The Secret Shot; Or, The Rivals Of Misty Mount — page 6: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

4 THE SECRET SHOT. before this; and now but two were left him —a son and daughter of tender years. So great was his grief at this double loss that an incurable melancholy fell upon the un- happy man, until, at length, unable longer to endure the familiar scenes which con- stantly recalled to his burdened mind the memory of the dear departed, he formed the quixotic design of disposing of his mag- nificent patrimony, and seeking a new and more rugged home among the wild moun- tains to the westward. THis friends, consid- ering this decision as the undeliberated im- pulse of a nature grown morbid with grief, endeavored to persuade its abandonment ; but their efforts were vain. ‘With trappers and remote settlers for his guides, he set forth, and spent considerable time in search of a location to his fancy. This he at length hit upon, far to the west, among the lesser ranges of the Atlantic slope. He dis- covered a valley of remarkable fertility, well watered by the head-waters of the Catawba, and some of it naturally free of timber; the whole overbrowed by a lofty peak from the west, which went by the name of Misty Mountain, or an Indian term with that sig- nification. Lesser chains of irregular hight almost completely encircled the chosen val- ley on every side. The grief-stricken man seemed to find a moody kind of consola- tion in this romantic spot; and made eyery preparation for a) speedy change of his abode. a His large estate was soon disposed of, and, in a few months, the child of luxury and refinement could have been seen among the mountains, tanned and hardened by health- ful exposure, assiduously directing the labors of his slaves, in rearing fences and out- houses for his flocks and herds, and in breaking the rich but difficult glebe of the valley, while artisans from the northern cities were busy at work on a chosen site with the rough granite of the hills, which, he had determined, should compose the ‘structure of a mansion-house worthy of those who should come afterhim. Searcely a year was required to complete the im- provements. The staunch gray mansion rose like a castle from its eminence, with the placid Catawba rolling at its feet; corn and tobacco fields grew luxuriantly on either bank; the excellent pasture of the verdant slopes afforded ample nourishment to in- creasing flocks and herds; the Indian tribes 4n the immediate vicinage were won to the white man’s will“by kindness; and the sun of prosperity grew brighter every day around the smiling acres- of Misty Mount, as the manor came to be called. Moreover, many of the owner's friends, who had at first en- deayored to dissuade him from his purpose, were now tempted, likewise, to seck a sim- ilar home. <A dozen years or so saw nu- merous additions to the settlement, in the shape of contiguous plantations and man- sions, of more or less affluence, while a lit- tle town sprung up on the banks of the river, a few miles from Misty Mount, not far from the site of the present town of Morgantown. This settlement, which we will call Valleyton, grew into a considerable village at the outbreak of the then impend- ing conflict. Aomg those wealthy settlers who helped cultivate the fertile valley where Godfrey Gwin had yainly sought seclusion, was a family of some distinction from tidewater Virginia, by the name of Gleason, The head of this family was an Englishman by birth, and of the most ultra illiberal opin- ions. In various colonies he had held posts of considerable importance, (by royal ap- pointment, of course,) and, in most cases, had made himself thoroughly detested by his servile obedience to the unjust edicts of the king and his arrogant contempt for the colonists over whom he exercised his petty power. Although a semblance of fraternity existed between the two families, the liberal American views of Gwin would often clash against the stern loyalty of the Briton, in a manner which threatened future peace. For discontent was already muttering through the colonies ; eyebrows were knitting angrily, hands unconsciously clenched; and there were wide indications of the distant but certain storm. However, there still were fair years of cloudless peace. Godfrey went on improy- ing his estate, and, as he did so, he grew old. But a noble scion at his side, his only son, arose into promising manhood ; and a lovely flower at his side, his only daughter, Ida, dreamed up into wondrous beauty and fragrance. At the outbreak of the war for our inde- pendence, the old man had espoused the cause of the patriots with all the energy of his enthusiastic nature. Too old to fight, he was lavish of his great-wealth in sup- port of our armies. Walter, the son, had grasped his blade at the first clash of arms, and hurried to the conflict at the head of a company of horsemen, which he quickly Comicldoolkks, conn