Pruned2 down to the simple statement of the fact, and with all the foolish terror chatterings weeded out, his news came to this: the party of homing revelers had been ambushed3 and waylaid4 at the fording of a creek6 some miles to the southward, and in the mellay the young mistress and her tire-woman had been captured.
So far as any actual witness of the eye went, the negro had seen nothing. There had been a volley fire from the thicket-belly of black darkness, a swarming7 attack to a chorus of Indian yells, shouts from the men, shrieks8 from the women, confusion worse confounded in which the newsbearer himself had been unhorsed and trodden under foot. After which he knew no more till some one—his master, as he thought—kicked him alive and bade him mount and ride post-haste on the backward track to Appleby Hundred, crying the news as he went that Mistress Margery Stair and her maid had been kidnapped by the Indians.
Pinned to the mark and questioned afresh, the slave could not affirm of his own knowledge that any one had been killed outright9. Pinned again, it proved to be only a guess of his that the one who had given him his orders was his master. In the darkness and confusion he could make sure of nothing; had made sure of nothing save his own frenzy10 of terror and the wording of the message he carried.
When we had quizzed him empty we hoisted11 him upon his beast and sent him once more a-gallop12 on the road to Appleby Hundred. That done, a hurried council of war was held in which we four fell apart, three against one. Jennifer was for instant pursuit, afoot and at top speed; and Ephraim Yeates and the Catawba, abandoning their own emprise apparently13 without a second thought, sided indifferently with him. For my part, I was for going back to prepare in decent order for a campaign which should promise something more hopeful than the probability of speedy exhaustion14, starvation and failure.
We grew hot upon it, Richard and I; he with a young lover's unrecking rashness, and I with an old campaigner's foresight15 to make me stubborn; and Ephraim Yeates and the Catawba drew aside and let us have it out. Dick argued angrily that time was the all-important item, and was not above taunting16 me bitterly, flinging the reproach of cold-blooded age in my face and swearing hotly that I knew not so much as the alphabet of love.
The taunts17 were passed in silence, since I would set them over against the irrevocable wrong I had done him, saying in my heart that nothing he could say or do should again tempt18 me to give place to the devil of jealous wrath19.
But when he would give me space I set the hopelessness of pursuit, all unprepared as we were, in plainest speech. The chase might well be a long one, and we were but scantily20 armed and without provisions. The hunter's rifle must be our sole dependence21 for food, and in the summer heat we would be forced to kill daily. On the other hand, with horses, a bag of corn apiece, firearms and ammunition22, we should be in some more hopeful case; and, notwithstanding the delay in starting, could make far better speed.
For all the good it did I might have spared my pains and saved my breath. Jennifer broke me in the midst, crying out that I was even now killing23 the precious minutes; and so our ill-starred venture had its launching in the frenzied24 haste that seldom makes for speed. One small concession25 I wrung26 out of his impatience—this with the help of Yeates and the Catawba. We went back to the breakfast camp, rekindled27 the fire, and cooked what we could keep and carry of the venison.
In spite of this delay it was yet early in the forenoon of that memorable28 Sunday, the twentieth of August, when we set our faces southward and took up the line of march to the ford5 of the ambushment. By now the sky was wholly overcast29, and the wind was blowing fresher in the tree-tops; but though as yet the storm held off, the air was the cooler for the threatened rain and this was truly a blessing30, since the old hunter put us keen upon our mettle31 to keep pace with him.
We marched in Indian file, Ephraim Yeates in the lead, Uncanoola at his heels, and the two of us heavier-footed ones bringing up the rear. Knowing the wooded wilderness32 by length and breadth, the old man held on through thick and thin, straight as an arrow to the mark; and so we had never a sight of the road again till we came out upon it suddenly at the ford of violence.
Here I should have been in despair for the lack of any intelligible33 hint to point the way; and I think not even Jennifer, with all his woodcraft, could have read the record of the onfall as Yeates and the Catawba did. But for all the overlapping34 tangle35 of moccasin and hoof36 prints neither of these men of the forest was at fault, though ten minutes later even their skill must have been baffled, inasmuch as the first few spitting raindrops were pattering in the tree-tops when we came upon the ground.
