Chapter 16 Summary

In 1864, the Confederacy is being pushed further and further back. The South is no longer able to sell the cotton and purchase goods, as the Union has cut off any access to the ports. People in the South are beginning to wonder how they will get food to feed their families.

Scarlett, though, does not care and just revels in her kiss with Ashley. Scarlett is sure that Ashley loves her, and she dreams of him divorcing Melanie and marrying her, no matter how reviled by society they may become. However, her hopes are quickly endangered by the news that Melanie is pregnant. Scarlett wonders if she can live under the same roof as the woman carrying Ashley's baby.

Then the news comes that Ashley has been captured. Melanie is weak and her worry about Ashley is making her more ill. Rhett offers...