Chapter XXIV
"Thy secret pleasure turns to open shame; Thy private feasting to a public fast; Thy smoothing titles to a ragged name; Thy sugar'd tongue to bitter worm wood taste: Thy violent vanities can never last."
Shakespeare, Rape of Lucrece, 11. 890-94.
Judith was waiting the return of Deerslayer on the platform, withstifled impatience, when the latter reached the hut. Hist and Hetty wereboth in a deep sleep, on the bed usually occupied by the two daughtersof the house, and the Delaware was stretched on the floor of theadjoining room, his rifle at his side, and a blanket over him, alreadydreaming of the events of the last few days. There was a lamp burningin the Ark, for the family was accustomed to indulge in this luxury onextraordinary occasions, and possessed the means, the vessel being of aform and material to render it probable it had once been an occupant ofthe chest.
As soon as the girl got a glimpse of the canoe, she ceased her hurriedwalk up and down the platform and stood ready to receive the young man,whose return she had now been anxiously expecting for some time. Shehelped him to fasten the canoe, and by aiding in the other littlesimilar employments, manifested her desire to reach a moment of libertyas soon as possible. When this was done, in answer to an inquiry of his,she informed him of the manner in which their companions had disposed ofthemselves. He listened attentively, for the manner of the girl was soearnest and impressive as to apprise him that she had something on hermind of more than common concern.
"And now, Deerslayer," Judith continued, "you see I have lighted thelamp, and put it in the cabin of the Ark. That is never done withus, unless on great occasions, and I consider this night as the mostimportant of my life. Will you follow me and see what I have to showyou--hear what I have to say."
The hunter was a little surprised, but, making no objections, both weresoon in the scow, and in the room that contained the light. Here twostools were placed at the side of the chest, with the lamp on another,and a table near by to receive the different articles as they mightbe brought to view. This arrangement had its rise in the feverishimpatience of the girl, which could brook no delay that it was inher power to obviate. Even all the padlocks were removed, and it onlyremained to raise the heavy lid, again, to expose all the treasures ofthis long secreted hoard.
"I see, in part, what all this means," observed Deerslayer--"yes, I seethrough it, in part. But why is not Hetty present? Now Thomas Hutter isgone, she is one of the owners of these cur'osities, and ought to seethem opened and handled."
"Hetty sleeps--" answered Judith, huskily. "Happily for her, fineclothes and riches have no charms. Besides she has this night given hershare of all that the chest may hold to me, that I may do with it as Iplease."
"Is poor Hetty compass enough for that, Judith?" demanded thejust-minded young man. "It's a good rule and a righteous one, never totake when them that give don't know the valie of their gifts; and suchas God has visited heavily in their wits ought to be dealt with ascarefully as children that haven't yet come to their understandings."
Judith was hurt at this rebuke, coming from the person it did, butshe would have felt it far more keenly had not her conscience fullyacquitted her of any unjust intentions towards her feeble-minded butconfiding sister. It was not a moment, however, to betray any of herusual mountings of the spirit, and she smothered the passing sensationin the desire to come to the great object she had in view.
"Hetty will not be wronged," she mildly answered; "she even knows notonly what I am about to do, Deerslayer, but why I do it. So take yourseat, raise the lid of the chest, and this time we will go to thebottom. I shall be disappointed if something is not found to tell usmore of the history of Thomas Hutter and my mother."
"Why Thomas Hutter, Judith, and not your father? The dead ought to meetwith as much reverence as the living!"
"I have long suspected that Thomas Hutter was not my father, though Idid think he might have been Hetty's, but now we know he was the fatherof neither. He acknowledged that much in his dying moments. I am oldenough to remember better things than we have seen on this lake, thoughthey are so faintly impressed on my memory that the earlier part of mylife seems like a dream."
"Dreams are but miserable guides when one has to detarmine aboutrealities, Judith," returned the other admonishingly. "Fancy nothing andhope nothing on their account, though I've known chiefs that thought 'emuseful."
"I expect nothing for the future from them, my good friend, but cannothelp remembering what has been. This is idle, however, when half an hourof examination may tell us all, or even more than I want to know."
Deerslayer, who comprehended the girl's impatience, now took his seatand proceeded once more to bring to light the different articles thatthe chest contained. As a matter of course, all that had been previouslyexamined were found where they had been last deposited, and they excitedmuch less interest or comment than when formerly exposed to view. EvenJudith laid aside the rich brocade with an air of indifference, for shehad a far higher aim before her than the indulgence of vanity, and wasimpatient to come at the still hidden, or rather unknown, treasures.
"All these we have seen before," she said, "and will not stop to open.The bundle under your hand, Deerslayer, is a fresh one; that we willlook into. God send it may contain something to tell poor Hetty andmyself who we really are!"
