APUS HistoryFebruary 4 – 8 2019

Hopefully you got your AP fees paid as Friday February 1st was the deadline. If not you are going to lose AP credit on GPA and the 5 points added to your quarter and exam grades. I’d see Mrs. Fleming asap if you have not paid.

Congratulations, you get your first take home MC test of the year. It will be on the quia.com website and will be posted by Monday Night Also, everyone will have a DBQ essay for the free response (hand written only and blue/black ink only. See below for due dates. I would also have my textbook when you start because there will be some materials that we did not necessarily complete in class.

Do Not Procrastinate. While you have most of the week to complete the take home test, we will be doing other activities.

MONDAYReview Activity for the Progressive Period 1890 -1920

Materials Strategy/FormatStudy guide Review, close text reading

Instructions

We will do a quick review of the period before you complete you unit test. And here’s a surprise: this unit test will be on the quia.com website as a take home test. Now, you will also write a DBQ essay for the short answer section while we move on with our next unit on American imperialism and World War One.

However, today you will be using the study guide to complete some MC and short answer questions. This is 100% not a partner assignment and MUST be finished in class. Unless you have a documented accommodation, you will not have extra time. So, move with alacrity….that means fast, yo.

HomeworkBegin your MC and/or DBQ. The DBQ cannot be typed nor can it be in any color except blue/black

TUESDAY (begin new unit) Examine key political, social, and economic causes for the rise of American imperialism (WOR-1) (POL-1)

(NAT-1)

Materials Strategy/FormatPPT & Recap Questions Lecture-discussion L.CCR.1

Student SkillsContext/PeriodizationCausationComparison

Introduction It has been some time since we have dealt with the WOR learning objective. Foreign policy was of course

still and issue but in the post-Civil War era there were fewer major issues. Now in this unit, foreign policy will be a major issue! The reasons for the new wave of interest had much to do with the growing global economic strength of the United States by the late 19th century.

You will hopefully recall that much of the antebellum era had been driven by Manifest Destiny, the desire to control the American continent. This lead to oppression of Natives and Hispanics, War with Mexico, tensions with Britain, and ultimately the Civil War itself.

Now in the late 19th and early 20th century a similar concept arises: American Imperialism. Our job today is to examine the key reasons why this happened and the impact that it will have upon foreign policy. This unit will include:

a. The acquisition of U.S. territories such as Guam, Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Also, we will see how the U.S. gained Hawaii, and briefly controlled Cuba and the

Philippines. Additionally, the factors that led to the construction of the Panama Canal

b. We will look at how the U.S. become involved in Latin America and the resulting tensions.c. We will look at the causes and effects of the Spanish-American War 1898d. Finally, the Unit will culminate with U.S. involvement in World War 1917-1918 and how this

event continued to shape U.S. foreign policy

The Key Factors Leading to Empire

Political Factors By 1890, the United States had by far the world's most productive economy. American industry produced

twice as much as its closest competitor--Britain. But the United States was not a great military or diplomatic power. Its army was very small with only about 30,000 troops. The U.S. had always found protection by the two great oceans but now, as warship were faster and stronger, the world seemed to shrink. Our navy had less than 10,000 sailors and was obsolete in many ways. Britain's army was five times the size of its American counterpart, and its navy was ten times bigger. This weakness became magnified in the late 19th century as Europe and even Japan became imperial powers. American attitudes toward expansion that was sparked partly by a European “scramble for empire”. Between 1870 and 1900, the European powers seized 10 million square miles of territory in Africa and Asia, a fifth of the world's land

mass. About 150 million people were subjected to colonial rule. In Asia, Japan was quickly becoming an imperial power and tensions were growing between them and Russia for dominance in the region.

Given the perception that the U.S. was falling behind the other major powers, one major impulse for imperialism was simply the need to stake our claim also as a major power. One of the key proponents of a military buildup was Alfred Thayer Mahan, a naval strategist and professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. He was the author of The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, argued that national prosperity and power depended on control of the world's sea-lanes. "Whoever rules the waves rules the world," Mahan wrote. To become a major naval power, the United States began to replace its wooden sailing ships with steel vessels powered by coal or oil in 1883. But control of the seas would also require the acquisition of naval bases and coaling stations. This is one of the reasons why the U.S. would become interested in possessing islands. One might not think that such a book had much impact but Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm II had copies of Mahan's books placed on every ship in the German Fleet and the Japanese government had his work translated and it became required reading for naval officers. If you know a little history of the 1940s, then you’ll understand why this is important (World War II).

