[00:08.52]In 1850,the congress of the United States debated
[00:18.44]an importtan compromise proposal.
[00:22.78]The compromise dealt mostly with the national dispute over slavery.
[00:29.99]The dispute threatened to split the northern
[00:35.63]and southern parts of the country.There was a danger of war.
[00:41.56]Many leaders in the north and south supported the compromise.
[00:48.90]But President Zachary Taylor did not.
[00:54.15]Taylor did not think there was a crisis.
[01:00.87]He did not belive the dispute over slavery was as serious as others did
[01:08.81]He had his own plan to settle one part of the dispute.
[01:17.14]He would make the new territory of California a free state.
[01:23.77]Slavery there would be banned.
[01:28.92]Taylor's plan did not,however,settle other parts of the dispute.
[01:35.69]It said nothing about laws on escaped slaves.
[01:41.83]It said nothing about slavery in the nation's capital
[01:47.18]the District of Columbia.
[01:50.52]It said nothing about the border dispute between Texas and New Mexico.
[01:58.26]The congressional compromise was an attempt to settle all these problems
[02:06.30]Senator Henry Clay of Kentucky,who had written the compromise
[02:14.14]questioned the president's limited proposal.
[02:18.58]Clay said:"Now what is the plan of the President?
[02:26.31]Here are five problems...five wounds that are bleeding
[02:33.23]and threatening the life of the republic .
[02:37.28]What is the President's plan?
[02:41.12]Is it to heal all these wounds?
[02:46.37]No such thing.It is to heal one of the five and to leave the other four
[02:56.22]to bleed more than ever."
[03:00.85]While the debate continued in Washington,the situation in Texas
[03:08.79]and New Mexico got worse.
[03:12.34]Texas claimed a large part of New Mexico,
[03:17.77]including the capital,Santa Fe.
[03:22.79]Early in 1850,Texas sent a representative to Santa Fe to take control
[03:31.51]of the government.
[03:33.76]The United States military commander in New Mexico advised the people
[03:41.60]not to recognize the man.
[03:45.33]The governor of Texas was furious.
[03:50.69]He decided to send state soldiers to enforce Texas's claims in New Mexico
[03:59.83]He said if trouble broke out,the United States Government would be to blame
[04:08.79]President Taylor rejected Texas's claims.
[04:15.32]He told his secretary of war to send an order
[04:20.96]to the military commander in New Mexico.
[04:24.91]The commander was to use force to oppose any attempt
[04:31.67]by Texas to seize the territory.
[04:35.62]The secretary of war said he would not send such and order.
[04:43.17]He believed that if fighting began
[04:48.31]southerners would hurry to the aid of Texas.
[04:52.75]And that,he thought,might be the start of a southern struggle
[04:58.79]against the federal government.
[05:02.03]In a short time,the north and south would be at war.
[05:08.35]When the secretary of war refused to sign the order,
[05:14.49]President Taylor answered sharply."Then I will sign the order myself!"
[05:22.04]Taylor had been a general before becoming president.
[05:27.78]He said he would take command of the army himself to enforce the law.
[05:34.42]And he said he was willing to hang anyone who rebelled against the union
[05:42.15]President Taylor began writing a message to congress on the situation.
[05:50.77]He never finished it.
[05:54.61]On the afternoon of July 4,1850,Taylor attended
[06:01.82]an outdoor Independence Day ceremony.
[06:06.79]The ceremony was held at the place
[06:10.63]where a monument to America's first president,George Washington
[06:16.37]was being built.The day was very hot
[06:22.41]and Taylor stood for a long time in the burning sun.
[06:28.15]That night,he became sick with pains in his stomach.
[06:35.08]Doctors were called to the White House.
[06:39.70]But none of their treatments worked.
[06:43.44]Five days later,President Taylor died.
[06:49.26]Vice President Millard was sworn-in as president. |