"Ay, if some bundles could speak, they might tell wonderful secrets,"returned the young man deliberately undoing the folds of another pieceof course canvass, in order to come at the contents of the roll that layon his knees: "though this doesn't seem to be one of that family, seeing'tis neither more nor less than a sort of flag, though of what nation,it passes my l'arnin' to say."
"That flag must have some meaning to it--" Judith hurriedly interposed."Open it wider, Deerslayer, that we may see the colours."
"Well, I pity the ensign that has to shoulder this cloth, and to paradeit about on the field. Why 'tis large enough, Judith, to make a dozen ofthem colours the King's officers set so much store by. These can be noensign's colours, but a gin'ral's!"
"A ship might carry it, Deerslayer, and ships I know do use such things.Have you never heard any fearful stories about Thomas Hutter's havingonce been concerned with the people they call buccaneers?"
"Buck-ah-near! Not I--not I--I never heard him mentioned as good at abuck far off, or near by. Hurry Harry did till me something about itsbeing supposed that he had formerly, in some way or other, dealings withsartain sea robbers, but, Lord, Judith, it can't surely give you anysatisfaction to make out that ag'in your mother's own husband, though heisn't your father."
"Anything will give me satisfaction that tells me who I am, and helps toexplain the dreams of childhood. My mother's husband! Yes, he must havebeen that, though why a woman like her, should have chosen a man likehim, is more than mortal reason can explain. You never saw mother,Deerslayer, and can't feel the vast, vast difference there was betweenthem!"
"Such things do happen, howsever;--yes, they do happen; though whyprovidence lets them come to pass is more than I understand. I've knewthe f'ercest warriors with the gentlest wives of any in the tribe, andawful scolds fall to the lot of Injins fit to be missionaries."
"That was not it, Deerslayer; that was not it. Oh! if it should provethat--no; I cannot wish she should not have been his wife at all. Thatno daughter can wish for her own mother! Go on, now, and let us see whatthe square looking bundle holds."
Deerslayer complied, and he found that it contained a small trunk ofpretty workmanship, but fastened. The next point was to find a key; but,search proving ineffectual, it was determined to force the lock. ThisDeerslayer soon effected by the aid of an iron instrument, and itwas found that the interior was nearly filled with papers. Many wereletters; some fragments of manuscripts, memorandums, accounts, and othersimilar documents. The hawk does not pounce upon the chicken with a moresudden swoop than Judith sprang forward to seize this mine of hithertoconcealed knowledge. Her education, as the reader will have perce
ived,was far superior to her situation in life, and her eye glanced over pageafter page of the letters with a readiness that her schooling supplied,and with an avidity that found its origin in her feelings. At first itwas evident that the girl was gratified; and we may add with reason, forthe letters written by females, in innocence and affection, were of acharacter to cause her to feel proud of those with whom she had everyreason to think she was closely connected by the ties of blood. It doesnot come within the scope of our plan to give more of these epistles,however, than a general idea of their contents, and this will best bedone by describing the effect they produced on the manner, appearance,and feeling of her who was so eagerly perusing them.
It has been said, already, that Judith was much gratified with theletters that first met her eye. They contained the correspondence ofan affectionate and inteffigent mother to an absent daughter, with suchallusions to the answers as served in a great measure to fill up thevacuum left by the replies. They were not without admonitions andwarnings, however, and Judith felt the blood mounting to her temples,and a cold shudder succeeding, as she read one in which the proprietyof the daughter's indulging in as much intimacy as had evidently beendescribed in one of the daughter's own letters, with an officer "whocame from Europe, and who could hardly be supposed to wish to form anhonorable connection in America," was rather coldly commented on by themother. What rendered it singular was the fact that the signatures hadbeen carefully cut from every one of these letters, and wherever a nameoccurred in the body of the epistles it had been erased with so muchdiligence as to render it impossible to read it. They had all beenenclosed in envelopes, according to the fashion of the age, and not anaddress either was to be found. Still the letters themselves had beenreligiously preserved, and Judith thought she could discover traces oftears remaining on several. She now remembered to have seen the littletrunk in her mother's keeping, previously to her death, and she supposedit had first been deposited in the chest, along with the other forgottenor concealed objects, when the letters could no longer contribute tothat parent's grief or happiness.
