themartyr!Itishardforsuchaswe!''Don'tyouseethathehasbecomeasaint?'
Andeveryoneglancedupatthedeadmanwhostayedthereasuprightasifhe
had been marching at the head of a company. Up there, so high, he no longer
seemedterribleorpitifultothem.Ontheotherhand,itwasnowcleartoallof
them how he was exalted and set apart. He no longer stood on the earth, his
handsheldtonothing,hedidnotswim,didnotfly;henolongerhadanyweight.
Freedfromallearthlytiesandburdens,hewasnolongerapreytotroubles;no
one could do anything more against him, neither rifle nor sword, nor evil
thoughts,normen'swords,norTurkishcourts.Nakedtothewaist,witharmsand
legsbound,hisheadthrownbackagainstthestake,thatfigurenolongerseemed
to bear any likeness to a human body which grows and then rots away, but
seemed to be raised on high, hard and imperishable as a statue which would
remainthereforever.
Themenonforcedlabourturnedandcrossedthemselvesstealthily.
In Mejdan the women hurried through the courtyards to whisper to each other for a moment or so and weep, and then at once rushed back to see if the
luncheon had burnt. One of them lighted an ikon-lamp. Quickly, in all the
houses,ikon-lampshiddenawayinthecornersoftheroomsbegantoglow.The
children, blinking in this solemn atmosphere, looked at the brightness and
listened to the broken and incomprehensible sentences of their elders: 'Defend
us, O Lord, and protect us!', 'Ah, martyr, he is chosen before God as if he had builtthegreatestofchurches!','Helpus,OLord,ThouHolyOne,driveawaythe
enemyanddonotlethimrulelongeroverus!';andincessantlyaskedwhowas
the martyr and who was building a church and where. The small boys were
especiallyinquisitive.Theirmothershushedthem:
'Bequiet,mysoul!Bequietandlistentomother.Aslongasyouarealivekeep
awayfromthoseaccursedTurks.'
Before it began to darken, Abidaga once more went around the construction
work and, satisfied with the result of this terrible example, ordered that the
peasantbetakendownfromthestake.
Throwthedogtothedogs!'
That night, which fell suddenly as soft and moist as spring, there began an
incomprehensible murmuring, a coming and going among the workers. Even
thosewhohadnotwantedtohearofdestructionandresistancewerenowready
tomakesacrificesanddoallthattheycould.Themanonthestakehadbecome
an object of general attention as if he had been holy. Some hundreds of
exhausted men, moved by an inner force made up of pity and ancient custom,
instinctivelyjoinedinanefforttogetthecorpseofthemartyredman,toprevent
itfrombeingprofanedandtogiveitChristianburial.Aftercautiouswhispered
consultationsinthehutsandstables,themenonforcedlabourcollectedamong
themselvestheconsiderablesumofsevengroshwithwhichtobribeMerdjan.To
carryoutthisworktheychosethreeofthecraftiestamongthemandsucceeded
in getting in touch with the executioner. Wet and tired from their labours, the
three peasants bargained, slowly and cunningly, going round and round the
point.Frowning,scratchinghisheadandstutteringintentionally,theoldestofthe
peasantssaidtothegipsy:
'Well,it'sallovernow.Itwassofated.Still,youknowitis,ahumanbeing,one
of God's creations ... it shouldn't. . . you know what I mean ... it shouldn't be eatenbybeastsortorntobitsbydogs.'
Merdjan,whoknewwellenoughwhatwasinthewind,defendedhimself,more
sorrowfullythanobstinately.
'No.Don'tevenspeakofit.You'llgetmewellroasted.Youdon'tknowwhata
lynxthatAbidagais!'
Thepeasantwastroubled,frownedandthoughttohimself:'Heisagipsy,athing
without cross or soul, one cannot call him either friend or brother, and one
cannot take his word by anything in heaven or earth', and held his hand in the
shallowpocketofhiscloaktightlygraspingthesevengrosh.
blame you. Here we have got together four grosh for you which, as we see it,
shouldbeenough....'
'No,no,mylifeisdearertomethanallthetreasureintheworld.Abidagawould
neverletmelive;thatoneseeseverything,evenwhenheisasleep.Iamdeadat
themerethoughtofit!'
'Fourgrosh,evenfive,butthat'sallwecando!Wecouldevenfindthatmuch,'
wentonthepeasant,payingnoheedtothegipsy'slaments.
'Idarenot,Idarenot....'
'Verywellthen....Sinceyouhavegotyourorderstothrowthe...thebody...to
the...tothedogs,youwillthrowit.Butwhathappensafterthatisnoneofyour
affair, nor will anyone ask you about it. So you see if we, for example, should
takethat...thatbody...andshouldburyitsomewhereaccordingtoourlawbut,
let us say, stealthily so that not a living soul will know . . . then you will, for example,saynextdaythatthedogshave...havecarriedawaythat...thatbody.
Noonewillbeanytheworseandyouwillhavegotyourshare....'
The peasant spoke carefully and with circumspection, only he halted with a
strangeuneasinessbeforetheword'body'___
'AmItolosemyheadforfivegrosh?No,no,n-o-o-.'
