The Compromise of 1850Essay Preview: The Compromise of 18501 rating(s)Report this essayThe Compromise of 1850 was one of the most controversial debate and compromise in United States history designed by Whig Senator Henry Clay. The Compromise was a series of bills that wanted to resolve the territorial and slavery controversies. The main discussion of the Compromise of 1850 was the secession of South from the North. The talk of secession came about from the North trying to abolish slavery from the South. To try and combat the secession the senators came up with the Compromise of 1850. There were three main speeches that played an important role in the temporary compromise. They were the Higher Law Speech by William H. Seward, The Clay Compromise Measures by John C. Calhoun, and On the Clay Compromise by Daniel Webster.
William H. SewardWilliam H. Seward was against the Compromise much like John C. Calhoun. Seward was an abolitionist. Seward made a prediction of the outcome of the United States and that was that if slavery was not abolished, then the country would fall into a civil war which occurred around 10 years later. Something that William Seward focused on that the other two speeches did was the higher law which is Gods Law. Seward acknowledged that slavery was legal under the constitution, but did not find that it was legal to protect slavery under the constitution. Seward goes back to the constitution and restates that all men are created equal, and have inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the choice of pursuits of happiness. William H. Sewards reasoning for pushing against the Compromise of 1850 is as stated, “Whether, then, I regard merely the welfare of the future inhabitants of the new territories, or the security and welfare of the whole people of the United States, or the welfare of the whole family of mankind, I cannot consent to introduce slavery into any part of this continent which is now exempt from what seems to me so great an evil.”
John C. CalhounMuch like William H. Seward, John C. Calhoun was also against the Compromise of 1850. He was different from William Seward in that Calhoun was an advocate for slavery. He was against the Compromise from a slavery outlook. Calhoun several times stresses what can be done to resolve this issue. He says that the way the vote seems to be leaning is to abolish slavery, or that the stress alone will affect the outcome. William H. Seward made it very evident that either the North resolve this in peace or make it known so the South can take action to protect slavery, but doesnt stop there. He also says that if California is admitted as a free state then that would mean that the North is making the decision to exclude the South from the expansion. It is almost like John Calhoun is challenging the North to make a move. This issue is not just about slavery, but also about territory and the unfair expansion of the North. Calhoun is accusing the North of
a) being arrogant, in order to get into a large and prosperous state. The North says that Calhoun believes that if there is not a strong, powerful and wealthy South and the South does not support slavery then the new constitution and constitution for the United States will not help the people. Calhoun says that when the people vote for a war they are going to look for a strong South and there is no chance they will support slavery. This is really the type of argument the North uses on behalf of secession when it claims to have the power to decide the fate of all of South. Calhoun says that Calhoun is the one who will never agree with any of the decisions on secession to give the same rights and obligations to the People as John C. Calhoun, John C. Calhoun. To do this, his name changed a bit with the removal of his “No” sign before he was removed because he said “You are a man of God, you believe right, are a friend of the people.” Calhoun had to be removed because in 1853 a state of Texas joined the Confederacy. When Calhoun went to this large scale effort to organize workers in Texas, I was impressed by the kind of people he had. Calhoun was so great in that field though his politics were quite different from John C. Calhoun’s. After many years of working for an organization similar to a local chapter of the American Union he was elected to the state legislature in 1855 and served as a Republican legislator for nine years. The California representative in the state senate until 1853 was the man who brought the “Cal-Joke” out of it. I also got to see some amazing work from Calhoun on the way to becoming the Secretary of War after going to the front lines to fight the Confederates. Calhoun was one of the first people to ask the Governor for help after his arrest and then the Governor sent him to California where he was the only one willing to help. Calhoun was arrested and tried because of the “Cal-Jokes” he did. Calhoun was arrested for his attitude. Calhoun was convicted on numerous occasions and sentenced after his arrest. He was sentenced to two years in prison and five years of hard labor after he was sent back to the Union. He was on trial for the same thing by the Supreme Court. However he was eventually convicted of two treason charges in California and sentenced to 10 years hard labor. He was eventually sent to Germany where he was the only one allowed out to the Army. However when the Americans were attacked Calhoun was on trial for the crime. Calhoun was acquitted, not long after because the Germans did not believe in slavery and Calhoun was arrested and incarcerated for one year out of his 13 months. Calhoun was then shot twice in the back while being transported to Lincoln where he died there.
The last “Calhoun” to come out is Edward Scott. Edward Scott was not a slave in America. He did not come out of his cell with the right to vote on the Constitution because it was already tied to the will of the States. Scott didn’t want the people to vote against the Constitution because slavery already existed in a state by that time. He was also not a member of the Federal Railroad, not because he thought about why the people should vote for the Constitution for reasons he doesn’t. Edward Scott told his grandfather’s grandfather that slavery is a problem that is only growing. The next Calhoun is John Calhoun, who is also a Confederate. In a letter to this effect Andrew Jackson wrote: “I have come to that cause to show that the cause of secession must be understood in two ways. First, by a national resolution. Secondly… To declare a national military and a