It is the sight of her, returned from Washington D. Shadrach is seriously wounded and Jenny nurses him back to health. The two get married and when they return to the farm they offer to have Jethro live with them to continue his studies.
Milton picks up where Shad left off in the education and mentoring of the boy. From that point on he is a constant source of support and comfort to the Creightons and a source of knowledge and perspective for Jethro. He even goes so far as to accompany Jenny to Washington D.
Shad is probably one of the smartest guys in Jasper County, and it's a good thing since he's the local schoolteacher. He's got all sorts of higher education experience and "book learning" 4. He's basically like an extra son hanging around the house—at least Ellen looks after him like he is. At twenty years old, Shad tries to keep his feelings for fourteen-year-old Jenny in check, especially after a "special talk" with her father, but you just can't stop true love.
A twenty-year-old and a fourteen-year-old? Yeah, times were different back then. Lucky Shad, right? The two lovebirds finally get the Creightons' blessing and approval to get married and they live happily ever… oh wait, the war is still going on.
Well, they live. Ellen had nursed Shadrach back to health after he contracted typhoid fever, and Shadrach is now part of the family—especially to Jethro's sister Jenny, who has been in love with Shadrach for some time. Shadrach is planning to leave to go to a neighboring town to receive news about the dispute between the North and the South.
Ellen worries that he will bring back news of war. As they are working in the field, Jethro tries to distract his mother by telling her about Copernicus, but he knows that nothing can make her forget about the troubles. Talk of Abraham Lincoln's election, issues of tariffs, free states, slave states, and rebellion have gotten so heated that war seems imminent. Jethro kind of looks forward to the war, because "war meant loud brass music and shining horses ridden by men wearing uniforms. Thinking of war prompts Jethro to think about his sister Mary's death.
A group of hoodlums broke up a dance she was attending and chased Mary and her date. One of the hoodlums, Travis Burdow, fired a pistol that frightened the horses, causing the wagon to overturn and kill Mary. The town banded together to seek revenge on Travis Burdow—the whole Burdow family had been hoodlums—but Matt Creighton had called an end to it. He follows the political and strategic aspects of the war through newspaper stories, conversations, and letters from his brothers and cousin who are fighting.
These same letters also involve Jethro in the emotional aspects of the war as he reads of the horrors and tries to shield his family from the devastation. By the end of the book, Jethro has lost his innocence, but gained the experience and understanding of manhood. Jenny is resolute and mature beyond her years, which is not unusual for a young woman of the times, but becomes even more so as she deals with the war and eventually marries Shad.
It is the sight of her, returned from Washington D. Shadrach is seriously wounded and Jenny nurses him back to health.
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