SlowlyitdawneduponWetzelthatthechiefcouldhardlyhaveanyreasonfortakingthiscirclingcoursesavethatofprideandsavagejoyinmisleading,infoolingthefoeoftheDelawares,indeliberatelyshowingDeathwindthattherewasoneIndianwhocouldlaughatandloosehimintheforests。ToWetzelthiswasbitterasgall。Tobeledawildgoosechase！Hisfierceheartboiledwithfury。Hisdark,keeneyessoughtthegrassandmosswithterribleearnestness。Yetinspiteoftheangerthatincreasedtothewhiteheatofpassion,hebecameawareofsomestrangesensationcreepinguponhim。HerememberedthattheDelawareshadofferedhislife。Slowly,likeashadow,Wetzelpassedupanddowntheridges,throughthebrownandyellowaislesoftheforest,overthebabblingbrooks,outuponthegolden—fleckedfields——alwayscloseonthetrail。
　　Atlastinanopenpartoftheforest,whereafirehadoncesweptawaythebrushandsmallertimber,WetzelcameuponthespotwheretheDelaware'strailended。
　　Thereinthesoft,blackgroundwasamoccasin—print。Theforestwasnotdense;therewasplentyoflight;nologs,stonesortreeswerenear,andyetoverallthatgladenofurtherevidenceoftheIndian'strailwasvisible。
　　Itfadedthereasthegreatchiefhadboasteditwould。
　　Wetzelsearchedtheburntground;hecrawledonhishandsandknees;againandagainhewentoverthesurroundings。Thefactthatonemoccasin—printpointedwestandtheothereast,showedthattheDelawarehadturnedinhistracks,wasthemostbafflingthingthathadevercrossedthehunterinallhiswildwanderings。
　　Forthefirsttimeinmanyyearshehadfailed。Hetookhisdefeathard,becausehehadbeensuccessfulforsolonghethoughthimselfalmostinfallible,andbecausethefailurelosthimtheopportunitytokillhisgreatfoe。Inhispassionhecursedhimselfforbeingsoweakastolettheprayerofawomanturnhimfromhislife'spurpose。
　　Withbowedheadandslow,draggingstepshemadehiswaywestward。Thelandwasstrangetohim,butheknewhewasgoingtowardfamiliarground。Foratimehewalkedquietly,allthetimethefiercefeverinhisveinsslowlyabating。Calmhealwayswas,exceptwhenthatunnaturallustforIndians'
　　bloodovercamehim。
　　Onthesummitofahighridgehelookedaroundtoascertainhisbearings。Hewassurprisedtofindhehadtraveledinacircle。AmileorsobelowhimarosethegreatoaktreewhichherecognizedasthelandmarkofBeautifulSpring。Hefoundhimselfstandingonthehill,undertheverydeadtreetowhichhehaddirectedGirty'sattentionafewhoursprevious。
　　WiththeideathathewouldreturntothespringtoscalpthedeadIndians,hewentdirectlytowardthebigoaktree。OnceoutoftheforestawideplainlaybetweenhimandthewoodedknollwhichmarkedthegladeofBeautifulSpring。
　　Hecrossedthisstretchofverdantmeadow—land,andenteredthecopse。
　　Suddenlyhehalted。Hiskeensenseoftheusualharmonyoftheforest,withitsinnumerablequietsounds,hadreceivedasevereshock。Hesankintothetallweedsandlistened。Thenhecrawledalittlefarther。Doubtbecamecertainty。Asinglenoteofanoriolewarnedhim,anditneedednotthequicknotesofacatbirdtotellhimthatnearathand,somewhere,washumanlife。
　　OncemoreWetzelbecameatiger。Thehotbloodleapedfromhisheart,firingallhisveinsandnerves。Butcalmlynoiseless,certain,cold,deadlyasasnakehebeganthefamiliarcrawlingmethodofstalkinghisgame。
　　On,onunderthebriarsandthickets,acrossthehollowsfullofyellowleaves,upoverstonypatchesofgroundtothefern—coveredcliffoverhangingthegladeheglided——lithe,sinuous,atigerinmovementandinheart。
