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Unit 1

Unit 2

Unit 6: Modern America

by Byron Hood

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Chapter 23: An American Empire

New Imperialism — the new worldwide (but especially European) trend towards colonization. European nations eagerly snapped up colonies in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. In fact, the Berlin Conference of 1885 divided up Africa based on arbitrary lines drawn on a map by the European powers. Ultimately, this was one of the leading causes of World War I: the “haves” (Britain, France, Russia) versus the “have-nots” (Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy (although they joined the Allies, their objective was to take over German and Austro-Hungarian territory)).
Economic roots of imperialism — European countries eager to exploit the lucrative African and Asian markets began to carve out colonies in these regions. Also, European nations hoped that through control of enough overseas colonies, they could gain trading advantages over other nations. This program of colonization and exploitation went do far that noted British economist J. A. Hobson observed that imperialism had gone so far that it was “the most powerful factor in the current politics of the Western world.”
Albert J. Beveridge — a senator from Indiana and a proponent of United States expansionism and imperialism along with Henry Cabot Lodge, Captain Alfred Mahan, and Theodore Roosevelt.
Henry Cabot Lodge — a senator from Massachusetts who fervently supported United States imperialism and expansionism, along with Albert Beveridge, Alfred Thayer Mahan, and President Teddy Roosevelt.
Alfred Thayer Mahan — a highly influential captain in the United States Navy who believed very much in expansionism. In the 1880s, he advocated imperialism, and published a book in 1890, The Influence of Sea Power upon History.
The Influence of Sea Power upon History — a book published by Captain Alfred Mahan which argued that to advance as a nation economically in the then-modern world, one needed a strong navy, a strong merchant marine, much foreign commerce, and colonies, in addition to naval bases. The author also argued that it was America’s destiny to control the Caribbean, connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans with a canal through the narrow isthmus which connected Central and South America, and to spread Western culture through the Pacific islands, similar to Manifest Destiny only through the seas.
Imperialist Theory — this was the reasoning behind the doctrine of imperialism. It rested mainly on claims of racial, intellectual, and religious superiority but also used Social Darwinism applied to nations as a justification. Perhaps the most common justification was simply that the Anglo-Saxon race was superior to all others and was thus destined to expand and rule the world.
Josiah Strong — a Congregationalist minister who added the religious aspect to the Imperialist Theory in his book Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis by saying that the Anglo-Saxon was “divinely commissioned to be, in a peculiar sense, his brother’s keeper.”
“Seward's Folly” — William Seward was a very radical Radical Republican who sought to expand the United States as much as possible. When he learned that Russia as looking to sell Alaska, he offered $7.2 million in a deal which most Americans mocked, for they believed Alaska to be a barren wasteland. That is, until people found oil there
Samoa — American Secretaries of State grew more and more interested in overseas islands for naval bases: places from which to project United States naval power. The Samoa Islands and Hawaii were obvious targets because both had excellent harbors (Pago Pago and Pearl Harbor respectively). In Samoa, the United States signed a treaty in 1878 which granted the U.S. a naval base at Pago Pago and extraterritoriality (meaning that Americans in Samoa were subject only to American law), in return for U.S. aid in a crisis involving another nation. The Germans and the British negotiated similar agreements with nearby islands, and this worked out until civil war erupted in 1887. The Germans backed the pretender to the throne of the Samoas against the native king and finally installed him. This led to a conference in Berlin which made Samoa into a protectorate (fancy word for military-controlled colony) controlled by Germany, Great Britain, and the United States together in a very uneasy partnership.
Hawaii — in 1875, the United States agreed to allow Hawaiian sugar into the United States duty-free as long as the Hawaiians agreed not to grant or lease any of its territory to another nation. However, relations began to sour in 1887 when the American planters, the elite of the island, forced the king to accept a constitutional government in which they dominated. Then, the McKinley Tariff of 1890 destroyed the Hawaiian economy by placing sugar on the “free list” of items with no tariff for any nation and by adding a 2subsidy to domestic sugar. When the king’s sister, Queen Liliuokalani, attempted to take back much of the king’s former powers in 1891, the Americans revolted two years later and set up a provisional government. A treaty of annexation appeared in the Senate soon, but too early, for Benjamin Harrison was still in office and thus the Democratic senators blocked its ratification. Grover Cleveland withdrew the treaty and sent an investigator over, who concluded that only the white population had revolted and that most Hawaiians opposed annexation. President Cleveland struck a deal with Queen Liliuokalani which restored her power in return for amnesty to the rebels. However, the American government on Hawaii proclaimed the “Republic of Hawaii” on July 4, 1894, and adopted a constitution with a standing provision for annexation, exercised in 1898 during the presidency of William McKinley.
“Cuba Libre” — the movement within Cuba to liberate the island from harsh Spanish rule. On February 24, 1895, rebellion broke out again, due to discontent over the Wilson-Gorman Tariff, which took sugar off of the “free list” while Cuba was still in depression. United States public opinion supported the rebels in Cuba, who waged guerilla warfare, similar to the American Revolution. In 1896, Spanish general Valeriano Weyler earned the name “Butcher” Weyler for his suppression tactics.
Valeriano Weyler — a brutal Spanish general sent to suppress the revolt in Cuba. He gathered civilians behind his lines in Reconcentrado centers so they could not appear peaceful by day and wage guerilla war by night. This provided some ammunition for the war-making machines contained within the newspapers run by Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer and prompted the United States to get involved though not beyond an offer of mediation.
Reconcentrado — camps similar to concentration camps in Hitler’s Reich though not always quite as cruel and downright evil. These were places mostly where people were gathered to prevent them for revolting, not to punish them. However, in many of these, the conditions were so awful that disease, heat, and poor food took an enormous toll.
Randolph Hearst — one of the major yellow journalists of the time of he Spanish-American War. He sensationalized the news and embroidered it to make sure the message came out as pro-war. After the de Lôme letter came out in his paper, the New York Journal, things moved faster against the Spanish. Then, when the Battleship Maine mysteriously exploded in Havana harbor, there was literally a cry for war from the paper.
Joseph Pulitzer — another one of the yellow journalists of the time of he Spanish-American War. He owned the Boston Globe and did much of what Hearst did in terms of war sentiments.
Battleship Maine — one of the newest additions to the U.S. Navy, this was from a new generation of battleships which gave the United States a navy of considerable power. It was in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898, when it mysteriously exploded. Public opinion, fueled by the yellow press and Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt, pushed for war. McKinley resisted with most of the big businessmen until finally he asked for war on April 20. Unfortunately, he had missed the fact that the Spanish government had given the United States what amounted to a surrender: the US could name the terms of the armistice and Cuba would become independent, and the debate over the Maine would be submitted to arbitration.
Depuy de Lôme Letter — a letter from the Spanish minister to the United States to his home government which criticized McKinley a lot and created a furor in the United States when it was intercepted and printed in Randolph Hearst’s New York Journal. De Lôme resigned as a result of this.
“Remember the Maine!” — the battle cry of the pro-war factions of the United States after the sinking of the Maine in Havana harbor. Naturally, these people all accused the Spanish of deliberately sinking the ship, but nothing has ever been proven (for those of you who read this bit, the textbook says that a comprehensive study revealed that it was an internal explosion, but this is inconsistent with the fact that the edges of the hole which the explosion ripped in the Maine pointed inwards, making an internal explosion unlikely—at least as the only cause of the incident).
John Hay — soon-to-be Secretary of State who called the 114-day war “a splendid little war.”
Commodore George Dewey — the naval commander during the Spanish-American War who destroyed the Spanish navy in the Philippines without much of a fight: Dewey suffered only eight wounded. However, without an occupation force, he was in a tough position: he could not take over the islands, but he could not leave because the Germans and the British were ready to take the islands if he did not. Finally, when a force arrived, with the help of insurrectionist Emilio Aguinaldo, Dewey entered Manila on August 13, 1898, after three months of waiting.
Rough Riders — a group of cavalry led by Teddy Roosevelt, who left the Navy to lead a group to Cuba. This unit is most famous for tis charge up San Juan Hill (though they really charged up a nearby one). Also, for most of the war, they were not cavalry because their horses had been mistakenly sent to the wrong place. Nonetheless, this covered Teddy Roosevelt in glory and sped him to the presidency.
Debate over annexation: Philippines — the victory in the Philippines created an American lust for the islands, although officially their status remained uncertain, especially since the Americans had entered the day after a peace agreement was reached. In the end, the American negotiators offered Spain $20 million for the islands. We had earlier promised the Filipinos freedom but did not end up giving it to them until 1946.
Motivating ideas of imperialism — national honor, commerce/economic exploitation, a childish belief in racial superiority, and “altruism” (people argued to “civilize” and convert the Filipinos (who already were predominantly Christian and had an advanced culture)).
Treaty of Paris (1898) — the treaty with Spain which ended the Spanish-American War. It basically handed the U.S. Spanish possessions in the Pacific, including the Philippines, for $20 million. Additionally, the Spanish gave up Cuba and made some other concessions. Back home, the treaty may have been defeated if William Jennings Bryan had not supported it. However, by the end, the treaty was ratified by a margin of more than two to one.
William Jennings Bryan — the very eloquent presidential candidate and senator, who came out in support of the Treaty of Paris because he felt that peace with Spain would bring about the freeing of the Philippines and Cuba more easily. However, his opponents argued (correctly, with 20/20 hindsight) that annexing those places would contradict the spirit of democracy and of the United States. Nonetheless, the treaty passed.
