Here, however, a new difficulty occurred. A slight
projection of the rock, close to the aperture, impeded
my further progress in the manner hitherto pursued; and,
to pass this, I was compelled to drop my whole weight,
suspended by one vigorous arm, while, with the other, I
separated the bushes that concealed the opening. A
violent exertion of every muscle now impelled me upward,
until at length I had so far succeeded as to introduce
my head and shoulders through the aperture; after which
my final success was no longer doubtful. If I have been
thus minute in the detail of the dangerous nature of this
passage," continued Wacousta, gloomily, "it is not without
reason. I would have you to impress the whole of the
localities upon your imagination, that you may the better
comprehend, from a knowledge of the risks I incurred,
how little I have merited the injuries under which I have
writhed for years."
Again one of those painful pauses with which his narrative
was so often broken, occurred; and, with an energy that
terrified her whom he addressed, Wacousta pursued--"Clara
de Haldimar, it was here--in this garden--this paradise
--this oasis of the rocks in which I now found myself,
that I first saw and loved your mother.
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