American History

A  Review  of  The History

American  society  had  undergone  an  illogical   science  of  urgency  of  late
which  conjures  up  the  memories  of  the  lost  history  relevant  to  the  development
of  America. The  Gilded  Age  can  also  be  seen  as  the  most  significant  course   or
constraint  to  unearth  revolutions  and  debates  for  such  medieval  prospects  evolved
in  the  country. The  revolution  led  to  many  sophisticated  transitions  which  list  them
all  as  remarkable  events  in  the  history  of  America  and  states.  However,  a  brief
study  into  history  of  all  fundamental  evolutions,  revolutions  and  perspectives  of
The  Gilded  Age  brings  us  an  instant   picture  of  determination  and  reliance  in  its
very  regard.

Over  the  past  many  years,  historians  and  writers  have  debated  on  several
circumstances  surfaced  in  America  during  The  Gilded  age  and,  most  importantly,
during  the  making  of  The  White  City  to  celebrate  400th  anniversary  of
Christopher  Columbus  arrival  in  the  new  world  in 1492.  The  event  held  in
Chicago  in  the  year   1893  is  known  as   The  Worlds Columbian  Fair  or  The
Worlds  Columbian  Exposition.

The  first  wave  of  fast  Industrialization  during  the  Gilded  Age  not  only
affected  Chicago  on  economic  levels,  it  raised  many  social,  racial  and  political
issues  as  well.  In  fact,  the  new  perception  of  growth  and  instability  seemed  quite
unfamiliar  amongst  a  large  group  of  people  in  Chicago  which,  thus,  led  to
conflicts  of  two  disparate  outlooks.

Erik  Larson,  the  Author  of  the  spellbinding  bestseller The  Devil in  The
White  City,  elaborates  the  contemporary  focus  in  his  book.  The  intellectual
approach  to  a  non  fictional  region  through  a  novelistic  way  helped  felicitating
several  loopholes  and  areas  for  improvisations.  Erik  Larson  wrote  in  his  book  The
Devil  in  The  White  City,   The  thing  entranced  me  about  Chicago  in  The  Gilded
Age  was  the  Citys  willingness  to  take  on  the  impossible  in  the  name  of  civic
honor.  The  juxtaposition  of  pride  and  unfathomed  evil  struck  me  as  an  offering  to
an  insight  into  the  nature  of  men  and  their  ambitions  (The  Devil  in  The  White
City).  Historians  agree  that  The  White  City  of Chicago  in  The Gilded  Age  had
acquired  a  name  for  controversy,  but  they  have  drawn  quite  different  conclusions
in  the  addressing  following  questions

1. Did  Larsons  intent  play  out  successfully
2. What  is  the  difference  between  real  Chicago  and  The  White  City
3. Why  is  Erik  Larsons  White  City  different

The  review  of  the  book  and  other  significant  mean  focuses  on  these  four

Questions.
Did  Larsons  Intent

Play  Out  Successfully

In  an  influential  Cross  of  Gold speech  William  Jennings  Bryan  ( 1896 )
raised  his  voice  against   the  endorsement  of   the  free  coinage  of  silver  at  a  ratio  of  silver  to  gold  of  16  to 1.  This  inflationary  issue  was  of  its  kind  and
significance  in  the  Gilded  Age  which  could  have  triggered  the  increased  amount
of  money  in  circulation  and  aided  cash  poor  and  debt  burdened  farmers  (
Bryans  Cross  of  Gold  Speech ).  Direct  excerpts  from  the  Cross  of  gold  speech
delivered  by  William  Jennings  Bryan  on  July  9,  1896,  at  the  Democratic  National
Convention  in  Chicago  help  to  understand  the  levels  of   concerns  and  Issues
related  to  the  development  in  the  Gilded  Age.

