"Supposeyoudid——whatthen？"askedJim,severely。
"Why——nothing——seehere,mayn'tIadmireaprettygirlifIwant？"
"No,youmaynot。Joe,willnothingevercureyou？IshouldthinkthethoughtofMissWells———"
"Lookhere,Jim;shedon'tcare——atleast,it'sverylittleshecares。AndI'm——I'mnotworthyofher。"
"Turnaroundhereandfaceme,"saidtheyoungministersharply。
Joeturnedandlookedinhisbrother'seyes。
"Haveyoutrifledwithher,asyouhavewithsomanyothers？Tellme。Iknowyoudon'tlie。"
"No。"
"Thenwhatdoyoumean？"
"Nothingmuch,Jim,exceptI'mreallynotworthyofher。I'mnogood,youknow,andsheoughttogetafellowlike——likeyou。"
"Absurd！Yououghttobeashamedofyourself。"
"Nevermindme。Seehere;don'tyouadmireher？"
"Why——why,yes,"stammeredJim,flushingadark,guiltyredatthedirectquestion。"Whocouldhelpadmiringher？"
"That'swhatIthought。AndIknowsheadmiresyouforqualitieswhichIlack。
Nell'slikeatendervinejustbeginningtocreeparoundandclingtosomethingstrong。Shecaresforme;butherloveislikethevine。Itmayhurtheralittletotearthatloveaway,butitwon'tkillher;andintheenditwillbebestforher。Youneedagoodwife。WhatcouldIdowithawoman？Goinandwinher,Jim。"
"Joe,you'resacrificingyourselfagainforme,"criedJim,whitetothelips。
"It'swrongtoyourselfandwrongtoher。Itellyou———"
"Enough！"Joe'svoicecutincoldandsharp。"Usuallyyouinfluenceme;butsometimesyoucan't;Isaythis:Nellwilldriftintoyourarmsassurelyastheleaffalls。Itwillnothurther——willbebestforher。Remember,sheisyoursforthewinning。"
"Youdonotsaywhetherthatwillhurtyou,"whisperedJim。
"Come——we'llfindColonelZane,"saidJoe,openingthedoor。
Theywentoutinthehallwaywhichopenedintotheyardaswellasthelargerroomthroughwhichthecolonelhadfirstconductedthem。AsJim,whowasinadvance,passedintothisapartmentatrimfigureenteredfromtheyard。ItwasNell,andsherandirectlyagainsthim。Herfacewasflushed,hereyeswerebeamingwithgladness,andsheseemedtheincarnationofgirlishjoy。
"Oh,Joe,"wasallshewhispered。Butthehappinessandwelcomeinthatwhispercouldneverhavebeenbetterexpressedinlongerspeech。Thenslightly,eversoslightly,shetiltedhersweetfaceuptohis。
Itallhappenedwiththequicknessofthought。InasingleinstantJimsawtheradiantface,theoutstretchedhands,andheardthegladwhisper。HeknewthatshehadaagainmistakenhimforJoe;butforhislifehecouldnotdrawbackhishead。Hehadkissedher,andevenashislipsthrilledwithhertremulouscaressheflushedwiththeshameofhisdeceit。
"You'remistakenagain——I'mJim,"hewhispered。
Foramomenttheystoodstaringintoeachother'seyes,slowlyawakeningtowhathadreallyhappened,slowlyconsciousofasweet,alluringpower。ThenColonelZane'scheeryvoicerangintheirears。
"Ah,here'sNellieandyourbrother！Now,lads,tellmewhichiswhich？'
"That'sJim,andI'mJoe,"answeredthelatter。Heappearednottonoticehisbrother,andhisgreetingtoNellwasnaturalandhearty。Forthemomentshedrewtheattentionoftheothersfromthem。
Joefoundhimselflisteningtothecongratulationsofanumberofpeople。
AmongthemanynamesherememberedwerethoseofMrs。Zane,SilasZane,andMajorMcColloch。Thenhefoundhimselfgazingatthemostbeautifulgirlhehadeverseeninhislife。
"Myonlysister,Mrs。AlfredClarke——onceBettyZane,andtheheroineofFortHenry,"saidColonelZaneproudly,withhisarmaroundtheslender,dark—eyedgirl。
"IwouldbravetheIndiansandthewildernessagainforthispleasure,"
