where in the U.S. Constitution did those who favored abolition of slavery make compromises?

Answer 1

A couple of notes first:

a) 'Slaves' are nowhere mentioned by name in the Constitution. It very carefully avoids the term. We may think this is because they just didn't want to 'admit the truth'. But perhaps it was more that at that time almost ALL agreed slavery was not a good thing, and that they were accommodating it in the short term, with the hope and expectation that it would soon die out. In fact, even those who believed people could be treated as property, ALSO regarded them, in at least some respects, as persons.

b) Allowing slavery was NOT a compromise. The movement was growing to gradually abolish slavery in individual states (most of the Northern states had done so by this time), as well as to keep it out of the territories. (Congress, under the Articles of Confederation, was in New York passing the Northwest Ordinance at the same time as the Constitution was being drawn up in Philadelphia. This legislation provided that the Northwest Territories be organized into states WITHOUT slavery.) But there was NO demand of a 'national ban'. Again, the expectation was that it would gradually end everywhere.

There are THREE places where ways in which the Constitution accommodated slavery.

(The specific locations are listed & quoted at the end of each section below.)


1. The "three-fifths" compromise
The lower house of the new legislature (our 'House of Representatives') was to be apportioned by population, so the Southern states, where most of the slaves were, wanted to count ALL of them in order to get the increased representation. (This number could also be used to assess the taxes due from the state to the federal government, but they were willing to pay them to get this benefit.) The Northern states did NOT want to count the slaves. The compromise reached was that 3/5 of the number of slaves would be added to the census of free people.

Since the number of electors for President was based on the total number the state had in Congress, the slave states also gained additional say in Presidential elections.

(This clause first came into play with the election of Thomas Jefferson in 1800. Without the additional Southern electors the compromise provided for, Adams would have won. Hence Timothy Pickering, a fierce Federalist opponent of slavery from Massachusetts, dubbed Jefferson "the ***** President".)

NOTE: the popular notion that the Constitution regarded slaves as "only 3/5 human" is UTTERLY false. Observe that it was the SLAVE-holding states that wished to include all of them in the census, and those most OPPOSED to slavery who did not want to count them at all. It was an issue of POLITICAL POWER.

Text: "Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several states which may be included within this union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons." (Article I, Section 2)

(Art,1, Sec. 9 includes the tax provision -- "No capitation, or other direct, tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken.")



2. The North wanted to immediately end the slave trade. But they compromised, setting a date before which Congress could not prohibit the trade. (At the earliest date allowed Congress promptly DID so-- ending the legal trade in 1808. Note that all the states but Georgia had by 1787 at least limited if not prohibited the importation of slaves.)

Text: "The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person"
(Art. I, Sec. 9)

3. (Often forgotten) The South also asked for, and received, assurances that it would be supported in efforts to retrieve fugitive slaves. This provision actually originated in the Northwest Ordinances -- a provision the North had made to gain Southern support in assuring that the Northwest Territory would remain free. (This became an increasing sore point, as Northern states in the years before the Civil War not only refused to actively assist, but passed "personal liberty laws". This protected free blacks from being kidnapped by bount hunters, but also made it extremely difficult for a Southern slave owner to recover a slave.)

Text: "No person held to service or labor in one state, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due."
(Art. IV, Sec. 2)


http://www.crf-usa.org/lessons/slavery_const.htm
http://www.heritage.org/Research/AmericanFoundingandHistory/wp01.cfm

Text of Constitution:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=105_cong_documents&docid=f:sd011.105

Answer 2

1. Slaves would be counted on a 60% ratio, thus NOT rewarding the South for having slaves. They would have to pay taxes on 60% of their slaves but also get to count 60% of them in Congress.

2. The slave trade was to come to an official end (importing) by 1808. It was thought that by that time the demand for slaves would have virtually died out. Of course they never forsaw the invention of the cotton engine (or "gin" for short) only five years later.