CHAPTER XXIII.
Volodyovski kept his word; in three weeks he finished the buildings andsent a notable escort,--one hundred Lithuanian Tartars from thesquadron of Pan Lantskoronski and one hundred of Linkhauz's dragoons,who were led by Pan Snitko, of the escutcheon Hidden Moon. The Tartarswere led by Capt. Azya Mellehovich, who was descended from LithuanianTartars,--a very young man, for he had barely reached twenty and someyears. He brought a letter which the little knight had written, asfollows, to his wife:--
"Baska, beloved of my heart! You may come now, for without you it is asif without bread; and if I do not wither away before you are here, Ishall kiss your rosy face off. I am not stingy in sending men andexperienced officers; but give priority in all to Pan Snitko, and admithim to our society, for he is _bene natus_ (well-born), an inheritor ofland, and an officer. As to Mellehovich, he is a good soldier, but Godknows who he is. He could not become an officer in any squadron but theTartar, for it would be easier elsewhere for any man to fling low birthat him. I embrace you with all my strength; I kiss your hands and feet.I have built a fortalice with one hundred circular openings. We haveimmense chimneys. For you and me there are several rooms in a houseapart. There is an odor of rosin everywhere, and such legions ofcrickets that when they begin to chirp in the evening the dogs start upfrom sleep. If we had a little pea-straw, they might be got rid ofquickly; perhaps you will have some placed in the wagons. There was noglass to be had, so we put membrane in the windows; but PanByaloglovski has a glazier in his command among the dragoons. You canget glass in Kamenyets from the Armenians; but, for God's sake! let itbe handled with care to avoid breaking. I have had your room fittedwith rugs, and it has a respectable look. I have had the robbers whomwe caught in the ravines hanged, nineteen of them; and before you come,the number will reach half three-score. Pan Snitko will tell you how welive. I commend you to God and the Most Holy Lady, my dear soul."
Basia, after reading the letter, gave it to Zagloba, who, when he hadglanced over it, began at once to show more consideration to PanSnitko,--not so great, however, that the other should not feel that hewas speaking to a most renowned warrior and a great personage, whoadmitted him to confidence only through kindness. Moreover, Pan Snitkowas a good-natured soldier, joyous and most accurate in service, forhis life had passed in the ranks. He honored Volodyovski greatly, andin view of Zagloba's fame he felt small, and had no thought of exaltinghimself.
Mellehovich was not present at the reading of the letter, for when hehad delivered it, he went out at once, as if to look after his men, butreally from fear that they might command him to go to the servants'quarters.
Zagloba, however, had time to examine him; and having the words of PanMichael fresh in his head, he said to Snitko, "We are glad to see you.I pray you. Pan Snitko, I know the escutcheon Hidden Moon,--a worthyescutcheon. But this Tartar, what is his name?"
"Mellehovich."
"But this Mellehovich looks somehow like a wolf. Michael writes that heis a man of uncertain origin, which is a wonder, for all our Tartarsare nobles, though Mohammedans. In Lithuania I saw whole villagesinhabited by them. There people call them Lipki; but those here areknown as Cheremis. They have long served the Commonwealth faithfully inreturn for their bread; but during the time of the peasant incursionmany of them went over to Hmelnitski, and now I hear that they arebeginning to communicate with the horde. That Mellehovich looks like awolf. Has Pan Volodyovski known him long?"
"Since the last expedition," said Pan Snitko, putting his feet underthe table, "when we were acting with Pan Sobieski against Doroshenkoand the horde; they went through the Ukraine."
"Since the last expedition! I could not take part in that, for Sobieskiconfided other functions to me, though later on he was lonely withoutme. But your escutcheon is the Hidden Moon! From what place isMellehovich?"