repliedJoegallantly,ashebowedlowoverthelittlehandshecordiallyextended。
"Bess,isdinnerready？"inquiredColonelZaneofhiscomelywife。Shenoddedherhead,andthecolonelledthewayintotheadjoiningroom。"Iknowyouboysmustbehungryasbears。"
DuringthemealColonelZanequestionedhisguestsabouttheirjourney,andastothetreatmenttheyhadreceivedatthehandsoftheIndians。Hesmiledattheyoungminister'searnestnessinregardtotheconversionoftheredmen,andhelaughedoutrightwhenJoesaid"heguessedhecametothefrontierbecauseitwastooslowathome。"
"Iamsureyourdesireforexcitementwillsoonbesatisfied,ifindeeditbenotsoalready,"remarkedthecolonel。"Butastotherealizationofyourbrother'shopesIamnotsosanguine。UndoubtedlytheMoravianmissionarieshaveaccomplishedwonderswiththeIndians。NotlongagoIvisitedtheVillageofPeace——theIndiannameforthemission——andwasstruckbythefriendlinessandindustrywhichprevailedthere。Trulyitwasavillageofpeace。Yetitisalmosttoearlytobecertainofpermanentsuccessofthiswork。TheIndian'snatureisonehardtounderstand。Heisnaturallyrovingandrestless,which,however,maybeowingtohishabitofmovingfromplacetoplaceinsearchofgoodhuntinggrounds。Ibelieve——thoughImustconfessIhaven'tseenanypioneerswhosharemybelief——thatthesavagehasabeautifulsidetohischaracter。Iknowofmanynobledeedsdonebythem,andIbelieve,iftheyarehonestlydealtwith,theywillreturngoodforgood。Therearebadones,ofcourse;buttheFrenchtraders,andmenliketheGirtys,havecausedmostofthislongwar。JonathanandWetzeltellmetheShawneesandChippewashavetakenthewarpathagain。ThenthefactthattheGirtysarewiththeDelawaresisreasonforalarm。Wehavebeencomparativelyquiethereoflate。Didyouboyslearntowhattribeyourcaptorsbelong？DidWetzelsay？"
"Hedidnot;hespokelittle,butIwillsayhewasexceedinglyactive,"
answeredJoe,withasmile。
"TohaveseenWetzelfightIndiansissomethingyouarenotlikelytoforget,"
saidColonelZanegrimly。"Now,tellme,howdidthoseIndiansweartheirscalp—lock？"
"Theirheadswereshavedclosely,withtheexceptionofalittleplaceontop。
Theremaininghairwastwistedintoatuft,tiedtightly,andintothishadbeenthrustacoupleofpaintedpins。WhenWetzelscalpedtheIndiansthepinsfellout。Ipickedoneup,andfoundittobebone。"
"Youwillmakeawoodsman,that'scertain,"repliedColonelZane。"TheIndianswereShawneeonthewarpath。Well,wewillnotborrowtrouble,forwhenitcomesintheshapeofredskinsitusuallycomesquickly。Mr。Wellsseemedanxioustoresumethejourneydowntheriver;butIshalltrytopersuadehimtoremainwithusawhile。Indeed,IamsorryIcannotkeepyouallhereatFortHenry,andmoreespeciallythegirls。Ontheborderweneedyoungpeople,and,whileIdonotwanttofrightenthewomen,IfeartherewillbemorethanIndiansfightingforthem。"
"Ihopenot;butwehavecomepreparedforanything,"saidKate,withaquietsmile。"Ourhomewaswithuncle,andwhenheannouncedhisintentionofgoingwestwedecidedourdutywastogowithhim。"
"Youwereright,andIhopeyouwillfindahappyhome,"rejoinedColonelZane。"IflifeamongtheIndian,provestobetoohad,weshallwelcomeyouhere。Betty,showthegirlsyourpetsandIndiantrinkets。IamgoingtotaketheboystoSilas'cabintoseeMr。Wells,andthenshowthemoverthefort。"
AstheywentoutJoesawtheIndianguidestandinginexactlythesamepositionaswhentheyenteredthebuilding。
"Can'tthatIndianmove？"heaskedcuriously。
