Los Años Rugientes de los 1920s (2)

Para el año 1921 Henry Ford estaba construyendo un millon de coches por año."Ford y sus dos rivales principales, General Motors y Chrysler Corporation produjeron cuatro-quintos de todo los automobiles en este país. Sobre un periodo de tiempo habían 23 millones de automobiles en las carreteras. (2)

Los fabricantes de automoviles en el intento de hacer sus vehículos más comprables ofrecerían al consumidor un plan de comprar a plazos que se podría también aplicar a los radios, aparatos y muebles. Esto estimulaba y permitía al consumidor a comprar estas mercancias que de otra forma no lo hubiesen podido hacer con su salario normal. Como resultado de la disponibilidad y de la extensión de crédito del consumidor, las ventas de los bienes y de los servicios crecieron. " Las ventas de mercancías vendidas al por menor que fueron comprado a plazo alcanzó un total de $7.000.000.000 en el ano 1929 haciendo mas disponible que antes, los automobiles, muebles y radios." (3) Las casas estaban llenos con todas las clases de bienes para el consumidor y los garajes con automoviles nuevos.

El radio y el automóvil eran uno de los productos principales que compraba el consumidor en los años 1920s. Para muchas familias no se podía permitir esos lujos. Sin el radio, aquellos quienes vivían en las zonas rústicas como los granjeros, eran aislados de toda comunicación local y lejana del país. A consecuencia del retumbo económico, los salarios más altos fueron pagados, ganancias fueron hechas y los artículos que eran considerados como lujos antes de la guerra ya se podían comprar. Al final del día, las familias y los amigos se juntaban cerca del radio para escuchar la comedia radiofónica nocturna mas popular de la nación "Amos y Andy." que primero se aireó en 1926. Las emisoras de radio comenzaron a multiplicarse por todas partes de América, cuyos programas pagados por de la publicidad.

Ahora con la compra de un radio, las familias de granja que vivían en las zonas más lejanas del país fueron inmediatamente puesto en contacto diariamente con el resto de la nación. Con sólo una torcedura del disco, el entretenimiento, los deportes, la religión, las últimas noticias y la música podrían ser oídos.

El crédito de consumidor también estaba haciendo fácil para que el pueblo americano pudiera comprar a plazo, aun cuando no tuviesen el dinero. Productos nuevos fueron producidos continuamente inundando el mercado de los compradores con anuncios seductores que despertaban un impulso irrestible de "Ooooooh...esto si tengo que tener." Asi que para el final de los años 1920 "casi la mitad de la población americana había comprado coches, radios, y otros bienes de consumidor, como neveras y aspiradoras.

"En 1925, la Corporación de Radio de América (RCA) soltó la estadística que indica que de las 26 000 000 de casas en los Estados Unidos, 5 000 000, o el 19.2 por ciento, tenían receptores de radio, aunque el número de oyentes de emisión fuera estimado en 20 000 000. En su Diccionario Histórico de los años 1920 (1988), James S. Olson nota que las ventas de radio fueron de 60 millones de dólares en 1922 a 843 millones de dólares en 1929. Se presupone que para el ano 1929, aproximadamente el 35 a 40 por ciento de familias americanas eran duenos de radios, y aun este número era más alto en algunos casos hasta el 75 por ciento, tanto en áreas suburbanas de los ricos como en las zonas más grandes del Metropolitano. (4)

Aunque el radio tuviera su prioridad mayor en aproximadamente cada casa como una forma de recreación para los oyentes a partir desde al amanecer hasta el anochecer, el automovil revolucionaría el uso de tiempo libre. Con el coche las familias podían salir del ambiente de sus hogares y gozar de los deportes, playas, parques, teatros y áreas de diversión . También el automovil ofreció oportunidades a las familias de viajar por todo el país.

A continuación: Los Años Rugientes de los 1920s (3)

NOTAS:

2) Wish, Harvey; Society and Thought in Modern America; Volume II Page: 439; David McKay Company, Inc.-New York (1952)

3) Wish, Harvey; Society and Thought in Modern America; Volume II Page: 441 David McKay Company, Inc.-New York (1952)

4) Library of Congress, American Memory; Coolidge-Consumerism, “Radio: A Consumer Product and a Producer of Consumption”

Autora de este artículo: Miriam Medina

Los Años Rugientes de los 1920s (1)

Escrito y Traducido por Miriam Medina.

Una Era Dramática e Única En Todos Sus Aspectos.

Por fin la Primera Guerra Mundial se terminó, y los personales militares y empleados civiles de trabajo militar fueron licenciados inmediatamente con el cincuenta por ciento de los hombres en fuerzas armadas volviendo a la vida civil para las navidades en el año 1919.(1)

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Muchos de los militares que volvieron de la guerra estuvieron llenos de resentimiento al encontrar que sus trabajos que tenían antes de ir a la guerra, en la mayor parte de los casos, ya estaban ocupados por alguien más, aunque previamente les habían asegurado definidamente que recibirían un  tratamiento justo económicamente  después de servir su tiempo militar.

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Cuando los años 1920s comenzaron, la economía estaba en una mejora. Los veteranos encontraron que el país estaba en un estado enormemente próspero con una nueva clase de milionarios y gente de vida acomodada, que surgió de las ganancias de la guerra.
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El país era mayor en el crecimiento demográfico,  aumentado por la inmigración, y más industrializado, donde la clase trabajadora dependía de los salarios que adelantaron considerablemente para su mantenimiento y placer. Los americanos encontraron un mejor modo de mejorar su estilo de vida y disfrutar de ella.
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Ya que la persona común durante los años 1920 a menudo hacía mucho dinero, ellos tenían lo suficiente para envolverse en las speculaciones e inversiones de la bolsa. Una onda de especulación bursátil  pasaba rápidamente por todo el país, y en todas partes había gastos extravagantes amotinados y ganancias excesivas enormes. La cantidad de dinero depositado en las cuentas de ahorro creció rápidamente como también el número de los depositores.
 

Los años 1920 fueron considerados “un Período de Auge de la Posguerra."América estaba disfrutando de una época de la gran prosperidad."La extensión económica creó ganancias comerciales en auge que por su parte levantó el nivel de vida para la mayor parte de americanos.
A continuación: Los Años Rugientes de los 1920s (2)

NOTAS:

1) Dummond, Dwight Lowell; America in Our Time 1896-1946; Page: 283 Henry Holt and Company (1937).

Our Financial Troubles:The Government and the Panic in America 1873 (3)

It is important also to observe that just as the American Government is in a peculiarly advantageous position to do its duty, and to refrain from making advances, it is in a peculiarly disadvantageous position if it deviate from its strict duty and make those advances. A Government like ours, or like the French Government, has a skilled agent whom it can trust to make them; the Bank of France or the Bank of England can safely lend at such junctures, while neither Government could do so without great peril. It was partly from the consciousness of this great difficulty that, in 1825__the greatest of our panics__the English Government itself refused to lend anything, but encouraged the Bank of England to lend to its last shilling. But the American Government has no similar resource; it has no skilled intermediary; it is face to face with the banks which have failed and with the nation which is distressed. it must itself lend all which has to be lent, and to give full relief to give, for example, such relief as the Bank of England gave in the panic of 1825__it must lend much, and it must lend on all sorts of securities, by the discount of bills, on the deposit of shares, and in all kinds of various ways. In most countries a Government would be much puzzled to judge of such miscellaneous securities, and at New York, it would be puzzled almost more than anywhere else, for such securities are there unusually treacherous, and the borrowers are unusually devoid of scruple.

On the whole, therefore, we consider that up to the present time the American Government has performed with great discretion the difficult duties which devolve on a Government during a great panic, and we hope that it will to the end of the panic preserve the same discretion, and be able to act upon it.

