[brazzaville]

Good morning.

"...Lincoln certainly did intend to free the slaves when he wrote the Emancipation Proclamation."

Freeing the slaves had multiple benefits. It gave the Federals a pool of recruits at a time when citizens were beginning to say "Hell no we won't go!" It created the possibility of an insurgency for the Confederacy to have to deal with at home.

The most important benefit was that the Federals were able to assume the moral high ground. That's the one that we have been taught to believe was the real cause for the War of Northern Aggression. Did all those Americans die to free the slaves or to preserve the union?

Michael Frazier

[mac_truck]

The most important benefit was that the Federals were able to assume the moral high ground.

OK, if you say so. There's many on both sides who'd disagree.