Next came another bundle, and these were filled with the protestationsof love, written with passion certainly, but also with that deceit whichmen so often think it justifiable to use to the other sex. Judithhad shed tears abundantly over the first packet, but now she felt asentiment of indignation and pride better sustaining her. Her handshook, however, and cold shivers again passed through her frame, as shediscovered a few points of strong resemblance between these letters andsome it had been her own fate to receive. Once, indeed, she laid thepacket down, bowed her head to her knees, and seemed nearly convulsed.All this time Deerslayer sat a silent but attentive observer of everything that passed. As Judith read a letter she put it into his hands tohold until she could peruse the next; but this served in no degree toenlighten her companion, as he was totally unable to read. Neverthelesshe was not entirely at fault in discovering the passions that werecontending in the bosom of the fair creature by his side, and, asoccasional sentences escaped her in murmurs, he was nearer the truth, inhis divinations, or conjectures, than the girl would have been pleasedat discovering.
Judith had commenced with the earliest letters, luckily for a readycomprehension of the tale they told, for they were carefully arranged inchronological order, and to any one who would take the trouble to perusethem, would have revealed a sad history of gratified passion, coldness,and finally of aversion. As she obtained the clue to their import, herimpatience would not admit of delay, and she soon got to glancing hereyes over a page by way of coming at the truth in the briefest mannerpossible. By adopting this expedient, one to which all who are eager toarrive at results without encumbering themselves with details are so aptto resort, Judith made a rapid progress in these melancholy revelationsof her mother's failing and punishment. She saw that the period of herown birth was distinctly referred to, and even learned that the homelyname she bore was given her by the father, of whose person she retainedso faint an impression as to resemble a dream. This name was notobliterated from the text of the letters, but stood as if nothing was tobe gained by erasing it. Hetty's birth was mentioned once, and in thatinstance the name was the mother's, but ere this period was reached camethe signs of coldness, shadowing forth the desertion that was so soon tofollow. It was in this stage of the correspondence that her mother hadrecourse to the plan of copying her own epistles. They were but few, butwere eloquent with the feelings of blighted affection, and contrition.Judith sobbed over them, until again and again she felt compelled tolay them aside from sheer physical inability to see; her eyes beingliterally obscured with tears. Still she returned to the task, withincreasing interest, and finally succeeded in reaching the end of thelatest communication that had probably ever passed between her parents.
All this occupied fully an hour, for near a hundred letters were glancedat, and some twenty had been closely read. The truth now shone clearupon the acute mind of Judith, so far as her own birth and that of Hettywere concerned. She sickened at the conviction, and for the momentthe rest of the world seemed to be cut off from her, and she had nowadditional reasons for wishing to pass the remainder of her life on thelake, where she had already seen so many bright and so many sorrowingdays.
There yet remained more letters to examine. Judith found these were acorrespondence between her mother and Thomas Hovey. The originals ofboth parties were carefully arranged, letter and answer, side byside; and they told the early history of the connection between theill-assorted pair far more plainly than Judith wished to learn it. Hermother made the advances towards a marriage, to the surprise, not tosay horror of her daughter, and she actually found a relief whenshe discovered traces of what struck her as insanity--or a morbiddesperation, bordering on that dire calamity--in the earlier letters ofthat ill-fated woman. The answers of Hovey were coarse and illiterate,though they manifested a sufficient desire to obtain the hand of a womanof singular personal attractions, and whose great error he was willingto overlook for the advantage of possessing one every way so much hissuperior, and who it also appeared was not altogether destitute ofmoney. The remainder of this part of the correspondence was brief, andit was soon confined to a few communications on business, in whichthe miserable wife hastened the absent husband in his preparations toabandon a world which there was a sufficient reason to think was asdangerous to one of the parties as it was disagreeable to the other. Buta sincere expression had escaped her mother, by which Judith could get aclue to the motives that had induced her to marry Hovey, or Hutter, andthis she found was that feeling of resentment which so often tempts theinjured to inflict wrongs on themselves by way of heaping coals on theheads of those through whom they have suffered. Judith had enough of thespirit of that mother to comprehend this sentiment, and for a moment didshe see the exceeding folly which permitted such revengeful feelings toget the ascendancy.
There what may be called the historical part of the papers ceased. Amongthe loose fragments, however, was an old newspaper that containeda proclamation offering a reward for the apprehension of certainfree-booters by name, among which was that of Thomas Hovey. Theattention of the girl was drawn to the proclamation and to thisparticular name by the circumstance that black lines had been drawnunder both, in ink. Nothing else was found among the papers that couldlead to a discovery of either the name or the place of residence of thewife of Hutter. All the dates, signatures, and addresses had beencut from the letters, and wherever a word occurred in the body of thecommunications that might furnish a clue, it was scrupulously erased.Thus Judith found all her hopes of ascertaining who her parents weredefeated, and she was obliged to fall back on her own resources andhabits for everything connected with the future. Her recollection of hermother's manners, conversation, and sufferings filled up many a gapin the historical facts she had now discovered, and the truth, inits outlines, stood sufficiently distinct before her to take away alldesire, indeed, to possess any more details. Throwing herself back inher seat, she simply desired her companio
n to finish the examination ofthe other articles in the chest, as it might yet contain something ofimportance.
