CHAPTER XVII
"There is a light, sir, at the Castle," said one of the servants ofSir William Johnson, entering the room where he was seated with Mr.Prevost; "it comes from the great court."
"Then they have arrived," said the officer, turning to his guest. "Letus set out at once. Are the horses saddled?"
"They have been kept ready, sir, ever since the morning," replied theservant to whom the last words were addressed.
"It is strange," said Mr. Prevost, as he followed his host toward thedoor of the room, "that the negro I sent to tell Edith the cause of mydelay has not returned, as I told him. He might have been here fourhours ago. I am growing somewhat anxious."
"Be not so! be not so!" replied Sir William. "Two or three years offorest life, my good friend, are not enough to inure a man to all thelittle accidents and discomforts he must meet with; and the firstserious danger so shakes his nerves that they vibrate at a trifle. Theman's horse may have fallen, or he may have purloined a bottle ofbrandy and got drunk, or he may have missed his way, or set out late.Between this house and yours there is room for chances enough to makea moderate volume. Let us not look out for uncertain evils when thereare real ones enough around us."
"Real ones enough, indeed," said Mr. Prevost, with a deep sigh.
A moment after, they reached the front of the stables, from whichtheir horses were immediately brought forth; and mounting, they setout, followed by a small party, both on horseback and on foot; for SirWilliam, though he affected the simplicity of the Indian, was not atall averse to a little appearance of state and dignity in his dealingswith his red allies. There is a certain sort of pride, which clothesitself in humility, and, without at all meaning to assert that thevery remarkable man in question desired to make the Indian chiefs feelthat his adoption of their manners was a condescension, yet it iscertain that, from time to time, he judged it expedient--perhaps frommotives of good policy--to make a somewhat ostentatious display ofpower and authority.
The night was exceedingly dark. The moon now rose at a very late hour,and dim clouds hid the stars from the dwellers upon earth. In such anight, and in such circumstances, the fancy, even of the moststout-hearted, is apt to indulge in deceits; and as the eye of Mr.Prevost wandered round, dim forms, like specters, seemed to be glidingabout the fields of maize, cut, but in many places not gathered.
Not feeling certain whether imagination cheated him or not, he made noobservation; and for some time Sir William Johnson was silent, also;but at length the latter said, in a commonplace tone: "Our goodfriends seem to have come in great force, probably in consequence ofthe urgency of my summons. Now, be patient, Prevost, and bear withtheir cool, phlegmatic ways, for these people often feel the strongestsympathies, and serve their friends the best when they seem the mostcold and indifferent."
Mr. Prevost felt already how difficult it was to maintain thatequanimity which, in theory, he estimated as highly as an Indian, andin practice strove for, but not infrequently lost. He promised,however, to leave entirely to Sir William Johnson the management of aconference with the chiefs of the Mohawk and Onondaga nations, whichhad been proposed by that officer himself, for the purpose of inducingthe two most powerful nations of the Iroquois to interfere in behalfof Walter, and save him from the fate that menaced him. At the gate ofthe Castle, the door of which stood open, as usual (for although itwas filled with large quantities of those stores which the Indiansmost coveted, its safety was left entirely to the guardianship oftheir good faith), the two gentlemen entered the large courtyard,which, on this occasion, was quite deserted, the weather being coldenough now to render some shelter agreeable even to an Indian.
From the open door of the great hall which stretched along the greaterpart of the whole building, came forth a blaze of light on entering.Sir William Johnson and his companion found a number of Mohawk andOnondaga chiefs assembled, sitting gravely ranged in a semi-circleround the fire. Each was fully clothed in his garb of ceremony, andbright and brilliant were the colors displayed in the dresses andornaments of the redmen; but as this was a peaceful occasion, theirfaces were destitute of paint, and the scalp-lock concealed under thebrilliant gostoweh, or cap, in many of which were seen the plume ofthe famous white egret, used to distinguish the chiefs of thedifferent tribes, ever since the feathers of the famous white bird ofheaven had been exhausted.
All rose with quiet native dignity when the Indian agent and hiscompanion entered; and a murmur of gratulation ran round while SirWilliam and Walter's father seated themselves in two large chairs.
"This is our brother," said Sir William Johnson, pointing to Mr.Prevost.
"Hai! hai!" said the Indian chiefs. "Peace! peace! He is our brother."
