Kathleen,

        I happen to have a copy of the book.  Seems that Melanie had a
really difficult labor/delivery; possible pp hemorrhage, endometritis???
Bottom line is that is seems like breastfeeding was the norm during Civil
War days.

        Exerpts from Chapter XXIV: (I've forgotten how wonderfully written
this book is and am now immersed in it -- :) :)

        "She looked down at Melanie and saw that her dark eyes were opened.
They were sick eyes, fever bright, and dark baggy circles were beneath them.
She open cracking lips and whimpered appealingly: 'Water' "

       (Scarlett) "Don't you think Miss Melanie ought to nurse the baby?
He'll starve."

       (Prissy)  "Law, Miss Scarlett, Miss Melly ain' got no milk - ain'
gwin have non..."

       (Scarlett) "How do you know?"

       (Prissy) "Ah's seed too many lak her."

       " If she (Scarlett) could only reach the kind arms of Tara and Ellen
and lay down her burdens, far too heavy for her young shoulders - the dying
woman, the fading baby, her own hungry little boy..."

        "Even in her (Scarlett) exhaustion she hated Melanie, hated the tiny
mewing voice of her child which, fainter and fainter, peirced the stillness."

        "Yelping, Prissy raised her head and peering over the side of the
wagon saw it was, indeed, a cow..."

        " 'Soun' to me lak her bag full an' she need milkin' bad,' said
Prissy..."

        " 'We'll take it with us," Scarlett decided swiftly.  "Then we can
have some milk for the baby"

        Donna Zitzelberger, RN BSN IBCLC
        who's off to make some tea and do a little bit of late nite reading  :)