Henry Demarest Lloyd’sWealth against Commonwealth charged headlong into the Standard Oil Company. Thorstein Veblen’sTheory of the Leisure Class attacked the "predatory wealth" and "conspicuous" consumption of the new rich in the gilded age. Jacob A. Riis, a reporter for the New York Sun described the New York slums in How the Other Half Lives.
Muckrakers: investigative journalists and authors who were often the publicity agents for reforms; brought about the social evils and wanted to cleanse the democracy. Lincoln Steffens unmasked the corrupt alliance between big business and municipal government in "The Shame of the Cities." Others include: Ida Tarbell, "History of Standard Oil Company;" and David Phillips, "The Treason of the Senate."
Upton Sinclair appalled the public with his description of disgustingly unsanitary food products in The Jungle.
Theodore Roosevelt and Progressive Reforms:
Roosevelt was a "trustbuster." His real purpose was to prove that the government, not private business ruled the country. However, Taft "busted" more trusts than he did.
"Square Deal":
1. Control of corporations.
2. Consumer protection.
3. Conservation of natural resources
EARTH CONTROL:
Desert Land Act of 1877- Federal government sold arid land cheaply on the condition that the purchaser irrigates the thirsty soil within 3 years.
Forest Reserve Act of 1891- the president could set aside public forests as national parks and other reserves.
Carey Act of 1894- distribution of federal land to the states on the condition that it be irrigated and settled.
Newlands Act of 1902- Washington collected money from the sale of public lands in the western states and then use these funds for the development of irrigation projects.
ECONOMY:
Anti-trust Policy: Roosevelt attacked the Northern Securities Company, a railroad holding company organized by financial titan, J.P. Morgan, who sought to achieve a monopoly of the railroads. In the Northern Securities decision, the NSC had to be dissolved.
Panic of 1907: Resulted, in part, by the questionable bank speculations, a lack of flexible monetary and credit policies, and a conservative gold standard.
SOCIAL PROBLEMS:
Reformers secured enactment of safety and sanitation codes for industry, and protected the worker with workmen’s compensation laws. In Muller v. Oregon Supreme Court accepted the constitutionality of laws protecting women workers due to the harmful effects of factory labor on women’s weaker bodies. The Meat Inspection Act (1906) provided for the (1) enforcement of sanitary regulations in mea-packing plants and (2) the inspection of meat by federal inspectors before being offered for sale tot he public. The Pure Food and Drug Act (1906) (1) forbade the sale of harmful and impure foods and medicines and (2) required that foods and drugs be labeled truthfully.
POLITICS OF THE PERIOD:
Progressives waged war on monopoly, corruption, inefficiency and social welfare. They were middle-class men and women. Their goals included: use of state power to curb the trusts; and to stem Socialist threat by generally improving the common person’s conditions of life and labor.
Progressives favored:
initiative: voters could directly propose legislation themselves
referendum: place laws on the ballot for final approval of the people
recall: enabled voters to remove faithless elected officials
17th Amendment: direct election of US Senators
Early 1900s: supported women suffrage
State Leaders: Robert LaFollette of Wisconsin was the most militant of the Progressive Republican leaders; Hiram Johnson of California; and Charles Evan Hughes of New York
Elkins Act of 1903: heavy fines could be imposed both on the railroads that gave rebates and on the shippers that accepted them.
ELECTION OF 1904:
Roosevelt nominated by Republican party on a platform that wished to reform corporate monopolies and railroads, but not interfere with monetary policy or tariffs. The Democratic Party nominated Alton Parker on the platform that endorsed Roosevelt’s "trust-busting" and accepted the conservative gold standard as the basis for monetary policy. Roosevelt easily defeated Parker.
Hepburn Act of 1906: The Interstate Commerce Commission could set its own fair freight rates.
ELECTION OF 1908:
Roosevelt decided not to run; therefore, William Taft and James Sherman ran on a Republican platform calling for a continuation of anti-trust enforcement, environmental conservation, and a lower tariff policy to promote international trade. The Democrats (allied with the American Federation of Labor) nominated William Jennings Bryan on an anti-monopoly and low tariff platform. The Socialists nominated Eugene Debs. Taft easily won and the Republicans retained control of both houses of Congress.
BALLINGER-PINCHOT DISPUTE:
Gifford Pinchot, backed by Progressives, was the chief of the US Forest Reserve. He charged that Sec. of the Interior, Richard Ballinger, was giving away the nation’s natural resources to private corporate interests. It was found that Ballinger did nothing illegal but he did act against the government’s environment policies.