King Hendrick then approached Mr. Prevost, dressed in his sky-bluecoat of European manufacture, presented to him by the reigning monarchof England, and took his hand, saying in a tone of friendly sympathy,and in the English tongue: "Our brother is sad; be comforted."
He then seated himself, and the attotarho, or grand chief of the wholeconfederacy, an office held in descent by the chief of the Onondagatotem of the Bear, advanced to Walter's father and spoke the samewords in Iroquois, showing clearly that the object of the meeting wasunderstood, by the Indian leaders. When all had arranged themselvesround again, a silence of some minutes succeeded.
At length the attotarho said, rising to his full height, which mightbe termed almost gigantic: "Our father has sent for us, and we areobedient children. We are here to hear his sweet words and understandhis mind."
Sir William Johnson then, in a speech of very great power and beauty,full of the figurative language of the Indians, related the eventswhich had occurred in the family of Mr. Prevost, and made an appeal tohis hearers for counsel and assistance. He represented his friend asan old tree from which a branch had been torn by the lightning, whenhe strove to depict his desolate state; and then he told a story of apanther, one of whose young ones had been carried off by a wolf, butwho, on applying for assistance to a bear and a stag, recovered heryoung by their means. "The panther was strong enough," he said, "withthe aid of the lion, to take back her young ones from the wolf, and totear it to pieces; but the wolf was of kin to the bear and the stag,and therefore she forebore."
"But the bear is slow, and the stag is not strong when he goes againsthis kindred," said the attotarho, significantly, "and the lion willnever take the warpath against his allies."
"Heaven forbid that there should be need," said Sir William, "but thelion must consider his children, and the panther is his son."
Poor Mr. Prevost remained in a state of painful anxiety while thediscussion proceeded in this course, wandering as it seemed to him,round the subject, and affording no indication of any intention on theparts of the chiefs to give him assistance; for figures, though theybe very useful things to express the meaning of a speaker, aresometimes equally useful to conceal it. At length he could bear nolonger, and forgetting his promise to Sir William Johnson, he startedup with all the feelings of a father strong in his heart, and appealeddirectly to the Indians in their own tongue, which he had completelymastered, but in a style of eloquence very different from their own,and perhaps the more striking to them on that account.
"My child!" he exclaimed, earnestly. "Give me back my child! Who isthe man amongst the Five Nations whom he has wronged? Where is the manto whom he has refused kindness or assistance? When has his door beenshut against the wandering redman? When has he denied to him a shareof his food or of his fire? Is he not your brother, and the son ofyour brother? Have we not smoked the pipe of peace together, and hasthat peace ever been violated by us? I came within the walls of yourLong House, trusting to the truth and the hospitality of the FiveNations. I built my lodge amongst you, in full confidence of yourfaith and of your friendship. Is my hearth to be left desolate, is myheart to be torn out, because I trusted to the truth and honor of theMohawks, to the protection and promises of the Onondaga, because Iwould not believe the songs of the singing bird that sai
d, 'They willslay thy children before thy face?' If there be fault or failing in meor mine toward the redman in any of the tribes, if we have taken aughtfrom him, if we have spoken false words in his ear, if we have refusedhim aught that he had a right to ask, if we have shed any man's blood,then slay me! Cut down the old tree at the root, but leave thesapling. If we have been just and righteous toward you, if we havebeen friendly and hospitable, if we have been true and faithful, if wehave shed no man's blood and taken no man's goods, then give me backmy child! To you, chiefs of the Five Nations, I raise my voice; fromyou I demand my son! For a crime committed by one of the league is acrime committed by all. Could ye find none but the son of your brotherto slay? Must ye make the trust he placed in you the means of hisdestruction? Had he doubted your hospitality, had he not confided inyour faith, had he said, 'The lightning of the guns of Albany and thethunder of her cannon are better protection than the faith and truthof the redman,' ye know he would have been safe. But he said, 'I willput my trust in the hospitality of the Five Nations; I will becometheir brother. If there be bad men amongst them, their chiefs willprotect me, their attotarho will do me justice. They are greatwarriors, but they are good men. They smite their enemies, but theylove their friends.' If, then, ye are good men, if ye are greatwarriors, if ye are brothers to your brothers, if ye are true to yourfriends, if ye are fathers yourselves, give me back my son!"
"Koui! koui!" cried the Indians in a sad tone, more profoundlyaffected by the vehement expression of a father's feelings than SirWilliam Johnson had expected; but the moment that the word wasuttered, which, according to the tone and rapidity with which it ispronounced, signifies either approbation and joy, or sympathy andgrief, they relapsed into deep silence again.
