A Splendid Hazard

In Short

When a wealthy American admiral launches a yachting expedition to uncover a long-hidden Napoleonic fortune, he unwittingly gathers a web of conspirators, secret agents, and broken lovers. Among them is his own foreign secretary, a man harboring dangerous imperial bloodlines and an obsession with reclaiming his heritage. Spanning bright Parisian streets, quiet coastal harbors, and the rugged, sun-baked mountains of Corsica, the story exposes the toll of political fanaticism and romantic rivalry. It endures as a vivid early twentieth-century adventure, blending sharp social comedy, atmospheric travel, and a tragic study of self-delusion.

The Story

The tale opens in a cold, rainy Paris, where Jack Fitzgerald—a restless magazine writer and former war correspondent—engages in a playful club wager, selling plaster Venuses on a city corner. There he crosses paths with Laura Killigrew, the poised daughter of a wealthy, retired American navy admiral. Intrigued by Fitzgerald's wit and wandering spirit, Laura maneuvers him into an interview with her father, who readily hires the young man for an unconventional voyage. Admiral Killigrew has acquired old documents revealing the existence of a massive treasure hidden in Corsica, accumulated decades earlier to finance Napoleon Bonaparte’s return to power. Believing the gold now belongs to whoever finds it, the admiral equips his sleek private yacht, the Laura, for a Mediterranean expedition.

Joined by an eclectic company—including the enigmatic singer Hildegarde von Mitter, the reserved traveler Arthur Cathewe, and the polished French agent M. Ferraud—the vessel sets sail. Yet quiet tensions simmer beneath the cheerful surface. The admiral’s quiet Bavarian secretary, Karl Breitmann, is not the mere clerk he appears to be. Tracked for years by French intelligence, Breitmann is actually a secret imperial claimant, consumed by the dream of funding a new political revolution and restoring his lost legacy. Armed with inside knowledge, Breitmann covertly coordinates with conspirators, including a French duke masquerading as a shiphand, to seize the chest before the admiral’s party can reach it.

As the yacht drops anchor in sunny ports from Funchal to Corsica, romantic entanglements and ideological clashes deepen. Cathewe, harboring a deep and protective love for Hildegarde, watches anxiously as her mysterious past connection to Breitmann causes her profound distress. Meanwhile, Fitzgerald and Laura grow increasingly close, their lighthearted banter deepening into genuine devotion. When the party lands in Corsica and begins the arduous trek into the inland pine forests, the atmosphere turns grim. The pursuit of the gold is no longer a innocent game; it is a desperate race against deceit.

Upon reaching the remote mountain cache, the admiral’s party discovers they have been outmaneuvered: the chest has already been unearthed and emptied. Yet Breitmann's triumph is fleeting. Severely wounded and betrayed by the very political faction he sought to serve, his grand schemes crumble into air. Realizing the vanity of his ambition, he burns his historical claims and rejects his imperial dreams. Cathewe quietly withdraws to seek solace in distant travels, while Fitzgerald and Laura return to America united in love. Left behind in Corsica, Breitmann surrenders his grand illusions, choosing a humbled, quiet life alongside the steadfast Hildegarde.

How It Unfolds

A Paris chance meeting Fitzgerald hawks cheap plaster statuettes on a Parisian street to win a friendly bet, drawing the amused attention of Laura Killigrew. Impressed by his quick wit, she directs him to her father, who hires the traveled writer to join an extraordinary overseas expedition.

The secret of the documents Admiral Killigrew reveals his plan to sail for Corsica to uncover millions of francs hidden decades ago to support Napoleon. Fitzgerald accepts the offer, joining a crew and guest list that includes the tranquil yet secretive secretary, Karl Breitmann.

Mid-ocean suspicion As the yacht crosses the Atlantic, quiet rivalries surface among the passengers. Arthur Cathewe notices tense interactions between Breitmann and the opera singer Hildegarde von Mitter, while French agent M. Ferraud discreetly monitors Breitmann's movements.

A duke in the scuppers During a port stop, Captain Flanagan is shocked to discover that one of his own deckhands is actually a French duke working in secret concert with Breitmann. Realizing treachery is afoot, the crew rushes to warn the admiral before the inland march begins.

