From the beginning of the white's history in America, the issue of bondage and slavery has been the soul of conflict. Frederick Douglass put it well when he said that slavery was the matter that gave birth to all quarrels between parties and sections. Economically, religiously and politically, slavery was one of the leading sources of argument.

Simply put, much of American commerce and quarrels from it was centered on cotton and thus slavery. In the 1800's more than half of the world's cotton was supplied by the southern states. Visiting Englishman Basil Hall noted on a trip through cotton country that talk of King Cotton never ceased (Document A). Hall witnessed discussions of current price and even one person who got slightly angry when hearing that the price was too low. The significance of such a statement demonstrates how so many people's well-being was dependent on cotton...