The Jungle (1906)

Early in the 20th century some individuals questioned the quality of food and medi- cine ptoduaion in Ameica.The “embalmed beef” smilal of the Spanish-AmeieanWar, inuoluing tainted prouisions for troops, and muckraking exposis of patent medicines and the “beef trust” had alerted the Ameican people that some problems existed. But when Upton Sindair\ nouel,The Jun{e, was publkhed in January 1906, it ereated an immediate furor. The novel was intenileil to aduomte socialism as it depieted the dffi- euk tife of Uthuanian immigrant Jurgis Rudleus and his Jriends in the fctitious Pack- ingtown. Sinclair also included some descriptions of conditions in the meatpacking houses where Juryis worked.These shocking desoiptions, some of which are exeerpted

following, appalled the Atneican people. President Theodore Rooseuelt read the book and then sent two agents to investigate Chicago\ meatpacleing houses to learn if Sin- clair’s depiction was accurate-and it was. Within six months, the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed. Sinclair later utrote about his nouel: “l aimed at the publie\ heart anil by accident hit it in the stomach.”

Q u e s t i o n s t o C o n s i d e r

1. What is more shocking, the work conditions or the preparation of meat for the American consumers? Why?

2. In what ways could government regulation address the situations in the meatpacking industry?

3. Compare Sinclairt description with that found in “The Cattle Indus- try” (Document 135). In what ways had conditions changed?

4. How would labor and immigrant rights’advocates have responded to this selection?

. . . so Jurgis learned a few things about the great and only Durham canned goods, which had become a national institution.They were regular alchemists at Durhamt; they advertised a mushroom catsup, and the men who made it did not know what a mushroom looked like. They advertised “potted chicken,”-and it was like the boarding-house soup of the comic papers, through which a chicken had waiked with rubbers on. Perhaps they had a secret process for making chickens chemically-who knows? Said Jurgis’s friends; the things that went into the mixture were tripe, and the fat of pork, and beef suet, and hearts of beef, and finally the waste ends of veal, when they had any. They put these up in several grades, and sold them at several prices; but the contents of the cans all came out of the same hopper. And

Upton Sinclair, TheJungle (NewYork, t906), 11F120. Copyright held by the cstatc of Upton Sinclair

376 CHAPTER 21 THE PROGRESSIVE MOVEMENT

then there was “potted game” and “potted grouse,” “potted ham” and “dev- illed ham”-de-rryled, as the men called it. “De-rryled” ham was made out of the waste ends of smoked beef that were too small to be sliced by the machines; and also tripe, dyed with chemicals so that it would not show white; and trimmings of hams and corned beef, and potatoes, skins and all; and finally the hard cartilaginous ingenious mixture was ground up and flavoured with spices to make it taste like something. Anybody who could invent a new imi- tation had been sure of a fortune from old Durham. . . .

There was another interesting set of statistics that a person might have gathered in Packingtown-those of the various afl-ictions of the workers. When Jurgis had first inspected the packing plants with Szedvilas, he had mar- velled while he listened to the tale of all the things that were made out of the carcasses of animals. and of all the lesser industries that were maintained there; now he found that each one of these lesser industries was a separate little inferno, in its way as horrible as the killing beds, the source and fountain of them all. The workers in each of them had their own peculiar diseases. And the wandering visitor might be sceptical about all the swindles, but he could not be sceptical about these, for the worker bore the evidence of them about on his own person-generally he had only to hold out his hand.

There were the men in the pickle rooms, for instance, where old Antanas had gotten his death; scarce a one of these that had not some spot of horror on his person.Let a man so much as scrape his finger pushing a truck in the pickle rooms, and he might have a sore that would put him out of the world; all the joints in his fingers mrght be eaten by the acid, one by one. Of the butchers and floorsmen, the beef*boners and trimmers, and all those who used knives, you could scarcely find a person who had the use of his thumb; time and time again the base of it had been slashed, till it was a mere lump of flesh against which the man pressed the knife to hold it. The hands of these men would be criss-crossed with cuts, until you could no longer pretend to count them or to trace them. They would have no nails-they had worn them off pulling hides; their knuckles were swollen so that their fingers