　　Hepartedthelong,gracefulfernsandgazedwithglitteringeyesdownintothebeautifulglade。
　　Hesawnottheshiningspringnorthepurplemoss,northeghastlywhitebones——allthatthebuzzardshadleftofthedead——noranything,saveasolitaryIndianstandingerectintheglade。
　　There,withinrangeofhisrifle,washisgreatIndianfoe,Wingenund。
　　Wetzelsankbackintothefernstostillthefuriousexultationswhichalmostconsumedhimduringthemomentwhenhemarkedhisvictim。Helaytherebreathinghard,grippingtightlyhisrifle,slowlymasteringthepassionthataloneofallthingsmightrenderhisaimfutile。
　　Forhimitwasthethirdgreatmomentofhislife,thelastofthreemomentsinwhichtheIndian'slifehadbelongedtohim。Oncebeforehehadseenthatdark,powerfulfaceoverthesightsofhisrifle,andhecouldnotshootbecausehisoneshotmustbeforanother。Againhadthatlofty,haughtyfigurestoodbeforehim,calm,disdainful,arrogant,andheyieldedtoawoman'sprayer。
　　TheDelaware'slifewashistotake,andhesworehewouldhaveit！Hetrembledintheecstasyofhistriumphantpassion;hisgreatmusclesrippledandquivered,forthemomentwasentirelybeyondhiscontrol。Thenhispassioncalmed。Suchpowerforvengeancehadhethathecouldalmoststilltheverybeatsofhishearttomakesureanddeadlyhisfatalaim。Slowlyheraisedhimself;hiseyesofcoldfireglittered;slowlyheraisedtheblackrifle。
　　Wingenundstooderectinhisold,grandpose,withfoldedarms,buthiseyes,insteadofbeingfixedonthedistanthills,wereloweredtotheground。
　　AnIndiangirl,coldasmarble,layathisfeet。Hergarmentswerewet,andclungtoherslenderform。hersadfacewasfrozenintoaneternalrigidity。
　　Byhersidewasanewlydiggrave。
　　Thebeadonthefrontsightoftheriflehadhardlycoveredthechief'sdarkfacewhenWetzel'seyetookintheseotherdetails。HehadbeensoabsorbedinhispurposethathedidnotdreamoftheDelaware'sreasonforreturningtotheBeautifulSpring。
　　SlowlyWetzel'sforefingerstiffened;slowlyheloweredtheblackrifle。
　　WingenundhadreturnedtoburyWhisperingWinds。
　　Wetzel'steetheclenched,anawfulstruggletorehisheart。Slowlytheriflerose,waveredandfell。Itroseagain,waveredandfell。Somethingterriblewaswrongwithhim;somethingawfulwasawakeninginhissoul。
　　Wingenundhadnotmadeafoolofhim。TheDelawarehadledhimalongchase,hadgivenhimtheslipintheforest,nottoboastofit,buttohurrybacktogivehisdaughterChristianburial。
　　WingenundwasaChristian！
　　Hadhenotbeen,oncehavingcasthisdaughterfromhim,hewouldneverhavelookeduponherfaceagain。
　　Wingenundwastruetohisrace,buthewasaChristian。
　　SuddenlyWetzel'sterribletemptation,hisheart—rackingstruggleceased。Heloweredthelong,blackrifle。Hetookonelastlookatthechieftain'sdark,powerfulface。
　　ThentheAvengerfledlikeashadowthroughtheforest。
　　ChapterXXX。
　　ItwaslateafternoonatFortHenry。Theruddysunhadalreadysunkbehindthewoodedhill,andthelongshadowsofthetreeslengthenedonthegreensquareinfrontofthefort。
　　ColonelZanestoodinhisdoorwaywatchingtheriverwitheagereyes。Afewminutesbeforeamanhadappearedonthebankoftheislandandhailed。ThecolonelhadsenthisbrotherJonathantolearnwhatwaswanted。Thelatterhadalreadyreachedtheothershoreinhisflatboat,andpresentlythelittleboatputoutagainwiththestrangerseatedatthestern。
　　"Ithought,perhaps,itmightbeWetzel,"musedthecolonel,"thoughIneverknewofLew'swantingaboat。"
　　Jonathanbroughtthemanacrosstheriver,andupthewindingpathtowhereColonelZanewaswaiting。