"He says that he is a Lithuanian Tartar; but it is a wonder to me thatnone of the Lithuanian Tartars knew him before, though he serves intheir squadron. From this come stories of his uncertain origin, whichhis lofty manners have not been able to prevent. But he is a goodsoldier, though sullen. At Bratslav and Kalnik he rendered greatservice, for which the hetman made him captain, though he was theyoungest man in the squadron. The Tartars love him greatly, but he hasno consideration among us, and why? Because he is very sullen, and, asyou say, has the look of a wolf."
"If he is a great soldier and has shed blood," said Basia, "it isproper to admit him to our society, which my husband in his letter doesnot forbid." Here she turned to Pan Snitko: "Does your grace permitit?"
"I am the servant of my benefactress," said Snitko.
Basia vanished through the door; and Zagloba, drawing a deep breath,asked Pan Snitko, "Well, and how does the colonel's wife please you?"
The old soldier, instead of an answer, put his fists to his eyes, andbending in the chair, repeated, "Ai! ai! ai!" Then he stared, coveredhis mouth with his broad palm, and was silent, as if ashamed of his ownenthusiasm.
"Sweet cakes, isn't she?" asked Zagloba.
Meanwhile "sweet cakes" appeared in the door, conducting Mellehovich,who was as frightened as a wild bird, and saying to him, "From myhusband's letter and from Pan Snitko we have heard so much of yourmanful deeds that we are glad to know you more intimately. We ask youto our society, and the table will be laid presently."
"I pray you to come nearer," said Zagloba.
The sullen but handsome face of the young Tartar did not brightenaltogether, but it was evident that he was thankful for the goodreception, and because he was not commanded to remain in the servants'quarters. Basia endeavored of purpose to be kind to him, for with awoman's heart she guessed easily that he was suspicious and proud, thatthe chagrin which beyond doubt he had to bear often by reason of hisuncertain descent pained him acutely. Not making, therefore, betweenhim and Snitko any difference save that enjoined by Snitko's riper age,she inquired of the young captain touching those services owing towhich he had received promotion at Kalnik. Zagloba, divining Basia'swish, spoke to him also frequently enough; and he, though at firstrather distant in bearing, gave fitting answers, and his manners notonly did not betray a vulgar man, but were even astonishing through acertain courtliness.
"That cannot be peasant blood, for not such would the spirit be,"thought Zagloba to himself. Then he inquired aloud, "In what parts doesyour father live?"
"In Lithuania," replied Mellehovich, blushing.
"Lithuania is a large country. That is the same as if you had said inthe Commonwealth."
"It is not in the Commonwealth now, for those regions have fallen away.My father has an estate near Smolensk."
"I had considerable possessions there too, which came to me fromchildless relatives; but I chose to leave them and side with theCommonwealth."
"I act in the same way," said Mellehovich.
"You act honorably," put in Basia.
But Snitko, listening to the conversation, shrugged his shouldersslightly, as if to say, "God knows who you are, and whence you came."
Zagloba, noticing this, turned again to Mellehovich, "Do you confessChrist, or do you live,--and I speak without offence,--live invileness?"
"I have received the Christian faith, for which reason I had to leavemy father."
"If you have left him for that reason, the Lord God will not leave you;and the first proof of His kindness is that you can drink wine, whichyou could not do if you had remained in error."
Snitko smiled; but questions touching his person and descent wereclearly not to the taste of Mellehovich, for he grew reserved again.Zagloba, however, paid little attention to this, especially since theyoung Tartar did not please him much, for at times he reminded him, notby his face, it is true, but by his movements and glance, of Bogun, thefamed Cossack leader.
Meanwhile dinner was served. The rest of the day was occupied in finalpreparations for the road. They started at daybreak, or rather when itwas still night, so as to arrive at Hreptyoff in one day.
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Nearly twenty wagons were collected, for Basia had determined to supplythe larders of Hreptyoff bountifully; and behind the wagons followedcamels and horses heavily laden, bending under the weight of meal anddried meat; behind the caravan moved a number of tens of oxen of thesteppe and a flock of sheep. The march was opened by Mellehovich withhis Tartars; the dragoons rode near a covered carriage in which satBasia with Pan Zagloba. She wished greatly to ride a trained palfrey;but the old noble begged her not to do so, at least during thebeginning and end of the journey.
