 During Reconstruction and the Gilded Age the number of railroads increased rapidly in the US  In an effort to beat out the competition, railroads offered special deals  Rebates- a discounted price for shipping goods, usually granted to corporations that shipped greater quantities or more regularly.

 individuals and small businesses couldn’t qualify (paid more for carrier THEN had to charge more for product)  Small railroads couldn’t compete and were run out of business = monopolies  Some RR continued to undercut each other (rates) until one was out of business = monopoly

 Try to compete by creating POOLS  Small farmers pool (combine) their crops until they have a large shipment that can qualify for a rebate  Crops stored in a local warehouse/silo  Cooperative method

 State Attempts to set RR rates to make shipping fair for all (Munn v. Illinois) Overturned – only Congress has the right to regulate interstate commerce (Wabash case)  Federal Interstate Commerce Act (1887)- prohibited rate discrimination (difficult to prove) Elkins Act (1903)- prohibited charging a rate different from the printed rate- fine charged Hepburn Act (1906)- added imprisonment to the above punishment

 John D. Rockefeller  Andrew Carnegie  J.P. Morgan  Cornelius Vanderbilt  Jay Gould  Jim Fisk  Cyrus Field  Philip Armour  And others….

 Owning all businesses from the ground up Mines, transportation, factories, retail  Cutting out the “middle man”  All profits to the owner  Carnegie Steel Raw Materials Manufacturing & Assembly Distribution

 Buying up “like-minded” business  Avoid competition = monopoly  Rockefeller- Standard Oil  Railroads

 “The Central Bank: Why should Uncle Sam establish one, when Uncle Piermont is already on the job?”

 Passed by Congress (1890)  Made trusts illegal because they restricted trade  Weak law (too many loopholes)  Hurt labor unions for their restraint of trade instead

 Darwin’s theory of survival is applied to society  Those who can find jobs, make money and thrive will survive  Those who can’t survive on their own will die  Leaving behind the fittest, best, brightest and most worthy citizens  Rich get richer, poor get poorer

 Written in 1889 by Andrew Carnegie  Outlines his beliefs regarding the social responsibilities of the wealthy  Read the excerpt provided and respond to BOTH questions in complete sentences.