The Prairie (Fiscle Part 3) Of 2, J Fenimore Cooper [best e reader for manga txt] 📗
- Author: J Fenimore Cooper
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Back Loaded With Scalps!"
He Was Answered By A General Howl, And A Few Of The Boldest Of The
Furies Even Ventured To Approach Him, Flourishing Their Knives Within
A Dangerous Proximity Of His Own Steady Eye-Balls.
"It Is A Warrior You See, And No Runner Of The Long-Knives, Whose Face
Grows Paler At The Sight Of A Tomahawk," Returned The Trapper, Without
Moving A Muscle. "Let The Sioux Women Think; If One White-Skin Dies, A
Hundred Spring Up Where He Falls."
Still The Hags Made No Other Answer, Than By Increasing Their Speed In
The Circle, And Occasionally Raising The Threatening Expressions Of
Their Chant, Into Louder And More Intelligible Strains. Suddenly, One
Of The Oldest, And The Most Ferocious Of Them All, Broke Out Of The
Ring, And Skirred Away In The Direction Of Her Victims, Like A
Rapacious Bird, That Having Wheeled On Poised Wings, For The Time
Necessary To Ensure Its Object, Makes The Final Dart Upon Its Prey.
The Others Followed, A Disorderly And Screaming Flock, Fearful Of
Being Too Late To Reap Their Portion Of The Sanguinary Pleasure.
"Mighty Medicine Of My People!" Shouted The Old Man, In The Teton
Tongue; "Lift Your Voice And Speak, That The Sioux Nation May Hear."
Whether Asinus Had Acquired So Much Knowledge, By His Recent
Experience, As To Know The Value Of His Sonorous Properties, Or The
Strange Spectacle Of A Dozen Hags Flitting Past Him, Filling The Air
With Such Sounds As Were Even Grating To The Ears Of An Ass, Most
Moved His Temper, It Is Certain That The Animal Did That Which Obed
Was Requested To Do, And Probably With Far Greater Effect Than If The
Naturalist Had Strove With His Mightiest Effort To Be Heard. It Was
The First Time The Strange Beast Had Spoken, Since His Arrival In The
Encampment. Admonished By So Terrible A Warning, The Hags Scattered
Themselves, Like Vultures Frightened From Their Prey, Still Screaming,
And But Half Diverted From Their Purpose.
In The Mean Time The Sudden Appearance, And The Imminency Of The
Danger, Quickened The Blood In The Veins Of Paul And Middleton, More
Than All Their Laborious Frictions, And Physical Expedients. The
Former Had Actually Risen To His Feet, And Assumed An Attitude Which
Perhaps Threatened More Than The Worthy Bee-Hunter Was Able To
Perform, And Even The Latter Had Mounted To His Knees, And Shown A
Part 3 Chapter 29 Pg 127Disposition To Do Good Service For His Life. The Unaccountable Release
Of The Captives From Their Bonds Was Attributed, By The Hags, To The
Incantations Of The Medicine; And The Mistake Was Probably Of As Much
Service, As The Miraculous And Timely Interposition Of Asinus In Their
Favour.
"Now Is The Time To Come Out Of Our Ambushment," Exclaimed The Old
Man, Hastening To Join His Friends, "And To Make Open And Manful War.
It Would Have Been Policy To Have Kept Back The Struggle, Until The
Captain Was In Better Condition To Join, But As We Have Unmasked Our
Battery, Why, We Must Maintain The Ground--"
He Was Interrupted By Feeling A Gigantic Hand On His Shoulder.
Turning, Under A Sort Of Confused Impression That Necromancy Was
Actually Abroad In The Place, He Found That He Was In The Hands Of A
Sorcerer No Less Dangerous And Powerful Than Ishmael Bush. The File Of
The Squatter's Well-Armed Sons, That Was Seen Issuing From Behind The
Still Standing Tent Of Mahtoree, Explained At Once, Not Only The
Manner In Which Their Rear Had Been Turned, While Their Attention Had
Been So Earnestly Bestowed On Matters In Front, But The Utter
Impossibility Of Resistance.
Neither Ishmael, Nor His Sons Deemed It Necessary To Enter Into Prolix
Explanations. Middleton And Paul Were Bound Again, With Extraordinary
Silence And Despatch, And This Time Not Even The Aged Trapper Was
Exempt From A Similar Fortune. The Tent Was Struck, The Females Placed
Upon The Horses, And The Whole Were On The Way Towards The Squatter's
Encampment, With A Celerity That Might Well Have Served To Keep Alive
The Idea Of Magic.
During This Summary And Brief Disposition Of Things, The Disappointed
Agent Of Mahtoree And His Callous Associates Were Seen Flying Across
The Plain, In The Direction Of The Retiring Families; And When Ishmael
Left The Spot With His Prisoners And His Booty, The Ground, Which Had
So Lately Been Alive With The Bustle And Life Of An Extensive Indian
Encampment, Was As Still And Empty As Any Other Spot In Those
Extensive Wastes.
Part 3 Chapter 30 Pg 128
Is This Proceeding Just And Honourable?
--Shakspeare.
