Viola Gwyn

Viola Gwyn

The Project Gutenberg EBook of Viola Gwyn, by George Barr
McCutcheon (#11 in our series by George Barr McCutcheon)
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Title: Viola Gwyn
Author: George Barr McCutcheon
Release Date: July, 2004 [EBook #6013] [Yes, we are more than one
year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on October 16, 2002]
Edition: 10

Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, VIOLA
GWYN ***

Charles Aldarondo, Charles Franks and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team.

[Illustration: "I shall get married when and where I please,--and to
whom I please, Mr. Gwynne."]
VIOLA GWYN
BY George Barr McCutcheon

CONTENTS
PROLOGUE--THE BEGINNING
CHAPTER
I SHELTER FOR THE NIGHT II THE STRANGE YOUNG
WOMAN III SOMETHING ABOUT CLOTHES, AND MEN, AND
CATS IV VIOLA GWYN V REFLECTIONS AND AN
ENCOUNTER VI BARRY LAPELLE VII THE END OF THE LONG
ROAD VIII RACHEL CARTER IX BROTHER AND SISTER X
MOTHER AND DAUGHTER XI A ROADSIDE MEETING XII
ISAAC STAIN APPEARS BY NIGHT XIII THE GRACIOUS
ENEMY XIV A MAN FROM DOWN THE RIVER XV THE
LANDING OF THE "PAUL REVERE" XVI CONCERNING
TEMPESTS AND INDIANS XVII REVELATIONS XVIII RACHEL
DELIVERS A MESSAGE XIX LAPELLE SHOWS HIS TEETH XX
THE BLOW XXI THE AFFAIR AT HAWK'S CABIN XXII THE
PRISONERS XXIII CHALLENGE AND RETORT XXIV IN AN
UPSTAIRS ROOM XXV MINDA CARTER XXVI THE FLIGHT OF
MARTIN HAWK XXVII THE TRIAL OF MOLL HAWK XXVIII
THE TRYSTING PLACE OF THOUGHTS XXIX THE ENDING

PROLOGUE
THE BEGINNING
Kenneth Gwynne was five years old when his father ran away with
Rachel Carter, a widow. This was in the spring of 1812, and in the fall
his mother died. His grandparents brought him up to hate Rachel Carter,
an evil woman.
She was his mother's friend and she had slain her with the viper's tooth.
From the day that his questioning intelligence seized upon the truth that
had been so carefully withheld from him by his broken-hearted mother
and those who spoke behind the hand when he was near,--from that day
he hated Rachel Carter with all his hot and outraged heart. He came to
think of her as the embodiment of all that was evil,--for those were the
days when there was no middle-ground for sin and women were either
white or scarlet.
He rejoiced in the belief that in good time Rachel Carter would come to
roast in the everlasting fires of hell, grovelling and wailing at the feet of
Satan, the while his lovely mother looked down upon her in pity,--even
then he wondered if such a thing were possible,--from her seat beside
God in His Heaven. He had no doubts about this. Hell and heaven were
real to him, and all sinners went below. On the other hand, his father
would be permitted to repent and would instantly go to heaven. It was
inconceivable that his big, strong, well-beloved father should go to the
bad place. But Mrs. Carter would! Nothing could save her! God would
not pay any attention to her if she tried to repent; He would know it
was only "make-believe" if she got down on her knees and prayed for
forgiveness. He was convinced that Rachel Carter could not fool God.
Besides, would not his mother be there to remind Him in case He could
not exactly remember what Rachel Carter had done? And were there
not dozens of good, honest people in the village who would probably
be in Heaven by that time and ready to stand before the throne and bear
witness that she was a bad woman?
No, Rachel Carter could never get into Heaven. He was glad. No matter
if the Scriptures did say all that about the sinner who repents, he did not
believe that God would let her in. He supported this belief by the
profoundly childish contention that if God let EVERYBODY in, then
there would be no use having a hell