Chapter 23
POLITICS IN THE GILDED AGE,
1869-1896
The “Bloody Shirt” Elects Grant
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Grant was immensely
popular after the war
Nation was weary after war,
and eager for a fresh face.
Republicans, nevertheless,
enthusiastically nominate
Grant
Grant is singularly
unequipped to be President.
The “BLOODY SHIRT” Elects Grant
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Democrats divided between eastern and
western democrats.
Nominate Horatio Seymour
Republicans wave the “Bloody Shirt”
Republican Platform
Democrats divided over redemption of Bonds.
Grants wins easily in the electoral college, but by
only 300,000 votes.
Impact of Black vote.
The Era Of Good Stealings
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Civil War bred corruption and
graft.
Causes
RR corruption
Jim Fisk and Jay Gould
scheme to corner the gold
market.
Boss Tweed/Tammany Hall.
Samuel Tilden.
A Carnival Of Corruption
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Grant’s administration was riddled with
corrupt officials.
Credit Mobilier scandal.
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Exposed in 1872.
Members of congress censured.
Vice President implicated.
Whiskey Tax scandal.
Liberal Republican Revolt Of 1872
Liberal republicans were tired
of corruption
 Liberal Republican party.
 Nominate Horace Greeley
 Democrats endorse him, too.
Why?
 Campaign very ugly
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Grant v. Greeley
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Grant wins easily, 286-66, because:
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Grant is perceived to be the lesser of two evils
Democrats are still stained with fault for the
Civil War.
Did lead the Republicans to clean their
own house.
General amnesty Act,
lowered tariffs
Mild civil-service reform
Depression And Demands For Inflation
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1873 severe recession hits
Causes
15,000 businesses went
under.
Collapse of Jay Cooke and
Co.
Depression And Demands For Inflation
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Debtors advocate inflationary policies.
Call for more Greenbacks.
Federal government had removed onefourth from circulation. Why?
Grant sides with conservatives and signs
Resumption Act of 1875
Silver
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Debtors advocated the coinage of silver
dollars.
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Congress had formally dropped silver
money in 1873.
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Why?
Reasons
Grant rejects call to mint Silver.
Consequences of Grant’s policy
Bland-Allison Act
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Bland-Allison Act.
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What does it authorize?
Why does it have little inflationary effect.
Leads to Democratic backlash in
congressional elections.
Plants the seeds of the Grange
Pallid Politics In The Gilded Age
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Balance of two political parties during the
Gilded Age from 1869-99.
Majority in Congress flipped back and forth
six times in the 11 terms between 1869-91
Few controversial stands
Few dramatic policy differences between
parties.
Voter turnout /voter loyalty.
Political machines and patronage
Republicans v. Democrats
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Republicans:
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Embodied the old Puritanical ideals.
Strict moral codes and belief that
government should be an instrument
in regulating economic and moral
affairs of the community.
Strong in Midwest and in rural and
small-town New England.
Got most of votes from Freedman
and from Union Civil War Vets.
Republicans v. Democrats
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Democrats
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More Roman Catholic and
Lutheran.
South and northern industrial cities
Large immigrant base and strong
Dem. machines.
Stalwarts v. Halfbreeds
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Republicans had two rival factions
Stalwarts (Conklingites)
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Half-Breeds.
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led by NY Sen. Roscoe Conkling.
Big believers in patronage.
Led by James Blaine.
Flirted with civil service.
Consequences of this division
The Hayes-Tilden Standoff, 1876
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Republicans dissuade Grant from
running again.
Rutherford B. Hayes.
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Hayes largely unknown, but a civil
war officer
Also, importantly, former three-term
governor of Ohio.
The Hayes-Tilden Standoff, 1876
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Samuel Tildon.
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Platform.
Attacks against Republicans.
Electoral College dispute
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Reasons
Attempts to resolve
Electoral Count Act
Further compromise
Hayes-Tilden Disputed Election of 1876
End of Reconstruction
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Compromise was the end of
reconstruction.
Literacy tests and poll taxes
Civil Rights Cases
Crop-Lien System/Share Cropping
Jim Crow Laws
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Plessy v. Ferguson
Sharecropping
Tenancy & the Crop Lien System
Furnishing Merchant
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Loan tools and seed
up to 60% interest
to tenant farmer to
plant spring crop.
Farmer also secures
food, clothing, and
other necessities on
credit from
merchant until the
harvest.
Merchant holds
“lien” {mortgage} on
part of tenant’s
future crops as
repayment of debt.
Tenant Farmer
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Plants crop,
harvests in
autumn.
Turns over up to ½
of crop to land
owner as payment
of rent.
Tenant gives
remainder of crop
to merchant in
payment of debt.
Landowner
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Rents land to tenant
in exchange for ¼
to ½ of tenant
farmer’s future
crop.
Class Conflicts And Ethnic Clashes
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Strikes in the 1870s
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Who wins?
Why?
Chinese in California
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Dennis Kearney/Kearneyites
Chinese Exclusion Act
Election of 1880
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Hayes administration was not very
noteworthy. Did not accomplish much
beyond end to reconstruction.
“Old 8-7” and “His Fraudulency.”
He did not run for reelection and wouldn’t
have been renominated had he tried.
Republicans in 1880
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Stymied by Stallwart-Halfbreed rivalry and
take 35 ballots to settle on a candidate.
