Chapter 19 Quizlet Answered long questions
9. What caused the demise of state-based railroad regulation?How was the demise related to the passage of the Interstate Commerce Act
Farm organizations in the Midwest had persuaded several state legislatures to pass regulatory legislation in the early 1870s. But in 1886, in the Wabash case, it was rule the one of the laws in Illinois was unconstitutional. Effective railroad regulation could come only from the federal government. Congress responded to public pressure in 1887 with the Interstate Commerce Act, which banned discrimination in rates between long and short hauls, required that railroads publish their rate schedules and file them with the government and declared that all interstate rail rates must be "reasonable and just."
40. How was the Open Door policy calculated to provide maximum commercial and diplomatic advantage at minimum cost
Lots of nations started to look at China for power that they could draw from. The Open Door policy was addressed to England, Germany, Russia, France, Japan and Italy, all countries that wanted trade with China or a part of China itself. There were three principles: each nation with a sphere of influence in China was to respect the rights and privileges of other nations in its sphere; Chinese officials were to continue to collect tariff duties in all sphere (the existing tariff favored the United States); and nations were not to discriminate against other nations in levying port dues and railroad rates within their own spheres. These principles would allow the United States to trade freely with the Chinese without fear of interference and without having to become militarily involved in the region. They would also retain the illusion of Chinese sovereignty and thus prevent formal colonial dismemberment of China, which might also create obstacles to American trade.
13. Who was most attracted to populism?Why did the movement fail to obtain significant labor support
Populism always appealed principally to farmers, particularly to small farmers with little long-range economic security-people whose operations were minimally mechanized, if at all, who relied on one crop, and who had access only to limited credit. In the South, there were many modest landowners too, but in addition there were significant numbers of sharecroppers and tenant farmers. They also attracted people that were isolated from society. Populism never attracted significant labor support, in part because the economic interests of labor and the interests of farmers were often at odds.
21. Describe the passions of the 1896 campaign. Where did Bryan do well?Why did he lose
While McKinley did the traditional, "front-porch" campaign tactic, Bryan became the first presidential candidate in American history to stump every section of the country systematically, to appear in villages and hamlets and to be the first president to say frankly that he wanted to be president. He traveled 18,000 miles and addressed an estimated 5 million people, however, this would hurt his campaign because he broke the long-standing tradition and this antagonized many voters who considered his campaign undignified.
33. What were the results of George Dewey's Philippine attack
He quickly destroyed the aging Spanish fleet and forced the Spanish government to surrender with hardly a shot fired. He became the first American hero of the war. However, few Americans paused to note that the character of the war was changing. What had begun as a war to free Cuba was becoming a war to strip Spain of its colonies.
11. Explain the evolution of purpose and the accomplishments of the Grange. Why did it eventually fail
A minor Agriculture Department official, Oliver H. Kelley created the organization. In 1867, he left the government and founded the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry. At first, the Grangers defined their purposes modestly. They attempted to bring farmers together to learn new scientific agricultural techniques and to create a sense of community. The Grangers grew slowly until the depression of 1873 that caused a major decline in farm prices. By 1875, they had more than 800,000 members and 20,000 local lodges. The Grangers set up cooperative stores, creameries, elevators, warehouses, insurance companies and factories that produced machines, stoves and other items. One corporation emerged specifically to meet the needs of the Grangers: the first mail-order business, Montgomery Ward and Company. Eventually, most of the Grange enterprises failed, both because of the inexperience of their operators and because of the opposition of the middlemen they were challenging.
38. Did the Platt Amendment and American actions in Cuba violate the spirit of the ostensible reasons that the United States went to war?Explain
America went to war to free Cuba from Spanish rule; but all they did was switch the controlling power. The Platt Amendment was made when Cuba tried to be completely independent form the United States when they were creating their constitution. It gave the United States control of Cuba's foreign policy; it gave the United States the right to intervene in Cuba to preserve independence, life and property; and it required Cuba to permit American naval stations on its territory. Americans also poured into Cuba because American investments quickly took over the island's economy. The Cubans did not like how American owned lots of things on their territory. They resisted and revolted against the Cuban governments and the United States then got involved and put down the revolts.
