CIVIL WAR'S EVE
by JOSEPH A. ALTSHELER
THE CIVIL WAR SERIES
VOLUMES IN THE CIVIL WAR SERIES
THE GUNS OF BULL RUN. THE GUNS OF SHILOH. THE
SCOUTS OF STONEWALL. THE SWORD OF ANTIETAM. THE
STAR OF GETTYSBURG. THE ROCK OF CHICKAMAUGA. THE
SHADES OF THE WILDERNESS. THE TREE OF APPOMATTOX.
PRINCIPAL CHARACTERS IN THE CIVIL WAR SERIES
HARRY KENTON, A Lad Who Fights on the Southern Side. DICK
MASON, Cousin of Harry Kenton, Who Fights on the Northern Side.
COLONEL GEORGE KENTON, Father of Harry Kenton. MRS.
MASON, Mother of Dick Mason. JULIANA, Mrs. Mason's Devoted
Colored Servant. COLONEL ARTHUR WINCHESTER, Dick Mason's
Regimental Commander. COLONEL LEONIDAS TALBOT,
Commander of the Invincibles, a Southern Regiment. LIEUTENANT
COLONEL HECTOR ST. HILAIRE, Second in Command of the
Invincibles. ALAN HERTFORD, A Northern Cavalry Leader. PHILIP
SHERBURNE, A Southern Cavalry Leader. WILLIAM J. SHEPARD,
A Northern Spy. DANIEL WHITLEY, A Northern Sergeant and
Veteran of the Plains. GEORGE WARNER, A Vermont Youth Who
Loves Mathematics. FRANK PENNINGTON, A Nebraska Youth,
Friend of Dick Mason. ARTHUR ST. CLAIR, A Native of Charleston,
Friend of Harry Kenton. TOM LANGDON, Friend of Harry Kenton.
GEORGE DALTON, Friend of Harry Kenton. BILL SKELLY,
Mountaineer and Guerrilla. TOM SLADE, A Guerrilla Chief. SAM
JARVIS, The Singing Mountaineer. IKE SIMMONS, Jarvis' Nephew.
AUNT "SUSE," A Centenarian and Prophetess. BILL PETTY, A
Mountaineer and Guide. JULIEN DE LANGEAIS, A Musician and
Soldier from Louisiana. JOHN CARRINGTON, Famous Northern
Artillery Officer. DR. RUSSELL, Principal of the Pendleton School.
ARTHUR TRAVERS, A Lawyer. JAMES BERTRAND, A Messenger
from the South. JOHN NEWCOMB, A Pennsylvania Colonel. JOHN
MARKHAM, A Northern Officer. JOHN WATSON, A Northern
Contractor. WILLIAM CURTIS, A Southern Merchant and Blockade
Runner. MRS. CURTIS, Wife of William Curtis. HENRIETTA
GARDEN, A Seamstress in Richmond. DICK JONES, A North
Carolina Mountaineer. VICTOR WOODVILLE, A Young Mississippi
Officer. JOHN WOODVILLE, Father of Victor Woodville. CHARLES
WOODVILLE, Uncle of Victor Woodville. COLONEL BEDFORD, A
Northern Officer. CHARLES GORDON, A Southern Staff Officer.
JOHN LANHAM, An Editor. JUDGE KENDRICK, A Lawyer. MR.
CULVER, A State Senator. MR. BRACKEN, A Tobacco Grower.
ARTHUR WHITRIDGE, A State Senator.
HISTORICAL CHARACTERS
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, President of the United States. JEFFERSON
DAVIS, President of the Southern Confederacy. JUDAH P.
BENJAMIN, Member of the Confederate Cabinet. U. S. GRANT,
Northern Commander. ROBERT B. LEE, Southern Commander.
STONEWALL JACKSON, Southern General. PHILIP H. SHERIDAN,
Northern General. GEORGE H. THOMAS, "The Rock of
Chickamauga." ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON, Southern General. A.
P. HILL, Southern General. W. S. HANCOCK, Northern General.
GEORGE B. McCLELLAN, Northern General. AMBROSE B.
BURNSIDE, Northern General. TURNER ASHBY, Southern Cavalry
Leader. J. E. B. STUART, Southern Cavalry Leader. JOSEPH
HOOKER, Northern General. RICHARD S. EWELL, Southern
General. JUBAL EARLY, Southern General. WILLIAM S.
ROSECRANS, Northern General. SIMON BOLIVAR BUCKNER,
Southern General. LEONIDAS POLK, Southern General and Bishop.
BRAXTON BRAGG, Southern General. NATHAN BEDFORD
FORREST, Southern Cavalry Leader. JOHN MORGAN, Southern
Cavalry Leader. GEORGE J. MEADE, Northern General. DON
CARLOS BUELL, Northern General. W. T. SHERMAN, Northern
General. JAMES LONGSTREET, Southern General. P. G. T.
BEAUREGARD, Southern General. WILLIAM L. YANCEY,
Alabama Orator. JAMES A. GARFIELD, Northern General, afterwards
President of the United States.
And many others
IMPORTANT BATTLES DESCRIBED IN THE CIVIL WAR
SERIES
BULL RUN KERNSTOWN CROSS KEYS WINCHESTER PORT
REPUBLIC THE SEVEN DAYS MILL SPRING FORT DONELSON
SHILOH PERRYVILLE STONE RIVER THE SECOND
MANASSAS ANTIETAM FREDERICKSBURG
CHANCELLORSVILLE GETTYSBURG CHAMPION HILL
VICKSBURG CHICKAMAUGA MISSIONARY RIDGE THE
WILDERNESS SPOTTSYLVANIA COLD HARBOR FISHER'S
HILL CEDAR CREEK APPOMATTOX
CONTENTS
I. NEWS FROM CHARLESTON
II. A COURIER TO THE SOUTH
III. THE HEART OF REBELLION
IV. THE FIRST CAPITAL
V. THE NEW PRESIDENT
VI. SUMTER
VII. THE HOMECOMING
VIII. THE FIGHT FOR A STATE
IX. THE RIVER JOURNEY
X. OVER THE MOUNTAINS
XI. IN VIRGINIA
XII. THE FIGHT FOR THE FORT
XIII. THE SEEKER FOR HELP
XIV. IN WASHINGTON
XV. BATTLE'S EVE
XVI. BULL RUN
THE GUNS OF BULL RUN
CHAPTER I
NEWS FROM CHARLESTON
It would soon be Christmas and Harry Kenton, at his desk in the
Pendleton Academy, saw the snow falling heavily outside. The school
stood on the skirt of the town, and the forest came down to the edge of
the playing field. The great trees, oak and ash and elm, were clothed in
white, and they stood out a vast and glittering tracery against the
somber sky.
The desk was of the old kind, intended for two, and Harry's comrade in
it was his cousin, Dick Mason, of his own years and size. They would
graduate in June, and both were large and powerful for their age. There
was a strong family resemblance and yet a difference. Harry's face was
the more sensitive and at times the blood leaped like quicksilver in his
veins. Dick's features indicated a quieter and more stubborn temper.
They were equal favorites
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