Rudyard Kipling White Man's Burden — a somewhat racist publication first done in McClure’s which claimed that Americans had a new duty: to go around the world and “civilize” the “heathen” peoples just annexed. This was a major argument in the annexation debate and whether or not to grant each island its freedom.
Emilio Aguinaldo — the Filipino insurrectionist who first helped the Americans into the Philippines but then began to fight them when denied their independence right after the Treaty of Paris. He restarted the Filipino insurrection, which cost thousands of American lives to put down. Eventually, he was captured by American forces in 1901, but his movement kept going for a year or two afterwards.
Filipino insurrection — a guerilla fighter organization, similar to the Free French during World War II. They used hit-and-run tactics to kill over 4,000 Americans until the movement petered out around 1903 after Aguinaldo was captured.
American Anti-Imperialist League — the organization which came out of the merging of all the tiny little anti-imperialism groups. This was the voice for anti-imperialist sentiment, seldom listened to (though it managed to moderate some ambitions). William James, of this organization, once said that imperialism had caused this nation to “puke up its ancient soul.” Prominent members included Andrew Carnegie (who paid the bills), Samuel Gompers (ah, at last the two of them agreed on something), and social reformer Jane Addams.
Andrew Carnegie — the famous industrialist became a leader of the American Anti-Imperialist League, for which he gave much financial support. This was unique because he and Samuel Gompers were in agreement about something for once.
Samuel Gompers — the leader of the AFL, he was a prominent member in addition to Carnegie, with whom he agreed on an issue for once.
Jane Addams — the social reformer famous for her Hull House in Chicago and her fight against child labor also joined the American Anti-Imperialist League, probably because she could not bear to see mothers who had lost their sons abroad defending U.S. interests.
Philippine Government Act — an act which declared the Philippines and “unorganized territory” and made the inhabitants citizens of the Philippines.
Tydings-McDuffie Act (1934) — the act which finally allowed the Filipinos their independence after a tutelage period of ten years under a democratic system. A new constitution was ratified and in September 1934, Manuel Quezon was elected first president of the Philippines. Independence finally took effect on July 4, 1946 (delayed due to WWII).
Puerto Rico — a Caribbean territory given to the United States in the Treaty of Paris to serve as an outpost in the Caribbean and perhaps to use for influence in an isthmian canal (such as through Panama). On April 12, 1900, the Foraker Act was passed, setting up a system of government in Puerto Rico.
Foraker Act (1900) — set up a government in Puerto Rico: the president could appoint the governor and eleven members of an executive council, while the House of Delegates was elective. This also set up a temporary tariff on goods imported from Puerto Rico, challenged but upheld in the Supreme Court, one of the “insular cases”.
Jones Act (1917) — confirmed the American intention to make the Philippines independent but set no date. Also, it granted United States citizenship to Puerto Ricans and made both houses of the Puerto Rican legislature elective.
“Insular Cases” — cases regarding the fundamental nature of the American Union, especially with regard to whether or not the Constitution spread with the flag. For example, Puerto Rico protested that since it was part of the United States, that it had to pay a tariff to export gods, something unconstitutional. However, the Supreme Court decided that the Constitution was only extend to wherever Congress decided to extend it, and that Puerto Rico had to pay the (temporary) tariff.
Dr. Walter Reed — a brilliant Army doctor who went to Cuba to find a solution to the problem of yellow fever. He proved in medical test with volunteers that yellow fever came from mosquitoes, leading to some very effective treatment which destroy the disease in Cuba. Later on, a similar technique was used to eliminate tropical diseases from the Panama Canal area. Today, a military hospital is named after Dr. Reed.
Platt Amendment — an amendment to the provision in which Congress allowed Cuba independence. It gave three conditions: first, Cuba must never “impair its independence” by treaty with any other nation (except the US, fo course); second, Cuba must hold its debts to within the government’s power to pay them off and recognize the United States’ right to intervene for the “preservation fo Cuban independence and the maintenance of `a government adequate for the protection of life, property, and individual liberty’;” and finally, Cuba had to provide land to lease or sell for the United State to use as a naval base or coaling station (resulting in Guantanamo Bay, which still exists today).
William Howard Taft — first a federal judge, and then the governor of the Philippines. He likes the Filipinos but this did not stop them from taking part in a violent insurgency.
“Open Door” Policy — a policy towards other nations with respect to China: imperialistic nations had all carved out their share of China in spheres of influence, but the United States wanted in, so the US promoted a policy of no spheres of influence, one where all nations had an equal chance to exploit China while maintaining China’s political sovereignty. This resembled the Monroe Doctrine in that the United States told other nations to “keep off” but a little more gently here.
Boxer Rebellion — a rebellion which seriously threatened the Chinese government’s sovereignty. The Fists of Righteous Harmony (Boxers) rebelled against the weakened Qing dynasty, especially foreign embassies and symbols of influence. However, US troops sent in to quell the revolt quickly did so in a way, according to a letter written in 1900, which would “preserve Chinese territorial and administrative integrity.” The occupying powers who had crushed the rebellion agreed that China should pay them a total of $333 million as an indemnity. Of this, the United States got $25 million, $11 million of which went back to China after all claims were settled.
Theodore Roosevelt — the former Rough Rider and a large trustbuster, Teddy Roosevelt was also an avid expansionist who had no qualms about suppressing native populations to enlarge the United States. His most famous imperialistic catchphrase is “speak softly but carry a big stick,” and carry a big stick he did. He orchestrated (indirectly) the revolution in Colombia which allowed the United States to build the Panama Canal on excellent terms. He also supported the annexation and holding of the Philippines. This and also his action in Cuba earned him the nickname “Mr. Imperialism”.
“Mr. Imperialism” — a name for Teddy Roosevelt (see #45).
Leon Czolgosz — a fanatical anarchist who shot and wounded President McKinley at the Pan-American Exposition. Ironically, if anyone had thought to use the new X-ray machine on display there, they could have probably found the bullet and saved McKinley’s life. McKinley death (in addition to being a great tragedy) also angered the rich, corrupt New York bosses who had moved Roosevelt to the position of vice-president to get him out of a place of power. A rich Ohio businessman mixing in politics, Mark Hanna, sad “Now look, that damned cowboy is President of the United States.”
Mark Hanna — see Leon Czolgosz.
Panama Canal — this was the brainchild of Captain Alfred Mahan, finally realized by Teddy Roosevelt when he helped to orchestrate the Panamanian revolution, the new government of which quickly took excellent terms from the United States. After around ten years, the enormous canal, built to handle oceangoing ships, was finished, though at a large cost in lives. The canal is still operational today. One of the major improvements here was a successful eradication of tropical diseases around the canal area, an idea made possible of Dr. Walter Reed.
Bidlack Treaty (1848) — a treaty with New Granada (became Colombia) which guaranteed Colombia’s sovereignty over Panama but also the neutrality of the narrow isthmus through which a canal might pass and which previously had been a route of California-bound settlers going from sea to land to sea again to reach California.
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty (1850) — said the British intended to acquire no more Central American territory, and the United States agreed only to build and fortify a canal by mutual consent of the two powers.
Hay-Pauncefote Treaty (1900) — a treaty with Britain which sought the mutual consent required to build a canal (though the treaty forbade fortifying it). It was rejected for this reason. However, after this, the British simply accepted the inevitable construction and fortification of a Central American canal and in the second Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, the restriction was simply omitted and the treaty was ratified quickly.
Hay-Herrán Treaty (1903) — a treaty with Columbia ratified by the U.S. Senate which would allow the United States to build a canal through Panama for $10 million down and then $250,000 a year. However, when the Colombian Senate held out for $25 million, Teddy Roosevelt became literally enraged and went into a rant punctuated by various insults. The result was that the United States supported a revolution by the Panamanians, who quickly accepted the United States’ terms.
Phillipe Bunau-Varilla — the representative from the new Panamanian government who had previously visited the United States and had received insider information on the position on a U.S. battleship. A member of the French company which had previously owned the Canal Zone led a quick revolution in collusion with him and the Americans. However, this was one of the United States’ foreign policy mistakes: we offended much of Latin America in doing as we did. In the 1920s, though Harding made the dubious decision to pay Columbia $25 million anyway, but only after Columbian oil had begun to affect the machine of diplomacy—in the same way that we care about what Iran or Saudi Arabia say.
Roosevelt Corollary — this basically stated that to maintain order in America and also to ensure payment of debts, the United States may intervene where necessary when necessary, and also called for a collector of customs who would apply 55% of revenues towards collecting debt payments.
Russo-Japanese War — a war between the crumbling Russians and the emerging, militant Japanese. In short, the cause of the war was influence in China and control of Korea, and the result was that the Russians got demolished. After the alarming Japanese tour de force, Roosevelt sent William Taft to Tokyo in 1905 to negotiate peace with the Japanese foreign minister. These two negotiated the Taft-Katsura Agreement of 1905, creating an uneasy peace in Asia.
Taft-Katsura Agreement — an agreement between Japan and the United States in which the United States accepted Japanese control of Korea in return for a promise that Japan had no plans against the Philippines.
Act of Algeciras — an act which ensured the independence of Morocco (which both the French and Germans were vying for) an also an “open door” for trade there, but also included a provision for the training of Moroccan police by both the French and the Spanish. This may well have prevented a general war in Europe (or at least delayed it) and it also helped Teddy Roosevelt win the Nobel Peace Prize.
“Great White Fleet” — before Teddy Roosevelt left office, in a show of force, he sent the U.S. Navy’s most modern warships, dubbed the “Great White Fleet” because of their color, around the world. It was a grand gesture and ended Roosevelt’s presidency on a successful note.

