Lincoln i think that what i saw if i could just back up a little bit i do not consider myself a courageous man. If i were out on the battlefield with bullets whizzing past my head, i probably would develop a pair of cowardly legs quite quickly, and they would carry my noble head away. But nonetheless, what i saw was very grave. Right after the close of the mexican war, if you divided this country into four parts, only the southeast was given to slavery. The territory from mexico and the northeast were free. In five years, that equation had reversed. 3 4 of our territory i am not speaking of states in number but our National Geography had been given for slavery, in just five years. That is why the Republican Party was founded to stop the spread. And i came to be convinced that there was a conspiracy to make slavery universal. Now when the threats of secession and war and so on began, i realized that like any soldier, i would have to consider that my life may end up being put on the line