This is from Lincoln's first inaugural address:
"One section of our country believes slavery is right, and ought to be extended, while the other believes it is wrong, and ought not to be extended. This is the only substantial dispute…."
http://www.vindicatingthefounders.com/library/lincoln-first-inaugural.html
The south seceded because a northerner, who said slavery was wrong and should not be extended, was elected President.
ironfoot, if Lincoln was so against slavery, WHY did the Emancipation Proclamation EXCLUDE the slaves in the North From Freedom "as if this proclamation were never issued?" Hmmmm? If Lincoln believed in 1847 that it was "the right of any people to throw off their government in exchange for one that better suits them" then how could he believe that for any nation on earth EXCEPT the United States? In FACT, the U.S. has supported more secession movements than any other nation on earth!! If it was so right for the U.S. to support those nations, why not here? I'll tell you why!! None of those nations were funding the federal government to the tune of 80-90% like the Southern States were. Look it up in the 1860 census!!
Jefferson Davis said: "
The condition of slavery with us is, in a word, Mr. President, nothing but the form of civil government instituted for a class of people not fit to govern themselves. It is exactly what in every State exists in some form or other. It is just that kind of control which is extended in every northern State over its convicts, its lunatics, its minors, its apprentices. It is but a form of civil government for those who by their nature are not fit to govern themselves. We recognize the fact of the inferiority stamped upon that race of men by the Creator, and from the cradle to the grave, our Government, as a civil institution, marks that inferiority." - He said this in the Senate Chamber of the U.S. Capitol on February 29, 1860.
Jefferson Davis was a staunch believer in states' rights. It was his interpretation of the constitution, his belief that the United States was a voluntary union of sovereign states, that actually led him to become the president of the confederacy. In the years leading up to Mississippi's break with the union, the northern states and the federal government were submitting the southern states to abnormal pressure. Basically, the federal government saw the southern states as captive consumers of the northern factories. When the southern states looked overseas for trade, the northern companies through their congressional influence imposed biased tax laws upon the southern consumers. Finally, the south said "we've had enough". The south sent a representative body to Washington, seeking an audience to discuss peaceful resolutions, but President Lincoln refused to see them.
The south did not declare, nor did they fight, a civil war. By definition, in simple terms, a civil conflict is where one party tries to overthrow the government of another party. The southern confederacy did not try to overthrow the US federal government. the southern states simply wanted to be left alone, to pursue a government that they thought was more just. Rather than look for a peaceful resolution, the federal government knew that the confederate states produced over 75% of the agricultural products of the United States. The federal government did not want to relinquish control over that much prosperity.
How does this relate to Jefferson Davis' view of slavery? Simple. Slavery was part of the economic condition in the south. Davis viewed slaves as property and defended his stance by citing the constitution. But Davis also knew the obvious immoral problem of slavery. He was, as was most of the southern plantation owners, struggling with the solution. In a letter to his brother Joe, Davis described some of his views on slavery, writing, "in order for a slave to be made fit for freedom, he must first be made unfit for slavery." Davis knew this could only be done through education. But the immediate problem with the formation of the confederacy and the position that the federal government took when it came to heavy-handed governing, caused his public position on slavery to take a back seat.
In one of his speeches, Davis is credited with telling either the US congress or the congress of the confederacy (I can't find the document and I don't remember which speech) that slavery would disappear from this country within two more generations, perhaps sooner.
Some of the biggest benefactors of slavery were the owners of Northern shipping lines. THAT's why Northern slaves weren't freed by the Emancipation Proclamation!! So don't be too quick to judge the South. Slavery was, and is, an appalling practice that scarred the lives of so many. The world has evolved in many ways, and many of the practices in the history of our planet were barbarous. It is not difficult to understand that our part of the world had to go through the same evolutionary changes. Hopefully we have learned from our past.
It should be mentioned that in late 1864, Davis was prepared to abolish slavery in exchange for European diplomatic recognition in order to save the Confederacy. Davis informed Confederate congressional leaders of his intentions, and then sent Duncan Kenner to Europe to make the proposal. Davis even made Kenner a minister plenipotentiary so as to ensure he could make the proposal to the British and French governments and that it would be taken seriously.
Jefferson Davis treated blacks with respect and received their respect in return. Critics will reply that Davis believed in white supremacy. But these critics
almost never explain that
nearly all Americans in that day believed the same thing. This was true of the average man on the street right up to the nation's leaders in all parts of the country.
As for the expansion of slavery, Davis believed it should be left up to the individual territory or state to decide for itself and not be decided by the government or any section of the country. The nearly worldwide belief that slaves were indeed property lead to Davis' (and the South's) belief that, if a slave owner, North OR South, traveled into a non slave-holding territory or state, that his slaves were still his property. It was no different than taking your horse from Georgia to New York, it still belonged to you, even if somebody disagreed with you on it, and that you had the right to take it with you when you left. It was Property!!
SBG
DEO VINDICE