"Hecancoveronehundredmilesinaday,whenhewantsto,"repliedColonelZane。"Heisrestingnow。AnIndianwilloftenstandorsitinonepositionformanyhours。"
"He'safine—lookingchap,"remarkedJoe,andthentohimself:"butIdon'tlikehim。IguessI'mprejudiced。"
"You'lllearntolikeTome,aswecallhim。"
"ColonelZane,Iwantalightformypipe。Ihaven'thadasmokesincethedaywewerecaptured。Thatblamedredskintookmytobacco。It'sluckyIhadsomeinmyotherpack。I'dliketomeethimagain;alsoSilvertipandthatbruteGirty。"
"Mylad,don'tmakesuchwishes,"saidColonelZane,earnestly。"Youwereindeedfortunatetoescape,andIcanwellunderstandyourfeelings。ThereisnothingIshouldlikebetterthantoseeGirtyoverthesightsofmyrifle;
butIneverhuntafterdanger,andtolookforGirtyistocourtdeath。"
"ButWetzel———"
"Ah,mylad,IknowWetzelgoesaloneinthewoods;butthen,heisdifferentfromothermen。BeforeyouleaveIwilltellyouallabouthim。"。
ColonelZanewentaroundthecomerofthecabinandreturnedwithalivecoalonachipofwood,whichJoeplacedinthebowlofhispipe,andbecauseofthestrongbreezesteppedclosetothecabinwall。Beingakeenobserver,henoticedmanysmall,roundholesinthelogs。Theyweresoneartogetherthatthetimbershadanodd,speckledappearance,andtherewashardlyaplacewherehecouldhaveputhisthumbwithoutcoveringahole。Atfirsthethoughttheyweremadebyawormorbirdpeculiartothatregion;butfinallylieconcludedthattheywerebullet—holes。Hethrusthisknifebladeintoone,andoutrolledaleadenball。
"I'dliketohavebeenherewhentheseweremade,"hesaid。
"Well,atthetimeIwishedIwasbackonthePotomac,"repliedColonelZane。
Theyfoundtheoldmissionaryonthedoorstepoftheadjacentcabin。HeappeareddiscouragedwhenColonelZaneinterrogatedhim,andsaidthathewasimpatientbecauseofthedelay。
"Mr。Wells,isitnotpossiblethatyouunderratethedangerofyourenterprise？"
"IfearnaughtbuttheLord,"answeredtheoldman。
"Doyounotfearforthosewithyou？"wentonthecolonelearnestly。"Iamheartandsoulwithyouinyourwork,butwanttoimpressuponyonthatthetimeisnotpropitious。Itisalongjourneytothevillage,andthewayisbesetwithdangersofwhichyouhavenoidea。Willyounotremainherewithmeforafewweeks,or,atleast,untilmyscoutsreport？"
"Ithankyou;butgoIwill。"
"Thenletmeentreatyoutoremainhereafewdays,sothatImaysendmybrotherJonathanandWetzelwithyou。IfanycanguideyousafelytotheVillageofPeaceitwillbethey。"
AtthismomentJoesawtwomenapproachingfromthefort,andrecognizedoneofthemasWetzel。HedoubtednotthattheotherwasLordDunmore'sfamousguideandhunter,JonathanZane。Infeaturesheresembledthecolonel,andwasastallasWetzel,althoughnotsomuscularorwideofchest。
JoefeltthesamethrillhehadexperiencedwhilewatchingthefrontiersmenatFortPitt。WetzelandJonathanspokeawordtoColonelZaneandthensteppedaside。Thehuntersstoodlitheanderect,withtheeasy,gracefulpoiseofIndians。
"We'lltaketwocanoes,dayafterto—morrow,"saidJonathan,decisively,toColonelZane。"HaveyouarifleforWetzel？TheDelawaresgothis。"
ColonelZaneponderedoverthequestion;rifleswerenotscarceatthefort,butaweaponthatWetzelwouldusewashardtofind。
"Thehuntermayhavemyrifle,"saidtheoldmissionary。"IhavenouseforaweaponwithwhichtodestroyGod'screatures。Mybrotherwasafrontiersman;
heleftthisrifletome。Irememberhearinghimsayoncethatifamanknewexactlytheweightofleadandpowderneeded,itwouldshootabsolutelytrue。"
