Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky: Report of the Committee of ThirteenDelivered in the Senate, May 8th 1850.with a response from Senator James Mason of Virginia.

Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky: Report of the Committee of Thirteen

Delivered in the Senate, May 8th 1850.

with a response from Senator James Mason of Virginia.

United States Senate, The Congressional Globe, the Slavery Question, Henry Clay, James Murray Mason

On January 29th, 1850, Henry Clay rose to introduce a series of measures intended to resolve the divisive “slavery question” once and for all. A series of debates would ensue over the rest of the year over the resolutions, making the Compromise of 1850 the central focus of the 31st Congress. A committee of 13 was formed to deliberate on the resolutions and present their findings to the rest of the Senate. Henry Clay read the report of this committee to Senate on May 8th, 1850. At every turn, Mason stood opposed to the "Compromise Measures" as a whole, taking issue with any effort to bar Slavery from the western territories, bring in more free states into the Union, or to ban slavery in any location (such as the District of Columbia,) citing concerns of fugitive slaves from Virginia being given extra incentive to flee to the North, placing even greater financial burden on his slaveholding constituents. On both January 29th and on May 8th, Mason was recorded as speaking up in opposition after Senator Clay's remarks.

Henry Clay (1777-1852)

James Murray Mason (1798-1871)

John C. Rives (1795-1864)

The Congressional Globe

University of North Texas Digital Library

8, May, 1850

Santiago Jauregui

Item not held in Copyright, Public Domain

Digitized Book

English

Transcribed Speech