Chapter 13: Adelaide Arrives at Her Claim
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Adelaide Henry reaches her new homestead in Montana, a vast and empty stretch of land with no neighbors. Mr. Olsen helps her manhandle the heavy steamer trunk inside the tiny, rudimentary cabin. Before he leaves, Adelaide awkwardly brings up the Mudges, a neighboring family who haven’t arrived yet; she offers to buy their supplies if they fail to show, feeling shame and guilt because she suspects the trunk’s secret may be responsible for their absence. Mr. Olsen gives her a tin of dried peaches and departs. Alone, Adelaide surveys the shoddy twelve-by-twelve cabin, the sagging outhouse, and the alkaline well that is unfit for drinking. Overwhelmed by the isolation and the hopelessness of her situation, she sits on the trunk and seriously contemplates ending her life. Then she imagines Mr. Olsen returning, finding her dead, opening the trunk, and dying himself—unleashing more death. This thought jolts her back to her family’s unbroken duty. She has been trained her whole life to be the trunk’s caretaker or jailer, and the Henrys don’t shirk their responsibilities. Adelaide rises, resolved to survive.
Key Events
- Adelaide arrives at the claim and is stunned by the total absence of neighbors—only land as far as she can see.
- Mr. Olsen helps push the steamer trunk into the cabin.
- During a brief, almost intimate moment, Adelaide asks Mr. Olsen to return with the Mudges’ supplies if they don’t appear, feeling like a scavenger and tormented by hidden guilt.
- Mr. Olsen gives her dried peaches as a parting gift and rides off.
- Left alone, Adelaide inspects the flimsy cabin, useless well, and sagging outhouse, and feels utterly marooned.
- She sits on the trunk, sinks into despair, and contemplates suicide.
- The thought of the trunk being opened after her death—and the carnage that would follow—reminds her of her lifelong role as the Henry family’s jailer.
- She stands up, committed to carrying on despite everything.
Character Development
- Adelaide Henry: Moves from shock and horror at her circumstances to a near-breaking despair, then to a hard-won resolve. Her internal conflict pivots on the weight of guilt (about the Mudges) and the crushing loneliness, yet she ultimately draws strength from a grim sense of duty. She frames her role not as a caretaker but as a jailer, acknowledging the danger she contains. The chapter solidifies her as a person who, however isolated, refuses to pass her burden to others.
- Mr. Olsen: Though a minor presence, he shows unexpected kindness—touching her hand, giving her dried peaches. His potential romantic interest lingers in the air, but Adelaide deflects it, protecting both him and herself from further entanglement.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Isolation: The landscape is described as so flat and empty that Mr. Olsen’s wagon will be visible for an hour after leaving. No neighbors exist for miles; the cabin feels like a speck in a void.
- Guilt and Responsibility: Adelaide’s offer to buy the Mudges’ gear is laced with self-disgust because she may be the reason they never arrive. This guilt intertwines with her family duty.
- The Steamer Trunk as Burden: The trunk is both literal weight and symbolic legacy. It holds something lethal, and Adelaide believes her life’s purpose is to keep it sealed.
- Harsh Environment: The cabin lacks a ceiling, the outhouse is about to collapse, and the well water is alkaline. The setting immediately underscores how unprepared and vulnerable she is.
- Suicidal Despair vs. Stoic Duty: Adelaide’s moment of considering suicide is countered by the obligation passed down from her parents. She chooses to live not out of hope but out of a grim sense of caretakership.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter lands Adelaide on her homestead and immediately strips away any romanticism about homesteading. It establishes the brutality of her physical and emotional isolation while deepening the central mystery of the trunk. The guilt over the Mudges plants an early seed of external conflict, and Adelaide’s internal pivot from despair to grim resolve defines her character for the journey ahead. Her decision to rise—choosing jailer duty over self-destruction—marks the true beginning of her life as a lone woman on the prairie.
Study Questions and Answers
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Why does Adelaide feel like a “scavenger” when she offers to buy the Mudges’ supplies?
She suspects that the creature or force inside her trunk has already killed the Mudges, so profiting from their disappearance would be morally repugnant. The offer also exposes her desperation; she needs the goods to survive but hates what that need might imply about her complicity. -
How does the description of the cabin and land reinforce the theme of isolation?
The cabin is barely a shelter—tar paper, no foundation, no neighbors for miles. Adelaide can see the Bear Paw Mountains far away, and the horizon is so flat she can watch Mr. Olsen’s wagon travel for an hour without seeming to move. The useless well and crumbling outhouse emphasize that she is completely alone with no functional resources except her own will. -
What role does the steamer trunk play in Adelaide’s decision to stay alive?
She realizes that her suicide would lead to someone (likely Mr. Olsen) opening the trunk, dying, and then many more dying after. Her lifelong training as the trunk’s jailer—the Henry family duty—forces her to accept that her survival is the only way to contain the danger. The trunk gives her a reason to endure when all natural hope is gone.