Cover of The Ramrodders: A Novel

The Ramrodders: A Novel

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  • 7 hours to read
  • 28 chapters
  • Reading level: 6th grade

"The Ramrodders: A Novel" by Holman Day is a political fiction work written in the early 20th century. The narrative is set in the fictional small town of Fort Canibas, where an old politician named Thelismer Thornton, known as the "Duke of Fort Canibas," faces a revolt against his long-standing control as reform movements gain momentum in the state. As he navigates the threats from ambitious reformers and his own constituency, the book delves into themes of power, loyalty, and the generational clash over political ideals. The opening of the novel introduces the Duke in a position of apparent strength and confidence as he prepares for a caucus, despite troubling signs of unrest among the villagers. He receives word of a brewing political plot against him, led by the reformist Ivus Niles. While Thornton initially dismisses the noise from the reformers, he soon finds himself confronted with the reality of growing opposition as the townspeople question his authority. As tensions escalate, the Duke’s indifference towards the sentiments of his constituents evolves into a palpable sense of betrayal, revealing cracks in his long-held dominion. The fragmented relationship between the Duke, his loyal political allies, and the younger generation, particularly his grandson, begins to hint at a deeper familial and ideological conflict that will unfold as the story progresses.

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  • Maine
  • Political fiction
  • Politicians

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Chapter I

THE BAITING OF THE ANCIENT LION

War and Peace had swapped corners that morning in the village of Fort Canibas. War was muttering at the end where two meeting-houses placidly faced each other across the street. Peace brooded over the ancient blockhouse, relic of the "Bloodless War," and upon the structure that Thelismer Thornton had converted from officers' barracks to his own uses as a dwelling.

At dawn a telegraph messenger jangled the bell in the dim hall of "The Barracks." It was an urgent cry from the chairman of the Republican State Committee. It announced his coming, and warned the autocrat of the North Country of the plot. The chairman knew. The plotters had been betrayed to him, and from his distance he enjoyed a perspective which is helpful in making political estimates. But Thelismer Thornton only chuckled over Luke Presson's fears. He went back to bed for another nap.

When he came down and ate breakfast alone in the big mess-room, which he had not allowed the carpenters to narrow by an inch, he was still amused by the chairman's panic. As a politician older than any of them, a man who had served his district fifty years in the legislature, he refused to believe—intrenched there in his fortress in the north—that there was danger abroad in the State.

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Contents

Show all 28 chapters
  1. Chapter I
  2. Chapter II
  3. Chapter III
  4. Chapter IV
  5. Chapter V
  6. Chapter VI
  7. Chapter VII
  8. Chapter VIII
  9. Chapter IX
  10. Chapter X
  11. Chapter XI
  12. Chapter XII
  13. Chapter XIII
  14. Chapter XIV
  15. Chapter XV
  16. Chapter XVI
  17. Chapter XVII
  18. Chapter XVIII
  19. Chapter XIX
  20. Chapter XX
  21. Chapter XXI
  22. Chapter XXII
  23. Chapter XXIII
  24. Chapter XXIV
  25. Chapter XXV
  26. Chapter XXVI
  27. Chapter XXVII
  28. Chapter XXVIII

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About this edition

This free edition of The Ramrodders: A Novel by Holman Day comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #15278, released 2005-03-07. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Novels, American Literature, Politics.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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