With the division between the south and the north on the issue of slavery, the fugitive slave act was passed in 1850. According to the act, if slaves ran away and caught, they were to be returned to their masters. This act was one of the most controversial because people who supported the freedom of the slaves did not embrace this law. Northerners did not obey this act despite the harsh terms according to the fugitive act.
According to the act, a northerner who refused to help in the capture of slaves was jailed in addition to the one
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