CHAPTER VIII
_Madame Seeks Counsel_
There are many evil things in the world which are best obviated by beinglet severely alone.
The clumsy-minded Hercules had to be taught this fact. Tradition relatesthat at one time he met an insignificant-looking toad in his path whichhe would have passed by in disdain had it not been for its particularlyugly appearance. Thinking to do the world a service by destroying it hethumped the reptile with his club, when, to his surprise, instead ofbeing crushed by the impact, the beast grew to twice its former size.Repeated and heavier blows only multiplied its dimensions and ugliness,until at length the thoroughly frightened hero divested himself of hisclothing with the intention of putting an end to his antagonist. Hisformidable club was again raised, but before it could descend, he wascounselled to wait. This he did, and to his greater surprise the uglybeast began to shrink, and finally disappeared.
Pierre had no convenient goddess to instruct him in critical moments, sohe depended on his own wit. Of this he had inherited a liberal portion,and this by diligent cultivation had been added to manyfold. So ithappened that after Madame's surprising exhibition of an unsuspectedwill of her own, and her declaration of her intention to enforce it,Pierre had studiously let her alone.
This course of action was as surprising to Madame as it wasdisconcerting. The consequences were such as her wily husband hadforeseen. Encountering no externally resisting medium, its force waswasted by internal attrition, so that Madame was being reduced to anervous wreck, all of which was duly appreciated by Pierre.
This particular instance, being expanded into a general law, teaches usthat oftentimes the nimble wit of an agile villain prevails against theclumsy brains of a lofty-minded hero.
Madame had had long years of patient endurance to train her in waiting;but the endurance had been passive and purposeless, rather than active,and with a well-defined object. Now that an object was to be attained byaction the lessons of patient endurance counted for naught. Instead ofdetermined action against her open revolt, Pierre had been smilinglyobsequious and non-resisting.
She knew very well that Pierre had been neither cowed into submissionnor frightened from his purpose; but his policy of non-interferencepuzzled and terrified her. She knew not at what moment he might confronther with a move that she would have neither time nor power to check. Inthis state of mind day after day passed by with wearing regularity. Shefelt the time going, every moment fraught with the necessity of action,but without the slightest suggestion as to what she ought to do.Pierre's toast might be burned to a crisp, his eggs scorched, or hiscoffee muddy, but there was no word of complaint. Regular or irregularhours for meals were passed over with the same discomposing smiles. Shedid not dare unburden her mind to Elise, for fear of letting drop someuntimely word which would immediately precipitate the impending crisis.For the first time in her life Elise was subjected to petulant words andirritating repulses by the sorely perplexed woman.
One evening, after a particularly trying day during which Elise had beenstung into biting retorts, an inspiration came to Madame that rolledevery threatening cloud from her mind.
The next morning, after long waiting, Pierre came to the dining-room,but found neither breakfast nor Madame, and for the best of reasons.With the first grey light of morning, Madame had slipped from the doorof the Blue Goose, and before the sun had gilded the head of BallardMountain she was far up the trail that led to the Inferno.
Zephyr was moving deliberately about a little fire on which hisbreakfast was cooking, pursing his lips in meditative whistles, orengaged in audible discussion with himself on the various topics whichfloated through his mind. An unusual clatter of displaced rocks broughthis dialogue to a sudden end; a sharp look down the trail shrank hislips to a low whistle; the sight of a hard knob of dingy hair, strainedback from a pair of imploring eyes fringed by colourless lashes, swepthis hat from his head, and sent him clattering down to Madame withoutstretched hands.
"You're right, Madame. You're on the right trail, and it's but littlefarther. It's rather early for St. Peter, it's likely he's taking hisbeauty sleep yet; but I'll see that it's broken, unless you have aprivate key to the Golden Gates, which you deserve, if you haven't gotit." His address of welcome had brought him to Madame's side.
Her only reply was a bewildered gaze, as she took his hands. With hishelp she soon reached the camp, and seated herself in a rude chair whichZephyr placed for her.
Zephyr, having seen to the comfort of his guest, returned to hisneglected breakfast.
