Irrelevant Arguments on Avoiding War
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Without Sumter, Lincoln would have had no excuse to "put down the rebellion."
Why did he need an excuse? Wasn’t it his duty, as he saw it? Wasn’t he bound to this course of action by his Presidential oath? That is certainly what most Unionists argue on these boards, and I am a little disconcerted by this sudden change of tack. Consistency isn’t always attainable, but your argument would have more credibility if you at least aspired to it.
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That is opinion. Mine is that there was a chance of avoiding war…Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas and North Carolina do not secede. Cooler heads begin to gain control. Then ... ?
“Cooler heads begin to gain control.” Where? The Confederate Government and Constitution both pre-date the attack on Sumter. If, by cooler heads prevailing, you mean that the Confederate Government might have voluntarily dissolved itself and the various seceding states might have returned to the Union, I’m afraid I cannot take the suggestion remotely seriously.
If, on the other hand, you mean that Lincoln might have recognised the independence of the Confederacy then I am equally unconvinced. There isn’t a shred of evidence to suggest that he ever had this in mind.
Given that Lincoln’s idea of his magisterial duty and the continued existence of the Confederate States of America were mutually exclusive concepts, war was inevitable.