"I'll do it, Judith; I'll do it," returned the patient Deerslayer, "butif there's many more letters to read, we shall see the sun ag'in aforeyou've got through with the reading of them! Two good hours have youbeen looking at them bits of papers!"
"They tell me of my parents, Deerslayer, and have settled my plans forlife. A girl may be excused, who reads about her own father and mother,and that too for the first time in her life! I am sorry to have kept youwaiting."
"Never mind me, gal; never mind me. It matters little whether I sleepor watch; but though you be pleasant to look at, and are so handsome,Judith, it is not altogether agreeable to sit so long to behold youshedding tears. I know that tears don't kill, and that some people arebetter for shedding a few now and then, especially young women; but I'drather see you smile any time, Judith, than see you weep."
This gallant speech was rewarded with a sweet, though a melancholysmile; and then the girl again desired her companion to finish theexamination of the chest. The search necessarily continued some time,during which Judith collected her thoughts and regained her composure.She took no part in the search, leaving everything to the youngman, looking listlessly herself at the different articles that cameuppermost. Nothing further of much interest or value, however, wasfound. A sword or two, such as were then worn by gentlemen, some bucklesof silver, or so richly plated as to appear silver, and a few handsomearticles of female dress, composed the principal discoveries. It struckboth Judith and the Deerslayer, notwithstanding, that some of thesethings might be made useful in effecting a negotiation with theIroquois, though the latter saw a difficulty in the way that was not soapparent to the former. The conversation was first renewed in connectionwith this point.
"And now, Deerslayer," said Judith, "we may talk of yourself, and of themeans of getting you out of the hands of the Hurons. Any part, or allof what you have seen in the chest, will be cheerfully given by me andHetty to set you at liberty."
"Well, that's gin'rous,--yes, 'tis downright free-hearted, andfree-handed, and gin'rous. This is the way with women; when they take upa fri'ndship, they do nothing by halves, but are as willing to part withtheir property as if it had no value in their eyes. However, while Ithank you both, just as much as if the bargain was made, and Rivenoak,or any of the other vagabonds, was here to accept and close the treaty,there's two principal reasons why it can never come to pass, which maybe as well told at once, in order no onlikely expectations may be raisedin you, or any onjustifiable hopes in me."
"What reason can there be, if Hetty and I are willing to part with thetrifles for your sake, and the savages are willing to receive them?"
"That's it, Judith; you've got the idees, but they're a little out oftheir places, as if a hound should take the back'ard instead of theleading scent. That the Mingos will be willing to receive them things,or any more like 'em you may have to offer is probable enough, butwhether they'll pay valie for 'em is quite another matter. Ask yourself,Judith, if any one should send you a message to say that, for such orsuch a price, you and Hetty might have that chist and all it holds,whether you'd think it worth your while to waste many words on thebargain?"
"But this chest and all it holds, are already ours; there is no reasonwhy we should purchase what is already our own."
"Just so the Mingos caculate! They say the chist is theirn, already; or,as good as theirn, and they'll not thank anybody for the key."
"I understand you, Deerslayer; surely we are yet in possession of thelake, and we can keep possession of it until Hurry sends troops to driveoff the enemy. This we may certainly do provided you will stay with us,instead of going back and giving yourself up a prisoner, again, as younow seem determined on."
"That Hurry Harry should talk in this-a-way, is nat'ral, and according tothe gifts of the man. He knows no better, and, therefore, he is littlelikely to feel or to act any better; but, Judith, I put it to your heartand conscience--would you, could you think of me as favorably, as I hopeand believe you now do, was I to forget my furlough and not go back tothe camp?"
"To think more favorably of you than I now do, Deerslayer, would notbe easy; but I might continue to think as favorably--at least it seemsso--I hope I could, for a world wouldn't tempt me to let you do anythingthat might change my real opinion of you."
"Then don't try to entice me to overlook my furlough, gal! A furloughis a sacred thing among warriors and men that carry their lives in theirhands, as we of the forests do, and what a grievous disapp'intment wouldit be to old Tamenund, and to Uncas, the father of the Sarpent, and tomy other fri'nds in the tribe, if I was so to disgrace myself on my veryfirst war-path. This you will pairceive, moreover, Judith, is withoutlaying any stress on nat'ral gifts, and a white man's duties, to saynothing of conscience. The last is king with me, and I try never todispute his orders."
"I believe you are right, Deerslayer," returned the girl, after a littlereflection and in a saddened voice: "a man like you ought not to actas the selfish and dishonest would be apt to act; you must, indeed,go back. We will talk no more of this, then. Should I persuade you toanything for which you would be sorry hereafter, my own regret would notbe less than yours. You shall not have it to say, Judith--I scarce knowby what name to call myself, now!"
