CHAPTER FORTY SEVEN.
A QUEER ENCOUNTER IN A CAVE.
The place into which I had crawled was of irregular outlines. Rocksjutted along the sides, and between these, small lateral shafts had beendug, where the miners had followed the ramifications of the "quixa."The cave was not a deep one; the vein had not proved profitable, and hadbeen abandoned for some other.
I kept up it till I was fairly "in the dark"; and then groping againstone side, I found a recess, in which I ensconced myself. By peepinground the rock, I could see out of the cave and some distance over thebottom of the barranca, where the bushes grew thin and straggling.
I had hardly seated myself when my attention was called to a scene thatwas passing outside. Two men on their hands and knees were crawlingthrough the cactus plants in front of the cave. Beyond them half adozen savages on horseback were beating the thicket, but had not yetseen the men. These I recognised easily. They were Gode and thedoctor. The latter was nearer me; and as he scrambled on over theshingle something started out of the rocks within reach of his hand. Inoticed that it was a small animal of the armadillo kind. I saw himstretch forward, clutch it, and with a pleased look deposit it in a bagthat was by his side. All this time the Indians were whooping andyelling behind him, and not fifty yards distant.
Doubtless the animal was of some new species, but the zealous naturalistnever gave it to the world. He had scarcely drawn forth his hand againwhen a cry from the savages announced that he and Gode were discovered,and the next moment both lay upon the ground pierced with lances, and toall appearance dead!
Their pursuers now dismounted with the intention of scalping them. PoorReichter! his cap was pulled off; the bleeding trophy followed, and helay with the red skull towards the cave--a hideous spectacle!
Another Indian had alighted, and stood over the Canadian with his longknife in his hand. Although pitying my poor follower, and altogether inno humour for mirth, knowing what I did, I could not help watching theproceedings with some curiosity.
The savage stood for a moment, admiring the beautiful curls thatembellished the head of his victim. He was no doubt thinking whathandsome fringes they would make for his leggings. He appeared to be inecstasies of delight; and from the flourishes which he made with hisknife, I could see that it was his intention to skin the whole head!
After cutting several capers around it, he stooped and grasped a fistfulof curls; but, before he had touched the scalp with his blade, the hairlifted off, displaying the white and marble-like skull!
With a cry of terror, the savage dropped the wig, and, running backward,fell over the body of the doctor. The cry attracted his, comrades; andseveral of them, dismounting, approached the strange object with looksof astonishment. One, more courageous than the rest, picked up the wig,which they all proceeded to examine with curious minuteness.
Then, one after another went up to the shining skull and passed hisfingers over its smooth surface, all the while uttering exclamations ofsurprise. They tried on the wig, took it off, and put it on again,turning it in various ways. At length, he who claimed it as hisproperty pulled off his plumed head-dress and, adjusting the wig uponhis own head, front backward, stalked proudly around, with the longcurls dangling over his face.
It was altogether a curious scene, and, under other circumstances, mighthave amused me. There was something irresistibly comic in the puzzledlooks of the actors; but I had been too deeply affected by the tragedyto laugh at the farce. There was too much of horror around me. Seguinperhaps dead; she gone for ever, the slave of the brutal savage. My ownperil, too, at the moment; for I knew not how soon I might be discoveredand dragged forth. This affected me least of all. My life was now oflittle value to me, and so I regarded it.
But there is an instinct, so-called, of self-preservation, even when thewill ceases to act. Hopes soon began to shape themselves in my mind,and along with these the wish to live. Thoughts came. I might organisea powerful band; I might yet rescue her. Yes! even though years mightintervene, I would accomplish this. She would still be true! She wouldnever forget!
Poor Seguin! what a life of hope withered in an hour! he himself sealingthe sacrifice with his blood!
But I would not despair, even with his fate for a warning. I would takeup the drama where he had ended. The curtain should rise upon newscenes, and I would not abandon the stage until I had accomplished amore joyous finale; or, failing this, had reached the denouement ofdeath or vengeance.
