lution by a mere
majority vote, and thus Van Buren, who had a majority of the delegates
instructed to vote for him, was deprived of the leadership of the party.
The Walker slogan, "All of Texas, all of Oregon," was adopted by the
convention, and James K. Polk, formerly Speaker of the House of
Representatives, was nominated for the Presidency. Walker's
brother-in-law, George M. Dallas, a Pennsylvania protectionist, was
nominated for the Vice-Presidency. It was but a few days before the
Northwestern men indicated the trend of events by giving every assurance
of their support and adding to the campaign cry of Walker the
"fifty-four-forty-or-fight" slogan which was heard on every stump from
June till November.

Van Buren was humiliated and eliminated from the counsels of the party;
Clay laughed at his "dark-horse" competitor, of whom he affected never
to have heard; Calhoun, the legitimate beneficiary of the Texas
propaganda, joined Walker with heart and soul and aided greatly in the
management of the campaign. A new Democratic regime--the South and West
cooeperating--had been founded. This second coalition aimed at Clay and
the East resembled very strikingly that of 1828. And new issues had been
injected into the national discussion. A rapid extension of the national
domain to the Rio Grande, to the Pacific, and to 54 deg. 40' of north
latitude in the Far Northwest was opposed to Clay's well-worn program of
a protective tariff, national bank, and internal improvements.

Meanwhile Calhoun and Tyler completed their treaty with Texas and
submitted it to the Senate, where it was held in suspense until after
the meeting of the conventions. Tyler, after some hesitation, gave his
support to Polk and Dallas. Calhoun suppressed uprisings against the new
leadership in South Carolina, where strong doubt prevailed as to the
purposes of Walker and Dallas with reference to the tariff. The old
statesman, isolated though he was, thought that if the South and West
could be held together the future would be secure. He took pleasure in
the belief that "this is the end of Clay," who had so long troubled the
national waters, while the politicians of the new coalition assured him
that he would succeed Polk in 1848. Webster said little during the
campaign; New England was divided by the promises of a great commercial
expansion and the annexation of Oregon. The election of Polk and Dallas
justified the bold moves of the Baltimore Convention. The