"And why not? Why not, gal? Children take the names of their parents,nat'rally, and by a sort of gift, like, and why shouldn't you and Hettydo as others have done afore ye? Hutter was the old man's name, andHutter should be the name of his darters;--at least until you are givenaway in lawful and holy wedlock."
"I am Judith, and Judith only," returned the girl positively--"until thelaw gives me a right to another name. Never will I use that of ThomasHutter again; nor, with my consent, shall Hetty! Hutter was not even hisown name, I find, but had he a thousand rights to it, it would give noneto me. He was not my father, thank heaven; though I may have no reasonto be proud of him that was!"
"This is strange!" said Deerslayer, looking steadily at the excitedgirl, anxious to know more, but unwilling to inquire into matters thatdid not properly concern him; "yes, this is very strange and oncommon!Thomas Hutter wasn't Thomas Hutter, and his darters weren't his darters!Who, then, could Thomas Hutter be, and who are his darters?"
"Did you never hear anything whispered against the former life of thisperson, Deerslayer?" demanded Judith "Passing, as I did, for his child,such reports reached even me."
"I'll not deny it, Judith; no, I'll not deny it. Sartain things havebeen said, as I've told you, but I'm not very credible as to reports.Young as I am, I've lived long enough to l'arn there's two sorts ofcharacters in the world--them that is 'arned by deeds, and them that is'arned by tongues, and so I prefar to see and judge for myself, insteadof letting every jaw that chooses to wag become my judgment. Hurry Harryspoke pretty plainly of the whole family, as we journeyed this-a-way,and he did hint something consarning Thomas Hutter's having been afree-liver on the water, in his younger days. By free-liver, I mean thathe made free to live on other men's goods."
"He told you he was a pirate--there is no need of mincing mattersbetween friends. Read that, Deerslayer, and you will see that he toldyou no more than the truth. This Thomas Hovey was the Thomas Hutter youknew, as is seen by these letters."
As Judith spoke, with a flushed cheek and eyes dazzling with thebrilliancy of excitement, she held the newspaper towards her companion,pointing to the proclamation of a Colonial Governor, already mentioned.
"Bless you, Judith!" answered the other laughing, "you might as well askme to print that--or, for that matter to write it. My edication has beenaltogether in the woods; the only book I read, or care about reading,is the one which God has opened afore all his creatur's in the nobleforests, broad lakes, rolling rivers, blue skies, and the winds andtempests, and sunshine, and other glorious marvels of the land! Thisbook I can read, and I find it full of wisdom and knowledge."
"I crave your pardon, Deerslayer
," said Judith, earnestly, more abashedthan was her wont, in finding that she had in advertently made an appealthat might wound her compan ion's pride. "I had forgotten your manner oflife, and least of all did I wish to hurt your feelings."
"Hurt my feelin's? Why should it hurt my feelin's to ask me to read,when I can't read. I'm a hunter--and I may now begin to say a warrior,and no missionary, and therefore books and papers are of no account withsuch as I--No, no--Judith," and here the young man laughed cordially,"not even for wads, seeing that your true deerkiller always uses thehide of a fa'a'n, if he's got one, or some other bit of leather suitablyprepared. There's some that do say, all that stands in print is true,in which case I'll own an unl'arned man must be somewhat of a loser;nevertheless, it can't be truer than that which God has printed with hisown hand in the sky, and the woods, and the rivers, and the springs."
"Well, then, Hutter, or Hovey, was a pirate, and being no father ofmine, I cannot wish to call him one. His name shall no longer be myname."
"If you dislike the name of that man, there's the name of your mother,Judith. Her'n may sarve you just as good a turn."
"I do not know it. I've look'd through those papers, Deerslayer, in thehope of finding some hint by which I might discover who my mother was,but there is no more trace of the past, in that respect, than the birdleaves in the air."
"That's both oncommon, and onreasonable. Parents are bound to give theiroffspring a name, even though they give 'em nothing else. Now I come ofa humble stock, though we have white gifts and a white natur', but weare not so poorly off as to have no name. Bumppo we are called, and I'veheard it said--" a touch of human vanity glowing on his cheek, "that thetime has been when the Bumppos had more standing and note among mankindthan they have just now."
"They never deserved them more, Deerslayer, and the name is a good one;either Hetty, or myself, would a thousand times rather be called HettyBumppo, or Judith Bumppo, than to be called Hetty or Judith Hutter."
"That's a moral impossible," returned the hunter, good humouredly,"onless one of you should so far demean herself as to marry me."
