The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection is a unique set of short stories, poems and novels from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. From tales of love, life and heartbreaking loss to humorous stories of ghost encounters, these volumes captivate the imaginations of readers young and old. Included in this collection are a variety of dramatic and spirited poems that contemplate the mysteries of life and celebrate the wild beauty of nature. The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection provides readers with an opportunity to enjoy and study these iconic literary works, many of which were written during a period of remarkable creativity.

The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection is a unique set of short stories, poems and novels from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. From tales of love, life and heartbreaking loss to humorous stories of ghost encounters, these volumes captivate the imaginations of readers young and old. Included in this collection are a variety of dramatic and spirited poems that contemplate the mysteries of life and celebrate the wild beauty of nature. The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection provides readers with an opportunity to enjoy and study these iconic literary works, many of which were written during a period of remarkable creativity.

It was about the middle of a March afternoon when Dr. Tolbridge, giving his horse and buggy into the charge of his stable boy, entered the warm hall of his house. His wife was delighted to see him; he had not been at home since noon of the preceding day. "Yes," said he, as he took off his gloves and overcoat, "the Pardell boy is better, but I found him in a desperate condition." "I knew that," said Mrs. Tolbridge, "when you told me in your note that you would be obliged to stay with him all night." The doctor now walked into his study, changed his overcoat for a well-worn smoking-jacket, and seated himself in an easy chair before the fire. His wife sat by him. "Thank you," he said, in answer to her inquiries, "but I do not want anything to eat. After I had gone my round this morning I went back to the Pardells, and had my dinner there. The boy is doing very well. No, I was not up all night. I had some hours' sleep on the big sofa."

As this-The Captain's Toll-Gate-is the last of the works of Frank R. Stockton that will be given to the public, it is fitting that it be accompanied by some account of the man whose bright spirit illumined them all. It is proper, also, that something be said of the stories themselves; of the circumstances in which they were written, the influences that determined their direction, and the history of their evolution. It seems appropriate that this should be done by the one who knew him best; the one who lived with him through a long and beautiful life; the one who walked hand in hand with him along the whole of a wonderful road of ever-changing scenes: now through forests peopled with fairies and dryads, griffins and wizards; now skirting the edges of an ocean with its strange monsters and remarkable shipwrecks; now on the beaten track of European tourists, sharing their novel adventures and amused by their mistakes; now resting in lovely gardens imbued with human interest; now helping the young to make happy homes for themselves; now sympathizing with the old as they look longingly toward a heavenly home; and, oftenest, perhaps, watching girls and young men as they were trying to work out the problems of their lives. All this, and much more, crowded the busy years until the Angel of Death stood in the path; and the journey was ended.

Early in the spring of the year 1884 the three-masted schooner Castor, from San Francisco to Valparaiso, was struck by a tornado off the coast of Peru. The storm, which rose with frightful suddenness, was of short duration, but it left the Castor a helpless wreck. Her masts had snapped off and gone overboard, her rudder-post had been shattered by falling wreckage, and she was rolling in the trough of the sea, with her floating masts and spars thumping and bumping her sides. The Castor was an American merchant-vessel, commanded by Captain Philip Horn, an experienced navigator of about thirty-five years of age. Besides a valuable cargo, she carried three passengers-two ladies and a boy. One of these, Mrs. William Cliff, a lady past middle age, was going to Valparaiso to settle some business affairs of her late husband, a New England merchant. The other lady was Miss Edna Markham, a school-teacher who had just passed her twenty-fifth year, although she looked older. She was on her way to Valparaiso to take an important position in an American seminary. Ralph, a boy of fifteen, was her brother, and she was taking him with her simply because she did not want to leave him alone in San Francisco. These two had no near relations, and the education of the brother depended upon the exertions of the sister.

