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CHANGE and CONTINUITY in TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICA

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CHANGE and CONTINUITY in TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICA CHANGE AND CONTINUITY in TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICA Edited by John Braeman, Robert H. Bremner, and Everett Walters CHANGE AND CONTINUITY in TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICA The events of the past seventy-five years have produced significant changes in nearly every aspect of American life. In a period as brief as the span of human lifetime, however, it is to be expected that old and familiar elements will mingle with and temper the forces of change and novelty. Each of the essays in this book is concerned in some manner with the relation of tradition and innovation. They are: "The Emergence of America as a World Power: Some Second Thoughts," by Richard W. Leopold "The Square Deal in Action: A Case Study in the Growth of the 'National Police Power,' " by John Braeman "The New Deal and the Ana/ogue of War," by William E. Leuchtenburg "The Great Depression: Another Watershed in American History?", by Richard S. Kirkendall "Continuity and Change in Government-Business Relations," by Arthur M. Johnson "The Emergence of Mass-Production Unionism," by David Brody "Poverty in Perspective," by Robert H. Bremner Change and Continuity in Twentieth-Century America is the first volume in a series entitled Modern America, which is designed to meet the demand for additional publication outlets for the steadily increasing amount of research in recent American history since 1890. Volumes in the series will be published annually and will contain interpretive articles synthesizing existing research, as well as the results of new investigations. Designed by P. David Horton MODERN AMERICA Number 1 Change and Continuity In Twentieth-Century America Change and Continuity in Twentieth-Century America Edited by John Braeman Robert H. Bremner Everett Walters lio State University Press Copyright © 1964 by the Ohio State University Press All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number: 64-19380 INTRODUCTION THIS is the first in a series of annual volumes devoted to the history of the United States since 1890 that will be pub­ lished by the Ohio State University Press. The series, whose over-all title is MODERN AMERICA, is intended to facilitate publication of scholarly articles in all areas of recent Amer­ ican history. The editors hope that MODERN AMERICA will provide a publication outlet for monographic studies as well as synthetic and interpretative essays. The events of the past seventy-five years have produced significant changes in nearly every aspect of American life. In a period as brief as the span of human lifetime, however, it is to be expected that old and familiar elements will mingle with and temper the forces of change and novelty. The editors have, therefore, chosen Change and Continuity in Twentieth-Century America as the theme of the first volume of MODERN AMERICA. Each of the essays in the book is concerned in some manner with the relation of tra­ dition and innovation. In the 1960's, the United States stands as one of the two global superpowers. Many historians date the emergence INTRODUCTION viii of America as a world power from the Spanish-American War and the acquisition of the Philippines. But did the events of 1898 result in fundamental changes in the prin­ ciples and practice of American foreign policy? Richard W. Leopold, in "The Emergence of America as a World Power: Some Second Thoughts," concludes that the years between 1898 and 1920 witnessed no such decisive change. "In 1920, as in 1898," Leopold writes, "the average citizen thought the United States could be a world power and still adhere to the practices of an earlier day." One of the outstanding trends of the twentieth century has been the increasingly important role played by the fed­ eral government in safeguarding the public health, morals, and welfare. In the nineteenth century such activities were the responsibility of the states under their reserved police power. The assumption of these new responsibilities by the federal government involved formidable political and con­ stitutional obstacles. John Braeman's "The Square Deal in Action: A Case Study in the Growth of the 'National Police Power' " makes a study in depth of the passage of one of the milestones in this development—the meat inspection law of 1906. The greatest advance in federal activity in behalf of the public welfare came during the New Deal in response to the exigencies of the Great Depression. William E. Leuch­ tenburg, in "The New Deal and the Analogue of War," shows how Americans used the imagery of war to describe the country's plight in the 1930's and how New Dealers drew upon the legacy of the World War I mobilization for their proposals. "The legacy of the war," Leuchtenburg asserts, "was to prove a mixed blessing. Useful as a justifi­ cation for New Deal actions, it