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The American Experiment
James MacGregor Burns
Contents
The Vineyard of Liberty
PROLOGUE The Vineyard
PART I • Liberty and Union
CHAPTER 1 The Strategy of Liberty
THE GREAT FEAR
A RAGE FOR LIBERTY
PHILADELPHIA: THE CONTINENTAL CAUCUS
CHAPTER 2 The Third Cadre
THE ANTI-FEDERALISTS
THE COURSE IS SET
VICE AND VIRTUE
CHAPTER 3 The Experiment Begins
THE FEDERALISTS TAKE COMMAND
THE NEW YORKERS
THE FEDERALIST THRUST
THE DEADLY PATTERN
DIVISIONS ABROAD AND AT HOME
CHAPTER 4 The Trial of Liberty
PHILADELPHIANS: THE EXPERIMENTERS
QUASI-WAR ABROAD
SEMI-REPRESSION AT HOME
THE VENTURES OF THE FIRST DECADE
SHOWDOWN: THE ELECTION OF 1800
PART II • Liberty in Arcadia
CHAPTER 5 Jeffersonian Leadership
“THE EYES OF HUMANITY ARE FIXED ON US”
TO LOUISIANA AND BEYOND
CHECKMATE: THE FEDERALIST BASTION STANDS
CHAPTER 6 The American Way of War
“THE HURRICANE …NOW BLASTING THE WORLD”
THE IRRESISTIBLE WAR
WATERSIDE YANKEES: THE FEDERALISTS AT EBB TIDE
FEDERALISTS: THE TIDE RUNS OUT
CHAPTER 7 The American Way of Peace
GOOD FEELINGS AND ILL
ADAMS’ DIPLOMACY AND MONROE’S DICTUM
VIRGINIANS: THE LAST OF THE GENTLEMEN POLITICIANS
THE CHECKING AND BALANCING OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
JUBILEE l826: THE PASSING OF THE HEROES
CHAPTER 8 The Birth of the Machines
FARMS: THE JACKS-OF-ALL-TRADES
FACTORIES: THE LOOMS OF LOWELL
FREIGHT: THE BIG DITCHES
THE INNOVATING LEADERS
PART III • Liberty and Equality
CHAPTER 9 The Wind from the West
THE REVOLT OF THE OUTS
THE DANCE OF THE FACTIONS
JACKSONIAN LEADERSHIP
CHAPTER 10 Parties: The People’s Constitution
EQUALITY: THE JACKSONIAN DEMOS
STATE POLITICS: SEEDBED OF PARTY
MAJORITIES: THE FLOWERING OF THE PARTIES
CHAPTER 11 The Majority That Never Was
BLACKS IN BONDAGE
WOMEN IN NEED
MIGRANTS IN POVERTY
LEADERS WITHOUT FOLLOWERS
PART IV • The Empire of Liberty
CHAPTER 12 Whigs: The Business of Politics
THE WHIG WAY OF GOVERNMENT
THE ECONOMICS OF WHIGGERY
EXPERIMENTS IN ESCAPE
CHAPTER 13 The Empire of Liberty
TRAILS OF TEARS AND HOPE
ANNEXATION: POLITICS AND WAR
THE GEOMETRY OF BALANCE
CHAPTER 14 The Culture of Liberty
THE ENGINE IN THE VINEYARD
RELIGION: FREE EXERCISE
SCHOOLS: THE “TEMPLES OF FREEDOM”
LEADERS OF THE PENNY PRESS
ABOLITIONISTS: BY TONGUE AND PEN
PART V • Neither Liberty Nor Union
CHAPTER 15 The Ripening Vineyard
THE CORNUCOPIA
