A spectre of power by Charles Egbert Craddock
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"A spectre of power" by Charles Egbert Craddock is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set in the Cherokee town of Great Tellico during the colonial struggle for influence, it follows a French officer and a Choctaw chief as they court Cherokee alliance—and collide with local custom and personal jealousy. The key figures are the French lieutenant Laroche, the Choctaw ambassador Mingo Push-koosh, the Cherokee leader Moy Toy, and his
sister Akaluka (Eve), whose inadvertent acceptance of a gift sparks peril. Expect frontier statecraft, tense ceremonies, and a fragile balance between diplomacy and violence. The beginning of the story introduces a Choctaw embassy—accompanied by Laroche—to Tellico, where elaborate Cherokee rites, dances, and a bear-hunt pantomime mark their reception. Laroche’s true task is to solve a supply problem: the impassable shoals on the Cherokee River; when he cannot, he proposes “barrier towns” and an overland portage to make French trade and munitions flow. A public sensation erupts when Akaluka dives into the river to save a drifting scarf from the embassy cargo, which Push-koosh treats as acceptance of his suit under Cherokee custom. Laroche urges delaying any marriage for political prudence; Push-koosh, consumed by jealousy, coldly declares he would kill a Cherokee wife if the tribes become enemies. Warned by Laroche, Moy Toy and the chiefs return the scarf, but Push-koosh, affronted, destroys the French powder, raises the war-brand, and his party massacres unsuspecting Tellico youths before fleeing. The opening closes with Laroche abandoned and under guard in Tellico, facing the wrath of a grieving, enraged town. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Craddock, Charles Egbert, 1850-1922 |
|---|---|
| Title | A spectre of power |
| Original Publication | Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1903. |
| Credits | Peter Becker, Laura Natal and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) |
| Reading Level | Reading ease score: 61.8 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read. |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Adventure stories |
| Subject | Frontier and pioneer life -- Fiction |
| Subject | United States -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 -- Fiction |
| Subject | Indians of North America -- History -- Fiction |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 76105 |
| Release Date | May 17, 2025 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 365 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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