The following was passed by the Confederate Congress on February 25, 1861:
The Congress of the Confederate States of America do enact, That the peaceful navigation of the Mississippi river is hereby declared free to the citizens of any of the States upon its borders, or upon the borders of its navigable tributaries; and all ships, boats, rafts or vessels may navigate the same, under such regulations as may be established by authority of law, or under such police regulations as may be established by the States within their several jurisdictions.SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, All ships, boats, or vessels, which may enter the waters of the said river within the limits of this Confederacy, from any port or place beyond the said limits, may freely pass with their cargoes to any other port or place beyond the limits of this Confederacy without any duty or hindrance, except light money, pilotage, and other like charges;...
Odd that they did not realize their dependence on the South when they were clamoring to exclude their influence in the territories, ain't it? I mean, after all, Lincoln clearly understood fedgov's dependence on Southern commerce to the extent that he felt he would "have no government!"