Mahan’s book would not have been what we’d call a best seller but influential Americans were paying attention. The most important reader was then a military historian, politician, one-time assistant Secretary of the Navy and soon-to-be President…Theodore Roosevelt. Also, influential will be the Secretary of State for both McKinley and Roosevelt, John Hay whose policies reflected a focus upon U.S. global power and influence. In this era, it tended to by the Republican Party that represented the imperial interests.

Economic Factors In the United States, a growing number of policy makers, bankers, and manufacturers became fearful that

the country might be closed out in the struggle for global markets and raw materials. One of the main factors that seemed to drive the economic impulse was the impact of the Panics of 1873 and 1893. In this case, there were many who also feared over-production of many goods. Remember in a capitalist society consumption needs to match production for economic growth and stability. However, the middle-class consumption had slowed and this could cause a ripple effect. So, one solution was to open new markets for American goods. Our targets tended to be Asia and Latin America.

We will also see an unintended byproduct of high American tariffs. The McKinley and Payne-Aldrich tariffs impacted American business in other countries. In other words, if you owned a company in Cuba or Mexico and you expected to produce products for the U.S. your company was also targeted by tariffs. So, in the case of Hawaii, sugar growers decided to make Hawaii American, thus bypassing the tariff.

Social Factors One can certainly see that there was a racial impulse at work here. The Social Darwinism of the Progressive

Era also became a foreign policy motive. During the late 19th century, the idea that the United States had a special mission to uplift "backward" people around the world also commanded growing support. With Social Darwinism came a heavy dose of Protestantism. The mainstream Protestant religious denominations (Methodist and Baptist) established religion missions in Latin America, Africa and Asia, including over 500 missions in China by 1890.

A growing concept in this era was “American exceptionalism,” the idea that the US has a special mission to democratize the world is also prevalent. Now this is certainly political but I placed it here because this concept was almost like a religious crusade for many politicians and ministers.

Historian Frederick Jackson Turner, wrote what came to be known as the Frontier Thesis. This work was even used by imperialists. He suggested that America was defined by the westward migration and frontier. Now that this was exhausted, some postulated that Americans might experience some kind of moral crisis and loss of spirit. So, some decided that Americans needed new frontiers to conquer (like Asia, Latin America, and Africa).

The Anti-Imperialists“While the Imperialists had strong figures in their camp, just as strong was the attacks on imperialism. Politicians, commentators, Christians, and intellectuals spoke out against the new aggrandizement and presented a comprehensive analysis of the new empire that foreshadowed later anti-imperial arguments and movements. The war against Spain and intervention in the Philippines, critics charged, gave "militarists" too much power; the United Many dissenters contended that the United States had no right or need to "civilize" other peoples, especially considering its own treatment of blacks at home. Strong in this camp was W.E.B. Dubois. Conversely, some did not

want America to assume control over and responsibility for nonwhite, and thus inferior, peoples. Labor leaders, such as the Socialist Eugene Debs and the conservative Samuel Gompers, agreed that conquest and empire were dangerous, in large measure because they feared the loss of American jobs to foreign workers who would accept lower wages, a charge echoed in the late twentieth century by anti-globalization activists. Perhaps most pointedly, anti-imperialists argued that territorial annexation would pervert American principles. William Jennings Bryan, leader of the Democratic Party and agrarian spokesman, anticipated that the "just resistance" of the United States to Spanish rule in Cuba and the Philippines would "degenerate into a war of conquest," giving others the right to charge America with "having added hypocrisy to greed." Senator George Hoar lamented "the danger that we are to be transformed from a Republic, founded on the Declaration of Independence … into a vulgar, commonplace empire, founded upon physical force. Mark Twain (later president of the Anti-Imperialist League) used his biting wit to condemn the new imperialism.

HomeworkBegin Work on either your MC section on the Quia.com website by 7am Thursday February 7th. DBQ on Progressivism (see below) The DBQ in Class Friday February 8th

TUESDAY Explain how the U.S. gained territories during the Imperialism Period (WOR-1) (POL-1) (NAT-1)

Materials Strategy/Format PPT Lecture discussion L.CCR.1

Student SkillsContext/PeriodizationCausationComparison

Introduction As we discussed yesterday, the U.S. had wide ranging motives for imperialist practices. Today we will

briefly look at some of the motives for gaining control of certain areas in the Pacific and Caribbean Sea. Also, we will look at the certain areas and how they were acquired.

