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chapter 31 "flue.--kill the poys and the luggage!'tis expressly against the law of arms; 'tis as arrant a piece of knavery, mark younow, as can be offered in the 'orld." --king henry v. so long as their enemy and his victimcontinued in sight, the multitude remained motionless as beings charmed to the placeby some power that was friendly to the huron; but, the instant he disappeared, it became tossed and agitated by fierce andpowerful passion. uncas maintained his elevated stand,keeping his eyes on the form of cora, until

the colors of her dress were blended withthe foliage of the forest; when he descended, and, moving silently through the throng, he disappeared in that lodge fromwhich he had so recently issued. a few of the graver and more attentivewarriors, who caught the gleams of anger that shot from the eyes of the young chiefin passing, followed him to the place he had selected for his meditations. after which, tamenund and alice wereremoved, and the women and children were ordered to disperse. during the momentous hour that succeeded,the encampment resembled a hive of troubled

bees, who only awaited the appearance andexample of their leader to take some distant and momentous flight. a young warrior at length issued from thelodge of uncas; and, moving deliberately, with a sort of grave march, toward a dwarfpine that grew in the crevices of the rocky terrace, he tore the bark from its body, and then turned whence he came withoutspeaking. he was soon followed by another, whostripped the sapling of its branches, leaving it a naked and blazed (footnote: atree which has been partially or entirely stripped of its bark is said, in thelanguage of the country, to be "blazed."

the term is strictly english, for a horseis said to be blazed when it has a white mark) -trunk. a third colored the post with stripes of adark red paint; all which indications of a hostile design in the leaders of the nationwere received by the men without in a gloomy and ominous silence. finally, the mohican himself reappeared,divested of all his attire, except his girdle and leggings, and with one-half ofhis fine features hid under a cloud of threatening black. uncas moved with a slow and dignified treadtoward the post, which he immediately

commenced encircling with a measured step,not unlike an ancient dance, raising his voice, at the same time, in the wild andirregular chant of his war song. the notes were in the extremes of humansounds; being sometimes melancholy and exquisitely plaintive, even rivaling themelody of birds--and then, by sudden and startling transitions, causing the auditorsto tremble by their depth and energy. the words were few and often repeated,proceeding gradually from a sort of invocation, or hymn, to the deity, to anintimation of the warrior's object, and terminating as they commenced with an acknowledgment of his own dependence on thegreat spirit.

if it were possible to translate thecomprehensive and melodious language in which he spoke, the ode might readsomething like the following: "manitou! manitou! manitou!thou art great, thou art good, thou art wise: manitou!manitou! thou art just. in the heavens, in the clouds, oh, i seemany spots--many dark, many red: in the heavens, oh, i see many clouds." "in the woods, in the air, oh, i hear thewhoop, the long yell, and the cry: in the

woods, oh, i hear the loud whoop!""manitou! manitou!i am weak--thou art strong; i am slow; manitou!manitou! give me aid." at the end of what might be called eachverse he made a pause, by raising a note louder and longer than common, that waspeculiarly suited to the sentiment just expressed. the first close was solemn, and intended toconvey the idea of veneration; the second descriptive, bordering on the alarming; andthe third was the well-known and terrific

war-whoop, which burst from the lips of the young warrior, like a combination of allthe frightful sounds of battle. the last was like the first, humble andimploring. three times did he repeat this song, and asoften did he encircle the post in his dance. at the close of the first turn, a grave andhighly esteemed chief of the lenape followed his example, singing words of hisown, however, to music of a similar character. warrior after warrior enlisted in thedance, until all of any renown and

authority were numbered in its mazes. the spectacle now became wildly terrific;the fierce-looking and menacing visages of the chiefs receiving additional power fromthe appalling strains in which they mingled their guttural tones. just then uncas struck his tomahawk deepinto the post, and raised his voice in a shout, which might be termed his own battlecry. the act announced that he had assumed thechief authority in the intended expedition. it was a signal that awakened all theslumbering passions of the nation. a hundred youths, who had hitherto beenrestrained by the diffidence of their

years, rushed in a frantic body on thefancied emblem of their enemy, and severed it asunder, splinter by splinter, until nothing remained of the trunk but its rootsin the earth. during this moment of tumult, the mostruthless deeds of war were performed on the fragments of the tree, with as muchapparent ferocity as if they were the living victims of their cruelty. some were scalped; some received the keenand trembling axe; and others suffered by thrusts from the fatal knife. in short, the manifestations of zeal andfierce delight were so great and

unequivocal, that the expedition wasdeclared to be a war of the nation. the instant uncas had struck the blow, hemoved out of the circle, and cast his eyes up to the sun, which was just gaining thepoint, when the truce with magua was to end. the fact was soon announced by asignificant gesture, accompanied by a corresponding cry; and the whole of theexcited multitude abandoned their mimic warfare, with shrill yells of pleasure, to prepare for the more hazardous experimentof the reality. the whole face of the encampment wasinstantly changed.

the warriors, who were already armed andpainted, became as still as if they were incapable of any uncommon burst of emotion. on the other hand, the women broke out ofthe lodges, with the songs of joy and those of lamentation so strangely mixed that itmight have been difficult to have said which passion preponderated. none, however, was idle. some bore their choicest articles, otherstheir young, and some their aged and infirm, into the forest, which spreaditself like a verdant carpet of bright green against the side of the mountain.

thither tamenund also retired, with calmcomposure, after a short and touching interview with uncas; from whom the sageseparated with the reluctance that a parent would quit a long lost and just recoveredchild. in the meantime, duncan saw alice to aplace of safety, and then sought the scout, with a countenance that denoted how eagerlyhe also panted for the approaching contest. but hawkeye was too much accustomed to thewar song and the enlistments of the natives, to betray any interest in thepassing scene. he merely cast an occasional look at thenumber and quality of the warriors, who, from time to time, signified theirreadiness to accompany uncas to the field.

in this particular he was soon satisfied;for, as has been already seen, the power of the young chief quickly embraced everyfighting man in the nation. after this material point was sosatisfactorily decided, he despatched an indian boy in quest of "killdeer" and therifle of uncas, to the place where they had deposited their weapons on approaching the camp of the delawares; a measure of doublepolicy, inasmuch as it protected the arms from their own fate, if detained asprisoners, and gave them the advantage of appearing among the strangers rather as sufferers than as men provided with meansof defense and subsistence.

in selecting another to perform the officeof reclaiming his highly prized rifle, the scout had lost sight of none of hishabitual caution. he knew that magua had not come unattended,and he also knew that huron spies watched the movements of their new enemies, alongthe whole boundary of the woods. it would, therefore, have been fatal tohimself to have attempted the experiment; a warrior would have fared no better; butthe danger of a boy would not be likely to commence until after his object wasdiscovered. when heyward joined him, the scout wascoolly awaiting the result of this experiment.

the boy, who had been well instructed, andwas sufficiently crafty, proceeded, with a bosom that was swelling with the pride ofsuch a confidence, and all the hopes of young ambition, carelessly across the clearing to the wood, which he entered at apoint at some little distance from the place where the guns were secreted. the instant, however, he was concealed bythe foliage of the bushes, his dusky form was to be seen gliding, like that of aserpent, toward the desired treasure. he was successful; and in another moment heappeared flying across the narrow opening that skirted the base of the terrace onwhich the village stood, with the velocity

of an arrow, and bearing a prize in eachhand. he had actually gained the crags, and wasleaping up their sides with incredible activity, when a shot from the woods showedhow accurate had been the judgment of the scout. the boy answered it with a feeble butcontemptuous shout; and immediately a second bullet was sent after him fromanother part of the cover. at the next instant he appeared on thelevel above, elevating his guns in triumph, while he moved with the air of a conquerortoward the renowned hunter who had honored him by so glorious a commission.

