Men are creatures of the time in which they live and take their color from the conditions that surround them, as the chameleon does from the grass or leaves in which it hides.—from Master Robert

Life is unpredictable. Like a hurricane that descends without warning, it wreaks havoc, destroys fields and property, and brings peril to those in its wake. An event over which we have no control can dramatically affect our lives. Amos and Amelia, surrogate children of Robert Stafford, a wealthy planter from Cumberland Island, Georgia, grow from youth into adulthood during the Civil...