A young soldier has returned home and is seated at the dining room table, talking with his elderly grandfather, his parents, and a younger sister. A hound dog listens attentively at his left. The family slaves huddle inside the doorway to listen. Below the title it states: "From the original picture in the possession of the American Art Union, 1851. The engraving was copyrighted by the American Art Union in 1853. To the right of the title it reads: "Printed by J. Dalton. Woodville, who was living in Dusseldorf at the time, was known to have sent several paintings to the Art Union for exhibition. The Art Union then had the painting engraved for distribution to its members. It appears that this is one of those engravings.