The Acquisition of Alaska While this is often forgotten and not always counted as imperialism, the purchase of Alaska was the

beginning of expansion beyond the contiguous United States. 1867. A proposal from Russian Minister in Washington, Edouard de Stoeckl, to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million. The Senate approved the treaty of purchase on April 9; President Andrew Johnson signed the treaty on May 28, and Alaska was formally transferred to the United States on October 18, 1867. This purchase ended Russia’s presence in North America and ensured U.S. access to the Pacific northern rim.

For three decades after its purchase the United States paid little attention to Alaska, which was governed under military, naval, or Treasury rule or, at times, no visible rule at all. Seeking a way to impose U.S. mining laws, the United States constituted a civil government in 1884. Skeptics had dubbed the purchase of Alaska “Seward’s Folly,” but the former Secretary of State was vindicated when a major gold deposit was discovered in the Yukon in 1896, and Alaska became the gateway to the Klondike gold fields.

The Acquisition of Hawaii The way that the U.S. gained a controlling interest in Hawaii was a perfect example of the economic and

political motives for imperialism. American interest in Hawaii began in America as early as the 1820s, when New England missionaries tried in earnest to spread their faith. Keeping European powers out of Hawaii became a principal foreign policy goal because the islands also formed a stepping stone to the lucrative “China Trade”. Americans acquired a true foothold in Hawaii because of the sugar trade. The United States government provided generous terms to Hawaiian sugar growers, and after the Civil War, profits began to swell. A turning point in U.S.-Hawaiian relations occurred in 1890, when Congress

approved the McKinley Tariff, which raised import rates on foreign sugar. Hawaiian sugar planters, principle among them Sanford Dole were now being undersold in the American market, and as a result, a depression swept the islands. The sugar growers, mostly white Americans, knew that if Hawaii were to be annexed by the United States, the tariff problem would naturally disappear. At the same time, the Hawaiian throne was passed to Queen Liliuokalani, who determined that the root of Hawaii's problems was foreign interference. A great showdown was about to unfold.

In 1893, the planters staged an uprising to overthrow the Queen. At the same time, they appealed to the United States armed forces for protection. Without Presidential approval from Benjamin Harrison, U.S. Marines stormed the islands, and the American minister to the islands raised the stars and stripes in Honolulu. The Queen was forced to abdicate, and the matter was left for Washington politicians to settle. By this time, Grover Cleveland had been inaugurated President. Cleveland was an outspoken anti-imperialist and thought Americans had acted shamefully in Hawaii. He withdrew the annexation treaty from the Senate and ordered an investigation into potential wrongdoings. Cleveland aimed to restore Liliuokalani to her throne, but American public sentiment strongly favored annexation.

The matter was prolonged until after Cleveland left office. When war broke out with Spain in 1898, the military significance of Hawaiian naval bases as a way station to the Spanish Philippines outweighed all other considerations. President William McKinley signed a joint resolution annexing the islands, much like the manner in which Texas joined the Union in 1845. Another key factor in the desire to control the islands came from the Navy because Pearl Harbor formed an impregnable harbor…that is until airplanes are invented.

The Acquisition of Samoa The location of the Samoan Islands and it immediate proximity to Japan, China, and Indonesia bad it a

valuable base of operations. The problem was that both Britain and Germany claimed to have had a deal with the Samoan king for exclusive use of Pago Pago Harbor. In 1899 Britain, the U.S., and Germany were on a road to aggression over the island. However, a tripartite agreement end up allowing joint usage. Germany lost its claim as a result of WWI and Britain yields its claim during WWII.

The Open Door Policy and the Boxer Rebellion While this topic is not about outright acquisition of land, it is certainly economic.

The Acquisition of the U.S. Virgin Islands The U.S. acquisition of the Virgin Islands was for a different reason. World War One brought Germany

into conflict with the U.S. even before our entry. The fear was that if the islands were seized from Denmark, submarine operations would be possible against the Gulf Coast and Atlantic. After a few months of negotiations, a selling price of $25 million in United States gold coin was agreed.

ConclusionThe big turning point for American Imperial aims was the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. More on this topic on Thursday.

HomeworkWork on your DBQ-MC test materials. Pay attention to your due dates!