This article was transcribed verbatim from The New York Times November 15, 1873 Page: 4

Contact: miriam@thehistorybox.com

Our Financial Troubles:The Government and the Panic in America 1873 (2)

These reasons are in argument perfectly conclusive; but we admit that it is most difficult for a Government to act on them. The collapse of a large system of banking causes so much evil, and that evil affects so many persons, that it is most difficult for a Government to be passive in it. On every side it is pressed on to "do something," and it is most difficult to refuse. A "cast-iron" executive would refuse. It would say: "All help to these bad banks is so much impediment to future good banks; it is so much sacrifice of future good to avoid present pain. We are trustees for the future nation, and we must resist the cries of the present nation." But a "cast-iron" executive like this is very difficult to find, and is especially difficult in free States. For an elected Government to deny the wishes of its electors is near to an impossibility. Though sound principle commands a Government to give no aid at a great collapse of banking credit, we do not expect that principle often to be obeyed. Much too often the present evil will be cured, though at the cost of greater evil. Things will be "made pleasant" for the time, no matter how unpleasant they may be afterward. The symptom will be abated, but the disease will be uncured.

Under these difficult circumstances President Grant appears to be acting very fairly probably as well as a person so placed can be expected to act. If he is not doing absolutely nothing, he is doing as little as he can. In two respects, indeed, his position is not quite so simple as it would at first sight appear. The American Government, though it has escaped the usual aggravations of a banking panic, though its own money is safe, though the currency is unsuspected, nevertheless has difficulties of its own. Its legislation has been unusual, and that legislation has had singular results. it prescribed that the banks should keep a certain reserve, and the panic was intensified because the public saw that the limit of that reserve was approached, if not infringed. As this part of the evil was caused by the past action of the Government, there can be no objection to its being retrieved by its present action. President Grant has, therefore, very reasonably connived at a temporary evasion of the law; it has been given out that the banks will not be required to make a statement for any date during the panic, and therefore, it will not be known what is their precise reserve, but no one doubts that it is generally less than the prescribed proportion. This is most certain to be the case with the New-York banks which have also suspended, since the panic, their usual practice of publishing weekly statements. There is nothing aginst principle in this connivance; on the contrary, it is in accordance with principle. In another respect, too, the position of President Grant is difficult and peculiar.

The principal currency of America the legal tender of the country is supplied by the Government, and the scarcity of it is an underlying cause of the present confusion. A fixed quantity of currency has been maintained in the face of a rapidly augmenting trade, and in consequence money has been dear and prices have been depressed. here again, as Government caused the difficulty, it might be said that Government should cure, or, at least, alleviate it. But this would be said i n error. This case is not on the same footing as the former one; the requirement of a fixed reserve is a questionable benefit, which might be temporarily foregone without disadvantage. But the non-increase of the inconvertible paper during an augmenting trade is the remedy, the painful but necessary remedy, by which that paper has gradually been raised much nearer to the level of gold than it was once. The application of that remedy cannot be interrupted without serious evil: its progress is necessary to the future welfare of the country. The present bad currency is at the root of the Anmerican disasters, and till it is removed the country is not safe from a recurrence of them. But every additional "greenback" issued at the present crisis is an interruption of the remedy. If President Grant were now, as he has been much urged, to issue a large number of new greenbacks, those greenbacks would remain in circulation, and would, in part, undo the beneficial work which has been already done; they would augment the premium on gold and increase the depreciation of the paper. Against such demands President Grant has in the main been firm. He has yielded only to this extent.

There are in the Treasury, as we have before explained, some $44,000,000 of greenbacks, which once made part of the currency, but which were formerly withdrawn from it; a part, and only a part of these withdrawn greenbacks have been reissued at this crisis. Perhaps even this was contrary to principle, and the Government had better have abstained from it; but in such a moment_in a system of Government so popular, and after demands so urgent and prolonged__few Governments would have been so firm, few would not have deviated further from the strict letter of economical teaching.

To be continued: (3)

Please see end of article for the source of its contents.

Contact: miriam@thehistorybox.com

Our Financial Troubles:The Government and the Panic in America 1873 (1)

From the London Economist, Nov. 1.

In one respect the panic in the United States brings out the relations of a Government to calamities of that kind in a form exceedingly simple. In most cases Governments must interfere; at a certain stage of the calamities, more or less advanced, they must give help for their own sakes. They have deposited the proceeds of taxation with some bank, and they must preserve that bank; they would be unable to defray their ordinary expenditure, and to pay the national creditor if that bank stops.Their money is part of the money market, and therefore they must support the money market. But the American Government is not thus in the money market; it keeps its funds in the Treasury, and does not deposit them in any bank. It can, therefore, consider without bias (which most Governments cannot) whether it ought to give or withhold help in panic; it can consider the permanent interest of the nation, and not its own momentary interest. In this respect the American panic is simpler than most panics, and in another, almost as important, it is also simpler. It is essentially a deposit panic; not a note panic. There is no doubt about the currency. Greenbacks, the inconvertible paper issued by Government, are not suspected, but hoarded; the national bank notes, being secured by the deposits of undoubted securities, are also in excellent credit. We have to consider only the duty of the Government to the banks, not its duty to the currency of the people. What, then, in such a panic, ought such a Government to do?

In England we have never had this precise problem to consider. Our Government has always been so placed that at last it must support the money market. Its money was deposited in the Bank of England, and it could not permit the Bank of England to fail. It is sometimes imagined that the necessity for the intervention of Government arises from the act of 1844. But this is a mistake. It had to interfere in one way or another years before the act of 1844 was heard of; in 1797 it helped the Bank of England by suspendi ng the specie payment of the bank notes, in 1793 it issued exchequer bills itself: in 1825 it was on the very verge of doing so again.

Our Government never could "let the money market take care of itself," for it would have lost its own money if it had. And behind the banking panic there has always been in England the possibility that the convertibility of the bank-note might be endangered. Since the act of 1844 this dread, no doubt irrational, is still , it is confessed;felt. The safety of the Banking Department of the Bank of England, and the safety of the bank note are not thoroughly distinguised. The public mind but vaguely apprehends the separation of the departments, and the simple case which the American Government is considering has never been before us. What, then, in such circumstances ought a government to do? In our judgment its duty is exceedingly easy to write on paper, and exceedingly hard to effect in practice. There is the gravest danger in its giving any kind of help; if possible, it ought to give no aid whatever. Banking is a trade just like any other: the lending of money is as purely mercantile a matter as cotton-spinning or match-making. In this case, as in others, help to the bad competitor is harm to the good competitor. If you want not to have good cotton factories you have only to subsidize the bad ones; you have only to say that the Government will pay the bills of insolvent cotton spinners, and solvent o nes will not exist any more. In the same way the greatest discouragement to sound banking is a help to unsound. If you always help bad banks out of the difficulties, you will hardly ever have banks which are not in difficulties. Failure is the penalty which nature imposes on bad banking; and failure gets rid of the bad bank. But if Government prevent the failure, it not only shares the penalty but continues the evil. The bad bank still exists, and is the more trusted because it has been helped.

As the Government has helped it once, the public expect that the Government will help it again. Probably the bank itself thinks so also; and having been saved once from the natural penalties of incaution it will not care much about being cautious again. Caution in banking, we must remember, means present low profit; rashness means present high profit. Banks helped by Government will always tend to be rash, and take the present high profit, because they are exempt from the only reason which would make them take the low profit they are certain not to fail.

To be continued: (2)

Source of this article will be given at the end of article.

Contact: miriam@thehistorybox.com

MAIN DIRECTORY: Mimi Speaks Blog (1)

A Blog is a frequently updated journal or diary, also called a "Web log," which is a specialized site that allows an individual or group of individuals to share a running log of events and personal insights with online audiences. A Blog is a publication of a mixture of personal thoughts, experiences, and web links. Some blogging sites may provide a variety of topics that may be of interest to the public, such as in my case where I love to talk about New York City , New York State and American History as well as life itself.

