Wright American Fiction

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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1864, by T. B. PETERSON & BROTHERS, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

TO
THE PATRIOT PRINTERS OF AMERICA—
THE MEN WHO
HAVE FURNISHED MORE SOLDIERS
THAN ANY OTHER CLASS
IN COMPARISON WITH THE WHOLE NUMBER OF THEIR CRAFT,
TO
THE DEAD HEROES OF THE WAR FOR THE UNION
AND
THE LIVING ARMIES THAT YET BULWARK ITS HOPE,—
THIS
BLENDING OF THE FACTS AND FANCIES
OF
WAR-TIME,
IS
DEDICATED BY THEIR BROTHER-CRAFTSMAN,

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PREFACE.

SOME persons, taking up this work with expectations more or less elevated, may possibly lay it down with disappointment after perusal, because it does not discuss with sharp personalities, as the title may have led them to suppose, the conduct of some of those well-known men connected with the Union Army, who have disgracefully faltered on the field, But the truth is that the Union Army has mustered very few cowards—so few, that a distinguished artist, not long ago called on to draw an ideal head of one of that class, said: "Really it is so long since I have seen a coward, that I scarcely know how to go about it!" The aim of the writer, eschewing all such tempting personalities, and quite as carefully avoiding all dry didactic discussion of the theme of courage and its opposite,—has principally been to illustrate the tendency of many men to misunderstand their own characters in certain particulars, and the inevitable consequence of their being misunderstood by the world, in one direction or the other. No apology is felt to be page: 22-23 (Table of Contents) [View Page 22-23 (Table of Contents) ]Switch to Image ModeCLOSE Page 22-23 (Table of Contents) necessary for the length at which the scenery of the White Mountains, their actualities of interest and possibilities of danger, have been introduced into the narration; nor is it believed that the chain of connection with the great contest will be found the weaker because the glimpses given of it are somewhat more brief than in preceding publications of the same series. In those portions the writer had again occasion to acknowledge the assistance of the same capable hand which supplied much of the war data for both of his previous volumes.

CONTENTS.