notwithstanding the lively interest hawkeyehad taken in the fate of his messenger, he received "killdeer" with a satisfactionthat, momentarily, drove all other recollections from his mind. after examining the piece with anintelligent eye, and opening and shutting the pan some ten or fifteen times, andtrying sundry other equally important experiments on the lock, he turned to the boy and demanded with great manifestationsof kindness, if he was hurt. the urchin looked proudly up in his face,but made no reply. "ah! i see, lad, the knaves have barkedyour arm!" added the scout, taking up the

limb of the patient sufferer, across whicha deep flesh wound had been made by one of the bullets; "but a little bruised alderwill act like a charm. in the meantime i will wrap it in a badgeof wampum! you have commenced the business of awarrior early, my brave boy, and are likely to bear a plenty of honorable scars to yourgrave. i know many young men that have takenscalps who cannot show such a mark as this. go!" having bound up the arm; "you will bea chief!" the lad departed, prouder of his flowingblood than the vainest courtier could be of his blushing ribbon; and stalked among thefellows of his age, an object of general

admiration and envy. but, in a moment of so many serious andimportant duties, this single act of juvenile fortitude did not attract thegeneral notice and commendation it would have received under milder auspices. it had, however, served to apprise thedelawares of the position and the intentions of their enemies. accordingly a party of adventurers, bettersuited to the task than the weak though spirited boy, was ordered to dislodge theskulkers. the duty was soon performed; for most ofthe hurons retired of themselves when they

found they had been discovered. the delawares followed to a sufficientdistance from their own encampment, and then halted for orders, apprehensive ofbeing led into an ambush. as both parties secreted themselves, thewoods were again as still and quiet as a mild summer morning and deep solitude couldrender them. the calm but still impatient uncas nowcollected his chiefs, and divided his power. he presented hawkeye as a warrior, oftentried, and always found deserving of confidence.

when he found his friend met with afavorable reception, he bestowed on him the command of twenty men, like himself,active, skillful and resolute. he gave the delawares to understand therank of heyward among the troops of the yengeese, and then tendered to him a trustof equal authority. but duncan declined the charge, professinghis readiness to serve as a volunteer by the side of the scout. after this disposition, the young mohicanappointed various native chiefs to fill the different situations of responsibility,and, the time pressing, he gave forth the word to march.

he was cheerfully, but silently obeyed bymore than two hundred men. their entrance into the forest wasperfectly unmolested; nor did they encounter any living objects that couldeither give the alarm, or furnish the intelligence they needed, until they cameupon the lairs of their own scouts. here a halt was ordered, and the chiefswere assembled to hold a "whispering council." at this meeting divers plans of operationwere suggested, though none of a character to meet the wishes of their ardent leader. had uncas followed the promptings of hisown inclinations, he would have led his

followers to the charge without a moment'sdelay, and put the conflict to the hazard of an instant issue; but such a course would have been in opposition to all thereceived practises and opinions of his countrymen. he was, therefore, fain to adopt a cautionthat in the present temper of his mind he execrated, and to listen to advice at whichhis fiery spirit chafed, under the vivid recollection of cora's danger and magua'sinsolence. after an unsatisfactory conference of manyminutes, a solitary individual was seen advancing from the side of the enemy, withsuch apparent haste, as to induce the

belief he might be a messenger charged withpacific overtures. when within a hundred yards, however, ofthe cover behind which the delaware council had assembled, the stranger hesitated,appeared uncertain what course to take, and finally halted. all eyes were turned now on uncas, as ifseeking directions how to proceed. "hawkeye," said the young chief, in a lowvoice, "he must never speak to the hurons again." "his time has come," said the laconicscout, thrusting the long barrel of his rifle through the leaves, and taking hisdeliberate and fatal aim.

but, instead of pulling the trigger, helowered the muzzle again, and indulged himself in a fit of his peculiar mirth. "i took the imp for a mingo, as i'm amiserable sinner!" he said; "but when my eye ranged along his ribs for a place toget the bullet in--would you think it, uncas--i saw the musicianer's blower; and so, after all, it is the man they callgamut, whose death can profit no one, and whose life, if this tongue can do anythingbut sing, may be made serviceable to our own ends. if sounds have not lost their virtue, i'llsoon have a discourse with the honest

fellow, and that in a voice he'll find moreagreeable than the speech of 'killdeer'." so saying, hawkeye laid aside his rifle;and, crawling through the bushes until within hearing of david, he attempted torepeat the musical effort, which had conducted himself, with so much safety andeclat, through the huron encampment. the exquisite organs of gamut could notreadily be deceived (and, to say the truth, it would have been difficult for any otherthan hawkeye to produce a similar noise), and, consequently, having once before heard the sounds, he now knew whence theyproceeded. the poor fellow appeared relieved from astate of great embarrassment; for, pursuing

the direction of the voice--a task that tohim was not much less arduous that it would have been to have gone up in the face of a battery--he soon discovered the hiddensongster. "i wonder what the hurons will think ofthat!" said the scout, laughing, as he took his companion by the arm, and urged himtoward the rear. "if the knaves lie within earshot, theywill say there are two non-compossers instead of one!but here we are safe," he added, pointing to uncas and his associates. "now give us the history of the mingoinventions in natural english, and without

any ups and downs of voice." david gazed about him, at the fierce andwild-looking chiefs, in mute wonder; but assured by the presence of faces that heknew, he soon rallied his faculties so far as to make an intelligent reply. "the heathen are abroad in goodly numbers,"said david; "and, i fear, with evil intent. there has been much howling and ungodlyrevelry, together with such sounds as it is profanity to utter, in their habitationswithin the past hour, so much so, in truth, that i have fled to the delawares in searchof peace." "your ears might not have profited much bythe exchange, had you been quicker of

foot," returned the scout a little dryly. "but let that be as it may; where are thehurons?" "they lie hid in the forest, between thisspot and their village in such force, that prudence would teach you instantly toreturn." uncas cast a glance along the range oftrees which concealed his own band and mentioned the name of:"magua?" "is among them. he brought in the maiden that had sojournedwith the delawares; and, leaving her in the cave, has put himself, like a raging wolf,at the head of his savages.

i know not what has troubled his spirit sogreatly!" "he has left her, you say, in the cave!"interrupted heyward; "'tis well that we know its situation! may not something be done for her instantrelief?" uncas looked earnestly at the scout, beforehe asked: "what says hawkeye?" "give me twenty rifles, and i will turn tothe right, along the stream; and, passing by the huts of the beaver, will join thesagamore and the colonel. you shall then hear the whoop from thatquarter; with this wind one may easily send

it a mile. then, uncas, do you drive in the front;when they come within range of our pieces, we will give them a blow that, i pledge thegood name of an old frontiersman, shall make their line bend like an ashen bow. after which, we will carry the village, andtake the woman from the cave; when the affair may be finished with the tribe,according to a white man's battle, by a blow and a victory; or, in the indianfashion, with dodge and cover. there may be no great learning, major, inthis plan, but with courage and patience it can all be done."

"i like it very much," cried duncan, whosaw that the release of cora was the primary object in the mind of the scout; "ilike it much. let it be instantly attempted." after a short conference, the plan wasmatured, and rendered more intelligible to the several parties; the different signalswere appointed, and the chiefs separated, each to his allotted station. > chapter 32 "but plagues shall spread, and funeralfires increase, till the great king,

without a ransom paid, to her own chrysasend the black-eyed maid." --pope. during the time uncas was making thisdisposition of his forces, the woods were as still, and, with the exception of thosewho had met in council, apparently as much untenanted as when they came fresh from thehands of their almighty creator. the eye could range, in every direction,through the long and shadowed vistas of the trees; but nowhere was any object to beseen that did not properly belong to the peaceful and slumbering scenery. here and there a bird was heard flutteringamong the branches of the beeches, and

occasionally a squirrel dropped a nut,drawing the startled looks of the party for a moment to the place; but the instant the casual interruption ceased, the passing airwas heard murmuring above their heads, along that verdant and undulating surfaceof forest, which spread itself unbroken, unless by stream or lake, over such a vastregion of country. across the tract of wilderness which laybetween the delawares and the village of their enemies, it seemed as if the foot ofman had never trodden, so breathing and deep was the silence in which it lay. but hawkeye, whose duty led him foremost inthe adventure, knew the character of those

with whom he was about to contend too wellto trust the treacherous quiet. when he saw his little band collected, thescout threw "killdeer" into the hollow of his arm, and making a silent signal that hewould be followed, he led them many rods toward the rear, into the bed of a littlebrook which they had crossed in advancing. here he halted, and after waiting for thewhole of his grave and attentive warriors to close about him, he spoke in delaware,demanding: "do any of my young men know whither thisrun will lead us?" a delaware stretched forth a hand, with thetwo fingers separated, and indicating the manner in which they were joined at theroot, he answered:

"before the sun could go his own length,the little water will be in the big." then he added, pointing in the direction ofthe place he mentioned, "the two make enough for the beavers." "i thought as much," returned the scout,glancing his eye upward at the opening in the tree-tops, "from the course it takes,and the bearings of the mountains. men, we will keep within the cover of itsbanks till we scent the hurons." his companions gave the usual briefexclamation of assent, but, perceiving that their leader was about to lead the way inperson, one or two made signs that all was not as it should be.

hawkeye, who comprehended their meaningglances, turned and perceived that his party had been followed thus far by thesinging-master. "do you know, friend," asked the scout,gravely, and perhaps with a little of the pride of conscious deserving in his manner,"that this is a band of rangers chosen for the most desperate service, and put under the command of one who, though anothermight say it with a better face, will not be apt to leave them idle. it may not be five, it cannot be thirtyminutes, before we tread on the body of a huron, living or dead."