Sir William Johnson, though he had been a good deal annoyed andalarmed at Mr. Prevost taking upon himself to speak, and fearful lesthe should injure his own cause, now fully appreciated the effectproduced, and would not add a word to impair it; but at length KingHendrick rose, and said in a grave and melancholy tone: "We arebrothers, but what can we do? The Oneidas are our brethren, also. TheMohawks, the Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, and the Senecas areseparate nations, though they are brethren and allies. We are leaguedtogether for common defence, but not that we should rule over eachother. The Oneidas have their laws, and they execute them; but thislaw is common to all the nations, that if a man's blood be shed exceptin battle, the man who shed it must die. If he cannot be found, any ofhis nearest kin must be taken. If he have none, one of his tribe orrace. The same is it with the Mohawk as with the Oneida. But in thisthing have the Oneidas done as the Mohawks would not have done. Theyhave not sought diligently for the slayer; neither have they waitedpatiently to see whether they could find any of his kindred. TheOneidas have been hasty. They have taken the first man they couldfind. They have been fearful like the squirrel, and they keep him lestin time of need they should not find another. This is unjust. Theyshould have first waited and searched diligently, and should not havetaken the son of their brother till they were sure no other man couldbe found. But koui! koui! what is to be done? Shall the Mohawk unburythe hatchet against the Oneida? That cannot be. Shall the Mohawk sayto the Oneida, 'Thou art unjust'? The Oneida will answer, 'We have ourlaws and you have yours; the Mohawk is not the ruler of the Oneida;repose under your own tree; we sit upon a stone.' One thing,perchance, may be done," and a very slight look of cunningintelligence came into his face; "subtlety will sometimes do whatforce cannot. The snake is as powerful as the panther. I speak mythought, and I know not if it be good. Were my brother the attotarhoto choose ten of the subtlest serpents of his nation, and I to chooseten of the subtlest of mine, they might go, un-painted and unarmed,and, creeping through the wood without rattle or hiss, reach the placewhere the young man lies. If there be thongs upon his hands the breathof a Snake can melt them. If there be a door upon his prison, the eyesof a Snake can pierce it. If there be a guard, the coil of the Snakecan twine around him, and many of the Oneida chiefs and warriors willrejoice that they are thus friendly forced to do right, and seekanother. I speak my thought; I know not whether it is good. Let thosespeak who know, for no nation of the five can do aught against anothernation alone; otherwise we break to pieces like a faggot when thethong bursts."
Thus saying, he ended, sat down, and resumed his quiet stillness; andafter a pause, as if for thought, the attotarho rose, addressinghimself direct to Mr. Prevost, and speaking with a great deal of gravedignity.
"We grieve for you, my brother," he said, "and we grieve forourselves. We know that our great English father who sits under themighty pine tree will be wroth with his red children; but let himremember and speak it in his ears, that the Mohawk and the Onondaga,the Seneca and the Cayuga, are not to blame for this act. They say theOneidas have done hastily, and they will consult together around thecouncil fire how thou mayest best be comforted. Haste is only fit forchildren. Grown men are slow and deliberate. Why should we go quicklynow? Thy son is safe; for the Oneidas cannot, according to their law,take any sacrifice except the life of the slayer, till they be wellassured that the slayer cannot be found."
Mr. Prevost's lip quivered with emotion as if about to speak, but SirWilliam Johnson laid his hand upon his arm, saying in a quick whisper,"Leave him to me;" and the Onondaga proceeded. "We will do the bestthat we can for our brother, but the meadow lark has not the strengthof the eagle, nor the fox of the panther, and if we should fail itwould not be the fault of the Mohawk or the Onondaga. I have said."
Sir William Johnson then rose to reply, seeing that the attotarhosought to escape any distinct promise, and judging that with thesupport of King Hendrick a little firmness might wring something morefrom him.
