Why did Lincoln say, "I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so"?
Lincoln said this because his ultimate goal was to preserve the Union. Although he detested slavery on moral and economic grounds, he thought that it would eventually die out on its own, if it could be contained where it was.