32. Describe the role that black soldiers played in the Spanish-American War. What tensions surfaced
As the black soldiers traveled through the South toward the training camps, they chafed at the rigid segregation to which they were subjected and occasionally resisted the restrictions openly. African American soldiers in Georgia deliberately made use of a "whites only" park; in Florida, they beat a soda-fountain operator for refusing to serve them; in Tampa, white provocations and black retaliation led to a nightlong riot that left 30 people wounded. African American played crucial roles in some of the important battles of the war and won many medals. Nearly ½ if the Cuban insurgents fighting with the Americans were of African descent. The sight of black Cuban soldiers fighting alongside whites as equals gave African Americans a stronger sense of the injustice of their own position.
34. Describe the U.S. sea and land operations at Cuba. How did the U.S. manage to win despite poor planning and organization
At first, the American commanders planned a long period of training before actually sending troops into combat. But when a Spanish fleet slipped past the American navy into Santiago harbor on the southern coast of Cuba, plans changed quickly. The American Atlantic fleet quickly bottled Cervera (the commander) up in the harbor. And the United States Army's commanding general, Nelson A. Miles, hastily altered his strategy and left Tampa in June with a force of 17,000 to attack Santiago. General William R. Shafter, the American commander, moved toward Santiago and on his way he met and defeated Spanish forces. There was also a cavalry unit that was led by Theodore Roosevelt in Cuba. Shafter was in a position to assault Santiago, but his army was weakened by sickness and he feared that he might have to abandon his position. But, the Spanish government had by now decided that Santiago was lost and had ordered Cervera to evacuate; when he tried his whole fleet was destroyed.
18. What developments after 1870 led to the coalition of farmers and miners on behalf of silver coinage
Before the 1870s, the mint ratio was 16 ounces of silver was equivalent to one ounce of gold. The actual commercial value of silver was much higher than that and owners of silver would just sell their silver instead of taking to the mint. Congress, in 1873, passed a law that discontinued silver coinage. In the 1870s, the market value of silver fell well below the official mint ratio; this made silver available for coinage again. Congress ended up eliminated a potential method of expanding the currency and they had eliminated a potential market for silver miners. Silver-mine owners were eager to have the government take their surplus silver and pay them more than the market price and discontented farmers wanted an increase in the quantity of money.
31. Describe the American plans and preparations for the Spanish-American War. Why was the "splendid little war" so short
Congress appropriated $50 million for military preparations. In March 1898, the president asked Spain to agree to an armistice, negotiations for a permanent peace, and an end to the concentration camps. Spain agreed to stop the fighting and eliminate the concentration camps but refused to negotiate with the rebels and reserved the right to resume hostilities at its discretion. The United States then declared war. The war was only a few months in part because Cuban rebels had already greatly weakened the Spanish resistance.
24. How did American imperial actions compare to those of Great Britain and other European nations
European powers now created colonies by creating military, political and business structures that allowed them to dominate and profit from the existing population. Many saw colonization as an opportunity to export Christianity to the undeveloped lands. Great Britain one of the greatest imperial powers. England had control over vast territory in North America, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Later they declared their dominance in India. The British invested heavily in railroads, telegraphs, canals, harbors, and agricultural improvements to enhance the economic opportunities available to them. The empire also extended into Africa and other parts of Asia. Americans caught colonies because of the Spanish-American war as well as the result of the effects of the efforts of the pro-imperials who believed that in the modern industrial-imperial world a nation without colonies would have difficulty remaining or becoming a true great power.
28. How did the United States acquire part of Samoa
In 1878, the Hayes administration extracted a treaty from Samoan leaders for an American naval station there. However, Great Britain and Germany were also interested in the island and they too secured treaty rights for the native princes. For the next 10 years, they disputed and eventually Germany and America split the islands (America got Pago Pago) and Great Britain got islands elsewhere.
27. How did Hawaii gradually get drawn into America's economic and political sphere
In 1887, the United States negotiated a treaty with Hawaii that permitted it ot open a naval base at Pearl Harbor. By then, growing sugar for export to America had become the basis of the Hawaiian economy-as a result of an 1875 agreement allowing Hawaiian sugar to enter the United States duty-free. There was also a workforce created for the sugar plantations. By 1890, the United States had eliminated the privileged position of Hawaiian sugar in international trade. The result was devastating to the economy of the island, and American planters concluded that the only way for them to recover was to become part of the United States.
