Produced by Audrey Longhurst, D Alexander and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from scanned images of public domain material from the Google Print project.) KING SPRUCE A NOVEL BY HOLMAN DAY AUTHOR OF "SQUIRE PHIN" "UP IN MAINE" "KIN O' KTAADN" ETC. ILLUSTRATED BY E. ROSCOE SHRADER NEW YORK AND LONDON HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS Copyright, 1908, by HARPER & BROTHERS. _All rights reserved._ Published April, 1908. [Illustration: "'I KNOW YOUR HEART'" [_See p. 289_] TO A. B. D. MY COMRADE OF TRAIL AND CAMP CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. UP IN "CASTLE CUT 'EM" 1 II. THE HEIRESS OF "OAKLANDS" 17 III. THE MAKING OF A "CHANEY MAN" 27 IV. THE BOSS OF THE "BUSTERS" 35 V. DURING THE PUGWASH HANG-UP 55 VI. AS FOUGHT BEFORE THE "IT-'LL-GIT-YE CLUB" 62 VII. ON MISERY GORE 78 VIII. THE TORCH, AND THE LIGHTING OF IT 92 IX. BY ORDER OF PULASKI D. BRITT 104 X. "LADDER" LANE'S SOIRÉE 114 XI. IN THE BARONY OF "STUMPAGE JOHN" 127 XII. THE CODE OF LARRIGAN-LAND 142 XIII. THE RED THROAT OF POGEY 153 XIV. THE MESSAGE OF "PROPHET ELI" 164 XV. BETWEEN TWO ON JERUSALEM 174 XVI. IN THE PATH OF THE BIG WIND 181 XVII. THE AFFAIR AT DURFY'S CAMP 198 XVIII. THE OLD SOUBUNGO TRAIL 217 XIX. THE HOME-MAKERS OF ENCHANTED 230 XX. THE HA'NT OF THE UMCOLCUS 241 XXI. THE MAN WHO CAME FROM NOWHERE 256 XXII. THE HOSTAGE OF THE GREAT WHITE SILENCE 270 XXIII. IN THE MATTER OF JOHN BARRETT'S DAUGHTER 278 XXIV. THE CHEESE RIND THAT NEEDED SHARP TEETH 293 XXV. SHARPENING TEETH ON PULASKI BRITT'S WHETSTONE 303 XXVI. THE DEVIL OF THE HEMPEN STRANDS 312 XXVII. THE "CANNED THUNDER" OF CASTONIA 324 XXVIII. "'TWAS DONE BY TOMMY THUNDER" 341 XXIX. THE PARADE PAST RODBURD IDE'S PLATFORM 352 XXX. THE PACT WITH KING SPRUCE 361 ILLUSTRATIONS "'I KNOW YOUR HEART'" _Frontispiece_ "WADE STOOD ABOVE THE FALLEN FOE" _Facing p._ 70 "WRITHING AT HIS BONDS, HIS CONTORTED FACE TOWARDS THE RED FLAMES GALLOPING UP THE VALLEY" " 172 "'WHAT I SAY ON THIS RIVER GOES!'" " 334 NOTE