"He was still the thin sensitive boy with the same lock of pale brown hair hanging over his forehead and the same delicate useless-looking hands she remembered so well."
Hugh Elsing is a member of Atlanta society and the brother of Fanny Elsing. He is Ashley Wilkes' best friend and they later both work for Scarlett O'Hara.
Biography[]
Originally, Hugh was studying to become a judge, probably studying law with Charles Hamilton. Hugh enlisted to fight in the war, and survived The Battle of Gettysburg (1863).
Mrs Elsing starts renting out the bedrooms in her house to make ends meet during the war, forcing Fanny to sleep in the parlour and Hugh to sleep in the attic. He also starts a new career selling kindling and firewood. Like his brother-in-law Tommy Wellburn, he joins the Ku Klux Klan.
When Scarlett acquires two lumber mills, she initially hires Ashley and Hugh to each take care of one. Hugh has a terrible head for business, however, and mismanages the mill. He finds it gentlemanly to lower his prices for anyone who wants to and is unable to control his employees and keep them from deserting. Eventually, Scarlett replaces him with Johnny Gallagher and hires Hugh as a lumber cart driver instead.
Trivia[]
- He shares a name with Hugh Calvert, father to Cathleen Calvert. It is possible he was named after him or that Hugh Calvert was even his godfather.
- René Picard says that Hugh Elsing was orginally supposed to become a judge before the war broke out. Pittypat Hamilton, however, says that he was studying to become a lawyer. It is likely that he was studying law, and his family was pleased with either option.