Chapter 19 Reading Questions PDF

Define the following in a few words: 1.​ Mugwumps - These were people who are republican and who were also reformed, who tried to go against the political corruption at the time and tried to support Grover Cleveland who was a Democrat. The impact of this was that it helped Cleveland...

Define the following in a few words: 1.​ Mugwumps - These were people who are republican and who were also reformed, who tried to go against the political corruption at the time and tried to support Grover Cleveland who was a Democrat. The impact of this was that it helped Cleveland win the election and it helped create reform and weakened the power of political machines. 2.​ Sherman Silver Purchase Act 1890 - This required the government to buy 4.5 million ounces of silver each month in order to boost the economy. The effect of this was that it contributed to the Panic of 1893, as it led to economic instability. It was eventually repealed however. 3.​ Panic of 1893 - This was caused by overspeculation, financial issues caused by railroads, as well as the collapse of major businesses. THe impact of this was that it led to a large amount of unemployment, bank failures, and strikes. 4.​ Coxey’s Army - This was a protest in which unemployed people damned public programs to help with unemployment. 5.​ The People's Party (The Populists) - This was a political movement which represented farmers and workers which advocated for things such as free silver and government control of railroads as well as progressive reforms. 6.​ Omaha Platform - The populist party statement which suggested free silver and government regulation of industries(later some of the omaha platform policies were implemented in the progressive era). 7.​ William Jennings Bryan - a democratic populist man who was known for advocating free silver and progressive reforms. The impact of this was that he strengthened the populist movement but he had weakened the free silver movement. 8.​ Cross of Gold Speech - This was a speech in the year of 1896 which advocated for bimetallism and against the gold standard. This helped with the growth of the free silver movement, but Bryan did not manage to get a large amount of votes which contributed to his loss of the election. 9.​ Free Silver - This was a policy which favored the coining of silver in order to increase the supply of money and this helped farmers and debtors. The gold standard act which was passed in the year of 1900 ended the movement. 10.​Eugene Debs - This was a labor leader who led the Pullman Strike and ran for president as a socialist. 11.​Sherman Antitrust Act 1890 - This was a law which aimed at reducing monopolies and trusts. The act was circumvented through lobbying, but it incited later movements against trusts. 12.​Pendleton Act of 1881 - This was a reform law which made government jobs to be given out based on merit rather than someone in political power. Its impact was that it decreased the power of political machines, but at the same time it made government jobs less accessible to regular citizens.  13.​Credit Mobilier Scandal - This was a scandal in which the Union Pacific Railroad company created a fraud company to overcharge for railroad construction. They also bribed congress members to cover it up. Guided Questions (answer thoroughly, required): 1.​ How did Gilded Age politics mirror some of the issues found in Gilded Age economics? This politics and economics were both extremely corrupt. In politics, things such as patronage and bribes were extremely common and there were political machines which were known for fraudulent activities. In economics there were a large number of monopolies and trusts which established dominance in the economy, and it made it so that wealth was concentrated. 2.​ How did Cleveland reform the spoils system? What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of this reform? Cleveland enforced the Pendleton Act which made it so that government jobs could only be handed out based on merit. The advantages of this were that it increased efficiency, reduced corruption, and made it so that the workers were actually qualified. The main disadvantage of this reform was that government jobs were less accessible to the average citizen. 3.​ Why did farmers desire “easy money” and why did bankers oppose it? Which group do you personally side with and why?​ Farmers desired easy money because it allowed for crop prices to increase and it made it easier for farmers to pay off debts. Bankers on the other hand opposed them because they led to large amounts of inflation and it made the value of money to decrease. Furthermore it made it so that money lending was far more risky. I would side with the farmers because during this time they faced lots of issues because economic deflation made it more 4.​ Describe at least three ways the Election of 1896 is significant. The Election of 1896 was first significant because it cemented the republican party's dominance with the victory of William Mckinley. His campaign was corporate funded which also showed the power of industries, and their influence in the government. It also meant the decline of the populist movement with the loss of William Jennings Bryan in the election, and this loss led to decline of the people’s party. Mckinley's win also led to the passing of the Gold Standard Act of 1900, which rejected free silver and made it so that the U.S. currency was consistently gold, which mostly benefited businesses and bankers, when compared to farmers and debtors. Creative questions (pick 1): 1.​ Think of a way to effectively solve the Spoils System issue. How can a new government effectively and fairly hire new employees in government positions? The merit based system that was introduced through the Pendleton act was an effective way to solve the spoils system. The problem is that if a new government implements a merit based system, there must be a body which approves of these merits to give out jobs. This is a point of corruption as these people can give out jobs in exchange for lining their pockets. With the advent of Artificial Intelligence of modern times, algorithms can be made so human desires will not come into play when deciding government employees.