The Compromise of 1850

Lesson 18: The Union in Peril part 2

The 31st Congress opened in December 1849 in an atmosphere of distrust and bitterness. The question of statehood for California topped the agenda.

So too did other disputes. Northerners demanded the abolition of slavery for the District of Columbia.

Southerners accused the North of failing to enforce the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793. As the tension mounted, some southern states threatened secession, or formal withdrawal from the union.

In February 1850 President Taylor had held a stormy conference with southern leaders who threatened secession. He told them that if necessary to enforce the laws, he personally would lead the Army. Persons "taken in rebellion against the Union, he would hang ... with less reluctance than he had hanged deserters and spies in Mexico.”

In Congress, Henry Clay of Kentucky presented the Compromise of 1850.

The compromise failed to pass. Henry Clay decided to leave Washington. Senator Stephen A. Douglass of Illinois then took action to save the compromise. He was able to pass the compromise by submitting each part of the plan as a separate bill.

After attending Fourth of July orations for most of the day, President Taylor walked along the Potomac River before returning to the White House. Hot and tired, he drank iced water and consumed large quantities of cherries and other fruits. The President suffered severe stomach pains for the next five days. On July 9, 1850, Taylor fell ill and died.

Millard Fillmore became the 13th president. He made it clear that he supported the compromise. as the “final settlement” of the question of slavery and sectional differences.