The Prairie (Fiscle Part 3) Of 2, J Fenimore Cooper [best e reader for manga txt] 📗
- Author: J Fenimore Cooper
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Foaming Water-Course A Desert Of Drifting Sand."
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 70The Naturalist Pondered Deeply. Like Most Others, Who Are Not Endowed
With A Superfluity Of Physical Fortitude, The Worthy Man Had Found The
Danger Of Passing The River, In So Simple A Manner, Magnifying Itself
In His Eyes So Rapidly, As The Moment Of Adventure Approached, That He
Actually Contemplated The Desperate Effort Of Going Round The River,
In Order To Escape The Hazard Of Crossing It. It May Not Be Necessary
To Dwell On The Incredible Ingenuity, With Which Terror Will At Any
Time Prop A Tottering Argument. The Worthy Obed Had Gone Over The
Whole Subject, With Commendable Diligence, And Had Just Arrived At The
Consoling Conclusion, That There Was Nearly As Much Glory In
Discerning The Hidden Sources Of So Considerable A Stream, As In
Adding A Plant, Or An Insect, To The Lists Of The Learned, When The
Pawnee Reached The Shore For The Second Time. The Old Man Took His
Seat, With The Utmost Deliberation, In The Vessel Of Skin (So Soon As
It Had Been Duly Arranged For His Reception), And Having Carefully
Disposed Of Hector Between His Legs, He Beckoned To His Companion To
Occupy The Third Place.
The Naturalist Placed A Foot In The Frail Vessel, As An Elephant Will
Try A Bridge, Or A Horse Is Often Seen To Make A Similar Experiment,
Before He Will Trust The Whole Of His Corporeal Treasure On The
Dreaded Flat, And Then Withdrew, Just As The Old Man Believed He Was
About To Seat Himself.
"Venerable Venator," He Said, Mournfully, "This Is A Most Unscientific
Bark. There Is An Inward Monitor Which Bids Me Distrust Its Security!"
"Anan?" Said The Old Man, Who Was Pinching The Ears Of The Hound, As A
Father Would Play With The Same Member In A Favourite Child.
"I Incline Not To This Irregular Mode Of Experimenting On Fluids. The
Vessel Has Neither Form, Nor Proportions."
"It Is Not As Handsomely Turned As I Have Seen A Canoe In Birchen
Bark, But Comfort May Be Taken In A Wigwam As Well As In A Palace."
"It Is Impossible That Any Vessel Constructed On Principles So
Repugnant To Science Can Be Safe. This Tub, Venerable Hunter, Will
Never Reach The Opposite Shore In Safety."
"You Are A Witness Of What It Has Done."
"Ay; But It Was An Anomaly In Prosperity. If Exceptions Were To Be
Taken As Rules, In The Government Of Things, The Human Race Would
Speedily Be Plunged In The Abysses Of Ignorance. Venerable Trapper,
This Expedient, In Which You Would Repose Your Safety, Is, In The
Annals Of Regular Inventions, What A Lusus Naturae May Be Termed In
The Lists Of Natural History--A Monster!"
How Much Longer Doctor Battius Might Have Felt Disposed To Prolong The
Discourse, It Is Difficult To Say, For In Addition To The Powerful
Personal Considerations, Which Induced Him To Procrastinate An
Experiment Which Was Certainly Not Without Its Dangers, The Pride Of
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 71Reason Was Beginning To Sustain Him In The Discussion. But,
Fortunately For The Credit Of The Old Man's Forbearance, When The
Naturalist Reached The Word, With Which He Terminated His Last Speech,
A Sound Arose In The Air That Seemed A Sort Of Supernatural Echo To
The Idea Itself. The Young Pawnee, Who Had Awaited The Termination Of
The Incomprehensible Discussion, With Grave And Characteristic
Patience, Raised His Head, And Listened To The Unknown Cry, Like A
Stag, Whose Mysterious Faculties Had Detected The Footsteps Of The
Distant Hounds In The Gale. The Trapper And The Doctor Were Not,
However, Entirely So Uninstructed As To The Nature Of The
Extraordinary Sounds. The Latter Recognised In Them The Well-Known
Voice Of His Own Beast, And He Was About To Rush Up The Little Bank,
Which Confined The Current, With All The Longings Of Strong Affection,
When Asinus Himself Galloped Into View, At No Great Distance, Urged To
The Unnatural Gait By The Impatient And Brutal Weucha, Who Bestrode
Him.
The Eyes Of The Teton, And Those Of The Fugitives Met. The Former
Raised A Long, Loud, And Piercing Yell, In Which The Notes Of
Exultation Were Fearfully Blended With Those Of Warning. The Signal
Served For A Finishing Blow To The Discussion On The Merits Of The
Bark, The Doctor Stepping As Promptly To The Side Of The Old Man, As
If A Mental Mist Had Been Miraculously Removed From His Eyes. In
Another Instant The Steed Of The Young Pawnee Was Struggling With The
Torrent.
