Essays: 2011 Hildene Brown 8th Grade Lincoln Essay Contest Winners
1st Place Essay by Kaia Heimer-Bumstead
In response to the question: "If Lincoln was willing to tolerate slavery in the southern states, why was he so vehemently opposed to its expansion into the territories?"
One of the greatest battles Abraham Lincoln fought was against the spread of slavery into the West. Although Lincoln was willing to tolerate slavery in the Southern states, he was opposed to its expansion into the territories. At first this may seem contradictory. However, the thought process behind Lincoln’s reasoning was very thorough. In 1854, Stephen Douglas¬ proposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. This act would allow Nebraska Territory (which would be divided into two states) to vote on whether or not to allow slavery, and would therefore effectively repeal the Missouri Compromise. Lincoln, for several reasons, disapproved of the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
Although he favored ending slavery, Lincoln stated that his main goal was to keep the country together, saying, “Much as I hate slavery, I would consent to the extension of it rather than seeing the Union dissolved.” However, he maintained that the Kansas-Nebraska Act would cause great harm to the country’s unity. Lincoln insisted that the best way to “preserve the Union” was to continue making compromises. He described this as “that spirit which first gave us the constitution, and which thrice had saved the Union.” Unlike the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850, both of which helped keep the country together, the Kansas-Nebraska Act would conciliate the South but alienate the North. To override a compromise that had kept the Union together would only push the country to the brink of civil war once more. Lincoln was also infuriated by the amendment to the Act that officially repealed the Missouri Compromise, which was remarkably similar to the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which banned slavery in the Northwest Territory. Lincoln saw this law, supported by eminent leaders such as Thomas Jefferson, as meaning that the Founding Fathers had never intended for slavery to reach the territories.
However, Lincoln also believed that slavery was morally wrong, and even though the Union took precedence, he wanted to end slavery. He knew that if slavery spread into the West, ending it would be even more difficult. Yet he also knew that if all of the slaves were suddenly freed, it would be incredibly detrimental to the country’s economy. “I have no prejudice against the Southern people…I surely will not blame them for not doing what I should not know how to do myself.” Lincoln was willing to tolerate slavery in the South because he knew the cotton-based Southern economy was entirely dependent on it. Without slavery, the South, followed by the North, would economically collapse. Lincoln admitted that he was not sure what the least harmful way to end slavery might be. However, he recognized that if slavery were allowed into the territories, it would make its eventual removal far more difficult.
Although Lincoln was against slavery, he valiantly fought to keep the country united, even if it meant compromising his own principles. Lincoln knew that the United States was in a dangerous position, but he never stopped trying to fix it and to preserve the Union.