"If you were to sit quietly," said he, "I should not object; but youwould begin right away to make your horse prance and show himself, andthat is not proper to the dignity of the commander's wife."
Basia was happy and joyous as a bird. From the time of her marriage shehad two great desires in life: one was to give Michael a son; the otherto live with the little knight, even for one year, at some stanitsanear the Wilderness, and there, on the edge of the desert, to lead asoldier's life, to pass through war and adventures, to take part inexpeditions, to see with her own eyes those steppes, to pass throughthose dangers of which she had heard so much from her youngest years.She dreamed of this when still a girl; and behold, those dreams werenow to become reality, and moreover, at the side of a man whom sheloved and who was the most famous partisan in the Commonwealth, of whomit was said that he could dig an enemy from under the earth.
Hence the young woman felt wings on her shoulders, and such a great joyin her breast that at moments the desire seized her to shout and jump;but the thought of decorum restrained her, for she had promised herselfto be dignified and to win intense love from the soldiers. She confidedthese thoughts to Zagloba, who smiled approvingly and said,--
"You will be an eye in his head, and a great wonder, that is certain. Awoman in a stanitsa is a marvel."
"And in need I will give them an example."
"Of what?"
"Of daring. I fear only one thing,--that beyond Hreptyoff there will beother commands in Mohiloff and Rashkoff, on to Yampol, and that weshall not see Tartars even for medicine."
"And I fear only this,--of course not for myself, but for you,--that weshall see them too often. Do you think that the chambuls are boundstrictly to come through Rashkoff and Mohiloff? They can come directlyfrom the East, from the steppes, or by the Moldavian side of theDniester, and enter the boundaries of the Commonwealth wherever theywish, even in the hills beyond Hreptyoff, unless it is reported widelythat I am living in Hreptyoff; then they will keep aside, for they knowme of old."
"But don't they know Michael, or won't they avoid him?"
"They will avoid him unless they come with great power, which mayhappen. But he will go to look for them himself."
"I am sure of that. But is it a real desert in Hreptyoff? The place isnot so far away!"
"It could not be more real. That region was never thickly settled, evenin time of my youth. I went from farm to farm, from village to village,from town to town. I knew everything, was everywhere. I remember whenUshytsa was what is called a fortified town. Pan Konyetspolski, thefather, made me starosta there; but after that came the invasion of theruffians, and all went to ruin. When we went there for Princess Helena,it was a desert; and after that chambuls passed through it twentytimes. Pan Sobieski has snatched it again from the Cossacks and theTartars, as a morsel from the mouth of a dog. There are only a fewpeople there now, but robbers are living in the ravines."
Here Zagloba began to look at the neighborhood and nod his head,remembering old times. "My God!" said he, "when we were going forHelena, it seemed to me that old age was behind my girdle; and now Ithink that I was young then, for nearly twenty-four years have passed.Michael was a milksop at that time, and had not many more hairs on hislip than I have on my fist. And this region stands in my memory as ifthe time were yesterday. Only these groves and pine woods have grown inplaces deserted by tillers of the land."
In fact, just beyond Kitaigrod they entered dense pine woods with whichat that time the region was covered for the greater part. Here andthere, however, especially around Studyenitsa, were open fields; andthen they saw the Dniester and a country stretching forward from thatside of the river to the heights, touching the horizon on the Moldavianside. Deep ravines, the abodes of wild beasts and wild men, interceptedtheir road; these ravines were at times narrow and precipitous, attimes wider, with sides gently sloping and covered with thick brush.Mellehovich's Tartars sank into them carefully; and when the rear ofthe convoy was on the lofty brink, the van was already, as it were,under the earth. It came frequently to Basia and Zagloba to leave thecarriage; for though Pan Michael had cleared the road in some sort,these passages were dangerous. At the bottom of the ravine springs wereflowing, or swift rivulets were rushing, which in spring were swollenwith water from the snow of the steppes. Though the sun still warmedthe pine woods and steppes powerfully, a harsh cold was hidden in thosestone gorges, and seized travellers on a sudden. Pine-trees covered therocky sides and towered on the banks, gloomy and dark, as if desiringto screen that sunken interior from the golden rays of the sun; but inplaces the edges were broken, trees thrown in wild disorder upon oneanother, branches twisted and broken into heaps, entirely dried orcovered with red leaves and spines.
