The people craned their necks and stood on tiptoe to see the man who had
hatchedtheplotanddestroyedthebuildingwork.Theywereallastonishedatthe
poor miserable appearance of the man they had imagined to be quite different.
Naturally, none of them knew why he hopped in so droll a manner and took
abruptlittlesteps,andnoneofthemcouldseetheburnsfromthechainswhich
crossedhischestlikegreatbelts,forhisshirtandcloakhidthem.Thereforehe
seemed to all those there too wretched and too insignificant to have done the
deedwhichnowbroughthimtoexecution.Onlythelongwhitestakegaveasort
ofgruesomegrandeurtothesceneandkepteveryone'seyesfixedonit.
Whentheyreachedthespotonthebankwheretheexcavationworkbegan,the
manfromPlevljedismountedandwithasortofsolemnandtheatricalairgave
thereinstoagroom,thendisappearedwiththeothersinthesteepmuddytrack
whichleddowntothewater'sedge.Alittlelaterthepeoplesawthemagainas
they appeared in the same order on the staging, climbing upwards slowly and
carefully.Onthenarrowpassagesmadeofplanksandbeamstheguardsclosely
surrounded Radisav and kept him very near them lest he should leap into the
river. They dragged their way along slowly and climbed even higher till they
reachedthetop.There,highabovethewater,wasaboardedspaceaboutthesize
ofasmallroom.Onit,asonaraisedstage,theytooktheirplaces,Radisav,the
manfromPlevljeandthethreegipsies,withtherestoftheguardspostedaround
themonthestaging.
The people watching moved uneasily and shifted about. Only a hundred paces
separated them from those planks, so that they could see every man and every
movement, but could not hear words or distinguish details. The people and the
workmen on the left bank were about three times farther away, and moved
aroundasmuchastheycouldandmadeeveryefforttotrytoseeandhearbetter.
But they could hear nothing and what they could see seemed at first only too
ordinaryanduninterestingandattheendsoterriblethattheyturnedtheirheads
awayandmanyquicklywenthome,regrettingthattheyhadevercome.
When they ordered Radisav to lie down, he hesitated a moment and then,
looking past the gipsies and guards as if they were not there, came close up to
the man from Plevlje and said almost confidentially as if speaking to a friend,
softlyandheavily:
'Listen,bythisworldandthenext,doyourbesttopiercemewellsothatImay
notsufferlikeadog.'
ThemanfromPlevljestartedandshoutedathim,asifdefendinghimselffrom
thattoointimateapproach:
'March,Vlach!YouwhoaresogreataheroastodestroytheSultan'sworknow
begfor mercy likea woman. Itwill be as ithas been orderedand as youhave
deserved.'
Radisavbenthisheadstilllowerandthegipsiescameupandbegantostripoff
hiscloakandhisshirt.Onhischestthewoundsfromthechainsstoodout,red
andswollen.Withoutanotherwordthepeasantlaydownashehadbeenordered,
facedownward.Thegipsiesapproachedandthefirstboundhishandsbehindhis
back;thentheyattachedacordtoeachofhislegs,aroundtheankles.Thenthey
pulled outwards and to the side, stretching his legs wide apart. Meanwhile
Merdjanplacedthestakeontwosmallwoodenchockssothatitpointedbetween
the peasant's legs. Then he took from his belt a short broad knife, knelt beside
the stretched-out man and leant over him to cut away the cloth of his trousers
and to widen the opening through which the stake would enter his body. This
most terrible part of the bloody task was, luckily, invisible to the onlookers.
Theycouldonlyseetheboundbodyshudderattheshortandunexpectedprick
oftheknife,thenhalfriseasifitweregoingtostandup,onlytofallbackagain
leaptup,tookthewoodenmalletandwithslowmeasuredblowsbegantostrike
the lower blunt end of the stake. Between each two blows he would stop for a
momentandlookfirstatthebodyinwhichthestakewaspenetratingandthenat
the two gipsies, reminding them to pull slowly and evenly. The body of the
peasant,spreadeagled,writhedconvulsively;ateachblowofthemallethisspine
twistedandbent,butthecordspulledatitandkeptitstraight.Thesilencefrom
bothbanksoftheriverwassuchthatnotonlyeveryblowbutevenitsechofrom
somewhere along the steep bank could be clearly heard. Those nearest could hear how the man beat with his forehead against the planks and, even more,
another and unusual sound, that was neither a scream, nor a wail, nor a groan,
noranythinghuman;thatstretchedandtwistedbodyemittedasortofcreaking
andcrackinglikeafencethatisbreakingdownoratreethatisbeingfelled.At
everysecondblowthegipsywentovertothestretched-outbodyandleantover
it to see whether the stake was going in the right direction and when he had
satisfied himself that it had not touched any of the more important internal
organs,hereturnedandwentonwithhiswork.
Fromthebanksallthiscouldscarcelybeheardandstilllessseen,butallstood
theretrembling,theirfacesblanchedandtheirfingerschilledwithcold.
