Includes bibliographical references (pages 235-250) and index.
Introduction: "My beloved Mississippi is being overrun" -- pt. 1. The state in military conflict -- "Then go down into Egypt while Herod reigns in Judea" -- "The struggle is now for her existence as a state" -- "The arms and military property of the state" -- "A swath of desolation" -- "Patriotism enough to bear such a tax as this" -- pt. 2. The people in social conflict -- "If Lincoln should continue to work at the mote in our eye" -- "Her people are drifting to the Yankees" -- "Tears on many a dark cheek" -- "I have borne it all very cheerfully, so far" -- "Our poor country is getting into a deplorable condition."