LAD #13: John C. Calhoun's Speech

A portrait of John C. Calhoun, author of The Clay Compromise Measures

Calhoun had believed that the issue of slavery would disunite the nation, but no one had taken any action until a point was reached where the union was in danger. He asks, how can the union be preserved? To answer this, we must know: what is it that is endangering the union? He believed that it was the discontent of the southern states, caused by the slave question and the dominance of the North in the government. The anticipated addition of more states to the North would give them even more senators and power in the government, but none were predicted to be added in the South. This would further destroy the equilibrium between the two halves of the country. The North also tried to take gained territory for itself, leaving none for the South, and took a greater portion of revenue from tariffs. If something isn't done to ease tensions between the North and South, the union will break in two. The only way to save it is to satisfy the South so they wouldn't decide to secede. The North must help in this by conceding territory, easing the agitation surrounding the slavery question, and restore political equilibrium. The South couldn't accomplish this by itself.