For a moment the hammering ceased. Merdjan now saw that close to the right
shouldermusclestheskinwasstretchedandswollen.Hewentforwardquickly
andcuttheswollenplacewithtwocrossedcuts.Palebloodflowedout,atfirst
slowlythenfasterandfaster.Twoorthreemoreblows,lightandcareful,andthe
iron-shod point of the stake began to break through at the place where he had
cut. He struck a few more times until the point of the stake reached level with
therightear.Themanwasimpaledonthestakeasalambonthespit,onlythat
the tip did not come through the mouth but in the back and had not seriously
damaged the intestines, the heart or the lungs. Then Merdjan threw down the
mallet and came nearer. He looked at the unmoving body, avoiding the blood
which poured out of the places where the stake had entered and had come out
againandwasgatheringinlittlepoolsontheplanks.Thetwogipsiesturnedthe
stiffened body on its back and began to bind the legs to the foot of the stake.
Meanwhile Merdjan looked to see if the man were still alive and carefully
examinedthefacethathadsuddenlybecomeswollen,widerandlarger.Theeyes
were wide open and restless, but the eyelids were unmoving, the mouth was
wideopenbutthetwolipsstiffandcontractedandbetweenthemtheclenched
teeth shone white. Since the man could no longer control some of his facial
muscles the face looked like a mask. Bu
t the heart beat heavily and the lungs
workedwithshort,quickenedbreath.Thetwogipsiesbegantolifthimuplikea
sheeponaspit.Merdjanshoutedtothemtotakecareandnotshakethebody;he
himself went to help them. Then they embedded the lower, thicker end of the
stakebetweentwobeamsandfixedittherewithhugenailsandthenbehind,at
thesameheight,buttressedthewholethingwithashortstrutwhichwasnailed
bothtothestakeandtoabeamonthestaging.
Whenthattoohadbeendone,thegipsiesclimbeddownandjoinedtheguards,
andonthatopenspace,raisedafulleightfeetupright,stiffandbaretothewaist, themanonthestakeremainedalone.Fromadistanceitcouldonlybeguessed
that the stake to which his legs had been bound at the ankles passed right
throughhisbody.Sothatthepeoplesawhimasastatue,highupintheaironthe
veryedge,ofthestaging,highabovetheriver.
Amurmurandawaveofmovementpassedthroughtheonlookersonthebanks.
Some lowered their eyes and others went quickly home without turning their
heads.Butthemajoritylookeddumblyatthishumanlikeness,upthereinspace,
unnaturallystiffandupright.Fearchilledtheirentrailsandtheirlegsthreatened
togivewaybeneaththem,buttheywerestillunabletomoveawayortaketheir
eyesfromthesight.AndamidthatterrifiedcrowdmadIlinkathreadedherway,
lookingeveryoneintheeyesandtryingtoreadtheirglancestofindfromthem
wherehersacrificedandburiedchildrenwere.
ThenthemanfromPlevlje,Merdjanandapairofguardswentuptotheimpaled
manandbegantoexaminehimmoreclosely.Onlyathintrickleofbloodflowed
downthestake.Hewasaliveandconscious.Hisribsroseandfell,theveinsin
his neck pulsed and his eyes kept turning slowly but unceasingly. Through the
clenchedteethcamealongdrawn-outgroaninginwhichafewwordscouldwith
difficultybedistinguished.
'Turks, Turks, . . .' moaned the man on the stake, 'Turks on the bridge .. . may youdielikedogs...likedogs.'
The gipsies picked up their tools and then, with the man from Plevlje, came
downfromthestagingtothebank.Thepeoplemadewayforthemandbeganto
disperse.Onlythechildrenonthehighblocksofstoneandthebaretreeswaited
alittlelonger,notknowingifthisweretheendorwhethertherewouldbemore,
to see what would happen next with that strange man who hovered over the
watersasifsuddenlyfrozeninthemidstofaleap.
The man from Plevlje approached Abidaga and reported that everything had
beencarriedoutcorrectlyandsatisfactorily,thatthecriminalwasstillaliveand
thatitseemedthathewouldgoonlivingsincehisinternalorganshadnotbeen
damaged.Abidagadidnotreplybutonlygaveasignwithhishandtobringhis
horseandbegantosaygoodbyetoTosunEffendiandMastroAntonio.Everyone
began to disperse. Through the marketplace the town-crier could be heard
announcingthatthesentencehadbeencarriedoutandthatthesameoraworse
punishmentawaitedanyonewhowoulddothelikeinfuture.
ThemanfromPlevljeremainedinperplexityonthelevelspacewhichhadnow
suddenly emptied. His servant held his horse and the guards waited for orders.
