I am wrapping up “Big Enough To Be Inconsistent” today and on page 95 there was this little nugget:
“The first state that Lincoln tried to enlist in his program of gradual emancipation was Delaware, which had so few slaves – a total of 1800 in 1860 – that it was hard to imagine strong opposition to their being purchased and freed by the federal government (for $500 per slave). In late November 1861, Lincoln went so far as to draft a bill to be presented to the Delaware state legislature providing for gradual, federally compensated emancipation. Under its propopsed terms, slavery would not be totally eliminated until 1893. But even in a state that had no significant economic stake in slavery, the fear that emanicpated blacks would claim equal rights caused a bill allong the lines that Lincoln recommended to be narrowly defeated.”
go figure, some things never change I guess in this state…