The Utmost Strength Of The Horse Was Needed To Urge The Fugitives,
Beyond The Flight Of Arrows That Came Sailing Through The Air, At The
Next Moment. The Cry Of Weucha Had Brought Fifty Of His Comrades To
The Shore, But Fortunately Among Them All, There Was Not One Of A Rank
Sufficient To Entitle Him To The Privilege Of Bearing A Fusee. One
Half The Stream, However, Was Not Passed, Before The Form Of Mahtoree
Himself Was Seen On Its Bank, And An Ineffectual Discharge Of Firearms
Announced The Rage And Disappointment Of The Chief. More Than Once The
Trapper Had Raised His Rifle, As If About To Try Its Power On His
Enemies, But He As Often Lowered It, Without Firing. The Eyes Of The
Pawnee Warrior Glared Like Those Of The Cougar, At The Sight Of So
Many Of The Hostile Tribe, And He Answered The Impotent Effort Of
Their Chief, By Tossing A Hand Into The Air In Contempt, And Raising
The War-Cry Of His Nation. The Challenge Was Too Taunting To Be
Endured. The Tetons Dashed Into The Stream In A Body, And The River
Became Dotted With The Dark Forms Of Beasts And Riders.
There Was Now A Fearful Struggle For The Friendly Bank. As The
Dahcotahs Advanced With Beasts, Which Had Not, Like That Of The
Pawnee, Expended Their Strength In Former Efforts, And As They Moved
Unincumbered By Any Thing But Their Riders, The Speed Of The Pursuers
Greatly Outstripped That Of The Fugitives. The Trapper, Who Clearly
Comprehended The Whole Danger Of Their Situation, Calmly Turned His
Eyes From The Tetons To His Young Indian Associate, In Order To
Examine Whether The Resolution Of The Latter Began To Falter, As The
Former Lessened The Distance Between Them. Instead Of Betraying Fear,
However, Or Any Of That Concern Which Might So Readily Have Been
Excited By The Peculiarity Of His Risk, The Brow Of The Young Warrior
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 72Contracted To A Look Which Indicated High And Deadly Hostility.
"Do You Greatly Value Life, Friend Doctor?" Demanded The Old Man, With
A Sort Of Philosophical Calmness, Which Made The Question Doubly
Appalling To His Companion.
"Not For Itself," Returned The Naturalist, Sipping Some Of The Water
Of The River From The Hollow Of His Hand, In Order To Clear His Husky
Throat. "Not For Itself, But Exceedingly, Inasmuch As Natural History
Has So Deep A Stake In My Existence. Therefore--"
"Ay!" Resumed The Other, Who Mused Too Deeply To Dissect The Ideas Of
The Doctor With His Usual Sagacity, "'Tis In Truth The History Of
Natur', And A Base And Craven Feeling It Is! Now Is Life As Precious
To This Young Pawnee, As To Any Governor In The States, And He Might
Save It, Or At Least Stand Some Chance Of Saving It, By Letting Us Go
Down The Stream; And Yet You See He Keeps His Faith Manfully, And Like
An Indian Warrior. For Myself, I Am Old, And Willing To Take The
Fortune That The Lord May See Fit To Give, Nor Do I Conceit That You
Are Of Much Benefit To Mankind; And It Is A Crying Shame, If Not A
Sin, That So Fine A Youth As This Should Lose His Scalp For Two Beings
So Worthless As Ourselves. I Am Therefore Disposed, Provided That It
Shall Prove Agreeable To You, To Tell The Lad To Make The Best Of His
Way, And To Leave Us To The Mercy Of The Tetons."
"I Repel The Proposition, As Repugnant To Nature, And As Treason To
Science!" Exclaimed The Alarmed Naturalist. "Our Progress Is
Miraculous; And As This Admirable Invention Moves With So Wonderful A
Facility, A Few More Minutes Will Serve To Bring Us To Land."
The Old Man Regarded Him Intently For An Instant, And Shaking His Head
He Said--
"Lord, What A Thing Is Fear! It Transforms The Creatur's Of The World
And The Craft Of Man, Making That Which Is Ugly, Seemly In Our Eyes,
And That Which Is Beautiful, Unsightly! Lord, Lord, What A Thing Is
Fear!"
A Termination Was, However, Put To The Discussion, By The Increasing
Interest Of The Chase. The Horses Of The Dahcotahs Had, By This Time,
Gained The Middle Of The Current, And Their Riders Were Already
Filling The Air With Yells Of Triumph. At This Moment Middleton And
Paul Who Had Led The Females To A Little Thicket, Appeared Again On
The Margin Of The Stream, Menacing Their Enemies With The Rifle.
"Mount, Mount," Shouted The Trapper, The Instant He Beheld Them;
"Mount And Fly, If You Value Those Who Lean On You For Help. Mount,
And Leave Us In The Hands Of The Lord."
"Stoop Your Head, Old Trapper," Returned The Voice Of Paul, "Down With
Ye Both Into Your Nest. The Teton Devil Is In Your Line; Down With
Your Heads And Make Way For A Kentucky Bullet."
The Old Man Turned His Head, And Saw That The Eager Mahtoree, Who
Part 3 Chapter 24 Pg 73Preceded His Party Some Distance, Had Brought Himself Nearly In A Line
With The Bark And The Bee-Hunter, Who Stood Perfectly Ready To Execute
His Hostile Threat. Bending His Body Low, The Rifle Was Discharged,
And
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