Unit 12 – Sinews of Democracy, 1876-1896
I. Life after Reconstruction
A. When did Reconstruction end?
- 1877 after the election of President Hayes
B. What issues?
- The West and Reform
- Big Business and Reform
- Political Corruption and Reform
- Growth of Large Cities and Reform
II. President Hayes (His Fraudulency)
A. What were the actions of Hayes as President?
1. Pulled US troops out of South Carolina and demilitarized the South
2. Made an Executive Order to stop elected politicians from taking part in the management of political organizations in the hopes of limiting and narrowing patronage and the spoils system within political parties.
3. Vetoed the Bland Allison Act of 1878 but Congress over rid his veto. The Bland Allison Act would allow the US Government to mint a minimum of 4 million in silver per month on a 16 to 1 ratio of silver to gold. Hayes wanted to remain on the gold standard and did not want inflation nor subsidize silver at taxpayers’ expense.
4.Sent US troops to protect US property in the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. Hayes did not interfere in the negotiations but felt he needed to protect America property as bloodshed erupted from Baltimore to Pittsburg, and in Ohio and New York.
5.Vetoed a Chinese labor restriction bill which angered many laborers
B. How to summarize Hayes?
- The residue effect of the controversy over the election of 1876 greatly limited him but he did attain respect and did make an impact much more than anyone thought. The main thing people were thankful for in Hayes was that he avoided GRANTISMS.
III. Controlling the SPOILS BEAST
A. What was the Spoils System?
B. What happened within the Republican Party as a result of the Spoils System?
- Two factions within the Republican Party emerged. The Stalwarts led by Roscoe “Boss” Conkling, a New York Senator, wanted to elect Grant for a 3rd term in the election of 1880 to get spoils. The Half Breedsled by James Blaine seeking reform of spoils but likely reform was all talk based on previous actions of Blaine and the Half Breeds.
C. What happened in the Presidential election of 1880?
- The Republicans nominated compromise candidate Garfield, a dark horse candidate, to appease Stalwarts and Half Breeds while the Democrats nominated Hancock. Garfield won easily in the Electoral College vote. Garfield appointed Arthur, a STALWART, as his Vice President and appointed Blaine, a HALF BREED, as his Sec. of State.
D. What happened to Garfield?
- Garfield refused to let Conkling, a Stalwart, dictate to him who should get spoils. A disgruntled Stalwart seeking a spoils job named Charles Guiteau shot Garfield and after he shot the President he said, “I am Stalwart and Arthur is President now.” The Stalwarts were blamed for creating an environment that produced a Guiteau.
E. What were the actions of Arthur as President?
1.Surprising character as he vetoed “pork barrel” projects and prosecuted fraud
2.Supported the Pendleton Civil Service Act 1883 which forced 10% of civil service workers to take a test and the job would be given to the highest scorer. Arthur viewed patronage or spoils as legitimate as long as it was done legally.
3.Reduced the tariff in 1883
4.Supported the Chinese Exclusion Act 1883 which forbid Chinese immigrants into US
5. Did not seek another term because of Bright’s disease
IV. Material Abundance, Social “Reform”
A. What was the growth pace of industrial production and business enterprise after the Civil War?
- Rapid acceleration which brought new stresses as America gradually transformed from farming to industry.
B. What two groups emerged in this time period calling for REFORM?
1. Intellectual Reformers
2. Agrarian Reformers
(They had little in common but both saw the US Government as the solution. The US Govt. could
be a moral evangelist and a playground monitor at the same time so they allied together more
and more.)
C. What did the Reformers focus on?
1.Regulation of big business (the hated trusts)
2.Vices of the big cities especially in immigrant areas
3.Public safety stressing prevention of fire and disease
D. What did the Reformers use within democracy to achieve some of their reforms?
- Initiatives = people can propose laws
- Referendums = people can vote on laws
- Recalls = people can vote to remove politicians and judges
(America was dramatically transforming after the Civil War. Cities were greatly increasing, immigration was skyrocketing, farmer movements were growing, big business and industry were rapidly accelerating, labor and unions were increasing, and reformers were growing. These along with the west and the beginning and ending of Reconstruction created a turbulent time period after the Civil War, post Antebellum.)
V. Titans of Industry
A. Who were the rich industrial Titans, the so called Robber Barons?
1.Andrew Carnegie (born in 1835) = steel (pgs 429-32)
2.John D. Rockefeller (born in 1839) = oil (pgs 432-33)
3.J.P. Morgan (born in 1837) = banking (pgs 433-34)
4. Other Titans of Industry: (pgs 434-35)
- James Duke = tobacco
- Heinz = pickles, etc…
- Pillsbury = flour
- Campbell = soup
- Swift = meat packing
- Fiske
- Gould
- Vanderbilt = steamboats and railroads
B. What was America’s status as an industrial power?
- surpassed both Britain and France in production, proficiency, and innovation
VI. Greed and Jealousy in the Gilded Age
A. Was there a great disparity of wealth between the lower and middle classes with the upper class?
(pgs 435-36)
B. What two groups had their frustrations and jealousy boiling over?
- Farmers and Laborers
C. Were there complaints legitimate according to historical statistics?
- Look at some figures on page 437
- No matter what the stats supported the perceptions of farmers and laborers of the time
was that the rich were getting richer and something needed to be done. Their perception of
reality shaped their worldview.
