John Allen

“ All the forces of his mind were away, on another battle-field and he longed to be absent with them, a field strewn with the sorrowful carnage of ideal and hope and plan, home, happiness, love. He was hardly aware that his own actions must seem unusual, until one of the older men took him affectionately by the hand and said:
"Marshall tells me that you teach school till sunset and read law till sunrise; and tonight you come here with your eyes blazing and your skin as pallid and dry as a monk's. Take off the leeches of the law for a good month, John! They abstract too much blood. ”

“ Allen was standing on deck looking over the finest harbor in Europe, when his attention was called to a small boat hailing the war ship.
Some men climbed up on deck and asked for Col. Allen, of America.
Allen was so close that he could not help hearing, and he answered that he was Ethan Allen.
John Hays, a merchant of Cork, clasped Allen's hand and tried to speak, but, instead of words, tears flowed down his cheeks and his voice was choked.
When he did master his emotion he exclaimed, with patriarchal fervor:
"Heaven bless you and all brave men like you who are fighting for liberty." ”

“ Human race, or imps of Hell? [Footnote 1: The mother of Lord Alen was sister to Robert, Earl of Kildare.—Scott] [Footnote 2: John, Lord Allen, father of Joshua, the Traulus of the satire, was son of Sir Joshua Allen, Lord Mayor of Dublin in 1673, and grandson of John Allen, an architect in great esteem in the reign of Queen Elizabeth.Scott]
A FABLE OF THE LION AND OTHER BEASTS One time a mighty plague did pester All beasts domestic and sylvester, The doctors all in concert join'd, To see if they the cause could find ”

“ You'd better be getting some of your own: the Lord will take care of other people's! Go to see Mrs. Falconer! See all you can of her. There's a woman to bring you around!"
They had reached the little bridge over the clear, swift Elkhorn. Their paths diverged. John stopped at his companion's last words, and stood looking at him with some pity.
"I thank you for your sermon," he said huskily; "I hope to get some help from that. But you!—you are making things harder for me every word you utter. You don't understand and I can't tell you."
He took the parson's cool delicate hand in his big hot one. ”

“ Though the tory had failed, he felt a respect for Allen, who had been so bold and courageous, and, though Allen never knew it, he was the means of saving Vermont from any attacks of the British.
Allen served his State and defended it against enemies without and within. He lived to see it recognized as a State, free and independent.
He also witnessed, with shame, the treachery of Benedict Arnold, and was glad that he had never recognized the traitor as a man of honor. ”

“ The din drew nearer, and John grew more evidently excited at every step. "Don't you hear, Ethie?" he said again. "It's the Salonga. What inspiriting music! It's like a drum and fife band; it's like the bagpipes; it's like a military march. By Jove, it compels one to dance!" And he got up as he spoke, in English clerical dress (for he wore clerical dress even at Butabué) , and began capering in a sort of hornpipe round the tiny room.
"Oh, John, don't," cried Ethel. "Suppose the catechist were to come in!" ”

“ John Morgan Allen lived in Lexington, Kentucky. His father was a lawyer of considerable prominence; his mother, a Morgan, granddaughter of a distinguished soldier; his grandmother was the daughter of John Calvin Campbell, an eloquent pioneer preacher; her husband, a lawyer when she married him, afterwards became a professional gambler and, an exception to the rule, accumulated a considerable fortune.
It was young Allen’s mother’s desire that he should be a soldier; his father’s that he should be a lawyer, and his grandmother’s that he should be a preacher. ”

“ At the time of the Protestant Reformation, George Allen, of Brookhouse, in the division just mentioned, held a long lease of the Grange and Hall of Rossall from a kinsman of his family, one of the abbots of Deulacres, a Staffordshire monastery, to which the estate had been granted by King John. George Allen at his death left one son, John, who resided at the Hall, and subsequently married Jane, the sister of Thomas Lister, of Arnold Biggin, in Yorkshire. The offspring of this marriage were Richard, William, Gabriel, George, who espoused Elizabeth, the daughter of William Westby, of Mowbreck ”

