



Produced by Charles Bowen, from page scans provided by Google books









Transcriber's Note:

   1. Page scan source:
      http://books.google.com/books?id=IG8PAAAAYAAJ&dq
   2. The diphthong oe is represented by [oe].






                                   A

                            HERO OF THE PEN.




                                   BY

                               E. WERNER,

              AUTHOR OF "GOOD LUCK," "BROKEN CHAINS," ETC.




                             TRANSLATED BY

                            FRANCES A. SHAW.






                               NEW YORK:
                     R. WORTHINGTON, 750 Broadway.
                                 1880.






                               Copyright
                         WILLIAM F. GILL & CO.
                                 1875.






                                 Trow's
                   Printing and Bookbinding Company,
                        205-213 _East 12th St_.,
                               NEW YORK.






                               CONTENTS.



                               CHAPTER I.

Love and Death


                              CHAPTER II.

A Strange Cavalier


                              CHAPTER III.

Was it Sickness or----?


                              CHAPTER IV.

The Hero of the Pen


                               CHAPTER V.

Face to Face


                              CHAPTER VI.

A Strange Presentment


                              CHAPTER VII.

Lovers, yet Strangers


                             CHAPTER VIII.

The Heiress at Bay


                              CHAPTER IX.

On The Scent


                               CHAPTER X.

For Value Received


                              CHAPTER XI.

The Dawn Of War


                              CHAPTER XII.

A Rocket in the Camp


                             CHAPTER XIII.

The Triumph of Pride


                              CHAPTER XIV.

Farewell


                              CHAPTER XV.

Following the Clue


                              CHAPTER XVI.

An Agonizing Doubt


                             CHAPTER XVII.

The Pen and the Sword


                             CHAPTER XVIII.

The Rival Lovers


                              CHAPTER XIX.

The Lover's Accusation


                              CHAPTER XX.

The Fateful Hour


                              CHAPTER XXI.

A Desperate Resolve


                             CHAPTER XXII.

A Fearful Alternative


                             CHAPTER XXIII.

The Vengeance of Passion


                             CHAPTER XXIV.

The Shadow of Doom


                              CHAPTER XXV.

To the Rescue


                             CHAPTER XXVI.

A Mortal Agony


                             CHAPTER XXVII.

Treason


                            CHAPTER XXVIII.

The Sacrifice of Blood


                             CHAPTER XXIX.

The Murderer and the Attack


                              CHAPTER XXX.

Waiting


                             CHAPTER XXXI.

The Balance Of Power


                             CHAPTER XXXII.

The Brand from the Burning


                            CHAPTER XXXIII.

An Unexpected Meeting


                             CHAPTER XXXIV.

The Riddle Solved






                           A HERO OF THE PEN




                               CHAPTER I.

                            Love And Death.


The scene of our story is a town on the Mississippi, about midway in
its course from Lake Itasca to the Gulf; the time is a cloudless
January day of the year 1871. A score of years ago, this town consisted
of only a dozen or so roughly built wooden houses; but emulating the
marvellous growth of American cities, it has expanded into a populous,
thriving business centre.

The dazzling, midday sunbeams enter the windows of a large, suburban
mansion, situated upon a hill commanding an unequalled prospect. The
elegance of its surroundings, the exquisite taste and richness of its
appointments, its artistic and expensive construction, distinguish this
residence of the millionaire, Forest, from all others far and near.

In the magnificent parlor, giving evidence of that superfluity of
expensive comfort and luxury which to wealthy Americans seems an
absolute necessity of life, sits a young lady, in an elaborate and
costly home dress. She is a girl of some twenty summers, and sitting
near the open fire, whose shifting gleams light up her face and form,
with her head resting thoughtfully in her hand, she listens to the
conversation of the man opposite her. The face a perfect oval, of a
clear, colorless, brunette complexion, with large, brown eyes and
perfectly regular features, is set in a frame of dark, luxuriant hair,
and possesses undeniable claims to beauty. And yet there is something
wanting in this exquisite face. It is that joyous, artless expression
which so seldom fails in youth; that breath of timidity we look for in
young maidenhood, and that look of gentleness a woman's face seldom
entirely lacks, and never to its advantage. There is a chilling gravity
in this young girl's whole appearance, a confident repose, an
undeniable self-consciousness; and yet it does not seem as if heavy
life-storms or premature sorrows can have brought to her the sad
experiences of later years. For this her brow is all too smooth--her
eyes too bright. Either inborn or inbred must be that seriousness
through which her beauty gains so much in expression, although it loses
infinitely in the tender grace and charm of both.

In a low arm chair, on the other side of the fireplace, sits a young
man in faultless society-dress. There is marked similarity between
these two. It lies not alone in hair and eyes of the same color, in the
same clear, pale complexion. It is more in that expression