“Ballots are the rightful, and peaceful, successors of bullets; and that when ballots have fairly, and constitutionally, decided, there can be no successful appeal, back to bullets; that there can be no successful appeal, except to ballots themselves, at succeeding elections.”

Quite a good quote from a great president.

Then why did he use bullets when some states voted to succeed?

A thread of truth by one of the worst presidents, siding with money elitist of the north, in stealing valuable property from the planters and yoeman farmers. Grace believers of the south at odds with a corrupted socialistic north. Striping away sovereignty of the States and Individuals which make up our Republic, now, under siege. Steps being made now, to Right our Ship of State our CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC AT NATURAL LAW.

Read "The Real Lincoln" if you think he was a great president.

Some what ambiguous. The quote has a thread of accuracy that runs through it before it justifies Tyranny. "Ballots are the rightful, and peaceful, successors of bullets". The War of Independence was a strike for liberty. The War between the States was a death blow to liberty where slave application took on a new evolving face. As cal has here expressed, Lincoln did contradict his own here stated quote. Where was the vote or Congressional Declaration of War when the occupying statist theocracy infesting this land attacked the countries (with bullets) of South East Asia, the Caribbean, Northern Africa, the Middle East, etc.?

Lincoln has said many quotable phrases about liberty and sovereignty -- unfortunately, I find his actions in support of nationalist government rather than federal government. The distinction is the difference between sovereign people acting in their sovereign capacity and a sovereign 'lord' to whom all the people must obey.

President Lincoln, probably unaware fully, is making the point here, in a rational estimate, of the futility of the voting process. We need to give everyone their day at making the governmental institutional decisions that develop our national community. That is what democracy truly entails. Everyone must have their day at the democratic pulpit of fairness and decency.