THE CORNUCOPIA OVERFLOWS
“IT WILL RAISE A HELL OF A STORM”
THE ILLINOIS REPUBLICANS
CHAPTER 16 The Grapes of Wrath
SOUTH CAROLINIANS: THE POWER ELITE
THE GRAND DEBATES
THE POLITICS OF SLAVERY
CHAPTER 17 The Blood-Red Wine
THE FLAG THAT BORE A SINGLE STAR
MEN IN BLUE AND GRAY
THE BATTLE CRIES OF FREEDOM
NOTES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INDEX
The Workshop of Democracy
PART I • The Crisis of Democracy
CHAPTER 1 The War of Liberation
MANNING THE FRONT
FORGING THE SWORD
THE SOCIETY OF THE BATTLEFIELD
“LET US DIE TO MAKE MEN FREE”
CHAPTER 2 The Reconstruction of Slavery
BOUND FOR FREEDOM
A REVOLUTIONARY EXPERIMENT
“I’SE FREE. AIN’T WUF NUFFIN”
PART II • The Business of Democracy
CHAPTER 3 The Forces of Production
INNOVATORS: THE INGENIOUS YANKEES
INVESTORS: EASTERN DOLLARS AND WESTERN RISKS
ENTREPRENEURS: THE CALIFORNIANS
INDUSTRIALISTS: CARNEGIE, ROCKEFELLER, AND THE TWO CAPITALISMS
PHILADELPHIA 1876: THE PROUD EXHIBITORS
CHAPTER 4 The Structure of Classes
UPPER CLASSES: THE NEW RICH AND THE OLD
THE MIDDLE CLASSES: A WOMAN’S WORK
THE FARMER’S LOT
WORKING CLASSES: THE CONDITIONS OF EXISTENCE
SOCIAL CLASS AND SOCIAL OUTCAST
CHAPTER 5 The Power of Ideas
DINNER AT DELMONICO’S
THE BITCH-GODDESS SUCCESS
“TOILING MILLIONS NOW ARE WAKING”
THE ALLIANCE: A DEMOCRACY OF LEADERS
CHAPTER 6 The Brokers of Politics
THE OHIOANS: LEADERS AS BROKERS
POLITICS: THE DANCE OF THE ROPEWALKERS
THE POVERTY OF POLICY
SHOWDOWN 1896
TRIUMPHANT REPUBLICANISM
PART III • Progressive Democracy?
CHAPTER 7 The Urban Progressives
THE SHAPE OF THE CITY
THE LIFE OF THE CITY
THE LEADERS OF THE CITY
THE REFORMATION OF THE CITIES
WOMEN: THE PROGRESSIVE CADRE
CHAPTER 8 The Modernizing Mind
THE PULSE OF THE MACHINE
THE CRITICS: IDEAS VS. INTERESTS?
ART: “ALL THAT IS HOLY IS PROFANED”
WRITING: “VENERABLE IDEAS ARE SWEPT AWAY”
“ALL THAT IS SOLID MELTS INTO AIR”
CHAPTER 9 The Reformation of Economic Power
THE PERSONAL USES OF POWER
FOREIGN POLICY WITH THE TR BRAND
REFORM: LEADERSHIP AND POWER
CHAPTER 10 The Cauldron of Leadership
TAFT, TR, AND THE TWO REPUBLICAN PARTIES
WILSON AND THE THREE DEMOCRATIC PARTIES
ARMAGEDDON
PART IV • Democracy on Trial
CHAPTER 11 The New Freedom
THE ENGINE OF DEMOCRACY
THE ANATOMY OF PROTEST
MARKETS, MORALITY, AND THE “STAR OF EMPIRE”
CHAPTER 12 Over There
WILSON AND THE ROAD TO WAR
MOBILIZING THE WORKSHOP
“NOUS VOILÀ, LAFAYETTE!”
