Empire and Expansion

I. America Turns Outward

a. America Is Isolationist

i. The U.S. remained isolationist until the 1900s because:

1. Of Civil War reconstruction

2. Building an industrial economy

3. Making their cities habitable

4. Settling the West

ii. Now U.S. foreign policy changed dramatically because:

1. Agricultural and industrial production boomed, so they looked for markets overseas

2. Some believed that the U.S. had to expand or explode

3. The country was powerful, populated, wealthy, and productive

4. “Yellow press” of Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst described foreign exploits as manly adventures

5. Missionaries were inspired to look overseas for new souls to convert

a. Josiah Strong wrote Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis, which encouraged superior Anglo-Saxons to spread religion and values to the “backward” people

6. Darwinism – Some thought that it meant the earth belonged to the strong and fit (the U.S.). Teddy Roosevelt would be one of these people

7. Competition between Japan, Germany, and Russia for colonies would leave America behind if they didn’t compete as well

b. Latin America

i. James G. Blaine (Secretary of State) pushed a “big sister” policy toward Latin America

ii. It’s intention was to rally those nations behind the U.S. and open their markets to U.S. traders

iii. This led to the first Pan-American Conference, the beginning of a series of important meetings between Latin American and the U.S.

c. Near Wars

i. 1889 – America and Germany – Over the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific; were formally divided between the two nations in 1899

ii. 1891 – America and Italy – Lynching of 11 Italians in New Orleans; America paid compensation for them

iii. 1892 – America and Chile – Death of 2 American sailors; Chile agreed to make a payment to America for what had happened

iv. 1893 – America and Canada – Over seal hunting off the coast of Alaska; resolved by arbitration

v. The willingness of Americans to risk war over such distant and minor disputes demonstrated the aggressive new national mood

d. Near War Between the U.S. and Britain

i. 1895-96 – America and Great Britain – Jungle boundary between British Guiana and Venezuela had long been in dispute

ii. The discovery of gold brought it to a head

iii. The Secretary of State (to Cleveland), Richard Olney, delivered a not citing the Monroe Doctrine to Britain

iv. The British were unimpressed and replied that the affair was none of America’s business

v. Cleveland ordered a commission of experts to draw the line. If it wasn’t excepted by the British, then he wanted war

vi. The British didn’t want to get into a war because:

1. Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany was a threat to them

2. Boer Wars in South Africa

3. They were their main trading partners

vii. Afterwards, the British reconciliated with the Americans – called the Great Rapprochement. This would continue until the present

II. Hawaii

a. Development of Hawaii

i. Served as a temporary housing and provisioning point for Yankee shippers, sailors, and whalers

ii. 1820 – the first missionaries arrived

iii. Hawaii increasingly became an important center for sugar production

iv. Americans came to regard the Hawaiian Islands as an extension of their own coastline

v. 1840s – State department warned other powers to keep their hands off Hawaii

vi. 1887 – a treaty with the native government guaranteeing priceless naval-base rights at Pearl Harbor

b. Importation of Chinese and Japanese

i. Disease killed off 5/6 of the population

ii. American sugar lords had to import Asians (Chinese and Japanese) to work on the canefields and sugar mills

iii. 1890 – McKinley Tariff – put a tariff on sugar imports to America from other areas, causing the sugar market to go bad. As a result, white American planters wanted to make the island a State, so there wouldn’t be a tariff

iv. Queen Liliuokalani insisted that native Hawaiians should control the islands (she wrote “Aloha Oe” and countless other songs)

v. 1893 – a minority of whites, assisted by American troops, led a revolt. The Queen was dethroned and a treaty of annexation was put in the Senate

vi. By then, Republican Harrison’s term expires and Democrat Cleveland had taken over. He suspected wrongdoing and withdrew the treaty

vii. The move for annexation was put on hold

III. Cubans Rise in Revolt

a. Cuba and Spain

i. Spain misgoverned and oppressed the Cubans

ii. American tariffs crippled sugar production

iii. Cubans (insurrectos) torched canefields and sugar mills and dynamited passenger trains. This unintentionally menaced America interests on the island

b. Why Does America Back Cuba?

i. Americans favored Cuba because:

1. They were the underdog

2. American businesses had an investment of $50 million in Cuba and traded $100 million each year with them

ii. Cuba was also important because whoever controlled Cuba could control the potential Panama Canal

c. General “Butcher” Weyler

i. From Spain

ii. He wanted to crush the rebellion by putting everyone into concentration camps, where they couldn’t assist the insurrectos

iii. However, the concentration camps lacked proper sanitation and many died

d. Yellow Journalism

i. The atrocities in Cuba were put into circulation by William Randolph Hearst, Joseph Pulitzer, and other yellow journalism writers

ii. Each attempted to outdo each other for readers with the most outrageous stories

iii. Frederic Remington was sent by Hearst to Cuba to draw sketches (he depicted, among other things, Spanish customs officials brutally disrobing and searching an American woman – the readers didn’t know it was done by female attendants)

iv. Yellow Journalism also labeled Weyler as “Butcher Weyler,” increasing American support against Spain

v. Hearst also printed an intercepted letter by the Spanish diplomat in Washington (Dupuy de Lome) that described President McKinley in unflattering terms. He resigned as a result

e. Maine

i. Sent for a “friendly” visit, but actually was to:

1. Protect and evacuate Americans if a dangerous rebellion should occur

2. Demonstrate Washington’s concern for the island’s stability

ii. February 15, 1898 – the Maine mysteriously blew up in Havana harbor, with a loss of 260 sailors

iii. Two investigations:

1. Spanish investigation – explosion was internal and accidental (this wasn’t confirmed as true until 1976)

2. American investigation – explosion was caused by a submarine mine

iv. The American public, who was ready for war, embraced the American investigation’s findings and believed that the Spanish government was at fault

f. The Situation After the Maine Incident

i. Americans now wanted war because of:

1. America version of the Maine incident

2. Yellow press

g. McKinley and War

i. McKinley didn’t want:

1. Hostilities

2. Spain to have Cuba

3. Cuba to be independent

ii. He went to war because:

1. He yielded to public pressure

2. He had little faith in Spain’s frequently broken promises

3. He worried about what would happen in the upcoming election if he appeared indecisive

4. He knew America had commercial interests in Cuba

iii. April 11, 1898 – Congress voted for war. They also adopted the Teller Amendment – it proclaimed that when the U.S. overthrew the Spanish, it would give the Cubans their independence

IV. Dewey’s Victory at Manila

a. Philippines and the Beginning of the War

i. Was taken lightheartedly by the American public

ii. Assistant Secretary of the Navy Teddy Roosevelt cabled Commodore George Dewey in Hong Kong to attack Spain’s Philippines in the event of war. McKinley backed up his actions

iii. May 1, 1898 – Dewey carried out his orders and defeated the Spanish fleet in Manila by the next day

iv. However, Dewey couldn’t attack the forts on the Philippines with his sailors. Meanwhile, German warships appeared

v. August 13, 1898 – American troops along with Filipino insurgents led by Emilio Aguinaldo, captured Manila. Dewey would later regret bringing him out of exile from Asia

b. Hawaii

i. The idea of Hawaii being a half-way station to send supplies and troops to the Philippines

ii. McKinley was also worried that Japan might take the Hawaiian Islands while America was distracted elsewhere

iii. July 7, 1898 – Congress annexed Hawaii and granted residents U.S. citizenship

iv. 1900 – Hawaii received full territorial status

V. The Confused Invasion of Cuba

a. Spanish Fleet

i. Was sent to Cuba

ii. It caused a panic in the U.S.; Americans evacuated the beaches

iii. The America’s more powerful fleet was blockading Cuba; the Spanish fleet still managed to get into Cuba at Santiago Harbor

b. Battle of Santiago

i. General William R. Shafter was the American general whose troops would invade Cuba

ii. They were unprepared for war in Cuba because they were equipped with heavy woolen underwear and winter uniforms (for fighting the Indians in cold temperatures)

iii. Rough Riders –

1. Consisted largely of:

a. Western cowboys

b. Ex-polo players

c. Ex-convicts

2. Commanded by Colonel Leonard Wood

3. Organized by Teddy Roosevelt, who resigned from the Navy Department to serve as lieutenant colonel

iv. June 1898 – Shafter landed near Santiago, Cuba from Tampa, FL. The Cuban insurrectos had cleared most of the opposition, so there was little resistance

v. July 1, 1898 – Hard fighting broke out at El Caney, Kettle Hill, and San Juan Hill – up which Roosevelt and his Rough Riders (backed up by 2 black regiments) charged. They suffered heavy casualties

vi. July 3, 1898 – The Spaniards left the harbor and to try to go home, but got caught in the American blockade. The Spanish fleet was destroyed and Santiago surrendered

c. Puerto Rico

i. Another Spanish possession

ii. Americans met much less resistance here

iii. August 12, 1898 – Spain signed an armistice

d. American Losses

i. 400 to bullets

ii. 5,000 to:

1. Malaria

2. Typhoid fever

3. Dysentery

4. Yellow fever

5. Embalmed beef (malodorous – bad smelling beef)

VI. America’s Empire

a. Treaty of Paris

i. Spanish Concessions:

1. Cuba – Had independence

2. Guam – America had captured it early on in the conflict because they couldn’t communicate with Spain

3. Puerto Rico – Ceded as payment for war costs

4. Philippines – America paid $20 million for them

b. Puerto Rico

i. Under America:

1. Health and sanitation improved (causing population growth)

2. Transportation improved

3. Americans had a monopoly on the sugar cane plantations

4. Many immigrated to America to work in low-paying, unwanted jobs

5. A Puerto Rican culture developed in some places in America (New York City)

c. What Did America Do With the Philippines?

i. McKinley thought:

1. He didn’t want to give the islands back to Spain, who would misrule them

2. He also didn’t want to just leave the islands and not give them any help (wouldn’t be responsible)

3. He didn’t want Germany or Japan to seize them (which could result in a war)

ii. He decided to keep them and possibly give them their freedom later

d. The Public’s Opinion On the Philippines

i. Here’s what they believed:

1. Public – wanted the entire group of islands

2. Protestant missionaries – wanted to convert the people from Spanish Catholicism

3. Mrs. McKinley – (had health problems) – expressed concern about the welfare of the Filipinos

4. Wall Street – wanted profits in the Philippines (sugar cane)

ii. McKinley decided to annex the islands, but Manila had been taken the day after the armistice was signed

iii. America appeased Spain by paying $20 million for the islands

iv. February 6, 1899 – The Senate approved the treaty by one vote

e. Anti-Imperialist League

i. Most of America (except for Alaska and Hawaii) were a part of the contiguous U.S. The Philippines were a distant tropical area with many Asians, who had a different culture, language, and government

ii. Fought the McKinley administration’s expansionist moves

iii. Included prominent people:

1. Mark Twain

2. Presidents of Stanford and Harvard

3. Samuel Gompers

4. Andrew Carnegie

5. The Speaker of the House Thomas Reed resigned in protest

iv. They raised these objections:

1. It is the right of the people to choose the way they are governed (philosophy in the Declaration and Constitution)

2. It is against America’s anti-colonial policy

3. Imperialism would be costly and wouldn’t return a profit

4. Annexation would draw the U.S. politically and militarily into Asia

f. Expansionists or Imperialists

i. Appealed to patriotism – it was America’s mission to civilize the Filipinos

ii. Could be possible trade profits

iii. Americans must help to uplift the underprivileged, underfed, and underclothed of the world (and also exploit them)

VII. Puerto Rico and Cuba

a. Puerto Rican Status

i. Neither a State nor territory

ii. Foraker Act of 1900 –

1. Gave Puerto Ricans a limited degree of self-government

iii. 1917 – Congress granted U.S. citizenship

iv. Many wanted independence

b. Did American Law Apply In Puerto Rico?

i. Insular Cases (1901) –

1. Addressed the question, “Did the Constitution follow the flag?” – meaning did the U.S. Constitution apply to newly acquired areas. Were people give rights as U.S. citizens?

2. The Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution did not necessarily apply to newly acquired areas

ii. Puerto Ricans might be subject to American rule, but not American rights

iii. 1900 – Congress passed the Foraker Act, which gave Puerto Rico limited popular government

iv. 1917 – American citizenship was granted to Puerto Ricans

c. Cuban Status

i. General Leonard Wood (a Rough Rider) set up an American military government

ii. He improved:

1. Government

2. Finance

3. Education

4. Agriculture

5. Public health

iii. Dr. Walter Reed led experiments with yellow fever volunteer American soldiers. He found that the mosquito was the lethal carrier, so breeding places for them were wiped out as much as possible. This lessened fears that epidemics would occur in Cuba, the South, and the Atlantic States

d. Teller Amendment of 1898

i. Promised that when the U.S. overthrew Spanish rule in Cuba, the U.S. would give Cubans their independence

ii. However, the U.S. wasn’t going to let Cuba be taken over by Germany or anyone else

iii. The Platt Amendment would override the Teller Amendment

e. Platt Amendment of 1901

i. Rider attached to an Army appropriations bill

ii. It was written into the constitution of Cuba by the U.S., and in effect, made Cuba a U.S. protectorate

iii. The U.S. could intervene to preserve Cuba’s “independence”; in reality, the U.S. could act to protect its own interests

iv. The U.S. kept land for naval bases on Cuba; Guantanamo Bay would play a part in later Cuba-U.S. conflicts

v. The amendment was abrogated (cancelled or revoked) in 1934 (we still have Guantanamo Bay – 28,000 acre beachhead – it can only be revoked by the consent of both parties)

