DOCSLIB.ORG

Republicanism Vs. Grantism. the Presidency A

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Republicanism Vs. Grantism. the Presidency A — Repiiblicanism vs. Graiitism. THE FRESIDEXCY A TRUST; NOT A PLAYTHING AND PERQUISITE. Personal Government cand Presidential Pretensions. REFORM AND PURITY IN GOVERNMENT. SPEECH OF HON. CHARLES SUMNER, OF ]S1A.SSA.CE[XJSETTS, DELIVEKED IN THE SENATE OF THE UiS'ITED STATES, MAT 31, 1872. " Fofrntes. Thon whom do you call the good ? Alrib in (Us.. I uiean by the good iliose who are able to rule in the city. Soo-ntetf. Not, sural j'. over horses? AlcUiiddex. Certiinly not. So'-i-ntoN. But (ivcr men ? Alcibiades. Yes.'' {Plato, Dialogues. Tlie First Alcibiades. " Amoner the foremost purnoses ou!?ht to be the diwifill of this odious, insultin?. dsgradinor. aide-de- campi.-^h, incnr)nbln dictatorship. At such .i crisis is tlio oountrv to bo, left, at the 'neroy of b irr.iek cc iuci is and mes<-rooin politic.-?'' Letter of Lord D.cr-luiinto Ileiirij Broughain, Aug., IS'SJ. Brougkaiii'a Life and Timea^Yol. iii, p. 44. WASHINGTON: F. & J. RfVES & GEO. A. BATLEY, REPORTERS AND PRINflEllS OF r;iE D33ATEi OJ? CONGRESS 1872. Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library Gift of Seymour B. Durst Old York Library "It ia a maxim in politics which -we rendily admit as tindi?ptited and universal, that a power, however great, when gr;inted by law to an eminent matristrate, i.« not so dnnfferou> to liberty as an nuthority, how- ever inconsider:ible. which he acquires frum violence and usurpation."—Z/ame'* Eauaya, Fart 11, No. 10, of $ome remarkable vustuina. Digitized by tine Internet Arcliive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/republicanismvsgOOsunnn_0 SPEECH. The sundry civil appropriation bill coming up as home from the Senate I was detained in Nevr unfini.shiHl business. Mr. Scmner moved to postpone York by the invitation of party friends to inaetiuitely its consideration, and after remarking speak at tl)e Coo[)er Institute on the issues of on the report of the Committee on the Sale of Arms the pending election. The speech was made to French agents, proceeded: July 12, and, I believe, was the earliest of Mr. President: I have no hpsitation in the campaign. As published at the time it declaring myself a member of the Republican was entitled ''Origin, Necessity, and Perma- party and one of the straitest of the sect. I nence of the Republican Party." and to ex- doubt ifany Snnator can pointto earlier or more hibit these was its precise object. Both the constant service in its behalf. I began at the necessity and permanence of ihe party were beginning, and from tliat early day have never asserted. A briel' pass ige. which 1 take from will failed to sustain its candidates and to advance i the report in the New York Herald, show destiny I ventured then to hold its principles. For these 1 have labored J the duty and always by speech and vote, in the Senate up. Alter dwelling on the evils of vSlavery and and elsewhere, at first with few only, but at the corruptions it had engetidered, including last as success began to dawn then wiih mul- the purchase of votes at the polls, I proceeded titudes flocking lorward. In this cause I as follows : never asked who were my associates or how '* Therefore just so long as the present false theories many they would number. In the conscious- of Slavery prevail , whether ooncerniug its ch aracter morally, economic:iliy, aii'l socially, or concerning 1 willing I ness of right was to be alone. To its prerogatives under the Coiistirution. just so hjo? such a party, with which so much of my life as the Slave Oiii^arehy. whicii is the sleepless and unhesitating agent ot Slavery in all its pretensions, is intertwined, I have no common attachment. coininuesio exist as a political power, the Repub- witliout 1 it sutfer; not Not regret can see ; lican party must endure. [ Applau^*^.] Il b.id men con- without a pang can I see it changed from its I spire for Slavery, g iod men must ombiiie fur Free- dom. ["Good, good !'] N-r cm the holy war l)e ended origii.ci character, for such a change is death, i until the barbarism now dominant in the Republic Therefore do I ask, with no common feeling, is overthrown and the P.ig in |)ower is driven irom that the peril which menaces it may pass our Jerusalem. [Applaus-^.] And when the trium{>h is won, securing the immediate obiect of our organ- away. I stood by its cradle; let me not ization, the RepubliCiin parry wiit not die, but puri- follow its hearse. fied by long contest with Slavery and filled with higher lite, it will be lilted to yet other etf )rts with ORIGIN' AXD OBJECT OP THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. nobler aims for the good of man. [Applause, three cheers for Lincoln.]" Turning