An historical novel giving a detailed picture of the efforts of the South to build a Confederate Navy, efforts which were blocked by bungling self-seekers, incompetent politicians and the struggle for separate commands.
Seaman Sam Seymour follows his father into the navy, but resigns his commission to serve the Confederacy
and falls in love with his brother's headstrong wife. His elder brother, an engineer, goes to Richmond to make his contribution. Brunton is a Scottish shipbuilder.