Lincoln no longer had the energy to concern himself with the backlash caused by heavy-handed suppression. Since there had been no wholesale slaughter, there was still room to maneuver. Once the Southern rebellion was put down in the future, he could find a way to ease relations.
At worst, they would lose one state's votes. But if they lost this war and the United States split in two, then no matter how well he handled those relationships, he would still have to pack up and leave.
President Lincoln had only just returned to Washington when he received bad news: neighboring Delaware still had not made a move.
"What is going on? Why has Delaware not been settled yet?"
Lincoln could hardly be blamed for his anger. Delaware was only nominally a slaveholding state; in reality, slavery there was already a name without substance.
Out of the state's more than twenty thousand Black residents, fewer than 1,800 were slaves.
Wilmington, the most prosperous city, and its surrounding areas had already become economically integrated with Pennsylvania. The state itself was tiny, covering only a little over six thousand square kilometers, so the planters naturally held little power.
The Secretary of State in charge of coordinating Delaware looked livid. Maryland, which had originally seemed impossible to resolve, had been handled by the President, yet Delaware—the state they had considered easiest to persuade—still showed no results.
"Delaware was originally loyal to the Union. During the state legislature's vote in January, we also held an absolute advantage.
"But the intervention of the United Kingdom, France, Austria, and Spain complicated matters. The suppressed Southern faction became active again with their support.
"These people cannot make Delaware side with the South, but they have brought this state's war preparations to a standstill.
"Under the banner of opposing