back to its birth, I recall a speech of my own at a State convention in Massa- Such, on the eve of the presidential election, chusetts, as early as September 7, 1854, where was my description of the Republican party I vindicated its principles and announced its and my aspiration for its fu"ure. It was not name in these words: ''As Uepublicaxs to die, but purified by lon^ contest with we go forth to eticonnter the Oligarchs of Slavery and filled with higher life, we were Slavery. The report records the applause to behold it lifted to yet other elF»rts with wiih which this name was received by the nobler aims for the good o man. Here was excited multitude. Years of conflict ensued, nothing personal, nothing m -an or p^'ty. Tiie in which the good cause constantly gained, Republican party was nece^3ary and perma- j At last, in the summer of 1860, Alirahatn nent, and always on an asoeuding pUme. For Lincoln was nominated by this party as its such a party there was no deatn, but higher candidate for the Presidency ; and here par- life and nobler aims; and this was the party don me if 1 refer again to myself. On my way to which I give my vows. But alas! hovr 6 cbiiiiged. Once country was the object, and speaking for the party, and known to be in not li man ; once princi()le was inscribed on intimate relations with the President guilty of the viciorious banners, and not a name only. these wrongs. Evidently the party was ia process of change from that generous asso- REPUBLICAN PARTY SEIZED BY THE PRESIDENT. ciation dedicated to Human Rights and to the It is not difficult to indicate wlien this disas- guardianship of the African race. Too plainly trous clian^e, exuliitii; the will of one man it was becoming the instrument of one man above all else, became not merely manifest but and his personal will, no matter how much he painluliy conspicuous. Alrea<iy it had begun set at deliance the Constitution attd Interna- to show itselfin personal pretensions, to which tional Law, or how much he insulted the col- 1 shall refer sootj, when sudilenly and without ored people. The President was lo be main- any warninir through the publi« |:)ress or any tained at all hazards, notwithstatiding his expression from public opinion, the President, aberrations, and all who called them iu ques- elected by the Kepul)lican party precipitated tion were to be struck down. upon the country an ill-cot)sidered and ill- In exhibiting this autocratic pretension, so omened scheme lor the annexion of a portion revolutionary and unrepublican in character, of ihe island of St Domingo, in pursuance of I mean to be moderate iti language and to keep a treaty negotiated by a person of his own within the strictest bounds. The facts are in- household styling himself " Aid-de-Camp of disputable, and nobody can deny the gross the President of the United States." Had violation of me Constitution and of Inter- this eifort, however injudicious in object, been national Law with insult to the Black Re[)ub- conlined to ordinary and constitutional pro- lic — the whole case being more reprehensi- ceedings, with proper regard (or a coordinate ble, as also plainly more unconstitutional and branch of the Government, it would have soon more illegal than anything alleged against dropped out ofsight and been remembered only Andrew Johnson on his impeachment. Be- as a blunder. Bul it was not so. Strangely lieve me, sir, I should gladly leave this matter and unaccountably, it was pressed for months to the judgment already recorded, if it were by every means and appliance of power, not put in issue again by the extraordinary whether at home or abroai], now reaching into efforts, radiating on every line of office, to the Senate Chamber, and now into the waters press its author for a second term as Pres- about the island. Reluctant Senators were ident; and since silence gives consent, all subdued to its support, while, treading under these efforts are his efforts. They become foot the Constitut ion in one of its most dis more noteworthy when it is considered that tinctive republican principles, the President the name of the candidate thus pressed has seized the war powers of the nation, instituted become a sigti of discord and not of concord, foreign intervention, and capped the climax dividing instead of uniting the Republican of usurpation by metiace of violence to the party, so that these extraordinary efforts tend Black Republic of Hayii, where the colored directly to the disruption of the parfy, all of race have commenced tlie expeiicnent of self- which he witnesses and again by his silence government, thus adding manifest outrage of raiihes.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Chapter 15 Reconstruction 1865–1877