D. Who were some social critics addressing the inequities and calling for reform?
1.Henry George 1879 = Progress and Poverty, coined term unearned income to describe profits from land. He called for a 100% tax on land sales to erase the inequalities.
2.Edward Bellamy 1888 = Looking Backward, romanticized about a man who fell asleep in 1887 and woke up a 100 years later to a socialist utopia. Government would have control of resources and their distribution.
3.Henry Lloyd 1894 = Wealth Against the Commonwealth, claimed that large business consolidations (trusts) constituted an anti-democratic force that should be smashed by the Federal Government.
4.Frank Baum = The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, (a children’s book) embraced the themes of downtrodden labor and insufficient money supply.
5.Thorstein Veblen 1899 = Theory of the Leisure Class, claimed that the rich had a compulsion toward “conspicuous consumption” or the need to consume to rub it in.
E. How did others view the inequalities?
- Many concluded that at every class level there were inequalities with someone having
more or less than someone else which was the nature of America and capitalism. Envy was
normal and many saw the riches of others as evidence than anything was possible in
America.
- Regardless of what was or what was thought by others the farmers and laborers of the
times from their perceived reality felt alienated and searched for new forms of expression.
F. How did farmers, laborers, and critics of capitalism attack big business?
1. the practice of REBATES (discounts) given to frequent customers by railroads which led at times for some to be charged more for a shorter haul than another was charged for a longer haul. Example = Rockefeller’s Standard Oil Company.
2. The practice of TRUSTS where numerous companies in an industry would combine into one big company to reduce competition and create monopoly status in some cases.
3.The practice of VERTICAL INTEGRATION where a company would seek to control all phases of an industry from mining to manufacturing to marketing to sales. Example = Carnegie controlled approx. 25% of the steel industry.
4.The practice of HORIZONATAL INTEGRATION where a company would seek to control one phase of an industry. Example = Rockefeller controlled approx. 90% of all the oil refineries.
5.The practice of CUTTING PRICES to drive out competitors. Ida Tarbell in her book, History of the Standard Oil Company, criticized Rockefeller (Wreckafeller) for such.
6.The practice of POOLS to drive out competitors where by companies would collude to set prices low to control an entire market in the effort to force out competitors.
7.The practice of INTERLOCKING DIRECTORIES where one company would place their officers on the boards of other companies to control them. Example = J.P. Morgan
8.The practice of STOCKWATERING where by a company would inflate their assets just before selling it to another company or person to attain a price for more than what the company was worth.
9.The practice of BRIBERY and BULLYING of government officials. Common complaint was that the government at all levels was on the side of big business. Critics cited the subsidies given to Railroads as proof. Authors such as:
- R. Norris in his book, the Octopus, depicted big business extending itself into all facets of American life in effect controlling America
- D. Phillips in his book, Treason of the Senate, depicted big business as controlling the US Government
G. What did the US Government do to control Big Business?
1. Windom Committee 1874 concluded that the US Govt. should build its own RR’s to compete with private RR’s to keep prices down. (never done)
2.Cullow Committee 1886 concluded that RR’s were guilty of pools and creating trusts in restraint of trade and that immediate regulation was needed.
3.Interstate Commerce Act 1887 became the 1st red letter law where the US Govt. created a law to protect the public by regulating business. The Act stated there should not be discrimination in hauling prices, there should not be pools or trusts created in restraint of trade, and there would be a Interstate Commerce Commission to investigate wrongdoings. It was beginning but was a toothless act and actually used by Companies more to protect themselves under the 14th Amendment and to limit Unions.
4.Sherman Anti-Trust Act 1890 was another red letter law which outlawed trusts and monopolies that were restraining trade. It was hard to enforce because of the ambiguity of what was in restraint of trade and what was not. Also, it had no guidelines to determine between good or bad trusts. It too was toothless but again it was a step to curtail big business but also again was used by big business to protect themselves and limit unions
H. Who defended big business and capitalism and how?
1.W.G. Sumner in his book, What the Classes Owe to Each Other, read pages 445-46
2.Herbert Spencer in his creation of SOCIAL DARWINISM where he applied Darwin’s
natural selection and survival of the fittest in nature to society.
3.GOSPEL of WEALTH belief where by God has given wealth to some because they deserve it and can handle the responsibility of wealth while others could not. Carnegie and Rockefeller gave millions and millions of fortunes away to charity, community and universities.
4.Reverend Conwell in his sermon, ACRES of DIAMONDS, read handout
5. Adam Smith in his book, WEALTH of NATIONS
6.Horatio Alger in his rags to riches stories of Americans who practiced honesty, integrity, and perseverance.
