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第23节

the faith of men-第23节

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He moved never a muscle; nor twitched a hair; when; for the first

time; Leclere tottered out on the missionary's arm; and sank down

slowly and with infinite caution on the three…legged stool。



〃BON!〃 he said。  〃BON!  De good sun!〃  And he stretched out his

wasted hands and washed them in the warmth。



Then his gaze fell on the dog; and the old light blazed back in his

eyes。  He touched the missionary lightly on the arm。  〃Mon pere;

dat is one beeg devil; dat Batard。  You will bring me one pistol;

so; dat Ah drink de sun in peace。〃



And thenceforth for many days he sat in the sun before the cabin

door。  He never dozed; and the pistol lay always across his knees。

Batard had a way; the first thing each day; of looking for the

weapon in its wonted place。  At sight of it he would lift his lip

faintly in token that he understood; and Leclere would lift his own

lip in an answering grin。  One day the missionary took note of the

trick。



〃Bless me!〃 he said。  〃I really believe the brute comprehends。〃



Leclere laughed softly。  〃Look you; mon pere。  Dat w'at Ah now

spik; to dat does he lissen。〃



As if in confirmation; Batard just perceptibly wriggled his lone

ear up to catch the sound。



〃Ah say 'keel'。〃



Batard growled deep down in his throat; the hair bristled along his

neck; and every muscle went tense and expectant。



〃Ah lift de gun; so; like dat。〃  And suiting action to word; he

sighted the pistol at Batard。  Batard; with a single leap;

sideways; landed around the corner of the cabin out of sight。



〃Bless me!〃 he repeated at intervals。  Leclere grinned proudly。



〃But why does he not run away?〃



The Frenchman's shoulders went up in the racial shrug that means

all things from total ignorance to infinite understanding。



〃Then why do you not kill him?〃



Again the shoulders went up。



〃Mon pere;〃 he said after a pause; 〃de taim is not yet。  He is one

beeg devil。  Some taim Ah break heem; so an' so; all to leetle

bits。  Hey? some taim。  BON!〃



A day came when Leclere gathered his dogs together and floated down

in a bateau to Forty Mile; and on to the Porcupine; where he took a

commission from the P。 C。 Company; and went exploring for the

better part of a year。  After that he poled up the Koyokuk to

deserted Arctic City; and later came drifting back; from camp to


camp; along the Yukon。  And during the long months Batard was well

lessoned。  He learned many tortures; and; notably; the torture of

hunger; the torture of thirst; the torture of fire; and; worst of

all; the torture of music。



Like the rest of his kind; he did not enjoy music。  It gave him

exquisite anguish; racking him nerve by nerve; and ripping apart

every fibre of his being。  It made him howl; long and wolf…life; as

when the wolves bay the stars on frosty nights。  He could not help

howling。  It was his one weakness in the contest with Leclere; and

it was his shame。  Leclere; on the other hand; passionately loved

musicas passionately as he loved strong drink。  And when his soul

clamoured for expression; it usually uttered itself in one or the

other of the two ways; and more usually in both ways。  And when he

had drunk; his brain a…lilt with unsung song and the devil in him

aroused and rampant; his soul found its supreme utterance in

torturing Batard。



〃Now we will haf a leetle museek;〃 he would say。  〃Eh?  W'at you

t'ink; Batard?〃



It was only an old and battered harmonica; tenderly treasured and

patiently repaired; but it was the best that money could buy; and

out of its silver reeds he drew weird vagrant airs that men had

never heard before。  Then Batard; dumb of throat; with teeth tight

clenched; would back away; inch by inch; to the farthest cabin

corner。  And Leclere; playing; playing; a stout club tucked under

his arm; followed the animal up; inch by inch; step by step; till

there was no further retreat。



At first Batard would crowd himself into the smallest possible

space; grovelling close to the floor; but as the music came nearer

and nearer; he was forced to uprear; his back jammed into the logs;

