I know not why, as I reflect calmly upon the incidents of that morning, I should have grown so confident that the savages6 meant us fair; yet this feeling ? 262 ? steadily7 took possession of me, and I even began to regret that I had not stayed behind in quest of her for whom I had come so far. Surely it was hopeless for me to dangle8 longer beside Mademoiselle, for De Croix knew so well the little ins and outs of social intercourse9 that I was like a child for his play. Moreover, it was clear enough that the girl liked him, or he would never presume so to monopolize her attention. That she saw through much of his vain pretence10, was indeed probable; her words had conveyed this to me. Nevertheless, it was plain she found him entertaining; he was like a glittering jewel in that rough wilderness11, and I was too dull of brain and narrow of experience to hope for success against him in a struggle for the favor of a girl so fair and gay as this Toinette.
I thought the matter all out as I rode on through the sunlight, my eyes upon the painted savages who trooped along upon our right in such stolid12 silence and seeming indifference13, my ears open to the light badinage14 and idle compliments of my two companions. Yes, it would be better so. When the Indians left the column at the head of the lake, I would invent some excuse that might allow me to accompany them on their return, and I would remain in the neighborhood of the Fort until Elsa Matherson had been found.
Just in front of us, a large army wain struggled along through the yielding sand, drawn15 by a yoke16 of ? 263 ? lumbering17 oxen. The heavy canvas cover had been pushed high up in front, and I could see a number of women and children seated upon the bedding piled within, and looking with curious interest at the stream of Indians plodding18 moodily19 beside the wheels. Some of the little tots' faces captivated me with their expression of wide-eyed wonder, and I rode forward to speak with them; for love of children is always in my heart.
As I turned my horse to draw back beside Mademoiselle, my eyes rested upon the stockade20 of the old Fort, now some little distance in our rear; and to my surprise it already swarmed21 with savages. Not less than five hundred Indians,—warriors, all of them, and well armed,—tramped as guards beside our long and scattered22 column, yet hundreds of others were even now overrunning the mound23 and pouring in at the Fort gates, eager for plunder24. I could hear their shouting, their fierce yells of exultation25, while the grim and silent fellows who accompanied us never so much as glanced around, although I caught here and there the glint of a cruel, crafty26 eye. The sight made me wonder; and I swung my long rifle out from the straps27 at my back down across the pommel of my saddle, more ready to my hand.
The trail we had been following now swerved28 nearer the lake, deflected29 somewhat by a long high ridge30 of beaten sand, separating the shore from the ? 264 ? prairie. Here the two advancing lines of white and red diverged31, the Indians moving around to the western side of the sand-ridge, while Captain Wells and his Miami scouts32 continued their march along the beach. There was nothing about this movement to awaken33 suspicion of treachery, for the beach at this point had narrowed too much for so great a number moving abreast34, and it was therefore only natural that our allies should seek a wider space for their marching, knowing they could easily reunite with us a mile or so below, where the beach broadened again. Their passing thus from our sight was a positive relief; and so quiet did everything become, except for groaning35 wheels and the heavy tread of horses, that Mademoiselle glanced up in surprise.
"Why, what has become of the Indians?" she questioned. "Have they already left us?"
"They move parallel with us, but prefer to walk upon the prairie-grass rather than these beach pebbles37. For my part, I would willingly dispense38 with their guard altogether; for in my judgment39 we are of sufficient strength to defend ourselves."
"Ay, strong enough against savages," interposed De Croix, his eyes upon the straggling line ahead; "yet if by any chance treachery was intended, surely I never saw military formation less adapted for repelling40 sudden attack. Mark how those fellows march ? 265 ? out yonder!—all in a bunch, and with not so much as a corporal's guard to protect the wagons42!"
I was no soldier then, and knew little of military formation; but his criticism seemed just, and I ventured not upon answering it. Indeed, at that very moment some confusion far in front, where Captain Wells led his scouts, attracted my attention. We must have been a mile and a half from the Fort by this time, and I recalled to memory the little group of trees standing43 beside the trail where we had halted on our journey westward44 to enjoy our earliest glimpse of Dearborn. At first I could make out little of what was taking place ahead; then suddenly I saw the squad45 of Miamis break hastily, like a cloud swept by a whirling wind, and the next instant could clearly distinguish Captain Wells riding swiftly back toward the column of infantry46, his head bare, and one arm gesticulating wildly. In a moment the whole line came to a startled and wondering pause.
"What is it?" questioned Mademoiselle anxiously, shading her eyes. "Have the Indians attacked us?"
