Problems in American Democracy

The following list contains all of the references that are mentioned in the text, either as required reading, or as the basis for suggested topic work. Special mention may be ma...

337. BASIS OF NATURAL MONOPOLY.--The most important examples of _natural_ monopoly are found in those industries which are known as public utilities. Public utilities include ga...

181. LABOR AND CAPITAL.--Strictly speaking, five distinct factors are involved in production: land, labor, capital, co÷rdination, and government. As a matter of fact, we are acc...

[Footnote: The title of this chapter, as well as the material in Sections 170-175, has been adapted, by permission, from the writings and lectures of Thomas Nixon Carver, Profes...

394. THE INCREASING COST OF GOVERNMENT.--In the United States, as in other modern civilized countries, the cost of government is steadily increasing. The settlement of the Great...

228. THE NATURE OF CRIME.--A crime is an act which is punishable by law because it is considered injurious to the community. If the average man were a hermit, living entirely al...

379. SOME PRELIMINARY DEFINITIONS.--Money may be defined as anything that passes freely from hand to hand as a medium of exchange. Money is of two types: first, coin, including...

259. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FAMILY.--From whatever angle we approach society, the family is the ultimate unit and basis. The whole fabric of civilization, whether considered from a...

197. INDUSTRY AND HEALTH.--Wherever the Industrial Revolution has progressed beyond the initial stages, there has been an enormous increase in wealth and prosperity. At the same...

290. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RURAL LIFE.--Agriculture is our oldest and most basic industry. Almost half of our people are found in the rural districts, most of them subsisting dire...

But these differences fade in importance before the broad and fundamental similarities existing among the colonies. Just as there was among the colonies a substantial unity of r...

277. THE MEDIEVAL NEIGHBORHOOD.--Throughout the earlier part of the medieval period the majority of the common people of western Europe lived in small agricultural communities....

The first of these is that the party provides machinery which bridges over the gaps between local, state, and National government. Similarly, it often serves to bring the execut...

307. THE MEANING OF EDUCATION.--A half century ago education might have been defined as the process of acquiring certain types of book knowledge which contributed to the culture...

155. ADMINISTRATIVE DIFFICULTIES CONFRONTING SOCIALISM.--Under socialism the work of government would be greatly increased. Thousands of intricate administrative rules would hav...

451. MAGNITUDE OF THE PROBLEM.--How can we insure the honest and efficient administration of American government? Civic education and the perfection of nomination and election d...

367. ATTITUDE OF THE EARLY SETTLER TOWARD NATURAL RESOURCES.--The chief concern of the early American settler was to turn a virgin continent into homes as quickly and as easily...

508. ORIGINAL METHOD OF CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT.--The Federal Constitution sought to protect the office of chief magistrate against popular passion by providing for the indirect...

478. THE NATURE OF PUBLIC OPINION.--One of the most powerful influences in any community is that intangible something which we call Public Opinion. Though everyone is familiar w...

408. DISTINCTION BETWEEN CITIZENSHIP AND THE SUFFRAGE.--Citizenship implies membership in a nation. A citizen owes allegiance to his government, and in return is entitled to the...

92. THE "CAPITALISTIC SYSTEM."--Modern industry is sometimes said to be headless, because the numerous individuals engaged in it are not systematically controlled or directed by...

355. THE PRINCIPLE OF EXCHANGE.--In Chapters VII and VIII it was pointed out that when individuals divide up their labor so that each becomes a highly specialized workman there...

520. DEVELOPMENT OF THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE.--The President is the head of the Federal executive, but in the performance of his numerous administrative duties he is aided by a num...

Several factors are responsible for this division of Congress into two houses. Undoubtedly the framers of the Constitution were influenced by the fact that the British Parliamen...

463. BASIS OF POPULAR CONTROL.--The fact that our government is a representative democracy entitles the voters to choose, direct, and control the public officials who act for th...

110. THE NATURE OF PROFIT SHARING.--The essence of profit sharing is that the workmen in a given enterprise receive, in addition to their regular wages, a share in the profits w...

602. ENGLISH COMMON LAW.--One important source of our system of jurisprudence is the English common law. This law is not found in the enactment of statutes, but consists of cour...

143. SIGNIFICANCE OF BOLSHEVISM.-The term "bolshevist" is used to designate a group of militant socialists that seized power in Russia in the fall of 1917. Strictly speaking, th...

215. RACIAL ELEMENTS IN OUR POPULATION.--The Federal census of 1920 gave the population of continental United States as 105,710,620. Approximately nine tenths of this population...

22. LOCAL VERSUS NATIONAL SPIRIT.--The outbreak of the American Revolution proved that the colonies were so deeply attached to democracy that they were willing to fight for it....

244. ORIGIN OF THE AMERICAN NEGRO.--Early in the seventeenth century the scarcity of labor in the American colonies led to the introduction of African Negroes as slaves. In resp...

322. NECESSITY OF PUBLIC INTEREST IN BUSINESS.--Although individuals carry on business primarily for their own ends, the economic activities of men affect not only themselves, b...

561. CONSTITUTIONAL BASIS OF THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY.--The Federal Constitution makes only slight reference to the structure of the Federal courts. It merely provides that the jud...

593. STRUCTURE OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE.--The representative branch of state government is known under different names in various states, but the term "state legislature" is in...

