What can the reader infer based on the underlined detail of the excerpt? The American Civil War and the enigmatic man whose election in 1860 precipitated it hold an
inexhaustible interest for us. Thousands of volumes on both subjects have streamed out of publishing
houses in the past century and a half, covering every conceivable topic and vantage point, from arcana
of military operations to probing, and occasionally preposterous, efforts to explore Lincoln's psyche.
Nor does this flow seem to be diminishing. We are about to launch into a grand national celebration of
the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth that may eclipse all such previous commemorations.