'Forsix,'addedthepeasantcalmly.
Thegipsydrewhimselfup,spreadouthisarms,andassumedanexpressionof
movingsincerity,asonlymenwhodonotdistinguishtruthfromliescando.He
stood before the peasant as though he were the judge and the peasant the
criminal.
'Letitbeonmyhead,sincethatismyfate,andletmy chai remainawidowand
mychildrenbeggars;ifyougivemesevengrosh,takethebodyaway,butnoone mustseeandnoonemustknow.'
Thepeasantshookhishead,regrettingdeeplythatthisscabmustgeteverything
rightdowntothelastfarthing,asifthegipsyhadbeenabletoseeintohisclosed
fist!
Thentheycametoanagreement,downtothelastdetail.Merdjanwastobring
thecorpse,whenhehadtakenitfromthescaffolding,totheleftbankoftheriver
andthere,assoonasitgrewdark,wastothrowitdownonastonypatchnearthe
road, so that it could be seen both by Abidaga's servants and by anyone who
might be passing by. The three peasants would be hidden in a thicket, a little
farther on. As soon as darkness fell, they would take the corpse, carry it away
andburyit,butinahiddenplaceandwithoutanyvisibletrace,sothatitwould
seemquitelikelythatthedogshaddraggeditawayovernightandeatenit.Three
groshweretobepaidinadvanceandfourmorewhenthejobwasfinished.
Thatsamenighteverythingwascarriedoutaccordingtotheagreement.
At twilight Merdjan brought the corpse and threw it on the roadside. (
It no
longerresembledthatbodywhichallhadlookedatforthepasttwodays,upright
andstiffuponthestake;thiswasonceagaintheoldRadisav,smallandbowed,
onlynowwithoutbloodorlife.)Thenhewentbackatoncewithhisassistantsby
theferrytothetownontheotherbank.Thepeasantswaitedinthethicket.One
ortwolateworkerspassed,andaTurkonhiswayhometothetown.Thenthe
whole countryside became quite still and dark. Dogs began to appear, those
powerful,mangy,hungrycowardlycurswithoutmastersorhomes.Thepeasants
concealedintheundergrowththrewstonesatthemanddrovethemaway.They
ranwithtailsbetweentheirlegsbutonlyfortwelvepacesorsofromthecorpse
where they waited to see what would happen next. Their eyes could be seen
glowingandshining.Whenitwasclearthatnighthadreallyfallenandtherewas
nolongeranylikelihoodthatanyoneelsewouldcomealong,thepeasantscame
outoftheirhidingplacecarryingapickandshovel.Theyhadalsobroughttwo
plankswiththemonwhichtheyplacedthecorpseandsocarrieditaway.There
inagullycausedbythespringandautumnrainsrushingdownthehillintothe
Drina, they removed the larger stones which formed the bed of a dry
watercourse, and dug out a deep grave quickly, silently, without words and
without noise. In it they placed the cold, stiff, twisted body. The oldest of the peasantsleaptintothepit,crossedhimselfcarefullyafewtimes,litfirstapiece
oftinderandthenasmallcandleoftwistedwax,shieldingthelightwithhistwo
hands; he placed it above the head of the dead man and crossed himself, repeatingthreetimesquicklyandaloud,'IntheNameoftheFather,theSonand
the Holy Spirit.' The two men with him crossed themselves in the darkness
above.Thepeasantthenmadeamovementwithhishandsoverthedeadmanas
if pouring from his empty hand the unseen wine and said twice, softly and
reverently:
'Peacewiththesaints,OChrist,forthesoulofThyslave.'Thenhewhispereda
fewmorewords,disconnectedandincomprehensible,butsoundinglikeprayers,
solemn and reverent, while the two men above the grave crossed themselves
continually. When he had ended, they lowered the two planks so that they
formedasortofroofoverthedeadman.Thenthepeasantcrossedhimselfonce
more, extinguished the candle and climbed out of the grave. Then, slowly and
carefully, they replaced the earth in the grave, treading it down well so that no swellingcouldbeseen.Whenthatwasdone,theyputbackthestones,likethe
bed of the stream, across the freshly dug earth, crossed themselves once more
andwentbackhome,makingawidedetoursoastorejointheroadatapointas
farawayaspossible.
That night there fell a dense soft rain without wind, and in the morning that
dawnedthewholerivervalleywasfilledwithmilkymistandaheavymoisture.
Inasortofwhiteresplendencewhichnowroseandnowfell,thesuncouldbe
seensomewherestrugglingwiththemistswhichitwasunabletopierce.Allwas
ghostly, new and strange. Men suddenly appeared out of the mist and equally
suddenly were lost in it. In such weather, early in the morning, there passed
throughthemarketplaceasimplecountrycartandonittwoguardswatchingthe
manfromPlevlje,theirleaderuntilthedaybefore,boundandunderarrest.
