The Last of the Mohicans; A narrative of 1757 eBook

“Fire a whole platoon, major.”

In the next moment he was concealed by the leaves.  Duncan waited several minutes in feverish impatience, before he caught another glimpse of the scout.  Then he reappeared, creeping along the earth, from which his dress was hardly distinguishable, directly in the rear of his intended captive.  Having reached within a few yards of the latter, he arose to his feet, silently and slowly.  At that instant, several loud blows were struck on the water, and Duncan turned his eyes just in time to perceive that a hundred dark forms were plunging, in a body, into the troubled little sheet.  Grasping his rifle his looks were again bent on the Indian near him.  Instead of taking the alarm, the unconscious savage stretched forward his neck, as if he also watched the movements about the gloomy lake, with a sort of silly curiosity.  In the meantime, the uplifted hand of Hawkeye was above him.  But, without any apparent reason, it was withdrawn, and its owner indulged in another long, though still silent, fit of merriment.  When the peculiar and hearty laughter of Hawkeye was ended, instead of grasping his victim by the throat, he tapped him lightly on the shoulder, and exclaimed aloud: 

“How now, friend! have you a mind to teach the beavers to sing?”

“Even so,” was the ready answer.  “It would seem that the Being that gave them power to improve His gifts so well, would not deny them voices to proclaim His praise.”

CHAPTER 22

“Bot.—­Abibl we all met?  Qui.—­Pat—­pat; and here’s a marvelous convenient place for our rehearsal.”  —­Midsummer Night’s Dream

The reader may better imagine, than we describe the surprise of Heyward.  His lurking Indians were suddenly converted into four-footed beasts; his lake into a beaver pond; his cataract into a dam, constructed by those industrious and ingenious quadrupeds; and a suspected enemy into his tried friend, David Gamut, the master of psalmody.  The presence of the latter created so many unexpected hopes relative to the sisters that, without a moment’s hesitation, the young man broke out of his ambush, and sprang forward to join the two principal actors in the scene.

The merriment of Hawkeye was not easily appeased.  Without ceremony, and with a rough hand, he twirled the supple Gamut around on his heel, and more than once affirmed that the Hurons had done themselves great credit in the fashion of his costume.  Then, seizing the hand of the other, he squeezed it with a grip that brought tears into the eyes of the placid David, and wished him joy of his new condition.

“You were about opening your throat-practisings among the beavers, were ye?” he said.  “The cunning devils know half the trade already, for they beat the time with their tails, as you heard just now; and in good time it was, too, or ‘killdeer’ might have sounded the first note among them.  I have known greater fools, who could read and write, than an experienced old beaver; but as for squalling, the animals are born dumb!  What think you of such a song as this?”