Henry George and the Single Tax violent in tone that the police felt that the meeting ought to be broken up. Accordingly, a battalion of nearly two hundred policemen marched into the square, and the crowd was ordered to disperse. At the moment the order was given a pistol was fired as if for a signal, and a bomb with a lighted fuse was instantly thrown into the ranks of the police. The bomb struck the ground, exploded, and killed and wounded sixty men. Eight men were arrested for the crime and tried. Six of them were sentenced to death, although only four were executed. One committed suicide. The disturbed conditions of the labor world in 1886 led to a historic municipal campaign in New York City. The working-men of the metropolis expressed a desire that Henry George might lead them in the mayoralty campaign. George was the author of Progress and Poverty, a brilliant and powerful book which maintained the doctrine that under existing social conditions the rich must necessarily grow richer and the poor must necessarily grow poorer. The cause of this, according to George, is to be found in the private ownership of land. The remedy proposed was the single tax; all revenues, federal, state, and local, were to be raised from a single tax imposed on land. Such a tax was held to be equitable and just on the ground that the value of land consists chiefly of an enhanced increment which has been created not by the exertions of the landholder but by the operation of social forces. George responded to the wishes of the working-men and became a candidate for mayor, A. S. Hewitt being the Democratic candidate, and Theodore Roosevelt the Republican candidate. Although Hewitt was elected, George received a tremendous vote, polling 68,000 out of a total of 219,000. That such a heavy vote should be cast in favor of such a radical cause made a profound impression upon the public mind. A GREAT TARIFF BATTLE Although Cleveland could not secure important legislation because of the Republican opposition in the Senate, he nevertheless could urge upon Congress the necessity for reforms, land's Message 1887 and he did so in a vigorous manner. On the subject of tariff Clevereform he was particularly bold and aggressive. In December, Tariff 1887, he transmitted to Congress a message wholly devoted to of the subject of tariff. The underlying theme of the message was that the tariff duties that were being collected were greatly in excess of the needs of the Government. A surplus of nearly $140,000,000, the President estimated, would soon be heaped up in the Treasury. For this surplus there was no outlet except in useless or extravagant expenditures, and these he would not countenance. His remedy for reducing the surplus was to reform the existing tariff laws, which were denounced as "the vicious, inequitable, and illogical source of unnecessary taxation." At the close of his message the President said: "Our progress toward a wise conclusion will not be improved by dwelling upon the themes of Protection and Free Trade. . . . It is a condition which confronts us, not a theory." Mills Bill This message was the most straight forward utterance about the tariff that had been made for many a year. But it was an utterance fraught with great political danger, for it was sure to be construed by the Republicans as a direct attack upon the policy of protection. The boldness of the message frightened the Democratic leaders, yet they stood by the President. By way of supporting him they carried through the House a bill introduced by Roger Q. Mills of Texas. The Mills Bill, which provided for a reduction of about seven per cent in the duties, The gave rise to a tariff discussion which for more than a month kept the House in a state of excitement. When the bill came to the Senate, where the Republicans were in control, it received scant consideration and in good time was allowed to die. The Democrats now went before the country on the issue of the tariff. They unanimously nominated Cleveland as their candidate in 1888 and in their platform indorsed the Mills Bill. The Republicans entered into the campaign in a hopeful The spirit, for they felt that the Democrats had given them an of issue upon which they could win. They nominated Benjamin Harrison of Indiana and declared in their platform in favor of the American System of protection and against its destruction Election 1888 as proposed by Cleveland and his party. "They serve," said the platform, "the interests of Europe; we will support the interests of America. We accept the issue and confidently appeal to the people for their judgment. The protective system must be maintained." Never before in all our history had the tariff issue been presented to the people in a clearer manner, and never before had there been a tariff battle so fierce as the one which followed. The Republicans made an almost desperate appeal to the protected interests, especially to the workingmen in the factories, and their appeal was successful. Harrison received a majority of the electoral votes, although Cleveland polled the larger popular vote. In the congressional elections the Republicans were victorious. So it is fair to say that protection won the day. "On the whole," says F. W. Taussig, "the Republicans held their own and even made gains throughout the country on the tariff issue; and they might fairly consider the result a popular verdict in favor of the system of protection." EXERCISES AND REFERENCES I. The return of the Democratic party to power: Haworth, 164-183. 