14. What doomed the possibilities for effective biracial cooperation among populists
In the South, white Populists struggled with the question of whether to accept African Americans into the party. Most white Populists were willing to accept the assistance of African Americans only as long as it was clear that whites would remain indisputably in control. When southern conservatives began to attack the Populists for undermining white supremacy, the interracial character of the movement quickly faded.
41. What changes from 1900 to 1903 gave the United States a more modern military establishment
In the Spanish-American War, the United States military was obviously flawed and weak. After the war, McKinley appointed Elihu Root as secretary of war to supervise a major overhaul of the armed forces. The regular army was enlarged from 25,000 to 100,000. They established federal army standards for the National Guard, ensuring that never again would the nation fight a war with volunteer regiments trained and equipped differently than those in the regular army. They sparked the creation of a system of official training schools. And in 1903, a general staff was established to act as military advisers to the secretary of war. It was this last reform that Root considered the most important: the creation of a central planning agency modeled on the example of European general staffs. An Army and Navy Board was to foster interservice cooperation.
36. What were the basic terms of the Treaty of Paris
It brought an end to the war. It confirmed the terms of the armistice concerning Cuba, Puerto Rico and Guam. The Americans offered $20 million for the Philippines and the Spanish accepted their terms.
25. What developments in the late 1880s and mid-1890s demonstrated the increasing interest of the United States in Latin America
James G. Blaine, secretary of state for the Republican administrations in the 1880s, led efforts to expand American influence into Latin America, where, he believed, the United States must look for markets for its surplus goods. In October 1889, he organized the first Pan-American Congress. It attracted delegates from 19 nations and the delegates agreed to create the Pan-American Union, a weak international organization located in D.C., that served as a clearinghouse of information to the member nations. The Cleveland administration supported Venezuela in a dispute with Great Britain and almost forced Britain into war.
15. What did the Populists stand for and what were their leaders like
Most of the Populists leaders were members of the rural middle class. Some Populist leaders were somber, serous theoreticians; others were semi-hysterical rabble-rousers. Tom Watson, Jeff Davis and others attracted widespread popular support by arousing the resentment of poor southerners against the entrenched planter aristocracy. The government would establish a network of warehouses, where farmers could deposit their crops. Using those crops as collateral, growers could then borrow money from the government at low rates of interest and wait for the price of their goods to go up before selling them. The Populists called for the abolition of national banks, the end of absentee ownership of land, the direct election of U.S. senators, and other devices to improve the ability of the people to influence the political process. They called for regulation and government ownership of railroads, telephones and telegraphs. And they demanded a system of government-operated postal savings banks, a graduated income tax, and the inflation of the currency. Populists rejected the laissez-faire orthodoxies of their time, including the idea that the rights of ownership are absolute.
5. What was the patronage system, and how did it dominate national politics in the 1870s and 1880s?What was the role of Civil War pensions in this system
Patronage was the spoils system. By the end of Hayes's term, the Stalwarts and the Half-Breeds were competing for control of the Republican Party. The Stalwarts favored traditional, professional machine politics, while the Half-Breeds favored reform. Both groups were mainly interested in a larger share of the patronage. Hayes tires to create a civil service system that attracted no support and his early announcement of not running for reelection also hurt him. The Republicans did retain the presidency in 1880 when they agreed that a Stalwart president and a Half-Breed vice president would be on the same ticket. The Republicans also captured both houses of Congress.
37. What arguments were raised for and against imperialism in general and the annexation of the Philippines in particular? Why did President McKinley favor annexation? What role did William Jennings Bryan play?