Chapter 24: The Progressive Era

Progressive Era — the Progressive Era is generally considered to have begun with the emergence and election of Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt as the President in 1900, and ended in 1917 when the United States entered World War I, under President Wilson. It was an era of many reforms, focused on government efficiency, cutting down big businesses and protecting the common man through constructive political, social, and economic reform.
William Allen White — a Kansas newspaper editor who hinted that the Progressive movement was in itself a paradox. He said of the movement that it was populism that “shaved its whiskers, washed its shirt, put on a derby, and moved up into the middle class.”
Paradox in the Progressive movement — the Progressive movement was very broad, and as such, very paradoxical: it contained many of the elements of Populism, but also included the middle class and thus gained respectability politically. Another paradox was that the Progressives were also somewhat conservative, and some went as far as proposing Sunday closing laws and prohibition.
The Muckrakers — a group of journalists and photographers who documented the horrors of factories and slums and emphasized the awful conditions which many working-class people and immigrants endured.
Henry Demarest Lloyd Wealth Against Commonwealth — a very critical examination of monopolies, especially the Standard Oil Company owned by John D. Rockefeller, published in 1894. Lloyd is often called the first muckraker.
Jacob Riis How the Other Half Lives — Riis, himself a Danish immigrant and influential newspaper editor, exposed slum decrepitude in his book How the Other Half Lives.
Lincoln Steffens The Shame of the Cities — the height of muckraking came about when the magazine McClure’s ran a series of articles by Steffens on city corruption, later collected into The Shame of Cities.
Ida. M. Tarbell History of the Standard Oil Company — McClure’s also ran History of the Standard Oil Company by Ida M. Tarbell, which provided a much more detailed and critical analysis of Standard Oil than Wealth Against Commonwealth.
Direct primaries — primary elections by all voters at the polls, instead of a select few voters at local caucuses selecting delegates to attend higher conventions. This was one of the key Progressive government reforms.
Party primary — another Progressive Era reform, this was the nominating primary election for a particular party.
Initiative — if a citizen wishes to enact a law but the legislature is not willing, the citizen may write a petition, and if enough legal voters sign it, then the petition becomes a referendum at the next election.
Referendum — an initiative which has gotten the requisite signatures is but on the ballot at the next election, and citizens may vote it up or down. If the referendum passes, then the initiative becomes law and bypasses the state government.
Recall — an election brought by a petition for the recall (removal) of a state official which has met the requisite number of legal signatures. If the electorate voted the official out, the official would have to leave. This was primarily a method of removing corrupt or inept officials without waiting for the next election and was a major Progressive Era reform.
Seventeenth Amendment — a Constitutional Amendment passed in 1912 and ratified in 1913 which allowed for the direct election of senators as opposed to the elections by state legislatures. This was heavily resisted by senators, but they finally gave in after many states adopted elections which indicated to the state legislatures which way to vote on senators.
“gospel of efficiency” — one of the gospels of Progressivism, perfected by Frederick Taylor. It preached to be the most efficient possible in order to accomplish the most in the least time and not waste any time.
Frederick W. Taylor — in his book The Principles of Scientific Management, Taylor studied very exhaustively every job done by the average worker and came up with a system to improve factory efficiency, expecting higher wages and specialized workers to follow. However, many workers resented Taylorism because it gave employers another reason to rush them beyond what was healthy or fair.
Taylorism — a system by which workers’ efficiency was improved, especially by those whose jobs were very mechanical and standardized.
Commission system — a system of local government under which the ultimate authority rested in the elected heads of the various municipal departments (such as sanitation, police, fire, etc.). This was adopted after the deadly hurricane in 1901 which struck Galveston, TX.
Galveston, Texas — the site hardest hit by a horrific hurricane in 1901. The island was mostly submerged in floodwaters for a while, and over 6,000 people perished. After this disaster, the city government transferred to the commission system.
City-manager Plan — a far more popular plan of city management under which a professional manager ran the city according to guidelines set by a city council and mayor.
Robert M. LaFollette — the governor who promoted government by expert politicians as opposed to regular citizens as proposed by Andrew Jackson. He felt that the nuances of an industrialized nation’s government were beyond most common folk. He advocated progressivism in addition to this and widely spread this “Wisconsin Idea.”
Regulation — the regulation of gigantic corporations was the main problem facing reformers of the time, and there were only four solutions, two of which were simply not feasible: the previous laissez-faire policy and a movement to socialism. The other two were to adopt a trust-busting attitude or to simply regulate trusts so as to prevent abuses. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act was of the latter two categories.
Sherman Anti-Trust Act in 1890 — a rather weak but symbolic act which represented the first step taken against trusts and their iron hold on society. The law was weak because it laid out no system of penalities for offenders.
Social justice — a keystone of the Progressive Era was the movement for social justice, which included, among other things, prohibition, an end to child labor, and promotion of private charities to help slum dwellers. But perhaps the most notable achievement of this branch of Progressivism was the establishment of the National Child Labor Committee.
National Child Labor Committee — a committee dedicated to the cause of eradicating the widespread use of child labor in factories, led by photographer Lewis Hine. The committee attempted to sway state and local legislatures to do something to prevent the continuation of the awful system, but were largely unsuccessful until the end of the Great Depression, when adults worked for as little as children anyway.
Lewis W. Hine — a photographer who captured some of the horrors of child labor.
Florence Kelley — one of the people leading the movement for the limitation of women’s working hours. She got her way in Muller vs. Oregon in 1908.
Lochner vs. New York — a 1905 Supreme Court case which struck down laws which allowed a maximum ten-hour workday, saying it interfered with a worker’s right to freely negotiate a contract with his employer.
Muller vs. Oregon — a 1908 Supreme Court case in which the Court ruled that a law forbidding a workday longer than 10 hours for women was allowed. The decision was made largely based on sociological data which indicated the negative impacts on women’s health of long workdays.
Bunting vs. Oregon — a 1917 Supreme Court case in which the Court finally accepted the ten workday for both men and women. However, it held out for 20 more years against child labor and state minimum wage laws.
Triangle Shirtwaist Company & Fire — a disastrous fire on the 8th, 9th, and 10th floors of the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in which 146 women died because the main doors were locked to prevent unions from entering and the rusty fire escape broke early on.
Prohibition — a movement to prohibit the sale, purchase, or manufacture of alcohol. Many people justified this by arguing that alcohol was the root of the evils in society and also was linked to “bossism” and “special interests.” The movement was championed by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, the Anti-Saloon League, and many religious organizations, as well as a Prohibition Party. These organizations got their will when Congress adopted a prohibition amendment in 1913, ratified in 1919.
Women's Christian Temperance Union — an organization of women deeply involved in the Prohibition movement since 1874.
Anti-Saloon League — another Prohibition organization founded in 1893. Its proposal for a constitutional amendment given at its “Jubilee Convention” in 1913 was adopted and passed by Congress.
Theodore Roosevelt — the vice-presidential candidate along with William McKinley in the 1900 election. However, McKinley was assassinated, and Roosevelt took power, initially garnering support by promising to further McKinley’s policies. He worked with Republicans in Congress, but accomplished more by executive action: he believed that what he was not expressly forbidden by the Constitution was permissible. With Congress not complying with antitrust legislation, Roosevelt pursued a new line in careful judicial action. He called this approach against trusts the “Square Deal.”
“Square Deal” — Roosevelt’s plan to take on the trusts, by enforcing existing legislation and asking for more to regulate the large trusts. To make an example and avoid the case of the sugar trust all over again, he chose the railroad giants to start.
United States v. E.C. Knight and Company — an antitrust lawsuit in which the Supreme Court ruled for the Sugar Trust because manufacturing was an intrastate activity and not subject to federal regulation. This 1895 ruling, however, made Roosevelt all the wiser as to the decision-making of the Supreme Court and allowed him to pick a very sure first target, the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Railroad.
Great Northern and Northern Pacific — a giant conglomerate of railroads owned by J. Pierpont Morgan and James J. Hill. Their stock battle with E. H. Harriman of the Union Pacific led to fear of a financial panic on Wall Street, but peace came at last when the three settled to make a holding company as a monopoly. Roosevelt came in at this critical juncture and ordered his attorney-general to break up the company, and he was successful when the Supreme Court ruled so in 1904.
Northern Securities — the holding company for the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Railroad as the Union Pacific, all critical to northwestern shipping. However, this combination forged a monopoly and Roosevelt took this opportunity to make an example of the railroad trusts/monopolies.
1902 Coal Strike — a strike by West Virginia coal miners demanding a 9-hour workday, a 20% pay raise, and official union recognition. Roosevelt himself called the parties to the White House, but when the mine owners refused to talk with the mine union, the UMW, Roosevelt grew mad at them and threatened to use the military to operate the mines. However, he was spared this dubious move by the mine owners, who agreed to talk to the UMW in front of an arbitration commission named by Roosevelt. The result for the workers was a 9-hour workday, a 10% pay raise, but no official union recognition. Nonetheless, this was a major union victory.
United Mine Workers — the union of West Virginia mine workers which organized the successful 1902 Coal Strike and, with the help of Roosevelt, was able to secure major concessions from the mine owners.
Swift and Company v. United States — another victory for the trustbusting Roosevelt. In this case, the meatpacking industry had avoided bidding competitive prices in a deal with the beef industry, and the Court ordered this to stop. This was the first time the Court used the “stream of commerce” theory: theory which provided that since the products manufactured moved in and out of the state “in the stream of commerce,” they could be subject to federal regulation.
Alton B. Parker — the Chief Justice of the New York Supreme Court, who had upheld the principle of the closed shop, in which the employer could only hire union workers. the Democrats nominated him in their 1904 bid for the presidency and modeled him as a safe conservative. However, the immensely popular Roosevelt could not be stopped: he ran over the Republican convention of 1904 and stomped all over Parker, 7.6 million-5.1 million in the popular vote and 336-140 in the Electoral College.
Henry Frick — a steel mogul who had supported Roosevelt in his presidential bid, but who felt betrayed by Roosevelt’s more confident approach towards corporations (Roosevelt ended up filing 25 lawsuits overall against trusts).
The Elkins Act of 1903 — an act which forbade railroads from giving secret rebates or discounts to any one customer. This act helped the railroads as much as anyone else, for no longer did so many independent shippers ask for special favors.
The Hepburn Act — an act passed in 1906 which gave the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) the power to set maximum freight rates for railroads, and the commission no longer had to go to court to enforce its decisions, because while railroads could challenge the rates, they held the burden of proof that the rate was unfair to them. Also, the Hepburn Act extended the power of the ICC to pipelines, ferries, express companies, sleeping-car companies, and bridges.
Upton Sinclair The Jungle — this early progressive book created an uproar when published by revealing the awful conditions factory workers endured in the meatpacking plants of Chicago. Sinclair's main intent was to spread a quasi-Socialist message regarding the workers and their being oppressed, but the real effect was to shock the American public and Congress into passing food and drug safety acts.
Meat Inspection Act — this 1906 act was one of Congress’ two responses to Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle. It required federal inspection of meat destined for interstate commerce and allowed people in the Agriculture Department to impose sanitation standards.
Pure Food and Drug Act — this was another act congress passed in response to Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, and it forbade the manufacture, sale, or transportation of altered substances which were not what was advertised to be on the inside as well as harmful food, medicines, or liquors.
