The Knight Of The Golden Melice, John Turvill Adams [the reading list TXT] 📗

The

Canoe Upon The Beach, Beyond The Rising Of The Tide. This Being Done,

They Advanced In The Direction Of The Group Of White Men. The One Who

Was Evidently The Leader, As Well From His Walking First, (The Other

Stepping In His Track,) As Well As From The Superior Richness Of His

Dress, Which Was The Skin Of A Moose Loosely Disposed Over His

Shoulders As A Robe, And That Of A Deer Divested Of Its Hair,

Beautifully Tanned, And Painted In Bright Colors, For A Breech Cloth,

With The Feathers Of Some Bird In His Scalp Lock; While The Garments

Of His Follower Were Merely Deer Skins Dressed With The Hair;

Pronounced, As Soon As They Came Within About A Rod Of The White Men,

The Single Word "Taranteen," And Then Both Stopped. So Similar Were

The Dress And General Appearance Of The Indian Tribes To One Another,

That The Eye Alone Would Have Been Insufficient To Detect A

Difference; But The Utterance Of The Word Indicated At Once To Which

One The New Comers Belonged, And Their Desire To Have It Immediately

Understood. Various Questions Were Now Asked By The Curious, Who

Thronged Around The Savages, But No Answer Was Returned Save The Word

Taranteen, And Some Words That Sounded Like An Attempt At French.

  

 

The Gallant Captain Sparhawk, Who, To Judge From The Part He Took In

The Conversation, And The Emphasis Wherewith He Expressed His

Opinions, Was The Principal Personage Present, Having Exhausted His

Stock Of Spanish, And German, And French Phrases Which He Had Picked

Up In His Trading Voyages, As Well As Sundry Uncouth Sounds It Was His

Pleasure To Call Indian, In A Vain Attempt To Make Himself Understood,

At Last Decided That The Only Proper Course Was To Take Them Before

The Governor. At The Mention Of Winthrop's Name, The Indian's Face Was

Lighted Up With A Look Of Intelligence, And He Made A Motion With His

Head As Though He Knew For Whom It Was Intended.

  

 

"Do Ye See Now, My Hearties," Cried The Gratified Captain, "The

Ignorant Beggar Understands Me After All. I Mistrusted, From The

Beginning, That He Was Only Playing 'Possum, As They Say Down In

Virginny. For Look Ye, Ye Lubbers, It Would Be Strange If A Man Who

Has Been Buen' Camarada With The Spaniard, And Guter Gesell With The

Dutchman, And Parleywood With Mounseer, And Made The Weight Of His

Ship In Gold For His Owners, Out Of These Here Salvages, Shouldn't Be

Able To Speak Their Gibberish. It's Not So Hard After All, Do Ye See,

When One Gets The Weather Guage Of It. But Here, Some O' Ye, Gallivant

The Red Skins Up To The Governor, (A Good Enough Fellow In His Way, I

Dare Say, If He Were Not So D----D Hard On Drinking Healths,) With My

Compliments, With The Compliments Of Capt. Sparhawk, (Do Ye Hear?) And

Let Him Know How They Drifted Ashore. And Hark Ye, If He Should Be

Inclined To A Little Agreeable Conversation With The Tanned Hides,

Just Let Him Send Me An Invitation, And I Shall Be Happy To Officiate

As Interpreter. Heave Ahead, Bill Pantry, And Take Command Of The

Squad. You've Been Long Enough Under My Command To Know How To Do The

Honors In A Gentlemanly Way."

 

  

Accordingly Bill Pantry, In Obedience To The Orders Of His Captain,

Which Seemed To The Bystanders The Most Sensible Suggestion, Took

Possession Of The Indians, And Escorted Them To The Governor's House.

  

 

It So Happened, By An Accident, That The Invaluable Services Of Capt.

Sparhawk, As A Linguist, Were Not Needed On The Occasion, For Upon The

Strangers Being Announced By One Of The Soldiers On Guard At The Door,

The Knight Of The Golden Melice Was Found To Be With Winthrop.

 

 

 As The Indians Entered The Room, Winthrop Rose, And With Great

Urbanity, Offered His Hand To Him Who Appeared To Be The Principal. To

His Astonishment, However, The Taranteen Extended Not His Own.

  

 

"How Is This?" Exclaimed Winthrop. "Is This Intentional Discourtesy,

Or Are Ye Ignorant Of The Customs Of The English?"

  

 

Hereupon The Principal Indian Uttered A Sentence Or Two,

Unintelligible To Winthrop. 

 

 

"Thou Dost Understand The Language Of The Taranteens, Sir

Christopher," He Said. "May It Please You, Who Are So Happily Here, To

Explain His Meaning?" 

