CHAPTER XIX. THE SAFE RETURN
The surface of the snow had frozen again in the night, and Henry foundgood footing for his shoes. For a while he leaned most on the rightankle, but, as his left developed no signs of soreness, he used themequally, and sped forward, his spirits rising at every step. The air wascold, and there was but little breeze, but his own motion made a windthat whipped his face. The hollows were mostly gone from his cheeks, andhis eyes no longer had the fierce, questing look of the famishing wildanimal in search of prey. A fine red color was suffused through thebrown of his face. He had chosen his course with due precaution. Thebroad surface, smooth, white, and glittering, tempted, but he put thetemptation away. He did not wish to run any chance whatever of anotherIroquois pursuit, and he kept in the forest that ran down close to thewater's edge. It was tougher traveling there, but he persisted.
But all thought of weariness and trouble was lost in his gloriousfreedom. With his crippled ankle he had been really like a prisoner inhis cell, with a ball and chain to his foot. Now he flew along, whilethe cold wind whipped his blood, and felt what a delight it was merelyto live. He went on thus for hours, skirting down toward the cliffs thatcontained "The Alcove." He rested a while in the afternoon and ate thelast of his rabbit, but before twilight he reached the creek, and stoodat the hidden path that led up to their home.
Henry sat down behind thick bushes and took off his snowshoes. To onewho had never come before, the whole place would have seemed absolutelydesolate, and even to one not a stranger no sign of life would have beenvisible had he not possessed uncommonly keen eyes. But Henry had sucheyes. He saw the faintest wisp of smoke stealing away against thesurface of the cliff, and he felt confident that all four were there. Heresolved to surprise them.
Laying the shoes aside, he crept so carefully up the path that hedislodged no snow and made no noise of any kind. As he graduallyapproached "The Alcove" he beard the murmur of voices, and presently, ashe turned an angle in the path, he saw a beam of glorious mellow lightfalling on the snow.
But the murmur of the voices sent a great thrill of delight through him.Low and indistinct as they were, they had a familiar sound. He knew allthose tones. They were the voices of his faithful comrades, the four whohad gone with him through so many perils and hardships, the little bandwho with himself were ready to die at any time, one for another.
He crept a little closer, and then a little closer still. Lying almostflat on the steep path, and drawing himself forward, he looked into "TheAlcove." A fire of deep, red coals glowed in one corner, and disposedabout it were the four. Paul lay on his elbow on a deerskin, and wasgazing into the coals. Tom Ross was working on a pair of moccasins, LongJim was making some kind of kitchen implement, and Shif'less Sol wastalking. Henry could hear the words distinctly, and they were abouthimself.
"Henry will turn up all right," he was saying. "Hasn't he always done itafore? Then ef he's always done it afore he's shorely not goin' to breakhis rule now. I tell you, boys, thar ain't enough Injuns an' Toriesbetween Canady an' New Orleans, an' the Mississippi an' the Atlantic, toketch Henry. I bet I could guess what he's doin' right at this moment."
"What is he doing, Sol?" asked Paul.
"When I shet my eyes ez I'm doin' now I kin see him," said the shiftlessone. "He's away off thar toward the north, skirtin' around an Injunvillage, Mohawk most likely, lookin' an' listenin' an' gatherin' talkabout their plans."
"He ain't doin' any sech thing," broke in Long Jim.
"I've sleet my eyes, too, Sol Hyde, jest ez tight ez you've shet yours,an' I see him, too, but he ain't doin' any uv the things that you'retalkin' about."
"What is he doing, Jim?" asked Paul.
"Henry's away off to the south, not to the north," replied the long one,"an' he's in the Iroquois village that we burned. One house has beenleft standin', an' he's been occupyin' it while the big snow's on thegroun'. A whole deer is hangin' from the wall, an' he's been settin'thar fur days, eatin' so much an' hevin' such a good time that the fat'shangin' down over his cheeks, an' his whole body is threatenin' to bustright out uv his huntin' shirt."
Paul moved a little on his elbow and turned the other side of his faceto the fire. Then he glanced at the silent worker with the moccasins.
"Sol and Jim don't seem to agree much in their second sight," he said."Can you have any vision, too, Tom?"