There are many people who love to read blogs, but just don't have the time to go through it's entire contents trying to find something that may be of interest to them. Usually when people approach a blog, they like to go quickly from one thing to the next. As for actually reading the text, there is little evidence of that unless the subject matter should catch their eye, then it becomes worthwhile.

Since my blog was started in 2007, there have been postings of over 300 tid-bits of information, which talk about history, life situations, goals and success. New updates will continue to be posted regularly. So my dear reader, for your benefit, I am making every attempt to improve the navigation to this treasure trove of information as quickly as possible. For this purpose I have created a table of contents divided by categories, for easy accessing. However if there is something that may interest you, I suggest you find yourself a comfortable chair, and while you're at it, grab a steaming hot cup of coffee and a bagel with cream cheese and you'll be all set to settle down for a while. So happy reading.

MAIN DIRECTORY

Table of Contents (2)

(A. ) Getting To Know Mimi (B.) N.Y.C. History (C.) East Harlem
(D.) Spanish Harlem (E.) Black Harlem (F.) New York State (G.) Urban/Suburban Living Issues

Table of Contents (3)
(H.) Chit-Chat Over Coffee Swirls

Table of Contents (4)
(I.) Jewish Knowledge (J.) Self-Improvement (K.) Historical Facts On England & United States

Table of Contents (5)
(L.) Miscellaneous (M.) Timetables (N.) Ethnic Groups (O.) Legal Talk
(P.) Entertainment: Backward Glances (Q.) Immigration

Table of Contents (6)
(R.) Women__Bio Sketches, Feminine Fancies, Recipes, Kitchen Talk.
(S.) Worship

Table of Contents (7)
(T.) A Little Taste of History, (U.) U.S. History-Transportation, (V) U.S. History-Panics, Economic Depressions

Table of Contents (8)
(W) ¿Habla Español?
(This section dedicated to articles of historical facts, poetry, self-improvement, human interest stories etc. written in Spanish)

Table of Contents (9)
(X) So Mr. President, What Did You Do During Your Term in Office....? (The Series)

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There is no "Panic" here, Wall Street is not America, and the People Are With the President 1895

The people in the country at large are not likely to be affected by the lamentations of Wall street or to recognize in a panic on the stock market any real disaster to our domestic industries. The country will not be frightened into submission to England's arrogant pretensions because a few speculators are forced to the wall by a flurry in gambling circles. If foreigners choose to get alarmed over the situation, and to send their stocks and bonds to New York for sale at a loss, that is no concern of the American people. The fact does not mean that the railroads, mines, and manufactories upon which these stocks and bonds are based have lost their earning powers, and that is the only question with which we need concern ourselves. The whole aim and purpose of this unloading of American securities by foreign holders is to frighten or disuade us from the course we have marked out for ourselves.

The President has touched a patriotic chord, and the American people have responded with instant and harmonious enthusiasm. The whole Nation is behind him. What is needed, and what the president, no doubt, wants, is a retirement of the Treasury demand notes and the substitution for them of a currency equal in volume and in value, but divested of that prerogative which at present constitutes our greatest peril and embarrassment. This is not beyond the reach of immediate achievement.

Unquestionably some legislation of this kind is imperative. Unquestionably it is the solemn duty of Congress to address itself to that task in a spirit of patriotic statesmenship. It is evident that Europe is now endeavoring to divert the United States from its present purpose, and that Europe has her allies in all the great American markets. The usurer and the money changer know neither creed nor nationality. At all times and in all places either is a man without a country, who knows only the god of avarice. It behooves us, therefore, as a people, to protect ourselves, to place our Treasury beyond the reach of any foe, to erect financial bulwarks against which neither the avowed foe nor the disguised traitor may prevail. This we can do. This the President asks us to do.

Source of information was transcribed verbatim from the New York Times December 24, 1895

Contact: miriam@thehistorybox.com or miriammedina@earthlink.net

Table of Contents: Mimi Speaks Blog (8)

W. El Rincón En Español

Esta sección es dedicada a los artículos de interés histórico, poesía, pensamientos positivos y otra información diversa. Vea "El Rincón En Español " (música latina, documentarios y más de José Martí.

1. La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6).
2. Poesías de José Martí: " ¡A Mi Madre!"
3. Poesías de José Martí: " Linda Hermanita Mía (1868) ."
4. Los Años Rugientes de los 1920s: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
5. Cuando Amas a Un Niño....(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7).
6. La Década de los Años Treinta: Efectos de la Gran Depresión...(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
7. La Inmigración de Argentina, Antes de 1908
8. Poesías de José Martí: ¿Qué me pides? ¿Lágrimas?
9. Poesías de José Martí: Sin Amores
10. El Pánico de 1837: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)
11. En Honor a la Figura Paterna
12. Flor Blanca por Jose Marti (5)
13. Poesías de José Martí: Los Zapaticos de Rosa
14. El Rincón En Español
15. Poesías de José Martí: " A Micaela"
16. Pánicos, Depresiones y Crisis Económicas Antes de 1930 (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
17. El Diez de Abril de 1869 por Jose Marti
18. El Angel Por Jose Marti
19. En Ti Encerre Mis Horas De Alegria
20. A Fermin Valdes Dominguez por Jose Marti
21. Recuerdos Del Viejo Vecindario: "El Barrio" (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)
22. Musica Latina (you-tubes)(1)
23: Jose Marti: Carta De Madrugada a sus Hermanas Antonia y Amelia
24. Jose Marti: 10 De octubre!
25. El Rincón En Español-Música de España
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TABLE OF CONTENTS: (9)
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To contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net
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Timetables (1)

Topic: New York City Information #1

1860 New York is the largest city, with 1,174,779 residents, with 20 percent of them Irish-born immigrants.

1869 A.T. Stewart, owner of New York's largest department store, starts a planned middle-income community in Garden City, Long Island

1869 New York City's first apartment house, the Rutherford-Stuyvesant on East 18th Street, is built.

1870 The first U.S. elevated railroad opens in New York City; a section for demonstration purposes had opened two years earlier.

1877 In New York City, the Museum of Natural History opens at the edge of Central Park.

1880 New York City lights a strip of Broadway_14th to 26th Streets__with arc lamps.

1880 On the Lower East Side of New York, housing conditions are among the worst in the world.

1882 Parts of New York City are lit by electricity; soon Manhattan will be entirely supplied with electric power. An 1884 law requires that wire be placed underground, a job not completed .

1883 The Brooklyn Bridge opens. Designed by J.A. Roebling, who dies before it is completed, the span links Manhattan and Brooklyn. It is completed by his son, W.A.Roebling.

1886 The Statue of Liberty, a gift to the United States from France, is dedicated in New York Harbor.

1888 The first electric trolley starts running in the city of Richmond, Virginia. The system covers more than 12 miles. Electric trolleys will be operating in 200 other American cities by around 1889.