"That's jest about what I was most afeard of," said the borderer, with a hasty glance skyward. "Down on your hunkers, Chief, and help me read this sign afore the good Lord takes to sending His rain on the jest and the unjest," and therewith these two fell to quartering all the ground like trained dogs nosing for a scent37.
We stood aside and watched them, Richard and I, realizing that we were of small account and should be until, perchance, it should come to the laying on of hearty38 blows. After the closest scrutiny39, which took account of every broken twig40 and trampled41 blade of grass, this prolonged until the rain was falling smartly to wash out all the foot-prints in the dusty road, Yeates and the Indian gave over and came to join us under the sheltering branches of an oak.
"'Tis a mighty42 cur'is sign; most mighty cur'is," quoth the hunter, slinging43 the rain-drops from his fur cap and emptying the pan of his rifle, not upon the ground, as a soldier would, but saving every precious grain. "Ez I allow, I never heerd tell of any Injuns a-doing that-away afore; have you, Chief? hey?"
The Catawba's negative was his guttural "Wah," and Ephraim Yeates, having carefully restored the final grain of the priming to his powder-horn, proceeded to enlighten us at some length.
"Mighty cur'is, ez I was a-saying. Them Injuns fixed44 up an ambushment, blazed in a volley at the clostest sort o' range, and followed it up with a tomahawk and knife rush,—lessen that there Afrikin was too plumb45 daddled to tell any truth, whatsomedever. And, spite of all this here rampaging, they never drawed a single drop o' blood in the whole enduring scrimmage! Mighty cur'is, that; ain't it, now? And that ain't all: some o' them same Injuns, or leastwise one of 'em, was a-wearing boots with spurs onto 'em. What say, Chief?"
Uncanoola held up all the fingers of one hand and two of the other. "Sebben Injun; one pale-face," he said, in confirmation46.
I looked at Richard, and he gave me back the eyeshot, with a hearty curse to speed it.
"Falconnet!" said he, by way of tail-piece to the oath; and I nodded.
"'Twas that there same hoss-captain, sure enough, ez I reckon," drawled Yeates. "Maybe one o' you two can tell what-all he mought be a-driving at."
Jennifer shook his head, and I, too, was silent. 'Twas out of all reason to suppose that the baronet would resort to sheer violence and make a terrified captive of the woman he wanted to marry. It was a curious mystery, and the hunter's next word involved it still more.
"And yit that ain't all. Whilst some o' the Injuns was a-whooping it up acrost the creek, a-chasing the folks that was making tracks for their city o' refuge, t'others run the two gals47 off into the big woods at the side o' the road. Then Mister Hoss-Captain picks up the Afrikin, chucks him on a hoss and sends him a-kiting with his flea48 in his ear; after which he climbs his hoss and makes tracks hisself—not to ketch up with the gals, ez you mought reckon, but off yon way," pointing across the creek and down the road to the southward.
Jennifer heard him through, had him set it all out again in plainest fashion, and after all could only say: "You are sure you have the straight of it, Eph?"
The borderer appealed to Uncanoola. "Come, Chief; give us the wo'th of your jedgment. Has the old Gray Wolf gone stun-blind? or did he read them sign like they'd ort to be read?"
"Wah! the Gray Wolf has sharp eye—sharp nose—sharp tongue, sometime. Sign no can lie when he read 'um."
"Never mind the baronet's mystery; 'tis Mistress Margery's hazard that concerns us," I would say. And then to Ephraim Yeates: "Will this rain kill the trail, think you?"
He shook his head dubiously51. "I dunno for sartain; 'twill make a heap o' differ' if they was anyways anxious to hide it. Ez it starts out, with the women a-hossback, 'tis plain enough for a blind man to lift on the run."
"Then let us be at it," said I. "We can very well afford to let the mystery untangle itself as we go." And with this the pursuit began in relentless52 earnest.