his fore legs fanning the air as though to beat off the rippling

waves of sound。  He still kept his teeth together; but severe

muscular contractions attacked his body; strange twitchings and

jerkings; till he was all a…quiver and writhing in silent torment。

As he lost control; his jaws spasmodically wrenched apart; and deep

throaty vibrations issued forth; too low in the register of sound

for human ear to catch。  And then; nostrils distended; eyes

dilated; hair bristling in helpless rage; arose the long wolf howl。

It came with a slurring rush upwards; swelling to a great heart…

breaking burst of sound; and dying away in sadly cadenced woethen

the next rush upward; octave upon octave; the bursting heart; and

the infinite sorrow and misery; fainting; fading; falling; and

dying slowly away。



It was fit for hell。  And Leclere; with fiendish ken; seemed to

divine each particular nerve and heartstring; and with long wails

and tremblings and sobbing minors to make it yield up its last

shred of grief。  It was frightful; and for twenty…four hours after;

Batard was nervous and unstrung; starting at common sounds;

tripping over his own shadow; but; withal; vicious and masterful

with his team…mates。  Nor did he show signs of a breaking spirit。

Rather did he grow more grim and taciturn; biding his time with an

inscrutable patience that began to puzzle and weigh upon Leclere。

The dog would lie in the firelight; motionless; for hours; gazing

straight before him at Leclere; and hating him with his bitter

eyes。



Often the man felt that he had bucked against the very essence of

lifethe unconquerable essence that swept the hawk down out of the

sky like a feathered thunderbolt; that drove the great grey goose

across the zones; that hurled the spawning salmon through two

thousand miles of boiling Yukon flood。  At such times he felt

impelled toexpress his own unconquerable essence; and with strong

drink; wild music; and Batard; he indulged in vast orgies; wherein

he pitted his puny strength in the face of things; and challenged

all that was; and had been; and was yet to be。



〃Dere is somet'ing dere;〃 he affirmed; when the rhythmed vagaries

of his mind touched the secret chords of Batard's being and brought

forth the long lugubrious howl。  〃Ah pool eet out wid bot' my

han's; so; an' so。  Ha! ha!  Eet is fonee!  Eet is ver' fonee!  De

priest chant; de womans pray; de mans swear; de leetle bird go

peep…peep; Batard; heem go yow…yowan' eet is all de ver' same

t'ing。  Ha! ha!〃



Father Gautier; a worthy priest; one reproved him with instances of

concrete perdition。  He never reproved him again。



〃Eet may be so; mon pere;〃 he made answer。  〃An' Ah t'ink Ah go

troo hell a…snappin'; lak de hemlock troo de fire。  Eh; mon pere?〃



But all bad things come to an end as well as good; and so with

Black Leclere。  On the summer low water; in a poling boat; he left

McDougall for Sunrise。  He left McDougall in company with Timothy

Brown; and arrived at Sunrise by himself。  Further; it was known

that they had quarrelled just previous to pulling out; for the

Lizzie; a wheezy ten…ton stern…wheeler; twenty…four hours behind;

beat Leclere in by three days。  And when he did get in; it was with

a clean…drilled bullet…hole through his shoulder muscle; and a tale

of ambush and murder。



A strike had been made at Sunrise; and things had changed

considerably。  With the infusion of several hundred gold…seekers; a

deal of whisky; and half…a…dozen equipped gamblers; the missionary

had seen the page of his years of labour with the Indians wiped

clean。  When the squaws became preoccupied with cooking beans and

keeping the fire going for the wifeless miners; and the bucks with

swapping their warm furs for black bottles and broken time…pieces;

he took to his bed; said 〃Bless me〃 several times; and departed to

his final accounting in a rough…hewn; oblong box。  Whereupon the

gamblers moved their roulette and faro tables into the mission

house; and the click of chips and clink of glasses went up from

dawn till dark and to dawn again。



Now Timothy Brown was well beloved among these adventurers of the

North。  The one thing against him was his quick temper and ready

fista little thing; for which his kind heart and forgiving hand

more than atoned。  On the other hand; there was nothing to atone

for Black Leclere。  He was 〃black;〃 as more than one remembered

deed bore witness; while he was as well hated as the other was

beloved。  So the men of Sunrise put an antiseptic dressing on his

shoulder and haled him before Judge Lynch。



It was a simple affair。  He had quarrelled with Timothy Brown at

McDougall。  With Timothy Brown he had left McDougall。  Without

Timothy Brown he had arrived at Sunrise。  Considered in the light

of his evilness; 

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