The Bridge on the Drina - PDFDrive.com Read online

  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.

  'Iknowthatverywell.Weallknowthatitisnoteasyforyou.Only,noonecan

  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