I  shall  not  slander  the  fair  state  of  Massachusetts  nor  the  state  of  New  York  by
saying  that  when  citizens  are  confronted  with  the  proposition,   Is  this  nation
able   to  attend  to  its  own  business  I  will  not  slander  either  one  by  saying
that  the  people  of  those  states  will  declare  our  helpless  impotency  as  a  nation  to
 attend  to our  own  business.  It  is  the  issue  of  1776  over  again.  Our  ancestors,
when  but  3   million,  had  the  courage  to  declare  their  political  independence  of
every  other   nation  upon  earth.  Shall  we,  their  descendants,  when  we  have  grown
to  70  million,  declare  that  we  are  less  independent  than  our  forefathers  No,  my
friends,  it  will  never  be  the  judgment  of  this  people.  Therefore,  we  care  not  upon
what  lines  the  battle  is  fought.  If  they  say  bimetallism  is  good  but  we  cannot
have  it  till  some  nation  helps  us,  we  reply  that,  instead  of  having  a  gold  standard
because  England  has, we  shall  restore  bimetallism,  and  then  let  England  have
bimetallism  because  the  United  States  have.  If  they  dare  to  come  out  in  the  open
field  and  defend  the  gold  standard  as  a   good  thing,  we  shall  fight  them  to  the
uttermost,  having  behind  us  the  producing  masses  of  the  nation  and  the  world.
having  behind  us  the  commercial  interests  and  the   laboring  interests  and  all  the
toiling  masses,  we  shall  answer  their  demands  for  a  gold  standard  by  saying  to
them,  you  shall  not  press  down  upon  the  brow  of  labor  this  crown  of  thorns.

You  shall  not  crucify  mankind  upon  a  cross  of  gold  ( Bryans  Cross  of  Gold
Speech ).  The  following  excerpts  from  the  famous  Cross  of  Gold  Speech  by
William  Jennings  Bryan   agrees  with  Larsons  point  of  view  in  his  book  The
Devil  in  The  White  City.  On  the  contrary,  The  Great  Chicago  fire  in  1871
reminded  Americans  that  large  cities  were  becoming  Important  parts  of  their
society  during  the  Gilded  Age,  and  faced  their  own  dangers  ( Qtd.  In  Illinois
During  the  Gilded  Age).

In  the  year  1877  the  Munn  case  revolutionized  the  corporate  features  and
was  regarded  as  a  milestone  in  the  growth  of  federal  government  regulation.  The
opinion  delivered  by  chief  justice  Morrison  Remick  Waite  proposed  the  National
Grange  to  regulate  grain  elevator  rates,  declaring  that  business  interests  used  for
Public  good  be  regulated  by  government.  This  decision  also  affected  similar  laws
Governing  railroad  rates  as  they  were  also  deemed  private  utilities  serving  the
public  interest,  the  laws  governing  their  rates  were  constitutional  as  well.  Both  
applications  were  considerably  narrowed  and  weakened  by  the  decision  in  Wabash,
St. Louis    Pacific  Railway  Company  v.  Illinois  also  known  as  the  Wabash  Case
( Qtd. In  Munn  Vs. Illinois ).  In  Munn  v. Illinois,  the  Supreme  Court  decided  that
the  Fourteenth  Amendment  ( because  the  Grangers  asserted  their  due  process  right  
to  property  was  being  violated )  did  not  prevent  the  State  of  Illinois  from
regulating  charges  for  use  of  a  business  grain  elevators.  Instead,  the  decision
focused  on  the  question  of  whether  or  not  a  private  company  could  be  regulated  
in  the  public  interest.  The  courts  decision  was  that  it  could,  if  the  private
company  could  be  seen  as  a  utility  operating  in  the  public  interest ( Qtd. In  Munn
vs. Illinois ).

Unlike  other  revolutions,  the  rally  addressed  by  Albert  Richard  Parsons  at
Haymarket  Square  immediately  strikes  the  memories  of  a  brutal  massacre.  The
incident,  hence,  coincides  with  the  theory  of  Erik  Larson  in  his  book.

The  brutal  massacre  also  known  as  Haymarket  Affair  presents  the  pride
and  unfathomed  evil  prospects  into  the  nature  of  men  and  their  ambitions  during
the  Gilded  Age.  In  his  final  advice  to  his  supporteres,  Albert  Richard  Parsons
wrote, To  other  hands  are  now  committed  that  task  which  was  mine,  in  the  work
and  duty,  as  editor  of  this  paper.  Though  fallen,  wounded  perhaps  unto  death,  in
the  battle  for  liberty,  the  standard   the press   which  my  hands  bore  aloft  in
the  midst  of  the  struggle  is  caught  up  by  other  hands,  and  will  be  again  and
again,  if  needs,  till  the  crimson  banner  waves  in  triumph  over  the  enemies  of
peace,  brotherhood,  and h appiness.  And  now  to  all  I  say  Falter  not.  Lay  bare  the
inequities  of  capitalism  expose  the  slavery  of  law  proclaim  the  tyranny  of
government   denounce  the  greed,  cruelty ,  abominations  of  the  privileged  class
who  riot  and  revel  on  the  labor  of  their  wage - slaves. Farewell  ( Albert  Parsons ).