1889 The world's first electric elevators are installed in a New York office building by Otis Brothers. (31)

Sources Utilized to Document Information

Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net

Table of Contents: Mimi Speaks Blog (5)

L. Miscellaneous

1. Communications: Hey! What's Doing? (1) (2) (3)

2. To Volunteer or Not. A Thankless Task!

3. The Advantage of Being Fat

4. Time To Hug Your Pet

5. Manicure For Best Pet Dogs 1902

6. New York, New York-Undeniably One Helluva Town (1) (2) (3)

7. Columbus Day October 12 (1) (2)

8. A Healthy and Successful New Year To All 2010

9. The History Box Book Store

10. Need An Editor/Writer?

M. Timetables

1. Topic: New York City Information #1
2. Topic: U.S.History #1-Panics and Depressions
3. Topic: The Spanish American War

4. Topic: Building The Armed Forces
5. Topic: Colonization: 17th & 18th Centuries
6. Topic: U.S. 1891-1900

N. Ethnic Groups

1. Topic: The Chinese Immigrant Experience
2. The Italian Immigrant Experience (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
3. Topic: The Irish-American Community
4. Topic: The Dominican Community
5. Topic: The First Jewish colony on Manhattan Island
O. Legal Talk

1. Topic: Understanding Legal Terms Pre: 1901 #1
2. Topic: Understanding Legal Terms Pre: 1901 #2
3. Topic: Understanding legal Terms Pre: 1901 #3
4. Topic: Understanding Legal Terms Pre: 1901 #4
5. Topic: Legal Responses to Questions Of General Public Interest in the Year 1898 (1)
6. Topic: Legal Responses to Questions Of General Public Interest in the Year 1898 (2)
7. Topic: Habeas Corpus (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

8. Topic: The Supreme Court of the United States (1) (2) (3) (4) (5)

9. Topic: In Law: Pleading (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

10. Jurisdiction in Law (1) (2)

P. Entertainment: Backward Glances

1. Topic: The Ziegfeld Follies 1907-1914 #1
2. Topic: The Ziegfeld Follies 1907-1914 #2
3. Topic: New York City's Theatres Pre: 1911 #1
4. Topic: New York City's Theatres Pre: 1911 #2
5. Topic: New York City's Theatres Pre: 1911 #3
6. Topic: The Ballet Dancer 1872

Q. Immigration

1. I Go To America, Reaching For the American Dream
2. The Italian Immigrant Experience (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
3. America! America! How I Love Thee......Music/Video and text

Sources Utilized to Document Information

Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net

The Panic of 1837 (7)

Volume: III Page: 340 (extract)

"Amidst all conflicting theories, one position is undeniable, the precious metals will invariably disappear when there ceases to be a necessity for their use as a circulating medium. It was in strict accordance with this truth that whilst in the month of May last they were everywhere seen and were current for all ordinary purposes they disappeared from circulation the moment the payment of specie was refused by the banks and the community tacitly agreed to dispense with its employment. Their place was supplied by a currency exclusively of paper, and in many cases of the worst description.

Already are the bank notes now in circulation greatly depreciated, and they fluctuate in value between one place and another, thus diminishing and making uncertain the worth of property and the price of labor, and failing to sub-serve, except at a heavy loss, the purposes of business. With each succeeding day the metallic currency decreases; by some it is hoarded in the natural fear that once parted with it can not be replaced, while by others it is diverted from its more legitimate uses for the sake of gain. Should Congress sanction this condition of things by making irredeemable paper money receivable in payment of public dues, a temporary check to a wise and salutary policy will in all probability be converted into its absolute destruction.

M. VAN BUREN

Source of Information: " A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents 789-1897" By: James D. Richardson....A Representative from the State of Tennessee. Publisher: by Authority of Congress..1899. Ten Volumes total. Copyright: 1897 by James D. Richardson; New International Encyclopedia, Dodd, Mead and Co.-NY, Copyright: 1902-1905 21 Volumes; The Bicentennial Almanac, Thomas Nelson, Inc. publishers, New York. Copyright 1975; The History of New York State, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, Inc. New York (1927)

Contact: miriammedina@earthlink.net or miriam@thehistorybox.com

The Panic of 1837 (6)

Volume: III Pages: 333-334 (extract)
The use by the banks, for their own benefit, of the money deposited with them has received the sanction of the Government from the commencement of this connection. The money received from the people, instead of being kept till it is needed for their use, is, in consequence of this authority, a fund on which discounts are made for the profit of those who happen to be owners of stock in the banks selected as depositories. The supposed and often exaggerated advantages of such a boon will always cause it to be sought for with avidity. I will not stop to consider on whom the patronage incident to it is to be conferred. Whether the selection and control be trusted to Congress or to the Executive, either will be subjected to appeals made in every form which the sagacity of interest can suggest. The banks under such a system are stimulated to make the most of their fortunate acquisition; the deposits are treated as an increase of capital; loans and circulation are rashly augmented, and when the public exigencies require a return it is attended with embarrassments not provided for nor foreseen. Thus banks that thought themselves most fortunate when the public funds were received find themselves most embarrassed when the season of payment suddenly arrives.

Unfortunately, too, the evils of the system are not limited to the banks. It stimulates a general rashness of enterprise and aggravates the fluctuations of commerce and the currency. This result was strikingly exhibited during the operations of the late deposit system, and especially in the purchases of public lands. The order which ultimately directed the payment of gold and silver in such purchases greatly checked, but could not altogether prevent, the evil. Specie was indeed more difficult to be procured than the notes which the banks could themselves create at pleasure; but still, being obtained from them as a loan and returned as a deposit, which they were again at liberty to use, it only passed round the circle with diminished speed. This operation could not have been performed had the funds of the Government gone into the Treasury to be regularly disbursed, and not into banks, to be loaned out for their own profit while they were permitted to substitute for it a credit in account.

In expressing these sentiments I desire not to undervalue the benefits of a salutary credit to any branch of enterprise. The credit bestowed on probity and industry is the just reward of merit and an honorable incentive to further acquisition. None oppose it who love their country and understand its welfare. But when it is unduly encouraged: when it is made to inflame the public mind with the temptations of sudden and unsubstantial wealth; when it turns industry into paths that lead sooner or later to disappointment and distress, it becomes liable to censure and needs correction. Far from helping probity and industry, the ruin to which it leads falls most severely on the great laboring classes, who are thrown suddenly out of employment, and by the failure of magnificent schemes never intended to enrich them are deprived in a moment of their only resource. Abuses of credit and excesses in speculation will happen in despite of the most salutary laws; no government, perhaps, can altogether prevent them, but surely every government can refrain from contributing the stimulus that calls them into life.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (7)

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The Panic of 1837 (5)

It was so impossible that such a state of things could long continue that the prospect of revulsion was present to the minds of considerate men before it actually came. None, however, had correctly anticipated its severity. A concurrence of circumstances inadequate of themselves to produce such widespread and calamitous embarrassments tended so greatly to aggravate them that they can not be overlooked in considering their history. Among these may be mentioned, as most prominent, the great loss of capital sustained by our commercial emporium in the fire of December, 1835, a loss the effects of which were underrated at the time because postponed for a season by the great facilities of credit then existing; the disturbing effects in our commercial cities of the transfers of the public moneys required by the deposit law of June, 1836, and the measures adopted by the foreign creditors of our merchants to reduce their debts and to withdraw from the United States a large portion of our specie.

It has since appeared that evils similar to those suffered by ourselves have been experienced in Great Britain, on the Continent, and indeed, throughout the commercial world, and that in other countries as well as in our own they have been uniformly preceded by an undue enlargement of the boundaries of trade, prompted, as with us, by unprecedented expansions of the systems of credit. A reference to the amount of banking capital and the issues of paper credits put in circulation in Great Britain, by banks and in other ways, during the years 1834,1835, and 1836 will show an augmentation of the paper currency there as much disproportioned to the real wants of trade as in the United States. With this redundancy of the paper currency there arose in that country also a spirit of adventurous speculation embracing the whole range of human enterprise.

Aid was profusely given to projected improvements; large investments were made in foreign stocks and loans; credits for goods were granted with unbounded liberality to merchants in foreign countries, and all the means of acquiring and employing credit were put in active operation and extended in their effects to every department of business and to every quarter of the globe. The reaction was proportioned in its violence to the extraordinary character of the events which preceded it. The commercial community of Great Britain were subjected to the greatest difficulties, and their debtors in this country were not only suddenly deprived of accustomed and expected credits, but called upon for payments which in the actual posture of things here could only be made through a general pressure and at the most ruinous sacrifices.

