Elsie and her husband, along with their five children--from nine-year-old Elsie to baby Herbert--have planned a wonderful party with friends and family to celebrate ten years of happy married life. In an unexpected turn of events, things get ugly when Mr. Travilla, Mr. Dinsmore, and Mr. Leland, the new Northern owner of Fairfield, come under attack as scalawags and carpetbaggers. Even close family members become involved as the Ku Klux Klan attacks Fairfield and Ion. Read how distant kin and ventriloquism play a part in the conflict. Join Elsie and Mr. Travilla as they do battle and then share a winter respite with many relatives and friends in Louisiana at Viamede, the beautiful restored mansion of Elsie's mother.

Martha Finley : was a remarkable woman who lived a quiet Chirstian life; yet through her many writings, she affected the lives of several generations of Americans for the better.