 

 

"He Says," Replied The Knight, "That He Has Been Sent As A Messenger

By His Nation, And That He Hopes You Will Respect His Character."

 

  

"Surely," Said Winthrop. "How Could He Imagine The Contrary? Who Can

Impeach Our Faith?"

  

 

"You Forget," Said The Knight, "What Suspicions Must Have Been

Engendered By The Unhappy Termination Of The Late Embassy."

 

  

"It Will Be Difficult To Persuade Me," Said Winthrop, "That It Was

Other Than A Broil, Wherein Our People Had No Part. I Cannot Be

Deceived," Continued He, Waving His Hand, Observing That Sir

Christopher Was About To Reply, "By The Cunning Stratagem Resorted To,

For The Purpose Of Averting Suspicion. But A Truce With This. Say To

Him He Is As Safe As His Child, If He Has One, In His Wigwam. What

Says He Now?" He Inquired, After The Knight Had Interpreted His Words,

And The Indian Replied.

 

 

"He Asks Where Are The Four Companions Of Pieskaret."

 

  

"Tell Him I Know Not, But Suppose They Have Either Returned To Their

Homes, Or Been Destroyed By Hostile Indians."

  

 

When This Was Explained, The Stately Savage Sadly Smiled, And Shook

His Head. He Then Spoke Again.

 

 

"He Says," Answered The Knight, To The Look Of Winthrop, "That It Is

Not The Custom Of Taranteen Ambassadors To Run Away, And That They

Know How To Protect Themselves From The Aberginians."

  

 

"I Protest," Said Winthrop, "That, However Different My Own Opinion, I

Do Half Believe That These Blinded Savages In Fact Imagine Their

Tribes-Men Were Murdered By The Whites. To Be Deplored Is It That Such

An Opinion Should Get Footing Among Them, Staining As It Doth Our Good

Name And Pregnant With Many Possible Evils. Assure Him, Sir

Christopher, Of My Grief At What Has Happened; Of My Sincere Desire To

Discover How Pieskaret Lost His Life; Of What Has Become Of His

Missing People; And Of My Readiness, If It Can Be Shown That An

Englishman Has In Anywise Connection Therewith, To Render To The

Taranteens Perfect Satisfaction."

 

  

The Indian Listened To All This With The Deepest Attention As It Was

Explained To Him, And Then Replied:

 

  

"Pieskaret Is Gone, And His Kindred Will See Him No More The Eyes Of

His Wife Are Swollen With Weeping, And His Children, Like Little Birds

In The Nest, Open Their Mouths For Food; But Pieskaret Comes Not To

Fill Them. His Feet Were Like Those Of A Deer, And His Voice Like The

Shouting Of The Great Salt Lake On The Rocks. Woe Is Me, For I Shall

See My Brother No More. But He Is Glad On The Happy Hunting Grounds Of

Brave Warriors. It Is Well With Him: We Know Where He Is, But We Know

Not Where Are Our Brothers Who Were With Pieskaret. We Know That The

English Love Slaves, And We Fear That They Have Made Slaves Of Our

Brothers. We Will Turn Away Our Eyes From The Widow Of Pieskaret And

His Little Children, And Will Stop Our Ears So That We Cannot Hear

Their Crying, And Forget The Fate Of Pieskaret, If The White Chief

Will Return Our Brothers."

  

 

"Alas! Unhappy That I Am," Said Winthrop, "That This New Suspicion

Should Fill The Minds Of The Savages. Assure Him, Upon My Faith As A

Christian--Upon My Honor As A Gentleman--Make The Asseveration As

Solemn As Thou Canst--That He Suspects Us Falsely. 

 

 

But The Grave Chief Abandoned Not The Idea. With Eyes Searching The

Countenance Of The Governor, He Said:

 

  

"The Taranteens Will Give Many Belts Of Wampompeag And Will Heap Up

Their Canoes With Skins For Owanux, As A Ransom For Their Tribes-Men."

  

 

"Tell Him," Said Winthrop, "That, Overlooking The Insult Of Doubting

My Word, If They Were To Give Me Belts Of Wampompeag Extending From

Here To The Sun, And Skins To Cover The Ground From Shawmut To His

Country, I Could Not Restore His Tribes-Men, For I Know Nought Of

Them."

  

 

"When My Brothers Came To Visit The White Chief, They Placed

Themselves In His Keeping And Feared Not The Darkness, For They Knew

That He Was Very Powerful. They Slept Like A Pappoose On Its Mother's

Bosom."

  

 

"I Understand," Replied Winthrop, "Thou Wouldst Make Me Responsible In

Particular For The Misfortune Of Thy Friends; But My Conscience

Reproaches Me Not If They Are Dead, It Is Probably In Consequence Of

Their Own Default; And, I Repeat, I Believe Not That An Englishman Had

A Hand In Their Destruction."