Judith could not refrain from smiling, when she found how simply andnaturally the conversation had come round to the very point at which shehad aimed to bring it. Although far from unfeminine or forward, eitherin her feelings or her habits, the girl was goaded by a sense of wrongsnot altogether merited, incited by the hopelessness of a future thatseemed to contain no resting place, and still more influenced byfeelings that were as novel to her as they proved to be active andengrossing. The opening was too good, therefore, to be neglected,though she came to the subject with much of the indirectness and perhapsjustifiable address of a woman.
"I do not think Hetty will ever marry, Deerslayer," she said, "and ifyour name is to be borne by either of us, it must be borne by me."
"There's been handsome women too, they tell me, among the Bumppos,Judith, afore now, and should you take up with the name, oncommon as yoube in this particular, them that knows the family won't be altogethersurprised."
"This is not talking as becomes either of us, Deerslayer, for whateveris said on such a subject, between man and woman, should be saidseriously and in sincerity of heart. Forgetting the shame that ought tokeep girls silent until spoken to, in most cases, I will deal with youas frankly as I know one of your generous nature will most like to bedealt by. Can you--do you think, Deerslayer, that you could be happywith such a wife as a woman like myself would make?"
"A woman like you, Judith! But where's the sense in trifling about sucha thing? A woman like you, that is handsome enough to be a captain'slady, and fine enough, and so far as I know edicated enough, would belittle apt to think of becoming my wife. I suppose young gals thatfeel themselves to be smart, and know themselves to be handsome, find asartain satisfaction in passing their jokes ag'in them that's neither,like a poor Delaware hunter."
This was said good naturedly, but not without a betrayal of feelingwhich showed that something like mortified sensibility was blendedwith the reply. Nothing could have occurred more likely to awaken allJudith's generous regrets, or to aid her in her purpose, by adding thestimulant of a disinterested desire to atone to her other impulses, andcloaking all under a guise so winning and natural, as greatly to lessenthe unpleasant feature of a forwardness unbecoming the sex.
"You do me injustice if you suppose I have any such thought, or wish,"she answered, earnestly. "Never was I more serious in my life, or morewilling to abide by any agreement that we may make to-night. I have hadmany suitors, Deerslayer--nay, scarce an unmarried trapper or hunterhas been in at the Lake these four years, who has not offered to take meaway with him, and I fear some that were married, too--"
"Ay, I'll warrant that!" interrupted the other--"I'll warrant all that!Take 'em as a body, Judith, 'arth don't hold a set of men more given totheirselves, and less given to God and the law."
"Not one of them would I--could I listen to; happily for myself perhaps,has it been that such was the case. There have been well looking youthsamong them too, as you may have seen in your acquaintance, Henry March."
"Yes, Harry is sightly to the eye, though, to my idees, less so to thejudgment. I thought, at first, you meant to have him, Judith, I did; butafore he went, it was easy enough to verify that the same lodge wouldn'tbe big enough for you both."
"You have done me justice in that at least, Deerslayer. Hurry is a man Icould never marry, though he were ten times more comely to the eye, anda hundred times more stout of heart than he really is."
"Why not, Judith, why not? I own I'm cur'ous to know why a youth likeHurry shouldn't find favor with a maiden like you?"
"Then you shall know, Deerslayer," returned the girl, gladly availingherself of the opportunity of indirectly extolling the qualities whichhad so strongly interested her in her listener; hoping by these meanscovertly to approach the subject nearest her heart. "In the first place,looks in a man are of no importance with a woman, provided he is manly,and not disfigured, or deformed."
"There I can't altogether agree with you," returned the otherthoughtfully, for he had a very humble opinion of his own personalappearance; "I have noticed that the comeliest warriors commonly get thebest-looking maidens of the tribe for wives, and the Sarpent, yonder,who is sometimes wonderful in his paint, is a gineral favorite with allthe Delaware young women, though he takes to Hist, himself, as if shewas the only beauty on 'arth!"
"It may be so with Indians; but it is different with white girls. Solong as a young man has a straight and manly frame, that promises tomake him able to protect a woman, and to keep want from the door, it isall they ask of the figure. Giants like Hurry may do for grenadiers, butare of little account as lovers. Then as to the face, an honest look,one that answers for the heart within, is of more value than any shapeor colour, or eyes, or teeth, or trifles like them. The last may do forgirls, but who thinks of them at all, in a hunter, or a warrior, or ahusband? If there are women so silly, Judith is not among them."
"Well, this is wonderful! I always thought that handsome liked handsome,as riches love riches!"
