II. The Compromise of 1850 A. The Slavery Debate Erupts Again 1. When California requested entrance into the Union, it threatened the balance in the Senate between free states and slave. 2. In 1849, there were 15 slave states and 15 free states in the nation. a) It also looked like Oregon, Utah, and New Mexico might also join as free states. 3. Many southerners feared that the South would be hopelessly outnumbered in the Senate. a) Some suggested that the South would want to secede, or remove themselves from the United States. b) Many looked to Senator Henry Clay (KY) for a solution.

II. The Compromise of 1850 4. Clay had won the nickname “The Great Compromiser” for working out the Missouri Compromise. 5. John C. Calhoun (SC) replied to Clay. a) Calhoun refused to compromise and insisted that slaves be allowed in the western territories. b) He also demanded that fugitive, or runaway, slaves be returned to their owners. c) He also stated that if the North does not meet the South’s demands that the South should leave the Union in peace. 6. Daniel Webster (MA) supported Clay’s plea to save the Union.

II. The Compromise of 1850 B. Compromise of 1850 a) Webster feared that the states could not separate without starting a bloody civil war. b) A civil war is a war between people of the same country. 7. Like many northerners, Webster viewed slavery as evil. a) He viewed the breakup of the Union was worse. b) He was willing to support southern demands to save the Union. B. Compromise of 1850 1. Stephen Douglas (IL) took up Henry Clay’s compromise efforts.

II. The Compromise of 1850 2. Douglas guided the Compromise of 1850 through Congress. a) 1. CA entered the Union as a free state. b) 2. It divided the rest of the Mexican cession into the territories of New Mexico and Utah and it let the territories decide the issue of slavery by popular sovereignty. c) 3. It ended the slave trade in Washington D.C. d) 4. It passed a strict fugitive slave law. e) 5. It settled a border dispute between TX and NM. 3. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 required all citizens to help catch runaway slaves. a) Failure to comply could result in a $1,000 fine. 

II. The Compromise of 1850 b) Special courts to handle the cases of runaways that rewarded the judge $10 for sending a person back to slavery and $5 for setting a person free. 4. The fugitive slave act enraged antislavery northerners. a) It made northerners feel as though they were part of the slave system. b) Despite the compromise, tensions were still running high because neither side got all they wanted. C. Uncle Tom’s Cabin: An Antislavery Bestseller

II. The Compromise of 1850 1. Harriet Beecher Stowe told the story of Uncle Tom, an enslaved African American noted for his kindness and piety. a) Southerners objected because they said it did not reflect how southerners actually treated their slaves.