"What has happened to this forest?" asked Basia of Zagloba.
"In places there may be old fellings made by the former inhabitantsagainst the horde, or by the ruffians against our troops; again inplaces the Moldavian whirlwinds rush through the woods; in thesewhirlwinds, as old people say, vampires, or real devils, fightbattles."
"But has your grace ever seen devils fighting?"
"As to seeing, I have not seen them; but I have heard how devils cry toeach other for amusement, 'U-ha! U-ha!' Ask Michael; he has heardthem."
Basia, though daring, feared evil spirits somewhat, therefore she beganto make the sign of the cross at once. "A terrible place!" said she.
And really in some ravines it was terrible; for it was not only dark,but forbidding. The wind was not blowing; the leaves and branches oftrees made no rustle; there was heard only the tramp and snorting ofhorses, the squeak of wagons, and cries uttered by drivers in the mostdangerous places. At times too, the Tartars or dragoons began to sing;but the desert itself was not enlivened with one sound of man or beast.If the ravines made a gloomy impression, the upper country, even wherethe pine woods extended, was unfolded joyously before the eyes of thecaravan. The weather was autumnal, calm. The sun moved along the plainof heaven, unspotted by a cloud, pouring bountiful rays on the rocks,on the fields and the forest. In that gleam the pine-trees seemed ruddyand golden; and the spider-webs attached to the branches of trees, tothe reeds and the grass, shone brightly, as if they were woven fromsunbeams. October had come to the middle of its days; therefore, manybirds, especially those sensitive to cold, had begun to pass from theCommonwealth to the Black Sea; in the heavens were to be seen rows ofstorks flying with piercing cries, geese, and flocks of teal.
Here and there floated high in the blue, on outspread wings, eagles,terrible to inhabitants of the air; here and there falcons, eager forprey, were describing circles slowly. But there were not lacking,especially in the open fields, those birds also which keep to theearth, and hide gladly in tall grass. Every little while flocks ofrust-colored partridges flew noisily from under the steeds of theTartars; a number of times also Basia saw, though from a distance,bustards standing on watch, at sight of which her cheeks flushed, andher eyes began to glitter.
"I will go coursing with Michael!" cried she, clapping her hands.
"If your husband were a sitter at home," said Zagloba, "his beard wouldbe gray soon from such a wife; but I knew to whom I gave you. Anotherwoman would be thankful at least, wouldn't she?"
Basia kissed Zagloba straightway on both cheeks, so that he was movedand said, "Loving hearts are as dear to a man in old age as a warmplace behind the stove." Then he was thoughtful for a while and added,"It is a wonder how I have loved the fair sex al
l my life; and if I hadto say why, I know not myself, for often they are bad and deceitful andgiddy. But because they are as helpless as children, if an injusticestrikes one of them, a man's heart pipes from pity. Embrace me again,or not!"
Basia would have been glad to embrace the whole world; therefore shesatisfied Zagloba's wish at once, and they drove on in excellent humor.They went slowly, for the oxen, going behind, could not travel faster,and it was dangerous to leave them in the midst of those forests with asmall number of men. As they drew near Ushytsa, the country became moreuneven, the desert more lonely, and the ravines deeper. Every littlewhile something was injured in the wagons, and sometimes the horseswere stubborn; considerable delays took place through this cause. Theold road, which led once to Mohiloff, was grown over with forestsduring twenty years, so that traces of it could barely be seen here andthere; consequently they had to keep to the trails beaten by earlierand later passages of troops, hence frequently misleading, and alsovery difficult. The journey did not pass either without accident.