"It takes a pretty cute angel to catch me unawares," he glanced atMadame; "but you've got the drop on me this time. Come from anunexpected direction, too. I've heard tell of Jacob's vision of angelspassing up and down, but I mostly allowed it was a pipe dream. I shallhave to annotate my ideas again, which is no uncommon experience,statements to the contrary notwithstanding." Zephyr paused from hislabours and looked inquiringly at Madame.
Madame made no reply. Her bewildered calm began to break before theapparent necessity of saying or doing something. Not having a clearperception of the fitting thing in either case, she took refuge in acopious flood of tears.
Zephyr offered no impediment to the flow, either by word or act. He wasnot especially acquainted with the ways of women, but being a closeobserver of nature and an adept at reasoning from analogy, he assumedthat a sudden storm meant equally sudden clearing, so he held his peaceand, for once, his whistle.
Zephyr's reasoning was correct. Madame's tears dried almost as suddenlyas they had started. Zephyr had filled a cup with coffee, and hetendered it deferentially to Madame.
"A peaceful stomach favours a placid mind," he remarked, casually;"which is an old observation that doesn't show its age. From which Iinfer that it has a solid foundation of truth."
Madame hesitatingly reached for the proffered coffee, then she thoughtbetter of it, and, much to Zephyr's surprise, again let loose thefountains of her tears. Zephyr glanced upward with a cocking eye, thendown the steep pass to where the broken line of rock dropped sheer intoRainbow Gulch where lay Pandora and the Blue Goose.
"About this time look for unsettled weather," he whispered to himself.Zephyr had dropped analogy and was reasoning from cold facts. He wasthinking of Elise.
Tears often clear the mind, as showers the air, and Madame's tears, withZephyr's calm, were rapidly having a salubrious effect. This time shenot only reached for the coffee on her own initiative, but, what wasmore to the purpose, drank it. She even ate some of the food Zephyrplaced before her.
Zephyr noted with approval.
"Rising barometer, with freshening winds, growing brisk, clearingweather."
Madame looked up at Zephyr's almost inaudible words.
"How?" she ventured, timidly.
"That's a fair question," Zephyr remarked, composedly. "The fact is, Iget used to talking to myself and answering a fool according to hisfolly. It's hard sledding to keep up. You see, a fellow that gets intohis store clothes only once a year or so don't know where to hang histhumbs."
Madame looked somewhat puzzled, began a stammering reply, then, droppingher useless efforts, came to her point at once.
"It's about Elise."
Zephyr answered as directly as Madame had spoken.
"Is Elise in trouble?"
"Yes. I don't know what to do." Madame paused and looked expectantly atZephyr.
"Pierre wants her to marry that Morrison?"
Madame gave a sigh of relief. There was no surprise in her face.
"Pierre says she shall not go to school and learn to despise him and me.He says she will learn to be ashamed of us before her grand friends. Doyou think she will ever be ashamed of me?" There was a yearning look inthe uncomplaining eyes.
Zephyr looked meditatively at the fire, pursed his lips, and,deliberately thrusting his hand into the bosom of his shirt, drew forthhis harmonica. He softly blew forth a few bars of a plaintive melody,then, taking the instrument from his lips, began
to speak, withoutraising his eyes.
"If my memory serves me right, I used to know a little girl on a bigranch who had a large following of beasts and birds that had got intovarious kinds of trouble, owing to their limitations as such. I alsoremember that that same little girl on several appropriate occasionsbanged hell--if you will excuse a bad word for the sake of goodemphasis--out of two-legged beasts for abusing their superior kind. Whowould fly at the devil to protect a broken-winged gosling. Who wouldcoax rainbows out of alkali water and sweet-scented flowers out of hotsand. My more recent memory seems to put it up to me that this samelittle girl, with more years on her head and a growing heart under herribs, has sat up many nights with sick infants, and fought death fromsaid infants to the great joy of their owners. From which I infer, if byany chance said little girl should be lifted up into heaven and seatedat the right hand of God, much trouble would descend upon the HolyFamily if Madame should want to be near her little Elise, and any of thesaid Holies should try to stand her off."
