The Lost Hunter Part 14

"My 'pinion is made up on all de pints," said Primus, resolutely, and bringing all his batteries to bear. "Dis case hab two hinge, de fust is de 'spectability, and de second de safety. Now, if any man suspect me to go on work ob dis a kind in de day time, when ebery body see me in you company, he as much mistake as when he kiss his granny for a gal. De night is de proper time for sich a dark business, and it suit me better if I 'scuse altogeder from it. But I wish to 'bleege you, Missa Ba.s.set. Now, de second hinge is de safety, and it 'stonish me dat an onderstanding man, and a man ob experunce and larning like you, Missa Ba.s.set, should dream o' going in de daytime. Dere stand old Holden prob.u.mbly wid his rifle in de window and all he hab to do, he see so plan, is to pull de trigger and den where is you, Missa Ba.s.set?

Or perhaps," he added laughing, "'stead ob shooting at you, he shoot at me, and dat would be bery onpleasant. In de day-time, a colored pusson make a better mark dan a white man; but in de night we has de advantage. Haw! Haw!"

This was a view of things that did not please the constable at all, and the mirth of the negro appealed excessively ill-timed. He, therefore, said:

"Don't talk so, Prime; it's dreadful to hear you. Well, if you're afraid, say so, and done with--"

"Me, 'fraid," exclaimed Primus, "me dat is as 'customed to de bullets as de roof to de rain! No, sar, you is better 'quainted wid de genlmen dat is 'fraid dan dis child."

"Don't git mad though," said Ba.s.set, in whose mind one apprehension drove out another, and who began to fear he might lose altogether his new ally. "Everybody knows you're as brave as Julius Caesar, Prime."

"Please, sar, not to repair me to no Caesar," exclaimed the indignant General. "De Caesars ob my 'qaintance was nebber no great shakes. I hab a better name dan dat. My name is Primus--dat mean, in Latin, fust--so I hear genlmn say, and Ransome, and de meaning ob dat is, dat in de glorious Resolution I run some arter de British (dough de foolish doctor abuse me and say dey give me de name 'cause I run away), and putting bote togedder dey makes a name any genlmn may be proud ob.

But, Missa Ba.s.set, what you going to gib me for dis job?"

"Why, a quarter'll be good wages, I guess."

"A quarter ob a dollar! Do you s'pose I dispose myself to ketch cold on de ribber, and die afore my time, and arter dat to be shoot at, like a duck, for a quarter? I don't 'list on no such tarms."

"We'll say a half. I'm inclined to be liberal, but I shall expect you to be lively, Prime."

"Dat is too little;" grumbled Primus. "And who else you got to help you?"

"Why, hain't two enough? I might as well give up the job at once, and done with it, if I'm to pay out all the fees."

"One more will make all sure," said Primus, who, prudent general that he was, thought no odds could be too great against an enemy. "S'pose I speak to Missa Gladding to insist?"

"Tom Gladding be hung. I won't give him a cent."

"But," said Primus, who seemed determined to have his own way in everything, "you no interjection, I guess, if it don't cost you noting."

"No," replied Ba.s.set, who was glad enough of another auxiliary, provided his own packet was not affected. "But, mind ye, I don't pay him a red cent."

"I pay him myself, out ob my own pa.s.s. De danger won't be so much, and de work will be done up right, sartin. So, atween genlmn, de business is settle."

They parted with the understanding that the General was to see Gladding and induce him to take part in the enterprise, and that the three would meet at a certain place in the evening, the constable being careful to repeat that he couldn't afford more than fifty cents for any a.s.sistance that might be rendered. Primus accordingly called upon Gladding, and the arrangement must have been satisfactory, for the three were all at the place of rendezvous at the appointed hour.

CHAPTER XIII.

"All these tales told in that dreamy undertone with which men talk in the dark, the countenances of the listeners only now and then receiving a casual gleam from the glare of a pipe, sunk deep in the mind of Ichabod."

Legend of Sleepy Hollow

It was on the village wharf that the coadjutors met. Ba.s.set, as he contemplated the martial bearing of the General and the burly form of Gladding, felt comforted. The clouds that all day long had lowered above his mental horizon parted, and patches of blue sky began to appear. It was a cause of special gratulation to him, which he realized more sensibly in the darkness than by day, that a.s.sistance so important as Gladding's had been secured, and that without additional expense. He was confident now of an easy victory. The a.s.sociates jumped into the boat, the painter was cast off, the constable, as princ.i.p.al, took the steersman's seat, and Tom and Primus disposed themselves to row.

