The Alaskan, A Novel of the North
By James Oliver Curwood
Captain Rifle, gray and old in the Alaskan Steamship service, had not lost the spirit of his youth along with his years. The romance was not dead in him, and the fire that is built up of clean adventure and the association of strong men and a mighty country had not died out of his veins. He could still see the picturesque, feel the thrill of the unusual, and–at times–warm memories crowded upon him so closely that yesterday seemed today, and Alaska was young again, thrilling the world with her wild call to those who dared to come and fight for her treasures, and live–or die.
Tonight, with the softly musical throb of his ship under his feet, and the yellow moon climbing up from behind the ramparts of the Alaskan mountains, something of loneliness seized upon him, and he said simply:
“That is Alaska.”
The girl standing beside him at the rail did not turn, nor for a moment did she answer. He could see her profile clear-cut as a cameo in the most vivid light, and in that light, her eyes were wide and filled with a dusky fire, her lips were parted a little, and her slim body was tense as she looked at the wonder of the moon silhouetting the cragged castles of the peaks, up where the soft, gray clouds lay like shimmering draperies.
Then she turned her face a little and nodded. “Yes, Alaska,” she said, and the old captain fancied there was the slightest ripple of a tremor in her voice. “Your Alaska, Captain Rifle.”
Out of the clearness of the night came to them a distant sound like the low moan of thunder. Twice before, Mary Standish had heard it, and now she asked: “What was that? Surely it can not be a storm, with the moon like that, and the stars so clear above!”
Read or download Book
James Oliver Curwood
James Oliver Curwood (June 12, 1878 – August 13, 1927) was an American action-adventure writer and conservationist. His books were often based on adventures set in the Hudson Bay area, the Yukon, or Alaska and ranked among the top ten best sellers in the United States in the early and mid-1920s, according to Publishers Weekly. At least one hundred and eighty motion pictures have been based on or directly inspired by his novels and short stories; one was produced in three versions from 1919 to 1953. At the time of his death, Curwood was the highest-paid (per word) author in the world.
He built Curwood Castle as a place to greet guests and as a writing studio in his hometown of Owosso, Michigan. The castle was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is now operated by the city as a museum. The city commemorates him with an annual Curwood Festival.
Biography
Curwood was born in Owosso, Michigan, the youngest of four children. Attending local schools, Curwood left high school before graduation. He passed the entrance exam to the University of Michigan and was allowed to enroll in the English department, where he studied journalism.
After two years, Curwood quit college to become a reporter, moving to Detroit for work. In 1898, he sold his first story while attending the University of Michigan. In 1907 he was hired by the Canadian government to travel to the northern reaches of Canada to write and publish accounts of his travels to encourage tourism, his trips in Canada inspired his wilderness adventure stories. For many years he traveled to the Hudson Bay area, the Yukon, and Alaska for several months each year for more inspiration. He wrote and published twenty-eight adventure/nature novels, two collections of short stories, one non-fiction volume (The Great Lakes), a volume of introspection (God’s Country: The Trail to Happiness), and an autobiography, (The Glory of Living).
By 1922, Curwood had become very wealthy from the success of his writing. After a tour of Europe with his family where he toured old European castles, he came home and built his own, Curwood Castle in Owosso, Michigan. Constructed in the style of an 18th-century French chateau, the castle is set on the Shiawassee River near downtown Owosso. In one of the castles two large turrets, Curwood set up his writing studio. He also owned a lodge on the Ausable River near Roscommon, Michigan that he used as a retreat for rest from his rigorous writing career.
James Oliver Curwood
