The Knight Of The Golden Melice by John Turvill Adams (web based ebook reader txt) 📖

Bind

Consenting Hearts With One True Faith--A Faith Consoling

Exceedingly--A Faith To Lift High Above The Tempests Of Adversity--To

Heal The Wounds Of Earth, And To Be Crowned With Glory And Immortality

In Heaven."

  

 

"Were I Even To Join The Congregation, Which, In My Present Way Of

Thinking, I Might Not Do Without Guilt, Master Spikeman Would,

Doubtless, Find Means To Make Vain My Suit."

  

 

"Judge Him Not So Harshly. What Motive Can He Have, Other Than To

Perform His Duty To The Living And To The Dead? Think, Rather, That

Providence Hath, In Its Own Wonderful Way, Determined To Lead Thee By

The Silken Cord Of Thy Affections Unto Grace. Be Not Disobedient Unto

The Heavenly Impulse."

  

 

"I Perceive That I Have Failed In My Prayer, And Can Have No Hope Of

Your Intercession, Honored Sir," Said Arundel, Rising, "And Will

Therefore Take My Sorrowful Leave."

  

 

"It Pains Me," Said Winthrop, Also Rising, "That, Under Present

Circumstances, I Am Compelled To Deny It. I May Not Do Aught To

Contravene A Resolution Of The Deceased Edmund Dunning, Which Seems To

Have Been Inspired By Heaven; But, The Cause Of That Resolution Being

Removed, No One Will Be Happier To Promote Your Purpose. I Say This

The More Cheerfully, Because Thy Happiness Is Within Reach, To Be

Wisely Seized Or Unwisely Refused."

 

  

"With Thanks For Your Excellency's Good Will, And Lamenting That It Is

Fruitless, I Will Now Depart."

  

 

Hereupon, The Young Man Making A Sign To His Companion, The Indian

Approached. The Sight Of The Latter Seemed To Suggest An Idea To

Winthrop, For, Turning To Him, He Said:

  

 

"On The Morrow I Expect An Embassy From Some Of Your Countrymen,

Waqua. Will Not The Chief Remain To Witness It?"

  

 

On The Quiet Countenance Of The Indian Only An Inquiry Was To Be Read.

  

 

"The Taranteens," Said The Governor, In Answer To The Look, "Desire To

Brighten The Chain Of Friendship Between The White Men And Themselves,

And It Ought To Give Pleasure To A Wise Chief To Behold It."

  

 

"Waqua Is A Young Man," Replied The Indian, "And Is Not Wise; But He

Has Heard The Old Men Of His Tribe Say, That No Faith Was To Be Placed

In The Word Of A Taranteen."

 

  

"Let Them Beware," Said Winthrop, Who, From Obvious Motives Of Policy,

Adopted This Tone In The Indian's Presence, "How They Attempt To

Deceive Me. The Friendship Of The White Man Is Like The Blessed Sun,

Which Brings Life And Joy; His Enmity, Like The Storm-Clouds, Charged

With Thunders And Lightnings."

 

 

"Listen!" Said The Indian, Laying His Hand On The Arm Of The Governor.

"The Beavers Once Desired The Friendship Of The Skunk. They Admired

His Black And White Hair, And Thought His Round, Bushy Tail, Which Was

Different From Theirs, Very Beautiful; So They Invited Him Into Their

Lodges; But When He Came, His Scent Was So Bad That They Were All

Obliged To Abandon Them. The Taranteens Are The Skunk."

 

  

"I Have No Fear That They Will Drive Us Away," Said Winthrop, With A

Smile. "They Have Every Reason To Conciliate Our Favor, And We Would

Be At Peace, If We Are Permitted, With All Men. We Came Not Into These

Far Off Regions To Bring A Sword, But The Blessings Of Civilization

And Of The Gospel."

  

 

"Waqua Will Come," Said The Indian, "But The Taranteens Are A Skunk.

The White Chief Will Remember The Words Of Waqua, And Will Say, Before

Many Days, That He Spoke The Truth."

  

 

"We Know How To Deal With The Treacherous," Answered The Governor,

"But Anticipate No Evil Now."

 

  

With These Words, And, As If Striving By Extraordinary Courtesy To

Palliate The Pain Which He Had Inflicted On Arundel, He Accompanied

The Two To The Door Of The Apartment, Where He Dismissed Them.

Chapter XI (Oh! He Sits High In All The People's Hearts.)

 

 

 

 Shakespeare.

