[Non-Sequitur]

I'm saying the northern populace had no way of knowing that Lincoln was the provocateur. All they knew was Fort Sumter had been fired upon. That was Lincoln's intent all along.

And had the rebel leadership not fired then all that provocation would have been for naught, right? Surely the Davis regime knew what they were getting into?

[southernsunshine]

Surely the Davis regime knew what they were getting into?

Yep. But, again, the northern populace had no way of knowing what went on behind the scenes.

Gotta get kids to school. Back in a little while.