ABOUT THE BOOK

As most wars have been throughout history, the War Between the States was in essence a financial conflict. More precisely, it was a fatal clash between the politically-diverse nations within the greater Republic which resulted from a gradual departure on the part of the North from the old ways toward large-scale industry, toward giant capitalism, and toward a centralized, national economy, and a firm resistance to such change on the part of the South. Drawing from a plethora of antebellum editorials and congressional records, the author focuses on the economic factors which ultimately forced South Carolinians to choose the perils of independence over continued subjugation within the Union.

Originally published in 1928.