People did not want to annex the Philippines for many reasons: some believed simply that imperialism was immoral; some feared "polluting" the American population by introducing new Asian races; industrial workers feared being undercut by a flood of cheap laborers; conservatives worried about the large standing army and entangling foreign alliances that they believed imperials would require and that they feared would threaten American liberties. Sugar growers and other feared the unwelcome competition from the new territories. People wanted annexation because: some saw it as a way to reinvigorate the nation and keep alive what they considered the healthy, restorative influence of the war. Some businessmen saw opportunities to dominate the Asian trade; and most Republicans saw partisan advantages in acquiring valuable new territories through war fought and won by a Republican administration. The strongest argument was that the United States already possessed the islands. McKinley supported it because he came to believe there were no acceptable alternatives. He said that returning the islands would be cowardly and turning them over to another imperialist power would be bad business and discreditable; granting the island independence would be irresponsible. The fate of the treaty remained in doubt for weeks until it received the unexpected support from Bryan. He backed ratification not because he approved annexation but because he hoped to move the issue out of the Senate and make it the subject of a national referendum in 1900, when he expected to be the Democratic presidential candidate again. Bryan persuaded a number of anti-imperialist Democrats to support the treaty, and the Senate finally ratified it on February 6, 1899.
2. What explains the extraordinary loyalty that voters showed to their political parties in this period
Region and religion were two major factors as to why the voters of one party stayed loyal to that party.
8. What led to the passage of the Sherman Antitrust Act?What practical impact did it have
Some western and southern states passed laws prohibiting combinations if they hurt compaction; the loophole for these combinations was just to incorporate a state that didn't have the laws. The public saw that the only way to solve the problem was if the federal government got involved and in 1890, the law was passed. Most members of Congress saw the act as a symbolic measure, one that would help deflect public criticism but was not likely to have any real effect on corporate power. For over a decade after its passage, the Act had almost no impact. As of 1901, the Justice Department had instituted many antitrust suits against labor unions, but only 14 against business combinations.
22. How did President William McKinley handle the tariff and silver issues?What happened during his administration to help resolve the currency question
The Currency or Gold Standard Act of 1900 confirmed the nation's commitment to the gold standard by assigning a specific gold value to the dollar and requiring all currency issued by the United State to hew to that value. They also passed the Dingley Tariff which raised duties to the highest point in American history. Had it not been for a dramatic increase in the gold supply in the late 1890s because of the discovery of new gold nodes and because of new techniques, Populist predictions of financial disaster might in fact have proved correct.
39. Explain the goals and tactics of the Philippine War. Was American policy in the war a repudiation of the ideals that had led the United States to help Cuba secure its independence
The Filipinos resisted the Americans as soon as they learned that they were staying. Led by Emilio Aguinaldo, the Filipinos harried the American army of occupation from island to island for more than 3 years. Once people realized how many Filipinos supported the resistance, Americans decided it was time to be more vicious. The military effort became more systematically vicious and brutal. Captured Filipino guerrillas were treated as murders and many were executed. On some islands, entire communities were evacuated-the residents forced into concentration camps while American troops destroyed heir villages, farms, crops and livestock. Some American soldiers started to view the Filipinos as almost subhuman and at times seemed to take pleasure in killing arbitrarily. Americans wanted to put down the rebellion; much like Spain did. However, after the fighting, the Philippines became more dependent on American trade and more independent in their government. They were then independent on July 4, 1946.
10. Why was the Interstate Commerce Act so ineffectual
The ICC was supposed to enforce this through the courts, but for 20 years, it had little effect because the courts haphazardly enforced it.
20. How did the nomination of William Jennings Bryan as the Democratic presidential candidate in 1896 put the Populists in a dilemma?How did they resolve it, and what was the result
The Populists had expected both major parties to adopt conservative programs and nominate conservative candidates, leaving themselves to represent the growing forces of protest. But the Democrats stole much of their thunder and so the Populists had the choice of naming their own candidate and splitting the protest vote or endorsing Bryan and losing their identity as a party. Many argued that fusion with the Democrats would destroy their party. But the majority concluded that there was no viable alternative. The Populists decided to support Bryan.
1. How well balanced were the two major political parties between the Civil War and the turn of the century
The Republicans and Democrats were remarkably stable. 16 states were consistently Republican and 14 states were consistently Democratic. And 5 other states usually were the deciding factor of elections. The public-vote margin between the two parties was 1.5%.