"It may be so with you men, Deerslayer, but it is not always so with uswomen. We like stout-hearted men, but we wish to see them modest; sureon a hunt, or the war-path, ready to die for the right, and unwilling toyield to the wrong. Above all we wish for honesty--tongues that are notused to say what the mind does not mean, and hearts that feel a littlefor others, as well as for themselves. A true-hearted girl could die forsuch a husband! while the boaster, and the double-tongued suitor gets tobe as hateful to the sight, as he is to the mind."
Judith spoke bitterly, and with her usual force, but her listener wastoo much struck with the novelty of the sensations he experienced toadvert to her manner. There was something so soothing to the humility ofa man of his temperament, to hear qualities that he could not but knowhe possessed himself, thus highly extolled by the loveliest female hehad ever beheld, that, for the moment, his faculties seemed suspendedin a natural and excusable
pride. Then it was that the idea of thepossibility of such a creature as Judith becoming his companion for lifefirst crossed his mind. The image was so pleasant, and so novel, thathe continued completely absorbed by it for more than a minute, totallyregardless of the beautiful reality that was seated before him, watchingthe expression of his upright and truth-telling countenance with akeenness that gave her a very fair, if not an absolutely accurate clueto his thoughts. Never before had so pleasing a vision floated beforethe mind's eye of the young hunter, but, accustomed most to practicalthings, and little addicted to submitting to the power of hisimagination, even while possessed of so much true poetical feeling inconnection with natural objects in particular, he soon recovered hisreason, and smiled at his own weakness, as the fancied picture fadedfrom his mental sight, and left him the simple, untaught, but highlymoral being he was, seated in the Ark of Thomas Hutter, at midnight,with the lovely countenance of its late owner's reputed daughter,beaming on him with anxious scrutiny, by the light of the solitary lamp.
"You're wonderful handsome, and enticing, and pleasing to look on,Judith!" he exclaimed, in his simplicity, as fact resumed its ascendencyover fancy. "Wonderful! I don't remember ever to have seen so beautifula gal, even among the Delawares; and I'm not astonished that Hurry Harrywent away soured as well as disapp'inted!"
"Would you have had me, Deerslayer, become the wife of such a man asHenry March?"
"There's that which is in his favor, and there's that which is ag'inhim. To my taste, Hurry wouldn't make the best of husbands, but I fearthat the tastes of most young women, hereaway, wouldn't be so hard uponhim."
"No--no--Judith without a name would never consent to be called JudithMarch! Anything would be better than that."
"Judith Bumppo wouldn't sound as well, gal; and there's many names thatwould fall short of March, in pleasing the ear."
"Ah! Deerslayer, the pleasantness of the sound, in such cases, doesn'tcome through the ear, but through the heart. Everything is agreeable,when the heart is satisfied. Were Natty Bumppo, Henry March, and HenryMarch, Natty Bumppo, I might think the name of March better than it is;or were he, you, I should fancy the name of Bumppo horrible!"
"That's just it--yes, that's the reason of the matter. Now, I'mnat'rally avarse to sarpents, and I hate even the word, which, themissionaries tell me, comes from human natur', on account of a sartainsarpent at the creation of the 'arth, that outwitted the first woman;yet, ever since Chingachgook has 'arned the title he bears, why thesound is as pleasant to my ears as the whistle of the whippoorwill of acalm evening--it is. The feelin's make all the difference in the world,Judith, in the natur' of sounds; ay, even in that of looks, too."
"This is so true, Deerslayer, that I am surprised you should think itremarkable a girl, who may have some comeliness herself, should notthink it necessary that her husband should have the same advantage, orwhat you fancy an advantage. To me, looks in a man is nothing providedhis countenance be as honest as his heart."
"Yes, honesty is a great advantage, in the long run; and they that arethe most apt to forget it in the beginning, are the most apt to l'arnit in the ind. Nevertheless, there's more, Judith, that look to presentprofit than to the benefit that is to come after a time. One they thinka sartainty, and the other an onsartainty. I'm glad, howsever, that youlook at the thing in its true light, and not in the way in which so manyis apt to deceive themselves."
"I do thus look at it, Deerslayer," returned the girl with emphasis,still shrinking with a woman's sensitiveness from a direct offer of herhand, "and can say, from the bottom of my heart, that I would rathertrust my happiness to a man whose truth and feelings may be dependedon, than to a false-tongued and false-hearted wretch that had chestsof gold, and houses and lands--yes, though he were even seated on athrone!"
"These are brave words, Judith; they're downright brave words; butdo you think that the feelin's would keep 'em company, did the ch'iceactually lie afore you? If a gay gallant in a scarlet coat stood on oneside, with his head smelling like a deer's foot, his face smooth andblooming as your own, his hands as white and soft as if God hadn'tbestowed 'em that man might live by the sweat of his brow, and his stepas lofty as dancing-teachers and a light heart could make it; and theother side stood one that has passed his days in the open air till hisforehead is as red as his cheek; had cut his way through swamps andbushes till his hand was as rugged as the oaks he slept under; hadtrodden on the scent of game till his step was as stealthy as thecatamount's, and had no other pleasant odor about him than such asnatur' gives in the free air and the forest--now, if both these menstood here, as suitors for your feelin's, which do you think would winyour favor?"
