
A seasoned French cavalry captain finds his solitary routine interrupted by the quiet tragedy of a beloved terrier’s death. When his orderly brings a frail litter‑born pup into his quarters, the officer—used to keeping attachments at arm’s length—reluctantly names the tiny creature Pitchouné, seeing in its helplessness a mirror of his own loneliness.
Soon after, an unexpected invitation arrives from a charming American woman, the Marquise d’Esclignac’s niece, who wishes to meet a French soldier. The promise of a Sunday dinner in a sun‑lit garden offers a glimpse of a world far removed from the regimented life of the barracks. As the captain contemplates the upcoming encounter, the prospect of new companionship begins to stir feelings he has long kept dormant, hinting at a romance that may bridge cultures and challenge his steadfast resolve.
Language
en
Duration
~3 hours (202K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Original publisher
New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1913.
Credits
Al Haines
Release date
2023-08-27
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1867–1936
A novelist, painter, and social investigator, this American writer moved between New York society and working-class realities with unusual curiosity. Her life later stretched into wartime nursing in Europe, giving her fiction and nonfiction a lived sense of history.
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