Hewentintothecabin,andpresentlycameoutwithalongobjectwrappedinlinseycloths。Unwindingthecoverings,hebroughttoviewarifle,theproportionsofwhichcausedJonathan'seyestoglisten,andbroughtanexclamationfromColonelZane。Wetzelbalancedtheguninhishands。Itwasfullysixfeetlong;thebarrelwaslarge,andthedarksteelfinelypolished;
thestockwasblackwalnut,ornamentedwithsilvertrimmings。UsingJonathan'spowder—flaskandbullet—pouch,Wetzelproceededtoloadtheweapon。Hepouredoutaquantityofpowderintothepalmofhishand,performingtheactionquicklyanddexterously,butwassoslowwhilemeasuringitthatJoewonderedifhewerecountingthegrains。NextheselectedabulletoutofadozenwhichJonathanheldtowardhim。Heexamineditcarefullyandtrieditinthemuzzleoftherifle。Evidentlyitdidnotpleasehim,forhetookanother。Finallyhescrapedabulletwithhisknife,andplacingitinthecenterofasmalllinseyrag,deftlyforceditdown。Headjustedtheflint,droppedafewgrainsofpowderinthepan,andthenlookedaroundforamarkatwhichtoshoot。
JoeobservedthatthehuntersandColonelZanewereasseriousregardingtheworkasifatthatmomentsomeimportantissuedependedupontheaccuracyoftherifle。
"There,Lew;there'sagoodshot。It'sprettyfar,evenforyou,whenyoudon'tknowthegun,"saidColonelZane,pointingtowardtheriver。
Joesawtheendofalog,aboutthesizeofaman'shead,stickingoutofthewater,perhapsanhundredandfiftyyardsdistant。Hethoughttohititwouldbeafineshot;butwasamazedwhenheheardColonelZanesaytoseveralmenwhohadjoinedthegroupthatWetzelintendedtoshootataturtleonthelog。
BystraininghiseyesJoesucceededindistinguishingasmalllump,whichheconcludedwastheturtle。
Wetzeltookastepforward;thelong,blackriflewasraisedwithastatelysweep。Theinstantitreachedalevelathreadofflameburstforth,followedbyapeculiarlyclear,ringingreport。
"Didhehit？"askedColonelZane,eagerlyasaboy。
"Iallowhedid,"answeredJonathan。
"I'llgoandsee,"saidJoe。Herandownthebank,alongthebeach,andsteppedonthelog。Hesawaturtleaboutthesizeofanordinarysaucer。
Pickingitup,hesawabullet—holeintheshellnearthemiddle。Thebullethadgonethroughtheturtle,anditwasquitedead。Joecarriedittothewaitinggroup。
"Iallowedso,"declaredJonathan。
Wetzelexaminedtheturtle,andturningtotheoldmissionary,said:
"Yourbrotherspokethetruth,an'Ithankyoufertherifle。"
ChapterVIII。
"SoyouwanttoknowallaboutWetzel？"inquiredColonelZaneofJoe,when,havingleftJimandMr。Wells,theyreturnedtothecabin。
"Iamimmenselyinterestedinhim,"repliedJoe。
"Well,Idon'tthinkthere'sanythingsingularinthat。IknowWetzelbetter,perhaps,thananymanliving;buthaveseldomtalkedabouthim。Hedoesn'tlikeit。HeisbybirthaVirginian;Ishouldsay,fortyyearsold。Wewereboystogether,andandIamalittlebeyondthatage。Hewaslikeanyofthelads,exceptthatheexcelledusallinstrengthandagility。WhenhewasnearlyeighteenyearsoldabandifIndians——Delawares,Ithink——crossedtheborderonamaraudingexpeditionfarintoVirginia。TheyburnedtheoldWetzelhomesteadandmurderedthefather,mother,twosisters,andababybrother。
TheterribleshocknearlykilledLewis,whoforatimewasveryill。Whenherecoveredhewentinsearchofhisbrothers,MartinandJohnWetzel,whowerehunting,andbroughtthembacktotheirdesolatedhome。Overtheashesofthehomeandthegravesofthelovedonesthebrotherssworesleeplessandeternalvengeance。TheelderbrothershavebeendevotedallthesetwentyyearsandmoretothekillingofIndians;butLewishasbeenthegreatfoeoftheredman。Youhavealreadyseenanexampleofhisdeeds,andwillhearofmore。