The night was neither clear nor dark, or rather was both by fits and starts. Light fleecy clouds were constantly pa.s.sing over the heavens, now gathering densely together and completely hiding the stars, and now breaking up and revealing between the rifts then shining points. A low wind softly moaned through the leafless trees on the banks of the Severn, sadly chiming in with the murmur of the tide, which rose quite up to the Falls of the Yaupaae. In the indistinct light, just enough to stimulate and keep in active play the imagination, softening away all those harshnesses which the garish brilliancy of day discloses, and inviting the mind to supply with its own creations what is vague and deficient, the village presented an appearance more attractive, if possible, than by day. Along the margin of the river, and up the hill-sides, the lights scattered in every direction, and rising irregularly one above another, contended successfully with the struggling stars to light the way of the adventurers; while a low sound, the faint indication of life, hardly distinguishable from other noises, rose from the village, for it was yet early in the night, and imparted a sense of security by the consciousness of human propinquity. But gradually, under the skillful strokes of the oars, the sounds became fainter and fainter, and one light after another disappeared till, at a turn in the stream, the bold promontory of Okommakemisit hid the town from view.

A feeling of loneliness now, in spite of the presence of his two friends, began to creep over the constable. So long as the lights had been visible, he felt a strength derived from the vicinity of the habitations of his fellow-beings, as if, were anything untoward to happen, a.s.sistance was close at hand and ready to be proffered, but now he might die a thousand deaths, and none be the wiser for his wretched end. As these and other thoughts equally dismal chased each other through his mind, the silence became more and more oppressive (for it was only now and then, hitherto, a word had been uttered), and it was with an emotion of thankfulness and relief he heard it broken by the voice of Gladding.

"I say, Primus," he said, "do you know where you are?"

"I guess I does," answered the black, speaking from between his shut teeth, which the necessity of retaining the stump of a pipe he was smoking compelled him to keep tight together, "I is on de river 'joying a row wid two white genlmn."

"Any fool knows that," said Tom, "though for the matter of the enjoyment, there might be two words about that. Some jugs has two handles."

"Well, if dat doesn't please you, I all in a shiver wid de cold. My wood toe is almost freeze."

"That's a plaguy curus thing," said Tom. "You know Jim Hardy. Well I hearn him say he can feel the fingers in his hand that was ground off in the mill, just an much as in tother. I expect your experience is pretty much the same."

"Dat's a fact," said Primus. "I can feel de foot and de toes just as much as ebber, only de leg is a sort o' kind o' shorter. Now, Missa Gladding, you is a man ob gumption, can you splain dat?"

"Sartin," said Tom, who didn't wish to appear ignorant to the presence of the negro; "there's no great difficulty about that, though I rather think it takes more larning than you've got to onderstand the thing.

You see," he added, recollecting as well as he could some Latin words he had heard used by the doctor, "the narves of the rigdum flagdum in circ.u.mnavigating through the humorous rusticus, deflastigated by the horrentibus oribus sort o' twist the aures arrectos into asinos, and that you see, to a man of larning makes the whole thing as clear as one of elder Sillyway's sarmons."

Primus fairly caught his breath at Tom's display of learning, who rose considerably higher also in Ba.s.set's estimation. After somewhat recovering from his astonishment, and as if he had been reflecting on the subject, the General said--

"Larning is a great ting, and perhaps you is right and perhaps you isn't, but I hear anoder way to 'count for it."

"Out with it then," cried Tom.

"White folks," said Primus, "hab one way to 'count for tings, and colored pussons hab anoder way. Now I hear a colored pussun, who come all de way from Africa, where dey onderstands dese tings, say it was de jumbee."

"The jumbee! What in natur's that!" inquired Ba.s.set, who had not before mingled in the conversation.

"Now, none of your tricks, Prime," cried Tom, suspecting the negro of an intention to mystify them with a jargon like that he had palmed off; "jumbee ain't Latin."

"n.o.body say it was," returned Primus, "I guess de old fellow nebber hab much chance to study Latin. He better 'quainted wid de shovel and de hoe. Dat mean in de Congo language, sperit."

"Colored people are curus folks," e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Ba.s.set

"I don't see fairly what you're driving at yet," said Gladding.

"Suppose jumbee does mean sperit, what then?"

"I mean dat de hand turn into a sperit. Don't you see, Missa Ba.s.set,"

exclaimed Primus, suddenly poking his wooden leg at the constable, "de sperit ob my leg?"

"Don't, don't, Prime," cried the startled constable, drawing back and nearly falling in his fright into the water. "What's the use of talking about sperits now? Come let us talk about something else."

"Well," grinned Primus, "if you don't see de sperit, I feel him."

"Don't talk so; you're spoiling all the pleasure of the sail by such kind o' nonsense," urged Ba.s.set.

"Don't you believe in sperits?" inquired the persevering General.

"I tell ye I don't like to talk about such things now," responded Ba.s.set.