OVER HERE: LIBERTY AND DEMOCRACY
CHAPTER 13 The Fight for the League
THE MIRRORED HALLS OF VERSAILLES
THE BATTLE FOR THE TREATY
1920: THE GREAT AND SOLEMN REJECTION
PART V • The Culture of Democracy
CHAPTER 14 The Age of Mellon
“THE BUSINESS OF AMERICA …”
BANKERS AND BATTLESHIPS
THE VOICES OF PROTEST
CHAPTER 15 The Commercialized Culture
THE WORKSHOP OF EDUCATION
THE PRESS AS ENTERTAINMENT
ENTERTAINMENT AS SPECTATORSHIP
THE WORKSHOP AND THE DEMOS
CHAPTER 16 The Vacant Workshop
LIFE IN THE DEPRESSION
THE CRISIS OF IDEAS
“ONCE I BUILT A RAILROAD, MADE IT RUN”
NOTES
INDEX
> ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Crosswinds of Freedom
PART I • What Kind of Freedom?
CHAPTER 1 The Crisis of Leadership
THE DIVIDED LEGACY
THE “HUNDRED DAYS” OF ACTION
“DISCIPLINE AND DIRECTION UNDER LEADERSHIP”?
CHAPTER 2 The Arc of Conflict
CLASS WAR IN AMERICA
“LENIN OR CHRIST” OR A PATH BETWEEN?
THE POLITICS OF TUMULT
APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE
CHAPTER 3 The Crisis of Majority Rule
COURT-PACKING: THE SWITCH IN TIME
CONGRESS-PURGING: THE BROKEN SPELL
DEADLOCK AT THE CENTER
THE FISSION OF IDEAS
THE PEOPLE’S ART
PART II • Strategies of Freedom
CHAPTER 4 Freedom Under Siege
THE ZIGZAG ROAD TO WAR
THE WAR OF TWO WORLDS
THE PRODUCTION OF WAR
THE RAINBOW COALITION EMBATTLED
CHAPTER 5 Cold War: The Fearful Giants
THE DEATH AND LIFE OF FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
THE LONG TELEGRAM
THE SPIRAL OF FEAR
THE PRICE OF SUSPICION
CHAPTER 6 The Imperium of Freedom
THE TECHNOLOGY OF FREEDOM
THE LANGUAGE OF FREEDOM
DILEMMAS OF FREEDOM
CHAPTER 7 The Free and the Unfree
THE BOSTON IRISH
THE SOUTHERN POOR
THE INVISIBLE LATINS
THE REVOLUTIONARY ASIANS
PART III • Liberation Struggles
CHAPTER 8 Striding Toward Freedom
ONWARD, CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS
MARCHING TO WAR
WE SHALL OVERCOME
CHAPTER 9 The World Turned Upside Down
PEOPLE OF THIS GENERATION
ROLLING THUNDER
INTO THE QUICKSAND
SONGS OF THE SIXTIES
CHAPTER 10 Liberty, Equality, Sisterhood
BREAKING THROUGH THE SILKEN CURTAIN
THE LIBERATION OF WOMEN
THE PERSONAL IS POLITICAL
PART IV • The Crosswinds of Freedom
CHAPTER 11 Prime Time: Peking and Moscow
FINDING CHINA
PEACE WITHOUT PEACE
FOREIGN POLICY: THE FALTERING EXPERIMENTS
CHAPTER 12 Vice and Virtue
WATERGATE: A MORALITY TALE
CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
CARTER: THE ARC OF MORALITY
GUN AND BIBLE
CHAPTER 13 The Culture of the Workshop
THE DICING GAME OF SCIENCE
THE RICH AND THE POOR
CROSSWAYS, LAND AND SKY
PART V • The Rebirth of Freedom?
CHAPTER 14 The Kaleidoscope of Thought
HABITS OF INDIVIDUALISM
KINESIS: THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIANS
SUPERSPECTATORSHIP
THE NEW YORKERS
THE CONSERVATIVE MALL
CHAPTER 15 The Decline of Leadership
REPUBLICANS: WAITING FOR MR. RIGHT
THE STRUCTURE OF DISARRAY
REALIGNMENT? WAITING FOR LEFTY
A REBIRTH OF LEADERSHIP?