2. Large-scale production: Van Metre, 415-441. 3. The combination movement: Lippincott, 469-490. 4. The emergence of the labor problems: Bogart, 472-485. 5. The beginning of a new industrial order: Forman, Our Republic, 588-613. 6. The advantages and disadvantages of capitalistic combination: Bogart, 452-463. 7. Rise of the wage-earner: Lingley, 303-325. 8. The great upheaval in the labor world: Commons, II, 356-395. 9. A date for the chronological table: 1887. 10. Prepare a summary of this chapter. II. Hints for special reading: R. M. McElroy, Life of Grover Cleveland; Grover Cleveland Presidential Problems; W. L. Ripley, Trusts, Pools and Corporations; B. J. Hendrick, Age of Big Business. XLI THE NEW WEST; THE TARIFF AND THE TRUSTS The election of 1888 was construed by the victors as a triumph for protection and as a mandate for new tariff legislation. In the campaign the Republicans had promised to protect the people against the giant corporations. They also promised to hasten the admission of several Territories in the Far West that were seeking to become States. The country, therefore, could expect that the Harrison administration would deal with problems connected with the development of the Far West, with the revision of the tariff, and with the control of big business. HARRISON AND THE CIVIL SERVICE Harrison The man who entered the White House on March 4, 1889 Benjamin to succeed President Cleveland was the grandson of William Henry Harrison. He was born in Ohio, but upon reaching manhood he opened a law office in Indianapolis, and that city became his permanent home. At the outbreak of the Civil War he answered Lincoln's call for volunteers. Before the war closed he was holding the rank of brigadier-general. In 1881 he was elected to the United States Senate, where he remained until 1887. His career as a public man was without blemish, and his character was unquestioned. He was a good lawyer and a charming public speaker. Yet he was not a pleasant man to get along with. He Benjamin Harrison. was so reserved and frigid in his manner that he often managed to confer a favor in such an ungracious way as to make the recipient feel that an injury had been inflicted. Patronage Samoa The first thing to vex the new President was the question of patronage. In the making of appointments should the principles of civil service reform be applied, or should the offices be used to reward politicians for their services to the Republican party? In his inaugural address the President promised that the Civil Service Law should be strictly enforced, and the promise was kept. Nevertheless, outside the range of the offices protected by the law, removals were made on a scale that amounted to a "clean sweep." In the decapitation of fourth-class postmasters, the ax swung so fast and so furiously that within a year the heads of 30,000 officials fell in the basket. Still, while the President disappointed many of the friends of civil service reform, the general effect of his policy was to advance the cause of the merit system. During his administration the classified service was extended, the tenure of office became more certain, and the evil of levying assessments upon the salaries of office-holders grew less flagrant. In 1891 George William Curtis, the great champion of civil service reform, could say, "The system of party assessments in the civil service, and the kindred evil of the interference of office-holders in elections, are now so effectively stigmatized by public opinion that although not abandoned, they have become disgraceful." A VIGOROUS FOREIGN POLICY When organizing his cabinet, Harrison selected Blaine as the secretary of state. It was generally expected that this appointment would be made. Blaine had been secretary of state under Garfield; he was the most commanding figure in the Republican party; he had used his influence to secure the nomination of Harrison; and he had worked faithfully for the success of the Republican ticket in 1888. In the management of foreign affairs Blaine was vigorous and aggressive. When he entered upon his duties the United States was in the midst of a controversy concerning our rights. in the distant Samoan Islands, where in the harbor of PagoPago on the island of Tutuila we had secured a coaling-station. Germany and Great Britain also had interests in Samoa. In |