Hamp and his dog Bone lived in a swamp in Georgia during the Civil War period. Hamp hopes the South wins the war between the states, even though he's never seen a slave, let alone had one. He hates the Union for taking his father's leg and a big chunk of his father's soul. Now all his father does is sits on the porch and sings to himself. Now as the Civil War draws closer to home, his family gets poorer. Hamp hears about a no good runaway slave boy named Duff, who killed his master and is loose in the swamp. Hamp goes after him because there is a reward for who ever catches the runaway slave.

Hamp and Bone leave to look for the runaway. While he gets farther and farther away from home he noticed a fresh foot print. He follows it into a marsh...