A spectre of power

by Charles Egbert Craddock

"A spectre of power" by Charles Egbert Craddock is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set in the Cherokee town of Great Tellico during the colonial struggle for influence, it follows a French officer and a Choctaw chief as they court Cherokee alliance—and collide with local custom and personal jealousy. The key figures are the French lieutenant Laroche, the Choctaw ambassador Mingo Push-koosh, the Cherokee leader Moy Toy, and his sister Akaluka (Eve), whose inadvertent acceptance of a gift sparks peril. Expect frontier statecraft, tense ceremonies, and a fragile balance between diplomacy and violence. The beginning of the story introduces a Choctaw embassy—accompanied by Laroche—to Tellico, where elaborate Cherokee rites, dances, and a bear-hunt pantomime mark their reception. Laroche’s true task is to solve a supply problem: the impassable shoals on the Cherokee River; when he cannot, he proposes “barrier towns” and an overland portage to make French trade and munitions flow. A public sensation erupts when Akaluka dives into the river to save a drifting scarf from the embassy cargo, which Push-koosh treats as acceptance of his suit under Cherokee custom. Laroche urges delaying any marriage for political prudence; Push-koosh, consumed by jealousy, coldly declares he would kill a Cherokee wife if the tribes become enemies. Warned by Laroche, Moy Toy and the chiefs return the scarf, but Push-koosh, affronted, destroys the French powder, raises the war-brand, and his party massacres unsuspecting Tellico youths before fleeing. The opening closes with Laroche abandoned and under guard in Tellico, facing the wrath of a grieving, enraged town.