Hisnameisahouseholdwordontheborder。Scoresoftimeshehassaved,actuallysaved,thisfortandsettlement。HisknowledgeofsavagewayssurpassesbyfarBoone's,MajorMcColloch's,Jonathan's,oranyofthehunters'。"
"ThenhuntingIndiansishissoleoccupation？"
"Helivesforthatpurposealone。Heisveryseldominthesettlement。
Sometimeshestayshereafewdays,especiallyifheisneeded;butusuallyheroamstheforests。"
"WhatdidJeffLynnmeanwhenhesaidthatsomepeoplethinkWetzeliscrazy？"
"Therearemanywhothinkthemanmad;butIdonot。WhenthepassionforIndianhuntingcomesuponhimheisfierce,almostfrenzied,yetperfectlysane。Whilehereheisquiet,seldomspeaksexceptwhenspokento,andistaciturnwithstrangers。Heoftencomestomycabinandsitsbesidethefireforhours。Ithinkhefindspleasureintheconversationandlaughteroffriends。Heisfondofthechildren,andwoulddoanythingformysisterBetty。"
"Hislifemustbelonelyandsad,"remarkedJoe。
"Thelifeofanybordermanisthat;butWetzel'sisparticularlyso。"
"WhatishecalledbytheIndians？"
"TheycallhimAtelang,or,inEnglish,Deathwind。"
"ByGeorge！That'swhatSilvertipsaidinFrench——'LeVentdelaMort。'"
"Yes;youhaveitright。AFrenchfurtradergaveWetzelthatnameyearsago,andithasclungtohim。TheIndianssaytheDeathwindblowsthroughtheforestwheneverWetzelstalksontheirtrail。"
"ColonelZane,don'tyouthinkmesuperstitious,"whisperedJoe,leaningtowardthecolonel,"butIheardthatwindblowthroughtheforest。"
"What！"ejaculatedColonelZane。HesawthatJoewasinearnest,fortheremembranceofthemoanhadmorethanoncepaledhischeekandcausedbeadsofperspirationtocollectonhisbrow。
Joerelatedthecircumstancesofthatnight,andattheendofhisnarrativeColonelZanesatsilentandthoughtful。
"Youdon'treallythinkitwasWetzelwhomoaned？"heasked,atlength。
"No,Idon't,"repliedJoequickly;"but,ColonelZane,IheardthatmoanasplainlyasIcanhearyourvoice。Iheardittwice。Now,whatwasit？"
"Jonathansaidthesamethingtomeonce。HehadbeenouthuntingwithWetzel;
theyseparated,andduringthenightJonathanheardthewind。ThenextdayheranacrossadeadIndian。HebelievesWetzelmakesthenoise,andsodothehunters;butIthinkitissimplythemoanofthenightwindthroughthetrees。Ihavehearditattimes,whenmyverybloodseeminglyrancold。"
"Itriedtothinkitwasthewindsoughingthroughthepines,butamafraidI
didn'tsucceedverywell。Anyhow,IknewWetzelinstantly,justasJeffLynnsaidIwould。HekilledthoseIndiansinaninstant,andhemusthaveanironarm。"
"Wetzelexcelsinstrengthandspeedanyman,redorwhite,onthefrontier。
HecanrunawayfromJonathan,whoisasswiftasanIndian。He'sstrongerthananyoftheothermen。IrememberonedayoldHughBennet'swagonwheelsstuckinabogdownbythecreek。Hughtried,asseveralothersdid,tomovethewheels;buttheycouldn'tbemadetobudge。AlongcameWetzel,pushedawaythemen,andliftedthewagonunaided。Itwouldtakehourstotellyouabouthim。Inbrief,amongalltheborderscoutsandhuntersWetzelstandsalone。NowondertheIndiansfearhim。Heisasswiftasaneagle,strongasmountain—ash,keenasafox,andabsolutelytirelessandimplacable。"
"Howlonghaveyoubeenhere,ColonelZane？"
"Morethantwelveyears,andithasbeenonelongfight。"