The pretty little theatre attached to the building of the Unicorn Club had been hired for a certain January afternoon by Mr. Herbert Loring, who wished to give therein a somewhat novel performance, to which he had invited a small audience consisting entirely of friends and acquaintances. Loring was a handsome fellow about thirty years old, who had travelled far and studied much. He had recently made a long sojourn in the far East, and his friends had been invited to the theatre to see some of the wonderful things he had brought from that country of wonders. As Loring was a club-man, and belonged to a family of good social standing, his circle of acquaintances was large, and in this circle a good many unpleasant remarks had been made regarding the proposed entertainment-made, of course, by the people who had not been invited to be present. Some of the gossip on the subject had reached Loring, who did not hesitate to say that he could not talk to a crowd, and that he did not care to show the curious things he had collected to people who would not thoroughly appreciate them. He had been very particular in regard to his invitations.

It was about noon of a day in early summer that a westward-bound Atlantic liner was rapidly nearing the port of New York. Not long before, the old light-house on Montauk Point had been sighted, and the company on board the vessel were animated by the knowledge that in a few hours they would be at the end of their voyage. The vessel now speeding along the southern coast of Long Island was the Euterpe-Thalia, from Southampton. On Wednesday morning she had left her English port, and many of her passengers were naturally anxious to be on shore in time to transact their business on the last day of the week. There were even some who expected to make their return voyage on the Melpomene-Thalia, which would leave New York on the next Monday.

The month was September and the place was in the neighbourhood of Bridgetown, in the island of Barbadoes. The seventeenth century was not seventeen years old, but the girl who walked slowly down to the river bank was three years its senior. She carried a fishing-rod and line, and her name was Kate Bonnet. She was a bright-faced, quick-moving young person, and apparently did not expect to catch many fish, for she had no basket in which to carry away her finny prizes. Nor, apparently, did she have any bait, except that which was upon her hook and which had been affixed there by one of the servants at her home, not far away. In fact, Mistress Kate was too nicely dressed and her gloves were too clean to have much to do with fish or bait, but she seated herself on a little rock in a shady spot not far from the water and threw forth her line. Then she gazed about her; a little up the river and a good deal down the river.

It was a beautiful summer morning when slowly I wheeled my way along the principal street of the village of Walford. A little valise was strapped in front of my bicycle; my coat, rolled into a small compass, was securely tied under the seat, and I was starting out to spend my vacation. I was the teacher of the village school, which useful insti-tution had been closed for the season the day before, much to the gratification of pedagogue and scholars. This position was not at all the summit of my youthful ambition. In fact, I had been very much disappointed when I found myself obliged to accept it, but when I left college my financial condition made it desirable for me to do something to support myself while engaged in some of the studies preparatory to a professional career.

My grandmother sat in her own particular easy-chair by the open window of her back parlor. This was a pleasant place in which to sit in the afternoon, for the sun was then on the other side of the house, and she could look not only over the smooth grass of the side yard and the flower beds, which were under her especial care, but across the corner of the front lawn into the village street. Here, between two handsome maple-trees which stood upon the sidewalk, she could see something of what was going on in the outer world without presenting the appearance of one who is fond of watching her neighbors. It was not much that she saw, for the street was a quiet one; but a very little of that sort of thing satisfied her. She was a woman who was easily satisfied. As a proof of this, I may say that she looked upon me as a man who always did what was right. Indeed, I am quite sure there were cases when she saved herself a good deal of perplexing cogitation by assuming that a thing was right because I did it.

In the spring of a certain year, not far from the close of the nineteenth century, when the political relations between the United States and Great Britain became so strained that careful observers on both sides of the Atlantic were forced to the belief that a serious break in these relations might be looked for at any time, the fishing schooner Eliza Drum sailed from a port in Maine for the banks of Newfoundland. It was in this year that a new system of protection for American fishing vessels had been adopted in Washington. Every fleet of these vessels was accompanied by one or more United States cruisers, which remained on the fishing grounds, not only for the purpose of warning American craft who might approach too near the three-mile limit, but also to overlook the action of the British naval vessels on the coast, and to interfere, at least by protest, with such seizures of American fishing boats as might appear to be unjust. In the opinion of all persons of sober judgment, there was nothing in the condition of affairs at this time so dangerous to the peace of the two countries as the presence of these American cruisers in the fishing waters.

