... rungs on this ladder. 1) The Constitution itself with its 3/5ths compromise never directly addressed the issue of slavery but more or less allowed its existence on the grounds that it compromised around the problem yet didn't condemn it. 2) Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin increased the South's dependence on slavery considerably, due to the fact that now, the cotton could be processed much faster. Therefore more slave labor was needed. 3) The Missouri Compromise, although intended as a permanent solution, actually etched the line more deeply into southern psyches than anywhere else, as there ended up being far more territory (more states = more Representatives + more Senators = more Votes). Although accepted as a Union-saving compromise, southern bitterness increased. 4) The Tariff Act of 1828 was meant to encourage the South to buy imported products from the Northern States instead of from abroad, but either way, the South ended up paying more for ...

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