"I'mafraidI'mtoolateforthefun,"saidJoe,withhisquietlaugh。
"Notbyabouttwelvemoreyears,"answeredColonelZane,studyingtheexpressiononJoe'sface。"WhenIcameouthereyearsagoIhadthesameadventurousspiritwhichIseeinyou。Ithasbeenconsiderablyquelled,however。Ihaveseenmanyadaringyoungfellowgettheborderfever,andwithithisdeath。Letmeadviseyoutolearnthewaysofthehunters;towatchsomeoneskilledinwoodcraft。PerhapsWetzelhimselfwilltakeyouinhand。I
don'tmindsayingthathespokeofyoutomeinatoneIneverheardLewusebefore。"
"Hedid？"questionedJoe,eagerly,flushingwithpleasure。"Doyouthinkhe'dtakemeout？DareIaskhim？"
"Don'tbeimpatient。PerhapsIcanarrangeit。ComeoverherenowtoMetzar'splace。Iwanttomakeyouacquaintedwithhim。Theseboyshaveallbeencuttingtimber;they'vejustcomeinfordinner。Beeasyandquietwiththem;
thenyou'llgeton。"
ColonelZaneintroducedJoetofivesturdyboysandlefthimintheircompany。
Joesatdownonalogoutsideacabinandleisurelysurveyedtheyoungmen。
Theyalllookedaboutthesame:strongwithoutbeingheavy,light—hairedandbronze—faced。IntheirturntheycarefullyjudgedJoe。AnewcomerfromtheEastwasalwaysregardedwithsomedoubt。IftheyexpectedtohearJoetalkmuchtheyweremistaken。Heappearedgood—natured,butnottoofriendly。
"Fineweatherwe'rehavin',"saidDickMetzar。
"Fine,"agreedJoe,laconically。
"Likefrontierlife？"
"Sure。"
Asilenceensuedafterthisbreakingoftheice。Theboyswereawaitingtheirturnatalittlewoodenbenchuponwhichstoodabucketofwaterandabasin。
"HearyegotketchedbysomeShawnees？"remarkedanotheryouth,asherolleduphisshirt—sleeves。TheyalllookedatJoenow。Itwasnotimprobablytheirestimateofhimwouldbegreatlyinfluencedbythewayheansweredthisquestion。
"Yes;wascaptiveforthreedays。"
"Didyeknockanyredskinsover？"ThisquestionwasartfullyputtodrawJoeout。Aboveallthings,thebordermendetestedboastfulness;triedonJoetherusefailedsignally。
"Iwasscaredspeechlessmostofthetime,"answeredJoe,withhispleasantsmile。
"Bygosh,Idon'tblameye！"burstoutWillMetzar。"Ihedthatexperienceonct,an'onct'senough。"
TheboyslaughedandlookedinamorefriendlymanneratJoe。Thoughhesaidhehadbeenfrightened,hiscoolandcarelessmannerbeliedhiswords。InJoe'slowvoiceandclear,grayeyetherewassomethingpotentandmagnetic,whichsubtlyinfluencethosewithwhomhecameincontact。
WhilehisnewfriendswereatdinnerJoestrolledovertowhereColonelZanesatonthedoorstepofhishome。
"Howdidyougetonwiththeboys？"inquiredthecolonel。
"Allright,Ihope。Say,ColonelZane,I'dliketotalktoyourIndianguide。"
ColonelZanespokeafewwordsintheIndianlanguagetotheguide,wholefthispostandcameovertothem。Thecolonelthenhadashortconversationwithhim,attheconclusionofwhichhepointedtowardJoe。
"Howdo——shake,"saidTome,extendinghishand。
Joesmiled,andreturnedthefriendlyhand—pressure。
"Shawnee——ketch'um？"askedtheIndian,inhisfairlyintelligibleEnglish。
Joenoddedhishead,whileColonelZanespokeoncemoreinShawnee,explainingthecauseofSilvertip'semnity。
"Shawnee——chief——one——bad——Injun,"repliedTome,seriously。
"Silvertip——mad——thunder—mad。Ketch'umpaleface——scalp'umsure。"
Aftergivingthiswarningthechiefreturnedtohisformerpositionnearthecornerofthecabin。
"HecantalkinEnglishfairlywell,muchbetterthantheShawneebravewhotalkedwithmetheotherday,"observedJoe。
