Chapter 10, June 1867 Summary

The war is now over for Charley. He is back home in Winona, Minnesota, but he is not the same Charley. He thinks constantly of the war, beginning to end. He has time to think because he is disabled and can barely walk. He can't bend his knees at all. He gets sick if he lies down, and he passes blood constantly.

Charley is at the age when he should be getting on with his life, marrying, settling down, farming and the like. Charley cannot, though. He is too old, not in years, but in experiences he has seen, felt and endured. At twenty-one, he is tired and broken, and he appears to have no interest in anything.

Charley goes to the river for a picnic, and with his food, he pulls a .36 caliber revolver out of his lunch sack. The...