Hefeltthatheoughttosaysomethingbutwasnotabletobecauseofthewaveof
feelingthatonlynowbegantorisewithinhimandchokehim.Onlynowdidhe
become conscious of all that he had forgotten since he had been too busy
carrying out the sentence. He remembered Abidaga's threat that it would have
been he who would have been placed upon the stake had he not succeeded in
catchingthecriminal.Hehadescapedthathorror,butonlybyahairandonlyat
thelastmoment.Butthingshadturnedoutotherwise.Thesightofthatman,who
washanging,boundandstillalive,overtheriverfilledhimwithterrorandalso
withasortofpainfuljoythatsuchafatehadnotbeenhisandthathisbodywas
stillundamaged,wasfreeandabletomove.Atthatthoughtburningpainsshot
through his chest and spread into his legs and arms and forced him to move
about,tosmileandtospeak,justtoprovetohimselfthathewashealthy,thathe
couldmovefreely,couldspeakandlaughaloud,couldevensingifhesowished,
and not merely mutter useless curses from a stake, awaiting death as the only
happiness which could still be his. His hands and arms moved of their own
volition,hislipsopenedandfromthemflowedunwittinglyastrangledlaughand
acopiousflowofwords:
'Ha, ha, ha, Radisav, thou mountain vila, why so stiff?... Why not go on and underminethebridge?...Whywritheandgroan?Sing, vilal Dance, vilal'
Astonished and bewildered, the guards watched their leader dance with
outstretched arms, heard him sing and choke with laughter and with strange
words,sawthewhitefoamoozingmoreandmorefromthecornersofhislips.
Andhisbayhorse,infear,castsidelongglancesathim.
IV
Allthosewhohadbeenpresentattheexecutionofthesentence
spread terrible reports through the town and the surrounding villages. An
indescribablefeargrippedthetownsmenandtheworkers.Slowlyandgradually
afullconsciousnessofwhathadhappenedintheirmidstinthecourseofashort
November day came home to them. All conversation centred on the man who,
highupthereonthescaffolding,wasstillaliveonthestake.Everyoneresolved
not to speak of him; but what good was that when their thoughts turned
continuallytohimandallglancescentredonthespot?
ThepeasantscomingfromBanjacartingstoneintheirbullockcartsturnedtheir
eyes away and curtly ordered their oxen to make haste. The workers at work
alongthebanksandonthestagingcalledtooneanotherinhushedvoicesandas
littleastheycould.Theoverseersthemselves,withtheirwoodenstavesintheir
hands,weresubduedandlessbrutal.TheDalmatianstonemasonsclenchedtheir
jaws,turnedtheirbacksonthebridgeandstruckangrilywiththeirchiselswhich
intheuniversalstillnesssoundedlikeaflockofwoodpeckers.
Twilightcamequicklyandtheworkershurriedtotheirhovelsinthewishtoget
as far as possible from the staging. Before it was quite dark, Merdjan and a
trusted servant of Abidaga once more climbed the staging and definitely
confirmed that Radisav was even then, four hours after the sentence had been
carriedout,aliveandconscious.Consumedwithfever,herolledhiseyesslowly
and painfully, and when he saw the gipsy below him, he began to groan more
loudly. In this groaning, which showed his life was ebbing, it was possible to
distinguishonlyafewisolatedwords:
'TheTurks...theTurks...thebridge!'
Havingsatisfiedthemselves,theyreturnedtoAbidaga'shouseatBikavac,telling
everyonewhomtheymetontheirwaythatthecriminalwasstillalive;andsin
ce
he ground his teeth and spoke well and clearly from the stake there was every
hopethathewouldliveuntil noon the next day. Abidaga too was satisfied and
gaveordersthatMerdjanwastobepaidhispromisedreward.
That night everything living in the town and about the bridge slept in fear. Or
rather those who could slept but there were many to whom sleep would not
come.
ThenextdaywhichwasaMondaydawnedasunnyNovembermorning.There
was not an eye in the whole town or about the building work that did not turn
towards that intricate criss-cross of beams and planks over the waters, at the
fartherendofwhich,uprightandapart,wasthemanonthestake.Manywho,on
waking,hadthoughtthattheyhaddreamtallthathadtakenplacethedaybefore
uponthebridge,nowroseandwithfixedeyeslookedatthecontinuanceofthis
nightmarewhichremainedtherestarkinthesun.
Amongsttheworkerstherewasstillthathushofthedaybefore,filledwithpity
andbitterness.Inthetowntherewasstillthatwhisperingandanxiety.Merdjan
and that same servant of Abidaga's climbed up the scaffolding once more and
examined the condemned man; they spoke to each other, lifted their eyes and
lookedupwardsintothefaceofthepeasantandthen,suddenly,Merdjanpulled
at his trousers. From the way in which they made their way downwards to the
bank and walked silently through the men at work, everyone realized that the
peasanthadatlastdied.ThosewhowereSerbsfeltacertaineasingofthespirit,
asataninvisiblevictory.
Nowtheylookedmoreboldlyupatthescaffoldingandthemanwhohadbeen
condemned. They felt as if fate, in their continual wrestling and measuring of
forces with the Turks, had now inclined to their side. Death was the greatest
trump in the game. Mouths till then contracted in fear now began to open.
Muddy, wet, unshaven and pale, rolling great blocks of Banja stone with
pinewoodlevers,theyhaltedforamomenttospitontheirpalmsandsaytoeach
other in hushed voices: 'May God pardon him and have mercy upon him!' Ah,