On the slope of a ravine the horse stumbled under Mellehovich, ridingat the head of the Tartars, and fell to the stony bottom, not withoutinjury to the rider, who cut the crown of his head so severely thatconsciousness left him for a time. Basia and Zagloba mounted ledpalfreys; and Basia gave command to put the Tartar in the carriage anddrive carefully. Afterward she stopped the march at every spring,and with her own hands bound his head with cloths wet with coldspring-water. He lay for a time with closed eyes, but opened them atlast; and when Basia bent over him and asked how he felt, instead of ananswer he seized her hand and pressed it to his white lips. Only aftera pause, as if collecting his thoughts and presence of mind, did he sayin Russian,--
"Oh, I am well, as I have not been for a long time."
The whole day passed in a march of this kind. The sun, growing red atlast and seeming immense, was descending on the Moldavian side; theDnieper was gleaming like a fiery ribbon, and from the east, from theWilderness, darkness was moving on slowly.
Hreptyoff was not far away, but it was necessary to give rest to thehorses, therefore they stopped for a considerable halt. This and thatdragoon began to chant prayers; the Tartars dismounted, spreadsheep-skins on the ground, and fell to praying on their knees, withfaces turned eastward. At times "Allah! Allah!" sounded through all theranks; then again they were quiet; holding their palms turned upwardnear their faces, they continued in attentive prayer, repeating onlyfrom time to time drowsily and as if with a sigh, "Lohichmen ahlohichmen!" The rays of the sun fell on them redder and redder; abreeze came from the west, and with it a great rustling in the trees,as if they wished to honor before night Him who brings out on the darkheavens thousands of glittering stars. Basia looked with greatcuriosity at the praying of the Tartars; but at the thought that somany good men, after lives full of toil, would go straightway afterdeath to hell's fire, her heart was oppressed, especially since they,though they met people daily who professed the true faith, remained oftheir own will in hardness of heart.
Zagloba, more accustomed to those things, only shrugged his shouldersat the pious considerations of Basia, and said, "These sons of goatsare not admitted to heaven, lest they might take with them vileinsects."
Then, with the assistance of his attendant, he put on a coat lined withhanging threads,--an excellent defence against evening cold,--and gavecommand to move on; but barely had the march begun when on the oppositeheights five horsemen appeared. The Tartars opened ranks at once.
"Michael!" cried Basia, seeing the man riding in front.
It was indeed Volodyovski, who had come out with a few horsemen to meethis wife. Springing forward, they greeted each other with great joy,and then began to tell what had happened to each.
Basia related how the journey had passed, and how Pan Mellehovich had"sprained his reason[17] against a stone." The little knight made areport of his activity in Hreptyoff, in which, as he stated, everythingwas ready and waiting to receive her, for five hundred axes had beenworking for three weeks on buildings. During this conversation PanMichael bent from the saddle every little while, and seized his youngwife in his arms; she, it was clear, was not very angry at that, forshe rode at his side there so closely that the horses were nearlyrubbing against each other.
The end of the journey was not distant; meanwhile a beautiful nightcame down, illuminated by a great golden moon. But the moon grew paleras it rose from the steppes to the sky, and at last its shining wasdarkened by a conflagration which blazed up brightly in front of thecaravan.
"What is that?" inquired Basia.
"You will see," said Volodyovski, "as soon as you have passed thatforest which divides us from Hreptyoff."
"Is that Hreptyoff already?"
"You would see it as a thing on your palm, but the trees hide it."
They rode into a small forest; but they had not ridden halfway throughit when a swarm of lights appeared on the other edge like a swarm offireflies, or glittering stars. Those stars began to approach withamazing rapidity; and suddenly the whole forest was quivering withshouts,--
"Vivat the lady! Vivat her great mightiness! vivat our commandress!vivat, vivat!"
