Lincoln said the war was not about slavery.
Lincoln Said secession was legal earlier in his career.
The South did pay a disproportionate part of the taxes.
Slavery was dying out. It had died out everywhere in the west by 1884.
If you're referring to the Mexican War speech, what he said was that there's a natural right of revolution.
From his standpoint it wasn't. But the single most important reason for the Southern rebellion from the South's point of view was defense of their institution of slavery. And there are dozens of quotes from Southern leaders of the time supporting that.
Lincoln Said secession was legal earlier in his career.
No he did not. He did say that people for whatever reason and having the power could rise in rebellion and replace their government. That is a far cry from secession.
The South did pay a disproportionate part of the taxes.
A disproportionately small amount perhaps.
Slavery was dying out. It had died out everywhere in the west by 1884.
I would challenge you to provide a single quote from a single Southern leader in 1861 who believed that slavery was dying out.