 

  

Here The Taranteen, Who Acted As Spokesman, Turning To His Companion,

Uttered A Sentence; Whereupon The Other, Feeling In The Folds Of His

Deer Skin Robe, Produced A Pipe, The Bowl Of Which Was Made Of A

Reddish Clay, Into Which Was Inserted, For A Stem, A Reed Beautifully

Ornamented With Black And White Shells, And Bright Colored Feathers Of

Various Birds. This The Orator Received From The Hands Of His

Follower, And Again Addressed The Governor:

  

 

"The Taranteens Are A Great Nation, And They Love Peace. It Pleases

Them To See The Smoke As It Ascends From The Calumet. It Is More

Beautiful To Their Eyes Than The White Summer Clouds Which Protect

Them From The Heat Of The Sun. They Would Be Glad To Smoke With

Owanux, But They Cannot Do It Now, Because Should They Attempt It, The

Blood Of Pieskaret Would Put Out The Fire And The Groans Of His Four

Brothers Would Agitate Us So That The Pipe Would Fall From Our Hands.

I Want The White Chief To Strengthen Our Hands, So That We Can Hold

The Calumet Firmly, And Perhaps That Will Satisfy Pieskaret Too."

  

 

"I Understand Him," Said Winthrop, After The Knight Had Interpreted,

"But Let Him Proceed." 

 

 

"If The White Chief Will Deliver To Us The Murderers Of Pieskaret, And

Release Our Brothers From Slavery," Said The Taranteen, Slowly And

Impressively, "It Is Well, And We Will Smoke With Owanux And Forget

What Has Happened; But If He Will Not,"--And Here His Voice Sounded

Like The Growl Of A Bear, As, Putting His Hand Into His Bosom, He Took

Out A Small Package And Handed It To Winthrop,--"We Speak To The

White Chief Thus:" 

 

 

The Governor Received The Package, And Saw That It Consisted Of A

Tomahawk In The Centre, Around Which Were Placed Several Small Arrows

Tipped With A Red Dye, And Tied Together With The Stuffed Skin Of A

Rattle-Snake, The Rattles Of Which Sounded As He Took The Ominous

Present Into His Hand. He Waited Composedly Until The Knight Had

Explained The Words, Though He Comprehended At Once The Meaning Of The

Savage, And Then Answered:

  

 

"If The Taranteens Are A Great Nation, They Are A Nation Of Fools,

Else Why Do They Not Listen To My Words? I Tell Thee A White English

Chief Cannot Lie; The Great Spirit Will Not Permit A Christian Chief

To Lie. In Vain Have I Asserted Our Innocence In This Matter; In Vain

Have I Expressed Sorrow, And Humiliated Myself To Thy Reproaches. But

The English Know How To Treat Those Who, Faithless Themselves, Believe

Not In The Faith Of Others. Behold!" 

 

 

Winthrop Drew His Rapier, And Cut The Snake Skin So That The Tomahawk

And Arrows Fell Apart. Placing The Skin Upon A Table, He Next Took Up

The Arrows, And, Breaking Several At A Time, Let The Pieces Drop At

His Feet. Then Seizing The Tomahawk, He Dashed It With Such Violence

On The Hearth Of The Fire-Place, That The Handle Flew Off And The

Stone Head Was Broken. Lastly, Taking Down From A Nail In The Wall

Whereon They Hung, A Powder-Horn And Pouch Of Bullets, He Filled The

Skin With Powder And Ball, And Held It Out To The Taranteen.

  

 

"Return Now To Thy People," He Said, Looking At The Indian With A

Stern Aspect, "And Tell Them What Thou Hast Seen And Heard. Tell Them

That, Though The English Love Peace, They Fear Not War. Tell Them That

We Have Never Wronged The Taranteens By Word Or Deed, Nor Is It Our

Intention Now To Punish Them For Their Injurious Suspicions. But Tell

Them, Also That, As I Have Broken Their Arrows And Dashed Their

War-Axe, In Pieces, So Will I Serve Them, If The North-Wind Brings To

My Ears A Whisper Of Evil Designs From Them. And As I Have Stuffed The

Snake Skin With Powder And Ball, So Will I Fill Their Bodies With The

Same. Return."

  

 

As Winthrop Uttered These Words With A Firm Voice And Imposing

Manner--Words So Explained By His Actions That They Needed No

Interpretation--He Was Confronted By The Taranteen With A Dignity

Equal To His Own. The Demeanor Of The Savage Was As Calm As If He Were

Smoking A Pipe In His Wigwam. He Quietly Followed Every Motion With

His Eyes, Listened With