Stockton, who lived from 1834 to 1902, was author of such other popular works as Rudder Grange and John Gayther's Garden. On his way toward modern times, Stockton stops to take in the most interesting and colorful tales from city and country -- such as that of Penelope Stout, shipwrecked and then attacked by a party of natives, who then manages to survive within a hollowed-out tree -- or that of the schoolmaster who discovers his one-room schoolhouse is turning into a gambling house in the dead of night!