand William constructed, with that dexterity produced by the approachof danger, a species of handy ladder, by which the two women could notmerely ascend the tree, but go down into the cavity. Black waked theladies, and called the servants; in a few words he explained to themwhat was passing; then, loading his wife and daughter with provisions,furs, and other indispensable objects, he led them to the spot wherethe stranger was expecting them.
"This is my most precious treasure," Black said; "if I save it, I shallbe solely indebted to you."
The two ladies began thanking their mysterious protectress; but sheimposed silence on them by a peremptory gesture.
"Presently, presently," she said; "if we escape, we shall have plentyof time for mutual congratulations; but at this moment we havesomething more important to do than exchange compliments. We must getinto a place of safety."
The two ladies fell back, quite repulsed by this rough reception, whilecasting a curious and almost alarmed glance on the strange creature.But the latter, perfectly stoical, seemed to notice nothing. Sheexplained in a few clear words the means she had found to conceal them:recommended them to remain silent in the hollow tree, and then orderedthem to mount. The two ladies, after embracing Black and his son, beganresolutely ascending the rungs of the improvised ladder. They reachedin a few seconds an enormous branch, on which they stopped, by theorders of the stranger. Black then threw down into the interior of thetree the furs and provisions, after which the ladder was placed inside,and the ladies glided through the hole.
"We leave you the ladder, which is useless to us," the stranger thensaid. "But be very careful not to come out till you have seen me again;the least imprudence, under the circumstances, might cost your lives.However, keep your minds at rest. Your imprisonment will not be long, afew hours at the most: so be of good cheer."
The ladies once again tried to express their gratitude; but, withoutlistening, the stranger made Black a sign to follow her, and rapidlydescended from the tree. Aided by the Americans, she then beganremoving every trace that might have revealed where the ladies werebestowed. When the stranger had assured herself, by a final glance,that all was in order, and nothing could betray those who were sofamously hidden, she sighed, and followed by the two men, walked to theintrenchments.
"Now," she said, "let us watch attentively around us, for these demonswill probably crawl close up in the shadows. You are free and honestAmericans, show these accursed Indians what you can do."
"Let them come!" Black muttered hoarsely.
"They will soon do so," she replied, and pointed to several almostimperceptible black dots, which, however, grew larger, and wereevidently approaching the encampment.