I had a thought. I know, shocker for some.
One of my favorite movies, Quigley Down Under, shows a pretty good example of the quagmire that existed at that time even thought it was not about the US. It was based on the same principle. The brutality was evident, the lack of compassion for human beings and their dignity was there for all to see. It also showed that there were those who believed it to be inhumane to the extreme. They were using point of law though, not religious interpretation. In the end, the humanity part won out. If put into context to the entire South, we would come up lacking. I do believe from the books and other writings I've read that things were not alway as brutal as shown in movies. Since we were not there, we will never know for sure but I do believe there was an acceptance of the way things had been done for so many years before. The status quo had not been challanged as it was in 1860.

Pam