"though not admonished of your intentionsin words," returned david, whose face was a little flushed, and whose ordinarily quietand unmeaning eyes glimmered with an expression of unusual fire, "your men have reminded me of the children of jacob goingout to battle against the shechemites, for wickedly aspiring to wedlock with a womanof a race that was favored of the lord. now, i have journeyed far, and sojournedmuch in good and evil with the maiden ye seek; and, though not a man of war, with myloins girded and my sword sharpened, yet would i gladly strike a blow in herbehalf." the scout hesitated, as if weighing thechances of such a strange enlistment in his

mind before he answered: "you know not the use of any we'pon.you carry no rifle; and believe me, what the mingoes take they will freely giveagain." "though not a vaunting and bloodilydisposed goliath," returned david, drawing a sling from beneath his parti-colored anduncouth attire, "i have not forgotten the example of the jewish boy. with this ancient instrument of war have ipractised much in my youth, and peradventure the skill has not entirelydeparted from me." "ay!" said hawkeye, considering the deer-skin thong and apron, with a cold and

discouraging eye; "the thing might do itswork among arrows, or even knives; but these mengwe have been furnished by thefrenchers with a good grooved barrel a man. however, it seems to be your gift to gounharmed amid fire; and as you have hitherto been favored--major, you have leftyour rifle at a cock; a single shot before the time would be just twenty scalps lost to no purpose--singer, you can follow; wemay find use for you in the shoutings." "i thank you, friend," returned david,supplying himself, like his royal namesake, from among the pebbles of the brook;"though not given to the desire to kill, had you sent me away my spirit would havebeen troubled."

"remember," added the scout, tapping hisown head significantly on that spot where gamut was yet sore, "we come to fight, andnot to musickate. until the general whoop is given, nothingspeaks but the rifle." david nodded, as much to signify hisacquiescence with the terms; and then hawkeye, casting another observant glanceover his followers made the signal to proceed. their route lay, for the distance of amile, along the bed of the water-course. though protected from any great danger ofobservation by the precipitous banks, and the thick shrubbery which skirted thestream, no precaution known to an indian

attack was neglected. a warrior rather crawled than walked oneach flank so as to catch occasional glimpses into the forest; and every fewminutes the band came to a halt, and listened for hostile sounds, with an acuteness of organs that would be scarcelyconceivable to a man in a less natural state. their march was, however, unmolested, andthey reached the point where the lesser stream was lost in the greater, without thesmallest evidence that their progress had been noted.

here the scout again halted, to consult thesigns of the forest. "we are likely to have a good day for afight," he said, in english, addressing heyward, and glancing his eyes upward atthe clouds, which began to move in broad sheets across the firmament; "a bright sun and a glittering barrel are no friends totrue sight. everything is favorable; they have thewind, which will bring down their noises and their smoke, too, no little matter initself; whereas, with us it will be first a shot, and then a clear view. but here is an end to our cover; thebeavers have had the range of this stream

for hundreds of years, and what atweentheir food and their dams, there is, as you see, many a girdled stub, but few livingtrees." hawkeye had, in truth, in these few words,given no bad description of the prospect that now lay in their front. the brook was irregular in its width,sometimes shooting through narrow fissures in the rocks, and at others spreading overacres of bottom land, forming little areas that might be termed ponds. everywhere along its bands were themoldering relics of dead trees, in all the stages of decay, from those that groaned ontheir tottering trunks to such as had

recently been robbed of those rugged coats that so mysteriously contain theirprinciple of life. a few long, low, and moss-covered pileswere scattered among them, like the memorials of a former and long-departedgeneration. all these minute particulars were noted bythe scout, with a gravity and interest that they probably had never before attracted. he knew that the huron encampment lay ashort half mile up the brook; and, with the characteristic anxiety of one who dreaded ahidden danger, he was greatly troubled at not finding the smallest trace of thepresence of his enemy.

once or twice he felt induced to give theorder for a rush, and to attempt the village by surprise; but his experiencequickly admonished him of the danger of so useless an experiment. then he listened intently, and with painfuluncertainty, for the sounds of hostility in the quarter where uncas was left; butnothing was audible except the sighing of the wind, that began to sweep over the bosom of the forest in gusts whichthreatened a tempest. at length, yielding rather to his unusualimpatience than taking counsel from his knowledge, he determined to bring mattersto an issue, by unmasking his force, and

proceeding cautiously, but steadily, up thestream. the scout had stood, while making hisobservations, sheltered by a brake, and his companions still lay in the bed of theravine, through which the smaller stream debouched; but on hearing his low, though intelligible, signal the whole party stoleup the bank, like so many dark specters, and silently arranged themselves aroundhim. pointing in the direction he wished toproceed, hawkeye advanced, the band breaking off in single files, and followingso accurately in his footsteps, as to leave it, if we except heyward and david, thetrail of but a single man.

the party was, however, scarcely uncoveredbefore a volley from a dozen rifles was heard in their rear; and a delaware leapinghigh in to the air, like a wounded deer, fell at his whole length, dead. "ah, i feared some deviltry like this!"exclaimed the scout, in english, adding, with the quickness of thought, in hisadopted tongue: "to cover, men, and charge!" the band dispersed at the word, and beforeheyward had well recovered from his surprise, he found himself standing alonewith david. luckily the hurons had already fallen back,and he was safe from their fire.

but this state of things was evidently tobe of short continuance; for the scout set the example of pressing on their retreat,by discharging his rifle, and darting from tree to tree as his enemy slowly yieldedground. it would seem that the assault had beenmade by a very small party of the hurons, which, however, continued to increase innumbers, as it retired on its friends, until the return fire was very nearly, if not quite, equal to that maintained by theadvancing delawares. heyward threw himself among the combatants,and imitating the necessary caution of his companions, he made quick discharges withhis own rifle.

the contest now grew warm and stationary. few were injured, as both parties kepttheir bodies as much protected as possible by the trees; never, indeed, exposing anypart of their persons except in the act of taking aim. but the chances were gradually growingunfavorable to hawkeye and his band. the quick-sighted scout perceived hisdanger without knowing how to remedy it. he saw it was more dangerous to retreatthan to maintain his ground: while he found his enemy throwing out men on his flank;which rendered the task of keeping themselves covered so very difficult to thedelawares, as nearly to silence their fire.

at this embarrassing moment, when theybegan to think the whole of the hostile tribe was gradually encircling them, theyheard the yell of combatants and the rattling of arms echoing under the arches of the wood at the place where uncas wasposted, a bottom which, in a manner, lay beneath the ground on which hawkeye and hisparty were contending. the effects of this attack wereinstantaneous, and to the scout and his friends greatly relieving. it would seem that, while his own surprisehad been anticipated, and had consequently failed, the enemy, in their turn, havingbeen deceived in its object and in his

numbers, had left too small a force to resist the impetuous onset of the youngmohican. this fact was doubly apparent, by the rapidmanner in which the battle in the forest rolled upward toward the village, and by aninstant falling off in the number of their assailants, who rushed to assist in maintaining the front, and, as it nowproved to be, the principal point of defense. animating his followers by his voice, andhis own example, hawkeye then gave the word to bear down upon their foes.

