A marvelous yarn concerning young Mi. Caleb Pettengill of New England who commands a vessel in the Union Navy during the Civil War, whose flamboyant charm is irresistible to women, and who believes passionately not only in the Union cause but also in the revolution­ary new uses of steam, ironclad ships, explosive shells and rifled guns.

In this impetuous and ambitious young officer, George Fielding Eliot has created a personality that stands, with Captain Horatio Hornblower, as one of the strongest and most appealing char­acters of historical fiction.

A lusty and exciting sea story that brings vividly to life, through the ex­periences of one man and his ship, the birth pangs of the steam Navy and the trials of the men who manned it during an era that has never ceased to fire the imaginations of American readers.