With rare exceptions, _Alida_ cannot be called a cento. While some borrowings involve single phrases, most range from to paragraphs to entire chapters. I (the transcriber) first stumbled across the book while searching for the originals of some quoted passages in _Alonzo and Melissa_. This novel turns out to have been one of _Alida_'s favorite sources, contributing a solid six-chapter block as well as many shorter segments. Appropriately, _Alonzo and Melissa_ was itself pirated; its credited author did not actually write the book. Conversely, a number of other sources were formally copyrighted-- sometimes in the same office where the copyright of _Alida_ was filed. Only about half the sources (by rough word count) have been identified. Isolated phrases-- three or four significant words-- were disregarded unless they were very unusual, or from a source quoted many other times. Unidentified sources include: -- most of the longer poetry -- discussions of education (female and general) -- religious material, probably from a then-new denomination such as Baptist or Methodist -- most references to the secondary character Mr. More (apparently from a single source, possibly a subplot in some other book) If you come across a long passage that you recognize, e-mail lucy2424 at sbcglobal dot net.] Alida: The Author One of the few things definitely known about Amelia Stratton Comfield, the author of _Alida_, is what she looked like in 1852, when her portrait was painted by David Rogers. A smaller form of the painting is included with the HTML version of this file. At time of preparation (mid-2010), the original was online at the Smithsonian collection: http://siris-artinventories.si.edu/ Amelia Stratton Comfield was probably related to Southern writer and educator Catherine Stratton Ladd (1808-1899), who wrote under a number of pseudonyms--including "Alida". Alida: Chronology The chronology is internally consistent: that is, the passage of time based on descriptions of seasons agrees with datable external events, even in the part of the story that draws heavily on _Alonzo and Melissa_. The war of 1812 began in mid-1812 and ended in December 1814; evidently the news reached New York before it reached New Orleans. 1811 and earlier Death of Alida's mother Alida goes to seminary in New York: "The season was now far advanced in autumn" 1812 Alida returns home: "The spring was advancing" [June 1812: War declared] Father's birthday; Alida is sixteen From Alonzo and Melissa: "It was summer, and towards evening when he arrived." "It was the beginning of autumn" "... and sung a requiem to departed summer" "... the day had been uncommonly sultry for the autumnal season" "Winter came on; it rapidly passed away."