the charge, in that rude species ofwarfare, consisted merely in pushing from cover to cover, nigher to the enemy; and inthis maneuver he was instantly and successfully obeyed. the hurons were compelled to withdraw, andthe scene of the contest rapidly changed from the more open ground, on which it hadcommenced, to a spot where the assailed found a thicket to rest upon. here the struggle was protracted, arduousand seemingly of doubtful issue; the delawares, though none of them fell,beginning to bleed freely, in consequence of the disadvantage at which they wereheld.

in this crisis, hawkeye found means to getbehind the same tree as that which served for a cover to heyward; most of his owncombatants being within call, a little on his right, where they maintained rapid, though fruitless, discharges on theirsheltered enemies. "you are a young man, major," said thescout, dropping the butt of "killdeer" to the earth, and leaning on the barrel, alittle fatigued with his previous industry; "and it may be your gift to lead armies, at some future day, ag'in these imps, themingoes. you may here see the philosophy of anindian fight.

it consists mainly in ready hand, a quickeye and a good cover. now, if you had a company of the royalamericans here, in what manner would you set them to work in this business?" "the bayonet would make a road.""ay, there is white reason in what you say; but a man must ask himself, in thiswilderness, how many lives he can spare. no--horse," (footnote: the american forestadmits of the passage of horses, there being little underbrush, and few tangledbrakes. the plan of hawkeye is the one which hasalways proved the most successful in the battles between the whites and the indians.

wayne, in his celebrated campaign on themiami, received the fire of his enemies in line; and then causing his dragoons towheel round his flanks, the indians were driven from their covers before they hadtime to load. one of the most conspicuous of the chiefswho fought in the battle of miami assured the writer, that the red men could notfight the warriors with "long knives and leather stockings"; meaning the dragoonswith their sabers and boots. -continued the scout, shaking his head,like one who mused; "horse, i am ashamed to say must sooner or later decide thesescrimmages. the brutes are better than men, and tohorse must we come at last.

put a shodden hoof on the moccasin of ared-skin, and, if his rifle be once emptied, he will never stop to load itagain." "this is a subject that might better bediscussed at another time," returned heyward; "shall we charge?" "i see no contradiction to the gifts of anyman in passing his breathing spells in useful reflections," the scout replied. "as to rush, i little relish such ameasure; for a scalp or two must be thrown away in the attempt. and yet," he added, bending his head aside,to catch the sounds of the distant combat,

"if we are to be of use to uncas, theseknaves in our front must be got rid of." then, turning with a prompt and decidedair, he called aloud to his indians, in their own language. his words were answered by a shout; and, ata given signal, each warrior made a swift movement around his particular tree. the sight of so many dark bodies, glancingbefore their eyes at the same instant, drew a hasty and consequently an ineffectualfire from the hurons. without stopping to breathe, the delawaresleaped in long bounds toward the wood, like so many panthers springing upon their prey.

hawkeye was in front, brandishing histerrible rifle and animating his followers by his example. a few of the older and more cunning hurons,who had not been deceived by the artifice which had been practiced to draw theirfire, now made a close and deadly discharge of their pieces and justified the apprehensions of the scout by felling threeof his foremost warriors. but the shock was insufficient to repel theimpetus of the charge. the delawares broke into the cover with theferocity of their natures and swept away every trace of resistance by the fury ofthe onset.

the combat endured only for an instant,hand to hand, and then the assailed yielded ground rapidly, until they reached theopposite margin of the thicket, where they clung to the cover, with the sort of obstinacy that is so often witnessed inhunted brutes. at this critical moment, when the successof the struggle was again becoming doubtful, the crack of a rifle was heardbehind the hurons, and a bullet came whizzing from among some beaver lodges, which were situated in the clearing, intheir rear, and was followed by the fierce and appalling yell of the war-whoop.

"there speaks the sagamore!" shoutedhawkeye, answering the cry with his own stentorian voice; "we have them now in faceand back!" the effect on the hurons was instantaneous. discouraged by an assault from a quarterthat left them no opportunity for cover, the warriors uttered a common yell ofdisappointment, and breaking off in a body, they spread themselves across the opening,heedless of every consideration but flight. many fell, in making the experiment, underthe bullets and the blows of the pursuing delawares. we shall not pause to detail the meetingbetween the scout and chingachgook, or the

more touching interview that duncan heldwith munro. a few brief and hurried words served toexplain the state of things to both parties; and then hawkeye, pointing out thesagamore to his band, resigned the chief authority into the hands of the mohicanchief. chingachgook assumed the station to whichhis birth and experience gave him so distinguished a claim, with the gravedignity that always gives force to the mandates of a native warrior. following the footsteps of the scout, heled the party back through the thicket, his men scalping the fallen hurons andsecreting the bodies of their own dead as

they proceeded, until they gained a point where the former was content to make ahalt. the warriors, who had breathed themselvesfreely in the preceding struggle, were now posted on a bit of level ground, sprinkledwith trees in sufficient numbers to conceal them. the land fell away rather precipitately infront, and beneath their eyes stretched, for several miles, a narrow, dark, andwooded vale. it was through this dense and dark forestthat uncas was still contending with the main body of the hurons.

the mohican and his friends advanced to thebrow of the hill, and listened, with practised ears, to the sounds of thecombat. a few birds hovered over the leafy bosom ofthe valley, frightened from their secluded nests; and here and there a light vaporycloud, which seemed already blending with the atmosphere, arose above the trees, and indicated some spot where the struggle hadbeen fierce and stationary. "the fight is coming up the ascent," saidduncan, pointing in the direction of a new explosion of firearms; "we are too much inthe center of their line to be effective." "they will incline into the hollow, wherethe cover is thicker," said the scout, "and

that will leave us well on their flank.go, sagamore; you will hardly be in time to give the whoop, and lead on the young men. i will fight this scrimmage with warriorsof my own color. you know me, mohican; not a huron of themall shall cross the swell, into your rear, without the notice of 'killdeer'." the indian chief paused another moment toconsider the signs of the contest, which was now rolling rapidly up the ascent, acertain evidence that the delawares triumphed; nor did he actually quit the place until admonished of the proximity ofhis friends, as well as enemies, by the

bullets of the former, which began topatter among the dried leaves on the ground, like the bits of falling hail whichprecede the bursting of the tempest. hawkeye and his three companions withdrew afew paces to a shelter, and awaited the issue with calmness that nothing but greatpractise could impart in such a scene. it was not long before the reports of therifles began to lose the echoes of the woods, and to sound like weapons dischargedin the open air. then a warrior appeared, here and there,driven to the skirts of the forest, and rallying as he entered the clearing, as atthe place where the final stand was to be made.

these were soon joined by others, until along line of swarthy figures was to be seen clinging to the cover with the obstinacy ofdesperation. heyward began to grow impatient, and turnedhis eyes anxiously in the direction of chingachgook. the chief was seated on a rock, withnothing visible but his calm visage, considering the spectacle with an eye asdeliberate as if he were posted there merely to view the struggle. "the time has come for the delaware tostrike!" said duncan. "not so, not so," returned the scout; "whenhe scents his friends, he will let them

know that he is here. see, see; the knaves are getting in thatclump of pines, like bees settling after their flight. by the lord, a squaw might put a bulletinto the center of such a knot of dark skins!" at that instant the whoop was given, and adozen hurons fell by a discharge from chingachgook and his band. the shout that followed was answered by asingle war-cry from the forest, and a yell passed through the air that sounded as if athousand throats were united in a common

effort. the hurons staggered, deserting the centerof their line, and uncas issued from the forest through the opening they left, atthe head of a hundred warriors. waving his hands right and left, the youngchief pointed out the enemy to his followers, who separated in pursuit. the war now divided, both wings of thebroken hurons seeking protection in the woods again, hotly pressed by thevictorious warriors of the lenape. a minute might have passed, but the soundswere already receding in different directions, and gradually losing theirdistinctness beneath the echoing arches of

the woods. one little knot of hurons, however, haddisdained to seek a cover, and were retiring, like lions at bay, slowly andsullenly up the acclivity which chingachgook and his band had just deserted, to mingle more closely in thefray. magua was conspicuous in this party, bothby his fierce and savage mien, and by the air of haughty authority he yet maintained. in his eagerness to expedite the pursuit,uncas had left himself nearly alone; but the moment his eye caught the figure of lesubtil, every other consideration was