7.A large segment of the American people supported it as farmers and industrial laborers made up a small percentage of the overall population.
VII.“Your Masters Sent Out Their Bloodhounds” (laborers and unions)
A. What was the status of Unions in America?
- Unions were declared to be illegal conspiracies up until 1842 when the Massachusetts
Supreme Court ruled that unions were legal in the Commonwealth v. Hunt case. After the case however states continued to deem unions illegal. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890 was then used to stop unions despite the act being created to bust up trusts and monopolies
B. What the percentage of laborers who joined unions by 1900 and why was it so low?
- 3%, satisfaction with high wages, employer resistance, unfamiliarity with mass movements, and pride in individual independence but discontent still existed over wages ($) and hours which did lead to interest in labor organizations as time moved forward.
C. How did Employers (the owners) dissuade laborers from joining unions?
- Yellow Dog Contracts = a contract that workers would sign saying they would not join a union
- Blacklisted = name put on a do not hire list if you joined a Union
- Immigrant scabs = hired immigrants to take the place of workers who went on strike
- Company Unions = established Unions that were controlled by the Company to give appearance of a workers union
- Government = persuaded government to anti-union
- Propaganda = used to make labor unions look like socialistic anti American organizations
D. What were some of the major labor unions?
1.National Labor Union 1866 = the 1st national union that had skilled and unskilled members. The leader was W. Sylvis and it had moderate success achieving 8 hour workdays for government employees but failed after 6 years mainly because it was too political involved in the Greenback Labor Party.
2. Knights of Labor Union 1869 = a national union with the theme of “one big union” with skilled and unskilled workers, farmers, blacks but no Chinese. The leader was T. Powderly and they were a somewhat secret group because of the legal status of unions and the bad perception many people had on unions. By 1886 it had 700,000 as members with success in a few RR strikes. In 1886 however it began to decline as a result of the Haymarket Square Riot in Chicago in 1886. The violence of the Union did not help it but the major reason for its failure was its base was too broad with skilled and unskilled workers and farmers.
3.American Federation of Labor (AFL) 1886 = a national union with only skilled workers as members. The leader was Samuel Gompers who focused on pragmatics and was not a socialist who steered away from violence and politics. It focused mainly on wages and hours. It was very disciplined and used strikes, pickets, and boycotts infrequently and as a last resort because they hurt the laborers and union not just the employer. It started the closed shop where a company could only hire union members and it expanded its membership by allowing new skilled industries to join.
E. What were some of the major strikes by unions?
1.Great Railroad Strike, 1877 = the four largest RR Companies including the B&O RR cut wages by 10% and raised rent at the same time. Workers went on strike and bloodshed erupted between strikers and strike breakers and state militia from Baltimore to Pittsburgh, and in Ohio and NY. Hayes sent in troops to protect US property but otherwise instructed the troops not to interfere. The violence subsided in midsummer 1877.
2.Homestead Steel Strike, 1892 = Carnegie’s steel workers while he was away in Europe went on strike. His President Henry Frick tried to sneak in the Pinkertons to reopen the factory and break the strike. Bloodshed erupted and after many deaths and many months the factory re-opened with the help of US Govt. troops.
3.Pullman Palace Car Strike, 1894 = the American Railway Union led by Eugene Debs went on strike because wages were cut. The US Govt. issued an injunction which was a government order to stop the strike because the strike was restraining trade by not allowing the US Post Office to distribute mail. Debs continued the strike and was put in jail where he became an ardent socialist. Governor Altgeld told President Cleveland there was not a major problem but Cleveland sent US troops to stop the strike.
VIII. Raising Less Corn, and More Hell
A. What was the status of farmers?
(pgs. 440-443)
B. What were the major farming organizations? (see Unit 11 notes)
1.The Grange and the Munn v. Illinois case
2. The Farmers Alliance
- Mary Lend Lease = “Raise less corn and more hell”
- Jerry “sockless” Simpson
- Charles Macune = President who advocated for government loans supported
by the issuing of greenbacks thus creating inflation.
- William “Coin” Harvey = conspiracy of world bankers
- Ben “pitchfork” Tillman
- 44 Congressmen and 4 Governors
3. The Populists merger
C. What did farmers see as the means to achieving success for themselves?
- Farmers saw cheap money in the form of silver or greenbacks as the solution to their problems and many pamphlets, books, and speeches drilled this into farmers’ thoughts. Deflation in the late 19th Century did set in and prices were decreasing which made them all the more seek cheap money?
D. How did the farmers seek cheap money?
- Called Govt. refusal to coin silver the Crime of 73 and demand for the 16 to 1 ratio of silver
to gold
- Attacked the Resumption Act of 1875 and the Resumption Day of 1879
- Supported the Bland-Allison Act of 1879 but still wanted more silver coined
E. What was the coining of silver doing to the US economy?