Mary C. Johnson Dillon was an American novelist. She was the daughter of Herman Merrills Johnson, who was President of Dickinson College from 1860 to 1868. Mary was the first woman to receive an honorary degree from Dickinson College in 1908. She wrote as Mary Dillon. Her works include: The Rose of Old St. Louis, In Old Bellaire, The Leader, The Patience of John Morland, Miss Livingston's Companion, Comrades and The American.

This book was a bestseller in the early 20th century. It followed the adventures of a young man named... Well, you never do know his name. He was a subordinate to Captain Clark (of the Lewis & Clark expedition), observed the Louisiana Purchase, met Dolley Madison, Napoleon Bonaparte (nearly stumbled upon the First Consul while that gentleman was in his bath). He conversed with the Duc d'Enghien before the man was murdered, and came head-to--head with a villainous chevalier. All this while loving and trying to woo a lovely young lady of France (living in St. Louis) named Pelagie. Who she was, and how she was tied in with the rest of these characters makes a very enjoyable adventurous love story.