During a temporary cessation of hostilities below the Mason-Dixon line, Col. Carlton is granted leave of absence, and accompanied by Lieut. Carney, his daughter’s sweetheart, visits his Southern home. There Lieut. Carney is honored by Virginia Carleton, accepting his proposal of marriage. At the expiration of their furlough, the lieutenant and the colonel leave to rejoin their regiment. Strife of war dangerously adjacent prevents the making of a trip by the Carltons to get a new wedding outfit, with the result that the mother unpacks the attic trunk and her own wedding gown undergoes alterations for the happy occasion of her daughter’s marriage. Meanwhile, the opposing armies draw nearer and Grant’s force is discovered by the Confederates to be in a weak condition. To enable the strategic maneuver of the Confederates taking advantage of this position of the Federals, Lieut. Carney voluntarily assumes the perilous responsibility of slipping through the Federal lines to warn other Confederates of the contemplated attack, likewise securing their reinforcement. This plan of Lieut. Carney’s is thwarted at a crucial period by the Federals detecting his effort to get through their lines. Carney’s horse is shot and he is compelled to seek safety in flight. The chase ends with Lieut. Carney fleeing to the home of his sweetheart, hotly pursued by the determined Federals, who suspect he hears important dispatches bearing on the hazardous position of their division. When Carney breaks into the house, Virginia and her mother are draping the wedding dress on an improvised “form” beneath which Carney is hidden as the Federals enter. Driven to desperation, Virginia is compelled to play the part of an obliging hostess to gain time. The tired Federals succumb to her charms and she is enabled to gain time to assist Carney in escaping. The officer of the squad becomes intoxicated, and Virginia, with the assistance of Carney and two family slaves, has his uniform changed to that of Carney’s, and the Federal, in Confederate uniform, is put on a wagon and sent away in apparent flight, which is detected by the Federals, who give chase. Carney then escapes. With the help of the passport which he finds in the coat of the Federal officer, Carney delivers his message in safety, enabling the Confederates to accomplish their purpose. This advantage is later turned in the opposing army’s favor, and the Confederates are forced into the “Hornet’s Nest,” where lack of water aids in weakening their opposition. Virginia’s horse, ridden by Carney, is sent with a note asking for water, and Virginia accomplishes the perilous feat of carrying through the fighting lines of the Federals enough water to enable the hard-pressed Confederates to hold their ground until the Federals, in command of Gen. Grant, decide to abandon trying to gain their place of retreat. Virginia is acclaimed a heroine by the cheering army of Confederates, and she flies, embarrassed, to the eagerly waiting arms of Lieut. Carney.