LAISSEZ FAIRE

    There has been a tendency in the past to view the early industrialists as industrial statesmen or robber barons. They entered a new world- a world of rapid change and material growth. Morality, social rules, politics, etc. were all unprepared for the changes and so much occured with no real planning or understanding. The technological changes influenced and were influenced by the environment of the era.

    The expanding market which was a result of population growth and improvements in transportation led to industrial growth. Self generated expansion was the result of the creation of new industries and led to the creation of more jobs. The creation of the textile industry meant that looms, spindles, etc. had to manufactured. That meant that more ore had to be found and transported and more cotton had to be produced. This meant higher concentrations of people in cities and farmers expanding their production to meet the demand. It also meant that cloth was produced in larger quantities and for less cost and that farm wives would eventually no longer find it profitable to produce their own cloth. What were some of the other factors which led to this phenomenal growth?

    Three representative industrialists were Commodore Vanderbilt, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie. They created huge empires in this age of brutal competition. Individually they demonstrated both the good and bad points of this growth. What were the methods they used to build these empires? Are there moral absolutes? Do we have the right to judge them? Is everything relative? Does the end justify the means?

    Andrew Carnegie came from a radical and extremely poor background and yet became one of the richest men in the world. How did he do this? At age 33 he had an income of $50,000. per year and planned to retire within two years and devote his life to philanthropy and education. Instead of retiring he devoted the next 33 years to accumulating more wealth. In "The Gospel of Wealth" he wrote, "The man that dies thus rich dies disgraced." He did give away ninety per cent of his wealth. At his death his estate was worth about $23,000,000. In Carnegie we see the conflicts created by the temptations of wealth, power and pride versus a realization that there was a higher law.

    Were these men industrial statesmen or robber barons or were they some of both?

     Copyright © 2005 Gary Brady