Chose James Garfield. Dark-Horse.
Chester Arthur, was chosen VP. Why?
Platform is for higher tariffs and (weakly)
for civil service reform
Election of 1880
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Democrats chose Winfield Hancock
Civil War General, but popular in south
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Why?.
Both parties shun substantive political issues.
Garfield wins by only 40,000, but 214-155 in
electoral college.
He was besieged by office seekers.
Made Blain Sec. of State
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Battle raging politically between Stalwarts and HalfBreeds.
Election of 1880
1881: Garfield Assassinated!
Charles Guiteau:
I Am a Stalwart, and Arthur is
President now!
CHESTER ARTHUR TAKES COMMAND
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Not many expected much
from Arthur. Why?
Displayed surprising
integrity, intelligence and
independence.
Arthur threw his support
behind reform of spoils
system.
Pendleton Act of 1883
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Details
Unintended consequences?
THE BLAINE-CLEVELAND
MUDSLINGERS OF 1884
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Rep. nominate Blain
Tainted with numerous
rumors of scandals.
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The “tattooed man”
“Mulligan letters”
Mugwumps.
Grover Cleveland
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Democrats nominate Grover
Cleveland.
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Reputation for reform and
honesty.
Cleveland’s Bastard.
One of the ugliest campaigns
in American history
New York the key state
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Rum, Romanism and Rebellion
Election of 1884
Old Grover Takes Over
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First Dem. president since Buchanan
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Cleveland’s political philosophy
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Issues raised by this?
Last Jeffersonian Democrat?
Named two former confederates to his
cabinet, helping to heal the north-south
divide
Tariffs and Pensions
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Cleveland and office seekers—fires 2/3 of
federal employees
Military Pension issue
Tariffs
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Country was running at a surplus because of high
tariffs.
Republicans had little motivation to reduce these
tariffs.
Cleveland’s two choices?
He favored reducing tariffs. Why?
Cleveland makes tariff reduction his number-one
issue.
Created a real political difference between the parties
just in time for the election of 1888.
Harrison Ousts Cleveland
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Dems renominate Cleveland.
Rep. turn to Benjamin
Harrison, grandson of
William Henry Harrison.
Primary issue?
Republicans use fear of
British against Cleveland.
Republicans raise a huge
war chest. How?
Harrison wins electoral vote
but loses the popular vote.
1888 Presidential Election
Cleveland and History
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Cleveland the first sitting president to be
voted out of office since Van Buren in
1840. (Others: J. Adams, J.Q. Adams,
Harrison, Hoover, Carter, Bush)
Cleveland last to win popular vote and
lose electoral college until Gore.
Cleveland only president to have two nonconsecutive terms.
The Republicans Return Under
Harrison
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Benj. Harrison in the White
House.
Republicans eager for
patronage.
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Blaine is Secretary of State.
Teddy Roosevelt Civil
Service Commission.
Republican quorum
problem in the House
Speaker Thomas Reed
Political Gravy For All
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Billion Dollar Congress
Pension Act of 1890
Sherman Anti-Trust Act
Tariffs and Silver
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Easterners wanted a
higher tariff
Westerners and farmers
wanted more silver minted
Tariff Ire
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Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890
McKinley Tariff Bill
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raised tariff rates to their highest peace-time
level—48%
Farmers hated the new tariff. Why?
Republicans punished in 1890
congressional election.
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Lose nearly 60 seats and Dems have a huge
majority in Congress
1892 Presidential Election
Grover Cleveland
again! * (DEM)
Benjamin Harrison
(REP)
Populists
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Populists emerge as a potent third party.
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Officially the People’s Party
Nominate James B. Weaver
Populist Agenda:
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free and unlimited coinage of silver at the ratio of
sixteen to one
graduated income tax
Gov’t ownership of telephone, telegraph and RR
direct election of US senators
one-term limit on presidency
use of the initiative and referendum to allow citizens
to propose and review legislation.
Shorter work day-to appeal to labor
restriction on immigration—to appeal to labor
Populists
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Labor is mad and are ripe
for wooing by Populists.
Homestead strike
Populists poll over onemillion votes and become
one of the few third parties
to win electoral votes
Populists problems with
Blacks
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Grandfather Clause
1892 Presidential Election
OLD GROVER CLEVELAND AGAIN
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Depression of 1893
Causes:
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Over-building and over-speculation
labor unrest
agricultural depression from low commodity prices
reduction of US credit abroad because of Silver
Purchase Act
Problems with overseas banks, which were forced to
call in US loans.
Cleveland does next to nothing— laissez faire
Gold Problem
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Treasury was running a deficit because of
the Silver Purchase Act. Reasons
Cleveland saw no choice but to repeal the
Silver Purchase Act.
William Jennings Bryan
Cleveland forced to issue bonds to raise
money in order to buy gold
J.P. Morgan deal
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Public reaction
DEMOCRATIC TARIFF TINKERING
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McKinley Tariff causes deficit
Democrats propose bill to reduce tariff but add
income tax
Senate tacks on lots of provisions to help special
interests.
Wilson-Gorman Tariff Act of 1894.
Cleveland refused to sign it, but can’t veto.
Supreme Court throws out income tax
Public opinion hates the bill and blame Dems.
Democrats hammered in 1894 mid-term
election.