Which best summarizes the goal of the Compromise of 1850?

Which best summarizes the goal of the Compromise of 1850?

A. resolve the issue of whether slavery should be permitted in new territory

B. to help the South become more industrialized

C. to preserve the Union by appeasing both sides on the slavery issue

D. to keep the balance of free and slave states in Congress

Answer: to preserve the Union by appeasing both sides on the slavery issue

The compromise of 1850 was a step towards pacifying both the abolitionist and pro- slavery factions so as to prevent further sectional conflicts that posed threats on national unity. It sought to maintain equilibrium between slave state and Free State admissions into the Union without making absolute judgements on slavery that would wreck effort of compromise. Its true intention was to placate extremes on both sides, and not regarding the moral issues surrounding slavery. Although it addressed the issue of admitting slavery in newly acquired territories, what lay behind these series of congressional pacts centered much more in preserving an increasingly polarized country and heading towards disintegration because of such disagreements . Thus, choice C comes closer to reflecting the underlying thrust of forestalling secession via deliberate concocted agreements.