　　"Hello！It'syoungChristy！"exclaimedthecolonel,jumpingoffthesteps,andcordiallyextendinghishand。"Gladtoseeyou！Where'sWilliamson。Howdidyouhappenoverhere？"
　　"CaptainWilliamsonandhismenwillmaketherivereightortenmilesabove,"
　　answeredChristy。"IcameacrosstoinquireabouttheyoungpeoplewholefttheVillageofPeace。WasgladtolearnfromJonathantheygotoutallright。"
　　"Yes,indeed,we'reallglad。Comeandsitdown。Ofcourseyou'llstayovernight。Youlooktiredandworn。Well,nowonder,whenyousawthatMoravianmassacre。Youmusttellmeaboutit。IsawSamBradyyesterday,andhespokeofseeingyouoverthere。Samtoldmeagooddeal。Ah！here'sJimnow。"
　　Theyoungmissionarycameoutoftheopendoor,andthetwoyoungmengreetedeachotherwarmly。
　　"Howisshe？"askedChristy,whenthefirstgreetingshadbeenexchanged。
　　"Nell'sjustbeginningtogetovertheshock。She'llbegladtoseeyou。"
　　"JonathantellsmeyougotmarriedjustbeforeGirtycameupwithyouatBeautifulSpring。"
　　"Yes;itistrue。Infact,thewholewonderfulstoryistrue,yetIcannotbelieveasyet。Youlookthinandhaggard。Whenwelastmetyouwerewell。"
　　"Thatawfultimepulledmedown。Iwasanunwillingspectatorofallthathorriblemassacre,andshallnevergetoverit。Icanstillseethefiendishsavagesrunningaboutwiththereekingscalpsoftheirownpeople。Iactuallycountedthebodiesofforty—ninegrownChristiansandtwenty—sevenchildren。
　　Anhourafteryouleftusthechurchwasinashes,andthenextdayIsawtheburnedbodies。Oh！thesickeninghorrorofthescene！Ithauntsme！ThatmonsterJimGirtykilledfourteenChristianswithhissledge—hammer。"
　　"Didyouhearofhisdeath？"askedColonelZane。
　　"Yes,andafittingenditwastothefrontier'SkullandCross—bones'。"
　　"ItwaslikeWetzeltothinkofsuchavengeance。"
　　"HasWetzelcomeinsince？"
　　"No。JonathansayshewentafterWingenund,andthere'snotellingwhenhe'llreturn。"
　　"IhopedhewouldsparetheDelaware。"
　　"WetzelspareanIndian！"
　　"Butthechiefwasafriend。Hesurelysavedthegirl。"
　　"Iamsorry,too,becauseWingenundwasafineIndian。ButWetzelisimplacable。"
　　"Here'sNell,andMrs。Clarketoo。Comeout,bothofyou,"criedJim。
　　NellappearedinthedoorwaywithColonelZane'ssister。Thetwogirlscamedownthestepsandgreetedtheyoungman。Thebride'ssweetfacewaswhiteandthin,andtherewasashadowinhereyes。
　　"Iamsogladyougotsafelyawayfrom——fromthere,"saidChristy,earnestly。
　　"TellmeofBenny？"askedNell,speakingsoftly。
　　"Oh,yes,Iforgot。Why,Bennyissafeandwell。HewastheonlyChristianIndiantoescapetheChristianmassacre。Heckewelderhidhimuntilitwasallover。Heisgoingtohavetheladeducated。"
　　"ThankHeaven！"murmuredNell。
　　"Andthemissionaries？"inquiredJim,earnestly。
　　"WereallwellwhenIleft,except,ofcourse,Young。Hewasdying。Theotherswillremainoutthere,andtrytogetanotherhold,butIfearit'simpossible。"
　　"Itisimpossible,notbecausetheIndiandoesnotwantChristianity,butbecausesuchwhitemenastheGirty'srule。ThebeautifulVillageofPeaceowesitsruintotherenegades,"saidColonelZaneimpressively。
　　"CaptainWilliamsoncouldhavepreventedthemassacre,"remarkedJim。
　　"Possibly。Itwasabadplaceforhim,andIthinkhewaswrongnottotry,"
　　declaredthecolonel。
　　"Hullo！"criedJonathanZane,gettingupfromthestepswherehesatlisteningtotheconversation。
　　Afamiliarsoft—moccasinedfootfallsoundedonthepath。AllturnedtoseeWetzelcomeslowlytowardthem。Hisbuckskinhuntingcostumewasraggedandworn。Helookedtiredandweary,butthedarkeyeswerecalm。