    Chapter 15 Reconstruction 1865–1877 Teaching Resources 4. As some African Americans began to agi- tate for political rights, congressional Re- Chapter Instructional Objectives publicans proposed the Wade-Davis Bill, a stricter substitute for Lincoln’s Ten Percent After you have taught this chapter, your students Plan, which laid down, as conditions for should be able to answer the following questions: the restoration of the rebellious states to 1. How did Presidents Lincoln and Johnson envision the Union, an oath of allegiance by a ma- Reconstruction? jority of each state’s adult white men, new state governments formed only by those 2. How and why did Republicans in Congress take who had never carried arms against the control of Reconstruction? Union, and permanent disfranchisement 3. What did African Americans expect after the Civil of Confederate leaders. War? What were the realities they encountered 5. The Wade-Davis Bill served notice that during Reconstruction? congressional Republicans were not going to turn Reconstruction policy over to the 4. What was the southern response(s) to Reconstruc- president. tion? 6. Rather than openly challenge Congress, 5. Why did a political crisis emerge in 1877? How did Lincoln executed a pocket veto of the it shape Reconstruction? Wade-Davis Bill by not signing it before Congress adjourned. 6. What were the successes and failures of Recon- 7. Lincoln also initiated informal talks with struction? congressional leaders aimed at finding common ground; Lincoln’s successor An- Chapter Annotated Outline drew Johnson, however, held the view that Reconstruction was the president’s prerog- I. Presidential Reconstruction ative.
    [Show full text]
  • Reconstructing the Republic, 1865-1877
    Volume 1 Building the American Republic A Narrative History to 1877 Harry L. Watson The University of Chicago Press ChiCago and London This is volume 1 of a two-volume narrative history of America by Harry L. Watson and Jane Dailey. Volume 1 is written by Watson; volume 2 is written by Dailey. To read digital editions of both volumes and more, please visit buildingtheamericanrepublic.org. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637 The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London © 2018 by Harry L. Watson All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations in critical articles and reviews. For more information, contact the University of Chicago Press, 1427 East 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637. Published 2018 Printed in the United States of America 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 1 2 3 4 5 iSBn- 13: 978- 0- 226- 30048- 1 (cloth) iSBn- 13: 978- 0- 226- 30051- 1 (paper) iSBn- 13: 978- 0- 226- 30065- 8 (e- book) doi: 10.7208/chicago/9780226300658.001.0001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Watson, Harry L. | Dailey, Jane Elizabeth, 1963– Title: Building the American republic. Description: Chicago ; London : The University of Chicago Press, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: lccn 2017026856 | isbn 9780226300481 (vol. 1 ; cloth : alk. paper) | isbn 9780226300511 (vol. 1 ; pbk. : alk. paper) | isbn 9780226300658 (vol. 1 ; e-book) | isbn 9780226300795 (vol. 2 ; cloth : alk. paper) | isbn 9780226300825 (vol. 2 ; pbk. : alk. paper) | isbn 9780226300962 (vol.
    [Show full text]
  • Politics As a Sphere of Wealth Accumulation: Cases of Gilded Age New York, 1855-1888
    City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 10-2014 Politics as a Sphere of Wealth Accumulation: Cases of Gilded Age New York, 1855-1888 Jeffrey D. Broxmeyer Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/407 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] POLITICS AS A SPHERE OF WEALTH ACCUMULATION: CASES OF GILDED AGE NEW YORK, 1855-1888 by Jeffrey D. Broxmeyer A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Political Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York. 2014 © 2014 JEFFREY D. BROXMEYER All Rights Reserved ii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Political Science in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. PROFESSOR FRANCES FOX PIVEN ___________ ________________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee PROFESSOR ALYSON COLE ___________ ________________________________ Date Executive Officer PROFESSOR JOE ROLLINS __________________________________ Supervisory Committee PROFESSOR JOSHUA FREEMAN __________________________________ Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii Abstract POLITICS AS A SHPERE OF WEALTH ACCUMULATION: CASES OF GILDED AGE NEW YORK, 1855-1888 by Jeffrey D. Broxmeyer Adviser: Professor Frances Fox Piven This dissertation examines political wealth accumulation in American political development. Scholars have long understood the political system selects for “progressive ambition” for higher office.