23. What intellectual, economic, philosophical, and racial factors helped create a new national mood more receptive to overseas expansion
The experience of subjugating the Indian tribes had established a precedent for exerting colonial control over dependent peoples. Frederick Jackson Turner and many others produced fears that natural resources would soon dwindle and that alternative sources must be found abroad. The depression of the 1890s encouraged some businessmen to look overseas for new markets. The bitter social protests of the time led some politicians to urge a more aggressive foreign policy as an outlet for frustrations that would otherwise destabilize domestic life. Many Americans began to consider the possibility of acquiring colonies that might expand their trade. The theory of Darwinism rose again where people looked to the feeble Chinese Empire to take control of. Many writers and public figures said that nations or races struggled constantly for existence and that only the fittest could survive.
30. What two incidents combined finally to pull the United States into war with Spain
The first occurred when a Cuban agent stole a private letter written by Dupuy de Lome, the Spanish minister in Washington and turned it over to the American press. The letter described McKinley as a weak man and a "bidder for the admiration of the crowd." This created dintense popular anger. The second thing was when the American battleship Maine blew up in Havana harbor with a loss of more than 260 people. Many Americans assumed that the Spanish had sunk the ship, particularly when a naval court of inquiry hastily and inaccurately reported that an external explosion by a submarine mine had caused the disaster.
4. What was the nature of the national government in the late nineteenth century
The government really only delivered the mail, maintained a military, conducted foreign policy and collected tariffs and taxes. The federal government was still giving lots of land and money for railroads and they were letting capitalists use the military against their workers. There was also a pension system that was making payments to a majority of the male citizens of the North and to many women as well. It was to give annual pensions for Union Civil War veterans who had retired from work and for their widows.
17. What were the immediate and long-range causes of the Panic of 1893?How serious was the depression that followed
The immediate causes were when the National Cordage Company and Pennsylvania and Reading Railroad company went bankrupt which triggered the collapse of the stock market; many bankers were heavy investors in the stock market and a wave of bank failures soon began. For long-range, depressed prices in agriculture since 1887 had weakened the purchasing power of farmers. Depression conditions in Europe caused a loss of American markets abroad and a withdrawal by foreign investors of gold invested in the United States. Railroads also expanded too much. Many businesses and banks failed; agricultural prices went down even further; and 20% of the labor force lost their jobs.
19. Explain the debate over the gold standard. How did it divide the Democratic Party
The national gold reserves were steadily dropping and Cleveland believed that the chief cause of the weakening gold reserves was the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890. Early in his second administration, Cleveland repealed the Sherman Act. This created a permanent split in the Democratic Party. The president's gold policy had aligned the southern and western Democrats in a solid alliance against him and his eastern followers.
26. How did American planters and missionaries transform the traditional society of the Hawaiian Islands
The newcomers brought infectious diseases which decimated the Hawaiians. Missionaries worked to undermine native religion, while other white settlers introduced liquor, firearms and a commercial economy, all of which eroded the traditional character of Hawaiian society.
16. According to "Where Historians Disagree - Populism," how have historians differed in their interpretation of Populism
The original and, for a time, only view of Populism was that they were trying to save agricultural American from industry. Many people viewed them approvingly; that the Populists essentially appeared as admirable, democratic activists. Some people thought that Populism was weak because it rested on a nostalgic and unrealistic myth and they also believed that the party was permeated with bigotry and ignorance; revealing anti-Semitic tendencies and racism toward others as well. People argued with this saying that the party rested on a sophisticated, farsighted and even radical vison of reform. Others said that the party tolerated and even welcomed Jews and other minorities into their party, and that they offered a practical sensible program. Some people identified the party as a bunch of farmers, others say them as people just coming out of isolation and others saw them as economically troubled as socially rootless.