spread out like a fan. There were men who worked in the cooking rooms, in. the midst of steam and sickening odours, by artificial light; in these rooms the germs of tuberculosis might live for two years, but the supply was renewed every hour. There were the beef-luggers, who carried two-hundred-pound quarters into the refrigerator cars-a fearful kind of work, that began at four o’clock in the morning, and that wore out the most powerful men in a few years.There were those who worked in the chilling roorru, and whose special disease was rheumatism; the time limit that a men could work in the chilling roon$ was said to be five years. There were the wool-pluckers, whose hands went to pieces even sooner than the hands of the pickle men; for the pelts of the sheep had to be painted with acid to lobsen the wool, and then the pluckers had to pull out this wool with their bare hands, till the acid had eaten their fingers off There were those who made the tins for the canned meat; and their hands, too, were a m ze of cuts, and each cut represented a chance for blood poisoning. Some worked at the stamping machines, and it

was seldom that one could work long there at the pace that was set, and not give out artd forget himsel{, and have a part of his hand chopped off. There were the “hoisters,” as they were called, whose task it was ,o ir.r, the leverwhich lifted the dead catde offthe floor.They ran along upor,

” rafter,peer-

ing down through the dar.np and the steam; and as olJ Durham’s architects had not built the killing room for the convenience of the hoisters, at every few feet they would have to stoop under a beam, say four feet aborre ihe one they ran on; which got them into the habit of stooping, so that in a few years they would be walking Iike chimpanzees.’worst oi.”y, however, *er. the f..til- izer-men, and those who served in the cooking rooms. These people could not be shown to the visitor, for the odour of a fertilizer-mar, *orld r.”r.

“rryordinary visitor at a hundred yards; and as for the other men, who worked in tank rooms full of steams, and in some of which there were open vats near the level of the floor, their peculiar trouble was that they fell into the vats; and when they were fished out, there was never enough of them reft to be yorth exhibiting–sometimes they would be overlooke-d for days, till all but the bones of them had gone out to the world as Durham’s pure Leaf Lard!

163 THE NEW NATIONALISM OF THEODORE ROOSEVELT (I912}

163

The New Nationalism of Theodore Roosevelt (1912) Dkappointed withwillidm Howarilrhft’s eonservatiue nature and his unvilingness to putsue progressiue policies, former president Theoilore Rooseuelt began challenging Thft,s position whik ofering d new brand of progressiuism. Rooseirt go* i series of speeches throughout the country in which he gruduaily formurated iis prograr-the “New Nationalism.” Roose.uelt called for expanding tti pauot gorrrn^r7rf powerc to^eontrol anil regulate big business, ne* *rorur* oy airtit dr^oirory, and a program of labor and social legislation, In February 7972, Rooseuelt addressed the ohio Con_ stitutional conuention and ofered one of the crearest explanations of the ,,New Nation_ alism.” The speech is excerpted as follows. Seyeral dq,, oftu tie address, Rooseuelt announced that he would seek the Republican party,s presidential nomination in 1.912.when the Republicans choseThft, Roosevilt tittri the party and established the Progressiue or Bull Moose party, which used the New Natioiarism as its platform.

Ques t i ons t o Cons ide r

1′ what problems does Theodore Roosevert identi& in the American political process?

2. For what purposes does Roosevelt propose to expand democracy in the United States?

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18

The Expansion of Big Business

he Market Revolution that transformed America before the Civil War brought about even greater changes after the war. This posrwar Indus- trial Revolution included the spread of many prewar economic devel-

opments as well as the emergence of new technologies, which expanded economic production. In particular, the railroads would help create a national market for American goods with inexpensive transportation costs. Mass pro- duction of items through increased mechanization and commercial applica- tions of inventions such as electriciry the telephone, a9d steel production helped fuel the economic growth. The econofic ransformarion of the late 19th century occurred in an environment where government policy was “laissez-faire” and business followed the creed of “survival of the fittest.”The following selections describe some of the new technologies and chronicle the attitudes of those who benefited from the new economic realities.

