Historical Books

CHAPTER I. RETROSPECTIVE. Those of my friends who have done me the honor of reading "Campfire and Wigwam," will need little help to recall the situation at the close of that narrative. The German lad Otto Relstaub, having lost his horse, while on the way from Kentucky to the territory of Louisiana (their destination being a part of the present State of Missouri), he and his young friend, Jack... more...

SERIOUS NEWS "As long as I can't be at home," said Harry Fleming, "I'd rather be here than anywhere in the world I can think of!" "Rather!" said his companion, Dick Mercer. "I say, Harry, it must be funny to be an American!" Harry laughed heartily. "I'd be angry, Dick," he said, finally, "if that wasn't so English—and so funny! Still, I... more...

Preface. Note: Plan of this Miscellany. There is a vast amount of interesting information, on almost all subjects, which many people, especially the young, cannot attain to because of the expense, and, in some instances, the rarity of the books in which it is contained. To place some of this information, in an attractive form, within the reach of those who cannot afford to purchase expensive books, is... more...

CHAPTER I THE MISSION TO MOBILE POINT "I almost wish you were the second or the third lieutenant of the Bellevite, instead of the executive officer, Christy," said Captain Breaker, the commander of the steamer, as they were seated together one day on the quarter-deck. "Do I fail in the discharge of my duty in my present position, Captain?" asked Christy, very much astonished, not to say... more...

Chapter One. On the March. Trrt—trrt—trrt. Just that little sound, as the sticks flirted with the drumheads to keep the men in step; for Her Majesty’s 404th Fusiliers were marching “easy.” So it was called; and it meant with the men smoking, and carrying their rifles as they pleased—shouldered, at the trail, slung muzzle up or muzzle down. But, all the same, it was a miserable fiction to... more...

In Memoriam. By the death of Talbot B. Reed the boys of the English-speaking world have lost one of their best friends. For fourteen years he has contributed to their pleasure, and in the little library of boys’ books which left his pen he has done as much as any writer of our day to raise the standard of boys’ literature. His books are alike removed from the old-fashioned and familiar class of... more...

Chapter One. “Hi-lo!” The little boy raised his head with a sudden start. “Hilli—hi—ho! What cheer?” The little fellow started to his feet from where he had been sitting upon a sloping bank, and caught at the bars of the gate close by. He said nothing, but stared through the gloom of the autumn evening at the strange man, who now roared out: “What cheer, I says! What cheer?” The little... more...

CHAPTER I. THE DIARY OF FATHER CUTHBERT. All Saints' Day, 1002. Inasmuch as I, Cuthbert, by the long-suffering of the Divine goodness, am prior of the Benedictine house of St. Wilfrid at Aescendune, it seems in some sort my duty, following the example of many worthy brethren, to write some account of the origin and history of the priory over which it has pleased God to make me overseer, and to... more...

MAKING CANDY. Grace and Horace Clifford lived in Indiana, and so were called "Hoosiers." Their home, with its charming grounds, was a little way out of town, and from the front windows of the house you could look out on the broad Ohio, a river which would be very beautiful, if its yellow waters were only once settled. As far as the eye could see, the earth was one vast plain, and, in order to... more...

CAPTAIN BILL BROOM "What devilment has old Bill got on for tonight, Pete?" The speaker was seated on an old scarred sea chest in a dimly lighted forecastle. "I dunno," replied Pete, "maybe he's lookin' fer a wreck." "I the mate say somethin' about a passel of four boys," put in a third man who was laying back in his bunk, "that the skipper was... more...