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 been married for about five years, and two little children--one
a light-eyed girl of four summers, and the other an infant of two
years--were the small family with which heaven had blessed him.

After joining a company of infantry, and signing the muster roll,
Alfred returned home to his wife and informed her of what he had done,
expecting that she would regret it. But the patriotic heart of his
wife would not reproach him for having performed his duty; so heaving
a sigh as she looked at the child in her arms, and the little girl on
her fathers knee, a tear trickled down her flushed cheek as she bade
him God-speed. The time that elapsed between his enlistment and
departure for the seat of war, was spent by Alfred Wentworth in
providing a home for his family, so that in the event of his being
killed in battle, they should not want. Purchasing a small residence
on Prytania street, he removed his family into it and concluded his
business in time for his departure.

The morning of the twenty-second of May broke brightly over the
far-famed "Crescent City." Crowds of citizens were seen congregating