Poor Seguin! No wonder he had been a scalp-hunter. I could nowunderstand how holy was his hate for the ruthless red man. I, too, hadimbibed the passion.
With such reflections passing hastily--for the scene I have described,and the sequent thoughts, did not occupy much time--I turned my eyesinwards to examine whether I was sufficiently concealed in my niche.They might take it into their heads to search the shaft.
As I endeavoured to penetrate the gloom that extended inwards, my gazebecame riveted on an object that caused me to shrink back with a coldshudder. Notwithstanding the scenes I had just passed through, this wasthe cause of still another agony.
In the thick of the darkness I could distinguish two small spots, roundand shining. They did not scintillate, but rather glistened with asteady greenish lustre. I knew that they were eyes!
I was in the cave with a panther, or with a still more terriblecompanion, the grizzly bear!
My first impulse was to press back into the recess where I had hiddenmyself. This I did, until my back leaned against the rocks. I had nothoughts of attempting to escape out. That would have been from thefrying-pan into the fire, for the Indians were still in front of thecave. Moreover, any attempt to retreat would only draw on the animal,perhaps at that moment straining to spring.
I cowered closely, groping along my belt for the handle of my knife. Iclasped this at length, and drawing it forth, waited in a crouchingattitude.
During all this time my eyes had remained fixed on the lustrous orbsbefore me.
I saw that they were fixed upon mine, and watched me without as much aswinking.
Mine seemed to be possessed of abstract volition. I could not take themoff. They were held by some terrible fascination; and I felt, orfancied, that the moment this should be broken, the animal would springupon me.
I had heard of fierce brutes being conquered by the glance of the humaneye, and I endeavoured to look back my _vis-a-vis_ with interest.
We sat for some time, neither of us moving an inch. I could see nothingof the animal's body; nothing but the green gleaming circles that seemedset in a ground of ebony.
As they had remained motionless so long, I conjectured that the owner ofthem was still lying in his lair, and would not make his attack untilsomething disturbed him; perhaps until the Indians had gone away.
The thought now occurred to me that I might better arm myself. I knewthat a knife would be of little avail against a grizzly bear. My pistolwas still in my belt, but it was empty. Would the animal permit me toload it? I resolved to make the attempt.
Still leaving my eyes to fulfil their office, I felt for my flask andpistol, and finding both ready, I commenced loading. I proceeded withsilence and caution, for I knew that these animals could see in thedark, and that in this respect my _vis-a-vis_ had the advantage of me.I felt the powder in with my finger, and pushing the ball on top of it,rolled the cylinder to the right notch, and cocked.
As the spring "clicked," I saw the eyes start. "It will be on me now!"
Quick as the thought, I placed my finger to the trigger but before Icould level, a voice, with a well-known accent, restrained me.
"Hold on thur!" cried the voice. "Why didn't 'ee say yur hide wurwhite? I thought 'twur some sneaking Injun. Who are 'ee, anyhow?'Tain't Bill Garey? No, Billee, 'tain't you, ole fellur."
"No," said I, recovering from my surprise; "it's not Bill."
"I mout 'a guessed that. Bill wud 'a know'd me sooner. He wud 'aknow'd the glint o' this
niggur's eyes as I wud his'n. Ah! poor Billee!I's afeerd that trapper's rubbed out; an' thur ain't many more o' hissort in the mountains. No, that thur ain't.
"Rot it!" continued the voice, with a fierce emphasis; "this comes o'layin' one's rifle ahint them. Ef I'd 'a had Tar-guts wi' me, I wudn't'a been hidin' hyur like a scared 'possum. But she are gone; thatleetle gun are gone; an' the mar too; an' hyur I am 'ithout eyther beastor weepun; cuss the luck!"
And the last words were uttered with an angry hiss, that echoed throughevery part of the cave.