From the previous day, when in the access of unexpected emotion at finding
himselfstillaliveandnotonthestakehehadbeguntodancebeforethemall,he
hadnevercalmeddown.Allhismusclestwitched,hecouldnolongerkeepstill,
but was constantly tormented by the irresistible urge to prove to himself and
show others that he was still healthy, whole and capable of movement. At
intervalshewouldrememberAbidaga(thatwastheblackspotinhisnewjoy!)
andwouldfallintoadarkreverie.Butwhilehewasinthismood,freshforces
would collect within him which drove him irresistibly to wild and spasmodic
movementslikeamadman.Hewouldgetupagainandbegintodance,spreading
outhisarms,clickinghisfingersandtwistinglikeadancer,showingbysudden
andlivelyactionsthathewasnotonthestakeandgaspingtotherhythmofhis
dance:
'See...see...Icandothis...andthat...andthat!...'
Herefusedtoeatandwouldsuddenlybreakoffeveryconversationthathebegan
andstarttodance,affirmingchildishlyateverymovement:
'See,see,Icandothis...andthis....!'
When that night they finally decided to tell Abidaga what had happened, he
repliedcoldlyandabruptly:
TakethemadmantoPlevljeandletthemkeephimchainedupinhisownhouse
there,sothathedoesnotplaythefoolroundhere.Hewasnotthemanforajob
likethat!'
So was it done. But as their leader was unable to keep still, his guards were
forced to bind him to the cart in which he was sitting. He wept and defended
himself and as long as he was able to move any part of his body, he struggled
and shouted: 'See, see!' Finally they had to bind his arms and his legs, so that nowhesatinthecartuprightlikeasackofwheatswaddledinropes.But,since
hewasnolongerabletomove,hebegantoimaginethattheywereimpalinghim
onthestakeandwrithedandresistedwithdesperatecries:
'Notme,notme!Catchthe vila! No,Abidaga!'
Fromthelasthousesontheoutskirtsofthetown,peoplerushedoutexcitedby
hiscries,butthecartwiththeguardsandthesickmanwasswiftlylosttosightin
the thick mist along the Dobruna road through which the sun could just be
glimpsed.
The unexpected and pitiable departure of the man from Plevlje instilled still
greater fear into men's bones. It began to be whispered that the condemned
peasanthadbeeninnocentandthatthishadpreyedonthemindofthemanfrom
Plevlje.AmongtheSerbsinMejdanthewomenbegantotellhowthe vilas had
buriedthedeadbodyofthehaplessRadisavbelowButkovoStijeneandhowat
night a plenteous light fell upon his grave, thousands and thousands of lighted
candleswhichflamedandquiveredinalonglinereachingfromheaventoearth.
Theyhadseenthemthroughtheirtears.
All sorts of things were whispered and believed, but fear was stronger than all
else.
Workonthebridgewascarriedonquickly,smoothlyandwithoutinterruptionor
hindrance.ItwentonsomehoworotheruntilthebeginningofDecemberwhen
anunexpectedlyhardfrostcame,againstwhichevenAbidaga'spowercoulddo
nothing.
There were unheard-of frosts and blizzards in that first half of December. The
stones froze into the ground and the wood cracked. A fine crystalline snow
covered everything, tools and whole huts, and the next day a capricious wind
woulddriveittoanothersideandburyanotherpart.Wor
kceasedofitselfand
thefearofAbidagapaledandfinallydisappeared.Abidagatriedtofightagainst
itforsomedaysbutfinallygaveway.Hedismissedtheworkersandstoppedthe
work. In the midst of the heaviest snowfall he rode away with his men. That
same day Tosun Effendi set out on a peasant's sleigh heaped with straw and
blankets, and after him Mastro Antonio, in the opposite direction. And all that
campofforcedlabourersdispersedintothevillagesandthedeepvalleyswithout
a sound and as imperceptibly as water soaked up by the earth. The building
worksremainedlikeadiscardedtoy.
Before setting out Abidaga again summoned the leading Turks. He was
depressedbyhisangryimpotenceandtoldthem,asinthepreviousyear,thathe
lefteverythingintheirhandsandthattheirswastheresponsibility.
'Iamgoingawaybutmyeyesremainhere.Takeheed;betterthatyoucutoffa
scoreofdisobedientheadsthanthatasinglenailoftheSultan'sshouldbelost.
As soon as spring breaks I shall be here once more and shall call everyone to
account.'
The leaders promised everything as they had the year before and dispersed to
theirhomes,filledwithanxietyandwrappedintheircloaks,capesandshawls,
thanking God to themselves that God had given winter blizzards to the world
andhadinthatwayshownthatHispowerwasabletoputalimittothepowerof
themighty.
But when spring broke again, it was not Abidaga who came, but a new
representativeoftheVezir,ArifBeg,togetherwithTosunEffendi.Whathehad
so much feared had happened to Abidaga. Someone, someone whom he knew
wellandhadworkednearhim,hadsenttotheGrandVezirdetailedandaccurate
reports of his work on the Višegrad bridge. The Vezir had been accurately
informedthatforthosetwoyearsbetweentwoandthreehundredworkmenhad
been summoned for forced labour every day without a single para of pay and
very often bringing their own food, and that Abidaga had taken the Vezir's
money for himself (the amount of money that he had up till then managed to