forgotten. raising his cry of battle, which recalledsome six or seven warriors, and reckless of the disparity of their numbers, he rushedupon his enemy. le renard, who watched the movement, pausedto receive him with secret joy. but at the moment when he thought therashness of his impetuous young assailant had left him at his mercy, another shoutwas given, and la longue carabine was seen rushing to the rescue, attended by all hiswhite associates. the huron instantly turned, and commenced arapid retreat up the ascent. there was no time for greetings orcongratulations; for uncas, though

unconscious of the presence of his friends,continued the pursuit with the velocity of the wind. in vain hawkeye called to him to respectthe covers; the young mohican braved the dangerous fire of his enemies, and sooncompelled them to a flight as swift as his own headlong speed. it was fortunate that the race was of shortcontinuance, and that the white men were much favored by their position, or thedelaware would soon have outstripped all his companions, and fallen a victim to hisown temerity. but, ere such a calamity could happen, thepursuers and pursued entered the wyandot

village, within striking distance of eachother. excited by the presence of their dwellings,and tired of the chase, the hurons now made a stand, and fought around their council-lodge with the fury of despair. the onset and the issue were like thepassage and destruction of a whirlwind. the tomahawk of uncas, the blows ofhawkeye, and even the still nervous arm of munro were all busy for that passingmoment, and the ground was quickly strewed with their enemies. still magua, though daring and muchexposed, escaped from every effort against his life, with that sort of fabledprotection that was made to overlook the

fortunes of favored heroes in the legendsof ancient poetry. raising a yell that spoke volumes of angerand disappointment, the subtle chief, when he saw his comrades fallen, darted awayfrom the place, attended by his two only surviving friends, leaving the delawares engaged in stripping the dead of the bloodytrophies of their victory. but uncas, who had vainly sought him in themelee, bounded forward in pursuit; hawkeye, heyward and david still pressing on hisfootsteps. the utmost that the scout could effect, wasto keep the muzzle of his rifle a little in advance of his friend, to whom, however, itanswered every purpose of a charmed shield.

once magua appeared disposed to makeanother and a final effort to revenge his losses; but, abandoning his intention assoon as demonstrated, he leaped into a thicket of bushes, through which he was followed by his enemies, and suddenlyentered the mouth of the cave already known to the reader. hawkeye, who had only forborne to fire intenderness to uncas, raised a shout of success, and proclaimed aloud that now theywere certain of their game. the pursuers dashed into the long andnarrow entrance, in time to catch a glimpse of the retreating forms of the hurons.

their passage through the natural galleriesand subterraneous apartments of the cavern was preceded by the shrieks and cries ofhundreds of women and children. the place, seen by its dim and uncertainlight, appeared like the shades of the infernal regions, across which unhappyghosts and savage demons were flitting in multitudes. still uncas kept his eye on magua, as iflife to him possessed but a single object. heyward and the scout still pressed on hisrear, actuated, though possibly in a less degree, by a common feeling. but their way was becoming intricate, inthose dark and gloomy passages, and the

glimpses of the retiring warriors lessdistinct and frequent; and for a moment the trace was believed to be lost, when a white robe was seen fluttering in the furtherextremity of a passage that seemed to lead up the mountain. "'tis cora!" exclaimed heyward, in a voicein which horror and delight were wildly mingled."cora! cora!" echoed uncas, bounding forward likea deer. "'tis the maiden!" shouted the scout."courage, lady; we come! we come!" the chase was renewed with a diligencerendered tenfold encouraging by this

glimpse of the captive.but the way was rugged, broken, and in spots nearly impassable. uncas abandoned his rifle, and leapedforward with headlong precipitation. heyward rashly imitated his example, thoughboth were, a moment afterward, admonished of his madness by hearing the bellowing ofa piece, that the hurons found time to discharge down the passage in the rocks, the bullet from which even gave the youngmohican a slight wound. "we must close!" said the scout, passinghis friends by a desperate leap; "the knaves will pick us all off at thisdistance; and see, they hold the maiden so

as to shield themselves!" though his words were unheeded, or ratherunheard, his example was followed by his companions, who, by incredible exertions,got near enough to the fugitives to perceive that cora was borne along between the two warriors while magua prescribed thedirection and manner of their flight. at this moment the forms of all four werestrongly drawn against an opening in the sky, and they disappeared. nearly frantic with disappointment, uncasand heyward increased efforts that already seemed superhuman, and they issued from thecavern on the side of the mountain, in time

to note the route of the pursued. the course lay up the ascent, and stillcontinued hazardous and laborious. encumbered by his rifle, and, perhaps, notsustained by so deep an interest in the captive as his companions, the scoutsuffered the latter to precede him a little, uncas, in his turn, taking the leadof heyward. in this manner, rocks, precipices anddifficulties were surmounted in an incredibly short space, that at anothertime, and under other circumstances, would have been deemed almost insuperable. but the impetuous young men were rewardedby finding that, encumbered with cora, the

hurons were losing ground in the race. "stay, dog of the wyandots!" exclaimeduncas, shaking his bright tomahawk at magua; "a delaware girl calls stay!" "i will go no further!" cried cora,stopping unexpectedly on a ledge of rock, that overhung a deep precipice, at no greatdistance from the summit of the mountain. "kill me if thou wilt, detestable huron; iwill go no further." the supporters of the maiden raised theirready tomahawks with the impious joy that fiends are thought to take in mischief, butmagua stayed the uplifted arms. the huron chief, after casting the weaponshe had wrested from his companions over the

rock, drew his knife, and turned to hiscaptive, with a look in which conflicting passions fiercely contended. "woman," he said, "chose; the wigwam or theknife of le subtil!" cora regarded him not, but dropping on herknees, she raised her eyes and stretched her arms toward heaven, saying in a meekand yet confiding voice: "i am thine; do with me as thou seestbest!" "woman," repeated magua, hoarsely, andendeavoring in vain to catch a glance from her serene and beaming eye, "choose!" but cora neither heard nor heeded hisdemand.

the form of the huron trembled in everyfibre, and he raised his arm on high, but dropped it again with a bewildered air,like one who doubted. once more he struggled with himself andlifted the keen weapon again; but just then a piercing cry was heard above them, anduncas appeared, leaping frantically, from a fearful height, upon the ledge. magua recoiled a step; and one of hisassistants, profiting by the chance, sheathed his own knife in the bosom ofcora. the huron sprang like a tiger on hisoffending and already retreating country man, but the falling form of uncasseparated the unnatural combatants.

diverted from his object by thisinterruption, and maddened by the murder he had just witnessed, magua buried his weaponin the back of the prostrate delaware, uttering an unearthly shout as he committedthe dastardly deed. but uncas arose from the blow, as thewounded panther turns upon his foe, and struck the murderer of cora to his feet, byan effort in which the last of his failing strength was expended. then, with a stern and steady look, heturned to le subtil, and indicated by the expression of his eye all that he would dohad not the power deserted him. the latter seized the nerveless arm of theunresisting delaware, and passed his knife

into his bosom three several times, beforehis victim, still keeping his gaze riveted on his enemy, with a look of inextinguishable scorn, fell dead at hisfeet. "mercy! mercy! huron," cried heyward, from above, in tonesnearly choked by horror; "give mercy, and thou shalt receive from it!" whirling the bloody knife up at theimploring youth, the victorious magua uttered a cry so fierce, so wild, and yetso joyous, that it conveyed the sounds of savage triumph to the ears of those who

fought in the valley, a thousand feetbelow. he was answered by a burst from the lips ofthe scout, whose tall person was just then seen moving swiftly toward him, along thosedangerous crags, with steps as bold and reckless as if he possessed the power tomove in air. but when the hunter reached the scene ofthe ruthless massacre, the ledge was tenanted only by the dead. his keen eye took a single look at thevictims, and then shot its glances over the difficulties of the ascent in his front. a form stood at the brow of the mountain,on the very edge of the giddy height, with

uplifted arms, in an awful attitude ofmenace. without stopping to consider his person,the rifle of hawkeye was raised; but a rock, which fell on the head of one of thefugitives below, exposed the indignant and glowing countenance of the honest gamut. then magua issued from a crevice, and,stepping with calm indifference over the body of the last of his associates, heleaped a wide fissure, and ascended the rocks at a point where the arm of davidcould not reach him. a single bound would carry him to the browof the precipice, and assure his safety. before taking the leap, however, the huronpaused, and shaking his hand at the scout,

