n, Mississippi. Although the Press of that city made no
notice of it, the case presented itself as a fit subject for a
literary work. If the picture drawn in the following pages appears
exaggerated to our readers, they will at least recognize the moral it
contains as truthful.

Trusting that the public will overlook its many defects, the Author
yet hopes there will be found in this little book, matter of
sufficient interest to while away the idle hour of the reader.

ATLANTA, April 20th, 1864.

THE TRIALS

OF

THE SOLDIER'S WIFE.

CHAPTER FIRST.

THE "CRESCENT CITY"--THE HUSBAND'S DEPARTURE.

Kind reader, have you ever been to New Orleans? If not, we will
attempt to describe the metropolis of the Confederate States of
America.

New Orleans is situated on the Mississippi river, and is built in the
shape of a crescent, from which it derives the appellation of
"Crescent City." The inhabitants--that is, the educated class--are
universally considered as the most refined and aristocratic members of
society on the continent. When we say aristocratic, we do not mean a
pretension of superiority above others, but that elegance and
etiquette which distinguish the _parvenu_ of society, and the vulgar,
but wealthy class of citizens with which this country is infested. The
ladies of New Orleans are noted for their beauty and refinement, and
are certainly, as a general thing, the most accomplished class of
females in the South, except the fair reader into whose hands this
work may fall.

It was in the month of May, 1861, that our story commences. Secession
had been resorted to as the last chance left the South for a
preservation of her rights. Fort Sumter, had fallen, and from all
parts of the land troops were pouring to meet the threatened invasion
of their homes. As history will record, New Orleans was not idle in
those days of excitement. Thousands of her sons came forward at the
first call, and offered their services for the good of the common
cause, and for weeks the city was one scene of excitement from the
departure of the different companies to Virginia.

Among the thousands who replied to the first call of their country,
was Alfred Wentworth, the confidential clerk of one of the largest
commission houses in the city. He was of respectable family, and held
a high position in society, both on account of his respectability and
the elevated talent he had displayed during his career in the world.
He had be