MEMORIES OF THE FUTURE: A PERSONAL EPILOGUE
NOTES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INDEX
The American Experiment
The Vineyard of Liberty
James MacGregor Burns
To the vital cadres of history—the archivists, librarians, research assistants, and secretaries—who make possible the writing of history
I sought in my heart to give myself unto wine; I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; I made me gardens and orchards, and pools to water them; I got me servants and maidens, and great possessions of cattle; I gathered me also silver and gold, and men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, and musical instruments of all sorts, and whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them; I withheld not my heart from any joy. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and behold! all was vanity and vexation of spirit! I saw that wisdom excelleth folly, as light excelleth darkness.
From Ecclesiastes, as quoted by Thomas Jefferson, 1816
Contents
PROLOGUE The Vineyard
PART I • Liberty and Union
CHAPTER 1 The Strategy of Liberty
THE GREAT FEAR
A RAGE FOR LIBERTY
PHILADELPHIA: THE CONTINENTAL CAUCUS
CHAPTER 2 The Third Cadre
THE ANTI-FEDERALISTS
THE COURSE IS SET
VICE AND VIRTUE
CHAPTER 3 The Experiment Begins
THE FEDERALISTS TAKE COMMAND
THE NEW YORKERS
THE FEDERALIST THRUST
THE DEADLY PATTERN
DIVISIONS ABROAD AND AT HOME
CHAPTER 4 The Trial of Liberty
PHILADELPHIANS: THE EXPERIMENTERS
QUASI-WAR ABROAD
SEMI-REPRESSION AT HOME
THE VENTURES OF THE FIRST DECADE
SHOWDOWN: THE ELECTION OF 1800
PART II • Liberty in Arcadia
CHAPTER 5 Jeffersonian Leadership
“THE EYES OF HUMANITY ARE FIXED ON US”
TO LOUISIANA AND BEYOND
CHECKMATE: THE FEDERALIST BASTION STANDS
CHAPTER 6 The American Way of War
“THE HURRICANE …NOW BLASTING THE WORLD”
THE IRRESISTIBLE WAR
WATERSIDE YANKEES: THE FEDERALISTS AT EBB TIDE
FEDERALISTS: THE TIDE RUNS OUT
CHAPTER 7 The American Way of Peace
GOOD FEELINGS AND ILL
ADAMS’ DIPLOMACY AND MONROE’S DICTUM
VIRGINIANS: THE LAST OF THE GENTLEMEN POLITICIANS
THE CHECKING AND BALANCING OF JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
JUBILEE l826: THE PASSING OF THE HEROES
CHAPTER 8 The Birth of the Machines
FARMS: THE JACKS-OF-ALL-TRADES
FACTORIES: THE LOOMS OF LOWELL
FREIGHT: THE BIG DITCHES
THE INNOVATING LEADERS
PART III • Liberty and Equality
CHAPTER 9 The Wind from the West
THE REVOLT OF THE OUTS
THE DANCE OF THE FACTIONS
JACKSONIAN LEADERSHIP
CHAPTER 10 Parties: The People’s Constitution
EQUALITY: THE JACKSONIAN DEMOS
STATE POLITICS: SEEDBED OF PARTY
MAJORITIES: THE FLOWERING OF THE PARTIES
CHAPTER 11 The Majority That Never Was
BLACKS IN BONDAGE
WOMEN IN NEED
MIGRANTS IN POVERTY
LEADERS WITHOUT FOLLOWERS
PART IV • The Empire of Liberty
CHAPTER 12 Whigs: The Business of Politics
THE WHIG WAY OF GOVERNMENT
THE ECONOMICS OF WHIGGERY
EXPERIMENTS IN ESCAPE
CHAPTER 13 The Empire of Liberty
TRAILS OF TEARS AND HOPE
ANNEXATION: POLITICS AND WAR
THE GEOMETRY OF BALANCE
CHAPTER 14 The Culture of Liberty
THE ENGINE IN THE VINEYARD
RELIGION: FREE EXERCISE
SCHOOLS: THE “TEMPLES OF FREEDOM”
LEADERS OF THE PENNY PRESS
ABOLITIONISTS: BY TONGUE AND PEN
PART V • Neither Liberty Nor Union
CHAPTER 15 The Ripening Vineyard
THE CORNUCOPIA
THE CORNUCOPIA OVERFLOWS
“IT WILL RAISE A HELL OF A STORM”
THE ILLINOIS REPUBLICANS
CHAPTER 16 The Grapes of Wrath
SOUTH CAROLINIANS: THE POWER ELITE
THE GRAND DEBATES
THE POLITICS OF SLAVERY
CHAPTER 17 The Blood-Red Wine
THE FLAG THAT BORE A SINGLE STAR
MEN IN BLUE AND GRAY
THE BATTLE CRIES OF FREEDOM
