# James R. Colston — In the Midst of Life character guide

> James R. Colston in In the Midst of Life by Ambrose Bierce.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Colston, old Jim, James

**First appearance:** 0024-the-story-of-a-conscience

## Who they are

An old man in rags, once a slaveholder, now seeking admittance to the Home for Old Men — his past a debt that poverty alone cannot settle.

## In the story

### [The Suitable Surroundings](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/the-suitable-surroundings)

The writer who insists on the right atmosphere for reading ghost stories and challenges Brentshaw.

### [The Day Before](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/the-day-before)

A writer of ghost stories who argues passionately for the reader's duty to create the proper mood for his work.

### [The Day After](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/the-day-after)

The deceased man found in the Breede house; his manuscript explains his suicide pact with Charles Breede.

### [A Lady from Redhorse](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/chapters/a-lady-from-redhorse)

Old Jim, who struck it rich in the Calamity mine, enabling Mary to leave Redhorse.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/characters/james_colston
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/in_the_midst_of_life_se/characters