"Yur the young fellur, the capt'n's friend, ain't 'ee?" inquired thespeaker, with a sudden change of tone.
"Yes," I replied.
"I didn't see yur a-comin' in, or I mout 'a spoke sooner. I've got asmart lick across the arm, an' I wur just a-tyin' it up as ye tumbled inthur. Who did 'ee think this child wur?"
"I did not think you were anyone. I took you for a grizzly bear."
"Ha! ha! ha! He! he! he! I thort so, when I heard the click o' yourpistol. He! he! he! If ever I sets my peepers on Bill Garey agin, I'llmake that niggur larf till his guts ache. Ole Rube tuk for a grizzly!If that ain't--Ha! ha! ha! ha! He! he! he! Ho! ho! hoo!"
And the old trapper chuckled at the conceit, as if he had just beenwitnessing some scene of amusement, and there was not an enemy within ahundred miles of him.
"Did you see anything of Seguin?" I asked, wishing to learn whetherthere was any probability that my friend still lived.
"Did I? I did; an' a sight that wur. Did 'ee iver see a catamountriz?"
"I believe I have," said I.
"Wal, that wur him. He wur in the shanty when it felled. So were Im'self; but I wa'n't there long arter. I creeped out some'rs about thedoor; an' jest then I seed the cap, hand to hand wi' an Injun in astan'-up tussle: but it didn't last long. The cap gi'n him asockdolloger some'rs about the ribs, an' the niggur went under; he did."
"But what of Seguin? Did you see him afterwards?"
"Did I see him arterwards? No; I didn't."
"I fear he is killed."
"That ain't likely, young fellur. He knows these diggin's better'n anyo' us; an' he oughter know whur to cacher, I reckin. He's did that,I'll be boun'."
"Ay, if he would," said I, thinking that Seguin might have followed thecaptives, and thrown away his life recklessly.
"Don't be skeert about him, young fellur. The cap ain't a-gwine to puthis fingers into a bee's nest whur thur's no honey; he ain't."
"But where could he have gone, when you did not see him afterwards?"
"Whur could he 'a gone? Fifty ways he kud 'a gone through the brush. Ididn't think o' lookin' arter him. He left the Injun whur he hadthrow'd him, 'ithout raisin' the har; so I stooped down to git it; an'when I riz agin, he wa'n't thur no how. But that Injun wur. Lor'! thatInjun are some punkins; he are."
"What Indian do you mean?"
"Him as jined us on the Del Norte--the Coco."
"El Sol! What of him? is he killed?"
"Wal, he ain't, I reckin; nor can't a-be: that's this child's opeenyuno' it. He kim from under the ranche, arter it tumbled; an' his finedress looked as spick as ef it had been jest tuk out o' a bandy-box.Thur wur two at him, an', Lor'! how he fit them! I tackled on to one o'them ahint, an' gin him a settler in the hump ribs; but the way hefinished the other wur a caution to Crockett. 'Twur the puttiest lick Iever seed in these hyur mountains, an' I've seed a good few, I reckin."
"How was it?"
"'Ee know, the Injun--that are, the Coco--fit wi' a hatchet?"
"Yes."
"Wal, then; that ur's a desprit weepun, for them as knows how to use it;an' he diz; that Injun diz. T'other had a hatchet, too, but he didn'tkeep it long. 'Twur clinked out o' his hands in a minnit, an' then theCoco got a down blow at him. Wagh! it wur a down blow, an' it wa'n'tnuthin' else. It split the niggur's head clur down to the thrapple.'Twus sep'rated into two halves as ef 't had been clove wi' a broad-axe!Ef 'ee had 'a seed the varmint when he kim to the ground, 'ee'd 'athort he wur double-headed. Jest then I spied the Injuns a-comin' downboth sides o' the bluff; an' havin' neyther beast nor weepun, exceptin'a knife, this child tuk a notion 'twa'n't safe to be thur any longer,an' cached; he did."