In view of these facts it would seem impossible for sincere inquirers after truth to resist the conviction that the causes of the revulsion in both countries have been substantially the same. Two nations, the most commercial in the world, enjoying but recently the highest degree of apparent prosperity and maintaining with each other the closest relations, are suddenly, in a time of profound peace and without any great national disaster, arrested in their career and plunged into a state of embarrassment and distress. In both countries we have witnessed the same redundancy of paper money and other facilities of credit; the same spirit of speculation; the same partial successes; the same difficulties and reverses, and at length nearly the same overwhelming catastrophe. The most material difference between the results in the two countries has only been that with us there has also occurred an extensive derangement in the fiscal affairs of the Federal and State Governments, occasioned by the suspension of specie payments by the banks.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (6)

The Panic of 1837 (4)

The history of trade in the United States for the last three or four years affords the convincing evidence that our present condition is chiefly to be attributed to over-action in all the departments of business, an over-action deriving, perhaps, its first impulses from antecedent causes, but stimulated to its destructive consequences by excessive issues of bank paper and by other facilities for the acquisition and enlargement of credit. At the commencement of the year 1834 the banking capital of the United States, including that of the national bank, then existing, amounted to $200,000,000, the bank notes then in circulation to about ninety-five millions, and the loans and discounts of the banks to three hundred and twenty-four millions.

Between that time and the 1st of January, 1836, being the latest period to which accurate accounts have been received, our banking capital was increased to more than two hundred and fifty-one millions, our paper circulation to more than one hundred and forty millions, and the loans and discounts to more than four hundred and fifty-seven millions. To this vast increase are to be added the many millions of credit acquired by means of foreign loans, contracted by the States and State institutions, and above all, by the lavish accommodations. extended by foreign dealers to our merchants.

The consequences of this redundancy of credit and of the spirit of reckless speculation engendered by it were a foreign debt contracted by our citizens estimated in March last at more than $30,000,000; the extension to traders in the interior of our country of credits for supplies greatly beyond the wants of the people; the investment of $39,500,000 in unproductive public lands in the years 1835 and 1836, whilst in the preceding year the sales amounted to only four and a half millions; the creation of debts, to an almost countless amount, for real estate in existing or anticipated cities and villages, equally unproductive, and at prices now seen to have been greatly disproportionate to their real value.

The expenditure of immense sums in improvements which in many cases have been found to ruinously improvident; the diversion to other pursuits of much of the labor that should have been applied to agriculture, thereby contributing to the expenditure of large sums in the importation of grain from Europe--an expenditure which, amounting in 1834 to about $250,000, was in the first two quarters of the present year increased to more than $2,000,000; and finally, without enumerating other injurious results, the rapid growth among all classes, and especially in our great commercial towns, of luxurious habits founded too often on merely fancied wealth, and
detrimental alike to the industry, the resources, and the morals of our people.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (5)

The Panic of 1837 (3)

A provision of another act, passed about the same time, and intended to secure a faithful compliance with the obligation of the United States to satisfy all demands upon them in specie or its equivalent, prohibited the offer of any bank note not convertible on the spot into gold or silver at the will of the holder; and the ability of the Government, with millions on deposit, to meet its engagements in the manner thus required by law was rendered very doubtful by the event to which I have referred.

Sensible that adequate provisions for these unexpected exigencies could only be made by Congress; convinced that some of them would be indispensably necessary to the public service before the regular period of your meeting, and desirous also to enable you to exercise at the earliest moment your full constitutional powers for the relief of the country, I could not with propriety avoid subjecting you to the inconvenience of assembling at as early a day as the state of the popular representation would permit. I am sure that I have done but justice to your feelings in believing that this inconvenience will be cheerfully encountered in the hope of rendering your meeting conducive to the good of the country.

During the earlier stages of the revulsion through which we have just passed much acrimonious discussion arose and great diversity of opinion existed as to its real causes. This was not surprising. The operations of credit are so diversified and the influences which affect them so numerous, and often so subtle, that even impartial and well-informed persons are seldom found to agree in respect to them. To inherent difficulties were also added other tendencies which were by no means favorable to the discovery of truth. It was hardly to be expected that those who disapproved the policy of the Government in relation to the currency would, in the excited state of public feeling produced by the occasion, fail to attribute to that policy any extensive embarrassment in the monetary affairs of the country.

The matter thus became connected with the passions and conflicts of party; opinions were more or less affected by political considerations, and differences were prolonged which might otherwise have been determined by an appeal to facts, by the exercise of reason, or by mutual concession. It is, however, a cheering reflection that circumstances of this nature can not
prevent a community so intelligent as ours from ultimately arriving at correct conclusions. Encouraged by the firm belief of this truth, I proceed to state my views, so far as may be necessary to a clear understanding of the remedies I feel it my duty to propose and of the reasons by which I have been led to recommend them.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (4)

The Panic of 1837 (2)

Special Session Message (From the Presidential Papers and Messages)

During the term of Martin Van Buren while in office as President March 4, 1837 to March 4, 1841.

Washington, September 4, 1837

Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives:

Volume: III Page: 324 (extract) The act of the 23d of June, 1836, regulating the deposits of the public money and directing the employment of State, District, and Territorial banks for that purpose, made it the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to discontinue the use of such of them as should at any time refuse to redeem their notes in specie, and to substitute other banks, provided a sufficient number could be obtained to receive the public deposits upon the terms and conditions therein prescribed. The general and almost simultaneous suspension of specie payments by the banks in May last rendered the performance of this duty imperative in respect to those which had been selected under the act, and made it at the same time impracticable to employ the requisite number of others upon the prescribed conditions.

The specific regulations established by Congress for the deposit and safe-keeping of the public moneys having thus unexpectedly become inoperative, I felt it to be my duty to afford you an early opportunity for the exercise of your supervisory powers over the subject. I was also led to apprehend that the suspension of specie payments, increasing the embarrassments before existing in the pecuniary affairs of the country, would so far diminish the public revenue that the accruing receipts into the Treasury would not, with the reserved five millions, be sufficient to defray the unavoidable expenses of the Government until the usual period for the meeting of Congress, whilst the authority to call upon the States for a portion of the sums deposited with them was too restricted to enable the Department to realize a sufficient amount from that source. These apprehensions have been justified by subsequent results, which render it certain that this deficiency will occur if additional means be not provided by Congress.

The difficulties experienced by the mercantile interest in meeting their engagements induced them to apply to me previously to the actual suspension of specie payments for indulgence upon their bonds for duties, and all the relief authorized by law was promptly and cheerfully granted. The dependence of the Treasury upon the avails of these bonds to enable it to make the deposits with the States required by law led me in the outset to limit this indulgence to the 1st of September, but it has since been extended to the 1st of October, that the matter might be submitted to your further direction. Questions were also expected to arise in the recess in respect to the October installment of those deposits requiring the interposition of Congress.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (3)

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The Panic of 1837 (1)

In 1837, there occurred the first great business panic with which the nation has been visited, and New York was as hard hit as the rest of the country.

Unfortunately no practical measures were at first instituted to relieve the distresses of the working classes, and advantage was taken of the opportunity by politicians and demagogues to inflame the passions of the ignorant and the vicious.

The economic harvest of the Jackson years is the Panic of 1837, with an ensuing depression. During these years cotton production increased in the South, agriculture expanded in the West, cities grew, manufacturing replaced trade as the economic base in the North. These phenomena were accompanied by a rise in the sales of land, and also in the price paid for land. There was a need for internal improvements, roads, canals, etc. and these had to be financed by states and private companies. Inevitably, speculation and inflation accompanied such activities, and President Jackson hoped to curb the unhealthy aspects of a growing economy by extirpating the central bank, which he considered the root of the evil.