Judith's fine face flushed, for the picture that her companion hadso simply drawn of a gay officer of the garrisons had once beenparticularly grateful to her imagination, though experience anddisappointment had not only chilled all her affections, but given them abackward current, and the passing image had a momentary influence on herfeelings; but the mounting colour was succeeded by a paleness so deadly,as to make her appear ghastly.
"As God is my judge," the girl solemnly answered, "did both these menstand before me, as I may say one of them does, my choice, if I know myown heart, would be the latter. I have no wish for a husband who is anyway better than myself."
"This is pleasant to listen to, and might lead a young man in time toforget his own onworthiness, Judith! Howsever, you hardly think all thatyou say. A man like me is too rude and ignorant for one that has hadsuch a mother to teach her. Vanity is nat'ral, I do believe, but vanitylike that, would surpass reason."
"Then you do not know of what a woman's heart is capable! Rude you arenot, Deerslayer, nor can one be called ignorant that has studied whatis before his eyes as closely as you have done. When the affections areconcerned, all things appear in their pleasantest colors, and triflesare overlooked, or are forgotten. When the heart feels sunshine, nothingis gloomy, even dull looking objects, seeming gay and bright, and so itwould be between you and the woman who should love you, even though yourwife might happen, in some matters, to possess what the world calls theadvantage over you."
"Judith, you come of people altogether above mine, in the world, andonequal matches, like onequal fri'ndships can't often tarminate kindly.I speak of this matter altogether as a fanciful thing, since it's notvery likely that you, at least, would be apt to treat it as a matterthat can ever come to pass."
Judith fastened her deep blue eyes on the open, frank countenance ofher companion, as if she would read his soul. Nothing there betrayedany covert meaning, and she was obliged to admit to herself, that heregarded the conversation as argumentative, rather than positive, andthat he was still without any active suspicion that her feelings wereseriously involved in the issue. At first, she felt offended; then shesaw the injustice of making the self-abasement and modesty of the huntera charge against him, and this novel difficulty gave a piquancy to thestate of affairs that rather increased her interest in the young man. Atthat critical instant, a change of plan flashed on her mind, and witha readiness of invention that is peculiar to the quick-witted andingenious, she adopted a scheme by which she hoped effectually to bindhim to her person. This scheme partook equally of her fertility ofinvention, and of the decision and boldness of her character. That theconversation might not terminate too abruptly, however, or any suspicionof her design exist, she answered the last remark of Deerslayer, asearnestly and as truly as if her original intention remained unaltered.
"I, certainly, have no reason to boast of parentage, after what I haveseen this night," said the girl, in a saddened voice. "I had a mother,it is true; but of her name even, I am ignorant--and, as for my father,it is better, perhaps, that I should never know who he was, lest I speaktoo bitterly of him!"
"Judith," said Deerslayer, taking her hand kindly, and with a manlysincerity that went directly to the girl's heart, "tis better to say nomore to-night. Sleep on what you've seen and felt; in the morningthings that now look gloomy, may look m
ore che'rful. Above all, neverdo anything in bitterness, or because you feel as if you'd like to takerevenge on yourself for other people's backslidings. All that has beensaid or done atween us, this night, is your secret, and shall never betalked of by me, even with the Sarpent, and you may be sartain if hecan't get it out of me no man can. If your parents have been faulty, letthe darter be less so; remember that you're young, and the youthful mayalways hope for better times; that you're more quick-witted than usual,and such gin'rally get the better of difficulties, and that, as forbeauty, you're oncommon, which is an advantage with all. It is time toget a little rest, for to-morrow is like to prove a trying day to someof us."
Deerslayer arose as he spoke, and Judith had no choice but to comply.The chest was closed and secured, and they parted in silence, she totake her place by the side of Hist and Hetty, and he to seek a blanketon the floor of the cabin he was in. It was not five minutes ere theyoung man was in a deep sleep, but the girl continued awake for a longtime. She scarce knew whether to lament, or to rejoice, at havingfailed in making herself understood. On the one hand were her womanlysensibilities spared; on the other was the disappointment of defeated,or at least of delayed expectations, and the uncertainty of a futurethat looked so dark. Then came the new resolution, and the bold projectfor the morrow, and when drowsiness finally shut her eyes, they closedon a scene of success and happiness, that was pictured by the fancy,under the influence of a sanguine temperament, and a happy invention.