573. CONSTITUTIONAL LIMITATIONS ON STATE GOVERNMENTS.--Under the Articles of Confederation the states exercised practically sovereign powers; in the interests of a strong Nation...

A. DEVELOPMENT OF THE AMERICAN MUNICIPALITY [Footnote: For an extended account of American municipal development, see Fairlie's _Municipal Administration_. An excellent summary...

1. THE MEANING OF NATIONAL GREATNESS.--We apply the term greatness to nations that have made substantial contributions to civilization. By civilization is meant a well-rounded a...

31. THE AIM OF THIS CHAPTER.--The form of government established in this country by the Constitution of 1787 is known as a republic. A republic may be defined as a representativ...

40. NO GOVERNMENT IS PERFECT.--All government is a compromise, in that it is adopted or created for the purpose of harmonizing the interests of the individual with the interests...

11. THE NATURE OF GOVERNMENT.--A government may be defined as an agency through which the purposes of a state or nation are formulated and carried out. This agency develops wher...

583. THE ELECTION OF THE GOVERNOR.--In every state in the Union the Governor is elected by popular vote. In most of the states this election takes place, together with that of o...

634. TYPES OF RURAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT.--Rural local governments in the United States vary widely as between different sections of the country, but in general they are divisible i...

74. RELATION OF THE DIVISION OF LABOR TO EXCHANGE.--In the self- sufficing stage that existed in industry a few hundred years ago, there was generally little necessity for the e...

104. DEFINITIONS.--The words "single tax" refer to a policy under which all public revenue is to be raised by a single tax on land value. All other taxes are to be abolished. By...

134. ORIGIN OF THE I.W.W.--The letters I.W.W. are a convenient abbreviation which is used to designate a group of militant socialists calling themselves the Industrial Workers o...

82. THE PROBLEM PRIOR TO THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.--The distribution of industrial income has to do with dividing the products of industry, or the money which represents those...

63. WHY MEN WORK.--Ultimately everyone depends upon work for his living. Young children commonly live upon the earnings of their parents; most normal adults, on the other hand,...

52. MAGNITUDE OF AMERICAN INDUSTRY.--In colonial times the major part of American industry was concentrated along the Atlantic seaboard; to- day it extends over a large part of...

434. THE PROBLEM.--In an important sense, good government is a matter of getting the right men into office, hence one of the most vital problems in American democracy has to do...

The value of an article is determined solely by the amount of labor expended upon its production. But although the laborer creates all wealth, the capitalist is enabled, by virt...

into a number of committees, each of which is charged with the consideration of legislation dealing with particular subjects. Previous to 1911 the Speaker appointed all House co...

548. CONGRESSIONAL SESSIONS.--The Federal Constitution requires Congress to assemble at least once a year, and Congress has provided that the date of meeting shall be the first...

congressional districts are so arranged as to give the minority party overwhelming majorities in a few districts, while the dominant party is allowed to carry the remaining dist...

121. SOCIALISM IS A VAGUE TERM.--It is often said that the term "socialism" is so vague that it is useless to attempt to define it. The word is used to cover all sorts of scheme...

The school, of course, is an important agent of Americanization. Whether or not the immigrant retains his old-country language, he ought to learn to speak, read and write Englis...

421. NATURE OF THE POLITICAL PARTY.--A political party may be defined as a voluntary association of voters, entered into for the purpose of influencing elections to public offic...

8. The framework of the convention. (Ford, _Rise and Growth of American Politics_, chapter xvi; Ray, _Introduction to Political Parties and Practical Politics_, chapter v; Woodb...

1. Visit a factory, mill or shop in your vicinity and study the organization of the plant with regard to the application of the principle of the division of labor. Secure the am...

2. Lord Bryce says that "there are elements in the life of the United States which may well make a European of any class prefer to dwell there rather than in the land of his bir...

1. Select for study some common commodity which passes through all or most of the stages of manufacture in your community, as, for example, a hammer, a shoe, flour or canned goo...

2. To what extent has the population of your state been affected by immigration from Europe? What attracts immigrants to your state? Have there been any changes in the character...

10. Woman suffrage in the nineteenth century. (Consult Porter, Seymour, or the _Cyclopedia of American Government_. [Footnote: Throughout the remainder of this text the student...

13. Women in industry. (Select some phase of this problem for report. Consult Butler, _Women and the Trades;_ MacLean, _Women _Workers and Society_; Kelley, _Some Ethical Gains...

24. At the present time many aliens journey across the Atlantic only to find that, for various reasons, they cannot be admitted to this country. How might the resulting disappoi...

15. The history of any important tariff since the Civil War. (Consult Taussig, _Tariff History of the United States_; Fetter, _Modern Economic Problems_, chapter xv; any standar...

15. The rural school. (Bailey, _The Training of Farmers_, pages 173- 194; Vogt, _Introduction to Rural Sociology_, chapter xv; Galpin, _Rural Life_, chapter vii; King, _Educatio...

19. The history of some one trust, as, for example, the American Sugar Refining Company, the United States Steel Corporation, the American Tobacco Company, or the International...

16. The country church. (Butterfield, _The Country Church and the Rural Problem_; Gill and Pinchot, _The Country Church_; Carney, _Country Life and the Country School_, chapter...