he shouted:"the pale faces are dogs! the delawares women! magua leaves them on the rocks, for thecrows!" laughing hoarsely, he made a desperateleap, and fell short of his mark, though his hands grasped a shrub on the verge ofthe height. the form of hawkeye had crouched like abeast about to take its spring, and his frame trembled so violently with eagernessthat the muzzle of the half-raised rifle played like a leaf fluttering in the wind. without exhausting himself with fruitlessefforts, the cunning magua suffered his

body to drop to the length of his arms, andfound a fragment for his feet to rest on. then, summoning all his powers, he renewedthe attempt, and so far succeeded as to draw his knees on the edge of the mountain. it was now, when the body of his enemy wasmost collected together, that the agitated weapon of the scout was drawn to hisshoulder. the surrounding rocks themselves were notsteadier than the piece became, for the single instant that it poured out itscontents. the arms of the huron relaxed, and his bodyfell back a little, while his knees still kept their position.turning a relentless look on his enemy, he

shook a hand in grim defiance. but his hold loosened, and his dark personwas seen cutting the air with its head downward, for a fleeting instant, until itglided past the fringe of shrubbery which clung to the mountain, in its rapid flightto destruction. chapter 33 "they fought, like brave men, long & well,they piled that ground with moslem slain, they conquered--but bozzaris fell,bleeding at every vein. his few surviving comrades sawhis smile when rang their loud hurrah, and the red field was won;

then saw in death his eyelids closecalmly, as to a night's repose, like flowers at set of sun."--halleck. the sun found the lenape, on the succeedingday, a nation of mourners. the sounds of the battle were over, andthey had fed fat their ancient grudge, and had avenged their recent quarrel with themengwe, by the destruction of a whole community. the black and murky atmosphere that floatedaround the spot where the hurons had encamped, sufficiently announced of itself,the fate of that wandering tribe; while hundreds of ravens, that struggled above

the summits of the mountains, or swept, innoisy flocks, across the wide ranges of the woods, furnished a frightful direction tothe scene of the combat. in short, any eye at all practised in thesigns of a frontier warfare might easily have traced all those unerring evidences ofthe ruthless results which attend an indian vengeance. still, the sun rose on the lenape a nationof mourners. no shouts of success, no songs of triumph,were heard, in rejoicings for their victory. the latest straggler had returned from hisfell employment, only to strip himself of

the terrific emblems of his bloody calling,and to join in the lamentations of his countrymen, as a stricken people. pride and exultation were supplanted byhumility, and the fiercest of human passions was already succeeded by the mostprofound and unequivocal demonstrations of grief. the lodges were deserted; but a broad beltof earnest faces encircled a spot in their vicinity, whither everything possessinglife had repaired, and where all were now collected, in deep and awful silence. though beings of every rank and age, ofboth sexes, and of all pursuits, had united

to form this breathing wall of bodies, theywere influenced by a single emotion. each eye was riveted on the center of thatring, which contained the objects of so much and of so common an interest. six delaware girls, with their long, dark,flowing tresses falling loosely across their bosoms, stood apart, and only gaveproof of their existence as they occasionally strewed sweet-scented herbs and forest flowers on a litter of fragrantplants that, under a pall of indian robes, supported all that now remained of theardent, high-souled, and generous cora. her form was concealed in many wrappers ofthe same simple manufacture, and her face

was shut forever from the gaze of men.at her feet was seated the desolate munro. his aged head was bowed nearly to theearth, in compelled submission to the stroke of providence; but a hidden anguishstruggled about his furrowed brow, that was only partially concealed by the careless locks of gray that had fallen, neglected,on his temples. gamut stood at his side, his meek headbared to the rays of the sun, while his eyes, wandering and concerned, seemed to beequally divided between that little volume, which contained so many quaint but holy maxims, and the being in whose behalf hissoul yearned to administer consolation.

heyward was also nigh, supporting himselfagainst a tree, and endeavoring to keep down those sudden risings of sorrow that itrequired his utmost manhood to subdue. but sad and melancholy as this group mayeasily be imagined, it was far less touching than another, that occupied theopposite space of the same area. seated, as in life, with his form and limbsarranged in grave and decent composure, uncas appeared, arrayed in the mostgorgeous ornaments that the wealth of the tribe could furnish. rich plumes nodded above his head; wampum,gorgets, bracelets, and medals, adorned his person in profusion; though his dull eyeand vacant lineaments too strongly

contradicted the idle tale of pride theywould convey. directly in front of the corpsechingachgook was placed, without arms, paint or adornment of any sort, except thebright blue blazonry of his race, that was indelibly impressed on his naked bosom. during the long period that the tribe hadthus been collected, the mohican warrior had kept a steady, anxious look on the coldand senseless countenance of his son. so riveted and intense had been that gaze,and so changeless his attitude, that a stranger might not have told the livingfrom the dead, but for the occasional gleamings of a troubled spirit, that shot

athwart the dark visage of one, and thedeathlike calm that had forever settled on the lineaments of the other. the scout was hard by, leaning in a pensiveposture on his own fatal and avenging weapon; while tamenund, supported by theelders of his nation, occupied a high place at hand, whence he might look down on the mute and sorrowful assemblage of hispeople. just within the inner edge of the circlestood a soldier, in the military attire of a strange nation; and without it was hiswarhorse, in the center of a collection of mounted domestics, seemingly in readinessto undertake some distant journey.

the vestments of the stranger announced himto be one who held a responsible situation near the person of the captain of thecanadas; and who, as it would now seem, finding his errand of peace frustrated by the fierce impetuosity of his allies, wascontent to become a silent and sad spectator of the fruits of a contest thathe had arrived too late to anticipate. the day was drawing to the close of itsfirst quarter, and yet had the multitude maintained its breathing stillness sinceits dawn. no sound louder than a stifled sob had beenheard among them, nor had even a limb been moved throughout that long and painfulperiod, except to perform the simple and

touching offerings that were made, fromtime to time, in commemoration of the dead. the patience and forbearance of indianfortitude could alone support such an appearance of abstraction, as seemed now tohave turned each dark and motionless figure into stone. at length, the sage of the delawaresstretched forth an arm, and leaning on the shoulders of his attendants, he arose withan air as feeble as if another age had already intervened between the man who had met his nation the preceding day, and himwho now tottered on his elevated stand. "men of the lenape!" he said, in low,hollow tones, that sounded like a voice

charged with some prophetic mission: "theface of the manitou is behind a cloud! his eye is turned from you; his ears areshut; his tongue gives no answer. you see him not; yet his judgments arebefore you. let your hearts be open and your spiritstell no lie. men of the lenape! the face of the manitouis behind a cloud." as this simple and yet terribleannunciation stole on the ears of the multitude, a stillness as deep and awfulsucceeded as if the venerated spirit they worshiped had uttered the words without the aid of human organs; and even the inanimateuncas appeared a being of life, compared

with the humbled and submissive throng bywhom he was surrounded. as the immediate effect, however, graduallypassed away, a low murmur of voices commenced a sort of chant in honor of thedead. the sounds were those of females, and werethrillingly soft and wailing. the words were connected by no regularcontinuation, but as one ceased another took up the eulogy, or lamentation,whichever it might be called, and gave vent to her emotions in such language as wassuggested by her feelings and the occasion. at intervals the speaker was interrupted bygeneral and loud bursts of sorrow, during which the girls around the bier of coraplucked the plants and flowers blindly from

her body, as if bewildered with grief. but, in the milder moments of their plaint,these emblems of purity and sweetness were cast back to their places, with every signof tenderness and regret. though rendered less connected by many andgeneral interruptions and outbreakings, a translation of their language would havecontained a regular descant, which, in substance, might have proved to possess atrain of consecutive ideas. a girl, selected for the task by her rankand qualifications, commenced by modest allusions to the qualities of the deceasedwarrior, embellishing her expressions with those oriental images that the indians have

