Chapter 10 Section 4
The System Fails
Free Soilers
• These people worked to
end slavery in the
territories
– Came to Kansas
• Pro slavery did as well
What did free soilers hope to
accomplish in Kansas?
• To make sure Kansas
How did the free soilers plan to
accomplish their goals in Kansas?
• By settling the territory
Bleeding Kansas
• Pro slavery supporters
looted abolitionist
newspaper offices and
homes
On the afternoon of May 22, 1856, Preston Smith Brooks (a
Democratic Congressman from South Carolina) physically
attacked Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts in the
Senate chambers, hitting him on the head with his thick cane.
Sumner was blinded by his own blood, and staggered away
until he collapsed, lapsing into unconsciousness. Brooks
continued to beat Sumner until he broke his cane. Several
other senators attempted to help Sumner, but were blocked
by Rep. Laurence Keitt, who was holding a pistol and shouting
"Let them be!" This was in retaliation for insulting language
Sumner used against Brooks's relative in a speech Sumner
made that denounced Southerners for proslavery violence in
Kansas. Sumner was beaten severely and did not return to his
Senate desk for three years as a result of his injuries to the
head and neck area; he became regarded as an antislavery
martyr.
Explain how the events that occurred in Kansas and in
Congress in 1856 support the message of the section’s
title: “The System Fails.”
• The divisions between
political parties and
regions made the
nation unable to find a
compromise over
slavery that would last
Dred Scott v Sanford
• Dred Scott (a slave)
• Living in Missouri
• Filed a suit against his
owner
What was the legal impact of Dred Scott v.
Sanford on the issue of slavery in the
territories?
• Slaves could not sue in
court because they
were not citizens
Lincoln Douglas Debates
• A series of 7 debates
between Abraham
Lincoln and Stephen
Douglas on the issue of
The difference between Lincoln’s and
Douglas’s views on slavery
• Lincoln believed slavery
was wrong
• Believed slavery was a
moral issue
• Douglas was more
tolerant of slavery
Arsenal
• A place where weapons
are made or stored
• John Brown raided the
arsenal at Harper’s
Ferry, Virginia
What do you believe was the greatest
impact of John Brown’s raid?
• The raid deepened the
division between the
North and South