WEDNESDAY Analyze primary sources on the origins of American Imperialism (WOR-1) (POL-1) (NAT-1)

Materials Strategy/FormatDocs Packet Close text reading R.CCR.1

Student SkillsContextEvaluationCausation

Instructions Today we will implement some of the knowledge gained on imperialism causes and issues. You’ll find the

questions at the end of doc sets and you may want to consult your notes. This is not a text but might feel like it. You’ll need to go quick. I hope that you will have a bit of time to work on you DBQ

This is due today in class.HomeworkYour MC section is due tomorrow by 7am. It must be completed by 7am to avoid late scores

THURSDAY Examine the causes and effects of the Spanish-American War 1898 (WOR-1) (POL-1) (NAT-1)

Materials Strategy/FormatPPT w/recap questions Lecture-discussion L.CCR.1

Introduction The outbreak of the Spanish-American war was the classic case of American Imperialism. All elements of

American imperialism come into play here. This is also the highpoint of the imperial period. As you will see a byproduct event of the war, the Filipino Uprising 1898-1901 empowered the Anti-Imperialist faction.

The war also resulted in the acquisition of more territory (Guam, Puerto Rico) and strongholds in the Philippines and Cuba (Guantanamo Bay is still a Marine base to this day).

The Origins of the Conflict The origins of this conflict with Spain did not happen overnight. In fact, American imperial interests in

Cuba as a possession goes all the way back to the Antebellum Period when southerners tried to convince President Buchanan to buy or take Cuba (The Ostend Manifesto). The first step in the road to war was actually a rebellion among Cubans against Spanish control (which by now was 300 years old). The “Insurrectos” had been fighting a guerilla war. Led by Jose Marti, by the late 19th century it was intensifying.

The Spanish reacted to this sending Governor-General Valeriano Weyler to suppress the uprising. Valeriano Weyler created concentration camps to house suspected rebels. The conditions in the camps were horrid and rebels were routinely executed. The U.S. media started running stories about the atrocities but sometimes. The problem was that they made up some of the stories. This was known “yellow journalism.” This was a key factor in bringing on the war because it stoked public opinion. They called Weyler “the Butcher” and this moniker became famous. This was also made worse by the fact that Americans lived in Cuba and businesses were there. This placed pressure on the McKinley Administration to protect Americans and pressure Spain.

Another key cause of the war was pressure from imperialists like John Hay and Theodore Roosevelt. In addition to political pressure was the pressure from business interests. There was even pressure from religious leaders calling on the U.S. to intervene on moral grounds. These issues be repeated many times.

The War Begins The growing popular demand for U.S. intervention became an insistent chorus after the still-unexplained

sinking in Havana harbor of the American battleship USS Maine, which had been sent to protect U.S. citizens and property after anti-Spanish rioting in Havana. The sinking was blamed on the Spanish with little actual evidence. In fact, the Spanish offered compensation for the ship and crew. However, in the midst of negotiations a dispatch from Madrid to its ambassador fell into the hands of the media. The De Lome Letter was seen as an insult to the U.S.

The future Secretary of State John Hay described the ensuing conflict as a “splendid little war.” The first battle was fought on May 1, in Manila Bay, where Commodore George Dewey’s Asiatic Squadron defeated the Spanish naval force defending the Philippines. On June 10, U.S. troops landed at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and additional forces landed near the harbor city of Santiago on June 22 and 24. After isolating and defeating the Spanish Army garrisons in Cuba, the U.S. Navy destroyed the Spanish Caribbean squadron on July 3 as it attempted to escape the U.S. naval blockade of Santiago.

The Treaty of Paris 1898

On July 26, at the behest of the Spanish government, the French ambassador to the U.S. approached the McKinley Administration to discuss peace terms, and a cease-fire was signed on August 12. The war officially ended four months later, when the U.S. and Spanish governments signed the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898. Apart from guaranteeing the independence of Cuba, the treaty also forced Spain to cede Guam and Puerto Rico to the United States. Spain also agreed to sell the Philippines to the United States for the sum of $20 million. The U.S. Senate ratified the treaty on February 6, 1899, by a margin of only one vote.

The Effects of the War As we said, this is the highpoint of the Imperial Period for the U.S. One of the reasons for this was the

Filipino Uprising. Over the weekend you will complete a document set one this uprising and how Americans reacted to events there. There is no doubt that the U.S. was now seen as a global power and, with the rise of Theodore Roosevelt. As we will see next week TR believed that the US had a unique role to play as the “world’s policeman.”