probably brought with them from theextremes of the other continent, and which form of themselves a link to connect theancient histories of the two worlds. she called him the "panther of his tribe";and described him as one whose moccasin left no trail on the dews; whose bound waslike the leap of a young fawn; whose eye was brighter than a star in the dark night; and whose voice, in battle, was loud as thethunder of the manitou. she reminded him of the mother who borehim, and dwelt forcibly on the happiness she must feel in possessing such a son. she bade him tell her, when they met in theworld of spirits, that the delaware girls

had shed tears above the grave of herchild, and had called her blessed. then, they who succeeded, changing theirtones to a milder and still more tender strain, alluded, with the delicacy andsensitiveness of women, to the stranger maiden, who had left the upper earth at a time so near his own departure, as torender the will of the great spirit too manifest to be disregarded. they admonished him to be kind to her, andto have consideration for her ignorance of those arts which were so necessary to thecomfort of a warrior like himself. they dwelled upon her matchless beauty, andon her noble resolution, without the taint

of envy, and as angels may be thought todelight in a superior excellence; adding, that these endowments should prove more than equivalent for any little imperfectionin her education. after which, others again, in duesuccession, spoke to the maiden herself, in the low, soft language of tenderness andlove. they exhorted her to be of cheerful mind,and to fear nothing for her future welfare. a hunter would be her companion, who knewhow to provide for her smallest wants; and a warrior was at her side who was able toprotect he against every danger. they promised that her path should bepleasant, and her burden light.

they cautioned her against unavailingregrets for the friends of her youth, and the scenes where her father had dwelt;assuring her that the "blessed hunting grounds of the lenape," contained vales as pleasant, streams as pure; and flowers assweet, as the "heaven of the pale faces." they advised her to be attentive to thewants of her companion, and never to forget the distinction which the manitou had sowisely established between them. then, in a wild burst of their chant theysang with united voices the temper of the mohican's mind. they pronounced him noble, manly andgenerous; all that became a warrior, and

all that a maid might love. clothing their ideas in the most remote andsubtle images, they betrayed, that, in the short period of their intercourse, they haddiscovered, with the intuitive perception of their sex, the truant disposition of hisinclinations. the delaware girls had found no favor inhis eyes! he was of a race that had once been lordson the shores of the salt lake, and his wishes had led him back to a people whodwelt about the graves of his fathers. why should not such a predilection beencouraged! that she was of a blood purer and richerthan the rest of her nation, any eye might

have seen; that she was equal to thedangers and daring of a life in the woods, her conduct had proved; and now, they added, the "wise one of the earth" hadtransplanted her to a place where she would find congenial spirits, and might beforever happy. then, with another transition in voice andsubject, allusions were made to the virgin who wept in the adjacent lodge. they compared her to flakes of snow; aspure, as white, as brilliant, and as liable to melt in the fierce heats of summer, orcongeal in the frosts of winter. they doubted not that she was lovely in theeyes of the young chief, whose skin and

whose sorrow seemed so like her own; butthough far from expressing such a preference, it was evident they deemed herless excellent than the maid they mourned. still they denied her no need her rarecharms might properly claim. her ringlets were compared to the exuberanttendrils of the vine, her eye to the blue vault of heavens, and the most spotlesscloud, with its glowing flush of the sun, was admitted to be less attractive than herbloom. during these and similar songs nothing wasaudible but the murmurs of the music; relieved, as it was, or rather renderedterrible, by those occasional bursts of grief which might be called its choruses.

the delawares themselves listened likecharmed men; and it was very apparent, by the variations of their speakingcountenances, how deep and true was their sympathy. even david was not reluctant to lend hisears to the tones of voices so sweet; and long ere the chant was ended, his gazeannounced that his soul was enthralled. the scout, to whom alone, of all the whitemen, the words were intelligible, suffered himself to be a little aroused from hismeditative posture, and bent his face aside, to catch their meaning, as the girlsproceeded. but when they spoke of the future prospectsof cora and uncas, he shook his head, like

one who knew the error of their simplecreed, and resuming his reclining attitude, he maintained it until the ceremony, if that might be called a ceremony, in whichfeeling was so deeply imbued, was finished. happily for the self-command of bothheyward and munro, they knew not the meaning of the wild sounds they heard. chingachgook was a solitary exception tothe interest manifested by the native part of the audience. his look never changed throughout the wholeof the scene, nor did a muscle move in his rigid countenance, even at the wildest orthe most pathetic parts of the lamentation.

the cold and senseless remains of his sonwas all to him, and every other sense but that of sight seemed frozen, in order thathis eyes might take their final gaze at those lineaments he had so long loved, and which were now about to be closed foreverfrom his view. in this stage of the obsequies, a warriormuch renowned for deed in arms, and more especially for services in the recentcombat, a man of stern and grave demeanor, advanced slowly from the crowd, and placedhimself nigh the person of the dead. "why hast thou left us, pride of thewapanachki?" he said, addressing himself to the dull ears of uncas, as if the emptyclay retained the faculties of the animated

man; "thy time has been like that of the sun when in the trees; thy glory brighterthan his light at noonday. thou art gone, youthful warrior, but ahundred wyandots are clearing the briers from thy path to the world of the spirits. who that saw thee in battle would believethat thou couldst die? who before thee has ever shown uttawa theway into the fight? thy feet were like the wings of eagles;thine arm heavier than falling branches from the pine; and thy voice like themanitou when he speaks in the clouds. the tongue of uttawa is weak," he added,looking about him with a melancholy gaze,

"and his heart exceeding heavy.pride of the wapanachki, why hast thou left us?" he was succeeded by others, in due order,until most of the high and gifted men of the nation had sung or spoken their tributeof praise over the manes of the deceased chief. when each had ended, another deep andbreathing silence reigned in all the place. then a low, deep sound was heard, like thesuppressed accompaniment of distant music, rising just high enough on the air to beaudible, and yet so indistinctly, as to leave its character, and the place whenceit proceeded, alike matters of conjecture.

it was, however, succeeded by another andanother strain, each in a higher key, until they grew on the ear, first in long drawnand often repeated interjections, and finally in words. the lips of chingachgook had so far parted,as to announce that it was the monody of the father. though not an eye was turned toward him northe smallest sign of impatience exhibited, it was apparent, by the manner in which themultitude elevated their heads to listen, that they drank in the sounds with an intenseness of attention, that none buttamenund himself had ever before commanded.

but they listened in vain. the strains rose just so loud as to becomeintelligible, and then grew fainter and more trembling, until they finally sank onthe ear, as if borne away by a passing breath of wind. the lips of the sagamore closed, and heremained silent in his seat, looking with his riveted eye and motionless form, likesome creature that had been turned from the almighty hand with the form but without thespirit of a man. the delawares who knew by these symptomsthat the mind of their friend was not prepared for so mighty an effort offortitude, relaxed in their attention; and,

with an innate delicacy, seemed to bestow all their thoughts on the obsequies of thestranger maiden. a signal was given, by one of the elderchiefs, to the women who crowded that part of the circle near which the body of coralay. obedient to the sign, the girls raised thebier to the elevation of their heads, and advanced with slow and regulated steps,chanting, as they proceeded, another wailing song in praise of the deceased. gamut, who had been a close observer ofrites he deemed so heathenish, now bent his head over the shoulder of the unconsciousfather, whispering:

"they move with the remains of thy child;shall we not follow, and see them interred with christian burial?" munro started, as if the last trumpet hadsounded in his ear, and bestowing one anxious and hurried glance around him, hearose and followed in the simple train, with the mien of a soldier, but bearing thefull burden of a parent's suffering. his friends pressed around him with asorrow that was too strong to be termed sympathy--even the young frenchman joiningin the procession, with the air of a man who was sensibly touched at the early andmelancholy fate of one so lovely. but when the last and humblest female ofthe tribe had joined in the wild and yet

ordered array, the men of the lenapecontracted their circle, and formed again around the person of uncas, as silent, asgrave, and as motionless as before. the place which had been chosen for thegrave of cora was a little knoll, where a cluster of young and healthful pines hadtaken root, forming of themselves a melancholy and appropriate shade over thespot. on reaching it the girls deposited theirburden, and continued for many minutes waiting, with characteristic patience, andnative timidity, for some evidence that they whose feelings were most concernedwere content with the arrangement. at length the scout, who alone understoodtheir habits, said, in their own language:

