Beside the point. Had they done so, Lincoln would have likely taken the deal. At least that is what he says when he wrote that letter.
Of course there is always the possibility that he might be a two faced liar, but I wouldn't think you would find that a likely possibility.
If you think Lincoln would have kept his word, the US would have likely kept slavery had the South conditionally agreed to stop fighting as of August 22, 1861.
And it prepped the way for total emancipation.
It got everyone ready for a vast theft of all their invested wealth.
A bit of a stretch. And it still ignores the fact that when the letter was written the Emancipation Proclamation was well underway.
Of course there is always the possibility that he might be a two faced liar, but I wouldn't think you would find that a likely possibility.
A conclusion that would not surprise me coming from you. But you are correct that I wouldn't agree with you.
If you think Lincoln would have kept his word, the US would have likely kept slavery had the South conditionally agreed to stop fighting as of August 22, 1861.
August 1862, but who's counting. And you overlook the fact that had Lincoln surrendered to the Confederacy on August 22, 1862 then the South would have kept their slaves as well. But I think that surrender was about as likely as Confederate surrender was, and Lincoln knew it.