The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 7, July 1903 - April, 1904 Page: 182
xvi, 340 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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182 Texas Historical Association Quarterly.
sections of the Union, but the new acquisitions again opened the
contest for sectional supremacy in the national legislature. Cali-
fornia had received a sudden and rapid immigration, attracted by
the discovery of gold, which forced the consideration of her admis-
sion into the Union, while the demands of Utah and New Mexico
for territorial governments revived the exciting question of the
right to introduce slavery into the public domain of the United
States.
The first session of the Thirty-first Congress faced these issues
and addressed itself to the difficult task of restoring quiet to the
disturbed country by means of pacific measures. This congress,
commencing its first session December 1, 1849, and closing it Sep-
tember 30, 1850, became memorable in the political history of the
government. It was especially noted for its array of talent, the
melancholy incidents that attended it, the important issues that
demanded settlement, the fervency of the debates, and the unusual
length of the session.
In the deliberations of this session the great American trium-
verate participated for the last time. The strenuous, uncompro-
mising defender of the rights reserved by the constitution to the
States, Mr. Calhoun, in his last argument, delivered March 4,
1850, said: "Looking back to the long course of forty years'
service here, I have the consolation to believe, that I have never
done one act which would weaken it [the Union]-that I have
done full justice to all sections. And if I have ever been exposed
to the imputation of a contrary motive, it is because I have been
willing to defend my section from unconstitutional encroach-
ments."' Enfeebled by long, wasting disease, he made his last
defense of the South, and less than one month afterwards, his
death was announced to the senate. Responding to the resolu-
tions introduced by Calhoun's colleague, from South Carolina, Clay
and Webster, with whom he had so often crossed swords in political
contest, paid eloquent tributes to the purity of his exalted patriot-
ism, his commanding talents, and the eminent virtues of his "unim-
peached honor and character." In July, the illustrious expounder
of the constitution, Daniel Webster, resigned his seat to become
secretary of state under Fillmore, never to return to the arena
'Cong. Globe, 31st Cong., 1st Sess., 484; Von Holst, Constitutional history
of the United States, II 496.
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Texas State Historical Association. The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association, Volume 7, July 1903 - April, 1904, periodical, 1904; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101030/m1/186/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.