    [Show full text]
  • America's Overrated and Underrated R Residents
    Unmasking the Truth: America's Overrated and Underrated r residents An Honors Thesis (HONRS 499) By Sarah Welcome Ball State University Muncie, Indiana May 2007 Unmasking the Truth 1 Running Head: UNMASKING THE TRUTH f) 'he':·:;j Unmasking the Truth: America's Overrated and Underrated Presidents Sarah Welcome Ball State University Unmasking the Truth 2 Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements .............................................................4 Introduction ...................................................................... 5 Ranking the Presidents .......................................................... 9 President Ulysses S. Grant. ..................................................... 11 President Ronald Reagan ........................................................ 23 President Herbert Hoover ...................................................... 38 President Grover Cleveland .................................................... 53 Conclusion ........................................................................63 Works Cited ......................................................................66 Unmasking the Truth 3 Abstract The purpose of this paper is to unmask the truth of the history of the American presidency, overcoming the personal and political agendas of high school lesson plans, by discussing the presidencies of two underrated leaders (Ulysses S. Grant and Herbert Hoover) and two overrated leaders (Grover Cleveland and Ronald
    [Show full text]
  • The Crises of Reconstruction, 1865–1877
    16 THE CRISES OF RECONSTRUCTION, 1865–1877 CHAPTER OUTLINE • Reconstruction Politics, 1865–1868 • Reconstruction Governments • The Impact of Emancipation • New Concerns in the North, 1868–1876 • Reconstruction Abandoned, 1876–1877 RECONSTRUCTION POLITICS, 1865–1868 At the end of the Civil War, President Johnson might have exiled, imprisoned, or executed Confederate leaders and imposed martial law indefinitely. Demobilized Confederate soldiers might have continued armed resistance to federal occupation forces. Freed slaves might have taken revenge on former owners and other white southerners. But none of this occurred. Instead, intense political conflict dominated the immediate postwar years. National politics produced new constitutional amend- ments, a presidential impeachment, and some of the most ambitious domestic legis- lation ever enacted by Congress, the Reconstruction Acts of 1867–1868. The major outcome of Reconstruction politics was the enfranchisement of black men, a devel- opment that few—black or white—had expected when Lee surrendered. In 1865, only a small group of politicians supported black suffrage. All were Radical Republicans, a minority faction that had emerged during the war. Led by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts and Congressman Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, the Radicals had clamored for the abolition of slavery and a demanding reconstruction policy. But the Radicals, outnumbered in Congress by other Republicans and opposed by the Democratic minority, faced long odds. Still, they managed to win broad Republican support for parts of their Reconstruction program, including black male enfranchisement. Just as civil war had led to eman- cipation, a goal once supported by only a minority of Americans, so Reconstruction policy became bound to black suffrage, a momentous change that originally had only narrow political backing.
    [Show full text]
  • VOLUME Vili. WASHINGTON CITY, DC. JULY 14, 187*. NUMBER
    VOLUME Vili. WASHINGTON CITY, D. C.. JULY 14, 187*. NUMBER 20. when the last-named approached the house was open. ton—have left Washington for the summer, to sojourn The True Inwardness of the NcCarthy- THE PSEUDO-LABORING MAN. / THE CAPITAL, It was a memory to cherish, that of a dinner party along the New England coast, where they will find a Ten Broeck Race. As the summer heat breeds bugs of all sorts, mag- PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY gotten up by this poet, philosopher, statesman and delightful change from the torrid zone that at present A pretty fair Insight into the jockeying system of gots in good meat and Insects in the air, it disports cook. To see him as wo have seen him, in the kitchen, encircles Washington. the turf is to be seeh in the Inside history of the Molly itself by breeding into work and existence a peculiar THE CAPITAL PUBLISHING COMPANY with apron on, superintending the preparation of a McCarthy-Ten Broeck race. It originated and was car- phenomenon of Communism. This phenomenon is a First Assistant Postmaster-General Tyner and Mr. »27 R Mtrnet, Washington, II. C. dinner, and then In exquisite evening «dress receiving ried out on the job plan of the turf. It 'seems that greasy-looking, hook-nosed human being, who strug- Blackfair, representatives from the United States to his guests, composed of the leading men of the hour, Winters, the owner of the mare, wished to breed her gles under the weight oi dirty clothes and the name DONN PIATT, . .' . EDITOF.
