Chapter I: Front Matter

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THE WHITE FLAG

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BOOKS BY GENE STRATTON-PORTER

_Nature_

THE SONG OF THE CARDINAL
HOMING WITH THE BIRDS
BIRDS OF THE BIBLE
MUSIC OF THE WILD
FRIENDS IN FEATHERS
MOTHS OF THE LIMBERLOST
MORNING FACE

_Novels_

FRECKLES
AT THE FOOT OF THE RAINBOW
A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST
THE HARVESTER
LADDIE
MICHAEL O’HALLORAN
A DAUGHTER OF THE LAND
HER FATHER’S DAUGHTER
THE WHITE FLAG

_Poetry_

THE FIRE BIRD

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THE WHITE FLAG

BY

GENE STRATTON-PORTER

FRONTISPIECE
BY
LESTER RALPH

S. B. GUNDY TORONTO
DOUBLEDAY, PAGE & COMPANY
GARDEN CITY NEW YORK
1923

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COPYRIGHT, 1923, BY
GENE STRATTON-PORTER

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, INCLUDING THAT OF TRANSLATION
INTO FOREIGN LANGUAGES, INCLUDING THE SCANDINAVIAN

COPYRIGHT, 1923, BY INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE COMPANY

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES
AT
THE COUNTRY LIFE PRESS, GARDEN CITY, N. Y.

_First Edition_

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TO
THE BOYS AND GIRLS “GROWN TALL”
WITH WHOM, IN CHILDHOOD,
I PASSED UNDER
THE WHITE FLAG

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CONTENTS

I “He That Was Cold and Hungry”
II The Gifts of Light and Song
III An Inquisition According to Mahlon
IV “Strength from Weakness”
V The Verdict Goes Against Jezebel
VI The Golden Egg
VII Field Mice Among the Wheat
VIII A Secret Among the Stars
IX Sometimes Your Soul Shows
X A Trick of the Subconscious
XI The Driver of the Chariot
XII Those Who Serve
XIII Only Three Words
XIV The Cloud That Grew
XV The Last Straw
XVI The Eyes of Elizabeth
XVII “A Millstone and the Human Heart”
XVIII A Triumph in Millinery
XIX Rebecca Pronounces Judgment
XX The Decision Marcia Reached
XXI “Whatsoever a Man Sows”
XXII Behind the Lilac Wall
XXIII The Flag on Its Journey

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LIST OF CHARACTERS

MAHALA SPELLMAN, the Model Child
MAHLON SPELLMAN, the Dry-goods Merchant
ELIZABETH SPELLMAN, a Fine Lady
MARTIN MORELAND, the Harvester of Riches
MRS. MARTIN MORELAND, a Bewildered Wife
MARTIN MORELAND, Junior, a Chip from the Paternal Block
BECKY SAMPSON, Bearer of the White Flag
EDITH WILLIAMS, the Child of Discontent
MARCIA PETERS, the Bearer of Chains
JASON PETERS, Walking the Road
MEHITABLE ASHCROFT, Teacher of Room Five
PETER POTTER, the Village Grocer
ELLEN FORD, a Wild Rose
JEMIMA DAVIS, a Friend in Need
NANCY BODKIN, Who Believed in Face Values

Remainder of characters: School children, villagers, a minister, a doctor, a lawyer, etc.

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THE WHITE FLAG