135

The Cattle Industry (1884)

The post-Ciuil War period witnessed the aueletation of economic deuelopments that had begun before the conflict.The rcIationship between agricubural and manufaeturing enterprises grew eloser and encouraged mass-proiluction teehniques in both economic sectors. For example, farmers inueased wheat production with the adaptation of the wheat reaper, and Jlour milk grew larger and more mechanized. Assisting economic growth and helping to _forge a link between agriatlture and manufactuing after the ciuil war was the expansion of the railroads, pimaily into the west. The railroads coulil mope agriatltural products proftably to maileets in the East. Fitting into thk sit- uation was the new growth industries of uttle ranthing in the West and eastern meat processors, primaily those locateil in Chicago. In 1884, G. Ponieroy Keese wote an article, excuptedfollowing,for the popular Harper’s New Monthly Magazine desuib- ing how cattle ruised on westetn ranges becomes beef for the family meal His a$ount wu baed on iding the range with cowboys in the West and obseruing wo*. in the “shambles,” or slaughterhouses, in Chiugo.

305

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135 THE CATTLE TNDUSTRY (1884)

Ques t i ons t o Cons ide r

1. In what ways does Keese regard economic development in theWest?

2. How do the meat processing plants in Chicago address the need to mass produce beef profitably?

3. What economic impact does the railroad have on the beef business?

4. In what ways does Keese’s account of conditions in the catde industry compare with that described in “The Impact of Mechanization” (Docu- ment 136) or”TheJungle” (Document 162)?

An establishment in Chicago which combines the operations of “shipping” and of”canning” beef has a slaughtering capaciry of 400,000 head annually. When we add to this the requirements of other similar although smaller con- cerns, and the large number shipped eastward on the hoof, we have a grand total of not far from 2,500,000 head marketed in the ciry of Chicago alone. . . .’Whence does it come? Let the five great trunk lines which have their termini on the borders of Lake Michigan answer. Like the outstretched fingers of a hand, they meet in the cenral palm, Chicago.All from theWest, but from the extreme northern and southern portions, Texas representing the latter, and the utmost limits of Montana the former. Ten thousand miles of rail at least are occupied in the transit. . . .

There are several ways of becoming interested in the catde business on e northern range. One may commence by buying out a small herd, with the ranch and primitive equipments which accompany it, and with this nucleus build up by natural increase and additional purchases from time to time. . . . Or, again, one may contract in Texas during the winter for a given number of one or two year old steers, to be delivered on a certain range in Wyoming or Montana the coming surrrmer. Having previously made an arrangement for their herding for two or more years, for which he pays annually one dol- lar per head, including all expenses, all he has to do is to await their arrival about midsununer, see them counted and branded, and then turn them loose upon the range. Or, thirdly, he may become a stockholder in one of the organized gigantic companies already existing. . . .

If the second method is adopted, . . . we will suppose a purchase made in Texas, say the 1st of February of two thousand steers, . . . to be delivered on a range in Wyoming the following summer. These would be well bought at fifteen and eighteen dollars a head respectively, and then only as part of a Iarger drive of perhaps ten or rwelve thousand going through to the same localiry. . . .

The word “drive” is a misnomer as applied to the trail. It is exactly this which should not be done. Cattle once gathered, and headed in the direction of their long journey, should be allowed to “drift” rather than be urged.

G. Pomercy Kecse,”Bccf, fiom the Rmgc to thc Shmblcs,” Harpu\ New Monthly Magazine 69 fiuly 1884) 202-301.

308 CHAPTER 18 THE EXPANSION OF BIG BU5INE55

walking as they feed, they win accomplish their rwelve or fifteen miles a day with but litde exertion to themselves, and with very much less care and anx_ iety on the part of the herder. . . .

There are several distinct trails across the plains, and the pathways are as distinctly marked as a road courd be, pressed by the hoo6 of thousands for years past.

. -_…4s previously stated,the expense of herding a,,bunch”of cattle is one dollar per head annually, which incrudes an charges after they are turned loose upon the range until they are delivered as “beeves” at the nearest rail- road shipping point. . . .

Cattle trains arrive- in Chicago early in the morning. They are unloaded, the catde are classified and entered upon the ,to”k-y”rl boot i’ the name of the consignee, and after they are fed and watered ln their respective pens, are ready for inspection ofthe buyer. . . .