    [Show full text]
  • Executive Power and Republicanism: the Battle to Define Ulysses S
    Executive Power and Republicanism: The Battle to Define Ulysses S. Grant’s Presidency 1868-1880 Annabelle Frances Grenville-Mathers Submitted for the fulfilment of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History March 2015 1 2 Thesis Summary This thesis situates the presidency of Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877) and the attempts to provide him with a third term in the republican political culture of Reconstruction. Exploring the period through the lens of the press, pamphlets, and archival material, it shows how republican ideas – especially hostility to partisan politics and fear of concentrated power – in the era had the capacity to both augment and detract from the president’s ability to secure the post-war settlement. Early interpretations of Grant’s presidency, written by scholars often hostile to Reconstruction, accused him of overzealous support for African-American civil rights. In contrast, revisionists blamed Reconstruction’s failure in part on Grant’s weak administration. However, when viewed through the prism of the republican political culture of the era, it is possible to see how Grant’s presidency could be simultaneously strong and weak. Republicanism enabled the portrayal of Grant as both a model republican and a tyrant- in-waiting. This thesis argues that the very qualities which made him a strong president – his antipartisanship, self-sacrifice, and honour – gave Grant the independence and support which many feared would be the undoing of the republic. Republicanism had the power to define the parameters of the possible during Reconstruction. With the federal government in tumult and the boundaries of presidential power undefined, Americans’ fears over the safety of their liberties helped shape what could be achieved during Reconstruction.
    [Show full text]
  • White Nationalism's Deep American Roots
    • ADAM SERWER • APRIL 2019 ISSUE White Nationalism’s Deep American Roots A long-overdue excavation of the book that Hitler called his “bible,” and the man who wrote it Edel Rodriguez Robert Bowers wanted everyone to know why he did it. “I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered,” he posted on the social-media network Gab shortly before allegedly entering the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on October 27 and gunning down 11 worshippers. He “wanted all Jews to die,” he declared while he was being treated for his wounds. Invoking the specter of white Americans facing “genocide,” he singled out HIAS, a Jewish American refugee-support group, and accused it of bringing “invaders in that kill our people.” Then– Attorney General Jeff Sessions, announcing that Bowers would face federal charges, was unequivocal in his condemnation: “These alleged crimes are incomprehensibly evil and utterly repugnant to the values of this nation.” The pogrom in Pittsburgh, occurring just days before the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht, seemed fundamentally un-American to many. Sessions’ denunciation spoke to the reality that most Jews have found a welcome home in the United States. His message also echoed what has become an insistent refrain in the Donald Trump era. Americans want to believe that the surge in white-supremacist violence and recruitment—the march in Charlottesville, Virginia, where neo-Nazis chanted “Jews will not replace us”; the hate crimes whose perpetrators invoke the president’s name as a battle cry—has no roots in U.S. soil, that it is racist zealotry with a foreign pedigree and marginal allure.
