American History: A Survey (Brinkley), 13th Edition

Chapter 17: INDUSTRIAL SUPREMACY

Primary Sources

1
Refer back to the section of the chapter under the heading "Capitalism and its Critics." The great industrialist Andrew Carnegie built his fortune on steel, but he also built a lasting reputation as a philanthropist because he spent millions of dollars on the establishment of libraries. Carnegie's Gospel of Wealth was a call for other rich people to share their wealth with the worthy poor. Consider the following questions: How does Carnegie's view exemplify Social Darwinism? What is the essence of Carnegie's argument against socialism? On what social values and assumptions about human nature was the Gospel of Wealth based?

Andrew Carnegie

2
In 1883, the United States Senate Committee on Education and Labor conducted hearings on labor-management relations. The committee took testimony from labor leaders, factory owners, and other observers. The following selection excerpts the testimony of Dr. Timothy D. Stow, a physician in Fall River, Massachusetts, an important textile-mill center since before the Civil War. In 1890, almost half the population of Fall River was foreign-born. Read this document and refer to the section in the text called "Wages and Working Conditions," and consider the following questions: Was the Fall River experience typical of industrial centers? How does Dr. Stow recognize the psychological as well as the physical problems of the Fall River workers? Would Fall River have been a fertile field for labor-union organizers?

Senate Committee on Education and Labor 1883

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