"Yes," replied Tom Ross, "I kin. I shet my eyes, but I don't see likeeither Sol or Jim, 'cause both uv 'em see wrong. I see Henry, an' I seehim plain. He's had a pow'ful tough time. He ain't threatenin' to bustwith fat out uv no huntin' shirt, his cheeks ain't so full that they arefallin' down over his jaws. It's t'other way roun'; them cheeks are sunka mite, he don't fill out his clothes, an' when he crawls along he dragshis left leg a leetle, though he hides it from hisself. He ain't spyin'on no Injun village, an' he ain't in no snug camp with a dressed deerhangin' by the side uv him. It's t'other way 'roan'. He's layin' almostflat on his face not twenty feet from us, lookin' right in at us, an' Iwuz the first to see him."
All the others sprang to their feet in astonishment, and Henry likewisesprang to his feet. Three leaps, and he was in the mellow glow.
"And so you saw me, Tom," he exclaimed, as he joyously grasped one handafter another. "I might have known that, while I could stalk some ofyou, I could not stalk all of you."
"I caught the glimpse uv you," said Silent Tom, "while Sol an' Jim wuztalkin' the foolish talk that they most always talk, an' when Paulcalled on me, I thought I would give 'em a dream that 'wuz true, an'worth tellin'."
"You're right," said Henry. "I've not been having any easy time, and fora while, boys, it looked as if I never would come back. Sit down, and Iwill tell you all about it."
They gave him the warmest place by the fire, brought him the tenderestfood, and he told the long and thrilling tale.
"I don't believe anybody else but you would have tried it, Henry," saidPaul, when they heard of the fearful slide.
"Any one of you would have done it," said Henry, modestly.
"I'm pow'ful glad that you done it for two reasons," said Shif'lessSol. "One, 'cause it helped you to git away, an' the other, 'causethat scoundrel, Braxton Wyatt, didn't take you. 'Twould hurt my pridetre-men-jeous for any uv us to be took by Braxton Wyatt."
"You speak for us all there, Sol," said Paul.
"What have all of you been doing?" asked Henry.
"Not much of anything," replied Shif'less Sol. "We've been scoutin'several times, lookin' fur you, though we knowed you'd come in some timeor other, but mostly we've been workin' 'roun' the place here, fixin' itup warmer an' storin' away food."
"We'll have to continue at that for some time, I'm afraid," said Henry,"unless this snow breaks up. Have any of you heard if any movement isyet on foot against the Iroquois?"
"Tom ran across some scouts from the militia," replied Paul, "and theysaid nothing could be done until warm weather came. Then a real armywould march."
"I hope so," said Henry earnestly.
But for the present the five could achieve little. The snow lasted along time, but it was finally swept away by big rains. It poured fortwo days and nights, and even when the rain ceased the snow continued tomelt under the warmer air. The water rushed in great torrents downthe cliffs, and would have entered "The Alcove" had not the five madeprovision to turn it away. As it was, they sat snug and dry, listeningto the gush of the water, the sign of falling snow, and the talk of oneanother. Yet the time dragged.
"Man wuz never made to be a caged animile," said Shif'less Sol. "Thelonger I stay shet up in one place, the weaker I become. My temper don'timprove, neither, an' I ain't happy."
"Guess it's the same with all uv us," said Tom Ross.
But when the earth came from beneath the snow, although it was stillcold weather, they began again to range the forest far in everydirection, and they found that the Indians, and the Tories also, werebecoming active. There were more burnings, more slaughters, and morescalpings. The whole borde
r was still appalled at the massacres ofWyoming and Cherry Valley, and the savages were continually spreadingover a wider area. Braxton Wyatt at the head of his band, and with theaid of his Tory lieutenant, Levi Coleman, had made for himself a nameequal to that of Walter Butler. As for "Indian" Butler and his men, nomen were hated more thoroughly than they.
The five continued to do the best they could, which was much, carryingmany a warning, and saving some who would otherwise have been victims.While they devoted themselves to their strenuous task, great events inwhich they were to take a part were preparing. The rear guard of theRevolution was about to become for the time the main guard. A great eyehad been turned upon the ravaged and bleeding border, and a greatmind, which could bear misfortune-even disaster-without complaint,was preparing to send help to those farther away. So mighty a cry ofdistress had risen, that the power of the Iroquois must be destroyed. Asthe warm weather came, the soldiers began to march.
Rumors that a formidable foe was about to advance reached the Iroquoisand their allies, the Tories, the English, and the Canadians. Therewas a great stirring among the leaders, Thayendanegea, Hiokatoo,Sangerachte, the Johnsons, the Butlers, Claus, and the rest. Haldimand,the king's representative in Canada, sent forth an urgent call to allthe Iroquois to meet the enemy. The Tories were' extremely active.Promises were made to the tribes that they should have other victorieseven greater than those of Wyoming and Cherry Valley, and again theterrible Queen Esther went among them, swinging her great war tomahawkover her head and chanting her song of death. She, more than any other,inflamed the Iroquois, and they were eager for the coming contest.