"SomeoftheIndiansspeakthelanguagealmostfluently,"saidColonelZane。
"YoucouldhardlyhavedistinguishedLogan'sspeechfromawhiteman's。
Corn—planterusesgoodEnglish,asalsodoesmybrother'swife,aWyandotgirl。"
"DidyourbrothermarryanIndian？"andJoeplainlyshowedhissurprise。
"Indeedhedid,andamostbeautifulgirlsheis。I'lltellyouIsaac'sstorysometime。HewasacaptiveamongtheWyandotsfortenyears。Thechief'sdaughter,Myeerah,lovedhim,kepthimfrombeingtortured,andfinallysavedhimfromthestake。"
"Well,thatfloorsme,"saidJoe;"yetIdon'tseewhyitshould。I'mjustsurprised。Whereisyourbrothernow？"
"Heliveswiththetribe。HeandMyeerahareworkinghardforpeace。WearenowonmorefriendlytermswiththegreatWyandots,orHurons,aswecallthem,thaneverbefore。"
"Whoisthisbigmancomingfromthethefort？"askedJoe,suddenlyobservingastalwartfrontiersmanapproaching。
"MajorSamMcColloch。Youhavemethim。He'sthemanwhojumpedhishorsefromyonderbluff。"
"Jonathanandhehavethesamelook,thesameswing,"observedJoe,asheranhiseyeoverthemajor。Hisfadedbuckskincostume,beaded,fringed,andlaced,wassimilartothatofthecolonel'sbrother。Powder—flaskandbullet—pouchweremadefromcow—hornsandslungaroundhisneckondeerhidestrings。Thehuntingcoatwasunlaced,exposing,underthelong,fringedborders,atunicofthesamewell—tanned,butfinerandsofter,material。Ashewalked,theflapsofhiscoatfellback,showingabeltcontainingtwoknives,sheathedinheavybuckskin,andabrighttomahawk。Hecarriedalongrifleinthehollowofhisarm。
"Thesehuntershavethesamekindofbuckskinsuits,"continuedJoe;"still,itdoesn'tseemtometheclothesmaketheresemblancetoeachother。Thewaythesemenstand,walkandactiswhatstrikesmeparticularly,asinthecaseofWetzel。"
"Iknowwhatyoumean。Theflashingeye,theerectpoiseofexpectation,andthespringystep——those,mylad,comefromalifespentinthewoods。Well,it'sagrandwaytolive。"
"Colonel,myhorseislaidup,"saidMajorMcColloch,comingtothesteps。HebowedpleasantlytoJoe。
"SoyouaregoingtoShortCreek？Youcanhaveoneofmyhorses;butfirstcomeinsideandwe'lltalkoveryouexpedition。"
TheafternoonpasseduneventfullyforJoe。HisbrotherandMr。Wellswereabsorbedinplansfortheirfuturework,andNellandKatewereresting;
thereforehewasforcedtofindsuchamusementoroccupationaswaspossibleinornearthestockade。
ChapterIX。
Joewenttobedthatnightwithapromisetohimselftoriseearlynextmorning,forhehadbeeninvitedtotakepartina"raising,"whichtermmeantthatanewcabinwastobeerected,andsuchtaskwaseveraneventinthelivesofthesettlers。
ThefollowingmorningJoeroseearly,dressinghimselfinacompletebuckskinsuit,forwhichhehadexchangedhisgoodgarmentsofcloth。Neverbeforehadhefeltsocomfortable。Hewantedtohop,skipandjump。Thesoft,undressedbuckskinwasaswarmandsmoothassilk—plush;theweightsolight,themoccasinssowell—fittingandspringy,thathehadtoputhimselfunderconsiderablerestrainttokeepfromcaperingaboutlikeafrolicsomecolt。
Thepossessionofthisbuckskinoutfit,andtherifleandaccoutermentswhichwentwiththebargain,markedthelaststageinJoe'ssurrendertotheborderfever。Thesilent,shadedglens,themysteryofthewoods,thebreathofthiswild,freelifeclaimedhimfromthismomententirelyandforever。
Hemettheothers,however,withasereneface,showingnotraceoftheemotionwhichwelledupstronglyfromhisheart。Nellglancedshylyathim;