I “He That Was Cold and Hungry” II The Gifts of Light and Song III An Inquisition According to Mahlon IV “Strength from Weakness” V The Verdict Goes Against Jezebel VI The Golden Egg VII Field Mice Among the Wheat VIII A Secret Among the Stars IX Sometimes Your Soul Shows X A Trick of the Subconscious XI The Driver of the Chariot XII Those Who Serve XIII Only Three Words XIV The Cloud That Grew XV The Last Straw XVI The Eyes of Elizabeth XVII “A Millstone and the Human Heart” XVIII A Triumph in Millinery XIX Rebecca Pronounces Judgment XX The Decision Marcia Reached XXI “Whatsoever a Man Sows” XXII Behind the Lilac Wall XXIII The Flag on Its Journey ------------------------------------------------------------------------ LIST OF CHARACTERS MAHALA SPELLMAN, the Model Child MAHLON SPELLMAN, the Dry-goods Merchant ELIZABETH SPELLMAN, a Fine Lady MARTIN MORELAND, the Harvester of Riches MRS. MARTIN MORELAND, a Bewildered Wife MARTIN MORELAND, Junior, a Chip from the Paternal Block BECKY SAMPSON, Bearer of the White Flag EDITH WILLIAMS, the Child of Discontent MARCIA PETERS, the Bearer of Chains JASON PETERS, Walking the Road MEHITABLE ASHCROFT, Teacher of Room Five PETER POTTER, the Village Grocer ELLEN FORD, a Wild Rose JEMIMA DAVIS, a Friend in Need NANCY BODKIN, Who Believed in Face Values Remainder of characters: School children, villagers, a minister, a doctor, a lawyer, etc. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ THE WHITE FLAG CHAPTER I “HE THAT WAS COLD AND HUNGRY” Elizabeth Spellman opened her eyes, turned on her pillow, and minutely studied the face of her sleeping husband. To her, Mahlon Spellman was not a vain, pompous, erratic little man of fifty. When she looked at him she saw the man who had courted her, of whose moral and mental attainments she had been so sure. She had visioned him as a future deacon of the Methodist Church, a prominent member of the School Board and the city council, and her vision had materialized; reality had been better than the Dream. He was Chairman of the County Republican Committee, frequently a delegate to state conventions, the Methodist Sunday School Superintendent, the richest dry-goods merchant of the town. As she studied his features that particular September morning, she choked down a rising flutter of satisfaction. Mahlon, as he lay there, represented success, influence, wealth. He slept as fastidiously as he walked abroad; he seemed conscious of his dignity and pride even as he lay unconscious.