The Teller Amendment: Act of Congress in 1898 that stated that when the United States had rid Cuba of Spanish rule, Cuba would be granted its freedom. It pledged that the US had no designs on Cuba It prevented Cuba from turning hostile towards the U.S.

The Platt Amendment: This amendment to the new Cuban constitution authorized U.S. intervention in Cuba to protect its interests. Cuba pledged not to make treaties with other countries that might compromise its independence, and it granted naval bases to the United States, most notable being Guantanamo Bay.

The Foraker Act: United States federal law that established civilian (albeit limited popular) government on the island of Puerto Rico, which had recently become a possession of the United States as a result of the Spanish–American War.

HomeworkYour DBQ is due tomorrowBring your textbook Tomorrow

FRIDAY (Textbook Needed) Analyze primary sources on Imperialism and the Filipino Uprising (WOR-1) (POL-1) (NAT-1)

Materials Strategy/FormatText docs and questions Docs analysis R.CCR.1

Student SkillsContextEvaluationCausation

Introduction During the Spanish-American war, Emilio Aguinaldo and his rebels o joined forces with the Americans to

fight off the Spaniards. By June, the rebels had conquered nearly all of the land that Spain had held in the Philippines with the exception of Manila. Aguinaldo declared independence from Spain and thus was when the first Filipino republic was made. Spain and the U.S recognized Philippine independence. Spanish rule ended with the treaty of Paris in 1898. After a short period of time the Philippine-American war broke out.

Aguinaldo soon realized that the US had no intention of leaving and a new, vicious guerilla war erupted against U.S. control. This was the first case of a guerilla war in a tropical climate, one repeated in WWII and Vietnam. The conflict may have resulted in as many as 200,000 deaths (not all due to combat). Following the suppression of the rebellion William Howard Taft was sent by McKinley as the governor-general. He was credit with establishing democratic rule and improving the economy. The trajectory of Filipino Independence would be interrupted by WWII and the Japanese invasion.

Today we will use text docs and a packet and answer a few guided reading questions.

Weekend HomeworkNone. Take a break and catch your breath and be ready for some more Teddy

DBQ ESSAY“To what extent was the Progressive Movement 1900– 1920 an extension of the Populist Movement of the from the previous decades?” (Be sure that your thesis takes a clear position in the into and again in the body paragraphs)

Document A“The recent alarming development and aggression of aggregated wealth, which, unless checked, will inevitably lead to the pauperization and hopeless degradation of the toiling masses, render it imperative, if we desire to enjoy the blessings of life, that a check should be placed upon its power and upon unjust accumulation, and a system adopted which will secure to the laborer the fruits of his toil; and as this much-desired object can only be accomplished by the thorough unification of labor, and the united efforts of those who obey the divine injunction that "In the sweat of thy brow shalt thou eat bread," we have formed the organization with a view of securing the organization and direction, by co-operative effort, of the power of the industrial classes; and we submit to the world the objects sought to be accomplished by our organization, calling upon all who believe in securing "the greatest good to the greatest number" to aid and assist us:

I. To bring within the folds of organization every department of productive industry, making knowledge a standpoint for action, and industrial and moral worth, not wealth, the true standard of individual and national greatness.”

II. To secure to the toilers a proper share of the wealth that they create; more of the leisure that rightfully belongs to them; more societary advantages; more of the benefits, privileges and emoluments of the world; in a word, all those rights and privileges necessary to make them capable of enjoying, appreciating, defending and perpetuating the blessings of good government.

VI. The abrogation of all laws that do not bear equally upon capital and labor, the removal of unjust technicalities, delays and discriminations in the administration of justice, and the adopting of measures providing for the health and safety of those engaged in mining, manufacturing or building pursuits.