"my daughters have done well; the white menthank them." satisfied with this testimony in theirfavor, the girls proceeded to deposit the body in a shell, ingeniously, and notinelegantly, fabricated of the bark of the birch; after which they lowered it into itsdark and final abode. the ceremony of covering the remains, andconcealing the marks of the fresh earth, by leaves and other natural and customaryobjects, was conducted with the same simple and silent forms. but when the labors of the kind beings whohad performed these sad and friendly offices were so far completed, theyhesitated, in a way to show that they knew

not how much further they might proceed. it was in this stage of the rites that thescout again addressed them: "my young women have done enough," he said:"the spirit of the pale face has no need of food or raiment, their gifts beingaccording to the heaven of their color. i see," he added, glancing an eye at david,who was preparing his book in a manner that indicated an intention to lead the way insacred song, "that one who better knows the christian fashions is about to speak." the females stood modestly aside, and, fromhaving been the principal actors in the scene, they now became the meek andattentive observers of that which followed.

during the time david occupied in pouringout the pious feelings of his spirit in this manner, not a sign of surprise, nor alook of impatience, escaped them. they listened like those who knew themeaning of the strange words, and appeared as if they felt the mingled emotions ofsorrow, hope, and resignation, they were intended to convey. excited by the scene he had just witnessed,and perhaps influenced by his own secret emotions, the master of song exceeded hisusual efforts. his full rich voice was not found to sufferby a comparison with the soft tones of the girls; and his more modulated strainspossessed, at least for the ears of those

to whom they were peculiarly addressed, theadditional power of intelligence. he ended the anthem, as he had commencedit, in the midst of a grave and solemn stillness. when, however, the closing cadence hadfallen on the ears of his auditors, the secret, timorous glances of the eyes, andthe general and yet subdued movement of the assemblage, betrayed that something wasexpected from the father of the deceased. munro seemed sensible that the time wascome for him to exert what is, perhaps, the greatest effort of which human nature iscapable. he bared his gray locks, and looked aroundthe timid and quiet throng by which he was

encircled, with a firm and collectedcountenance. then, motioning with his hand for the scoutto listen, he said: "say to these kind and gentle females, thata heart-broken and failing man returns them his thanks. tell them, that the being we all worship,under different names, will be mindful of their charity; and that the time shall notbe distant when we may assemble around his throne without distinction of sex, or rank,or color." the scout listened to the tremulous voicein which the veteran delivered these words, and shook his head slowly when they wereended, as one who doubted their efficacy.

"to tell them this," he said, "would be totell them that the snows come not in the winter, or that the sun shines fiercestwhen the trees are stripped of their leaves." then turning to the women, he made such acommunication of the other's gratitude as he deemed most suited to the capacities ofhis listeners. the head of munro had already sunk upon hischest, and he was again fast relapsing into melancholy, when the young frenchman beforenamed ventured to touch him lightly on the elbow. as soon as he had gained the attention ofthe mourning old man, he pointed toward a

group of young indians, who approached witha light but closely covered litter, and then pointed upward toward the sun. "i understand you, sir," returned munro,with a voice of forced firmness; "i understand you.it is the will of heaven, and i submit. cora, my child! if the prayers of a heart-broken father could avail thee now, how blessed shouldst thou be! come, gentlemen," he added, looking abouthim with an air of lofty composure, though the anguish that quivered in his fadedcountenance was far too powerful to be concealed, "our duty here is ended; let usdepart."

heyward gladly obeyed a summons that tookthem from a spot where, each instant, he felt his self-control was about to deserthim. while his companions were mounting,however, he found time to press the hand of the scout, and to repeat the terms of anengagement they had made to meet again within the posts of the british army. then, gladly throwing himself into thesaddle, he spurred his charger to the side of the litter, whence low and stifled sobsalone announced the presence of alice. in this manner, the head of munro againdrooping on his bosom, with heyward and david following in sorrowing silence, andattended by the aide of montcalm with his

guard, all the white men, with the exception of hawkeye, passed from beforethe eyes of the delawares, and were buried in the vast forests of that region. but the tie which, through their commoncalamity, had united the feelings of these simple dwellers in the woods with thestrangers who had thus transiently visited them, was not so easily broken. years passed away before the traditionarytale of the white maiden, and of the young warrior of the mohicans ceased to beguilethe long nights and tedious marches, or to animate their youthful and brave with adesire for vengeance.

neither were the secondary actors in thesemomentous incidents forgotten. through the medium of the scout, who servedfor years afterward as a link between them and civilized life, they learned, in answerto their inquiries, that the "gray head" was speedily gathered to his fathers--borne down, as was erroneously believed, by hismilitary misfortunes; and that the "open hand" had conveyed his surviving daughterfar into the settlements of the pale faces, where her tears had at last ceased to flow, and had been succeeded by the bright smileswhich were better suited to her joyous nature.but these were events of a time later than

that which concerns our tale. deserted by all of his color, hawkeyereturned to the spot where his sympathies led him, with a force that no ideal bond ofunion could destroy. he was just in time to catch a parting lookof the features of uncas, whom the delawares were already inclosing in hislast vestment of skins. they paused to permit the longing andlingering gaze of the sturdy woodsman, and when it was ended, the body was enveloped,never to be unclosed again. then came a procession like the other, andthe whole nation was collected about the temporary grave of the chief--temporary,because it was proper that, at some future

day, his bones should rest among those ofhis own people. the movement, like the feeling, had beensimultaneous and general. the same grave expression of grief, thesame rigid silence, and the same deference to the principal mourner, were observedaround the place of interment as have been already described. the body was deposited in an attitude ofrepose, facing the rising sun, with the implements of war and of the chase at hand,in readiness for the final journey. an opening was left in the shell, by whichit was protected from the soil, for the spirit to communicate with its earthlytenement, when necessary; and the whole was

concealed from the instinct, and protected from the ravages of the beasts of prey,with an ingenuity peculiar to the natives. the manual rites then ceased and allpresent reverted to the more spiritual part of the ceremonies. chingachgook became once more the object ofthe common attention. he had not yet spoken, and somethingconsolatory and instructive was expected from so renowned a chief on an occasion ofsuch interest. conscious of the wishes of the people, thestern and self-restrained warrior raised his face, which had latterly been buried inhis robe, and looked about him with a

steady eye. his firmly compressed and expressive lipsthen severed, and for the first time during the long ceremonies his voice wasdistinctly audible. "why do my brothers mourn?" he said,regarding the dark race of dejected warriors by whom he was environed; "why domy daughters weep? that a young man has gone to the happy hunting-grounds; that achief has filled his time with honor? he was good; he was dutiful; he was brave.who can deny it? the manitou had need of such a warrior, andhe has called him away. as for me, the son and the father of uncas,i am a blazed pine, in a clearing of the

pale faces. my race has gone from the shores of thesalt lake and the hills of the delawares. but who can say that the serpent of histribe has forgotten his wisdom? i am alone--" "no, no," cried hawkeye, who had beengazing with a yearning look at the rigid features of his friend, with something likehis own self-command, but whose philosophy could endure no longer; "no, sagamore, notalone. the gifts of our colors may be different,but god has so placed us as to journey in the same path.

i have no kin, and i may also say, likeyou, no people. he was your son, and a red-skin by nature;and it may be that your blood was nearer-- but, if ever i forget the lad who has sooften fou't at my side in war, and slept at my side in peace, may he who made us all, whatever may be our color or our gifts,forget me! the boy has left us for a time; but,sagamore, you are not alone." chingachgook grasped the hand that, in thewarmth of feeling, the scout had stretched across the fresh earth, and in an attitudeof friendship these two sturdy and intrepid woodsmen bowed their heads together, while

scalding tears fell to their feet, wateringthe grave of uncas like drops of falling rain. in the midst of the awful stillness withwhich such a burst of feeling, coming as it did, from the two most renowned warriors ofthat region, was received, tamenund lifted his voice to disperse the multitude. "it is enough," he said."go, children of the lenape, the anger of the manitou is not done.why should tamenund stay? the pale faces are masters of the earth,and the time of the red men has not yet come again.my day has been too long.

in the morning i saw the sons of unamishappy and strong; and yet, before the night has come, have i lived to see the lastwarrior of the wise race of the mohicans."

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