also served to limit and divert the reformers in ways that had not been anticipated." The shortcomings of the war analogy were in large part responsible for the New Deal's failure to face up to "the ix INTRODUCTION real problems of the relation of order to liberty which the power of the twentieth century creates." This conclusion raises the question whether the New Deal was as much of a turning point in American history as many historians have believed. Richard S. Kirkendall examines the problem in "The Great Depression: Another Watershed in American History?" Kirkendall argues that the role of change in the 1930's has been overemphasized and the importance of continuity neglected. "The leading developments of the depression decade which are associated with the New Deal," he contends, "should not be viewed as radical new beginnings in American history but chiefly as significant parts of a large-scale transformation of Ameri­ can capitalism that had been under way for at least half a century before the 1930's." A significant aspect of the transformation of American capitalism has been the change in the relations between government and business. The extent of laissez faire in the nineteenth century has been much exaggerated; yet the businessman at the beginning of this century remained largely free from governmental restraint. The situation today is much changed, but the business decision-maker is still the key figure in the economy. Arthur M. Johnson shows, in his "Continuity and Change in Government- Business Relations," that the keynote of the changing rela­ tionship between business and government has been "a basic pragmatism." Perhaps the most striking feature of the transformation of American capitalism in the twentieth century has been the rise of a powerful labor movement. Big labor has become, in John Galbraith's phrase, a major "counter­ vailing power" to big business. David Brody, in "The Emergence of Mass-Production Unionism," examines the revolutionary breakthrough of unionization in the mass- production industries in the 1930's. While not underrating INTRODUCTION the importance of the formation of the CIO, or of a sympa­ thetic government acting through the Wagner Act and the National Labor Relations Board, Brody finds that the com­ ing of World War II was decisive in the triumph of unionism in the mass-production industries. Even before mass unionization, the average American worker enjoyed a standard of living that was the envy of his European fellows. Historically, the United States has been regarded as the land of plenty for all. But observers have in recent years increasingly lamented the persistence of poverty in the affluent society. Robert H. Bremner, in "Poverty in Perspective," finds that the discovery of pov­ erty in the United States is not new to this generation—and he shows how changing interpretations of poverty and its causes reflect fundamental changes in American ideas and social attitudes. The editors extend their thanks to the contributors, to the many historians who have expressed interest in MODERN AMERICA, and to Weldon A. Kefauver of the Ohio State University Press. Without Mr. Kefauver's co-operation and assistance, this volume would not have been possible. The next two volumes in the series are in preparation. One will be devoted to "The 1920's Revisited"; the other to "American Foreign Policy in the Twentieth Century." JOHN BRAEMAN ROBERT H. BREMNER EVERETT WALTERS CONTENTS THE EMERGENCE OF AMERICA AS A WORLD POWER: SOME SECOND THOUGHTS Richard W. Leopold 3 THE SQUARE DEAL IN ACTION: A CASE STUDY IN THE GROWTH OF THE "NATIONAL POLICE POWER" John Braeman 35 THE NEW DEAL AND THE ANALOGUE OF WAR William E. Leuchtenburg 81 THE GREAT DEPRESSION: ANOTHER WATERSHED IN AMERICAN HISTORY? Richard S. Kirkendall 145 CONTINUITY AND CHANGE IN GOVERNMENT­ BUSINESS RELATIONS Arthur M. Johnson 191 THE EMERGENCE OF MASS-PRODUCTION UNIONISM David Brody 221 POVERTY IN PERSPECTIVE Robert H. Bremner 263 NOTES ON THE CONTRIBUTORS 281 INDEX 283 Change and Continuity in Twentieth-Century America The Emergence of America as a World Power: Some Second Thoughts RICHARD W. LEOPOLD EARLY in 1901 a foreign diplomat declared that, during his brief residence in Washington, he had observed two differ­ ent nations—the United States before the War with Spain and the United States after that conflict.1 This remark has been quoted frequently to indicate the profound impact of the contest with Spain upon American foreign policy. Ac­ cording to this interpretation, the "splendid little war," as that inveterate phrasemaker John Hay called it, did more than terminate the bloodshed in Cuba and liberate the island from Spanish misrule. It also constituted a decisive factor in transforming the continental republic into an overseas empire, an empire with possessions in not only the Caribbean and the central Pacific but also the western Pacific and the South China Sea. There can be little doubt that the years 1898 and 1899 formed some sort of watershed in the growth of the role 1.
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