The  collaborative  efforts  and  intensity  put  in  by  William  Jennings
Bryan  et al.  seemed  to  have  represented  the  citys  willingness  to  take  on
impossible  in  the  name  of  civic  honor.  The  juxtapositon  of  pride  and  unfathomed
Evil  offers  powerful  insights  into  the  nature  of  men  and  their  ambitions. Therfore,
Erik  Larsons  intent  seemed  to  have  played  out  successfully.
What  Is  The  Diffrence  Between
Real  Chicago and  The White City

The  real  Chicago  underwent  possible  racial,  social  and  ecomical  changes
during  the  Gilded  Age.  Moreover,  every  potent  strand  of  the  society  seemed  to
have  been  affected  by  less  co  operative  developments  on  all  levels  of  economy.
Chicago  can  also  be  catergorised  into  two  groups  A  and  B,  in  fact ,  one  of  them
can  be  further  divided  into  two  equal  sections  A  1  and  A  2.  Group  A  consisted
people  who  were  either  in  favor  of  the  development  in  the  Gilded  Age  or  people
who  were  against  it  for  whatsoever  reason.  Whereas,  Group  B  was  void  of  any
such  conflicts  of  mind.  The  focus  was  primarily  centered  onto  the  construction  of
the  White  City.

The  making  of  the  White  City  on  the  occasion  of  Worlds  Columbian
Exposition  in  the  year  1893  in  Chicago  was  also  proclaimed  by  some  as  a
strategy  to  carve  a  top  notch  in  Architecture,  Art,  Chicagos  self  image, and
American  Industrial  optimism.  A  considerable  part  of  the  real  Chicago  was
polluted,  underdeveloped,  illiterate  and  was  going  through  certain  controvercial  and
revolutionary  issues.  However,  The  White  City  was  affluent  and  royality.

As  mentioned  in  the  Article  Worlds  Columbian  Exposition, Most  of  the
buildings  were  based  on  classical  architecture.  The  area  at  the  Court  of  Honor
was  known  as  The White City.  The  buildings  were  made  of  a  White  stucco,
which,  in  comparison  to  the  tenements  of  Chicago,  seemed  illuminated.  It  was
also  called  the  White  City  because  of  the  extensive  use  of  street  lights,  which
made  the  boulevards  and  buildings  usable  at  night  ( Worlds  Columbian  Exposition
).

Why  is  Erik  Larsons
White  City  Different

The  White  City  as  explained  in  the  pages  of  modern  history  and  other
available  soureces  was  meant  to  cover  the  secrets  and  other  negligence  on  the
part  of  Government  and  other  federal  officials.

As  detailed  in  Erik  Larsons  popular  history  The  Devil  in  the  White  City,
extraordinary  effort  was  required  to  accomplish  the  exposition,  and  much  of  it
was  unfinished  on  opening  day.  The famous  Ferris  Wheel,  which  proved  to  be  a
major  attendance  draw  and  helped  save  th e fair  from  bankruptcy,  was  not  finished
until  June,  because  of  waffling  by  the  board  of  directors  the  previous  year  on
whether  to  build  it.  Frequent  debates  and  disagreements  among  the  developers  of
the  fair  added  many  delays.  The  spurning  of  Buffalo  Bills  Wild  West  Show
proved  a  serious  financial  mistake.  Buffalo  Bill  set  up  his  highly  popular  show
next  door  to  the  fair  and  brought  in  a  great  deal  of  revenue  that  he  did  not  have
to  share  with  the  developers.  Nonetheless,  construction  and  operation  of  the  fair
proved  to  be  a  windfall  for  Chicago  workers  during  the  serious  economic
recession  that  was  sweeping  the  country  ( Qtd. In  Worlds  Columbian  Exposition ).

Erik  Larsons  White  City  tells  a  story of  one  of  Americas  first  serial
Killers  and  digs  out  hidden  aspects  of  The White  City.  The  assasination  of
Popular  mayor  Carter  Harrison,  Senior  by  Patrick  Eugene  Prendergast  potrays  a
different  White  City  ( Qtd. In  Worlds  Columbian  Exposition).

Hence, The  White  City  as explained  in  The  Devil  in  The  White  City  is
quite  different  from  real  White  City.