The Corsican mountain trek The party travels by carriage up treacherous mountain roads into the dense pines of Aitone. They navigate steep precipices and local delays, only to find the hidden excavation site empty and the long-sought treasure already gone.

The ashes of ambition A wounded Breitmann realizes his political allies have used him for their own ends, leaving his grand dreams in ruins. He instructs Hildegarde to burn his ancestral papers in the grate, renouncing his past to start anew as an ordinary man.

The People

• Jack Fitzgerald: A cynical, impoverished writer and former war correspondent who craves adventure to escape his wanderlust and financial insecurity. His cynical exterior melts as he falls deeply in love with Laura, ultimately finding a lasting personal treasure far superior to gold.
• Laura Killigrew: A spirited, independent American heiress who scorns rigid social conventions. She drives the plot by orchestrating Fitzgerald's employment and remaining steadfastly loyal to her father, balancing high-society grace with a sharp, perceptive humor.
• Karl Breitmann: A brooding Bavarian military veteran acting as the admiral's secretary. Secretly carrying imperial blood, he is driven by a burning desire to fund a political restoration, but his ruthless ambition eventually collapses into physical ruin and humbled self-reflection.
• Hildegarde von Mitter: An acclaimed opera singer carrying the heavy emotional weight of a past relationship with Breitmann. Though torn by old ties and hunted by regret, her enduring devotion ultimately offers Breitmann his only path toward redemption.
• Arthur Cathewe: A reserved, world-weary gentleman who loves Hildegarde selflessly. Realizing he cannot win her heart or shield her from pain, he quietly steps aside and departs for Africa rather than yield to vengeance.

In Its Own Voice

"He now approached the open window and leaned out. Glittering Paris, wonderful city! How the lights from the bridges twinkled on the wind-wrinkled Seine! Over there lay the third wealth of the world; luxury, vice, pleasure."

(Fitzgerald contemplates the alluring, turbulent city from his window early in the story.)

"It's the same in politics. Some clear-headed fellow gets up and makes a just law. His enemies and his friends alike realize that if the law isn't passed there will be a roar from the public. So they pass the bill with amendments. In other words, they kill its usefulness."

(Fitzgerald shares his cynical views on human institutions while strolling with Laura.)

"I am a broken man, Hildegarde; and in my madness I have been something of a rascal. But for all that, I had big dreams, but thus they go, the one in flames and the other out to sea."

(Breitmann bids farewell to his grand imperial illusions after his catastrophic defeat.)

What It's Really About

Beneath its romantic surface of yachting parties and mountain treasure hunts, the novel examines the destructive nature of historical obsession. It contrasts the healthy, forward-looking vitality of modern life with the decaying, dangerous romanticism of old-world imperialism. Breitmann’s quest to revive a dead empire illustrates how noble lineages and historic grudges can turn men into dupes for cynical political operators. The book argues that true wealth lies not in buried gold or inherited titles, but in self-knowledge, personal integrity, and genuine human connection.

Why Read It Today

A Splendid Hazard offers a delightfully nostalgic escape into the golden age of popular adventure fiction. Readers who enjoy lighthearted romance woven into international intrigue will appreciate its vivid Mediterranean backdrops—from the foggy asphalts of Paris to the sunny terraced slopes of Funchal and the wild pine forests of Corsica. Harold MacGrath writes with a swift, buoyant pacing and an endearing humor, capturing the easy camaraderie and mild absurdities of rich Americans at play abroad.

The reader should, however, be prepared for the literary conventions of 1910. The plot relies on convenient coincidences, dramatic melodramatic reveals, and period dialect—such as Captain Flanagan's exaggerated nautical brogue—which may feel stylized to modern sensibilities. The political backroom maneuvering and historical references to Napoleon's hundred days require a brief adjustment, but they add rich atmosphere to the plot. What remains long after reading is the satisfying contrast between two men: one who surrenders his obsessive dreams to find peace, and another who leaves his cynical wandering behind to embrace a quiet, shared future.