Division of Forestry — surprisingly enough, Roosevelt supported conservation of the environment unlike many of his contemporary industrialists. Congress had created a division within the Department of Agriculture,the Division of Forestry, which supervised the national parks and forests. Roosevelt appointed Gifford Pinchot, one fo the nation’s first scientific foresters, to head this division and added fifty national wildlife refuges and approved five new national parks.
Gifford Pinchot — the first scientific forester to head the Division of Forestry within the Department of Agriculture. He vigorously maintained and administered the lands and helped the president to top the unchecked destruction of the environment by industry. He also helped Roosevelt to enforce the Forest Reserve Act of 1891 to make sure that about 172 million acres of forest would not be disturbed by industry.
Forest Reserve Act — an 1891 act which prohibited the settlement upon federal wildlife preserves or in national parks and also disallowed development or logging. The enforcement of this act made industrialists angry, but they were powerless to stop it until the next president came along.
White House Conference on Conservation — Congress was not too happy about the conservation on which Roosevelt took such a hard line, and this resistance led Roosevelt and Pinchot to develop the White House Conference on Conservation in 1908 and the National Conservation Commission. The White House Conference publicized the cause of conservation to the people to garner support for it.
National Conservation Commission — a commission established by Roosevelt an Pinchot which recommended a thorough survey of the nation’s resources in minerals, water, forests, and soil. In close to 18 months, forty-one state conservation groups sprung up, along with many private organizations, which took up the cause. However, the conservation movement divided because there were some, including Pinchot, who believed that resources should be conserved for continued human use, while others believed in purely wilderness preserves. For example, Pinchot angered the famous naturalist John Muir by supporting a plan for a water reservoir to supply San Fransisco in the wild Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite.
William Howard Taft — Roosevelt’s handpicked successor to the White House. Taft was nominated without a fight on the first ballot and swept the Electoral College against William Jennings Bryan, 321-162. Notable in the election were the 421,000 votes cast for Eugene V. Debs as a socialist, but not enough to spoil the election. Unusual about Taft, however, was his dislike of politics: his wife wanted the office more than he did. However, Taft was forced to govern when his wife suffered a stroke and was bedridden for most of the rest of the term. On political issues, Taft, unlike his fellow Republicans in Congress, supported a lower tariff (which passed remarkably quickly) but in the process split off the Progressive faction of his party.
Nelson W. Aldrich — the chair of the Senate Finances Committee which made over 800 changes to the bill which the House passed. The joint committee session to work out the differences spat out a version closer to the Senate bill than the House, and over this issue, Progressives joined the Democrats but failed to defeat the bill, which they believed a throwback to old corrupt days.
Richard A. Ballinger — he was part of the Ballinger-Pinchot controversy which resulted in a major scandal that lessened Taft’s credibility. Secretary of the Interior Ballinger from Seattle was aware most westerners opposed conservation and that the efforts of Roosevelt and Pinchot had gone too far. Ballinger released about 1 million acres of federal land for commercial waterpower usage, an action with which Taft agreed. However, surreptitiously, Ballinger also released coal-rich lands in Alaska to a group of Seattle tycoons, who had already planned to sell the land beforehand, unbeknownst to anyone. Pinchot reported the development to Taft, who refused to take any action. When Pinchot went public with this information, Taft fired him for insubordination, but a congressional investigation of Ballinger had started which resulted in his resignation in 1911 (although it exonerated him).
Joseph G. Cannon — the Republican Speaker of the House who held almost absolute power over procedure because he appointed all committees and their chairmen. After their victory in obtaining a congressional investigation of Ballinger, the Republican progressives joined the Democrats and decided to clip Cannon’s powers. They ousted him from the House Rules Committee and made it a 15-member committee elected by the House, not a 5-man group appointed by the Speaker. In the next Congress, the rules would be further changed so that all committees were elective.
Taft “betrayal” — when Roosevelt returned from his big-game hunt in Africa after his presidency, he read a little bit about how Taft had been very conservative at a time when progressivism was running high. However, he refused to break with Taft, but did refuse a dinner invitation with the words “I shall keep my mind open as I keep my mouth shut.” But despite this, Roosevelt was swept back into politics and began campaigning for Republicans in New York, then went on a speaking tour of the West. In Kansas, he gave a name for his new principles, the “New Nationalism”. However, in 1911, Roosevelt did break with Taft over his filing an antitrust lawsuit against a merger Roosevelt had approved to avoid a panic.
“New Nationalism” — a set of principles which Roosevelt expounded in his 1910-1912 campaigning, which included a new set of federal regulations of businesses and whatnot, including a strengthened Bureau of Corporations, a social-welfare program, new measures to ensure direct democracy, including the measures of initiative, referendum, and recall. Roosevelt said he wanted not to revolutionize American life but save it from revolution. He said, “What I have advocatedis not wild radicalism. It is the highest and wisest kind of conservatism.”
Appalachian Forest Reserve Act — an act which Taft signed which enlarged the national forest by land purchases in the East in 1911.
Mann-Elkins Act — this act, passed in 1910 with Taft’s approval, gave the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) even more powers: the power to initiate rate changes and extend regulations to telephone and telegraph companies. The act also set up a Commerce Court to speed up the process of ICC complaints and hearings.
Sixteenth Amendment — this constitutional amendment authorized a federal income tax, struck down by the Supreme Court in an earlier law as unconstitutional. Taft supported this amendment as it went through Congress.
Thomas Woodrow Wilson — the Democratic candidate for the presidency in the election of 1912. As late as 1910, Wilson had had nothing to do with politics, but in 1910 he was elected governor of New Jersey after being president of Princeton. However, he also was very dogmatic with regard to his principles and what he believed right—something that would prove a weakness.
Election of 1912 — with Republicans divided between Roosevelt, the “Bull Moose” candidate, and the incumbent Taft, Wilson easily secured a victory in the election. The other candidate was the Socialist Eugene V. Debs, who scored a record 900,000 votes or 6%. The election marked the height of Progressivism and also the high-water point of socialism in the United States. Additionally, it was only the second time since the Civil War that the Democrats controlled both Congress and the presidency.
“New Freedom” — Wilson’s theory on where the country should be headed. Roosevelt had a very catchy name, the “New Nationalism,” and Wilson, after conferring with New York progressive lawyer Louis Brandeis, who wrote about his theory, Wilson called his plan the “New Freedom.” This plan focused on restoring competition to smaller economic unions as opposed to gigantic trusts and called fr strict antitrust regulation, lowering tariffs to increase foreign competition, and also the breakup of the concentration of all the financial power in the country on Wall Street. Wilson viewed the expansion of government power as temporary, but Roosevelt, who believed that this would become permanent, dismissed the “New Freedom” as a fantasy.
Bureau of Corporations — this was the federal watchdog agency which made sure that companies did not get too large and become monopolistic. Roosevelt’s “New Nationalism” called for strengthening this organization and preventing the heads of business from obtaining seats on it.
Louis D. Brandeis — a progressive New York lawyer who coined the term “New Freedom” which became Wilson’s campaign slogan. In addition, he expressed the ideas behind the “New Freedom” in very much the same way as New York journalist Herbert Croly had expressed Roosevelt’s ideas.
Wilsonian Reform — in his inaugural address, Wilson said hat industry had brought the nation very far, but that to continue advancing, one must step back and consider the terrible human cost of large industries and fix the problems there. Wilson also argued for a lower tariff to help the end consumer and a new banking system to financially secure the country.
Underwood-Simmons Tariff — Wilson’s first test came over the tariff issue. He exercised his constitutional right to summon Congress into special session and personally gave a speech—the first president to do so since John Adams—on the subject of tariff reform. Since the House was predominantly Democratic, the bill passed with ease, but then went to the Senate, the “graveyard” of tariff reforms. Lobbyists gathered in Washington so thick that Wilson said that “a brick couldn’t be thrown without hitting one of them.” In the end, the tariff reform bill, the Underwood-Simmons Tariff, passed the Senate and reduced the average tariff rate from 37% to 29% and added some items to the no-tariff list. In addition, this act levied the first income taxes, 1% on incomes over $3,000 ($57K today) per year ($4,000 ($76K today) for married couples). The tax was then graduated from about 2% on incomes over $20,000 ($382K today) per year to 7% on incomes over $500,000 ($9.6M today) per year.
Glass-Owen Federal Reserve Act — the law which set up the Federal Reserve System, designed to please farmers and businessmen alike, and which is still in use today (look on any value bill and you will see “Federal Reserve Note” somewhere on it). This system prescribed twelve Federal Reserve Banks located around the country (to please farmers), each owned by member banks (to make businessmen happy). All banks could become members, but they would have to deposit 6% of its capital there and also a portion of its reserves, depending on the size of the community where the member bank was. Additionally, these banks did not at all deal with individuals, just banks, for whom their chief function was to take over loans using Federal Reserve Notes (dollar bills). This accomplished three things: first, it spread money out around the country, lessening the absolute control of Wall Street; second, new bank reserves could be pooled, giving greater security to investments; and finally, both the currency and bank credit became more elastic.
Sherman Anti-Trust Act in 1912 — Wilson made trustbusting the central focus of his “New Freedom,” and as a result, extensively used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. To eliminate the problem of what defined “restraint of trade,” Wilson created a strong Federal Trade Commission, which replaced the Bureau of Corporations.
Federal Trade Commission — a five member commission which had the authority to issue “cease and desist” orders to large corporations engaged in unfair competition. Wilson replaced the Board of Corporations with this commission.
Clayton Anti-Trust Act — a strengthened version of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act (#23,72) which also included some other prohibitions, such as “tying,” or not allowing distributors to sell a competitor’s product, and charging different consumers different prices for different goods. However, conservatives in the Senate always managed to qualify the provisions by adding “where the effect may be to substantially lessen competition” or words to that effect. Nonetheless, the law was a major step and Samuel Gompers called it the laborer’s “Magna Carta.”
LaFollette Seaman's Act — an act pushed through by Robert LaFollette, started by stubborn agitation from the head of the Seaman’s Union. This law heightened minimum ship safety requirements, reduced the power of captains over their sailors, set minimum food standards, and required regular wage payments.
Progressivism for Whites Only — like almost all other Progressives, Wilson showed no interest in the plight of the blacks. In fact, he and most of his advisers were very racist, and while he denounced the Ku Klux Klan “reign of terror,” he sympathized with returning the South to white rule and relieving whites of the “ignorant and hostile” black vote.
Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 — an act in Wilson’s progressive resurgence right before his reelection campaign which provided for federal loans to farmers through Federal Farm Banks, parallel to the Federal Reserve Banks except concentrated in farming regions. These banks offered five- to forty-year loans to farmers at low interest rates.
Smith-Lever Act of 1914 — this provided federal grants-in-aid for farm demonstration agents under the supervision of land-grant colleges (colleges which had come about through the federal government giving land to the states to be sold to support colleges). It passed Congress with little resistance.
Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 — this law extended agricultural and mechanical education to high schools through grants-in-aid. It also passed Congress with little resistance.
Federal Highways Act of 1916 — this act was really the first significant step in the direction of internal improvements since the National Road, approved in 1806. It provided a dollar-matching contribution to state highway departments whose roads met certain standards.
Keating-Owen Child Labor Act — a 1919 law which excluded from interstate commerce all items which had been manufactured by children under the age of fourteen. However, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional along with another act which used a prohibitive tax to achieve the same purpose.

