Thanks Ann

This does seem to elude to a different facet that may well have been in play here, the alienation of southern officers in the US Army by the Lincolnites in order to clean house of southern officers.

However, as always, there are exceptions to every rule and four I can think right off hand was again George Thomas (the Rock of Chickamauga) a Virginian who remained in the United States Army and recieved a quick promotion to Colonel, major Robert Anderson of Fort Sumter fame another southern who remained and in fact seem to be intimately involved in the efforts to induce the southerners into war, Robt. E. Lee who was offered the Generalship of the US Army appearently just two days before he did resign, and P.T.G. Beauregard who had been appointed as the Commandant of the West Point Academy just a week before he resigned.

I am sure that the Lincolnites did not want an Army whose officers corp were disloyal. The key here seems to be Winfield Scott, a close advisor and political Friend to Lincoln. He would be in a position to determine who among these officers were most likely to be loyal and who were not. Maybe that is why Lee became such an unusual incident in refusing the offer to command the Union Army? Coupled with his later achievements against that same army.