Show GREAT BOOKS Rash remark cost soldier his countr country by ELIZABETH C JAMES L T PHILLIP NOLAN main character of edward everett hales A man without a country was stationed in louisiana about the trip down there nolan was young and lonely and was flattered by the attentions of burr soon nolans bolans name name was linked with that of burr and the result was that without any purpose of disloyalty to his country lieutenant nolan was standing ready for trial by court martial in the progress of the trial the judged asked nolan if he had anything to say about his loyalty to the united states exasperated at the combination of events L damn the united 1 4 states I 1 hope that I 1 never hear the name again the judge and the court turned white withdrawing for dis cassion cus sion they re ell EI CT abeth izabeth turned in 15 min james utes y the judge read the verdict mr nolan you shall have your wish the verdict of this court is that you will never again hear the name of the country the prisoner was taken aboard an american ship that sailed at once when that ship had completed its voyage and was again nearing american waters mr nolan was transferred to another american ship outward bound the prisoner was treated kindly at all times and was given the best that each ship had to offer at each meal he was invited to dine with an officer who was responsible that no one mention the united states or anything pertaining to it known as plain buttons when the imprisonment first began nolan treated it with levity but when it settled down into a routine of ships and voyages that showed no end he became sober then remorse then timid as a child he lived for 50 years on the ships of the american navy knowing personally more officers and men than any other individual man from time to time during all the years of this strange punishment there occurred several crises in the life of nolan he possessed a beautiful speaking voice and was often invited to read to the assembled officers one day nolan was asked to read from the new book by sir walter scott which someone had picked up in port everyone was comfortably fort ably listening when nolan reached the passage breathes there a man with soul soui so dead who never to himself hath said this is my own my native land nolan threw the book into the sea and rushed to his stateroom he did not reappear for two months acts as interpreter during the long years of bf inactivity nolan mapped out a daily routine for himself he followed a program of regular study and became proficient in many subjects including foreign languages one day the american ship came across a slave ship that had mutinied mutinies muti nied and was drifting the slaves were freed of their chains but they could not HALES VARIED CAREER edward everett hale whose life was from 1822 to 1909 was one of the most voluminous writers of America his works would fill ten large volumes although he used every type of writing except poetry his permanent reputation rests on the two short stories my double and how he undid me and the man without a country hale followed many kinds of wor khe was a preacher a writer a lecturer and an active par in public affairs tow the end of his life he was cha chap lain to the united states senate talk with the americans to communicate muni cate their desires nolan was asked to interpret the slaves spoke a dialect of portuguese and they hey went wild with joy when they heard intelligible words when the american officer stated that he would take them to a specific point of land and leave them they set up a wail no no take us homel home and they began to cry out the names of the members of their famales that they wanted to see nolan was interpreting each side to the other his voice became huskier and huskier in desperation to end the painful scene the american officer crie out all right tell them that I 1 take them home nolan was more more than 70 years old when he died one night he sent for one of his friends to come to his stateroom when the friend entered the stateroom and looked around he saw what appeared to be a shrine to america the american eagle had been drawn on the ceiling on the wall was a picture of washington draped in an american flag on the foot of the bed was a map of america all of which nolan had drawn from memory bell syndicate service |