TAFT SPLITS REPUBLICAN PARTY
When Taft signed the Payne-Aldrich Bill, he betrayed his campaign promises of reducing tariffs and thus outraged the progressive wing of his party.
The "Bull Moose" Campaign of 1912
1. Jane Addams- nominated Roosvelt for presidency.
2. Roosevelt and Taft were bound to slit each other throats; by dividing
the Republicans vote, they virtually guarrenteed Democratic victory.
3. Herbert Croly- The Promise of American Life - Roosevelt used
his progressive theories. Continued condolidation of trust and labor
unions.
4. Roosevelt New Deal stood for woman suffrage, minimun wage laws and socialistic social insurance.
5. Wilson, New Freedom small enterprise, entrepreneurship, unregulated and unmonopolized markets.
6. Roosevelt was shot in Milwaukee.
Woodrow Wilson : A Minority President
1. Progessives rather than Wilson had won the campaign.
2. He sympatized with Confederacy.
3. Self-Determination for people of other countries.
4. Moving Orator
5. Believed Chief Executive should play the dynamic role.
6. Suffered a bad personality.
Wilson Tackles the Tariff.
1. Triple Wall of privilege: the tariff, the banks, and the trusts.
2. Underwood Tariff Bill - substantial reduction of rates.
a. Reduced Import Fees
b. Gradual Income Tax, modest levy on incomes over 3,000.
Wilson Battles the Bankers
1. Senator Aldrich - recommed a giant bank, 3rd bank of USA.
2. Louis Brnadeis - Other Peoples Money and How the Bankers Use it
3. Federal Reserve Act - Federal Reserve Board - issued paper money
Federal Reserve Notes - backed by commerical paper. (promissory notes)
4. Federal Trade Commision Act of 1914 - Allowed appointed commision to turn a searchlight on industries engaged in interstate commerce.
5. Clayton Anti-Trust of 1914 - Furthured Sherman. Benefits on labor.
Wilsonian Progressivism at High Tide
1. Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 - credit available to farmers at low rates of interest.
2. The Warehouse Act of 1916 - Authorized loans on the security of staple crops.
3. La Follette Seamens Act of 1915 - Decent treatment and a living wage on American merchant ships.
4. Workingmens Compsensation Act of 1916 - Granting assistance to federal civil service employees during periods of disability
5. Adamson Act of 1916 - eight hour day for all employees on trains in interstate commerce, with extra pay for overtime.
6. Louis D. Brandeis - first Jew to be called to the bench.
Foreign Policy
1. Repealed Panama Canal Tolls Act of 1912 , which had exempted American coastwise shipping from tolls.
2. Jones Act in 1916 - Granted Phillipines the boom of territorial status and promised independence as soon as a stable government could be established.
3. United States prohibited them from owning land.
4. Treaty with Haiti provided US supervision and police.
5. Wilson purhased from Denmark the Virgin Islands
Mexico
1. Mexico was rich (supported by US) but Mexicans were poor.
2. General Victoriano Huerta - migration of Mexicans to US. (Revolt)
3. Revolt began at the Atlantic seaport of Tampico- Tooks Americans captive but then apologized and returned them, in exchanged for 21 guns.
4. To seize the Mexican port of Vera Cruz.
5. ABC Powers - Argentina, Brazil, and Chile.
6. General John Jay Pershing - Ordered ot break up crisis
7. Pistol of a Serb patriot killed the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary.
8. Germans struck France through Belgium. Objective - knock their ancient enemy out of action so that they would have two free hands to repel Russia.
9. Great Britain was on the side of Belgium.
10. Central Powers: Germany and Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria
11. Allies : France, Britain, and Russia, and later Japan, Italy.
A Precarious Neutrality
1. Neutraliy Proclamation - Both side wooed the United States.
2. Kaiser Wilhelm II - German leader. Condemned by US.
3. French and Indian War pulled American industry out of hard times.
4. J P Morgan and Company - advanced the enormous sum 2.3 billion.
5. German submarines (U Boats) - they sank about ninety ships in the war.
6. Torpeoed Lusitania - Sank off the coast of Ireland on May 7, 1915 .
7. The Arabic - Sunk in Aug 1915 However; Berlin reluctantly agreed not to sink unarmed and unresisting passenger ships without warning.
8. The Sussex - Violated in March 1916, Germans torpedoed this French Passenger steamer. Caused Wilson to inform Germans that unless they renounced the injuman practice of sinking merchant ships without warning, he would break diplomatic relations-an almost certain prelude to war.
