Queechy Volume I Part 8

"How do you know?" said Mr. Carleton, turning to her. "By your wit as a fairy?"

"I know by the colour," said Fleda, modestly; "and by the shape too."

"Fairy," said Mr. Rossitur, "if you have any of the stuff about you, I wish you would knock this gentleman over the head with your wand, and put the spirit of moving into him. He is going to sit dreaming here all day."

"Not at all," said his friend, springing up; "I am ready for you; but I want other game than woodc.o.c.k just now, I confess."

They walked along in silence, and had near reached the extremity of the table-land, which, towards the end of the valley, descended into ground of a lower level covered with woods; when Mr. Carleton, who was a little ahead, was startled by Fleda's voice, exclaiming, in a tone of distress, "Oh, not the robins!" and turning about, perceived Mr. Rossitur standing still with levelled gun, and just in the act to shoot. Fleda had stopped her ears. In the same instant, Mr.

Carleton had thrown up the gun, demanding of Rossitur, with a singular change of expression ? "what he meant!"

"Mean?" said the young gentleman, meeting with an astonished face the indignant fire of his companion's eyes ? "why, I mean not to meddle with other people's guns, Mr. Carleton. What do _you_ mean?"

"Nothing, but to protect myself."

"Protect yourself!" said Rossitur, heating as the other cooled ? "from what, in the name of wonder?"

"Only from having my word blown away by your fire," said Carleton, smiling. "Come, Rossitur, recollect yourself ?

remember our compact."

"Compact! one isn't bound to keep compacts with unearthly personages," said Rossitur, half sulkily and half angrily; "and besides, I made none."

Mr. Carleton turned from him very coolly, and walked on.

They left the table-land and the wood, entered the valley again, and pa.s.sed through a large orchard, the last of the succession of fields which stretched along it. Beyond this orchard the ground rose suddenly, and on the steep hill-side there had been a large plantation of Indian corn. The corn was harvested, but the ground was still covered with numberless little stacks of the cornstalks. Halfway up the hill stood three ancient chestnut-trees; veritable patriarchs of the nut tribe they were, and respected and esteemed as patriarchs should be.

"There are no 'dropping nuts' to-day, either," said Fleda, to whom the sight of her forest friends in the distance probably suggested the thought, for she had not spoken for some time.

"I suppose there hasn't been frost enough yet."

"Why, you have a good memory, Fairy," said Mr. Carleton. "Do you give the nuts leave to fall of themselves?"

"Oh, sometimes grandpa and I go a nutting," said the little girl, getting lightly over the fence ? "but we haven't been this year."

"Then it is a pleasure to come yet?"

"No," said Fleda, quietly; "the trees near the house have been stripped; and the only other nice place there is for us to go to, Mr. Didenhover let the Shakers have the nuts. I sha'n't get any this year."

"Live in the woods and not get any nuts! that wont do, Fairy.

Here are some fine chestnuts we are coming to ? what should hinder our reaping a good harvest from these?"

"I don't think there will be any on them," said Fleda; "Mr.

Didenhover has been here lately with the men getting in the corn; I guess they have cleared the trees."

"Who is Mr. Didenhover?"

"He is grandpa's man."

"Why didn't you bid Mr. Didenhover let the nuts alone?"

"Oh, he wouldn't mind if he was told," said Fleda. "He does everything just as he has a mind to, and n.o.body can hinder him. Yes, they've cleared the trees ? I thought so."

"Don't you know of any other trees that are out of this Mr.

Didenhover's way?"

"Yes," said Fleda; "I know a place where there used to be beautiful hickory trees, and some chestnuts too, I think; but it is too far off for grandpa, and I couldn't go there alone.

This is the twenty-acre lot," said she, looking, though she did not say it, "Here I leave you."

"I am glad to hear it," said her cousin. "Now give us our directions, Fleda, and thank you for your services."

"Stop a minute," said Mr. Carleton. "What if you and I should try to find those same hickory-trees, Miss Fleda? Will you take me with you ? or is it too long a walk?"

"For me? ? oh no!" said Fleda, with a face of awakening hope; "but," she added, timidly, "you were going a shooting, Sir?"

"What on earth are you thinking of, Carleton?" said young Rossitur." Let the nuts and Fleda alone, do!"

"By your leave, Mr. Rossitur," said Carleton. "My murderous intents have all left me, Miss Fleda; I suppose your wand has been playing about me, and I should like nothing better than to go with you over the hills this morning. I have been a nutting many a time in my own woods at home, and I want to try it for once in the New World. Will you take me?"

"Oh, thank you, Sir!" said Fleda; " but we have pa.s.sed the turning a long way; we must go back ever so far the same way we came to get to the place where we turn off to go up the mountain."

"I don't wish for a prettier way ? if it isn't so far as to tire you, Fairy?"

"Oh, it wont tire me!" said Fleda, overjoyed.

"Carleton!" exclaimed young Rossitur. "Can you be so absurd!

Lose this splendid day for the woodc.o.c.k, when we may not have another while we are here!"

"You are not a true sportsman, Mr. Rossitur," said the other, coolly, "or you would know what it is to have some sympathy with the sports of others. But _you_ will have the day for the woodc.o.c.k, and bring us home a great many, I hope. Miss Fleda, suppose we give this impatient young gentleman his orders and despatch him."

"I thought you were more of a sportsman," said the vexed West Pointer, ? "or your sympathy would be with me."

"I tell you the sporting mania was never stronger on me," said the other, carelessly. "Something less than a rifle, however, will do to bring down the game I am after. We will rendezvous at the little village over yonder, unless I go home before you, which I think is more probable. Au revoir!"

With careless gracefulness he saluted his disconcerted companion, who moved off with ungraceful displeasure. Fleda and Mr. Carleton then began to follow back the road they had come, in the highest good humour both. Her sparkling face told him with even greater emphasis than her words,

"I am so much obliged to you, Sir."

"How you go over fences!" said he, ? "like a sprite, as you are."

"Oh, I have climbed a great many," said Fleda, accepting, however, again with that infallible instinct, the help which she did not need. ? "I shall be so glad to get some nuts, for I thought I wasn't going to have any this year; and it is so pleasant to have them to crack in the long winter evenings."

"You must find them long evenings indeed, I should think."

"Oh no, we don't," said Fleda. "I didn't mean they were long in _that_ way. Grandpa cracks the nuts, and I pick them out, and he tells me stories; and then you know he likes to go to bed early. The evenings never seem long."

"But you are not always cracking nuts."

"Oh no, to be sure not; but there are plenty of other pleasant things to do. I dare say grandpa would have bought some nuts, but I had a great deal rather have those we get ourselves, and then the fun of getting them, besides, is the best part."

Fleda was tramping over the ground at a furious rate.