Wheeling rapidly into line, as if at command, although we could hear no sound of the order, the soldiers poured one quick volley into the sand-ridge on their right, and then, with a cheer which floated ? 266 ? faintly back to us, made a wild rush for the summit. This was all I saw of the struggle in front,—for, with a cry of dismay, the Miamis composing the rear-guard broke from their posts beside the wagons and came running back past us in a panic of wild terror. I saw Sergeant48 Jordan throw himself across their line of flight, striking fiercely with his gun, and cursing them for a pack of cowardly hounds; but he was thrown helplessly aside in their blind rush for safety.
"Wayland! De Croix!" he shouted, staggering to his knees, "help me stop these curs, if you would save our lives!"
It was a fool thing, yet in the excitement I did it, and De Croix was beside me. Two or three of the settlers on foot rallied with us, and together we struck so hard against those cowering49 renegades that for the moment we held them, though their fear gave them desperation difficult to withstand. I recall noticing De Croix, as he pressed his rearing horse into the huddled50 mass, lashing51 at the faces of the fellows mercilessly with his riding-whip, as if thinking Mademoiselle would admire his reckless gallantry.
A wild yell, with the mad thrill of the war-whoop in it, suddenly assailed52 our ears; the Miamis broke to the left like a flock of frightened birds, and my startled glance revealed a horde53 of naked Indians, howling like maniacs54, and with madly brandished55 weapons, pouring over the sand-ridge not thirty feet ? 267 ? away from us. With a shout of warning, which was half a curse at my own mad folly56, I drove the spurs deep into my horse's side in a vain endeavor to fling myself between them and the girl. Hardly had the startled animal made one quick plunge57, when we were locked in that human avalanche58 as if gripped by a vise of steel. A dozen dark hands grasped my bridle59 or clutched at me, their swarthy faces fierce with blood-lust, the eyes that fronted me cruel with passion and inflamed60 by hate. I heard shots not far away; but we were all too closely jammed to do more than fight in a desperate hand-to-hand struggle with club and knife.
The saddle is a poor place from which to swing a rifle, yet I stood high in my wooden stirrups and struck madly at every Indian head I saw, battering61 their faces till from the very horror of it they gave slowly back. I won a yard—two yards—three,—my horse biting viciously at their naked flesh, and lashing out with both fore-feet like a fiend, while I swept my gun-stock in a widening circle of death. For the moment, I dreamed we might drive them back; but then those devils blocked me, clinging to my horse's legs in their death agony, and laughing back into my face as I struck them down.
Once I heard De Croix swearing in French beside me, and glanced around through the mad turmoil62 to see him cutting and hacking63 with broken blade, pushing into the midst of the mêlée as if he had real ? 268 ? joy in the encounter. While I thus had him in view, a knife whistled through the air, there was a quick dazzle in the sunlight, and he reeled backward off his horse and disappeared in the ruck below.
Never in a life of fighting have I battled as I did then, feeling that I alone might hope to reach her side and beat back these foul64 fiends till help should come to us. The stock of my rifle shattered like glass; but I swung the iron barrel with what seemed to me the strength of twenty men, striking, thrusting, stabbing, my teeth set, my eyes blurring65 with a mist of blood, caring for nothing except to hit and kill. I know not now whether I advanced at all in that last effort, though my horse trod on dead bodies. Only once in those awful seconds did I gain a glimpse of Mademoiselle through the mist of struggle, the maze66 of uplifted arms and striking steel. She had reined67 her horse back against a wheel of the halted wagon41, and with white face and burning eyes was lashing desperately68 with the loaded butt69 of her riding-whip at the red hands which sought to drag her from the saddle.
The sight maddened me, and again my spurs were driven into my horse's flanks. As he plunged70 forward, some one from behind struck me a crushing blow across the back of the head, and I reeled from my saddle, a red mist over my eyes, and went hurling71 face downward upon the mass of reeling, tangled72 bodies.
"She had reined her horse back against a wheel of the halted wagon."