VIII. New Horizons in Two Hemispheres

a. Results of the Spanish-American War

i. Little casualties

ii. Short war – 113 days

iii. American prestige rose

iv. Countries gave the U.S. more respect

v. New military spirit in America

vi. Closing of the gap between the North and South (some Confederates even fought and led troops)

vii. Over-extended themselves (they couldn’t really defend the Philippines – as in WWII)

b. New Military Spirit In America

i. Most Americans didn’t start the war with imperialistic notions, but ended it with them

ii. They also aspired for a larger navy

iii. Secretary of War Elihu Root – established a general staff for the army and founded the War College in Washington

IX. “Little Brown Brothers” in the Philippines

a. Filipino Bitterness

i. Thought that they would be granted their freedom after the war

ii. Washington excluded them from the peace negotiations with Spain and made clear their intentions to stay in the Philippines indefinitely

b. Rebellion

i. February 4, 1899 – Emilio Aguinaldo led an insurrection

ii. America sent 126,0000 troops

iii. The Filipinos were poorly equipped and performed guerilla warfare

iv. Both sides committed atrocities:

1. Water cure – forcing water down victims’ throats until they gave up information or died

2. Reconcentration camps – were unsanitary and had little food

v. When the Americans captured Aguinaldo, the war still didn’t end. Sporadic fighting lasted many months

vi. Dead:

1. Americans – 4,234

2. Filipinos – 600,000

c. Improvement of the Philippines

i. Became civil governor of the Philippines in 1901

ii. He formed a strong attachment to the Filipinos

iii. McKinley wanted benevolent (having to do with good or charity) assimilation of the Philippines, but it went slowly

iv. Washington spent money on:

1. Roads

2. Sanitation

3. Public health

4. School system (made English a second language)

v. Sugar trade developed between the Philippines and America

vi. Many would eventually immigrate to CA and HA, where they worked in agriculture

vii. Most still wanted freedom. They would get it on July 4, 1946

X. Open Door in China

a. China In 1894-95

i. After China was defeated by Japan --- Russia, Germany, and other European powers began to taken advantage of a weakened China

ii. They would lease and sell items for an unfair price, because China needed the money

iii. China would virtually be split (vivisection – cut up, usually referring to an animal) by the European powers

b. Open Door Policy

i. 1899 – Secretary of State John Hay decided to urge the European powers in their spheres of influence (or leaseholds - The right to hold or use property for a fixed period of time at a given price) they should respect Chinese rights and fair competition

ii. Most of the European powers eventually agreed to the policy

c. Boxer Rebellion

i. 1900 – a superpatriotic group known for their training in martial arts:

1. Murdered more than 200 foreigners

2. Murdered thousands of Chinese Christians

3. Besieged (surrounded) the capital, Beijing (Peking)

ii. A multinational rescue force of 18,000 soldiers stopped the rebellion

iii. They included several thousand American troops dispatched from the Philippines to protect U.S. rights under the 1844 Treaty of Wanghia (which made the U.S. a favored trading nation) and keep the Open Door policy in tact

d. Results of the Boxer Rebellion

i. Attempted to prostrate (to reduce to extreme weakness or incapacitation; overcome) China with an excessive indemnity (compensation for damage, loss, or injury suffered) of $333 million

ii. America’s share was to be $24.5 million

iii. America felt that this was more than enough money…so they only remitted (made a payment of) $18 million for Chinese students in the U.S. (intended to further the westernization of Asia)

e. More Open Door Policy

i. 1900 – John Hay said that the Open Door Policy not only applied to commercial aspects in China, but also their territory

ii. This helped spare China from possible partition

iii. Nine-Power Treaty of 1922:

1. Incorporated the Open Door Policy

2. Pledged mutual respect for Chinese territorial integrity and independence

XI. Imperialism in 1900

a. Republican Nomination

i. McKinley was a given:

1. Won the Spanish-American war

2. Picked up valuable land

3. Kept the gold standard

ii. Teddy Roosevelt was equally popular within the Republican party:

1. Rough Rider

2. Elected Governor of NY

3. Was an energetic and patriotic speaker

4. The political bosses of NY found him hard to control, so they encouraged him to be VP

b. Democratic Nomination

i. William Jennings Bryan

ii. Platform was against imperialism

iii. Charged that Lincoln had abolished slavery for 3.5 million Africans; McKinley reimposed it for 7 million Filipinos

c. Election of 1900 Results

i. McKinley won:

1. 292-155

2. 7.2 million-6.3 million

XII. Teddy Roosevelt

a. McKinley’s Assassination

i. McKinley was in office 6 more months before he was assassinated

ii. McKinley went to the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, NY to boost attendance, which had been dropping off

iii. Although recent political assassinations abroad and growing anarchist agitation at home worried the President's aides, McKinley insisted on attending the ten minute reception. Shortly after 4:00 p.m., a young man with a handkerchief over his right hand approached McKinley in the receiving line. When the President offered his left hand in greeting, Leon Czolgosz (pronounced “cholgosh”), fired two shots from a gun concealed by the handkerchief. Before he was able to fire a third shot, bystanders knocked Czolgosz to the ground

iv. Secret service agents and police immediately disarmed the assassin and began to inflict a near fatal beating. McKinley was still conscious and pleaded that the assault on Czolgosz stop. The president also asked that care be taken when informing his chronically ill wife of the event

v. The assailant was taken into custody and moved to police headquarters. President McKinley was taken by electric ambulance to the small hospital on the Exposition grounds. Established to treat minor ailments, the hospital was not equipped for major surgery. The doctors who had rushed to the hospital upon hearing the news felt it was too risky to move the President. It was agreed that the surgery should take place at the Exposition hospital

vi. A team of doctors led by Dr. Matthew D. Mann, a gynecologist, operated on the President. The operation went smoothly and McKinley remained in good condition. Nonetheless, the doctors were unable to locate and remove one of the two bullets. Believing it had ended up in fatty tissue and would not pose any further threat, the doctors closed the wound. The President was then moved to the home of John Milburn, president of the Exposition, to recuperate

vii. McKinley was taken to a local hospital where he underwent surgery for his gunshot wounds. It at first appeared that he would recover, but complications set in and the president died on September 14, 1901

viii. Czolgosz received a hasty trial, was found guilty of murder and was electrocuted in the state prison at Auburn, New York on October 29

b. Characteristics of Teddy Roosevelt

i. At 42, he was the youngest non-elected president

ii. Born into a wealthy family

iii. Liked to exercise

iv. Graduated from Harvard

v. He loved people and mingled with everyone (a journalist wrote – “You go home and wring the personality out of your clothes”; was blinded in one eye by a professional fighter who visited the White House)

vi. He worked as a ranch owner and cowboy in the Dakotas before his political career

c. Warlike Tendencies Of Roosevelt

i. Had a big ego

ii. He was boyish and bellicose (warlike in temperament)

iii. Preached virile (having or showing masculine spirit, strength, vigor, or power) virtues; not pacifism

iv. Was a champion of military and naval preparedness

v. Famous quote was “speak softly and carry a big stick and you will go far”

d. Roosevelt’s Belief About the Office of the Presidency

i. Believed that the president should boldly lead

ii. He had no respect for checks and balances. He felt the president may take any action that is in the general interest of the people (even if it isn’t in the Constitution)

XIII. Building the Panama Canal

a. Increasing the Strength of the Navy

i. After the Spanish-American War, people were reinvigorated to have a canal built

ii. Battleship Oregon took weeks to go from the Pacific around South America to get to the navy fleet in Cuban waters

iii. A canal would:

1. Increase the strength of the navy by increasing its mobility

2. Make it easier to all the recent island areas recently acquired

b. Rights To Build the Canal

i. Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850:

1. Not to seek exclusive control of the canal or territory on either side of such a canal

2. Not to fortify any position in the canal area

3. Not to establish colonies in Central America

ii. Bogged down in the Boer War, Britain consented to the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty of 1901:

1. The U.S. was authorized to construct and manage a Central American canal

2. The U.S. was to guarantee the neutrality of the canal and was authorized to fortify the area, if necessary

3. The canal was to be open to all nations; rates were to be fair and equal.

c. Where Should the Canal Be Dug?