During The Occurrence Of These Events On The Upland Plain, The
Warriors On The Bottom Had Not Been Idle. We Left The Adverse Bands
Watching One Another On The Opposite Banks Of The Stream, Each
Endeavouring To Excite Its Enemy To Some Act Of Indiscretion, By The
Most Reproachful Taunts And Revilings. But The Pawnee Chief Was Not
Slow To Discover That His Crafty Antagonist Had No Objection To Waste
Part 3 Chapter 30 Pg 129The Time So Idly, And, As They Mutually Proved, In Expedients That
Were So Entirely Useless. He Changed His Plans, Accordingly, And
Withdrew From The Bank, As Has Been Already Explained Through The
Mouth Of The Trapper, In Order To Invite The More Numerous Host Of The
Siouxes To Cross. The Challenge Was Not Accepted, And The Loups Were
Compelled To Frame Some Other Method To Attain Their End.
Instead Of Any Longer Throwing Away The Precious Moments, In Fruitless
Endeavours To Induce His Foe To Cross The Stream, The Young Partisan
Of The Pawnees Led His Troops, At A Swift Gallop, Along Its Margin, In
Quest Of Some Favourable Spot, Where By A Sudden Push He Might Throw
His Own Band Without Loss To The Opposite Shore. The Instant His
Object Was Discovered, Each Mounted Teton Received A Footman Behind
Him, And Mahtoree Was Still Enabled To Concentrate His Whole Force
Against The Effort. Perceiving That His Design Was Anticipated, And
Unwilling To Blow His Horses By A Race That Would Disqualify Them For
Service, Even After They Had Succeeded In Outstripping The More
Heavily-Burdened Cattle Of The Siouxes, Hard-Heart Drew Up, And Came
To A Dead Halt On The Very Margin Of The Water-Course.
As The Country Was Too Open For Any Of The Usual Devices Of Savage
Warfare, And Time Was So Pressing, The Chivalrous Pawnee Resolved To
Bring On The Result By One Of Those Acts Of Personal Daring, For Which
The Indian Braves Are So Remarkable, And By Which They Often Purchase
Their Highest And Dearest Renown. The Spot He Had Selected Was
Favourable To Such A Project. The River, Which Throughout Most Of Its
Course Was Deep And Rapid, Had Expanded There To More Than Twice Its
Customary Width, And The Rippling Of Its Waters Proved That It Flowed
Over A Shallow Bottom. In The Centre Of The Current There Was An
Extensive And Naked Bed Of Sand, But A Little Raised Above The Level
Of The Stream And Of A Colour And Consistency Which Warranted, To A
Practised Eye, That It Afforded A Firm And Safe Foundation For The
Foot. To This Spot The Partisan Now Turned His Wistful Gaze, Nor Was
He Long In Making His Decision. First Speaking To His Warriors, And
Apprising Them Of His Intentions, He Dashed Into The Current, And
Partly By Swimming, And More By The Use Of His Horse's Feet, He
Reached The Island In Safety.
The Experience Of Hard-Heart Had Not Deceived Him. When His Snorting
Steed Issued From The Water, He Found Himself On A Tremendous But Damp
And Compact Bed Of Sand, That Was Admirably Adapted To The Exhibition
Of The Finest Powers Of The Animal. The Horse Seemed Conscious Of The
Advantage, And Bore His Warlike Rider, With An Elasticity Of Step And
A Loftiness Of Air, That Would Have Done No Discredit To The Highest
Trained And Most Generous Charger. The Blood Of The Chief Himself
Quickened With The Excitement Of His Situation. He Sat The Beast As If
Conscious That The Eyes Of Two Tribes Were On His Movements; And As
Nothing Could Be More Acceptable And Grateful To His Own Band, Than
This Display Of Native Grace And Courage, So Nothing Could Be More
Taunting And Humiliating To Their Enemies.
The Sudden Appearance Of The Pawnee On The Sands Was Announced Among
The Tetons, By A General Yell Of Savage Anger. A Rush Was Made To The
Shore, Followed By A Discharge Of Fifty Arrows And A Few Fusees, And,
Part 3 Chapter 30 Pg 130On The Part Of Several Braves, There Was A Plain Manifestation Of A
Desire To Plunge Into The Water, In Order To Punish The Temerity Of
Their Insolent Foe. But A Call And A Mandate, From Mahtoree, Checked
The Rising, And Nearly Ungovernable, Temper Of His Band. So Far From
Allowing A Single Foot To Be Wet, Or A Repetition Of The Fruitless
Efforts Of His People To Drive Away Their Foe With Missiles, The Whole
Of The Party Was Commanded To Retire From The Shore, While He Himself
Communicated His Intentions To One Or Two Of His Most Favoured
Followers.
When The Pawnees Observed The Rush Of Their Enemies, Twenty Warriors
Rode Into The Stream; But So Soon As They Perceived That The Tetons
Had Withdrawn, They Fell Back To A Man, Leaving The Young Chief To The
Support Of His Own Often-Tried Skill And Well-Established Courage. The
Instructions Of Hard-Heart, On Quitting His Band, Had Been Worthy Of
The Self-Devotion And Daring Of His Character. So Long As Single
Warriors Came Against Him, He Was To Be Left To The Keeping Of The
Wahcondah And His Own Arm; But Should The Siouxes Attack Him In
Numbers,
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