“ A more perfect story has not been written by a Kentuckian of Mr. Allen's years. The Maker of Joys (Kansas City, 1907) , was so slight that it attracted little attention, yet it is exceedingly well-done; and in his latest book, The Golden Road (New York, 1910) , he just failed to do what one or two other writers have recently done so admirably. His Nature-loving tinker falls a bit short, but some excellent [Pg 367] writing may be found in this book. Mr. Allen has recently completed another novel, The Lovers of Skye, which will be issued by the Bobbs-Merrill Company in the spring of 1913. ”

“ Halliss said gently, wiping her eyes with her snow-white apron, for she saw at once that Ernest really meant what he said. ‘Not that John an’ me would think of it for a minnit, sir, so long as you wouldn’t mind our takin’ the liberty; but any’ow, sir, we can’t allow you to go out yourself and go to the pawnbroker’s. It ain’t no fit place for the likes of you, sir, a pawnbroker’s ain’t, in all that low company; and I don’t suppose you’d rightly know ‘ow much to hask on the articles, neither. John, ‘e ain’t afeard of goin’ ”

“ In this, as in many other instances, Ethan Allen, rebel though he was called, outlaw as he was decreed to be, showed the largeness of his heart.
"We shall have to break camp. It is possible others besides those who have been liberated will know of our nearness and profit by it."
"Where shall we go, colonel?"
"To Middlebury. We will not secrete ourselves, but openly show that we are in the field to oppose New York in its pretensions." ”

“ Women who imagine themselves far finer ladies than this child was treat a man in this way—rarely—very rarely—say, once in the same man's lifetime.
"We are both so tired," she drowsily remarked at length, turning to John after some further parley which he did not understand and tapping her mouth prettily with the palm of her hand to fight away a yawn. "You know we've been riding all day. And William Penn is at death's door with hunger. Poor William Penn! I'm afraid he'll suffer to-night at the tavern stable. They never take care of him and feed him as I do at home. ”

“ Allen divided between New York, Cincinnati, and Kentucky. He finally quit Kentucky in 1893, and he has not been in the state since 1898, at which time his alma mater conferred the honorary degree of LL. D. upon him. He now resides in New York.
Mr. Allen began with short essays for The Critic, The Continent, The Independent, The Manhattan, and other periodicals; and he contributed some strong and fine poems to The Atlantic Monthly, The Interior, Harper's Monthly, Lippincott's Magazine, The Independent, and elsewhere. But none of these represented the true beginning of his work, of his career. ”

“ Ethan Allen should be given up to Albany, and your secretary added that he hoped to hear that the rebel was hanged quickly."
"It is false!"
"Eben speaks the truth!" hotly retorted Allen. "I would rather believe him than anyone I know. He is a child of nature and knows not how to be false. I am here to tell you, Gov. Wentworth, that we of the mountains are ready to give our lives in defense of the colony, but we will not sell our freedom!" ”

“ The speaker was one who had been most bitter against Allen when he had appeared there sometime before to argue in favor of the men of Vermont.
"Let it be understood that New York, in listening to Ethan Allen, does not relinquish its claims to the lands which he culls Vermont."
"That matter can well be left in abeyance," said Allen. "There is a greater one—that of our independence as a nation." ”

“ Ethan Allen jumped from his horse, and stood among his countrymen, the most honored man among them.
He had been sent to Albany to represent the farmers who held the lands from the governor of New Hampshire.
New York had commenced a suit against New Hampshire, and the trial was in Albany.
"Men, I know not whether you call the news good or bad, but it is just as I tell you; New York has won." ”

“ He had not sailed far when he met Ethan Allen and the bateaux. Salutes were exchanged; cannon on one side, musketry on the other. Allen boarded the sloop; learnt from Arnold the particulars of his success, and determined to push on, take possession of St. John's, and garrison it with one hundred of his Green Mountain Boys. He was foiled in the attempt by the superior force which had arrived; so he returned to his station at Ticonderoga. ”