Chapter 25: America and the Great War

Wilson and foreign affairs — Wilson was very inexperienced in the ways of foreign affairs and declared that it would be “an irony of fate if my administration had to deal chiefly with foreign affairs.” However, the irony became reality, unfortunately for the stern, Puritanical Wilson.
William Jennings Bryan — the first Secretary of State under Wilson, who like his boss, believed that America had a religious and moral duty towards the world. Between 1913-1924, Bryan negotiated about 30 “cooling-off” treaties with other nations under which nations pledged not to go to war for one year unless otherwise decreed by an international arbitration panel. However, these treaties were largely disregarded in the bloodbath which shook Europe in 1914 and created the Great War.
Mexico — this country just south of the Rio Grande had been undergoing revolution and instability for the last three years when Wilson entered the presidency. In 1911, after 35 years in power, Porfirio Díaz had finally been overthrown, but Fransisco Madero was unable to unite Mexico and was too thrown out, to be replaced by the repressive military dictator General Huerta 1913. In response, Wilson decided to set a new precedent of nonrecognition and also put diplomatic and economic pressure on Mexico. Finally, Wilson broke off the embargo so he could send aid to the rebels trying to overthrow Huerta and also to send ships to blockade Vera Cruz to prevent the shipment of supplies to Huerta. Finally, in late 1914, negotiations by the ABC Powers and also growing resentment force Huerta out of office, and Venustiano Carranza, the rebel leader, entered Mexico City. The US recognized his government a year later, despite the continuing problems on the border.
President Porfirio Díaz — the oppressive, corrupt leader of Mexico from 1876 until 1911, when he was forced out of office. He was noted for showering favors upon his rich friends who owned most of Mexico and also suppressing any opposition by force.
Francisco I. Madero — the interim leader of Mexico after Diaz was thrown out. However, his ineptitude showed and he ended up being ousted by some of his power-struggle rivals and mysteriously ended up murdered.
Venustiano Carranza — the Constitutionalist Party leader backed by Wilson and the United States in the power struggle in Mexico. Through United States negotiations and other pressures, he finally assumed power in late 1914 and was later recognized by the United States and some other Latin American nations.
ABC Powers — Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, who helped to remove Huerta in Mexico.
Pancho Villa — a bandit who rebelled against Carranza and began to terrorize Americans on the southern border with Mexico. At one point, he crossed the border and killed 17 Americans. Grudgingly, and not without resistance from Carranza, Wilson send federal troops under General Pershing to find and capture Villa, without success.
General John J. Pershing — the U.S. general sent to Texas to find and capture Pancho Villa but who net with little success. Additionally, after he returned home, the Mexican government sent out its own search parties.
“dollar diplomacy” — President Taft’s policy of encouraging investment in Latin American countries to help them prosper. However, Wilson’s frequent intervention in Latin America and sparse investments earned his policies the name “ten-cent diplomacy.”
Haiti, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua — countries where Taft encouraged American investment to stabilize struggling economies. Wilson intervened in two of those: Haiti and Nicaragua
Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand — assassinated almost by accident by Gavrilo Princip of the Black Hand, a Serbian nationalist terrorist organization, which (unintentionally?) set off the Great War, resulting in 9 million dead or wounded men in uniform and even more civilians.
Triple Alliance (Central Powers) — militaristic Germany, the collapsing Austria-Hungarian empire, and also Italy. They were the “have nots” of the world and wanted above all more land and influence.
Triple Entente (Allied Powers) — the satisfied nations of the world, they had all that they desired in colonies and territory as well as influence. This military alliance was between Britain, Russia, and France.
William Jennings Bryan (again!) — the United States Secretary of State under Wilson who aided greatly in ensuring United States neutrality in the opening stages of World War I. He pled the case for neutral shipping to both sides during the war and also maintained some semblance of order at home by making sure Americans did not blatantly favor one side or another (such as J. P. Morgan, who wanted to loan $500 million to the British). He also called upon the warring powers to sign the Declaration of London, which reduced the lists of contraband items (items not allowed on neutral ships in war, for example) and also stated that blockades were only legal right outside the enemy ports. Ironically, the Central Powers all accepted it, but the British refused lest they lose some of their naval advantage.
Neutral Rights — the United States, led by Wilson and Bryan, proclaimed that since the United States was neutral, and did not use neutral flags to conceal arms, it was not subject to torpedoing as British vessels were. Additionally, the United States claimed complete freedom of the seas: the German policy of unrestricted submarine warfare was “an indefensible violation of neutral rights” and that Germany would be held to “strict accountability” for any damages. However, as we will see, these rights were not very fully respected. The British did indeed stay within the boundary of search and seizure set by Wilson and Bryan due to the state of war, but German U-boats simply torpedoed vessels, angering Americans back home.
U-boat — short for “Untersee-boot” (submarine in German).
Lusitania — an enormous cruise ship, cousin to the Titanic, which was carrying a load of passengers, including several hundred Americans. A German U-boat torpedoed it without warning and claimed the boat was carrying weapons (which later investigations revealed to be true to the extent that the ship was carrying some small arms, but was entirely unverifiable at the time). Over 125 Americans died in the explosion, infuriating the American populace even more and adding impetus to Theodore Roosevelt’s cries for war. Wilson, politically forced to hold the Germans to “strict accountability,” sent a second note repeating his demands in stronger terms. Secretary of State Bryan resigned in protest and joined the peace movement.
Sussex — on March 24, 1916, a U-boat torpedoed the French steamer it Sussex, injuring two Americans. However, the Germans assured Wilson after this that they would not target merchant or passenger vessels. This implied the abandonment of submarine warfare, something which Germany resumed almost as quickly as they halted it.
National Security League — a group to promote “preparedness” for war if war came (e.g. they were gearing up for war). They had been founded when the war broke out, but received a boost with the sinking of the Lusitania off of the British Isles, for Wilson asked the War and the Navy Departments for expansion proposals.
Jane Addams — one of the pacifist leaders. Along with Carrie Chapman Catt, she organized the Women’s Peace Party.
Carrie Chapman Catt — a founder of the Women’s Peace Party and also a leader of the women’s suffrage movement.
Women's Peace Party — a single-issue party founded by Jane Addams and Carrie Chapman Catt for the purpose of pressuring Wilson to keep the United States out of war. They opposed any form of military involvement or expansion, but instead favored diplomatic alternatives.
Naval Construction Act (1916) — the bill for a stronger navy did not arouse much debate because people generally believed that a country shows less imperialistic pretension with a strong navy that with a strong army. Also, since the Untied States had two oceans and overseas colonies to defend, Congress quite readily approved the $500-$600 million appropriation to strengthen the Navy.
Revenue Act (1916) — this doubled the income tax: from 1% to 2% on all, and lifted the additional taxes on larger fortunes up to 13% (for a total of 15% on the richest). This also added several new taxes: ones on estates, corporate capital, revenues of munitions makers, surpluses, as well as excess profits. This tax was the largest Progressive victory of the first term of Wilson’s presidency and prepared the president for the campaign and election ahead.
Election of 1916 — Teddy Roosevelt hoped to once again lead the Republican Party, which hoped to gain the usual majority in congress once more. However, Republicans divided over many issues and separated by loyalties to various politicians such as Roosevelt or Hughes could not organize effectively. Plus, Roosevelt had also lost their unified support after bolting from the party in 1912 to run for president once more. As a result, the Republicans turned to Justice Charles Evans Hughes.
Charles Evans Hughes — the Republican candidate for the presidency in the election 1916, He had a progressive record and had also refrained from speaking out on foreign policy issues, making him the ideal choice to combat Wilson, who was coming off of some very tough foreign policy problems.
Peace and progressivism — the twin promises of Wilson which let him squeeze by Justice Charles Evans Hughes by a margin of 3,772 votes in California to capture the presidency.
Arthur Zimmermann — the German foreign minister who sent a secret telegram to his envoy to Mexico.
Zimmermann Telegram — a message from German foreign minister Arthur Zimmerman to his envoy in Mexico instructing him to offer the Mexicans an alliance and also territorial incentives for attacking the United States should the United States declare war on Germany. After the collapse of Russia on the Eastern Front, the Germans anticipated a quick victory before the Americans could deploy, and only needed a delaying tactic to keep the United States at home. However, this backfired and raised public sentiment against Germany, all the while angering the Wilson administration more and more and pushing the United States closer to war with Germany. After this and Germany resuming unrestricted submarine warfare, the United States broke off diplomatic relations.
Food and Fuel Control Act (1917) — this created a Food Administration under Herbert Hoover, which sought to raise agricultural production. Additionally, through extensive propaganda, it promoted “Meatless Tuesdays,” “Wheatless Wednesdays,” and so on to save food for the army in Europe. He also championed “victory gardens” in which people grew their own food on a very small scale and also the creative use of leftovers. On the whole, Hoover and the Food Administration were highly successful.
Herbert Hoover — the leader of the Food Administration (see #31) and also future president.
War Industries Board — a board established in 1917 and which became the most important of all the “home front” mobilization organizations. This was led by Bernard Baruch, who had a virtual dictatorship over the economy: he could tell who to produce what for what price and when with what raw materials. This was certainly unconstitutional but also temporary and designed to transform the economy into and efficient war machine.
Bernard Baruch — a Wall Street speculator who led the War Industries Board (WIB).
“Great Migration” — the movement of hundreds of thousands of African American families to the North from the South in search of better opportunities and also drawn by the lure of sorely needed labor in factories. In fact, Northern recruiters went as far as to travel South and recruit African Americans to come North and work. Although this created many racial tensions and sometimes broke out in race riots, the large scale movement of African Americans north also helped to ease tensions on the class of impoverished tenant farmers of South.
Committee on Public Information — basically a government-funded propaganda bureau whose goal it was to win over the minds of the people and press them into the war effort. Wilson appointed George Creel as its head and basically tried to sell the war to the American people.
George Creel — a Denver journalist and the leader of the Committee on Public Information, who gathered a crew of filmmakers, journalists, and artists, to persuade America to accept the war. Also, the propaganda machine targeted Germany because it could potentially encourage the forces of moderation and peace among the population.
Liberty Bonds — $5 billion worth of bonds sold during the Great War to help finance both the Allies and also the United States government and Army. The Committee on Public Information organized a set of 75,000 “Four-minute Men,” trained to give short speeches on hot topics and also on conservation of food and energy for the troops.
Espionage and Sedition Acts — two extremely repressive acts severely restricting the freedom of speech within the United States and forbidding the criticism of the government or its war policies. These were primarily aimed at Socialists, Communists, and anarchists, who mostly supported peace and certainly not Wilson’s government. The movement was partly political strategy and partly a witch hunt for Socialists and Communists, as well as a method of ensuring continual public support of the war. These laws were very well-enforced and thousands of people went to jail for unreasonable terms for violation of these laws, including Socialist leader Eugene V. Debs. The Espionage Act, passed in 1917, officially forbade aiding the enemy, trying to incite insubordination, disloyalty, or refusal to serve in the military, or circulating false statements intended to interfere with the war effort. The Sedition Act was even more restrictive and extended the $10,000 fine and 20 years in prison prescribed by the Espionage Act to people who attempted to obstruct the sale of Liberty Bonds or those who advocated cutbacks in production and also (this was the political engineering) to anyone who said, wrote, or printed something “disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive.”
Eugene V. Debs — the Socialist party leader who actively tried to convince men not to sign up for the draft or participate in the war. He was arrested and convicted for this and sentenced to 20 years in prison. In 1920, still in jail, he nonetheless received over 1,000,000 votes for the presidency.
Schenck v. United States — one of two Supreme Court cases affirming the Espionage and Sedition Acts. In this case, the Supreme Court ruled that distributing antidraft leaflets was against the Espionage Act and that during time of war, Congress had a right to prevent evils which overly free speech might create.
Paris Peace Conference — a conference in Paris between the Allied forces of France, Britain, and the United States to state war aims. Both Britain and France wanted reparations from Germany, while the United States desired nothing but a return to peace and neutrality. However, none of the Allies stated clearly enough for Wilson what their war aims were and thus the conference failed. Colonel House, one of Wilson’s advisors, told Wilson that since the other nations could not formulate an adequate postwar policy, the Wilson should do it for himself. Later on, during the negotiations for the Treaty of Versailles, Wilson presented his 14 points for world peace and prosperity in person (which came back to haunt him later).
Treaty of London (1915) — a secret treaty between Italy and Britain in which Italy agreed to join the fight on the side of the Allies in return for promises of land and colonies once the war ended. Ultimately, much of this was disregarded and Italy ended up feeling disregarded and unhappy.
League of Nations — the organization which Wilson 14th point outlines: a council of may nations to decide the course of world affairs. However, the United States did not join because the Senate did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles which had the provision for the League of Nations.
“war guilt clause” — the clause which France and Britain most desired in the future treaty being negotiated at Versailles. It blamed Germany for the entire war and required Germany to pay 100% of the costs of the war to the victors Britain and France (and somewhat Italy, though the Italians were shafted for the most part).
Henry Cabot Lodge — one of the most powerful political figures in Washington, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. He had some doubts over the Treaty of Versailles, especially the League of Nations, which he believed would entangle the United States in foreign alliances, against the advice of George Washington. Additionally, Lodge disliked Wilson intensely and was eager to go out of his way to ruin Wilson’s political career, such as killing the bill of peace in the Senate, which is what he proceeded to do.
“irreconcilables” — people who would not accept the Treaty of Versailles under any circumstances.
“reservationists” — people who would accept the Treaty of Versailles under certain circumstances: they believed parts of the treaty were flawed and need revision. In the end, the reservationists had a large enough faction to defeat the treaty by teaming up with the“irreconcilables”.
The Spanish Flu — an epidemic of this deadly strain of the flu swept through the world right after the end of the Great War. It devastated many families and killed over 22 million people worldwide, more than double the number of people who died in World War I. Among the perished were over 500,000 Americans. However, the most interesting part of this epidemic was that people were relatively complacent with respect to the devastation which it created and took it very much in stride, compared to epidemics today, where people often complain about something or other.
Economic Transition — the problems of moving from a wartime economy producing guns under the watchful eye of the government to a peacetime economy making a diversity of items in relative freedom were large. Unrest and protests were common, against the Sedition and Espionage Acts and also the strict controls which Bernard Baruch exercised over the economy on the War Industries Board.
William Z. Foster — the leader of the AFL’s campaign to organized steel workers into a union, originally a regular labor supporter, but then converted to socialism and communism. His radicalism basically guaranteed that people paid more attention to his political/economic beliefs than his union, which mostly failed.
Calvin Coolidge — the president of the United States after Warren Harding died mysteriously on vacation, but also the governor of Massachusetts during some of the race rioting which embroiled the nation right after the “Great Migration”, during which crisis he called in the National Guard to maintain order.
“the Red Summer” — a term coined by James Weldon Johnson, a black leader of the time. So much blood was shed that the month was dubbed “Red” (no relation to communism). It all began when the whites attacked the black section of Longview, TX to search for a teacher who allegedly had an affair with a white lady.
Chicago Riot — one of the deadliest race riots across the nation (38 killed, 537injured) in response to the Grat Migration and the vast influx of African Americans into a predominantly white society.
Red Scare — an unholy dread of communism and also of the socialists and anarchist who preached in similar ways. It was primarily manifested in mobs and adult gangs, but also simply in violence and overly negative attitudes towards whites.
A. Mitchell Palmer — the target of a letter bomb sent anonymously by an anarchist or one of their minions. The bomb blew the in entire front of his house but Palmer was all right. However, Palmer did in fact, without Roosevelt’s approval, transport a shipful of nasty immigrants to Soviet Russia regardless of previous experience with communism or socialism.
J. Edgar Hoover — the manager of the General Intelligence Division which began collecting files on suspected terrorists, anarchists, and the like. At the end of a few years, he presented his files and several hundred names to Palmer, who had the people promptly but on the list to be taken to Russia.
Buford or “Soviet Ark” — the transport ship which took all of the “non-American” communists and socialists and brought them to the Soviet Union. Many were successful there, while others longed for the United States anyway, despite it being democratic.

