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Books: by Title: The Horse Fiddle:
Stories of the Chautauqua Spirit

Paul Leone's captivating story of Amos Sottle and his horse fiddle evokes with humor and compassion the early years of Chautauqua County's settlement. This beguiling character, and the colorful characters that surround him, is lifted out of the backwoods of historical obscurity to delightful imaginative life.

Amos is familiar in county folklore as candidate for the title of the first permanent settler. His life in the wilderness near Cattaraugus Creek was one of minor triumph and repeated misfortune. Perhaps, as Leone suggests, his trials and tribulations were tied to the mysterious dark power of the fiddle.

The nine stories contained in this quality hard-cover book draw on local historical records to describe the peculiar ambience of Chautauqua County as it emerged from a frightening wilderness to a beloved landscape of trees and farms whose Spirit and spirits forever touch those who walk its paths.

Around the curve of the track, out of sight of Prospect Station, among the trees, stood the man with the derby hat.
Charlotte froze.
He stood out dark against the bright sun and the glistening snow. The sun shone above him, through leafless trees, lighting his darkness. His derby hat was pulled low over his forehead. The collar of his overcoat was turned up around his neck. He wore a necktie knotted at the throat.
Oscar growled.
"Be quiet," Charlotte whispered.
He didn't move. He stood motionless and dark, still, like the silence, staring out of the silence and his darkness toward Charlotte.
-- from The Prospect Tragedy

ISBN: 0-9658955-7-2
$18.00

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