The trail of the two horses ridden by Margery and her woman cut a right angle with the road, turning northwest along the left bank of the stream; and, despite the rain, which was now pouring steadily53 even in the thick wood, the hoof-prints were so plainly marked that we could follow at a smart dog-trot.
In this speeding the old hunter and the Indian easily outwearied Jennifer and me. They both ran with a slow swinging leap, like the racking gait, half pace, half gallop, of a well-trained troop horse. Mile after mile they put behind them in these swinging bounds; and when, well on in the afternoon, we stopped to eat a snack of the cold meat and to slake54 our thirst at one of the many rain pools, I was fain to follow Jennifer's lead, throwing myself flat on the soaking mold to pant and gasp55 and pay off the arrears56 of breathlessness.
This breathing halt was of the briefest; but before the race began again, Ephraim Yeates took time to make a careful scrutiny of the trail, measuring the stride of the horses, and looking sharply on the briars for some bit of cloth or other token of assurance. When we came up with him he was mumbling57 to himself.
"Um-hm; jes' so. They was a-making tracks along hereaway, sartain, sure; larruping them hosses to a keen jump, lickity-split. Now, says I to myself, what's the tarnation hurry? Ain't they got all the time there is to get where they're a-going, immejitly, if not sooner?" Then he turned upon me. "Cap'n John, can't you and the youngster lay your heads side and side and make out what-all this here hoss-captain mought be up to? It do look like he had some sort o' hatchet58 to grind, a-sending that Afrikin back to raise a hue59 and cry, and then a-letting his Injuns leave a trail like this here that any tow-head boy from the settlemints could follow at a canter."
Richard said he could never guess the meaning of it all; and my mind was to the full as blank as his. I made sure some deep-laid plot was at the bottom of the mystery; but we had measured many weary miles in the wilderness, and the plotter's trap had been fairly baited, set and sprung, before the lightning flash of explication came to show us all its devilish ingenuity60.
But now "Forward," was the word, and we fell in line again, and again the tireless running of the two guides stretched and held us on the rack of weariness. Happily for us two who were out of training, the rainy-day dusk came early; and though Yeates and the Indian, running now with their bodies bent62 double and their noses to the ground, held on long after Richard Jennifer and I were bat-blind for any seeing of the hoof-prints, the end came at length and we bivouacked as we were, fireless, and with the last of the cooked ration63 of deer's meat for a scanty64 supper.
After the meal, which was swallowed hastily in the silence of utter fatigue65, we scooped66 a hollow in a last year's leaf bed and lay down to sleep, wet to the skin as any four half-drowned water rats, and to the full as miserable67.
Fagged as I was, 'twas a long time before sleep came to make me forget; a weary interval68 fraught69 with dismal70 mental miseries71 to march step and step with the treadmill72 rackings of the aching muscles. What grievous hap61 had befallen my dear lady? and how much or how little was I to blame for this kidnapping of her by my relentless enemy? Was it a sharp foreboding of some such resort to savage73 violence that had tortured her into sending the appeal for help?
With this, I fell to dwelling74 afresh upon the wording of her message, hungering avidly75 for some hint to give me leave to claim it for my own. Though I made sure she did not love me,—had never loved me as other than a make-shift confidant, whose face and age would set him far beyond the pale of sentiment,—yet I had hoped this friendship-love would give her leave to call upon me in her hour of need.
Was I the one to whom her message had been sped? Suddenly I remembered what Richard had said; that the arrow was the Catawba's. If Uncanoola were the bearer of the parchment, he would surely know to whom he had been sent.
His burrow76 in the leaf bed chanced to be next to mine, and I could hear his steady breathing, light and long-drawn, like that of some wild creature—as, truly, he was—sleeping with all the senses alert to spring awake at a touch or the snapping of a twig. A word would arouse him, and a single question might resolve the doubt.
I thought of all this, and yet, when I would have wakened the Indian, a shaking ague-fit of poltroon77 cowardice78 gave me pause. For while the doubt remained there was a chance to hope that she had sent to me, making the little cry for help a token, not of love, perchance, but of some dawning of forgiveness for my desperate wronging of her. And in that hesitant moment it was borne in upon me that without this slender chance for hope I should go mad and become a wretched witling at a time when every faculty79 should be superhuman sharp and strong for spending in her service.
