Eclectic Anecdotes

A popular myth expounded by libertarians is that the Civil War was caused by disputes over tariffs. Nothing could be further from the truth. The main aspect of this myth is that the South was paying the majority of tariffs levied by the government, and the Morrill Tariff was the final nail in the coffin, forcing the South’s hand into secession from the Union. To start, the South was not paying the majority of the tariffs. The southern economy was heavily slave-based, and infrastructure was less developed than the North (the prevalence of railroads in the North was one reason…

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