THE LOYAL VIRGINIAN

As captain of the Loyal Virginian, Roger Bolynge initially hoped to sell tobacco for his fellow-colonists; looking back from 1666, he notes that the European trades were successful but he subsequently became involved in the rescue of Charles I. Accompanied by cousin Henry Byrd, he moves through a world of ""malignants"" and such with the same purposeful immediacy that characterized the Arthurian Watch Fires to the North (p. 343, J -123). An occasional reference to Noll Cromwell or Frankie Drake may jolt but the back-and-forth is generally discriminating (when stealing sheep, they hope their victims are Parliament men). He marries, also meets Cromwell along the way, but he manages to tell it as a man in his position should -- referring to the drama of the moment but not overdoing it. Roger and Henry even discuss the beheaded King, admit that towards the end they had doubts and suspect he ""courted martyrdom"" -- quite an admission from Royalists. Another fine touch is the ""motivation"" almost pure happenstance, which is a welcome change from the usual political scholarship. Loose and lively.