After abandoning the family, Kate Bonnet sets out to find and reprimand her pirate father, Stede, who is being targeted by multiple figures including Blackbeard. She meets various people along her journey who help make the trek worth her while. Kate Bonnet is the fictional daughter of the renowned pirate, Stede Bonnet. In Stockton’s interpretation, she’s a steadfast young woman whose father left the family to fend for themselves. Despite personal objections, Kate travels to find Stede and bring him back home. Throughout her venture, she encounters many people some of whom become traveling companions. She also crosses paths with a Naval officer who plans to capture Stede and barter his freedom for Kate’s hand in marriage. Kate Bonnet: The Romance of a Pirate’s Daughter is an entertaining mix of historical fiction. Despite the title, the story is not a traditional romance. The heroine has agency and ideals that go beyond courtship and marriage. She’s dedicated to her family and righting her father’s many wrongs. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Kate Bonnet: The Romance of a Pirate’s Daughter is both modern and readable.

The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection is a unique set of short stories, poems and novels from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. From tales of love, life and heartbreaking loss to humorous stories of ghost encounters, these volumes captivate the imaginations of readers young and old. Included in this collection are a variety of dramatic and spirited poems that contemplate the mysteries of life and celebrate the wild beauty of nature. The Shelf2Life Literature and Fiction Collection provides readers with an opportunity to enjoy and study these iconic literary works, many of which were written during a period of remarkable creativity.

After abandoning the family, Kate Bonnet sets out to find and reprimand her pirate father, Stede, who is being targeted by multiple figures including Blackbeard. She meets various people along her journey who help make the trek worth her while. Kate Bonnet is the fictional daughter of the renowned pirate, Stede Bonnet. In Stockton's interpretation, she's a steadfast young woman whose father left the family to fend for themselves. Despite personal objections, Kate travels to find Stede and bring him back home. Throughout her venture, she encounters many people some of whom become traveling companions. She also crosses paths with a Naval officer who plans to capture Stede and barter his freedom for Kate's hand in marriage. Kate Bonnet: The Romance of a Pirate's Daughter is an entertaining mix of historical fiction. Despite the title, the story is not a traditional romance. The heroine has agency and ideals that go beyond courtship and marriage. She's dedicated to her family and righting her father's many wrongs. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Kate Bonnet: The Romance of a Pirate's Daughter is both modern and readable.

A three-masted schooner traveling from America is struck by a storm off the coast of Peru forcing its men to jump ship and seek shelter. The crew must fend for themselves against multiple threats, both seen and unseen. Captain Philip Horn is the leader of the merchant-vessel, Castor, which carries multiple passengers and valuable cargo. When the ship is slammed by a violent storm, it is severely damaged and floats along the South American coast. Horn's crew is able to salvage a portion of provisions but not enough for the long-term. When investigating the land, they discover hidden treasures and encounter fierce obstacles including pirates. The Adventures of Captain Horn was an extremely popular book upon its release. In fact, it was the third bestselling title of 1895. It's a thrilling survival story that's full of adventure, intrigue, romance and conflict. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Adventures of Captain Horn is both modern and readable.

A three-masted schooner traveling from America is struck by a storm off the coast of Peru forcing its men to jump ship and seek shelter. The crew must fend for themselves against multiple threats, both seen and unseen. Captain Philip Horn is the leader of the merchant-vessel, Castor, which carries multiple passengers and valuable cargo. When the ship is slammed by a violent storm, it is severely damaged and floats along the South American coast. Horn’s crew is able to salvage a portion of provisions but not enough for the long-term. When investigating the land, they discover hidden treasures and encounter fierce obstacles including pirates. The Adventures of Captain Horn was an extremely popular book upon its release. In fact, it was the third bestselling title of 1895. It’s a thrilling survival story that’s full of adventure, intrigue, romance and conflict. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Adventures of Captain Horn is both modern and readable.