Timmendiquas had gone back to the Ohio country in the winter, but,faithful to his promise to give Thayendanegea help to the last, hereturned in the spring with a hundred chosen warriors of the Wyandotnation, a reenforcement the value of which could not be estimated toohighly.
Henry and his comrades felt the stir as they roamed through the forest,and they thrilled at the thought that the crisis was approaching. Thenthey set out for Lake Otsego, where the army was gathering for the greatcampaign. They were equipped thoroughly, and they were now so well knownin the region that they knew they would be welcome.
They traveled several days, and were preparing to encamp for the lastnight within about fifteen miles of the lake when Henry, scouting asusual to see if an enemy were near, heard a footstep in the forest. Hewheeled instantly to cover behind the body of a great beech tree, andthe stranger sought to do likewise, only he had no convenient treethat was so large. It was about the twelfth hour, but Henry could see aportion of a body protruding beyond a slim oak, and he believed that herecognized it. As he held the advantage he would, at any rate, hail thestranger.
"Ho, Cornelius Heemskerk, Dutchman, fat man, great scout and woodsman,what are you doing in my wilderness? Stand forth at once and give anaccount of yourself, or I will shoot off the part of your body thatsticks beyond that oak tree!"
The answer was instantaneous. A round, plump body revolved from thepartial shelter of the tree and stood upright in the open, rifle in handand cap thrown back from a broad ruddy brow.
"Ho, Mynheer Henry Ware," replied Cornelius Heemskerk in a loud, cleartone, "I am in your woods on perhaps the same errand that you are. Comefrom behind that beech and let us see which has the stronger grip."
Henry stood forth, and the two clasped hands in a grip so powerful thatboth winced. Then they released hands simultaneously, and Heemskerkasked:
"And the other four mynheers? Am I wrong to say that they are near,somewhere?"
"You are not wrong," replied Henry. "They are alive, well and hungry,not a mile from here. There is one man whom they would be very glad tosee, and his name is Cornelius Heemskerk, who is roaming in our woodswithout a permit."
The round, ruddy face of the Dutchman glowed. It was obvious that hefelt as much delight in seeing Henry as Henry felt in seeing him.
"My heart swells," he said. "I feared that you might have been killed orscalped, or, at the best, have gone back to that far land of Kentucky."
"We have wintered well," said Henry, "in a place of which I shall nottell you now, and we are here to see the campaign through."
"I come, too, for the same purpose," said Heemskerk. "We shall betogether. It is goot." "Meanwhile," said Henry, "our camp fire islighted. Jim Hart, whom you have known of old, is cooking strips of meatover the coals, and, although it is a mile away, the odor of them isvery pleasant in my nostrils. I wish to go back there, and it will beall the more delightful to me, and to those who wait, if I can bringwith me such a welcome guest."
"Lead on, mynheer," said Cornelius Heemskerk sententiously.
He received an equally emphatic welcome from the others, and then theyate and talked. Heemskerk was sanguine.
"Something will be done this time," he said. "Word has come from thegreat commander that the Iroquois must be crushed. The thousands whohave fallen must be avenged, and this great fire along our border mustbe stopped. If it cannot be done, then we perish. We have old tales inmy own country of the cruel deeds that the Spaniards did long, long ago,but they were not worse than have been done here."
The five made no response, but the mind of every one of them traveledback to Wyoming and all that they had seen there, and the scars andtraces of many more tragedies.
They reached the camp on Lake Otsego the next day, and Henry saw thatall they had heard was true. The most formidable force that they hadever seen was gathering. There were many companies in the Continentalbuff and blue, epauletted officers, bayonets and cannon. The camp wasfull of life, energy, and hope, and the five at once felt the influenceof it. They found here old friends whom they had known in the march onOghwaga, William Gray, young Taylor, and others, and they were made verywelcome. They were presented to General James Clinton, then in charge,received roving commissions as scouts and hunters, and with Heemskerkand the two celebrated borderers, Timothy Murphy and David Elerson,they roamed the forest in a great circle about the lake, bringing muchvaluable information about the movements of the enemy, who in their turnwere gathering in force, while the royal authorities were dispatchingboth Indians and white men from Canada to help them.
