[Mark in the Old South]

Re: "The assumption was naive. White Southerners chose in 1864 to become slaves themselves rather than give up their Negroes to freedom."

I agree with you, assuming your point is the White Southerner waited until it was too late before they were willing to give up slavery. It was too late, if the offer had been made mid war, there may have been a different outcome. Still you missed something. The quote used said "every PATRIOT will freely give up the latter (slavery)" What was naive was an assumption they had more patriots than they in fact possessed.

[norton]

"..if the offer had been made mid war, there may have been a different outcome."

Can't agree, once the die was cast the North could not end the war by anything other than victory or defeat.

Whatever the South's motives, the North was fighting to regain or retain the geography and to institutionalize it's dominance over the resources of the South.