The introduction introduces Tom Watson and the Populists as they try to form a biracial coalition of poor farmers at the end of the century. In doing so, it begins to underscore the deeper problems of American society--the gulf between rich and poor, the divisions of race and class, the growing power of corporations, the poverty of cities and farms, wrenching cycles of boom and bust, the needs of outsiders and the dispossessed. During the late nineteenth century, all those stresses would increase as a function of the social changes transforming the nation.

The Politics of Paralysis
In the last third of the century, national politics became dangerously paralyzed, as evenly divided Democrats and Republicans fought to win power. Improved organization, rigid loyalty, and broad ideological similarities left neither party in command. Distinguishing differences did exist, however. Democrats, centered in the South and also supported by immigrant political machines in the industrial North, believed in states' rights and limited government. Republicans, strongest in northern cities and among businesspeople and the middle class, were the party of national vision and favored industrial development.

Cultural differences also divided the parties. Democrats tended to belong to "ritualistic" religious sects like Catholicism, Judaism, and more formal brands of Protestantism. As a result, the party became grounded in tradition and toleration, adopting a hands-off policy toward both the economy and society at large. Republicans were often "pietistic" Protestants who favored a politics of morality, social control, and energetic government. More zealous reformers often fashioned their own political instruments, whether for temperance, women's suffrage, monetary change, or farm issues.

Congress focused on the well-worn and popular issues of regional conflict, patronage, tariffs, and currency. In many instances these had symbolic value for voters, which politicians of the Gilded Age tapped with success. Meanwhile the presidency, weakened by the impeachment of Andrew Johnson (and constrained by traditional limitations on the office), fell into the hands of a near-anonymous run of caretakers: Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Benjamin Harrison. The ferment and innovation that existed came from the states and cities. Investigative and regulatory commissions, statutes extending public control over shippers and processors, and municipal leagues to promote clean and effective government marked the era's more successful experiments in public policy.

The Revolt of the Farmers
Not many politicians seemed to have the interests of farmers in mind, so they took matters into their own hands. In the process, they challenged the politics of paralysis. A host of problems beset farmers: overproduction, declining prices, discriminatory railroad rates, heavy mortgages, and widespread poverty promoted by a "crop-lien" system that shackled them to debt.

In response farmers organized, first in local chapters or "Granges" of the Patrons of Husbandry, then in the more economically oriented Farmers' Alliance. In the 1870s, Grangers succeeded in enacting state "Granger laws" regulating shippers and processors, and pressed Congress to create a federal Interstate Commerce Commission (1887). Southern and northern Alliances developed farmer cooperatives and by 1890 were winning local and state elections with their candidates. In 1892 the Alliances convened a national convention of farmers, laborers, and other reformers and nominated candidates for the presidency and vice-presidency.

Meanwhile African Americans, the target of some Populist efforts to form a biracial alliance, found themselves the victims of a rising tide of racism. Segregation and disfranchisement undercut black political and social progress. Many poor whites were victimized as well, as conservative Democrats throughout the South fought political insurgence from below. In response, African-American leaders warred over whether to follow a policy of accommodating white discrimination or fighting it in the courts. In the end most followed the path of accommodation.

The frustrations of farmers now had a national political outlet. At the same time, though, the party's inherent weaknesses had emerged during this election, Its courtship of black voters appalled many Southerners who were working to systematically disenfranchise this group through a series of Jim Crow laws and state constitutional amendments. Nor did the Populists gain much support in the north, where working class voters held few concerns for the problems of farmers. While the success of the People's party revealed the power of a substantial and largely unrepresented segment of the electorate, it also showed how difficult it was to wrest power away from the two dominant parties.

The Depression of 1893
The depression of 1893 deepened discontent across the nation. Strikes, protests, and masses of unemployed workers--including a rag-tag army led by Jacob Coxey--were all signs of strain. The approaching presidential election of 1896 (called the "battle of the standards") brought about a decisive political realignment. The Republicans nominated Senator William McKinley of Ohio and staunchly supported gold as the nation's monetary standard. The Democrats were split, with its northern wing in favor of gold and its southern and western wings in favor of adding silver as a basis for coining money.

In the end, Democrats supported both silver and gold and nominated Nebraska congressman William Jennings Bryan. Populists, who favored silver to increase the supply of money and so ease the terms of credit, faced a quandary. If they nominated Bryan (and thereby fused with the Democrats), they risked losing their political identity. If they nominated anyone else, they risked splitting the vote of silverites and losing the election to the pro-gold Republicans. In the end they nominated Bryan and lost the election. Thereafter, they faded from politics, but they left a legacy as a catalyst for political realignment and a prelude to a new era of reform.

The New Realignment
In 1896 the Republicans became dominant, finally breaking the politics of paralysis with a powerful coalition. Centered in northern industrial cities and the Far West, it would dominate national politics for most of the next three-and-a-half decades. Once in power, the Republican Party became a powerful governing instrument. Well-organized, using modern techniques of publicity and management, and relying on an executive with a national agenda, they oversaw economic recovery. At the dawn of the new century, deep divisions of race and class still split the nation, but confidence reigned as McKinley guided the country toward a promising future of prosperity at home and empire abroad.

Stirrings of Empire
After the Civil War, some Americans still considered the idea of annexing either Canada or Mexico--or both. William Henry Seward envisioned growing American links to the Far East strengthened by a canal to be built across Central America, a transcontinental railroad, and island possessions acquired to support an expanded American navy. Supporters of some form of American empire also argued for the economic benefits of such a policy, proclaiming the need for new markets for American products. Still others promoted imperialism as a Christian responsibility to "civilize" the peoples of less developed nations.

The Imperial Moment
The form imperialism would take soon became clear. Unrest in Cuba, played out against the background of severe depression in the United States from 1893 to 1897, led to war with Spain. A series of incidents, peaking with the sinking of the battleship Maine, stirred a war fever President McKinley could not resist. The war had two arenas: the naval war in the Philippines, and a combined naval-military struggle in Cuba. The war opened with Admiral Dewey's smashing victory over the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay. After more than three months of fighting, the United States vanquished Spain, liberated Cuba, and took possession of the Philippines.