Compromise of 1850 Quizzes
Think you’ve got your head wrapped around Compromise of 1850? Put your knowledge to
the test. Good luck — the Stickman is counting on you!
Q. What made the Fugitive Slave Act passed in the Compromise of 1850 more aggressive than the previous version of the law?
It forced participation from all citizens, and paid commissioners regardless of whether the person they brought in was actually a runaway slave.
The previous law didn't have any means of actually recapturing slaves, it just said escaping was illegal.
It required a trial by jury for runaway slaves, which drew out the entire process.
It included the option of "trial by combat," but you couldn't pick someone else to fight for you like in the olden days.
Q. What exactly was banned in Washington D.C. as part of the Compromise of 1850?
The use of slaves
Selling or trading slaves in city limits
Discussions of slavery in Congress
Selfie sticks
Q. What was Congress' final decision about whether or not there would be slavery in Utah and New Mexico?
The states themselves would decide as they wrote their own constitutions
Slavery had to be allowed, although it wasn't required.
Slavery was not allowed in territories where it did not already exist.
They determined the whole question to be a paradox that couldn't be answered with risking a serious rupture in the space-time continuum.
Q. What did Texas receive as part of the Compromise of 1850 that none of the other states in question got?
A large sum of money as compensation.
A larger amount of land than they had previously possessed.
A new judicial system.
A snazzy new state mascot (go Wombats!)
Q. What action had to be taken in Utah and New Mexico before their representation in Congress could be fully determined?
A census
The first meeting of their state legislatures
Equal distribution of land among the residents
A mixer so everyone could get to know each other