1893 Significance of the Frontier in American History
frontier was cause of democracy, progress, character
not "germ" theory of Herbert Baxter Adams
1890 census, depression, Haymarket, Homestead
new expansion must replace the old closed frontier
1896 essay "The Problem of the West" - "It is one of the profoundest lessons that history has to teach, that political relations are inextricably connected with economic relations" - informal empire not enough
U.S. must expand for a historical reason
Brooks Adams
1895 Law of Civilization and Decay
cycles of barbarism and civilization; outward-growing energy and inward-collapsing decay; builder soldier and exploitive banker
U.S. needed Asia to energize; elect martial leaders (such as TR)
1896 Bryan silver better than McKinley gold
own family in crisis - emotional breakdown 1882, 1895
wife Evelyn Davis, daughter of Adm. Charles Davis, sister of wife of Henry Cabot Lodge
with Theodore Roosevelt and Henry C. Lodge, were the "three musketeers in a world of perpetual war."
U.S. must expand for a survival reason
Josiah Strong
1885 Our Country for Amer. Home Mission Society
Americans were "chosen people" to rule and civilize
but manifest destiny "no longer drift with safety"
sense of urgency - many threats to Protestantism
"Perils" of immigration, mormonism, intemperance, wealth, cities, socialism
new peril of romanism added for 1891 edition
Social Gospel - a religion of action
U.S. must expand for a religious reason
John Burgess
1890 Political Science and Comparative Constitutional Law - read by TR at Columbia
social darwinism = anglo-saxonism + scientific evolution + Horatio Alger
to measure racial characteristics - cephalic index
William Z. Ripley's Races of Europe - 3 head shapes
Teutonic, Alpine, Mediterranean
intermixing would produce "reversion"
Lodge sought scientific evidence for restriction
literacy test added 1917: aliens over 16 to read "not less than 30 nor more than 80 words in ordinary use" in any language
Quota Act of 1924 - maximum quota for each nationality to be 164,447 (half of 1921 quota 357,803) or 2% of 1890 census (not 1921 law 3% of 1910 census); exceptions were Canada and Latin America, ministers, professors, college students; all immigration stopped for Japanese as "aliens ineligible to citizenship."