“ Vermont was more than ever determined to remain independent of either New Hampshire or New York, and Ethan Allen admired the sturdy spirit of his mountaineers.
He was urged to take command of the Green Mountain forces, and he consented, writing Gen. Washington and telling him how he regretted the necessity of staying at home instead of entering the army of emancipation.
Washington replied in a friendly letter, reminding him that he deserved a rest after his trials, and also telling him that a man's first duty was to his own people and country. ”

“ When the Continental Congress was held Montgomery was a delegate, and he pledged his sword in defense of the popular rights.
No wonder that Ethan Allen should be pleased with the Irishman. They were kindred spirits.
Montgomery asked Allen to tell him of the struggle of the Vermonters against the pretensions of New York.
Allen did so, but somewhat bitterly.
"Nay, my dear Allen, do not let that irritate you. We shall soon make common cause, and instead of the colonies we shall have a nation, and we shall be citizens, not subjects."
"Citizens!" Allen repeated. ”

“ Allen was questioned about the strength of the American army, and replied:
"I know not its numbers, but it is well equipped and can beat all the armies you can send over there."
"They are rebels, and only the lowest people sympathize with them."
"Do you call George Washington a common man?" asked Allen.
"He is a rebel, and ought to know better."
"And Richard Montgomery, who fought with you at Havana and Martinique?"
"Is he with the rebels?"
"I had the honor of serving under him."
"He will be hanged, for he was a soldier of his majesty."
"You will have to capture him first." ”

“ The Americans being discovered, armed men were soon seen issuing from the gates. A force of forty British regulars, more than two hundred Canadians, and a few Indians came down upon them from the town; but, notwithstanding the disparity in numbers, such was the bravery of some of the Americans, that the engagement lasted an hour and three quarters. At length, his men having all deserted but twenty-eight, seven of whom were wounded, Allen agreed to a surrender upon being promised honorable terms. ”

“ Whatever estimate one may place upon The Doctor, he can scarcely be held to possess the subtile charm of The Bride. The third and final part of this much-discussed trilogy will hardly be published before 1914, or perhaps even subsequent to that date.
The Heroine in Bronze (New York, 1912) , is Mr. Allen's latest novel. It is an American love story with all of the author's exquisite mastery of language again ringing fine and true. For the first time Mr. Allen largely abandons Kentucky as a landscape for his story, the action being in New York. ”

“ The appointment of Allen was confirmed, and the Assembly of Massachusetts directed Arnold not to interfere. He soon afterward went down the lake to seize a British sloop of war at St. John's, and to seek other occasions where glory might be won in the service of his country.
The capture of Ticonderoga and Crown Point was an event wholly unlooked for by the
* According to Mr. Rice, history has omitted the suffix to this demand, which in those days was considered a necessary clincher to all solemn averments. It is characteristic of the man and the times. ”

“ I did not know it until I heard it from Montgomery and Schuyler, and so the British looked upon you as an outsider; but they wanted Jameson, and they got him, and you owe your freedom to Pike's pertinacity."
We can easily imagine Allen's feelings as he listened to the account given by Washington.
The pride he had felt in Eben's career was intensified, and he felt that the young Green Mountain scout would become one of the great heroes of the Revolution.
Allen was so broken down by his long and cruel imprisonment that he took a vacation and retired to Bennington to recuperate. ”

“ The farmer paused.
"Excuse me, I thought I heard some one at the window. No, I was wrong, and yet I could have sworn I saw a face as I looked up."
"You were saying that your ideal of a man was——"
"Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticonderoga. I tell you, he is right all the time. He was right about those land grants. If the land had been of no value New Hampshire might have had all the land, but because it proved rich, of course York coveted it."
"Have you ever seen Ethan Allen?" Warner asked. ”

“ The eulogy of John Rowan Allen is the finest summing up of Colonel Breckinridge's life and labors (Lexington Leader, November 23, 1904) ; Kentucky Eloquence, edited by Bennett H. Young (Louisville, Kentucky, 1907) . His papers, together with those of his grandfather and father, are now in possession of the Library of Congress. ”