The Moonshine Mule

In 1863, Colonel Arthur Fremantle travelled through America at the height of the Civil War. And 140 years later Tom Fremantle strode off in his ancestor's footsteps to walk the 2700 miles from Mexico to Manhattan. This title tells the story, of two men, two contrasting worlds and sheds light on America, mules and the vagaries of the human spirit.

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In the summer of 1863 Colonel Arthur Fremantle travelled through America at the height of the Civil War, a time when the nation was ripping itself apart. Ironically, almost 140 years later Tom Fremantle strode off in his swashbuckling ancestor's footsteps to walk the 2700 miles from Mexico to Manhattan just ten days before the 11 September attacks on New York - and witnessed a country seemingly never more united. Their journeys could not have been more different. Colonel Arthur rode stage coaches, steam trains and Mississippi river skiffs while his less sensible descendant slogged the entire way on foot. Colonel Arthur flirted with saucy belles; Tom Fremantle kept company with Browny, a cantankerous 17-year-old mule. The Colonel ate skunk meat and was arrested twice as a spy before witnessing the devastating Battle of Gettysburg and sailing home from New York. The twenty-first century Fremantle ate grits and was chased by a buffalo before leading the hapless Browny over George Washington Bridge and into Central Park. On his travels through 14 states, Colonel Arthur met many great characters of the time, including General Robert E. Lee and the legendary Texan, Sam Houston.
The colonel's observations give a fascinating insight into the Civil War era and a rip-roaring view of American frontier life. To emulate the simplicity of his ancestor's journey Tom Fremantle slept under the stars or in the homes, gardens, barns, churches and even greenhouses of generous strangers. Both Fremantles relied heavily on the kindness of those they met and did not hesitate to trust them. This moving and often hilarious story, of two men, two contrasting worlds and a cynical but heroic beast of burden, sheds a whole new light on America, mules and the vagaries of the human spirit.