23, 1850; Charles M. Conrad, Louisiana, August 15, 1850. Secretary of the Navy, William B. Preston, Virginia, March 8, 1849); William A. Graham, North Carolina, July 22, 1850; J. P. Kennedy, Maryland, July 22, 1852. Secretary of the Interior, Thomas H. Ewing, Ohio, March 8, 1849; A. H. H. Stuart, Virginia, September 12, 1850. Attorney-General, Reverdy Johnson, Maryland, March 8, 1849; John J. Crittenden, Kentucky, July 22, 1850. Postmaster-General, Jacob Collamer, Vermont, March 8, 1849; Nathan K. Hall, New York, July 23, 1850; S. D. Hubbard, Connecticut, August 31, 1852.
The course of American political history from the beginning of this administration down to the Civil War is marked by a gradual disintegration of the old Whig Party (q.v.). the increase in importance of the free-soil movement, culminating in the formation of the Republican Party, and the development of the Democratic Party into an organization whose foremost object, in so far as it was under the control of the Southern wing, was the maintenance of slavery and the perpetuation of the political power in the slave States. The increase of territory out of which new States might be created made the South anxious to prevent these new States from inhibiting slavery, as would probably be done in some of them, especially in California, if the question were left to the inhabitants. The contest began actively in 1846, while the acquisition of the land in question was still doubtful. In that year David Wilmot, a Representative from Pennsylvania, brought forward a resolution providing that slavery should be excluded from all territories that might be acquired from Mexico. This, commonly called the ‘Wilmot Proviso,’ was carried in the House of Representatives, but was defeated in the Senate. (See Wilmot Proviso.) So fierce did the strife become that many of the most thoughtful statesmen began to fear secession or civil war. In this crisis Clay, now a man of seventy-two and in broken health, came forward in 1850 as a peacemaker. Like Webster, who now vigorously supported him, Clay had always held a moderate position between the two extreme parties in the slavery controversy. His proposal was that no legislation concerning slavery in California, about to be admitted as a State, and in the new Territories should be enacted by Congress. He also proposed that the slave trade should be abolished in the District of Columbia, but that a stricter law for the rendition of fugitive slaves should be enacted. In September, 1850, Clay's scheme, with important changes, was put into effect by Congress by the enactment of the so-called ‘Compromise Measures of 1850.’ The passage, however, of the new Fugitive Slave Law excited at the North feelings of repugnance and disgust; and several of the State Legislatures even passed laws, commonly known as ‘Personal Liberty Laws,’ intended especially for the protection of negroes. (See Compromise Measures of 1850; Fugitive Slave Law.) Such incidents as the rescue of the negro named ‘Jerry’ at Syracuse, N. Y., and the increased activity of the ‘Underground Railroad’ (q.v.) emphasized the difficulty of the situation and embittered the feelings of the South.
President Taylor died on July 9, 1850. His successor, Millard Fillmore, strictly carried out the policy of his party. The Compromise Measures were approved by the new President and their final adoption caused a temporary lull in the contest over the question of slavery.
During this administration was concluded (April 19, 1850) the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty (q.v.), respecting an interoceanic canal.
In June, 1852, the two great parties made their Presidential nominations. The candidates of the Democracy were Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, and William R. King, of Alabama; the Whigs nominated General Winfield Scott, of Virginia, and William A. Graham, of North Carolina. Each of the leading parties adopted a platform which recognized the ‘finality’ of the Compromise of 1850. In August the Free-Soil Party nominated John P. Hale, of New Hampshire, and George W. Julian, of Indiana. The election resulted in the success of the Democratic ticket, which received 254 electoral votes, against 42 cast for the Whig nominees. The years of this administration were marked by the deaths of three of the most influential political leaders, Calhoun (March 31, 1850), Clay (June 29, 1850), and Webster (October 23, 1852).
XVII. Administration of Franklin Pierce (1853-57). Cabinet.—Secretary of State, William L. Marcy, New York, March 7, 1853. Secretary of the Treasury, James Guthrie, Kentucky, March 7, 1853. Secretary of War, Jefferson Davis, Mississippi, March 7, 1853. Secretary of the Navy, James C. Dobbin, North Carolina, March 7, 1853. Secretary of the Interior, Robert McClelland, Michigan, March 7, 1853; Jacob Thompson, Mississippi, March 6, 1856. Attorney-General, Caleb Cushing, Massachusetts, March 7, 1853. Postmaster-General, James Campbell, Pennsylvania, March 7, 1853.
In spite of the ‘finality’ planks in the Presidential campaign, the question of slavery soon came once more to the front. The leader in reviving the struggle was Stephen A. Douglas (q.v.) , by whom, in January, 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Bill was introduced into Congress. This divided the territory previously known as Nebraska into two Territories, one between parallels 37° and 40° to be called Kansas and the other between 40° and 43° to be called Nebraska. In both of these Territories, by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, slavery was prohibited; but the bill now introduced was framed upon the theory that the Missouri Compromise had been repealed by the Compromise of 1850, in spirit at least, and accordingly in the bill it was left to the people of each new Territory to determine whether or not slavery should be tolerated on its soil. The Senate promptly passed this bill, and two months later it was passed by the House. (See Kansas-Nebraska Bill; Popular Sovereignty.) This led to the final disruption of the old Whig Party. A new party, based on opposition to slavery, now arose in the North, whose members at first generally styled themselves ‘Anti-Nebraska Men,’ and which soon developed into the Republican Party (q.v.). It was composed of men opposed to the extension of slavery without regard to former party affiliations—Whigs, Democrats, Know-Nothings, and Free-Soilers. The bulk of the Southern Whigs for the time being became Know-Nothings. The so-called American Party, or Know-Nothings, who about this time began to exercise great influence, demanded especially more stringent naturalization laws and the election to high office of none but native-born citizens.
