LAD #25: Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points

On January 8, 1918 President Woodrow Wilson delivered a speech to Congress about how America should deal with Germany after World War I. His plan was entitled the Fourteen Points, and were each lenient policies that the Congressmen did not approve of. In the first point, Wilson stated that there should not be any private alliances, and that all kinds of diplomacy should be open to the public. The second point stated that there shall be freedom of navigation upon the seas. This point was so that warfare could not be started in the seas. In the third point, Wilson stated that there shall be free trade throughout the world. In the fourth he stated that the armies of all the consenting peace nations will be decreased by size. In the fifth he stated that all decisions regarding the colonies should be impartial. In the sixth it stated that the German army was to be removed from Russia. In the seventh it stated that Belgium should become an independent, free country. In the eight, Wilson stated that Germany has to give back Alsace-Lorraine to the French. In the ninth, it stated that all Italians are to be allowed to live in Italy. In the tenth it said that the people of Austria-Hungary should determine how they should live through self-determination. In the eleventh point, it stated that self-determination should also be allowed for the Balkan states. In the twelfth, it stated that Turkish people should be governed by the Turkish government and non-Turkish people could have their own government. In the thirteenth point, it stated that Poland should be created. Finally, in the fourteenth point, and Wilson’s favorite point, a League of Nations was to be created.

LAD #24: The Clayton Anti-Trust Act

The Clayton Anti-Trust Act was made in 1914 during the Industrial Era. The act helped outlaw monopolies and put many restrictions on them so that they would not take over an industry. The first section that the Clayton Anti-Trust Act has is about discrimination in price, services, or facilities. The first thing it talks about is price discrimination. This means that a certain business cannot give different prices to different customers. The Clayton then goes on to prohibit the acceptance of any commission or compensation of any sort. It also prohibited any person to discriminate in favor of one purchaser against another purchaser. It also restricted the acceptance of different prices. The Act then goes on to say that no person engaged in commerce or in any activity affecting commerce shall acquire, directly or indirectly, the whole or any part of the stock or other share capital. The last section of the Clayton Anti-trust Act says that any person, firm, corporation, or association shall be entitled to sue for and have injunctive relief, in any court of the United States having jurisdiction over the parties, against threatened loss or damage by a violation of the antitrust laws. Overall, the Act basically put restrictions on trusts and monopolies.

LAD #23: Keating-Owen Bill

In this document it starts out by pointing out that in the 1900 census approximately 2 million children were working on mills, mines, fields, factories, stores, and on city streets across the United States. Due to this discovery, more reforms started occurring, and more and more people got involved such as Lewis Hine, Charles Dickens, and Karl Marx. The first child labor bill was titled the Keating-Owen Bill which regulated child labor and banned the sale of products from any factory, shop, or canner that employed children under the age of 14, from any mine that employed children under 16, and from any facility that had children under the age of 16 work at night or for more than 8 hours during the day. Although it was passed, it was declared unconstitutional in the Hammer v. Dagenhart Trial in the Supreme Court. After this act was declared unconstitutional, a second child labor act was passed. It was called the Child Labor Tax Law. Though this to was declared unconstitutional. Soon a constitutional ammendment was proposed to Congress to help regulate child labor. The making of the ammendment was stalled and there were many opponents to it since kids helped the economy. Not until, 1938 under the Fair Labor Standards Act were children spared, and today most children are safe of child labor.

LAD #22: Wilson's First Inaugural

In Wilson’s First Inaugural, he first states that the Democrats are ready to take over government in the House of Representatives, Senate, and Executive Branch. He states that since the Democrats won power in the in the government there will be a change in the point of view in that the Industrial era is going to change. He states that the during the Industrial Era people tied, energies were overtaxed, and mines and factories were unsafe and that this would all change under his administration. He stated that throughout the Industrial Era the government was used for selfish and private purposes and those who used it had forgotten the people. He also stated that under his administration he would restore and correct evil without harming the good. He stated that he would make sanitary laws, and pure food laws, and safeguard property of individual right. He stated that although there were a lot of problems with the government there were a few good things. He stated that he would restore and not destroy, and that the economy should be modified. He concludes by saying that it is not important which party controls the government but the forces of humanity.