s. In 1820 he congratulated the
new South American republics on having abolished slavery, but the same
year the threats of the Southern states to destroy the Union led him to
advocate the "Missouri Compromise," which, while keeping slavery out of
all the rest of the territory acquired by the "Louisiana Purchase" north
of Missouri's southern boundary line, permitted it in that state. Then,
greeted with the title of "The Great Pacificator" as a reward for his
success, he retired temporarily to private life, with a larger stock of
popularity than he had ever had before. Although at various times he had
helped to strengthen the law for the recovery of fugitive slaves,
declining as secretary of state to aid Great Britain in the further
suppression of the slave trade, and demanding the return of fugitives
from Canada, yet he heartily supported the colonizing of the slaves in
Africa, because slavery was the "deepest stain upon the character of the
country," opposition to which could not be repressed except by "blowing
out the moral lights around," and "eradicating from the human soul the
light of reason and the law of liberty." When the slave power became
more aggressive, in and after the year 1831, Clay defended the right of
petition for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia, and
opposed Calhoun's bill forbidding the use of the mails to "abolition"
newspapers and documents. He was luke-warm toward recognizing the
independence of Texas, lest it should aid the increase of slave
territory, and generally favoured the freedom of speech and press as
regards the question of slavery; yet his various concessions and
compromises resulted, as he himself declared, in the abolitionists
denouncing him as a slaveholder, and the slaveholders as an
abolitionist. In 1839, only twelve months after opposing the pro-slavery
demands, he prepared an elaborate speech, in order "to set himself right
with the South," which, before its delivery, received pro-slavery
approval. While affirming that he was "no friend of slavery" he held
abolition and the abolitionists responsible for the hatred, strife,
disruption and carnage that menaced the nation. In response, Calhoun
extended to him a most hearty welcome, and assigned him to a place on
the bench of the penitents. Being a candidate for the presidency Clay
had to take the insult without wincing. It was in reference to this
speech that he made the oft-quoted remark that he "would rather be r