XIV. The reduction of the hours of labor to eight per day, so that the laborers may have more time for social enjoyment and intellectual improvement, and be enabled to reap the advantages conferred by the labor-saving machinery which their brains have created,

XV. To prevail upon governments to establish a purely national circulating medium, based upon the faith and resources of the nation, and issued directly to the people, without the intervention of any system of banking corporations, which money shall be a legal tender in payment of all debts, public or private

Excerpts from PREAMBLE TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE KNIGHTS OF LABOR, Adopted 3 January 1878

Document B“We have cities in which a few are wealthy, a few are in what may be called comfortable circumstances, vast numbers are propertyless, and thousands are in pauperism and crime. Certainly, no reasonable person will contend that this is the goal that we have been struggling for; that the inequalities that characterize our rich and poor represent the idea that the founders of this republic saw when they wrote that "All men are created equal."The new patriotism is the love of the millions that is already planning for and opening the way to better things, to a condition of life under this government when every child born in it will have an equal opportunity with every other child to live the best possible kind of life that he or she can live. This is the new patriotism - that feeling within one's breast that tells us that there can be no prosperity for some without there is a possibility for some prosperity for all, and that there can be no peace for some without opportunity for some peace for all; that man is a social being, society is a unit, an organism, not a heap of separate grains of sand, each one struggling for its own welfare. We are all so inextricably bound together that there is no possibility of finding the individual good except in the good of all.

The competitive idea at present dominant is most of our political and business life is, of course, the seed root of all the trouble. The people are beginning to understand that we have been pursuing a policy of plundering ourselves, that in the foolish scramble to make individuals rich we have been making all poor. "For a hundred years or so," says Henry Demarest Lloyd, "our economic theory has been one of industrial government by the self-interest of the individual; political government by the self-interest of the individual we call anarchy." It is one of the paradoxes of public opinion that the people of America, least tolerant of this theory of anarchy in political government, lead in practicing it in industry. We are coming to see that the true philosophy of government is to let the individual do what the individual can do best, and let the government do what the government can do best.

Our cities are to be saved by the development of the collective idea. We are coming to understand that every public utility and necessity to the public welfare should be publicly owned, publicly operated, and publicly paid for. Among the properties that according to any scientific conception of the purpose of government should be so owned are waterworks, heating and lighting plants, street railways, telephones, fire alarms, telegraphs, parks, playgrounds, baths, wash-houses, municipal printing establishments, and many other industries necessary to the welfare of the whole family that can only be successfully operated by the family in the interests of the whole family.”

Mayor of Toledo Ohio, Samuel Jones, The New Patriotism: A Golden-Rule Government for Cities (1899)

Document CSee Below

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA

Document D

Document E“The members of the conference, known as the Niagara Movement, assembled in annual meeting at Buffalo, July 11th, 12th and 13th, 1905, congratulate the Negro-Americans on certain undoubted evidences of progress in the last decade, particularly the increase of intelligence, the buying of property, the checking of crime, the uplift in home life, the advance in literature and art, and the demonstration of constructive and executive ability in the conduct of great religious, economic and educational institutions….

Suffrage: At the same time, we believe that this class of American citizens should protest emphatically and continually against the curtailment of their political rights. We believe in manhood suffrage; we believe that no man is so good, intelligent or wealthy as to be entrusted wholly with the welfare of his neighbor.

We believe also in protest against the curtailment of our civil rights. All American citizens have the right to equal treatment in places of public entertainment according to their behavior and deserts. Common school education should be free to all American children and compulsory. High school training should be adequately provided for all, and college training should be the monopoly of no class or race in any section of our common country. We believe that, in defense of our own institutions, the United States should aid common school education, particularly in the South……”

Niagara Movement’s Declaration of Principles, 1905

The Lady Tailor Strike, New York City, 1909

Document F“We declare it to be a fundamental principle of the Democratic party that the Federal government, under the Constitution, as no right or power to impose or collect tariff duties, except for the purpose of revenue, and we demand that the collection of such taxes shall be limited to the necessities of government honestly and economically administered.

The high Republican tariff is the principal cause of the unequal distribution of wealth; it is a system of taxation which makes the rich richer and the poor poorer; under its operations the American farmer and laboring man are the chief sufferers; it raises the cost of the necessaries of life to them, but does not protect their product or wages. The farmer sells largely in free markets and buys almost entirely in the protected markets. In the most highly protected industries, such as cotton and wool, steel and iron, the wages of the laborers are the lowest paid in any of our industries. We denounce the Republican pretence on that subject and assert that American wages are established by competitive conditions, and not by the tariff.

We favor the immediate downward revision of the existing high and in many cases prohibitive tariff duties, insisting that material reductions be speedily made upon the necessaries of life. Articles entering into competition with trust-controlled products and articles of American manufacture which are sold abroad more cheaply than at home should be put upon the free list…….”

1912 Democratic Platform, June 25, 1912

Document G

Jacob Riis, Theodore Roosevelt, Police Commissioner Walks a Beat, 1892