Chapter 26: The Modern Temper

Nativism — this was a movement to return to the old-time “dominance” of the white Protestants, considered by themselves to be the superior race. Exhibited by numerous books and “proven” using several scientific theories such as Darwinism and relativity, this was a movement led often by the Ku Klux Klan, notorious for its violent and intimidating tactics to stop blacks and immigrants from voting. Additionally, this movement pushed for legislation in Washington restricting or altogether banning immigration (except from Northern and Western Europe). These people got their wish in 1921 when the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921 passed.
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti — two anarchists arrested on May 5, 1920, for burglary and murder. Their trial, however, far from being fair, was a travesty of justice and the verdict—a death sentence—attracted worldwide attention and pleas from leaders and people around the world who believed that the clearly biased judge and jury had ruled on the fact that the two men were anarchists instead of based on the facts. Protesters demonstrated for years in many of Europe’s capitals and major cities, people demonstrated in the cities in the United States to protest the verdict, but nothing came of this, and both men were executed in the electric chair in 1927. Recently, many investigations have been undertaken to see whether or not the two men were actually guilty, but many have proved inconclusive or have pointed more towards guilt than towards innocence.
Madison Grant's The Passing of the Great Race — one of several books which talked about the white Anglo-Saxon Protestants being the dominant race or the “great race” but also mentioned that its “superiority” was passing away because of the large influx of Eastern European and Latin immigrants were flooding in and slowly taking over the polls. This publication inspired additional nativism and contributed to the passage of the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921.
Emergency Immigration Act of 1921 — Congress, influenced by the propaganda in The Passing of the Great Race, passed this act to severely limit immigration. This law specifically limited immigration from any nation to 3% of that nation’s immigrants in the United States as of the 1910 census. A further law in 1924 made this 2% of the immigrants in the United States as of the 1890 census, excluding more of the Eastern European and Latin immigrants and making 85% of the legal immigrants from Northern and Western Europe. This law also completely excluded the Japanese, already out in the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907.
“Gentlemen's Agreement” — an agreement with Japan in which the United States agreed to stop discrimination in schools against Japanese, Korean, and Chinese children in return for Japan’s assurance to not allow immigrants t leave for the United States.
The Ku Klux Klan — a violent nativist group centered in the South (though it certainly existed in the North) which specialized in the intimidation, torture, and lynching of blacks and immigrants. The Klan also liked to burn crosses. In the 1920s, with the return of a nativist fever in the United States, in addition The Birth of a Nation, the Klan rose once more, to a peak membership of over 4 million.
Fundamentalism — old-time churches and ministers felt threatened by “new” churches and Biblical interpretations and the idea that the Bible could be studied in a modern, scholarly light. Extreme religious conservatives took a extremist stance towards the new beliefs, led by William Jennings Bryan, publicized in the Scopes “monkey” trial. Anti-evolutionists began to try to pass laws forbidding the teaching of evolution in schools, with only limited success, and even then, success came only in the South. People such as Governor Ferguson of Texas got laws which forbade “such rot” into textbooks, only to have their positions severely undermined with the national (international?) publicity which the Scopes trial received.
William Jennings Bryan (again!) — the national Christian fundamentalist leader who defended the state in the Scopes trial. He was the only person with enough previous prestige to make the movement into a popular crusade, and even then, he met with limited success. In fact, after his “duel to the death” with Clarence Darrow in the Scopes trial, he died of a heart condition aggravated by his appearance in court.
Gov. Miriam “Ma” Ferguson — the fundamentalist governor of Texas who said, “I am a Christian mother, and I am not going to let that kind of rot go into Texas schoolbooks.” She outlawed any textbooks which contained Darwinism.
John T. Scopes — a young biology teacher in Tennessee who was convinced by the locals to defy the state law forbidding teaching evolution in classes. The governor of Tennessee, although he disagreed with the law, had signed it to avoid losing popularity and also in the hope that it would never be applied; but he was wrong. Scopes was charged with teaching evolution in school, and the ACLU, led by famous lawyer Clarence Darrow, defended Scopes.
“monkey trial” — the Scopes trial in Tennessee, so called because of the arguments in court and the result which was not based upon the quality of arguments of each side. Bryan and his fundamentalists began with the simple accusation of Scopes for teaching evolution and how it was contrary to the Bible, etc. Darrow, when told that he could not use scientific testimony, resorted to calling Bryan himself to the stand and ridiculing and entrapping him in biblical interpretations, concluding that Bryan himself was simply inept and was reciting “fool ideas that no Christian on earth believes.” Darrow infuriated Bryan so well that at one point, the two lunged at each other, ready to fight it out, prompting the judge to adjourn the court for the day.
Clarence Darrow — a star lawyer and the counsel for Scopes in the infamous “monkey trial” in Tennessee, which turned the fundamentalist movement into a target through excellent publicity.
Prohibition — the idea, begun even in Reconstruction, of lowering liquor consumption and the evils it caused. This was supported from the beginning by the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the Anti-Saloon League, and they finally sent an Amendment to Congress after their “Jubilee Convention” in 1913. Congress ratified it in 1916 and the last of the states ratified it January 16, 1919. One year later, all alcoholic beverages were officially illegal. Unfortunately, this did not quite work as intended
Women's Christian Temperance Union — the organization which had promoted temperance since the late 1800s, its was one of the leading forces behind the temperance movement in the United States around 1900. Along with the Anti-Saloon League, its sent an anti-alcohol amendment to Congress, passed in 1916, which subsequently became the 18th Amendment.
Morris Shepard — “the Father of American Prohibition” who was found to have a still with around 130 gallons of daily capacity on his farm. This was the epitome of Prohibition: the authorities could only find so much liquor and make so many raids, but much more existed. Furthermore, many upstanding individuals still drank in speakeasies.
“Scarface” Al Capone — the most infamous gangster and racketeer of the Prohibition Era. He moved from New York to Chicago and started his own gang of crooks. Soon, through bribery, murders, and the like, he rose to the top of the totem pole in organized crime. In 1927, his empire of prostitution, bootlegging, and gambling brought over $60 million a year. Finally, in 1930, with multiple infiltrations and investigations, he was nailed for tax evasion and sentenced to eleven years in, some at the famous Alcatraz Island facility. However, while in prison, the repeal of Prohibition seriously damaged his gang’s business and it began to crumble. When Capone was released in November 1939, his empire had collapse and he went to live in his mansion in Florida.
Jazz Age — the twenties were a time of change in many thing, not the least of which was popular culture. Young people were very willing to experiment with new forms of recreation and identity that writer F. Scott Fitzgerald named this decade the “Jazz Age.” In addition, the invention of jazz music, derived from a mixture of sources by mostly black artists, lent this era its name.
Roaring Twenties — a name for the economic success of the 1920s. The economy, driven by postwar consumption and the stock market, boomed, and because people had more time to themselves, a new culture emerged and conflicted with traditional Victorian values.
Sinclair Lewis Main Street — young people especially developed a dislike of the old-fashioned town instead of the newer city, and this was reflected in this book, which portrayed a mean, stifled, ignorant prairie town with “savorless people, gulping tasteless food, and sitting afterward, coatless and thoughtless, in rocking chairs prickly with inane decorations, listening to mechanical music, saying mechanical things about the excellence of Ford automobiles, and viewing themselves as the greatest race in the world.”
Thomas Wolfe Look Homeward, Angel — a book which scandalized Wolfe’s native city of Asheville, NC, because it portrayed his intense drive to be away from the nearby his and the “billion-footed city.”
F. Scott Fitzgerald — a famous writer of the 1920s who coined the term the “Jazz Age” to describe his time. he wrote several novels, The Great Gatsby being his most famous. He wrote about college life in This Side of Paradise, in which he mentioned that none of the Victorian mothers “had any idea how casually their daughters were accustomed to being kissed.” Fitzgerald’s themes often reflected the chaos of World War I but also the joys of life in the 1920s (for young people).
New Morality — the new set of morals and manners were a shock to older people, especially those practiced on college campuses, such as “petting parties” (you figure what that means), easy access to liquor, wild parties, promiscuity, and the like. Additionally, young people began to engage in questionable moral activities: about 47% of college women lost their virginity before marriage, three quarters to their future spouses. The most radical change, though, came with new expectations for marriage: people began to look for romance in marriage and women looked not to be relegated to the bottom of the relationship, but instead to be considered equal, in defiance of the traditional standard that the husband was the head of the family.
Dr. Sigmund Freud — the famous Viennese psychoanalyst who came to “prudish America” in 1909 and was surprised to find that everyone knew his name and that people talked about libido, inhibitions, Oedipus complexes, and repression.
“new women” — an expression for the individualistic spirit which women began to exhibit in the 1920s, resulting in the flappers and also new fashions. Women’s skirts went from six inches above the ground to the knees (oh man, what a transgression!?!). However, the new trend had run its way by the 1930s, and customs settled once more, though forever changed.
Robert and Helen Lynd — the coauthors of Middletown, a 1920s community study. A young man told the two upon their return in 1935 that young people had “been getting more and more knowing and bold. the fellows regard necking [heavy kissing, esp. of the neck] as a taken-for-granted part of a date.”
Rising divorce rate — this reflected both a change in values relating to not divorcing but also the unwillingness of people to put up with an unmanageable situation.
Margaret Sanger — a former radical Socialist and IWW striker who became the leader of the most controversial issue of the 1920s, birth control, due to personal experiences. However, the Comstock Law forbade the mailing of contraceptives or information about contraceptives. Sanger decided to ignore this law to get her information about contraceptives out, especially to the working class, where such information was not widespread, by publishing The Woman Rebel, a monthly journal which advocated extremist feminism and the right to practice “birth control,” a term she herself coined. Each issue of this journal said that it was a woman’s duty to “look the whole world in the face with a go-to-hell look in the eyes; to have an ideal; to speak and act in defiance of convention.” Sure enough, authorities arrested Sanger. Since she could not afford to risk a long jail term since her movement and journal would collapse, jumped bail and escaped to England. A year later, she returned, ready to make a media festival of her trial (as the ACLU did in the “monkey trial” several years later). However, sympathetic publicity arising from the sudden death of her daughter from pneumonia convinced the attorney-general to drop the case instead of martyring Sanger. However, she managed to find her way back into jail anyway by opening a clinic in New York City in 1916 focusing on prevention, not abortion, of pregnancy, arousing much Catholic criticism. Ten days afterwards, she was arrested and sentenced to 30 days in jail (though the judge offered her clemency if she promised to stop circulating contraception pamphlets). When Sanger got out, she founded the American Birth Control League and worked to inform mothers of contraception and prevention.
American Birth Control League — an organization founded by Margaret Sanger in 1916 to promote birth control. She led it until 1928, when she resigned in protest over the eugenics (the science of breeding people and weeding out the deficient or unwanted, used in racism too), which she believed in but the rest of the society did not, and also over her own autocratic leadership style.
Women's Movement — women’s suffrage arrived in 1920 with the passage of the 19th Amendment over ultraconservatives’ objections, after 8 long years of protests and demonstrations. In 1912, Alice Paul began a campaign of protest, in which her followers often chained themselves to building to slow down arrest and then went on hunger strikes in jails to show their support. Paul became the leader of the National American Woman Suffrage Association’s Congressional Committee, but her extreme tactics alienated the rest of the organization, led by Carrie Chapman Catt.
Alice Paul — the leader of the National American Woman Suffrage Association’s Congressional Committee, back after a stint in the English women’s suffrage movement in 1912. Between her and Carrie Chapman Catt, they politically forced President Wilson to endorse women’s suffrage, which he had at first resisted.
Congressional Union — Alice Paul’s own party, formed in 1913 for the purpose of women’s suffrage. It later changed its name to the Woman’s Party in 1916 after separating from the National American Woman Suffrage Association. The members of this party were the people who did the most picketing and were martyred figuratively by the authorities.
Woman's Party — see Congressional Union.
Carrie Chapman Catt — the leader of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, which realistically forced Wilson to his knees on the issue, as in 1916, the Democratic party supported a plank which endorsed a women’s suffrage amendment. After the 19th Amendment passed, she retired from the National American Woman Suffrage Association and founded the League of Women Voters to educate women in exercising their voting right.
19th Amendment — constitutionally gave women the right to vote (though nothing had ever specifically ever denied it to them except ultraconservative traditionalists):
The right of citizens in the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Equal Rights Amendment — a proposed amendment which would have eliminated any legal distinctions between men and women. This was not adopted until 1972; and even then it failed ratification.
“New Negro” — a new generation of black Americans influenced by the new fashions of the 1920s and also a new defiance against the oppression to which the white community subject them. The spirit of the “New Negro,” sometimes also referred to as “Negro nationalism,” emphasized “blackness,” cultural expression, and exclusiveness of the black community. Writers of the Harlem Renaissance captured these feelings in poems titled like “If We Must Die”or “To the White Fiends.”
Harlem Renaissance — the emergence of a group of writers who lived in Harlem, a bad section of New York City. Writers of this movement exalted the black Americans and their stories. Among the authors of this period were Claude McKay, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes,Countée Cullen, and James Weldon Johnson.
Claude McKay — the first of the Harlem Renaissance writers, who collected may of his poems into Harlem Shadows (1922), expressing defiance towards to repression which the white exercised over the blacks in the United States.
“Negro Nationalism” — see “New Negro”
Marcus Garvey — a native Jamaican and one of the most prolific speakers for “Negro nationalism” who advocated complete separation of black and white communities (to the horror of W.E.B. DuBois) because he felt that racism was so ingrained in whites that it was futile to try to change it. In 1916, he founded Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). At one point, he organized a campaign to bring blacks back to Africa, where they would no longer face discrimination; however, after a conviction for fraudulently using the mail for fundraising (?!), he served time in jail after which he was deported to Jamaica by Coolidge. In 1940, he died in obscurity in London.
Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) — an organization founded by Marcus Garvey which grew rapidly in the 1920s amidst the rampant racism of the times. In 1920, in the keynote address of the UNIA’s first national convention, Garvey said that blacks’ last hope to escape racism was to flee back to Africa. Surprisingly, this gained ½ million followers (although Garvey claimed 6 million) before Garvey was imprisoned.
W.E.B. DuBois — a very activist black leader who believed in equal rights for all races and stated that the only way for such change was by “ceaseless agitation,” highly contrary to the views of both Booker T. Washington and Marcus Garvey. He was a key member (and founder) of the NAACP, along with his Niagara Movement. He became the director of publicity and research for the NAACP and edited its journal, The Crisis.
NAACP — short for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, an organization which fought segregation and discrimination tooth and nail. This enabled black Americans to fight such practices more effectively than individually because the NAACP could pay a large team of lawyers and also group the entire community behind similar goals. The main legal strategy of the NAACP at the outset was to revitalize the 14th and 15th Amendments through legal action in the courts. Early victories came with Guinn vs. United States and Buchanan vs. Worley, and encouraged, the NAACP began an anti-lynching movement. A black Congressman was elected in Chicago, the first ever from the North, certainly partially due to the NAACP. Finally, in 1930, the NAACP successfully blocked the confirmation of racist Judge John Parker to the Supreme Court.
Niagara Movement — W.E.B. DuBois’ movement fighting racism. Each year, a convention met in a location noted for some kind of anti-slavery action (Harper’s Ferry, Boston, Oberlin, Niagara, etc.) and issued a incendiary statement condemning racism. This group joined and bolstered the NAACP during its early years.
The Crisis — the journal of the NAACP edited by W.E.B. DuBois.
Guinn vs. United States — in 1915, the Supreme Court struck down Oklahoma’s grandfather clause, used to prevent blacks from voting, as unconstitutional.
Buchanan vs. Worley — in this 1917 case, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a residential segregation ordinance in Louisville, Kentucky in 1917.
Albert Einstein — the ever-famous physicist who released his theory of relativity in 1905, shocking the scientific world. For those of you who don’t already know, this theory related three-dimensional space and time and also stated the relationship between matter and energy. After this discovery, however, Einstein sought for the rest of his life for a theory to unite relativity and Max Planck’s quantum theory (today the overarching theory is the highly-debated string theory).
Max Planck — he developed quantum theory, which states that electromagnetic energy comes in little tiny bundles he called quanta (the particles which carry this energy are photons). One of the universal constants in physics, h is named after him.
Modernist Art — artists of the early twentieth century focused on originality and expression; with the carnage of World War I and also the many scientific developments which revealed the disorderly and confusing state of the universe, composers wrote much atonal music expressing their doubt, poets adopted free verse, artists began focusing on the abstract rather than on the real (go to the National Gallery of Art and you will see what I meanthere are some paintings there from this time period that will make you wonder, “Why did someone pay more than $10 for this?”)
Ezra Pound — a self-exiled American writer/poet living in London who edited the foreign magazine Poetry, a conduit through which many American poets got their works published in England as well as in America. Simultaneously, Pound became the Imagist movement leader, defying typical Victorian verbosity with concrete images.
T.S. Eliot — the protégé of Ezra Pound, who first contributed to Poetry in 1915 with “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” He later published a collection of poems in The Waste Land (1922).
Gertrude Stein — living as an expatriate in Europe with her art collecting brother, she was long regarded as an eccentric who wrote “a rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.” However, her Book Three Lives (1906) brought her some fame, being the literary equivalent of nonrepresentative painting: each word means something.
Ernest Hemingway — a famous British author known best for his terse but also poetic style. He declared that the generation of authors who had experienced World War I were the “lost generation.” Almost to prove this, F. Scott Fitzgerald burst out as a promising young writer, but almost as quickly died out, leaving behind him a trail of sad young characters just like himself.
Southern Renaissance — this was a struggle between traditional values and the new values, brought on by the new, young generation and World War I. The Fugitive poets were the most famous of the groups which arose out of this conflict, which one Southerner noted made the South “the literary land of promise today.” Led by John Crowe Ransom, they first published The Fugitive: A Journal of Poetry (1922-1925) and frequently met and talked, both before and after the war. The group admired T. S. Eliot especially and was committed to following modernistic literary ideas. In 1929, both Thomas Wolfe and William Faulkner emerged as prominent writers, both criticizing the old values and aristocracy/class system.
John Crowe Ransom — the leader of the Fugitive poets (see #56) and also a professor at Vanderbilt University.
Thomas Wolfe — he came to national attention for Look Homeward, Angel in 1929.
William Faulkner — he earned his fame through Sartoris and The Sound and the Fury, published in 1929. The first talked about his “own little postage stamp of native soil” transformed into the fictional land of Yoknapatawpha. The second was simply a book in the modernist style, however, people found little meaning in it.

