Bridgeport Evening Farmer in Bridgeport, Connecticut

Legacy of the Gouverneur Morris era and a haunted memory

In a sprawling reminiscence, a narrator recalls the powerful Morris family in New York, their wealth in ships, lands, and houses, and a perilous night when a Frenchman hiding in a wood box is discovered. The tale shifts to Aunt Paulina’s guarded memories of crime, exile westward, and a long-buried mystery surrounding the enigmatic Frenchman and the family’s perilous past.