　　ItwastheWetzelwhomtheyallloved。
　　Theygreetedhimwarmly。Nellgavehimherhands,andsmiledupathim。
　　"I'msogladyou'vecomehomesafe,"shesaid。
　　"Safean'sound,lass,an'gladtofindyouwell,"answeredthehunter,asheleanedonhislongrifle,lookingfromNelltoColonelZane'ssister。"Betty,Iallusgaveyoufirstplaceamongborderlasses,buthere'soneascouldrunyoumostanykindofarace,"hesaid,withtheraresmilewhichsowarmlylightedhisdark,sternface。
　　"LewWetzelmakingcompliments！Well,ofallthings！"exclaimedthecolonel'ssister。
　　JonathanZanestoodcloselyscanningWetzel'sfeatures。ColonelZane,observinghisbrother'sclosescrutinyofthehunter,guessedthecause,andsaid:
　　"Lew,tellus,didyouseeWingenundoverthesightsofyourrifle？"
　　"Yes,"answeredthehuntersimply。
　　Achillseemedtostriketheheartsofthelisteners。Thatsimpleanswer,comingfromWetzel,meantsomuch。Nellbowedherheadsadly。Jimturnedawaybitinghislip。Christylookedacrossthevalley。ColonelZanebentoverandpickedupsomepebbleswhichhethrewhardatthecabinwall。JonathanZaneabruptlyleftthegroup,andwentintothehouse。
　　Butthecolonel'ssisterfixedherlarge,blackeyesonWetzel'sface。
　　"Well？"sheasked,andhervoicerang。
　　Wetzelwassilentforamoment。Hemethereeyeswiththatold,inscrutablesmileinhisown。Aslightshadeflittedacrosshisface。
　　"Betty,Imissedhim,"hesaid,calmly,and,shoulderinghislongrifle,hestrodeaway。
　　NellandJimwalkedalongthebluffabovetheriver。Twilightwasdeepening。
　　Theredglowinthewestwasslowlydarkeningbehindtheboldlydefinedhills。
　　"Soit'sallsettled,Jim,thatwestayhere,"saidNell。
　　"Yes,dear。ColonelZanehasofferedmework,andachurchbesides。Weareveryfortunate,andshouldbecontented。Iamhappybecauseyou'remywife,andyetIamsadwhenIthinkof——him。PoorJoe！"
　　"Don'tyoueverthinkwe——wewrongedhim？"whisperedNell。
　　"No,hewishedit。Ithinkheknewhowhewouldend。No,wedidnotwronghim;
　　welovedhim。"
　　"Yes,Ilovedhim——Ilovedyouboth,"saidNellsoftly。
　　"Thenletusalwaysthinkofhimashewouldhavewished。"
　　"Thinkofhim？ThinkofJoe？Ishallneverforget。Inwinter,springandsummerIshallrememberhim,butalwaysmostinautumn。ForIshallseethatbeautifulgladewithitsgorgeouscolorandthedark,shadedspringwhereheliesasleep。"
　　Theyearsrolledbywiththeirchangingseasons;everyautumnthegoldenflowersbloomedrichly,andthecoloredleavesfellsoftlyupontheambermossinthegladeofBeautifulSpring。
　　TheIndianscampedtherenomore;theyshunnedthegladeandcalledittheHauntedSpring。Theysaidthespiritofawhitedogranthereatnight,andtheWind—of—Deathmournedoverthelonelyspot。
　　AtlongintervalsanIndianchiefofloftyframeanddark,powerfulfacestalkedintothegladetostandformanymomentssilentandmotionless。
　　Andsometimesattwilightwhentheredglowofthesunhadfadedtogray,astalwarthunterslippedlikeashadowoutofthethicket,andleaneduponalong,blackriflewhilehegazedsadlyintothedarkspring,andlistenedtothesadmurmurofthewaterfall。Thetwilightdeepenedwhilehestoodmotionless。Theleavesfellintothewaterwithasoftsplash,awhippoorwillcaroledhismelancholysong。
　　Fromthegloomoftheforestcamealowsighwhichswelledthrillinglyuponthequietair,andthendiedawaylikethewailingofthenightwind。
　　Quietreignedoncemoreoverthedark,murkygraveoftheboywhogavehisloveandhislifetothewilderness。