These were soldiers who had hastened to greet Basia. Hundreds of themmingled in one moment with the Tartars. Each held on a long pole aburning taper, fixed in a split at the end of the pole. Some had ironcandlesticks on pikes, from which burning rosin was falling in the formof long fiery tears.
Basia was surrounded quickly with throngs of mustached faces,threatening, somewhat wild, but radiant with joy. The greater number ofthem had never seen Basia in their lives; many expected to meet animposing person; hence their delight was all the greater at sight ofthat lady, almost a child in appearance, who was riding on a whitepalfrey and bent in thanks to every side her wonderful, rosy face,small and joyous, but at the same time greatly excited by theunlooked-for reception.
"I thank you, gentlemen," said she; "I know that this is not for me."But her silvery voice was lost in the _vivats_, and the forest wastrembling from shouts.
The officers from the squadron of the starosta of Podolia and thechamberlain of Premysl, Motovidlo's Cossacks and the Tartars, mingledtogether. Each wished to see the lady commandress, to approach her;some of the most urgent kissed the edge of her skirt or her footin the stirrup. For these half-wild partisans, inured to raids andman-hunting, to bloodshed and slaughter, that was a sight so unusual,so new, that in presence of it their hard hearts were moved, and somekind of feeling, new and unknown to them, was roused in their breasts.They came to meet her out of love for Pan Michael, wishing to give himpleasure, and perhaps to flatter him; and behold! sudden tendernessseizes them. That smiling, sweet, and innocent face, with gleaming eyesand distended nostrils, became dear to them in one moment. "That is ourchild!" cried old Cossacks, real wolves of the steppe. "A cherub, PanCommander." "She is a morning dawn! a dear flower!" shouted theofficers. "We will fall, one after another, for her!" And the Tartars,clicking with their tongues, put their palms to their broad breasts andcried, "Allah! Allah!" Volodyovski was greatly touched, but glad; heput his hands on his hips and was proud of his Basia.
Shouts were heard continually. At last the caravan came out of theforest, and before the eyes of the newly arrived appeared firm woodenbuildings, erected in a circle on high ground. That was the stanitsa ofHreptyoff, as clearly seen then as in daylight, for inside the stockadeenormous piles were burning, on which whole logs had been thrown. Thesquare was full of fires, but smaller, so as not to burn up the place.The soldiers quenched their torches; then each drew from his shoulder,one a musket, another a gun, a third a pistol, and thundered ingreeting to the lady. Musicians came too in front of the stockade: thestarosta's band with crooked horns, the Cossacks with trumpets, drums,and various stringed instruments, and at last the Tartars, pre-eminentfor squeaking pipes. The barking of the garrison dogs and the bellowingof terrified cattle added still to the uproar.
The convoy remained now in the rear, and in fron
t rode Basia, having onone side her husband, and on the other Zagloba. Over the gate,beautifully ornamented with birch boughs, stood black, on membranes ofbladder smeared with tallow and lighted from the inside, theinscription:--
"May Cupid give you many happy moments! Dear guests, _crescite, multiplicamini!_"
"Vivant, floreant!" cried the soldiers, when the little knight andBasia halted to read the inscription.
"For God's sake!" said Zagloba, "I'm a guest too; but if that wish formultiplication concerns me, may the crows pluck me if I know what to dowith it."
But Pan Zagloba found a special transparency intended for himself, andwith no small pleasure he read on it,--
"Long live our great mighty Onufry Zagloba, The highest ornament of the whole knighthood!"
Pan Michael was very joyful; the officers were invited to sup with him;and for the soldiers he gave command to roll out one and another keg ofspirits. A number of bullocks fell also; these the men began at once toroast at the fires. They sufficed for all abundantly. Long into thenight the stanitsa was thundering with shouts and musket-shots, so thatfear seized the bands of robbers hidden in the ravines of Ushytsa.