The Boarded Window is set in 1830 in a small frontier forest near what is now the city of Cincinnati. Pioneers, most of whom stay a short time before pushing further west, sparsely populate the forest. The story centers on an exceptional citizen, Murlock, who is one of the first inhabitants to arrive, who lives alone and ekes out a meager existence by trading in animal skins. It is obvious that at some point in the past, the man had lived a different life. The land bears evidence of an attempt at farming, but the stumps of the trees he had once cleared are now partially obscured by new growth.

The man's small log house is a poor affair with a chimney of sticks, warped clapboards, a single door and a window. It is this boarded up window that is a curiosity for most, who never...