Chapter 27: Republican Resurgence and Decline

Progressive political movement faded — radicals discontented with high moral standards, people disgruntled by the war, and simply conservative opponents began to regain strength after about 20 years of progressive reform and the Progressives lost support. The middle class lost interest in making the world or even just the United States a better place to live and instead focus on businesses and their lives.
“Normalcy” — a word invented by Warren Harding for his campaign for the presidency.
1920 Election — the Republicans were regrouping behind Harding, a self-proclaimed conservative who promised to end all of the reforming and bring the nation back to its regular state of affairs once more. With his slogan “return to normalcy,” Harding won a landslide victory over progressive Democratic candidate James Cox, prompting lame duck President Woodrow Wilson to remark that “it is only once in a generation that a people can be lifted above material things.”
Warren G. Harding — the victorious Republican candidate for the 1920 election, who won a landslide victory over his opponent, James Cox, by a margin of 7 million popular votes. His campaign slogan was “return to normalcy” and his relatively conservative program resonated well with Americans tired of prolonged years of reform. However, once in office, Harding did a not-so-stellar job of governing: he considered himself inept and also surrounded himself with more dishonest than honest men, who subsequently engaged in some large, shady deals which became scandals. Additionally, the pro-business attitude, reminiscent of McKinley’s administration at the turn of the century, led to many labor setbacks and worker discontentment.
James Cox — the Democratic opponent to Warren G. Harding in the 1920 election. He won the nomination of the fragmenting Democratic Party, split after the Wilsonian coalition collapsed, on the 44th ballot. However, he lost in a landslide, taking only the solidly Democratic South.
Charles Evans Hughes — Warren Harding’s very distinguished Secretary of State who, like Hamilton Fish in Grant’s administration, did an excellent job and was scandal-free.
Herbert Hoover — the Secretary of Commerce under Warren Harding, who performed an excellent job, transforming the Commerce Department into one of importance, and was also scandal-free.
Andrew W. Mellon — the Secretary of the Treasury under Warren Harding, who like his co-Secretaries, Hughes, Hoover, and Henry Wallace, was scandal-free in the scandal-ridden Harding administration. Nonetheless he had some unusual ideas. He managed to convince Harding and Congress to accept the idea of much lower taxes for the rich and only minimally lower rates for the poor. In a way, he was like Hamilton in fact, his supporters called him the “greatest secretary of the Treasury since Alexander Hamilton.” Mellon put his policy into effect through a 1921 law, which reduced the maximum tax rate to 50% (from 65%), then another law which moved it down to 0%, then to 20%, followed by the Revenue Act of 1926, which removed the luxury tax and lowered the estate tax, passed under Calvin Coolidge.
Henry C. Wallace — Warren Harding’s Secretary of Agriculture who maintained a good name despite the dishonesty which rocked the presidency at the time.
“Ohio Gang” — the group of not-so-honest members of Warren Harding’s cabinet who were responsible for the large number of dishonest dealings and scandals and who filled most of the other positions not taken by honest men. Harding met with them constantly in a “Little House on K Street” and spent much of his time there: he felt overwhelmed by the presidency and also by self-doubt , and plus, the Ohio Gang shared many of his tastes for poker, gambling, drinking, and women.
Chief Justice Howard Taft — a very conservative justice appointed to the Supreme Court in 1921 by Harding to “reverse some decisions.” During his time as Chief Justice, the Court struck down a child labor law, a minimum wage law for women, and issued many injunctions against unions striking for better wages or hours, citing them as violations of antitrust law.
Fordney-McCumber Tariff — this tariff raised to record levels the tariffs on metal products and chemicals to prevent American industries developing there against the “danger” of German industry, which had typically dominated those two fields. To please farmers, Mellon also included a hike in farm product tariffs. However, this made it much more difficult for Germany and Europe to repay the billions which it owed the United States in war debts.
George Norris — the senator from Nebraska who said that Harding’s new pro-big business appointments were “the nullification of federal law by a process of boring from within.”
Teapot Dome Scandal — the largest scandal in the Harding administration’s history of (many) scandals. In fact, this, like Watergate in 50 years’ time, became a catchphrase for any political corruption. Albert Fall, Secretary of the Interior and member of the “Ohio Gang”, signed some oil contracts which let private interests take control of oil deposits under Teapot Rock, set aside as a naval oil reserve. Fall allowed Harry Sinclair’s Mammoth Oil Company and Edward Doheny’s Pan-American Petroleum and Transport Company to exploit the oil deposited there. He argued that this was in the government’s best interest, and if that had been the end of it, this would have been shady but legitimate. However, the question arose of why Fall acted in secret and did not allow competitive bidding, the accepted practice for government contracts. Additionally, things became even more suspicious when Fall’s standard of living rose very suddenly. As it turns out, he had received “loans” of about $400,000 from Sinclair and Doheny, which arrived in “a little black bag.” Fall argued that the loans had nothing to do with the oil and that he had gotten a good deal for the government, but this revealed his blindness to government practices at the very least and was more probably a sign of corruption.
Albert Fall — the villain of the Teapot Dome Scandal.
Calvin “Silent Cal” Coolidge — when Harding died of unknown causes (note: for those of you tempted to argue, the causes are indeed unknown. Our textbook says food poisoning, but others argue his wife killed him, others that he had a heart attack. No one knows for sure, and it’s hard to find out considering his remains are 80 years old now), Coolidge was visiting his father’s house in the mountain village of Plymouth, Vermont, when the news came, early in the morning, of Harding’s death. At 2:47am on August 23, 1923, Coolidge’s father, a justice of the peace, administered the oath of office to Coolidge and became the only father to give the oath of office to his son. During Coolidge’s presidency, he adopted a stance even more conservative and pro-business than his predecessor, probably helping the seeds of the Great Depression grow to some extent.
1924 Election — Coolidge’s main political task was to maintain distance from all of the scandals which befell Harding and also to prepare for the upcoming presidential election in 1924, something he did very well. He quietly took over the reins of power in the Republican Party and used the fragmentation of the Democrats to capture a quick, decisive victory in 1924 against Democrat John W. Davis and Progressive reformer Robert LaFollette.
Robert M. LaFollette — the Progressive third party candidate in the Election of 1924. He acted as somewhat of a spoiler in the election for the Democrats. LaFollette won the supporter of the AFL and the Socialist Party but came under Republican fire for being too radical a reformer: the country wanted to “stay cool with Coolidge.” Nonetheless, LaFollette received 4.8 million votes (17%) of the popular vote, the largest number of votes polled for a third-party candidate up until then, beating Socialist Eugene V. Debs’ 1 million vote record.
Consumer Culture — America’s new generation lost the Victorian value of thrift and saving and instead became virtually addicted to spending. Even the lower classes could afford new items with the installment system (in which people paid a fraction of the cost regularly until they have paid off the full cost) which often required 10% down payment or less. As a result of this, advertising became a major business by the mid-1920s and also a major political and social power. Overall, consumer goods fueled much of the economic growth from 1922 to 1929, the “Roaring Twenties,” especially as moderately priced luxuries became affordable: watches, hand cameras, vacuum cleaners, etc.
Birth of a Nation — a very racist film directed by D. W. Griffith based on Thomas Dixon’s novel The Clansmen which in turn inspired the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan. The content of the film itself featured stereotypes such as the villainous carpetbagger, the sinister mulatto, the innocent, good white southerners, and faithful “darkies” (e.g. blacks who accepted inferiority). Despite the blatant racism in the film, it took in $18 million ($349 million today) and had enormous potential as a social force.
WWJ and KDKA — two of the first radio stations on the air. WWJ was in Detroit, which broadcasted Detroit Daily News bulletins, and KDKA in Pittsburgh, owned by the Westinghouse Company, and both began broadcasting in 1920. The first radio commercial aired in 1922, and by the end of that year, 508 radio stations were broadcasting to around 3 million radio sets around the country. Then, in 1926, National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) was started by RCA and began linking stations into a network. A year later, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) began doing the same thing, and that year, the Federal Radio Commission was formed (it became the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1934).
Kelly Act of 1925 — this act allowed the government to subsidize the airplane industry, flagging through lack of demand, with air mail contracts.
Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr. — a national hero for completing the first solo trans-Atlantic flight in 33½ hours. The ticker-tape parade which greeted him in New York was even larger than that after the Armistice, even internationally, Lindbergh was received royally. Unfortunately, his life turned into tragedy when his baby daughter was abducted and murdered (even the trial and the murderer’s execution did not change that).
Amelia Earhart — the national female hero and Outstanding American Woman of the Year in 1931 for her first solo trans-Atlantic flight. However, unfortunately for her, she and a male navigator attempted to fly around the world and unfortunately were lost flying the most difficult leg, from New Guinea to a tiny island in the ocean 2,556 miles away. No clues to her disappearance were ever found, and the last that was heard from her was a ship stationed near the island receiving a weakening signal that the plane was losing fuel. Her disappearance remains one of the greatest aviation mysteries.
Henry Ford's Model T — the most significant development of the first decade of the 1900s was the Model T Ford. In 1908, Ford and his plant managers developed the assembly line, cutting down the time it took to make an automobile by a factor of eight and also cutting the cost by 66%. In fact, by 1929, the car cost around $300 and more than 23 million people owned one. To boot, the new automobiles induced new growth in the steel, rubber, glass, and textile industries, as well as creating a terrific demand for oil products such as gasoline. With the Spindletop gusher, vast southwestern oil fields opened up to meet the demand. This, in turn, created a strong movement for better roads, with which states quickly complied (and funded from a gas tax) and which ultimately influenced the passage of the Interstate Highways Act in 1916.
Spindletop gusher — an oil field which tripled oil production overnight, discovered under Spindletop Hill. Once discovered, oil companies such as Texaco and Exxon Mobil quickly contracted to pump the oil and reaped huge profits.
American Individualism — a book published by Secretary of Commerce Hoover, who was also an engineer who had made a fortune in Chinese, Australian, Russian, and other mining operations, as well as a businessman. From his experiences in the Food Administration during the war and managing the Belgian relief program, Hoover developed a philosophy which he set forth in this book. The idea was somewhat of “cooperative individualism,” which basically said that people should work for themselves but also help their community.
Farming — as always, agriculture was doing rather poorly. Farmers had a brief period of success during the war, when the United States was effectively feeding the countries of Britain and France as well as itself, but after that, overproduction and loss of demand cut prices: a bushel of wheat went from $2.50 to $1.00, cotton from 35¢ to 13¢. Interestingly enough, however, was that the successful farms began looking more and more like corporation owners: they used machinery extensively and promoted efficiency.
Charles L. McNary & Gilbert N. Haugen — these two senators, from Oregon and Iowa respectively, wanted to create a bill to ensure the “equality for agriculture in the benefits of the protective tariff.” This plan may have been complex in operation, but really what the two senators aimed for was the dumping of American food products on the European markets to benefit the farmers. The goal was to achieve “parity,” or the raising of domestic farm prices until they had the same purchasing power relative to other prices as had happened between 1909 and 1914, considered te golden age of American agriculture. The bill they introduced to do this was aptly named the McNary-Haugen Bill.
McNary-Haugen Bill — the bill introduced by Senators Charles L. McNary & Gilbert N. Haugen in 1924 to help out farmers. The bill called for raised tariff rates on farm products so farmers would ultimately do better and become a more powerful force in America. t passed Congress in 1927, but was vetoed by Coolidge. This was repeated in 1928, and Coolidge called the bill an unsound attempt to fix prices, unconstitutional, and un-American. Despite its veto, though the bill succeeded in the sense that it made farm problems a national issue.
Urban workers — although they shared more in the success of the 1920s, urban workers still suffered many setbacks. The rise of conservatism and too many strikes, combined with the death of Samuel Gompers, set public opinion against labor. Employers pushed for open shops where they did not have to hire union workers, promoting the “American plan”. Despite all of this, workers experienced about a 20% increase in wages (counting inflation) on average (though some lost wages) while farm income rose only about 10% (counting inflation). Finally, the Red Scare and the depression of 1921 both were pinned on the unions, and thus the labor movement in general was mistrusted throughout the 1920s.
“American Plan” — a plan which called for open shops, in which an employer could hire anyone. On paper this meant freedom to hire, but in practice it meant discrimination against union workers and refusal to recognize unions even where one existed.
“yellow-dog” contracts — contracts which some employers forced their employees to sign, requiring them to stay out of unions while employed by that specific employer. This was a common way of avoiding unionized workers and strikes for the most part.
Samuel Gompers — died in 1924, dealing a large blow to the labor movement.
Railway Labor Act (1926) — this was the only pro-union legislation of the 1920s, which substituted the Board of Mediation for the Railway Labor Board and also called for the formation of railway labor unions “without interference, influence, or coercion,” something not extended to other industries until the 1930s.
Gastonia Strike of 1929 — a strike of textile workers in the largest textile mill country in the United States. Workers walked off, but the governor, a textile mill owner himself, sent in the National Guard to break the strike. The workers, encouraged by Communists who rivaled the local AFL-sponsored union, were being overworked and underpaid. The Communists urged racial and gender equality (concepts several decades ahead of their time) as well as better conditions for the workers. The Gastonia newspaper was shocked that young girls could be inspired by Communists (who denied the existence of God to boot) from the North who spoke about equality between white and black as well and gender equality. Unfortunately, the strike ended unsuccessfully when the communist union ran out of money to pay the strikers and disgruntled workers had to go back to the factories.
President Herbert Hoover — Hoover ran over his Democrat opponent, Alfred Smith, in the 1928 election (though the Democrats polled much more than last election and were coming back together) to become President. He was, like his Republican predecessors, pro-business and very conservative. To boost his image, the Republican prosperity of the 1920s was continuing into 1929, and Hoover said he had “no fears for the future of our country” at his inauguration (despite the warning signs from economists). Hoover, once in power, revised some farm tariffs to get the support of agriculture, but the tariff revision (see #42) only gained foreign reprisals and petitions from economists to veto the bill and ended up costing Hoover politically.
Alfred E. Smith — the Democratic candidate for the presidency in the election of 1928, whose loss concealed the restructuring of the Democratic Party. The restructuring helped to win the Democrats victories in the next four elections with FDR at their head.
Agricultural Marketing Act — Hoover pushed this through a special session of Congress, setting up the Federal Farm Board with a $500 million revolving loan fund.
Federal Farm Board — this board loaned money to help farm cooperatives market their major commodities. The act also allowed the Board to set up corporations empowered to buy surpluses off of the market. Unfortunately for Hoover, this plan got started just as the depression started that fall.
Hawley-Smoot Tariff — this carried farm duties to an all-time high to protect farmers. However, farmers gained little or nothing from this because it simply made other nations raise tariffs in retaliation and damaged the export trade. Economists petitioned Hoover to veto the bill, but Hoover did not listen, and paid politically when the depression set in and proved the economists right.
The Crash — people buying stock on margin, the stock market not reflecting company values, and wild speculation all contributed to the fall of the economy in late 1929. The Fed raised interest rates to discourage speculation, but even this had limited effect, and the Florida real estate market’s crash did not have an impact or arouse any caution either. Finally, on September 4, 1929, prices wavered a little. Nonetheless, the market staggered into October, but crumbled on October 23rd. Then, on “Black Tuesday,” October 29th, over 16.4 million shares were sold and by the end of 1932, the market had lost 80% of its peak value, 37% in October 1929 alone.
The Human Toll — the collapse caused immense social and economic hardships. Over 13 million people were out of work by 1933, and millions more who still had work saw wages and hours decrease. Factories, banks, shops all closed, loing many people their lives or their fortunes. Soup kitchens were overwhelmed by the numbers of homeless, hungry, and penniless. The onset of depression also gave rise to the “hobo” culture, in wich many young men left their families so as not to be a burden and instead roamed for jobs and money and food. In derision because they blamed Hoover for their troubles, newspapers used to keep warm in winter were called “Hoover Blankets,” shanty towns falling apart “Hoovervilles,” and so on. Hoover himself was slow to react because of his laissez-faire beliefs. However, he finally realized the need for governmental intervention and began his series of programs by asking the Federal Reserve to adopt an easier credit policy.
Emergency Committee for Employment — the head of this committee recommended to Hoover that the government fund a set of projects to build rads and such, but Hoover declined. He still believed that voluntarism and business investment would restart the economy.
Reconstruction Finance Corporation — finally, after a second, smaller crash while the economy was starting to recover, Hoover gave in to pressure and began to take some action. He signed into law a bill which established the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), which was intended to shore up the banks with a maximum of $1.2 billion worth of loans. However, its president Charles G. Dawes had a shady deal between it and his own bank when he left in 1932, undermining its credibility. Nonetheless, the RFC remained in action through the New Deal and World War II.
Charles G. Dawes — the president of the RFC until 1932, when he retired. However, his own bank received a suspicious $90 million right after he left, damaging the RFC’s reputation and establishing its favoritism for business.
Glass-Steagall Act of 1932 — this broadened the definition of what type of commercial loans the Federal Reserve would support and also released $750 million in gold which was back the U.S. Dollar, again actions aimed at sparking the rebirth of businesses. Unfortunately, this did not do too much in the short term, damaging Hoover’s political popularity and ensuring that the Republicans would not maintain control after the next election.
Federal Home Loan Bank Act of 1932 — Hoover also tried to help the homelessness situation by endorsing a series of discount banks for home mortgages in this act. These banks provided for savings and loans, much like the Federal Reserve helps banks make sure they stay on track by providing loans now and then.
Emergency Relief and Construction Act — finally, grudgingly, forced by political pressure, Hoover abandoned his strictly laissez-faire system and signed this bill, which provided $300 million more to the RFC for relief loans to states, authorized loans of up to $1.5 billion for state public works, and also appropriated $322 million for federal public works. Still, this relief did not bring Hoover much, since it was all longer-term. People protested, and began to break the law. They threatened judges who would uphold foreclosures and repossessing, burned corn to keep warm, and formed organizations like the militant Farmers? Holiday Association.
Farmers? Holiday Association — a union of farmers which called a strike and used force to stop produce delivery. This encouraged talk that the United States was on the way to revolution (though this was never more than talk).
“Bonus Expeditionary Force” — a group of about 14,000 World War I veterans marched on Washington to demand bonuses which Congress had votede for them in 1924. It grew quickly along the way, but when the Senate voted down such a bill, most of the veterans went home. Still more left when Congress announced it would pay their tickets home, but some held out, hoping at least to meet the president. However, they were met by soldiers and police with tear gas. One policeman panicked and in firing into the crowd, killed two veterans. A child died of exposure to tear gas while the peaceful veteran’s shanty town in Anacostia was being burnt down by a force of 700 armed soldiers, whose commander, General Douglas MacArthur, claimed the veterans were about to incite revolution. No evidence to that effect was ever found.