But with Federal funds distributed widely in "pet banks" and surplus revenues distributed among the states, the control exercised by the Bank of the United States is replaced by financial anarchy: the number of banks and the number of bank notes increase. In response to the President's Specie Circular issued in 1836, the local banks are faced with a critical situation, and call in their loans. (At the same time, a depression in Great Britain results in withdrawals of British investments and a decline in the demand for cotton.) First the New York City Banks suspend specie payment; then others follow suit. Lacking sufficient hard money, banks fail, enterprises go bankrupt, unemployment spreads. As the depression deepens, President Van Buren continues to follow Jackson's policy, with the ill-advised codicil of a plan to fragment the single treasury into a system of "sub-treasuries."

Sub-treasury System

The sub-treasury system of the United States is an outgrowth of the panic of 1837. In his special session message to Congress that year President Van Buren strongly recommended such a system (III, 324). Silas Wright of New York, introduced a bill in Congress in accordance with the President's recommendations. It prohibited Government agents from receiving anything but gold and silver. In 1840 the bill became a law and sub-treasuries were established at New York, Boston, Charleston, and St. Louis, the mint at Philadelphia and the branch mint at New Orleans having been also made places of deposit. The law was repealed in 1841 and reenacted in 1846.

To be continued: The Panic of 1837 (2)

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Corruption in Wall Street 1871

The blunting of moral sense, the callous unconscientiousness which the atmosphere of Wall street seems to produce with appalling swiftness on so many who enter it, has had of late years many sad and startling examples. Men previously honorable and upright in all their dealings become infected with the terrible malaria of speculation, and straightway honor flies from them. They betray their dearest friends, and rob those who trust them with as little compunction as a "Ring" official. The case of Pay-master Hodge presents a painful example of this corrupting influence. But what is even more suggestive is the assertion made in his confession, that his embezzlements were connived at, if not prompted, by the Wall street brokers who managed his unhappy speculations. The charge gains color from the arrest on Tuesday of one of the members of a well-known firm in Exchange-place, on an affidavit of Assistant District-Attorney Purdy, alleging his complicity with the defaulting Pay-master. Whether this is really the guilty party is not yet evident, and we do not propose to prejudge the case. But it seems probable that some broker did commit the offense for which Mr. Jackson has been arrested; did use the money advanced by Hodge, knowing it to be Government money, and perhaps actually advised this dishonest conversion of the public funds. And if that broker be found and convicted of the crime, we trust to see him punished with the extreme rigor of the law. His guilt is, if anything, greater than that of the actual defaulter, for it adds the darker sin of temptation to dishonesty. It is just such crafty insidious knaves who have gone far to make Wall street a name of evil repute; who help to create gold panics and stock "corners," and whose infectious immorality is gradually undermining the commercial integrity of the country. We look to see this financial rascal impartially and sternly dealt with.

The above article in its entirety was transcribed verbatim from the New York Times dated September 28, 1871.

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Historical Facts on England & United States (7)

Topic: Total Mortality of England, London and New York 1850-1857

1851 (England) 395,396
1851 (London) 55,488
1851 (New York) 21,748

1852 (England) 407,135
1852 (London) 54,638
1852 (New York) 20,298

1853 (England) 421,097
1853 (London) 60,069
1853 (New York) 21,137

1854 (England) 437,905
1854 (London) 73,697
1854 (New York) 26, 953

1855 (England) 425,703
1855 (London) 61,942
1855 (New York) 21,478

1856 (England) 390,506
1856 (London) 57,274
1856 (New York) 20,102

1857 (England) 419,815
1857 (London) 59, 103
1857 (New York) 21,775 (7)

To be continued: 1858-1864

Sources Utilized to Document Information

Contact: miriam@thehistorybox.com

Timetables (6)

Topic: U.S. 1891-1900

1891 The Bronx becomes home to the New York Botanical Garden.

1893 The World's Columbian Exposition is celebrated in Chicago.

1893 Frederick Law Olmsted and Daniel Burnham's "White City," a model of urban planning, demonstrates everything that city planners have worked toward over the years.

1893 Louisville, Kentucky, builds fieldhouses where city children can play in bad weather.

1894 Manhattan's tenement district has 986.4 people per square acre, the highest population density in the world.

1898 The first U.S. subway begins operation in Boston.

1900 Street railways total more than 20,000 miles.

1900 The effects of immigration and urbanization are evident. In the Northeast, two-thirds of the population is urban, and 23 percent is foreign-born. An additional 28 percent has at least one foreign-born parent. In New York City in 1910, 40 percent of the 4.8 million residents are foreign-born. An additional 38 percent have at least one foreign-born parent.

1900 The population of New York City is 43 times greater than in the year 1800.

1900 Electric trolleys have transformed Boston into a metropolis, encompassing 31 towns in a ten-mile radius, and more than 1 million residents.

1900 A hurricane and tiday wave destroy Galveston, Texas. When the mayor and alderman prove unable to cope with the emergency, businessmen propose a new form of city government by a board of commissioners.

to be continued:

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Poesías de José Martí : (2)

Título: "Linda Hermanita Mía " (1868) por José Martí

Feliz es el momento en que recibo
Carta tuya; feliz es este día,
Porque en ti pienso y de mi amor te escribo.
Versos esperas tú que te anunciaba
Allá por la pasada nochebuena.
En el revuelto mar de mis papeles
No se sabe posar la paz serena,
Y, pues que soy doncel, obro sin pena
Como obran desde antaño los donceles:
Escribo, guardo, pierdo,
Te quiero mucho, y luego me perdonas,
Y si a mi loco juicio fuera cuerdo
Pensar un triste ornarse con coronas,
Las más bellas serían
Las que tus lindas manos me darían,
Los más consoladores tus laureles
Al perdonarme por haber perdido
Aquel que, por ser tuyo, hubiera sido
El más bello papel de mis papeles.
Impaciente y estúpido el correo,
Lucha y vence mi amor y mi deseo.
Carta es mi carta, mas si bien la peso,
Me une a tu imagen tan estrecho lazo,
Que es cada frase para ti, un abrazo,
Y cada letra que te escribo, un beso.

Ana mía: perdona si mis versos son malos. Así brotan de mí en este momento. Yo no corregiría nunca lo que escribiera para ti. Dime, hermana amada mía: ¿sería capaz Blanco de pensar y amarte así ?

A continuación, más poesías de José Martí


Source: José Martí: Obras Completas 17 Poesia; Editorial Nacional de Cuba/
La Habana, 1964

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Poesías de José Martí : (1)

Titulo: ¡A Mi Madre!

Madre del alma, madre querida,
Son tus natales, quiero cantar;
Porque mi alma, de amor henchida,
Aunque muy joven, nunca se olvida
De la que vida me hubo de dar.

Pasan los años, vuelan las horas
Que yo a tu lado no siento ir,
Por tus caricias arrobadoras
Y las miradas tan seductora
Que hacen mi pecho fuerte latir.

A Dios yo pido constantemente
Para mis padres vida immortal;
Porque es muy grato, sobre la frente
Sentir el roce de un beso ardiente
Que de otra boca nunca es igual.

Source: Obras Completas 17 Poesia; Editorial Nacional de Cuba/ La Habana,
1964

Estos son, probablemente, los primeros versos escritos por Martí.

La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (6)

Este mundo de gente prominente de gran riqueza vivían en la opulencia asombrosa durante los años económicos prósperos, eran aquellos que heredaron sus fortunas de sus antepasados; mientras otros se hicieron ricos por ser dueños de bienes raíces valiosos, inversiones en transporte e industria y finalmente los trepadores de escala sociales quienes se casaron con alguien con un título, o cuenta bancaria inmensa a fin de establecer su presencia en la competencia de la alta sociedad. Todos ellos tenían el dinero y tiempo libre para permitirse el lujo del consumo visible.

