Geoff, I see that someone has already mentioned that the President after Abe was killed, was Johnson. Actually, Johnson was more inclined to help the south recover than Lincoln, because he had roots in the south.
Lincoln advocated the reconstruction but was killed before it could get into full swing. Kind of silly for J.W. Booth, as a southern sympathizer, to kill Abe because Lincoln had every intent to rebuild the south. Andrew Johnson was impeached before he could get anything done, and the NE politicians took over, and unleashed the Carpet Baggers on the south. They finagled land, and live stock, away from the rightful owners, and filched all the cash they could pry away from frightened, and confused, southerners that were not even connected with the plantation owners. Cattle ranches, in Texas, were stolen away under the guise of government consent, when the owners, and cowboys, on these ranches didn't even participate in the war. That's not to say that all of the Texas ranchers did not participate, but many did not. Since they probably sold cattle to the CSA, they became targets for the Carpet Baggers. |