i. Many favored across Nicaragua, but agents of the old French Canal Company were eager to salvage something from their costly failure at Panama

ii. Philippe Bunau-Varilla managed the New Panama Canal Company. He dropped his price from $109 million to $40 million

iii. In 1902, Congress decided on the Panama route

d. Colombia’s Involvement

i. Panama a part of Columbia and wanted their independence from them

ii. Columbia rejected an offer of $10 million and an annual payment of $250,000 for a 6-mile wide zone across Panama

iii. Panamanians were upset, but they wanted the spoils from building a canal and they were afraid it would now be built across Nicaragua (the other option)

iv. Bunau-Varilla helped to incite a rebellion in 1903. The U.S. navy prevented Colombian troops from crossing the isthmus (a relatively narrow strip of land (with water on both sides) connecting two larger land areas) to stop the uprising

e. Recognition of Panama

i. 3 days after the rebellion, Roosevelt recognized Panama

ii. 15 days later, the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was signed:

1. $40 million for the canal strip

2. Zone widened to 10 miles

iii. Bunau-Varilla had counted on Roosevelt’s big stick policy

f. Construction of the Canal

i. Began in 1904

ii. There were:

1. Labor troubles

2. Landslides

3. Lethal tropical diseases (Colonel William C. Gorgas had to be called in again to make the area healthier – he was called in in Havana)

iii. The project was ended in 1914 and cost $400 million

XIV. Teddy Roosevelt’s Perversion of the Monroe Doctrine

a. Latin American Debts

i. Several Latin American nations owed debts to European countries

1. Germany bombarded a delinquent town in Venezuela in 1903

ii. This caused a threat to the Monroe Doctrine

b. Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine

i. Advocated for preventative intervention:

1. In the event of future financial malfeasance (wrongdoing, usually by a public official) by Latin American countries, the U.S. itself would intervene:

a. Take over customshouses

b. Pay off the debts

c. Keep Europeans out of the Western Hemisphere

ii. The U.S. first used this policy in 1905, when the U.S. took over the management of tariff collections in the Dominican Republic

c. Results of the Roosevelt Corollary

i. It was used to justify all interventions. Marines landed many times in Latin American countries

ii. To many Latin American countries, it seemed as though the Corollary was a cloak behind which the U.S. sought to strangle them

iii. Revolution in Cuba in 1906 brought American marines, but withdrawn in 1909. However, this was seen as more interference by overpowerful America

XV. Roosevelt on the World Stage

a. Russo-Japanese War

i. Russia needed a warm-water port and they wanted to get China’s Manchuria so they could have one

ii. Japan didn’t like this because Russia would be so close to them. In response, they attacked a Russian fleet at Port Arthur

iii. Japan was crushing Russia at first, until they began running out of men and money

iv. As a result, Japan secretly approached Roosevelt to lead peace negotiations

v. Roosevelt agreed because he feared the growing strength of Japan and believed that Russia could counteract their power

b. Peace Agreement

i. Japan, who had felt they won the war, forced to drop its demands for a cash indemnity

ii. Russia was forced to evacuate Sakhalin Island, but it received some compensation in control over Korea (it formally annexed them in 1910)

c. Results of the Peace Agreement

i. Good –

1. TR received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906

2. Russia and Japan ended the war quickly

ii. Bad –

1. Russia accused Roosevelt of robbing them of a military victory

2. Japan felt cheated out of its due compensation

XVI. Japanese Laborers in California

a. Japanese Immigrants

i. They were coming to America because:

1. Of the recent conflict

2. High taxes

ii. Many immigrated to CA (they were never more than 3% of the State’s population)

b. Discrimination In America

i. Many people feared the new “yellow peril,” as portrayed by the “yellow press”

ii. San Francisco’s school board ordered the segregation of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean students to free more space for whites

iii. The people of Japan regarded this discrimination as an insult

c. Gentlemen’s Agreement

i. Roosevelt didn’t want CA to start a war that the entire nation would have to fight in

ii. TR broke the deadlock by coming up with the Gentlemen’s Agreement – Japan agreed to stop immigration to America by withholding passports

d. Great White Fleet

i. Roosevelt didn’t want to appear weak to Japan or make them feel like the agreement was out of fear (of Japan possibly getting into a war with them)

ii. 1907 – Roosevelt orders the entire battleship fleet on a highly visible voyage around the world

iii. The fleet received welcomes in Latin America, Hawaii, New Zealand, and Australia

iv. Even Japan was highly receptive. Tens of thousands of Japanese schoolchildren waved American flags and sang “The Star-Spangled Banner”

e. Root-Takahira Agreement

i. 1908 – Signed by Japan and America following the warmer relations after the Great White Fleet visit

ii. It pledged both powers to respect each other’s territorial possessions in the Pacific and to uphold the Open Door in China