Suponiendo que sus vidas prosperosas durarían para siempre, muchas de las familias ricas acostumbradas al corre ajitado de la existencia social, una vida ociosa, gastando inmensas fortunas cada año en la prodigalidad de vestidos, entretenimiento y lujos opulentos de casa; viviendo mas allá de sus medios actuales a fin de quedarse en la alta sociedad serían devastadas por las quiebras financieras que resultaron del cambio total de sus fortunas. Muchos de los mejores negocios de la ciudad sufrieron ruina con estas tormentas terribles financieras.

Wall street siempre ha sido el gran centro financiero de America, así como el corazón de la riqueza de la alta sociedad. Las fiestas más costosos, y la demostración de la elegancia en Nueva York, Saratoga y Newport estuvieron todos relacionados con operaciones de la bolsa de valores. En Wall Street usted encontraría el intelecto más audaz y perspicaz de la nación que podría producir un pánico en un instante y sacudir la fundación del mundo.

Se ha comentado que los hombres que hacían negocios en Wall Street tenían una mirada prematuramente vieja, y que se morían en una edad comparativamente temprana. Esto no era extraño. Vivian demasiado rápido. Las responsabilidades que ellos tenían sobre sus hombros, agotaban con severidad sus cuerpos y mentes para no poder durar muchos años. Ningún hombre podía decir enuna semana si él sería un mendigo o al siguiente, un millionario. Mientras un hombre hacía una fortuna por una subida repentina de reservas o el oro, mil serían arruinado. Incluso las mejores firmas que eran mas establecidas se derrumbaron como resultado de los cambios repentinos y total de fortunas.

El imagen de los hombres quienes eran en una vez poderosos, seguros de si mismo, andando enérgicamente de un lado a otro es obviamente sustituida por uno con paso nervioso, lleno de angustia y gritos de desesperación cuando ellos atestiguan el derrumbamiento de su mundo." Una vez ellos tenían mansiones suntuosos en la quinta avenida, y eran los favoritos de la fortuna." Ahora no tienen ningun futuro, o ninguna esperanza. Ellos han caído para nunca volver a levantar. Las personas que eran banqueros, agentes de bolsa de reserva y comerciantes ricos, habían sufrido pérdidas asombrosas durante los numerosos pánicos que repetidamente afectaron nuestra nación, se quedaron completamente sin dinero. La mayor parte de su fracaso fue atribuido a especulaciones, convenios de negocios que fallecieron, y la vida extravagante. Una vez conocido y respetado entre el mundo de la alta sociedad, muy pocos de la sociedad extenderíian la ayuda or tuvieran compasión por los hombres de negocios arruinados y sus familias. Para estos hombres y mujeres quienes solo habían conocido el mundo de la riqueza y la comodidad; la vida de pobreza en efecto era una experiencia muy devastadora que ellos miraban con una aversión. Incapaz de enfrentarse con sus pérdidas, había aquellos que sufrieron colapsos nerviosos, ataques cardíacos, o se suicidaron, abandonando sus familias económicamente sin protección y sin hogar.

Desde el año 1819 los Estados Unidos ha experimentado una y otra vez, depresiones industriales y financieras más serias y más extendidas que estos precediendo a ello. Normalmente éstos seguirían períodos de especulación y valores anormalmente inflados, con bancos, negocios, plantas de fabricación y fábricas fallando en mayores números. La excasez de dinero, El aumento obvio de la extinción del derecho de redimir las fincas y casas. ¿El desempleo? Inevitable para millones detrabajadores.

El hecho es que cada crisis con sus consecuencias desagradables culmina en "Tiempos Malos" para el pueblo americana y después de un intervalo breve o largo, el país logra resumir su antigua prosperidad, ignorando las lecciones del pasado..........

(Siga con la Parte II los años Rugientes de los 1920s: una Era Dramática e Única En Todos Sus Aspectos)

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La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (5)

Durante el Pánico de 1819, el peligro economico fue sufrido por todos los grupos dentro de la comunidad, aunque la clase obrera no fue tan afectada como la de los ricos. Los trabajadores estaban acostumbrado a una vida simple con posesiones de poco valor,donde sus ganancias apenas eran menos que suficientes para permitírles una existencia decente. Sin embargo su angustia era tan real como la de los ricos.

Incapaz de mantenerse y a sus familias, o recibir ayuda de los miembros de su institución religiosa,amigos o familiares, muchos se quedarían sin hogar acudiendo a los "Asilos de pobres" para auxilio. En el 27 de noviembre de 1824, un acto fue proporcionado para establecer "Asilos de pobres" en el condado de Nueva York. La función de los "asilos de pobres" no solamente era para alimentar or proveer un sitio donde vivir para los necesitados por un cierto periodo de tiempo, pero mantener a los recipientes en un estado de empleo instruyendoles en labores útiles hasta que ellos pudieran ser independientes, ganandose la vida. Esto ayudaba a la institución en sufragar los gastos de su mantenimiento y sosten.

Sin embargo, aquellos quienes tuviesen más que perder en una escala mayor con estos crisis económicos que ocurrirían durante los años, era la clase rica. Un gran parte de las familias de la clase rica, hicieron fortunas inmensas por sus inversiones antes de comenzar la guerra de 1812, tanto como después en la segunda parte del siglo 19.

Los Astors eran uno de las familias terratenientes y mercantiles que hicieron grandes fortunas privadas durante principios del siglo diecinueve. John Jacob Astor hizo aproximadamente dos millones de dólares por su comercio en pieles y tés. El bulto de su fortuna inmensa fue hecho por inversiones en bienes raíces. En el momento de su muerte su estado fue valorado en veintemillones.

Cornelius Vanderbilt y Andrew Carnegie, eran gigantes en el crecimiento nacional. Ellos eran multimillionarios reultando de sus inversiones en el transporte e industria. J.P. Morgan vino a la delantera de finanzas americanas. Otros gigantes comerciales de la era eran Rockefeller en el petróleo, los Armours, Swifts, y Morris en el empaquetadura de carne, los Havemeyers en el azúcar y los Dukes en el tabaco. El pico de poder y la rqueza de estos gigantes financieros era durante los años 1866-1897.

A Continuación: La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (6)

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La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (4)

El encarcelamiento para la deuda era un castigo común durante el principio del siglo diez y nueve. La prisión del deudor se desbordó y los juzgados no podían hacerse cargo de sus casos. La situación grave de los deudores en el Oeste fue bien expresada por Guillermo Greene, secretario del Gobernador Ethan Allen Brown de Ohio, en un memorándum al gobernador en el abril de 1820:

"Una cosa parece ser universalmente concedida que la mayor parte de nuestros ciudadanos mercantiles están en un estado de bancarrota que aquellos quienes tienen las posesiones más grandes de verdadero y bienes personales... encuentran casi imposible de crear los fondos suficientes para suministrarse con las necesidades de la vida. (5)

Durante el pánico de 1819,los bienes raices se habían depreciado a aproximadamente la mitad de su valor. En el estado de Nueva York,los valores de las propiedades cayeron de 315 milliones de dólares en 1818 a 256 millones en 1820. En Richmond,los valores de propiedad se cayeron a la mitad. En Pennsylvania, los valores de tierra sumergieron de $150 dólares un acre en 1815 a 35 dólares en 1819. En Filadelfia, 1,808 individuos fueron cometidos a la prisión de los deudores. En Boston, la figura era 3,500." (6)

El Pittsburg Telegraph publico una revisión contando la historia del desastre que sucedió al comercio en el año: 1819.