"My brother, the attotarho," he said, "has spoken well. The FiveNations are leagued together in peace and in war. They take the scalpsof their enemies as one man. They live in brotherhood; but my brothersays that if the Oneida commits a crime the Mohawk and the Onondaga,the Seneca and the Cayuga are not guilty of the act, and thereforedeserve no wrath. But he says at the same time that if the man namedWoodchuck slays a redman, Walter Prevost, the brother of the redman,must die for it. How is this? Have the children of the Five Nationsforked tongues? Do they speak double words? If the Onondagas are notguilty of what the Oneidas do, neither is Walter Prevost guilty ofwhat the paleface Woodchuck does. May the Great Spirit forbid thatyour father near the rising of the sun should deal unjustly with hisred children, or be wroth with them for acts done by others; but hedoes expect that his children of the Five Nations will show the samejustice to his paleface children; and unless they are resolved to takeupon themselves the act of the Oneidas, and say their act is our act,they will do something to prevent it. My brother says that haste isfor children, and true are his words. Then why have the Oneidas donethis hasty thing? We cannot trust that they will not be children anymore, or that having done this thing they will not hastily do worse.True, everything should be done deliberately. We should show ourselvesmen, if we want children to follow our example. Let us take counselthen, fully, while we are here together. The council fire burns in themidst of us, and we have time enough to take thought calmly. Here Iwill sit till I know that my brothers will do justice in this matter,and not suffer the son of my brother to remain in the hands of thosewho have wrongfully made him a prisoner. Yes, truly, here I will sitto take counsel with the chiefs till the words of wisdom are spoken,even although the sun should go five times round the earth before ourtalk were ended. Have I spoken well?"
"Koui! koui!" exclaimed a number of voices, and one of the old sachemsrose, saying in slow and deliberate tones: "Our white brother has thewords of truth and resolution. The Oneida has shown the speed of thedeer, but not the wisdom of the tortoise. The law of the Oneida is ourlaw, and he should have waited at least one moon to see if the rightman could be found. The Oneida must be in trouble at his ownhastiness. Let us deliver him from the pit into which he has fallen,but let us do it with the silent wisdom of the snake, which cre
epsthrough the grass where no one sees him. The rattlesnake is the mostfoolish of reptiles, for he talks of what he is going to dobeforehand. We will be more wise than he is, and as our thoughts aregood, we will keep them for ourselves. Let us only say, 'The boy shallbe delivered, if the Mohawks and the Onondagas can do it;' but let usnot say how; for a man who gives away a secret deprives himself ofwhat he can never recover, and benefits nothing but the wind. I havesaid."
All the assembled chiefs expressed their approbation of the old man'swords, and seemed to consider the discussion concluded. Mr. Prevost,indeed, was anxious to have something more definite, but Sir WilliamJohnson nodded his head significantly, saying in a low tone: "We havedone as much, nay, more than we could expect. It will be necessary toclose our conference with some gifts, which will be, as it were, aseal upon our covenant."
"But have they entered into any covenant?" rejoined Mr. Prevost. "Ihave heard of none made yet on their part."
"As much as Indians ever do," answered Sir William Johnson, "and youcan extract nothing more from them with your utmost skill."
He then called some of his people from without into the hall, orderedthe stores to be opened, and brought forth some pieces of scarletcloth, one of the most honorable presents which could be offered to anIndian chief. A certain portion was cut off for each, and receivedwith grave satisfaction. Mats and skins were then spread upon thefloor in great abundance. Long pipes were brought in and handed round,and after having smoked together in profound silence for nearly halfan hour, the chiefs stretched themselves out upon the ground andcomposed themselves to rest.
Sir William Johnson and his guest, as a mark of confidence andbrotherhood, remained with them throughout the night, but retired tothe farther end of the hall. They did not sleep as soon as their duskycompanions. Their conversation, though carried on in low tones, was,nevertheless, eager and anxious, for the father could not help stillfeeling great apprehensions regarding the fate of his son; and SirWilliam Johnson was not altogether without alarm regarding theconsequences of the very determination to which he had brought thechiefs of the Mohawks and Onondagas. Symptoms of intestine discord hadof late been perceived in the great Indian confederacy. They had notacted on the behalf of England with the unanimity which they haddisplayed in former years, and it was the policy of the Britishgovernment by every means to heal all divisions and consolidate theirunion, as well as to attach them more and more firmly to the Englishcause. Although he doubted not that whatever was done by the chiefswith whom he had just been in conference would be effected with theutmost subtlety and secrecy, yet there was still the danger ofproducing a conflict between them and the Oneidas in the attempt, orcausing angry feeling, even if it were successful; and Sir William,who was not at all insensible to his government's approbation, feltsome alarm at the prospect before him. However, he and Mr. Prevostboth slept, at length, and the following morning saw the chiefsdispersing in the gray dawn of a cold and threatening morning.