A different "Great War" after the CSA succeeds in the ACW.

The number of people involved would probably be greater than you think and the number nabbed would be greater than you think.. A prime field hand was worth at least $1000 in 1860 which is worth about $20,000 today. So every time you kidnap a Black American you are probably being paid the equivalent of $1,000 or more. Throw in the difference in standard of living in it closer to $5,000 (People are at least 5 times more wealthy today even when accounting for inflation) or more. At $5,000 + a pop I don't think you will have many problems finding enough kidnappers.

They DO run the risk of getting hung by US authorities if they get caught but almost certainly not CS ones. At most they spend a few weeks in jail and are given a show trial where they are found not guilty.

The only problem is that I doubt that these catchers will be getting full price for anyone they catch, and the slaves worth is probably going to be going down as time goes on making it fairly unprofitable from their perspective (this operates on my own view that the CS elites aren't stupid and at some point white labor/industry will end up competing with slave labor).

Past the 1890s I can't see this as being viable way of living, nor can I imagine the southern elites paying top dollar for escaped slaves right away, and even less as time goes on.

(Also if only to compare it to today's drug trade the numbers still won't be very high, even if the CS elites pay top dollar since that would be a pretty expensive thing for them to be constantly paying for, while the risks are literally life or death every time, sure enough people will do it, but there just logically can't be a very large number of them for practical, political, and economic reasons)
 
The only problem is that I doubt that these catchers will be getting full price for anyone they catch, and the slaves worth is probably going to be going down as time goes on making it fairly unprofitable from their perspective (this operates on my own view that the CS elites aren't stupid and at some point white labor/industry will end up competing with slave labor).

Past the 1890s I can't see this as being viable way of living, nor can I imagine the southern elites paying top dollar for escaped slaves right away, and even less as time goes on.

(Also if only to compare it to today's drug trade the numbers still won't be very high, even if the CS elites pay top dollar since that would be a pretty expensive thing for them to be constantly paying for, while the risks are literally life or death every time, sure enough people will do it, but there just logically can't be a very large number of them for practical, political, and economic reasons)

More than enough to keep tensions high, particularly if Blacks are "stealing their families" down South. Which they WOULD do .
 
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