Being new to the site, I am glad to see any piece of serious fiction, but this was one of the finest short stories I've read in a while.

It is reminiscent in setting of "Big Two-Hearted River", the two-part story by Hemingway. In that story, a man is confronted with the ugliness of the land after a fire, symbolizing the destructiveness in man's nature, only to find a way out of this desperation through solitude and fishing.

Whereas Nick Adams (protagonist) sought tranquility, the character of Gooden is on the verge of being excommunicated.

The bit about the mudder is particularly elegant. When Gooden speaks of its' unpalatability, he is referring to an innate nature - one that even governs himself.

A point about "en passant". The reason a pawn can be captured in this manner is the same as why a king can't castle through check; namely, these manuevers imply the occupation of a square, though it is never occupied. I played for years without knowing the reasoning.