On touching1 terra firma, and finding plenty of space around, they scrambled2 from off the pile of loose stones and stalks cast down by the Indians, and commenced groping their way about. Again touching the firm surrounding of rock, they groped searchingly along it.
They were not long engaged in their game of blind-man’s buff, when the necessity of trusting to the touch came abruptly3 to an end—as if the handkerchief had been suddenly jerked from their eyes. The change was caused by a light streaming in through a side gallery into which they had strayed. It was at first dim and distant, but soon shone upon them with the brilliance4 of a flambeau.
Following the passage through which it guided them, they reached an aperture5 of irregular roundish shape, about the size, of the cloister6 window of a convent. They saw at once that it was big enough to allow the passage of their bodies. They saw, too, that it was admitting the sunbeams—admonishing them that it was still far from night.
They had brought all their traps down along with them—their knives and pistols, with Hamersley’s gun still carefully kept. But they hesitated about going out. There could be no difficulty in their doing so, for there was a ledge7 less than three feet under the aperture, upon which they could find footing. It was not that which caused them to hesitate, but the fact of again falling into the hands of their implacable enemies.
That these were still upon the plain they had evidence. They could hear their yells and whooping8, mingled9 with peals10 of wild demon-like laughter. It was at the time when the firewater was in the ascendant, and the savages11 were playing their merry game with the pieces of despoiled12 cotton goods.
There was danger in going out, but there might be more in staying in. The savages might return upon their search, and discover this other entrance to the vault13. In that case they would take still greater pains to close it and besiege14 the two fugitives15 to the point of starvation.
Both were eager to escape from a place they had lately looked upon as a living tomb.
Still, they dared not venture out of it. They could not retreat by the plain so long as the Indians were upon it. At night, perhaps, in the darkness, they might. Hamersley suggested this.
“No,” said Walt, “nor at night eyther. It’s moontime, you know; an’ them sharp-eyed Injuns niver all goes to sleep thegither. On that sand they’d see us in the moonlight ’most as plain as in the day. Ef we wait at all, we’ll hev to stay till they go clar off.”
Wilder, while speaking, stood close to the aperture, looking cautiously out. At that moment, craning his neck to a greater stretch, so as to command a better view of what lay below, his eye caught sight of an object that elicited17 an exclamation18 of surprise.
“Darn it,” he said, “thar’s my old clout19 lyin’ down thar on the rocks.”
It was the red kerchief he had plucked from his head to put the pursuers on the wrong track.
“It’s jest where I flinged it,” he continued; “I kin16 recognise the place. That gully, then, must be the one we didn’t go up.”
Walt spoke20 the truth. The decoy was still in the place where he had set it. The square of soiled and faded cotton had failed to tempt21 the cupidity22 of the savages, who knew that in the waggons23 they had captured were hundreds of such, clean and new, with far richer spoil besides.
“S’pose we still try that path, Frank. It may lead us to the top arter all. If they’ve bin24 up it they’ve long ago gone down agin; I kin tell by thar yelpin’ around the waggons. They’ve got holt of our corn afore this; and won’t be so sharp in lookin’ arter us.”
“Agreed,” said Hamersley.
Without further delay the two scrambled out through the aperture, and, creeping along the ledge, once more stood in the hollow of the ravine, at the point of its separation into the forks that had perplexed25 them in their ascent26. Perhaps, after all, they had chosen the right one. At the time of their first flight, had they succeeded in reaching the plain above, they would surely have been seen and pursued; though with superior swiftness of foot they might still have escaped.
Once more they faced upward, by the slope of the ravine yet untried.
On passing it, Walt laid hold of his “clout,” as he called it, and replaced it, turban fashion, on his head.
“I can only weesh,” he said, “I ked as convenient rekiver my rifle; an’, darn me, but I would try, ef it war only thar still. It ain’t, I know. Thet air piece is too precious for a Injun to pass by. It’s gone back to the waggons.”
They could now more distinctly hear the shouts of their despoilers; and, as they continued the ascent, the narrow chine in the cliff opened between them and the plain, giving them a glimpse of what was there going on.
They could see the savages—some on foot, others on horseback—the latter careering round as if engaged in a tournament.
They saw they were roystering, wild with triumph, and maddened with drink—the fire-water they had found in the waggons.
“Though they be drunk, we mustn’t stay hyar so nigh ’em,” muttered Walt. “I allers like to put space atween me and seech as them. They mout get some whimsey into their heads, an’ come this ways. They’ll take any amount o’ trouble to raise ha’r; an’ maybe grievin’ that they hain’t got ourn yit, an’ mout think they’d hev another try for it. As the night’s bound to be a mooner, we can’t git too far from ’em. So let’s out o’ this quick’s we kin.”
“On, then!” said Hamersley, assenting27; and the next moment the two were rapidly ascending28 the gorge29, Wilder leading the way.
This time they were more fortunate. The ravine sloped on up to the summit of the cliff, debouching upon a level plain. They reached this without passing any point that could bring them under the eyes of the Indians.
They could still hear the shouts of triumph and wild revelry; but as they receded30 from the crest31 of the cliff these grew fainter and fainter, until they found themselves fleeing over an open table-land, bounded above by the sky, all round them silent as death—silent as the heart of a desert.
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1
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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2
scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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3
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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4
brilliance
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| n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智 | |
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5
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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6
cloister
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| n.修道院；v.隐退，使与世隔绝 | |
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7
ledge
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| n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁 | |
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8
whooping
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| 发嗬嗬声的，发咳声的 | |
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9
mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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10
peals
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| n.（声音大而持续或重复的）洪亮的响声( peal的名词复数 )；隆隆声；洪亮的钟声；钟乐v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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11
savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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12
despoiled
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| v.掠夺，抢劫( despoil的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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13
vault
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| n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室 | |
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14
besiege
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| vt.包围，围攻，拥在...周围 | |
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15
fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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16
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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17
elicited
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| 引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18
exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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19
clout
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| n.用手猛击；权力，影响力 | |
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20
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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21
tempt
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| vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣 | |
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22
cupidity
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| n.贪心，贪财 | |
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23
waggons
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| 四轮的运货马车( waggon的名词复数 )； 铁路货车； 小手推车 | |
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24
bin
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| n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件 | |
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25
perplexed
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| adj.不知所措的 | |
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26
ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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27
assenting
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| 同意，赞成( assent的现在分词 ) | |
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28
ascending
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| adj.上升的，向上的 | |
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29
gorge
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| n.咽喉，胃，暴食，山峡；v.塞饱，狼吞虎咽地吃 | |
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30
receded
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| v.逐渐远离( recede的过去式和过去分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题 | |
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31
crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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