As we come within the gate, we reach first the outer inclosure or pen, where may be gathered one hundred head of choice ..rhlpp.rr.,;ih.y .o_” in quiedy and without excitement, and in a few minut.s’p.rh”p, one-third of them are driven i”..,g

-” t”r-w alleyway adjoining ,fr. ,i”glJp.ns. . . . Afew seconds later a mild-looking man with a slort .”‘rbi.r. in”his ^hand

drops the-muzzle to a point in the center of the forehead,just below the horns, and pulls the trigger.The steer falls without a struggle or.groan… a hooking chain passed around the neck, and the animal”ii dr”*i o.rr rpo’a broad platform about fourteen feet wide, at the bottom of which runs a sharow trough to catch the blood. Suspended by the hind feet, the sticking knife completes the bleeding process, and then two men step forward and discon- nect the head. Four follow, stripping down the hide, rwo others, in the mean while, taking off the feet. Sawing the breast and haunch bones is the next operation, and then the carcass is hoisted preparatory to tfing out the innards- This accomplished, a number

“re d”trilei to do the t im-i-rrg, .1.*-

ing and turning to account every scrap and particle connected with the ani- mal, so that nothing is wasted, down to the horns and hoofi.while these sev- eral operations are in progress, the carcass has been moving ,r””g ; distance of some two hundred feet, being attached to a track overhead. The men ar work maintain their relative positions as one after another of the carcasses come before them, and in the brief space of fourteen minutes from the time of the fatal shot to the animal is hung up, .,drawn and quartered,,, and then left to cool in the chill roo^m for forty-elght houn prepararory to shipprng. . . .

Perhaps the most sarisfactory part ofthe operatiors *. L”rr. winessed is the scrupulous cleanliness. observed throughout. The pure creamy fat and, dark rich red meat attest the perGction anJ puriry attained, which the most expert stall-man in Fulton Market can not excel. . . .

Tt-re ggnins and packing department is another branch of the business entird distinct from that.-of shipping. up to a certain point the process is substantially the same, until it .o-.t io cutting up the quarters inti suitable pieces for these uses. Here division of labor t”i”t.o-pl.t. porr.r,ro’of th. work and it is carried to the perGction of economy. A man w.ilr stand bv the

136 THE TMPACT OF MECHANTZATTON (1889)

hour giving but a single turn to his knife, which separates a joint. . . . A hundred others are on the same floor with him, each doing what may seem a trilling portion of the work, but before the carcass, which came in on one side in quarters, leaves the room, it is entirely bereft of bones, and then wheeled away in small pieces ready for the curing and the canning. . . . In this case the division is made into the various pieces familiar to household providers, viz., loins, ribs . . . “Extra mess” is composed of chucks, platesl rumps and flanks, and the rime of curing is twenty-four days. All hams are cut into three pieces, or”one-set”; time of curing, sixcy days. Plates are cut into five pieces. Loins, ribs, and shoulders are also sold to the city butchers. “Prime” tallow is made from the kidney and caid fat only, while “regular” tallow is made from the other fat, bones and trimmings. Glue factories and fertilizing establish- ments use up the bones and refuse, and the hides find their way to the tan- neries. Not a scrap of the animal is wasted, or fails to yield some revenue to the buyer.

136

The lmpact of Mechanization (1889)

The rapid adaptation of machinery for mass production createil signifcant transforma- tions in the Atnerican economy in the post-CivilWar period.The author of thefol- lowing excerpt, Dauiil A.Welk, realized the consequences of the machine age for both the business community anil society. His backgrounil as an inuentor, publkher of scien- tfic information, politiul actiuist, and a foremost economist who aduised Presidents Lintoln, Gatfeld, and Crant on business anil aunency ffiatters gaue Wells a unique per- spectlue to observe the teehnological changes taking place anil to analyze their implica- tions. In his boole Recent Economic Changes, Welk ofered a commentary on the growing size of businesses and how that afeeted the nature of enterprise. Wells was also among the first economists to rceognize that machines displaced workers-creating “teehnological unemployment”-and that business was changing American society. His obseruations indicate that both business and society were adjusting to the teehnological progress of the time.

Q u e s t i o n s t o C o n s i d e r

1. According to David A.Wells, what were the most dramatic changes tak- ing place?

2. For what reasons doesWells call these changes a”total revolution”?

3. To what extent can the common person participate in the economic advances described here?

4. In what ways would the American people respond to the new methods of doing business?