    [Show full text]
  • The Interior Department, War Department and Indian Policy, 1865-1887
    University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln Dissertations, Theses, & Student Research, History, Department of Department of History 7-1962 The nI terior Department, War Department and Indian Policy, 1865-1887 Henry George Waltmann University of Nebraska-Lincoln Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/historydiss Part of the American Studies Commons, Indigenous Studies Commons, Military History Commons, and the United States History Commons Waltmann, Henry George, "The nI terior Department, War Department and Indian Policy, 1865-1887" (1962). Dissertations, Theses, & Student Research, Department of History. 74. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/historydiss/74 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the History, Department of at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, & Student Research, Department of History by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Copyright by HENRY GEORGE WALTMANN 1963 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE INTERIOR DEPARTMENT, WAR DEPARTMENT AND INDIAN POLICY, 1865-188? by Henry GVc ° Waltmann A DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College in the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History Under the Supervision of Dr. James C. Olson Lincoln, Nebraska July, 1962 Reproduced
    [Show full text]
  • CHAPTER FIFTEEN RECONSTRUCTION and the NEW SOUTH Objectives a Thorough Study of Chapter 15 Should Enable the Student to Understand 1
    CHAPTER FIFTEEN RECONSTRUCTION AND THE NEW SOUTH Objectives A thorough study of Chapter 15 should enable the student to understand 1. The conditions in the former Confederacy after Appomattox that would have made any attempt at genuine Reconstruction most difficult. 2. The differences between the Conservative and Radical views on the Reconstruction process and the reasons for the eventual Radical domination. 3. The functioning of the impeachment process in the case of President Andrew Johnson and the significance of his acquittal for the future of Reconstruction. 4. Radical Reconstruction in practice and southern (black and white) reaction to it. 5. The debate among historians concerning the nature of Reconstruction, its accomplishments, and its harmful effects on the South. 6. The national problems faced by President Ulysses S. Grant and the reasons for his lack of success as chief executive. 7. The diplomatic successes of the Johnson and Grant administrations and the role of the presidents in achieving them. 8. The greenback question and how it reflected postwar financial problems of the nation. 9. The alternatives that were available during the election of 1876 and the effects of the Compromise of 1877 on the South and on the nation. 10. The response of African Americans to conditions in the South following Reconstruction. 11. The reasons for the failure of the South to develop a strong industrial economy after Reconstruction. 12. The methods used in the South to regain control of its own affairs and the course of action it chose thereafter. 13. The ways in which southerners decided to handle the race question and the origin of the system identified with “Jim Crow.” 14.
    [Show full text]
  • Essayson Ana,,, Hist Jiterature
    Edited by Robert H. Bremner Essays on ana,,, hist Jiterature Ohio State University Press $5.00 Essays o n and n. Jiterature Edited by Robert H. Bremner Emerson, in his essay History (1841), de­ fined literature as "fable," created by the imagination, and history as "experience, in­ terpreted by the reason. At approximately the same time, Macaulay declared that history lay "on the confines of two distinct territories. It is under the jurisdiction of two hostile powers, and like other districts similarly situated, it is ill defined, ill cultivated, and ill regulated. Instead of being equally shared between its two rulers, the Reason and the Imagination, it falls alternately under the solid and absolute dominion of each. It is sometimes fiction; it is sometimes theory." In this volume, four of America's leading literary and intellectual historians discuss the relationship of history and literature today. Daniel Aaron, author of Writers on the Left and Men of Good Hope, explores some of the problems of writing contemporary literary his­ tory by recounting his experiences in tracing the development of American literary radical­ ism during the 1920s and 30's while a number of the people involved were still living. Ed­ ward Lurie, author of Louis Agassiz: A Life in Science, also seeks to break the "web of deception" contemporaries spin about their own time; he advances a fresh interpretation of nineteenth-century American scholarship that recognizes the persistent association of (Continued on back flap) Essays on History and Literature Edited by Robert H. Bremner Essays on History and Literature Daniel Aaron Edward Lurie Stow Persons Russel B.
    [Show full text]
  • Politics and the Gilded
    Political Paralysis in the Gilded Age 1869 - 1896 Postwar United States • Population increased to 39 million by 1870, making US 3rd largest nation in western world • Political corruption rampant after the war – Idealism of Americans (fighting for Union and emancipation during the war) turned to cynicism (because of corruption and waste) Postwar United States • The Gilded Age – Used by Mark Twain to describe the 30 years after the Civil War – “shiny and prosperous on the outside, but rotten on the inside” (Twain) The “Bloody Shirt” Elects Grant • The election of 1868: the Republicans – Nominate Ulysses S. Grant – Grant was a popular war hero but had extremely limited knowledge with anything outside his immediate experience (military, horses, etc.) – Republican platform called for continued Reconstruction in South with Grant’s call, “Let us have peace.” – Republicans whipped up enthusiasm for Grant by “waving the bloody shirt” – reviving memories of Civil War and Democratic rebellion The “Bloody Shirt” Elects Grant • The election of 1868: the Democrats – Nominate Horatio Seymour – Democratic platform emerged out of dispute over monetary policy • Rich easterners wanted federal war bonds paid back with gold (although they had been purchased with depreciated greenbacks) • Poor, debtor Midwesterners came up with the “Ohio Idea”; wanted the bonds paid back with greenbacks (to put more money in circulation and keep interest rates lower) – Midwestern delegates got the Ohio Idea into the Democratic platform, but Seymour spoke out against it The
    [Show full text]