From the time the South demanded the return of Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens, tension had been building in expectation of Lincoln’s reply. The options available to Lincoln were limited, and those that were available were further limited by constraints of time and man-power. Lincoln’s options were also limited by his goals. Lincoln had a set agenda, with preserving the Union at the head of the list. Lincoln also aimed to preserve Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens. Lincoln’s most pressing goal was to instigate the war without seeming to be the aggressor. This proved to be the most difficult goal, because to achieve this, he had to know how far to push without seeming to pu