Lincoln was the only president in American history whose administration was bounded by war. - James M. McPherson

Southern political leaders were threatening to take their states out of the Union if a Republican president was elected on a platform restricting slavery.

Lincoln. His commitment to preserving the United States was so strong and so deep that he was willing to do whatever it took to succeed. Would you like to be in his shoes? Just think about that for a moment. Not just Lincoln. There are hundreds of examples in history.

What were these rights and liberties for which Confederates contended? The right to own slaves; the liberty to take this property into the territories.