 

 

It Was Evident That, So Far From Anything Being To Be Expected From

The Interposition Of The Governor, He Was Opposed To The Marriage Of

Arundel As Long As The Latter Should Remain Outside Of The Charmed

Circle Of The Church--A Full Communion With Which Was Necessary, Even

To The Exercise Of The Rights Of A Citizen. But The Young Man Was

Incapable Of Deception. His Ingenuous Mind Turned, Displeased, Away

From The Bait The Wily Governor Had Presented; And, Dearly As He Loved

His Mistress, He Would Have Preferred To Renounce Her Rather Than Play

The Hypocrite To Obtain The Prize. He Was Not Much Cast Down, For,

Having Sought The Interview, Not From The Promptings Of His Own

Judgment, But Out Of Deference To The Wishes Of The Knight, He Was Not

Greatly Disappointed. He Remained Firm In The Resolution, Whatever

Might Be The Risk, To Release Eveline From The Constraint Exercised

Over Her By Her Guardian. Silent, With The Indian Silent Following In

His Footsteps, He Returned To His Lodgings To Brood Over His Prospects

And To Devise Schemes.

  

 

The Next Day Was The Time Fixed For Receiving The Taranteens; And Not

Without Interest, Notwithstanding The Pre-Occupation Of His Mind, Did

Arundel Look Forward To The Event. Such Deputations Or Embassies Were,

Indeed, Not Uncommon, And The Young Man Had Already Been Present At

More Than One Occasion Of The Kind; But Great Consequence Was Attached

To The Present, And Unusual Preparations Were Made To Convert The

Ceremony Into A Scene That Should Be Imposing To The Imagination Of

The Savages, And Forcibly Impress Them With An Idea Of The Power Of

The English. 

 

 

The Name Taranteen Was Given To The Natives Living On The Banks Of The

River Kennebec, In The Present State Of Maine, And Embraced A Number

Of Tribes, Among Whom Were Those Called By The French Abenakis. They

Were A Fierce And Proud Race, And Had Spread The Terror Of Their Arms

To A Wide Distance From Their Hunting Grounds. There Was A Perpetual

Feud Betwixt Them And The Aberginians, As The Indians On Massachusetts

Bay Were Styled, Who, In Consequence Of Wars With Their Northern

Neighbors, As Well As Of The Pestilence Which Had Desolated Their

Wigwams, Had Become Reduced From The Condition Of A Powerful People To

Comparative Insignificance. These Taranteens Had, At The Beginning Of

The Settlement Of The Colony, Occasionally Done Some Mischief,

Descending These Rivers In Canoes In Small Bands, Plundering The

Cabins Of Exposed Settlers, And Sometimes Murdering The Inmates. As

The Power Of The Whites Increased, And Their Name Became More

Terrible, These Forays Had Almost Ceased, And In Most Instances The

Colonists Were Able, In One Way And Another, To Obtain Satisfaction

For The Wrongs Committed. There Was No Defined State Of Hostilities

Existing Betwixt Them And The Taranteens, Nor Could It Be Said They

Were Strictly At Peace With Each Other, And It Was Felt That Great

Advantages Might Result From An Interchange Of Activities And A Formal

Establishment Of Friendly Relations. The Efforts Of Winthrop And Of

His Council Had Been For Some Time Directed To This Object, But

Hitherto They Had Been Frustrated By The Intrigues Of The French, Who

Found It For Their Interest To Discourage Intercourse Between The

Taranteens And The Colonists, Lest The Lucrative Trade With The

Former, Of Which They Enjoyed The Monopoly, Might Be Diverted From

Them Entirely, Or Diverted Into Other Channels. In These Exertions The

French Traders Were Not A Little Aided By The Jesuit Missionaries

Scattered Among Them, Who Naturally Favored Their Countrymen, And

Besides Were Afraid Of The Spiritual Influence Which The Heretical

Puritans Might Exercise Over Their Dusky Neophytes. For Even At That

Early Period, The Zeal Of The Romish Church Had Penetrated The Wilds

Of North As Well As Of South America, And Erected The Sacred Crucifix

Where Before Stood The Stake Of The Victim. Solitudes Which, Until

Then, Had Only Trembled To The Horrid War-Whoop, Were Now Tranquilized

By The Soft Sounds Of The Lowly Muttered Mass. The Ferocity Of The

Natives Began To Be Softened, And If Not Christianized And Practising

Only The Outward Ceremonies Of Christianity, They Had At Least Taken

The First Step Towards Civilization. In This State Of Things A

Circumstance Had Occurred, Which Made Abortive Any Further Opposition

Of The Missionaries And Traders.