Chapter 28: New Deal America

Franklin Delano Roosevelt — when he entered the Oval Office, he received from Herbert Hoover a nation embroiled in the worst of an economic depression. However, he was ready to take the reins and bring the nation the “new deal” that he had promised them.
“New Deal” — in this program to recovery, FDR promised that he would maintain a balanced budget, but was willing to incur short-term deficits to help the homeless and starving, as well as restore the economy. In addition, FDR called for several plans to help the farmers get by and also encouraged government development of utilities such as electricity. Most importantly, though, FDR recognized that the economy required national planning to recover.
Norman Thomas, Socialist Party — the Socialists polled a surprising 882,000 votes in America ripe with discontent over the Republican Hoover who led them into depression. The Communists also got over 100,000 votes for the first time. However, FDR still got the most votes of anyone despite these mini-spoiler candidates, with 22.8 million to Hoover’s 15.8 million.
20th Amendment — this changed the date on which the President is inaugurated to January 20 from March 4 and also moved the starting date of a new session of Congress to January 3, and finally made clear what happened in presidential succession, never previously defined in the Constitution:
Section 1. The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3rd day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.
Section 2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3rd day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.
Section 3. If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.
Section 4. The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.
Section 5. Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification of this article.
Section 6. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission.
Bank holiday — when FDR entered office, the first thing he did was to declare a four-day bank closing. All banks had to close for those days, and then the Emergency Banking Relief Act allowed only such banks to reopen as were sound and could be trusted not to close. This basically stopped the financial and banking panic which gripped the nation, but still left the United States with a severe economic recession to deal with.
Economy Act — this act was another of FDR’s campaign promises. It allowed him to reorganize federal agencies in the name of saving expenses, cut government wages for the same reason, and also reduce payments to veterans for non-service-connected disabilities.
Beer-Wine Revenue Act — this act was put into place in hopes of appeasing some of the anti-Prohibition sentiment while the 21st Amendment was being passed and ratified and also to generate revenue.
Hundred Days — in the first 100 days of FDR’s presidency, legislation and reforms had been passed with a fury. By mid-June, the Emergency Banking Relief Act, the Economy Act, the CCC, the FERA, the AAA, the Emergency Farm Mortgage Act, the TVA, the Federal Securities Act, the Gold Repeal Joint Resolution, and many more laws had been passed and organizations formed. These first 100 days showed FDR’s commitment to reform by practical, immediate-results ways.
Farm Credit Administration — all farm credit agencies were merged into this organization by FDR’s executive order, allowed because of the Economy Act. Both the Emergency Farm Mortgage Act and the Farm Credit Act authorized extensive refinancing of mortgages held by farmers at lower rates.
Home Owner's Loan Corporation — a company formed by the Home Owners’ Loan Act which refinanced private citizens’ home mortgages at significantly lower rates with much lower monthly payment for the cash-strapped homeowners.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation — the Glass-Steagall Banking Act allowed the federal government to back citizens’ bank accounts up to $5,000 per account. For every account in a bank that closed, the federal government would reimburse the depositors up to $5,000 (today up to $100,000). This was in an effort to convince people to deposit money back in banks and thereby revitalize the nation’s financial system. FDR himself campaigned for this, saying it was safer to “keep your money in a reopened bank than under the mattress.”
Civilian Conservation Corps — an organization designed to give work to unemployed, unmarried young men between the ages of 18 and 25. Under semi-military discipline and often far from home, these young men built dams, roads, ridges, and more. They promoted soil conservation and taught Plains farmers how to avoid soil erosion and such by the wind. This employed nearly 3 million young men for the modest sum of $30 per month, $25 of which went straight back to the families. Unfortunately, though, this organization practiced racial segregation and many blacks were also (falsely) told that the CCC only employed white men, causing a grand total of 400 black Texans to work.
Federal Emergency Relief Administration — the organization FDR created to help alleviate the terrible human distress as a result of the depression. It was created with a $500 million authorization under the direction of Harry L. Hopkins, a tough, big-minded, big-hearted social worker who had directed Roosevelt’s earlier relief efforts in New York. The FERA directed all sorts of activities to help the unemployed and homeless, from federal grants to the states (no longer “loans”) to student aid to rural rehabilitation. Hopkins pushed for a direct dole to people, something FDR resisted through his entire term.
Civil Works Administration — the first experiment in federal work relief, putting people on the government payroll at competitive wages. When it was created in November 1933, over 70,000 people lined up outside the Chicago facility to get a job the first night. The agency spent over $900 million on highways, airports, schools, and teaching jobs. However, when more than 4 million people were employed by this agency and its operating costs soared over $1 billion, and alarmed FDR ordered it dissolved.
The dole — directly giving money to people (usually the government). FDR was opposed to this and preferred that the people first be productive for the government (e.g. the government provides jobs).
National Youth Administration — an agency which helped out penniless youth by offering education, setting up vocational training programs, and providing part-time employment to students. Lyndon B. Johnson directed one of the NYA centers, and a broke Duke law student named Richard Nixon found work at an NYA center for 35¢ an hour.
“brain trust” — the name given to the brilliant group of advisors and other people FDR surrounded himself with. They were often people who believed in Teddy Roosevelt’s “New Nationalism,” believing that economic concentration was inevitable, and that efficient economic planning was necessary, using the lessons learned in the 1920s.
Agricultural Adjustment Administration — a government agency created under the Agricultural Adjustment Act which was there to solve the problem of overproduction as well as administer all of the farm relief which the government sponsored. When a bumper crop of cotton was predicted, the AAA supported a plow-under plan, which went against all tradition and caused some doubt int the South, yet nonetheless worked. By the end of 1935, farm income increased 58% and prices were on the rise. However, the Great Dust Bowl was also responsible for this because it forced Plains farmers out of their homes and stopped them from farming. Still, in spite of the problems, the AAA was a large help to the farm economy, but in 1936, conservatives opposed to its sweeping powers brought their case to the Supreme Court and had it declared unconstitutional (see #24). This infuriated FDR and was one of the reason he attempted the Court-packing plan.
Henry A. Wallace — the Secretary of Agriculture under FDR who could not tolerate plowing under crops except to heal the depression and the evils of overproduction. He also reported many gains in the farming business after several years of the AAA, mostly due to limits in production.
“dust bowl” — due to long years of plowing and uprooting the native grasses and their long-ingrained root systems, the wind on the Plains eroded the topsoil and began to sweep it away in great dust storms, which destroyed crops and homes and lives alike.
John Steinbeck Grapes of Wrath — a sad story of farmers during the time of the Great dust bowl who were forced to California to maintain a living partly by the storms and partly by AAA programs benefitting larger farmers who had rented them land as tenants beforehand.
United States vs. Butler — the Supreme Court case which declared the AAA unconstitutional because it financed itself by taxing food processing plants. However, FDR organized a new plan in the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act, which it quickly passed through Congress. The act became an unqualified success because it helped to heal the scars of both the Industrial revolution and of overuse in farming. However, it did not help the problem of overproduction, because farmers simply concentrated more in their best land while others rejuvenated their lesser plots.
National Industrial Recovery Act — also known as the NIRA, it created the PWA and the NRA but was struck down in a 1935 Supreme Court case.
Public Works Administration — this agency, created as part of the NIRA, was a $3.3 billion grant for public works projects, such as highways, public buildings, flood control, and other things. Basically, the purpose was to put people to work and pay them and hope this would jumpstart the economy. It did not really accomplish this, but did build Skyline Drive here in Virginia, the Triborough Bridge in New York, the Overseas Highway from Miami to Key West, the Chicago subway.
National Recovery Administration — the more controversial part of the NIRA, led by Hugh Johnson. Its purposes were to stabilize the chaos of industry during the Depression by reducing competition to make the businesses more productive and also by setting wages and prices to an extent and also the give the consumer more purchasing power via higher wages. It also set codes of fair conduct and management for companies, such as Code number 1.
Code Number 1 — this code dealt with the textile industry and imposed limits on working hours (40 per week), with two shifts maximum ad a minimum wage of $13 per week (and $12 weekly in the South where living standards were lower). Additionally, codes forbade child labor under 16.
“Blue Eagle” — Johnson, the leader of the NRA, called for a uniform code for each industry and launched a massive campaign for this and used the insignia of the blue eagle with “we do our part” as its motto for industries and stores, etc. which accepted the new uniform code. However, such a code drew much opposition from employers who felt it placed too many restrictions on them, and this led to the Supreme Court declaring the NRA unconstitutional in 1935.
Tennessee Valley Authority — one of the best thought-out and most inspired plans of the New Deal, this created an agency whose goal it was snot only to revive the economy, but to improve the living conditions in the Tennessee River valley, traditionally one of the poorest locations in the country (until then). Three years later, the TVA had six dams, with plans for nine total, and had also sent in people to experiment with fertilizers, had opened the waterways for navigation, promoted forestry and soil conservation, and had also brought much electric power to the region where there had been almost none before. Plus, the agency helped build schools and libraries and bring education to the previously highly illiterate and ignorant region of the United States. The TVA’s success throughout the Great Depression and through the 1940s woke people up to the benefits of cheap electricity and began the movement to electrify the entire nation.
“Okies” — a derisive term used in California to refer to Great Plains farmers who had gone west after the dust bowl formed. this group was composed of about 800,000 people from the four states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Missouri. John Steinbeck very poignantly and accurately described their condition when he wrote “Okie us’ta mean you was from Oklahoma. Now it means you’re a dirty son-of-a-bitch. Okie means you’re scum.”
Minorities and the New Deal — minorities were not included in the New Deal for the most part. Racism and segregationist feelings still ran high and many whites did not want blacks dipping into what they regarded as their programs and their wages. Blacks were often segregated and forced to accept the poverty of the depression without government aid, while Mexicans were simply deported since that was easier and took them out of the United States. Even unions for Mexicans did little, and the “Black Cabinet” had only so much influence over FDR and his wife. It was not until the 1970s and 1980s that people began to accept racial equality in heart and spirit.
Bureau of Indian Affairs — a government organization headed by pro-Indian John Collier who constantly bugged FDR to make sure that Indians fully enjoyed the benefits of the New Deal. Collier also made sure that many Indians worked in the BIA to make the bureau’s decisions come out in their best interests. Collier and the bureau also insisted upon new legislation to replace the Dawes Act of 1887 which had only caused depression and poverty. Instead, he said, the United States should help to reinvigorate Indian culture and let them be on their reservations. Congress finally passed the Indian Reorganization Act in response.
Indian Reorganization Act — the “Indian New Deal” was a much diluted version of what John Collier of the BIA wanted. It provided for some of the reforms but not all and as a result only partially improved Native Americans’ lives.
Grovery v. Townsend — this was a setback for the NAACP, holding up Texas’ white-only primary as a voluntary gathering and expression of opinion, and therefore not subject to state action and not subject to the 14 Amendment.
Powell v. Alabama — the final result of the infamous Scottsboro case in which nine black youths were convicted of raping two white women based on hearsay evidence and made-up stories: the Alabama Supreme Court overturned the convictions because the defendants had not had proper access to legal counsel. This was a major victory, and combined with Norris vs. Alabama the next year, which required courts to seat black men in juries, made two large momentum increases for the NAACP.
Richard Wright Native Son — the masterpiece of this black author, during his period as a Communist. It talked of a black man eventually driven to murder by forces beyond his control, a clear allegory to the harsh discrimination of the time against which Wright was rebelling. The racism and discrimination drove many blacks to the brink.
Second New Deal — the unprecedented midterm victory in 1934 due to Roosevelt and his wife’s charms and their popular programs led to the Democrats gaining strength in both the House and the Senate. When those elections were over, only 7 Republican governors remained throughout the nation. The Second New Deal also included some programs to replace the ones ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, such as the AAA.
Eleanor Roosevelt — she was a very activist First Lady, the first true one in history. Even Edith Wilson had stayed behind the scenes and had stuck to being overprotective of her husband. However Eleanor campaigned actively for social justice causes and also consulted a “Black Cabinet,” whose recommendations she no doubt conveyed to her husband. In addition, Mrs. Roosevelt was the first First lady to run a newspaper column on politics, and the first to openly criticize other politicians, including her own husband. In addition, she was the first woman to address a national political convention and she once said that FDR was the politician, she was the agitator.
Criticism of the New Deal — public criticism of the New Deal surfaced before too long. Many thought that FDR had taken on too many new powers, even considering the situation at hand, and favored a reduction n government power and influence. Others, such as Huey Long (see #42) believed the plan did not go far enough and proposed even more radical changes to the American system. Two real opposition camps ensued, those in the American Liberty League arguing FDR had taken over too much and those with Long who believed FDR had not taken over enough. Plus, just regular people commented on the ineffectiveness of the New Deal: there was still about 20% unemployment and the depression was not over.
American Liberty League — a group of mostly conservative who believed FDR’s New Deal had gone over the bounds of power. Among these were former Democratic candidates Al Smith and John Davis and many Republicans.
Huey P. Long's Share Our Wealth Program — a radical. almost communistic program which would have stripped the very wealthy of their fortunes (down to a few million dollars) and distributed that among the poor from a minimum of $5,000 per family or $2,500 per single worker. Additionally, his plan called for everyone to receive a free college education. This plan met quite a bit of resistance calling it Communist, and plus, the figures did not add up and the program did not promise to lead the nation out of depression. Nonetheless, Long claimed 7.5 million supporters by 1935, when he was assassinated (Roosevelt may or may not have been involved).
Francis E. Townshend — another radical reformer whose plan was inspired by the sight of three old women searching through trash cans for food. The plan itself called for a monthly pension o $200 to each citizen over 60 years old who had retired and promised to spend all of the money in the next month. The shortfall of this plan that the cost of the plan for only 9% of the population would cost over half of the national income. Like all good visionaries, however, Townshend was indifferent to this.
Charles E. Coughlin's National Union for Social Justice — Father Coughlin, also known as the “radio priest,” was a Catholic priest and another of the radical leftists like Long (see #42). He founded the National Union of Social Justice in 1934 and, on CBS, began to attack people who showed anti-Semitism and he also promoted the coinage of silver to relieve the money pressure.
Schechter Poultry Corporation v. U. S. — also known as the “sick chicken” case, this was the Supreme Court case which killed the NIRA. The defendants had been convicted of selling an “unfit chicken” and violating other NRA code provisions, but the Supreme Court decided that the government had overstepped its authority as was beginning to regulate intrastate commerce as opposed to interstate commerce because the chicken had “come to rest” within one state.
National Labor Relations Act — this was often called the Wagner Act after its sponsor, Robert Wagner of New York. It gave workers the right to bargain through unions of their own choice and prohibited employers from interfering in unions. It also created a national board which could monitor such activities and certify unions if approved by a majority of the workers, as well as issue “cease and desist” orders to noncompliant employers or unions.
Social Security Act of 1935 — the “cornerstone” of FDR’s New Deal, passed in 1935. It provided for old-age pensions for those over 65 at an average rate of $22 per month. Since this was not intended to be a primary source of income and simply a boost for the elderly, the amount of aid was relatively low compared to today, where this is expected to be a primary source of income.
1936 Election — Roosevelt’s immense popularity led to his absolutely demolishing victory in the 1936 presidential election against Alf Landon. The Republicans had to keep away fro candidates from the “hate-Roosevelt” contingent because they were aware of FDR’s reputation, but it did not make much of a difference. Landon and his party were destroyed at the polls, especially since Long had been assassinated and his supporters went of the vote for William Lemke on the Union party ticket which gained 882,000 measly votes compared to Roosevelt’s 11 million popular vote margin of victory: 27.7 million-16.7 million for Landon. FDR also carried every state except for Maine and Vermont
Alfred M. Landon — a moderate Republican who believed the New Deal went a little too far but who also believed in some of the principles; simply thought that it needed to be more business-friendly.
The Court Packing Plan — a harebrained scheme of FDR’s to avoid Supreme Court opposition to his New Deal plans. He proposed to add six justices and limit the influence of those over 70 or who had served more than 10 years. However, all his plan did was alienate many supporters and offend many elderly Congressmen and Supreme Court justices. His plan was also resoundingly defeated in Congress. Ironically, FDR got the opportunity to replace 7 of the 9 justices of the Court in office when he entered the presidency in 1933.
John L. Lewis — a labor leader and president of the United Mine Workers (UMW), he was the first to used the NIRA to his advantage. He tripled his union’s size, down due to depression, and began to conduct business as usual. However, he grew tired with the AFL organization, which favored only skilled workers. He joined with with several other unions to form the CIO under the AFL structure. Lewis also responded to FDR’s “plague on both your houses” due to the ongoing feud between a steel union he was organizing and Republic Steel with “It ill behooves one who has supped at labor’s table and who has been sheltered n labor’s house to curse with equal fervor both labor and its adversaries .
Committee for Industrial Organization — unfortunately, the AFL expelled the CIO unions formed by John Lewis and some of his supporters and followers in 1938. Ironically, the competition among unions spurred both to reach greater heights.
Frances Perkins — the first female Secretary of Labor, who had excellent relations with labor.
Henry Morgenthau. Jr. — the Secretary of the Treasury who favored cautious spending and a balanced budget. His ideas got their way for a while in 1936-1937, but when FDR found out that they were not really working, he went back to government spending, the policy advocated by people such as Harold Ickes.
Harold Ickes — he believed in renewed government spending after the ideas of Henry Morgenthau were tried and failed to reduce spending and stay out of depression.
John Maynard Keynes — invented Keynesian philosophy, adopted quickly by New Dealers as justification for their actions. Keynes effectively gave logical arguments and a convenient theoretical justification of New Deal-type programs.
Second Agricultural Adjustment Act — one of the last New Deal reforms, very similar to the Agricultural Adjustment Act (see #20) except without the financing plan; instead the government simply paid for the subsidies and one other important change: before the government could impose a quota on growth, the growers had to vote on it.
Fair Labor Standards Act — an act which stayed in place (finally) regulating labor conditions. It set a minimum wage of 40 per hour, the 40-hour work week, and prohibited child labor under 16 (or under 18 for hazardous jobs).

Navigate Unit 6:

Chapter 23: An American Empire
Chapter 24: The Progressive Era
Chapter 25: America and the Great War
Chapter 26: The Modern Temper
Chapter 27: Republican Resurgence and Decline
Chapter 28: New Deal America