• CHAPTER I. A June Morning of Eighteen Hundred and Sixty-three—Glimpses of West Philadelphia—The Days before Gettysburgh—The Two on the Piazza—Margaret Hayley and Elsie Brand—An Embrace and a Difference—Foreshadowings of Carlton Brand, Brother and Lover. 29
• CHAPTER II. The Coming of Carlton Brand—Almost a Paladin of Balaclava—Brother and Sister—A Spasm of Shame—The Confession—The Coward—How Margaret Hayley heard Many Words not intended for her—The Rupture and the Separation. 45
• CHAPTER III. Kitty Hood and her School-house—Dick Compton going Soldiering—A Lover's Quarrel, a bit of Jealousy, and a Threat—How Dick Compton met his supposed Rival—An Encounter, Sudden Death, and Kitty Hood's terrible Discovery. 61
• CHAPTER IV. The Residence of the Brands—Robert Brand and Dr. Pomeroy—Radical and Copperhead—A passage-at-arms that ended in a Quarrel—Elspeth Graeme the Housekeeper—The Shadow of Shame—Father and Daughter—The falling of a parent's Curse. 81
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• CHAPTER V. The Birth and Blood of the Brands—Pride that came down from the Crusades—Robert Brand as Soldier and Pension-Agent—How Elsie raved, and how the Father's Curse seemed to be answered—Dr. James Holton, and the loss of a Corpus Delicti. 99
• CHAPTER VI. The Residence of Dr. Pomeroy—Nathan Bladesden and Eleanor Hill—A kneeling Woman and a rigid Quaker—The ruin that a Letter had wrought—A Parting that seemed eternal—Carlton Brand alive once more, and a Glance at the fatal Letter. 120
• CHAPTER VII. A return to 1856—Nicholas Hill, Iron-merchant—His Death, his Daughter, and his Friend—How Dr. Pomeroy became a Guardian and how he Discharged that duty—A ruin and an awakening—The market value of Dunderhaven Stock in 1858. 137
• CHAPTER VIII. What followed the revelation of Betrayal—A gleam of Hope for Eleanor Hill—A relative from California, a projected Voyage, and a Disappointment—One more Letter—The broken thread resumed—Carlton Brand's farewell, and an Elopement. 164
• CHAPTER IX. Dr. Pomeroy's purposed Pursuit—A plain Quaker who used very plain Language—Almost a Fight—How Mrs. Burton Hayley consoled her Daughter, and how Margaret revealed the Past—A Compact—Dr. Pomeroy's Canine Adventure—Old Elspeth once more—A Search that found Nothing. 174
• CHAPTER X. Before and after Gettysburgh—The Apathy and Despair which preceded, and the Jubilation which followed—What Kitty Hood said after the Battle, and what Robert Brand—Brother and Sister—A guest at the Fifth Avenue Hotel—A fire-room Visit, an Interview, and a Departure for Europe 200
• CHAPTER XI. Anomalies of the War for the Union—The Watering-place rush of 1863—A White Mountain party disembarking at Littleton—Who filled the Concord coach—The Vanderlyns—Shoddy on its travels—Mr. Brooks Cunninghame and his Family—"H. T." and an Excitement. 219
• CHAPTER XII. Landing at the Profile House—Halstead Rowan and Gymnastics—How that person saw Clara Vanderlyn and became a Rival of "H. T."—The Full Moon in the Notch—Trodden Toes, a Name, a Voice, and a Rencontre—Margaret Hayley and Capt. Hector Coles—The Old Man of the Mountain by Moonlight, and a Mystery. 237
• CHAPTER XIII. Miss Clara Vanderlyn and her Pet Bears—A misadventure and a Friendly Hand in time—The question of Courage—Halstead Rowan and Mrs. Brooks Cunninghame on Geography—The Dead Washington, the Flume and the Pool—With the personal relations weaving at that juncture. 255
• CHAPTER XIV. A disaster to Master Brooks Brooks Cunninghame—Exit into the bottom of the Pool—Nobody that could swim, and Margaret Hayley in Excitement—"H. T." in his element, in two senses—Another Introduction and a new Here—Scenes in the Profile parlor—Rowan and Clara Vanderlyn—The Insult. 279
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• CHAPTER XV. How Halstead Rowan arranged that expected Duel—Ten-pins versus bloodshed—Some anxiety about identity—The "H. T." initials, again—A farewell to the Brooks Cunninghames—An hour on Echo Lake, with a Rhapsody and a strangely-interested Listener. 298
• CHAPTER XVI. Cloud and Storm at the Profile—Sights and Sensations of a rainyday ride to the Crawford—HoraceTownsend and Halstead Rowan once more together—Unexpected Arrivals—A cavalcade of Miserables—An ascent of Mount Washington, with Equestrianism and War-whoops extraordinary. 323
• CHAPTER XVII. Horace Townsend with a Lady in charge—An adventure over the "Gulf of Mexico"—Clara Vanderlyn in deadly peril—A moment of horror—Halstead Rowan and a display of the Comanche riding—Townsend's eclipse—The return to the Crawford—Margaret Hayley again, and a Conversation overheard. 348
• CHAPTER XVIII. Horace Townsend and Margaret Hayley—A strange Rencontre in the Parlor—Another Rencontre, equally strange but less pleasant—How Clara Vanderlyn faded away from the Mountains—And how the Comanche Rider "played baby" and disappeared. 370
• CHAPTER XIX. A strange Character at breakfast—"The Rambler," and his Antecedents—What Horace Townsend heard about Fate—Going up to Pic-nic on Mount Willard—The Plateau, the Rope and the Swing—Spreading the Banquet—The dinner-call and a cry which answered it—A fearful situation. 392
• CHAPTER XX. Suspense in danger, in two Senses—Horace Townsend with a Swing-rope—An invitation to Captain Hector Coles—A fearful piece of Amateur Gymnastics—Going down into the Schute—Success or Failure?—The event, and Margaret Hayley's madness—Two unfortunate Declarations. 410
• CHAPTER XXI. The bearer of a Disgraced Name in England—A strange Quest and a strange Unrest—Hurrying over to Ireland—Too late for the Packet—The little Despatch-steamer—Henry Fitzmaurice, the journalist—The peril of the Emerald, and the end of all Quests save one. 432
• CHAPTER XXII. Pleasanton's advance on Culpeper—Crossing the Rappahannock—The fight and the calamity of Rawson's Cross-Roads—Taking of Culpeper—Pleasanton's Volunteer Aide—Townsend versus Coles—The meeting of Two who loved each other—And the Little Ride they took together 452
• CHAPTER XXIII. Once more at West Philadelphia—September and Change—Last glimpses of Kitty Hood and Dick Compton—Robert Brand and his invited Guest—The news of Death—Old Elspeth Graeme as a Seeress—The dispatch from Alexandria—The Quest of Brand and Margaret Hayley. 478
• CHAPTER XXIV. In the Hospital at Alexandria—The wounded Man and his Nurse—Who was Horace Townsend?—A Mystery explained—How Eleanor Hill went back to Dr. Pomeroy's—One word more of the Comanche Rider—Conclusion. 490