These great scouting expeditions saved the five from much impatience. Ittakes a long time for an army to gather and then to equip itself for themarch, and they were so used to swift motion that it was now a part oftheir nature. At last the army was ready, and it left the lake. Then itproceeded in boats down the Tioga flooded to a sufficient depth by anartificial dam built with immense labor, to its confluence with thelarger river. Here were more men, and the five saw a new commander,General James Sullivan, take charge of the united force. Then the army,late in August, began its march upon the Iroquois.
The five were now in the van, miles ahead of the main guard. They knewthat no important movement of so large a force could escape the noticeof the enemy, but they, with other scouts, made it their duty to seethat the Americans marched into no trap.
It was now the waning summer. The leaves were lightly touched withbrown, and the grass had begun to wither. Berries were ripening onthe vines, and the quantity of game had increased, the wild animalsreturning to the land from which civilized man had disappeared. Thedesolation seemed even more complete than in the autumn before. In thewinter and spring the Iroquois and Tories had destroyed the fewremnants of houses that were left. Braxton Wyatt and his band had beenparticularly active in this work, and many tales had come of his crueltyand that of his swart Tory lieutenant, Coleman. Henry was sure, too,that Wyatt's band, which numbered perhaps fifty Indians and Tories, wasnow in front of them.
He, his comrades, Heemskerk, Elerson, Murphy, and four others, twelvebrave forest runners all told, went into camp one night about ten milesahead of the army. They lighted no fire, and, even had it been cold,they would not have done so, as the region was far too dangerous for anylight. Yet the little band felt no fear. They were only twelve, it istrue, but such a twelve! No chance would either India
ns or Tories haveto surprise them.
They merely lay down in the thick brushwood, three intending to keepwatch while the others slept. Henry, Shif'less Sol, and Heemskerk werethe sentinels. It was very late, nearly midnight; the sky was clear, andpresently they saw smoke rings ascending from high hills to their right,to be answered soon by other rings of smoke to their left. The threewatched them with but little comment, and read every signal in turn.They said: "The enemy is still advancing," "He is too strong forus...... We must retreat and await our brethren."
"It means that there will be no battle to-morrow, at least," whisperedHeemskerk. "Brant is probably ahead of us in command, and he will avoidus until he receives the fresh forces from Canada."
"I take it that you're right," Henry whispered back. "Timmendiquas alsois with him, and the two great chiefs are too cunning to fight untilthey can bring their last man into action."
"An' then," said the shiftless one, "we'll see what happens."
"Yes," said Henry very gravely, "we'll see what happens. The Iroquoisare a powerful confederacy. They've ruled in these woods for hundredsof years. They're led by great chiefs, and they're helped by our whiteenemies. You can't tell what would happen even to an army like ours inan ambush."
Shif'less Sol nodded, and they said no more until an hour later, whenthey heard footsteps. They awakened the others, and the twelve, crawlingto the edge of the brushwood, lay almost flat upon their faces, withtheir hands upon the triggers of their rifles.
Braxton Wyatt and his band of nearly threescore, Indians and Tories inabout equal numbers, were passing. Wyatt walked at the head. Despite hisyouth, he had acquired an air of command, and he seemed a fit leaderfor such a crew. He wore a faded royal uniform, and, while a small swordhung at his side, he also carried a rifle on his shoulder. Close behindhim was the swart and squat Tory, Coleman, and then came Indians andTories together.
The watchful eyes of Henry saw three fresh scalps hanging from as manybelts, and the finger that lay upon the trigger of his rifle fairlyached to press it. What an opportunity this would be if the twelve wereonly forty, or even thirty! With the advantage of surprise they mighthope to annihilate this band which had won such hate for itself on theborder. But twelve were not enough and twelve such lives could not bespared at a time when the army needed them most.
Henry pressed his teeth firmly together in order to keep down hisdisappointment by a mere physical act if possible. He happened to lookat Shif'less Sol, and saw that his teeth were pressed together in thesame manner. It is probable that like feelings swayed every one of thetwelve, but they were so still in the brushwood that no Iroquois heardgrass or leaf rustle. Thus the twelve watched the sixty pass, andafter they were gone, Henry, Shif'less Sol, and Tim Murphy followed forseveral miles. They saw Wyatt proceed toward the Chemung River, and asthey approached the stream they beheld signs of fortifications. It wasnow nearly daylight, and, as Indians were everywhere, they turned back.But they were convinced that the enemy meant to fight on the Chemung.