Existing comment:
Presidential Proclamation: The institution of slavery in a democracy:
"it is hushed indeed for the moment. but this is a reprieve only, not a final sentence. a geographical line, coinciding with a marked principle, moral and political, once conceived and held up to the angry passions of men, will never be obliterated; and every new irritation will mark it deeper and deeper."
- -- Thomas Jefferson, April 22, 1820
To achieve an agreement among the states, the Founders did not fully address the issue of slavery in the Constitution but left it for future generations to resolve. As the country matured, the unresolved issue of slavery grew more contentious. The issue came to head when Missouri, which allowed slavery, applied for statehood in 1819. To maintain an equal number of free and slave states, Congress adopted legislation -- known as the Missouri Compromise -- that also admitted Maine, which had previously been part of Massachusetts, as a free state and prohibited slavery above the 36º 30 ́latitude in the Louisiana Territory. The Compromise allowed Congress to continue working and kept sectional disagreements at bay, at least temporarily.
President James Monroe signed, and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams certified, Presidential Proclamation 28 on August 10, 1821, officially announcing that Missouri had entered the Union. |