So I forebore to wake the Indian; and following out this thought of service fitness, would force myself to go to sleep and so to gather fresh strength for the new day's measure.
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收听单词发音
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1
hazy
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| adj.有薄雾的，朦胧的；不肯定的，模糊的 | |
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2
pruned
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| v.修剪（树木等）( prune的过去式和过去分词 )；精简某事物，除去某事物多余的部分 | |
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ambushed
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| v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着 | |
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waylaid
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| v.拦截，拦路( waylay的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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Ford
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| n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过 | |
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creek
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| n.小溪，小河，小湾 | |
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7
swarming
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| 密集( swarm的现在分词 )； 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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8
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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9
outright
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| adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的 | |
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frenzy
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| n.疯狂，狂热，极度的激动 | |
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11
hoisted
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| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
gallop
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| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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14
exhaustion
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| n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述 | |
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15
foresight
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| n.先见之明，深谋远虑 | |
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16
taunting
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| 嘲讽( taunt的现在分词 )； 嘲弄； 辱骂； 奚落 | |
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taunts
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| 嘲弄的言语，嘲笑，奚落( taunt的名词复数 ) | |
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18
tempt
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| vt.引诱，勾引，吸引，引起…的兴趣 | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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scantily
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| adv.缺乏地；不充足地；吝啬地；狭窄地 | |
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21
dependence
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| n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属 | |
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ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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23
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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24
frenzied
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| a.激怒的；疯狂的 | |
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concession
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| n.让步，妥协；特许(权) | |
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26
wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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27
rekindled
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| v.使再燃( rekindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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memorable
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| adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的 | |
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overcast
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| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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30
blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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mettle
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| n.勇气，精神 | |
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wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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intelligible
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| adj.可理解的，明白易懂的，清楚的 | |
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overlapping
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| adj./n.交迭（的） | |
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tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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36
hoof
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| n.(马，牛等的)蹄 | |
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scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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38
hearty
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| adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的 | |
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39
scrutiny
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| n.详细检查，仔细观察 | |
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40
twig
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| n.小树枝，嫩枝；v.理解 | |
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41
trampled
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| 踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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42
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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43
slinging
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| 抛( sling的现在分词 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往 | |
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44
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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45
plumb
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| adv.精确地，完全地；v.了解意义，测水深 | |
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46
confirmation
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| n.证实，确认，批准 | |
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47
gals
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| abbr.gallons （复数）加仑（液量单位）n.女孩，少女( gal的名词复数 ) | |
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48
flea
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| n.跳蚤 | |
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49
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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50
touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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51
dubiously
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| adv.可疑地，怀疑地 | |
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52
relentless
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| adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的 | |
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53
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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54
slake
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| v.解渴，使平息 | |
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55
gasp
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| n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说 | |
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56
arrears
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| n.到期未付之债，拖欠的款项；待做的工作 | |
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57
mumbling
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| 含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的现在分词 ) | |
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58
hatchet
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| n.短柄小斧；v.扼杀 | |
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59
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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60
ingenuity
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| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
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61
hap
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| n.运气；v.偶然发生 | |
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62
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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63
ration
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| n.定量(pl.)给养，口粮；vt.定量供应 | |
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64
scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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65
fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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66
scooped
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| v.抢先报道( scoop的过去式和过去分词 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等） | |
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67
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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68
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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69
fraught
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| adj.充满…的，伴有(危险等)的；忧虑的 | |
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70
dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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71
miseries
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| n.痛苦( misery的名词复数 )；痛苦的事；穷困；常发牢骚的人 | |
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72
treadmill
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| n.踏车；单调的工作 | |
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73
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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74
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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75
avidly
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| adv.渴望地，热心地 | |
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76
burrow
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| vt.挖掘(洞穴)；钻进；vi.挖洞；翻寻；n.地洞 | |
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77
poltroon
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| n.胆怯者；懦夫 | |
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78
cowardice
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| n.胆小，怯懦 | |
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faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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