The Captains Toll-Gate

The Captain's Toll-Gate

The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Captain's Toll-Gate, by Frank R. Stockton This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net
Title: The Captain's Toll-Gate
Author: Frank R. Stockton
Release Date: September 2, 2004 [EBook #13356]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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THE CAPTAIN'S TOLL-GATE
By
FRANK R. STOCKTON
_With a Memorial Sketch by Mrs. Stockton_
1903

CONTENTS
I. OLIVE II. MARIA PORT III. MRS. EASTERFIELD IV. THE SON OF AN OLD SHIPMATE V. OLIVE PAYS TOLL VI. MR. CLAUDE LOCKER VII. THE CAPTAIN AND HIS GUEST GO FISHING AND COME HOME HAPPY VIII. CAPTAIN ASHER IS NOT IN A GOOD HUMOR IX. MISS PORT TAKES A DRIVE WITH THE BUTCHER X. MRS. EASTERFIELD WRITES A LETTER XI. MR. LOCKER IS RELEASED ON BAIL XII. MR. RUPERT HEMPHILL XIII. MR. LANCASTER'S BACKERS XIV. A LETTER FOR OLIVE XV. OLIVE'S BICYCLE TRIP XVI. MR. LANCASTER ACCEPTS A MISSION XVII. DICK IS NOT A PROMPT BEARER OF NEWS XVIII. WHAT OLIVE DETERMINED TO DO XIX. THE CAPTAIN AND DICK LANCASTER DESERT THE TOLL-GATE XX. MR. LOCKER DETERMINES TO RUSH THE ENEMY'S POSITION XXI. MISS RALEIGH ENJOYS A RARE PRIVILEGE XXII. THE CONFLICTING SERENADES XXIII. THE CAPTAIN AND MARIA XXIV. MR. TOM ARRIVES AT BROADSTONE XXV. THE CAPTAIN AND MR. TOM XXVI. A STOP AT THE TOLL-GATE XXVII. BY PROXY XXVIII. HERE WE GO! LOVERS THREE! XXIX. TWO PIECES OF NEWS XXX. BY THE SEA XXXI. AS GOOD AS A MAN XXXII. THE STOCK-MARKET IS SAFE XXXIII. DICK LANCASTER DOES NOT WRITE XXXIV. MISS PORT PUTS IN AN APPEARANCE XXXV. THE DORCAS ON GUARD XXXVI. COLD TINDER XXXVII. IN WHICH SOME GREAT CHANGES ARE RECORDED XXXVIII. "IT HAS JUST BEGUN!"

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Portrait of Prank B. Stockton _Etching by Jacques Reich from a photograph._
The Holt, Mr. Stockton's home near Convent, N.J.
Claymont, Mr. Stockton's home near Charles Town, West Virginia.
A corner in Mr. Stockton's study at Claymont.
The upper terraces of Mr. Stockton's garden at Claymont.

A MEMORIAL SKETCH
As this--The Captain's Toll-Gate--is the last of the works of Frank R. Stockton that will be given to the public, it is fitting that it be accompanied by some account of the man whose bright spirit illumined them all. It is proper, also, that something be said of the stories themselves; of the circumstances in which they were written, the influences that determined their direction, and the history of their evolution. It seems appropriate that this should be done by the one who knew him best; the one who lived with him through a long and beautiful life; the one who walked hand in hand with him along the whole of a wonderful road of ever-changing scenes: now through forests peopled with fairies and dryads, griffins and wizards; now skirting the edges of an ocean with its strange monsters and remarkable shipwrecks; now on the beaten track of European tourists, sharing their novel adventures and amused by their mistakes; now resting in lovely gardens imbued with human interest; now helping the young to make happy homes for themselves; now sympathizing with the old as they look longingly toward a heavenly home; and, oftenest, perhaps, watching girls and young men as they were trying to work out the problems of their lives. All this, and much more, crowded the busy years until the Angel of Death stood in the path; and the journey was ended.
In regard to the present story--The Captain's Toll-Gate--although it is now after his death first published, it was all written and completed by Mr. Stockton himself. No other hand has been allowed to add to, or to take from it. Mr. Stockton had so strong a feeling upon the literary ethics involved in such matters that he once refused to complete a book which a popular and brilliant author, whose style was thought to resemble his own, had left unfinished. Mr. Stockton regarded the proposed act in the light of a sacrilege. The book, he said, should be published as the author left it. Knowing this fact, readers of the present volume may feel assured that no one has been permitted to tamper with it. Although the last book by Mr. Stockton to be published, it is not the last that he wrote. He had completed The Captain's Toll-Gate, and was considering its publication, when he was asked to write another novel dealing with the buccaneers. He had already produced a book entitled Buccaneers and Pirates of our Coasts. The idea of writing a novel while the incidents were fresh in his mind pleased him, and he put aside The Captain's Toll-Gate,