chapters 23 +24 Flashcards
(55 cards)
Ulysses S. Grant
“Let us have peace,” His cabinet was a nest of corruption & incompetence, as Grant seemed easy to influence
Jay Gould & Jim Fisk’s plan to corner the gold market
The two men hoarded gold and madly bid the price of gold skyward (while gaining Grant’s trust, convincing him not to sell gov’t gold). Then they sold their shares and made a killing.
The Tweed Ring/Tammany Hall
(Led by William Magear “Boss” Tweed) used bribery, graft, & fraudulent elections to earn millions from the people of NYC
Thomas Nast
His cartoon helped apprehend Tweed in Spain
Credit Mobilier scandal
Union Pacific RR insiders such as Thomas Durant formed the Credit Mobilier construction company & then cleverly hired themselves at inflated prices to build the RR line, while buying off key congressmen & Grant’s 1st V.P., Schuyler Colfax
Whiskey Ring
Robbed the Treasury of millions in excise tax revenues. The ring involved gov’t officials, whiskey distillers & distributors around the country
Liberal Republicans
(Horace Greeley) Vowed to “Turn the Rascals Out,” & urged the end of military reconstruction
Economic panic of 1873
Came about due to too many loans & lack of profits; greenbacks were virtually worthless
Greenback Labor Party
(Midwest-based) elected 14 members of Congress in 1878
Gilded Age
Sarcastic name given to the three decades following the Civil War when corruption abounded between business & politics despite many advancements [Mark Twain]
patronage
Rewarding supporters with public office
Hayes vs. Tilden Election (Hayes & the Compromise of 1877)
The election deadlocked, there were disputed returns from 3 states, a bipartisan electoral commission was set up to count the votes. Hayes won.
Compromise of 1877: In return for Hayes taking office, Democrats wanted federal troops withdrawn fro LA & SC, subsidy for the TX & Pacific RR’s southern transcontinental line, & patronage jobs
Jim Crow laws
Legal segregation in southern states
Plessy v. Ferguson
Legalized separate but equal accommodations under the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment
Railroad Strike of 1877
Employee wages cut by 10% in 4 large RR companies. President Hayes called in federal troops to quell the unrest
Chinese Exclusion Act
Congress banned the importation of Chinese laborers on the grounds that the Chinese caused disorder in certain areas [act repealed by FDR in 1843]
Stalwarts vs. Half-breeds
Stalwarts: the “old guard” Republicans loyal to Pres. Grant. They were pro-patronage
Half-Breeds (moderate Reps.): followed Sec. of State James G. Blaine & wanted to reform the patronage system
Garfield’s assassination
Charles Guiteau believed that a speech he had written &
distributed while working of the Garfield campaign had
helped elect the president. So, when Garfield refused to
grant Guiteau the position he wanted (consul general to
Paris), Guiteau decided to shoot Garfield.
Pendleton Act
Made compulsory campaign contributions from federal employees illegal & established the Civil Service Commission to make appointments of ¼ of federal jobs based on competitive exams
Grover Cleveland
Advocated laissez-faire (hands-off) government, was tactless & direct, outspoken, & hot-tempered
McKinley Tariff Act
The highest peacetime tariff yet at ~48%
Populist Party demands
Inflation through coinage of silver, graduated income tax, govt. ownership of the RRs, telegraph, & telephone, one-term limit on the presidency, a shorter workday, immigration restrictions
Homestead Strike
300 armed Pinkerton Detectives were called in to crush a strike by steelworkers over Carnegie’s refusal to increase workers’ pay despite a 60% increase in company profits. 10 people died & 60 were wounded in the 143-day strike
Benjamin Harrison
Ran against Cleveland in the 1888 election and won
