A Yankee Girl at Fort Sumter

								


Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Rose Koven, Charles Franks
and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.

A YANKEE GIRL
AT
FORT SUMTER

BY
ALICE TURNER CURTIS
AUTHOR OF
The Little Maid's Historical Series, etc.

Illustrated by ISABEL W. CALEY

PHILADELPHIA
1920

INTRODUCTION

Sylvia Fulton, a little Boston girl, was staying with her father and
mother in the beautiful city of Charleston, South Carolina, just before
the opening of the Civil War. She had become deeply attached to her new
friends, and their chivalrous kindness toward the little northern girl,
as well as Sylvia's perilous adventure in Charleston Harbor, and the
amusing efforts of the faithful negro girl to become like her young
mistress, all tend to make this story one that every little girl will
enjoy reading, and from which she will learn of far-off days and of the
high ideals of southern honor and northern courage.

I.     SYLVIA
II.    A NEW FRIEND
III.   SYLVIA IN TROUBLE
IV.    AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY
V.     ESTRALLA AND ELINOR
VI.    SYLVIA AT THE PLANTATION
VII.   SYLVIA SEES A GHOST
VIII.  A TWILIGHT TEA-PARTY
IX.    TROUBLESOME WORDS
X.     THE PALMETTO FLAG
XI.    SYLVIA CARRIES A MESSAGE
XII.   ESTRALLA HELPS
XIII.  A HAPPY AFTERNOON
XIV.   MR. ROBERT WAITE
XV.    "WHERE IS SYLVIA?"
XVI.   IN DANGER
XVII.  A CHRISTMAS PRESENT
XVIII. GREAT NEWS
XIX.   SYLVIA MAKES A PROMISE
XX.    "TWO LITTLE DARKY GIRLS"
XXI.   FORT SUMTER IS FIRED UPON

CHAPTER I
SYLVIA

"Your name is in a song, isn't it?" said Grace Waite, as she and her
new playmate, Sylvia Fulton, walked down the pleasant street on their
way to school.
"Is it? Can you sing the song?" questioned Sylvia eagerly, her blue
eyes shining at what promised to be such a delightful discovery.
Grace nodded smilingly. She was a year older than Sylvia, nearly eleven
years old, and felt that it was quite proper that she should be able to
explain to Sylvia more about her name than Sylvia knew herself.
"It is something about 'spelling,'" she explained, and then sang, very
softly:



   "'Then to Sylvia let us sing,

       That Sylvia is spelling.

     She excels each mortal thing,

       Upon the dull earth dwelling.'
"I suppose it means she was the best speller," Grace said soberly.
"I think it is a lovely song," said Sylvia. "I'll tell my mother about
it. I am so glad you told me, Grace."
Sylvia Fulton was ten years old, and had lived in Charleston, South
Carolina, for the past year. Before that the Fultons had lived in
Boston. Grace Waite lived in the house next to the one which Mr. Fulton
had hired in the beautiful southern city, and the two little girls had
become fast friends. They both attended Miss Patten's school. Usually
Grace's black mammy, Esther, escorted them to and from Miss Patten's,
but on this morning in early October they were allowed to go by