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The
Compromise of 1850 attempted to resolve the debate over extending
slavery into the newly acquired western territories. Under the terms
of the compromise, Congress admitted California as a free state, enacted
the Fugitive Slave Law, and left slavery's status in the new territories
to the discretion of the inhabitants. Henry Clay of Kentucky, as this
engraving depicts, introduced the initial terms of the Compromise
of 1850 in the U. S. Senate, provoking perhaps the greatest oratorical
debate in congressional history. To read a letter about the debates in Congress over the Compromise, read a letter from Senator James Shields about the Compromise Bill. |
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Henry
Clay Addressing the Senate,
engraving by John M. Butler and Alfred Long, 1854 Click image to enlarge. Copyright 2002 The Chicago Historical Society |
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