Chapter 14 Section 2 Guided Reading

1) What problems did employees of railroad companies face?

Thousands of Chinese immigrants were employed by Central Pacific Railroad. The Union Pacific company employed Irish immigrants and otherwise unemployed Civil War veterans. They had to lay miles of tracks throughout treacherous terrain while they faced attacks from Indians. Many men were killed and disabled by disease and accidents. By 1888, the casualties were more than 2,000 employees killed and 20,000 injured.

2) What was it like to live as a Pullman employee in the town of Pullman?

The town of Pullman was much nicer than the housing complexes that were provided by the textile mills. Rather than just providing housing, the company gave the employees a town that provided all of their basic needs, and some luxuries as well, such as clean brick houses with at least one window in every room, services and facilities, shops a doctors office, etc. However, life in the town was very much tightly controlled by the company. Employees weren't allowed to loiter on their front steps or drink alcohol. It was a strict lifestyle, and Pullman expected that making the people live in such a controlled way he would get more stable work force.

3) Who was involved in Credit Mobilier, and what was the purpose of the company?

Credit Mobilier was formed by stockholders in Union Pacific Railroad as a construction company. The company was given a contract to lay track at two to three times the normal price, and would take the profits for themselves. About 20 representatives in Congress had stock shares donated to them in 1867. After an investigation was made, it was found that officers of the Union Pacific had taken 23 million dollars in stocks, bonds and cash. Also involved were James Garfield and Vice President Schuyler Colfax.

4) In what ways did railroad companies use their power to hurt farmers?

The railroads were hurting the farmers in several ways: the railroads were misusing the government land grants by selling them not to settlers, as was intended, but to other businesses; the railroad companies were also in formal talks to fix prices, which would keep farmers permanently in debt; and they would charge different customers different prices and charging more for short hauls than long ones, taking advantage of the fact that the farmers didn't have an alternate way of transporting goods.

5) Why didn't the decision in Munn vs. Illinois case succeed in checking the power of the railroads?

The decision in Munn vs. Illinois was that the state would have the right to regulate railroads for the benefit of farmers and consumers. However, in 1886 the Supreme Court ruled that a state couldn't set rates on interstate commerce. Congress then passed the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887, which established the right of the federal government to supervise railroad activities and established the Interstate Commerce Commission to enforce the law, in response to public outrage. However, they didn't get much accomplished due to resistance from railroads and long legal processes. The Supreme Court later ruled that the ICC couldn't set maximum railroad rates, and that was the figurative death blow, and it was powerless.

6) Why didn't the Interstate Commerce Act immediately limit the power of the railroads?

The Interstate Commerce Commission was formed as a result of the Interstate Commerce Act, and the group was supposed to supervise railroad activities, but had difficulty regulating railroad rates due to long legal processes and resistance from railroad companies. In 1897 the Supreme Court passed an act that said the ICC couldn't set maximum railroad rates. The ICC didn't have the power necessary to be effective again until 1906.