"Las fortunas fueron borradas en un día; cantidades de las compañías especulativas desaparecieron mágicamente; y los accionistas estaban horrorizados; las tierras suburbanas y lotes de la ciudad que estaban supuesto de rendir cien veces cayeron a casi falta de merito. Como ejemplo del efecto que tiene un panico en bienes reales aqui, un viejo ciudadano dice que la tierra en Boyd's Hill que se sostuvo en $2,000 y más cayó a $100; Los lotes en la avenida cuatro que se sostuvo en$2,000 cayó a $100; propiedad en la region de la calle Market, en la cual habian buenas casas de ladrillo, sólo en parte pagadas, fueron totalmente abandonados, como propiedad tan bueno como pudiera ser comprado para menos que las sumas debidas en éstos. Sin embargo el Banco de los Estados Unidos con su capital de $35,000,000 supero el temporal y suministrando al pais de nuevo con una moneda estable de valor uniforme, reconquisto la confianza, y otra vez obligo a los bancos estatales para entrar liquidación,o levantar el valor de las notas al estándar de las notas de banco nacional.(7)

A Continuación: La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (5)

Notas de Referencias:

5. Rothbard, Murray; " The Panic of 1819: Reactions and Policies (1962) Page: 15

6." The Era of Good Feeling"

7. New York Times August 20, 1878

La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (3)

Los agricultores y los especuladores de tierra compraron muchos acres de terreno público del gobierno federal,que podían hacer en crédito.Los especuladores, comprarían tierra tan barato como sea posible en crédito, inflando el precio de venta a los compradores anticipados a fin de hacer una ganancia....Las exportaciones agrícolas se elevaron a 57 millones de dólares en 1817, alcanzando un pico de 63 millones de dólares en 1818. Beneficiándose del periodo de prosperidad, en algunos casos,comúnmente, el agricultor era un especulador también. El compraba terreno adicional para poder hacer un volumen de ventas que sea provechoso y rápido, añadiendo más a su sobrecarga de deudas bancarias acumulativas. Los banqueros extendían crédito con abandono incontrolable, asumiendo que la prosperidad duraría para siempre. Los bancos se beneficiaron enormemente por empresas de capital y préstamo especulativo.Los comerciantes de valores, los banqueros, y los subastadores todos llenaban sus cofres, de las recompensas de sus servicios.

Los agricultores y los especuladores principalmente usaron los préstamos para comprar la tierra federal en el Oeste americano. Cuando la crisis económica vino en 1819, los millares de granjeros y de trabajadores sobre-cargados con deudas financieras se encontraron acosados por los acreedores frenéticos que exigían su dinero.Los comerciantes en las ciudades grandes dieron prisa para liquidar sus posesiones para pagar las deudas debidas a los acreedores extranjeros. Ellos por su parte presionaban a los mercantes más pequeños y comerciantes para el pago en la mercancía que ellos compraron a crédito. Finalmente, le llegó el turno de los agricultores para dar el pago de los prestamos por la cual ellos no tenían. Los precios de cosecha decrecientes y la escasez del dinero lo hicieron imposible para ellos de reembolsar los bancos. Esto causó la pérdida de su propiedad. Aquellos que habían comprado la tierra pública en un precio inflado a credito durante el tiempo de prosperidad cuando el algodón y los precios de grano eran altos, fueron ensillados con una deuda tremenda, afrontaban la confiscación de sus tierras al gobierno federal.

"Las reversiones de la tierra a los Estados Unidos en 1819 sumaron a 365,000 acres, de los cuales 153,000 estuvieron localizados en el Territorio Noroeste. El año siguiente, el equilibrio sin pagar debido en las ventas de tierra alcanzó más de $21 millones, una cantidad igual a más de un quinto de la deuda nacional total. De aquella cantidad, 6.6 millones de dólares era para la tierra en el Noroeste. La situación fue hecha más crítica por una depresión en precios agrícolas. (3)

Como consecuencia de no hacer pagos en los préstamos, los bancos fletados del estado comenzaron a sufrir un colapso.

El salario del trabajador agrícola en Massachusetts fue de 60 centavos por día en 1811 a cincuenta y tres centavos en 1819.Los obreros no capacitados que trabajaban en las autopistas de peaje fueron pagados 75 centavos por día a principios de 1818 y reducidos a 12 centavos por día en 1819. (4) la dificultad principal del pánico de 1819 era la escasez del dinero disponible.A fin de adquirir los artículos que ellos necesitaban para sobrevivir, los agricultores y los habitantes locales recurrirían al sistema de intercambios.

Los dueños de fábrica en los Estados Unidos tenían dificultad en la competencia con fábricas que eran establecidas anteriormente en Europa. Muchas personas americanas no podían permitirse los bienes de las fábricas debido a la carencia del dinero en la circulación. Atizonado por el peligro económica como consecuencia del Pánico de 1819, los dueños ricos de fábrica quienes experimentaban dificultades monetarias serían obligado a cerrarse, dejando desempleados los artesanos expertos, y mecánicos.

A Continuación: La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (4)

Notas de Referencias:

3. Lincoln Boyhood: Settlement and Immigration

4. Rothbard, Murray; " The Panic of 1819: Reactions and Policies (1962) (The 209 page book is based on his doctoral dissertation which he wrote for his Ph.D. in economics at Columbia University during the mid-1950s.)

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La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (2)

Muchos inmigrantes de Europa que incluía artesanos alemanes decidirían dejar su país por un tiempo corto buscando mejores oportunidades económicas en otra parte antes de regresar de nuevo a su tierra. Sin embargo, aquellos que se arriesgaron en ir a América prosperaron económicamente, floreciendo en la atmósfera americana relativamente libre de experimentación económica y espíritu competitivo.Estos permanecerían en su país adoptado. Los europeos se instalaron en áreas donde las tierras de labranza eran valoradas razonablemente. La mayoría de los artesanos alemanes se instalaron en los estados de Ohio, New Jersey y Pennsylvania así como las ciudades de Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Louisville, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia y Baltimore.

Los alemanes se hicieron hombres de negocios y comerciantes de pérfil altos especializando en campos, tales como destiladores, panaderos, carniceros, fábricas de cerveza, ebanistas, herreros, zapateros, cajistas e impresoras. Las mujeres se dedicarían a servicios domésticos.

Para los finales de los años 1810, Cincinnati tenía fábricas de cerveza que convirtieron 50,000 fanegas en cerveza en el año 1815. Añadido a sus producciones eran madera, cristal, bastidor de hierro y tela en cantidades crecientes. Antes de los finales de los años 1810, Ohio tenia 28 bancos que incluyeron dos ramas del banco nacional de los Estados Unidos. Los fabricantes, abogados y comerciantes ricos dominaron la alta sociedad y la política. (2)

Aproximadamente treinta mil inmigrantes de varias nacionalidades de Europa entraron en los Estados Unidos en el año 1818. Las tierras baratas en el territorio de Ohio atrajeron un gran número de inmigrantes. También había grandes molinos de harina que suministraron el mercado europeo.

Las ventas del terreno público continuaron siendo controladas por las oficinas de tierra federales establecidas a través del noroeste. Después de la guerra de 1812,la migración más grande en la historia de la nacion joven" tomó lugar.Se cree que aproximadamente 42,000 personas en el año1815 habian inmigrado a Indiana, y a partir de 1810 hasta 1820 la población de Indiana se quintuplicó de 24,520 habitantes a 147,178.(3)

La explosión demográfica en el Territorio Noroeste era suficiente para permitir la creación de cinco nuevos estados incluso Indiana.Para el ano 1819 veintidós estados habían entrado en la Unión que eran los siguientes:Alabama (1819), Connecticut (1788), Delaware (1787), Georgia (1788), Illinois (1818), Indiana (1816), Kentucky (1792), Louisiana (1812), Maryland (1788),
Massachusetts (1788), Mississippi (1817), New Hampshire (1788), New Jersey (1787), New York (1788), North Carolina (1789),Ohio (1803), Pennsylvania (1787), Rhode Island (1790), South Carolina (1788), Tennessee (1796), Vermont (1791), y Virginia (1788).

A Continuación: La Crisis Comercial de 1819 (3)

Notas de Referencias:

2. Cayton, Andrew R. L.; Ohio, the History of a People; Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 2002.

3. Lincoln Boyhood: Settlement and Immigration.

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