 

  

A Shallop, Or Small Vessel Employed By The Colonists In Fishing, Had

Picked Up At Sea, At A Considerable Distance From The Land, A Canoe

Containing Some Half A Dozen Indians, Who Were On The Point Of

Perishing From Hunger. They Were Taranteens, Who Had Probably Ventured

Out Too Far From The Main, And Been Caught In A Storm, And Swept Out

By Currents, Until They Lost All Knowledge Of Their Situation, And Had

Been For Some Days Paddling About In The Fogs, Which Prevail In Those

Latitudes Near The Coast, In A Vain Attempt To Retrace Their Course To

Land. The Starving Wretches Had Been Taken On Board The Shallop, And

Instead Of Being Destroyed As They Expected, Had Been Kindly Treated,

And Brought In Safety To Boston, Where They Were Presented To

Winthrop. The Governor, Politic As Well As Humane, Seized The

Favorable Opportunity To Cultivate A Better Understanding Than Had

Hitherto Existed Between His Own People And The Eastern Tribes. He Was

Completely Successful In Making The Impression He Desired Upon The

Rescued Taranteens; And When They Took Their Departure, Loaded With

Presents, It Was With A Lively Regret That They Had Not Sooner Become

Acquainted With A People So Hospitable And Generous. Among Their

Number Was An Inferior Chief, Endowed With The Gift Of Eloquence,

Which Often Exists In A High Degree Among The Red Men. His Eulogies Of

The Colonists On His Return Were So Glowing, And His Representations

Were So Well Confirmed By His Companions, That The Exertions Of The

Frenchmen Were No Longer Able To Stifle Their Curiosity To Know More

Of Their Neighbors, Especially As The Report Of Their Returned

Tribes-Men Effectually Contradicted The Monstrous Fictions Which Had

Been Invented To Deter Them. Such Was The Origin Of An Embassy Which

Was A Source Of Fear To The French, And Of Hope To The English.

  

 

It Is Not Surprising That Winthrop, Thinking Highly Of The Importance

Of The Occasion, Should Avail Himself Of All The Means At Hand To

Produce A Striking And Imposing Spectacle, And That He Should Be

Seconded, To The Best Of Their Ability, By The Colonists. As Arundel

Walked Along He Could Observe Indications Of The Approaching

Ceremonies. The Roll Of A Drum, Mingled With The Shriek Of A Fife, And

The Blast Of A Trumpet Was Heard; An Occasional Passenger Either On

Foot Or Horseback, With A Musket On His Shoulder, And Whose Face Was

Not To Be Seen Daily In The Streets Of The Town, Loitered On His Way;

The Guard At The Door Of The Governor's House Was Doubled, More For

Show Than For Any Other Purpose, And A Greater Number Of The

Assistants Than Usual Was To Be Seen. Several Of These Gentlemen Lived

In The Town, But Some Resided On Their Plantations In The

Neighborhood, And Came To Boston Only For Purposes Of Business, Or

Diversion, Or Pleasure. Several Men Were Also Engaged In Drawing A

Couple Of Culverins To The Place Of Audience, Which Was To Be In The

Open Air. Waqua, As He Walked Demurely After Arundel, Doubtless

Noticed All That Was Passing, But He Made No Remark, Nor Through His

Appearance Of Indifference Was The Interest Which He Really Felt

Perceptible.

  

 

When They Reached The Inn, They Found An Unusual Number Of Persons

There Collected. Here Were To Be Found Not Only The Captains And

Inferior Officers Of The Vessels, Who, While In Harbor, Were

Accustomed To Make This A Place Of Resort, But Divers Colonists From

The Country Round, Who, Upon The Requisition Of The Governor, Had

Assembled, Provided With Military Equipments. The Heart Of The

Landlord, Goodman Nettles, Rejoiced, And His Contradictory Face Beamed

With Pleasure, As, Surveying The Increasing Crowd, He Calculated What

Quantity Of Ale And Wine And Victuals They Would Put Down Their

Throats, And How Many Pounds, Shillings, And Pence, Into His Own

Pocket. On Such Occasions The Large Circle Of His Benevolence

Comprehended All Mankind--Indians As Well As Whites. As The Two

Entered The Public Room Of The Inn, They Heard Rising Above The

Confused Din Of Voices, That Of