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br /> NOTES
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INDEX
PROLOGUE
The Vineyard
AS AMERICANS GAINED THEIR liberty from Britain in the 1780s, they had only the most general idea of the great lands stretching to the west. But the scattered reports from explorers had indicated abundance and diversity: a huge central plain and valley drained by a river four thousand miles long; beyond that, an endless series of mountain ranges rising to rocky peaks and interspersed with burning deserts; and then a final mountain range sloping down to a green coastal fringe on the Pacific. There were stories of boundless physical riches in the bottomlands of the rivers, the herds of buffalo stretching for hundreds of miles, primeval forests so thick that migrating geese could fly over them for a thousand miles and never see a flash of sunlight on the ground below.
People living in the thirteen states in the east savored these reports, but they savored even more the diversity and abundance of their own regions. They too could boast of lush valleys and lofty mountain ranges, ample farmlands and invigorating climate. New Hampshire farmers could still be battling blizzards while Virginians saw their first tobacco plants breaking through the red soil. And their own explorers spoke of the matchless beauties of the east. One of these was Thomas Pownall, an eminently practical young Englishman who had helped plan the war against the French and Indians, and in the 1750s had been rewarded with the governorship of Massachusetts.
A tireless traveler along the seaboard and into the mountains, Pownall set about making a map of the “middle British colonies.” A no-nonsense type, he ended his map at the Mississippi and dismissed most of the topography of central Pennsylvania as “Endless Mountains.” But Pownall, in doing his work, was constantly distracted by the charm and luxuriance of the land he charted—the wild vines and cherries and pears and prunes; the “flaunting Blush of Spring, when the Woods glow with a thousand Tints that the flowering Trees and Shrubs throw out”; the wild rye that sprouted in winter and appeared green through the snow; above all, by the autumn leaves: the “Red, the Scarlet, the bright and the deep Yellow, the warm Brown,” so flamboyant that the eye could hardly bear them.
Pownall was eager for Americans to learn from European experience with the cultivation of crops. But he was cautious about trying to transplant European vines to the American climate, with its extremes of dry and wet, its thunderous showers followed by “Gleams of excessive Heat,” when the skins of “Exotic grapes” might burst. Better, he said, that Americans try to cultivate and meliorate their native vines, small and sour and thick-skinned though the grapes be. Given time and patience, even these vines could grow luxuriant and their grapes delicious.
Some ten thousand years ago or more, big-game hunters from Siberia crossed over the Bering Strait and pushed down along an ice-free corridor through Canada to the grasslands below. These were the first Americans. As they fanned out to the south and east they hunted down and killed countless bison, mastodons, mammoths, and other game with their grooved spears. It took the descendants of these onetime Mongols about a hundred and fifty years to reach the present-day Mexican border and the Atlantic coast, and another six hundred to cross the Isthmus into South America. By that time, they had killed off almost all the big game and had mainly turned to growing maize and other grains.