点击收听单词发音
1 onward | |
adj.向前的,前进的;adv.向前,前进,在先 | |
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2 witty | |
adj.机智的,风趣的 | |
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3 monopolize | |
v.垄断,独占,专营 | |
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4 thoroughly | |
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地 | |
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5 tilt | |
v.(使)倾侧;(使)倾斜;n.倾侧;倾斜 | |
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6 savages | |
未开化的人,野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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7 steadily | |
adv.稳定地;不变地;持续地 | |
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8 dangle | |
v.(使)悬荡,(使)悬垂 | |
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9 intercourse | |
n.性交;交流,交往,交际 | |
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10 pretence | |
n.假装,作假;借口,口实;虚伪;虚饰 | |
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11 wilderness | |
n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等,荒漠 | |
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12 stolid | |
adj.无动于衷的,感情麻木的 | |
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13 indifference | |
n.不感兴趣,不关心,冷淡,不在乎 | |
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14 badinage | |
n.开玩笑,打趣 | |
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15 drawn | |
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
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16 yoke | |
n.轭;支配;v.给...上轭,连接,使成配偶 | |
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17 lumbering | |
n.采伐林木 | |
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18 plodding | |
a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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19 moodily | |
adv.喜怒无常地;情绪多变地;心情不稳地;易生气地 | |
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20 stockade | |
n.栅栏,围栏;v.用栅栏防护 | |
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21 swarmed | |
密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 ); 云集; 成群地移动; 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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22 scattered | |
adj.分散的,稀疏的;散步的;疏疏落落的 | |
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23 mound | |
n.土墩,堤,小山;v.筑堤,用土堆防卫 | |
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24 plunder | |
vt.劫掠财物,掠夺;n.劫掠物,赃物;劫掠 | |
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25 exultation | |
n.狂喜,得意 | |
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26 crafty | |
adj.狡猾的,诡诈的 | |
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27 straps | |
n.带子( strap的名词复数 );挎带;肩带;背带v.用皮带捆扎( strap的第三人称单数 );用皮带抽打;包扎;给…打绷带 | |
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28 swerved | |
v.(使)改变方向,改变目的( swerve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29 deflected | |
偏离的 | |
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30 ridge | |
n.山脊;鼻梁;分水岭 | |
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31 diverged | |
分开( diverge的过去式和过去分词 ); 偏离; 分歧; 分道扬镳 | |
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32 scouts | |
侦察员[机,舰]( scout的名词复数 ); 童子军; 搜索; 童子军成员 | |
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33 awaken | |
vi.醒,觉醒;vt.唤醒,使觉醒,唤起,激起 | |
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34 abreast | |
adv.并排地;跟上(时代)的步伐,与…并进地 | |
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35 groaning | |
adj. 呜咽的, 呻吟的 动词groan的现在分词形式 | |
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36 pointed | |
adj.尖的,直截了当的 | |
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37 pebbles | |
[复数]鹅卵石; 沙砾; 卵石,小圆石( pebble的名词复数 ) | |
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38 dispense | |
vt.分配,分发;配(药),发(药);实施 | |
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39 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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40 repelling | |
v.击退( repel的现在分词 );使厌恶;排斥;推开 | |
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41 wagon | |
n.四轮马车,手推车,面包车;无盖运货列车 | |
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42 wagons | |
n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 );铁路货车;小手推车 | |
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43 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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44 westward | |
n.西方,西部;adj.西方的,向西的;adv.向西 | |
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45 squad | |
n.班,小队,小团体;vt.把…编成班或小组 | |
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46 infantry | |
n.[总称]步兵(部队) | |
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47 clinching | |
v.(尤指两人)互相紧紧抱[扭]住( clinch的现在分词 );解决(争端、交易),达成(协议) | |
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48 sergeant | |
n.警官,中士 | |
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49 cowering | |
v.畏缩,抖缩( cower的现在分词 ) | |
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50 huddled | |
挤在一起(huddle的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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51 lashing | |
n.鞭打;痛斥;大量;许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 );煽动;紧系;怒斥 | |
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52 assailed | |
v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 );困扰;质问;毅然应对 | |
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53 horde | |
n.群众,一大群 | |
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54 maniacs | |
n.疯子(maniac的复数形式) | |
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55 brandished | |
v.挥舞( brandish的过去式和过去分词 );炫耀 | |
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56 folly | |
n.愚笨,愚蠢,蠢事,蠢行,傻话 | |
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57 plunge | |
v.跳入,(使)投入,(使)陷入;猛冲 | |
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58 avalanche | |
n.雪崩,大量涌来 | |
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59 bridle | |
n.笼头,束缚;vt.抑制,约束;动怒 | |
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60 inflamed | |
adj.发炎的,红肿的v.(使)变红,发怒,过热( inflame的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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61 battering | |
n.用坏,损坏v.连续猛击( batter的现在分词 ) | |
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62 turmoil | |
n.骚乱,混乱,动乱 | |
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63 hacking | |
n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动 | |
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64 foul | |
adj.污秽的;邪恶的;v.弄脏;妨害;犯规;n.犯规 | |
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65 blurring | |
n.模糊,斑点甚多,(图像的)混乱v.(使)变模糊( blur的现在分词 );(使)难以区分 | |
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66 maze | |
n.迷宫,八阵图,混乱,迷惑 | |
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67 reined | |
勒缰绳使(马)停步( rein的过去式和过去分词 ); 驾驭; 严格控制; 加强管理 | |
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68 desperately | |
adv.极度渴望地,绝望地,孤注一掷地 | |
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69 butt | |
n.笑柄;烟蒂;枪托;臀部;v.用头撞或顶 | |
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70 plunged | |
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 | |
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71 hurling | |
n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投,用力掷( hurl的现在分词 );大声叫骂 | |
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72 tangled | |
adj. 纠缠的,紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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