Madame did not fully understand, but what did it matter? Zephyr was onher side. Of that she was satisfied. She vaguely gleaned from his wordsthat, in his opinion, Elise would always love her and would never deserther. She hugged this comforting thought close to her cramped soul.
"But," she began, hesitatingly, "Pierre said that she should not go toschool, that she should marry right away."
"Pierre is a very hard shell with a very small kernel," remarked Zephyr."Which means that Pierre is going to do what he thinks is well forElise. Elise has got a pretty big hold on Pierre."
"But he promised her father that he would give back Elise to herfriends, and now he says he won't."
"Have you told Elise that Pierre is not her father?"
"No; I dare not."
"That's all right. Let me try to think out loud a little. The father andmother of Elise ran away to marry. That is why her friends know nothingof her. Her mother died before Elise was six months old, and her fatherbefore she was a yearling. Pierre promised to get Elise back to herfather's family. It wasn't just easy at that time to break through themountains and Injuns to Denver. You and Pierre waited for better times.When better times came you both had grown very fond of Elise. A year orso would make no difference to those who did not know. Now Elise issixteen. Pierre realizes that he must make a choice between now andnever. He's got a very soft spot in his heart for Elise. It's the onlyone he ever had, or ever will have. Elise isn't his. That doesn't makevery much difference. Pierre has never had any especial training ingiving up things he wants, simply because they don't belong to him. Youhaven't helped train him otherwise." Zephyr glanced at Madame. Madame'scheeks suddenly glowed, then as suddenly paled. A faint thought of whatmight have been years ago came and went. Zephyr resumed: "As long asElise is unmarried, there is danger of his being compelled to give herup. Well," Zephyr's lips grew hard, "you can set your mind at rest.Elise isn't going to marry Morrison, and when the proper time comes,which will be soon, Pierre is going to give her up."
Madame had yet one more episode upon which she needed light. She toldZephyr of Pierre's threatened attack, and of Elise's holding him off atthe point of her revolver. She felt, but was not sure, that Elise by heropen defiance had only sealed her fate.
Zephyr smiled appreciatively.
"She's got her father's grit and Pierre's example. Her sense is rattlinground in her head, as her nonsense is outside of it. She'll do all rightwithout help, if it comes to that; but it won't."
Madame rose, as if to depart. Zephyr waved her to her seat.
"Not yet. You rest here for a while. It's a hard climb up here and ahard climb down. I'll shake things up a little on my prospect. I'll beback by dinner-time."
He picked up a hammer and drills and went still farther up the mountain.Having reached the Inferno, he began his work. Perhaps he had no thoughtof Jael or Sisera; but he smote his drill with a determined emphasisthat indicated ill things for Pierre. Jael pinned the sleeping head ofSisera to the earth. Sleeping or waking, resisting or acquiescent,Pierre's head was in serious danger, if it threatened Elise.
Zephyr loaded the hole and lighted the fuse, then started for the camp.A loud explosion startled Madame from the most peaceful repose she hadenjoyed for many a day.
After dinner Zephyr saw Madame safely down the worst of the trail.
"Pierre is not all bad," he remarked, at parting. "You just _resteztranquille_ and don't worry. It's a pretty thick fog that the sun can'tbreak through, and, furthermore, a fog being only limited, as it were,and the sun tolerably persistent, it's pretty apt to get on top at mostunexpected seasons."
Madame completed the remainder of her journey with very differentemotions from those with which she had begun it. She entered the backdoor of the Blue Goose. Pierre was not in the room, as she had halfexpected, half feared. She looked around anxiously, then dropped into achair. The pendulum changed its swing. She was under the old influencesagain. Zephyr and the mountain-top were far away. A thousand questionsstruggled in her mind. Why had she not thought of them before? It was nouse. Again she was groping for help. She recalled a few of Zephyr'swords.
"Elise isn't going to marry Morrison, and Pierre's going to give herup."
They did not thrill her with hope. She could not make them do so by oftrepeating. Confused recollections crowded these few words of hope. Shecould not revivify them. She could only cling to them with blind,uncomprehending trust, as the praying mother clings to the leadencrucifix.