12. What reforms did the Farmers' Alliances stand for?How did the movement transform into the People's Party
They formed cooperatives and other marketing mechanisms. They established stores, banks, processing plants and other facilities for their members-to free them from the local merchants that kept many farmers in debt. Some leaders argued for a sense of mutual, neighborly responsibility that would enable farmers to resist oppressive outside forces. Alliance lecturers traveled throughout rural areas attacking the concentration of power in great corporations and financial institutions and promoting cooperation as an alternative economic system. Women also argued that sobriety as a key to stability in rural society. The Alliance also advocated suffrage to women. Sentiment for a third party was strongest among the members of the Northwestern Alliance, but several southern leaders supported the idea as well. In July 1892, 1,3000 exultant delegates poured into Omaha, Nebraska, to proclaim the creation of the new party, approve an official set of principles, and nominate candidates for the presidency and vice presidency. The party's members were known as Populists.
3. What regional, religious, and ethnic factors distinguished the two major parties?Who was excluded from participation
To white southerners, loyalty to the Democratic Party was a matter of unquestioned faith. It was the vehicle by which they had triumphed over Reconstruction and preserved white supremacy. To many northerners, white and black, Republican loyalties were equally intense. To them, the party of Lincoln remained a bulwark against slavery and treason. The Democratic Party attracted most of the Catholic voters, recent immigrants and poorer workers-groups that often overlapped. The Republican Party appealed to northern Protestants, citizens of old stock and much of the middle class-groups that also had considerable overlap. Republicans tended to support measures restricting immigration and to favor temperance legislation. Catholics and immigrants viewed such proposals as assaults on them and their cultures and opposed them. Many women, almost all blacks and many poor whites in the South were disenfranchised.
6. How did the assassination of James A. Garfield lead to the passage of the Pendleton Act and the beginning of the end of the patronage system
When Arthur became president, he tried to follow an independent course and even promoted reform. To the dismay of the Stalwarts, Arthur kept most of Garfield's appointees in office and supported civil service reform. In 1883, Congress passed the Pendleton Act which required that some federal jobs be filled by competitive written examinations rather than by patronage.
7. How did the tariff become the key issue in the 1888 presidential election?Where did Grover Cleveland and the Democrats stand?What was done about the issue during the Benjamin Harrison administration? How did the same issue affect the 1890 and 1892 elections?
When Cleveland was president, he wanted to reduce the tariff rates because he did not agree with them. In December 1887, he asked Congress to reduce the tariff rates. Democrats in the House approved a tariff reduction, but Senate Republicans defiantly passed a bill of their own actually raising the rates. This created a deadlock that affected the election of 1888. In Harrison's administration, the McKinley Tariff was proposed to Congress as the highest protective measure ever proposed to Congress. It became law in October 1890, but Republican leaders apparently misinterpreted public sentiment. The party suffered a stunning reversal in the 1890 congressional election: losing the House and the senate. In the election of 1892, Harrison lost in part because of the law.
29. What were the causes of American involvement in Cuban affairs?How was American public opinion shaped on these issues
When Cuba originally resisted the Spanish, the United States sympathized with them but did not intervene. In 1895, Cuban rebelled again; the Cubans deliberately devastated the island to force the Spaniards to leave and Spanish General Valeriano Weyler took civilians in concentration camps where they died by the thousands. The New York World and New York Journal newspapers sent many reporters to Cuba to get reports of the Spanish atrocities (even though both sides were committing atrocities). With the newspaper attacking the Spanish, many Americans despised them and in McKinley's presidency, he formally protested Spain's uncivilized and inhuman conduct, causing the Spanish government to recall Weyler, modify the concentration policy and grant the island a qualified autonomy.
35. Describe the development of Puerto Rico before and after the Spanish-American War. What was the key to the Puerto Rican economy
When the Spanish established San Juan in 1521, the natives, the Arawaks, were mostly killed off because of infectious diseases, Spanish brutality and poverty. Puerto Rican society developed with a Spanish ruling class and a large African workforce for the coffee and sugar plantations that came to dominate its economy. There were uprisings in Puerto Rico for independence and most of them were effectively crushed by the Spanish. The resistance did cause the Spanish to change (abolish slavery and allow representation in parliament) but demands for independence continued to grow and Spain declare their independence in 1898. However, America took control before their independence was in affect and then America eventually declared them as an official territory. The Puerto Rican sugar industry flourished as it took advantage of the American markets that was now open to it without tariffs. They hired natives to work on the plantations. Many Puerto Rican farmers became paid laborers because of the demand of sugar and they became increasingly dependent on imported food.