Industrial Revolution Dbq

A combination of worsened economic conditions, new technology and unfortunate government policy made the lives of farmers significantly more difficult in the second half of the nineteenth century.
Increased global competition, the beginning of the national market, and increased domestic production caused the price of goods to drop dramatically. In the late 1800s people were encouraged to move west and start farms, and were given loans by banks and the government to do so. This led to a large increase in the amount of goods produced. By 1900, the amount of cotton produced was almost five times that produced in 1865, and the amount of wheat and corn near doubled (Source A). Unfortunately this overproduction led to prices dropping dramatically.
From 1865 to 1900, the price of cotton dropped 830%, the price of wheat dropped 343%, and the price of corn dropped 149% (Source A). As Mary Elizabeth Lease, a member of the populist party, said in one of her speeches:
...
The parties lie to us and the political speakers mislead us. We were told two years ago to go to work and raise a big crop that was all we needed. We went to work and plowed and planted; the rains fell, the sun shone, nature smiled, and we raised the big crop that they told us to; and what came of it? Eight-cent corn, ten-cent oats, two-cent beef, and no price at all for butter and eggs-that's what came of it. (Source G)
The problem was compounded by the fact that during the civil war, when cotton farming in the United States had been put on pause, other countries, such as India, began to dominate the cotton
market.
For farmers in the west, the unfortunate economic conditions meant that they were unable to repay their mortgages and risked losing their farms.
In the south, a corrupt system of share cropping kept farmers in poverty. In share cropping a land owner would rent pieces of his land to different farmers who would work the land and then give the crops to the land-owner to sell in bulk with the rest of “his” crops. The landowner would then sell the crops and pay each individual back their dues. A line from a contract between a landowner and a farmer in 1882 showcases the problem with the system: “The sale of every cropper's part of the cotton to be made by me when and where I choose to sell, and after deducting all they owe me and all sums that I may be responsible for on their accounts, to pay them their half of the net proceeds.” (Source E) As can be seen, the landowners had an inordinate amount of power over the farmers working their land. Because they had an ability to do what they pleased with the crops the land-owners profited unreasonably and didn’t pay back the small farmers what they were owed. Farmers throughout the nation blamed a number of factors for their economic troubles, including the high rates charged by railroad companies, the excessive interest rates of loans charged by banks, and the policies of the federal
government.
In reaction to these problems, the Farmers’ Alliance was formed. The Farmers’ Alliance attempted to improve the lives of farmers through cooperative financing and marketing of crops. The Farmers’ Alliance was fairly effective at both educating and uniting farmers in a common goal. However as farmers became more concerned with the government’s fiscal policies and handling of farmers’ problems, the Farmers’ Alliance evolved into the Populist Party or the People’s Party. Among other things, the populist party advocated for free coinage, the use of both gold and silver money, which they believed would increase the money in circulation and prevent the price of farm goods from dropping even further. Populist politician, William Jennings Bryan famously criticized the push for a gold standard by saying, “... you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.” (Source J)