Agricultural Problems and Gilded Age Politics. And Some Protest Movements.
Explanation:
Farmers no longer controlled the social, economic, or political systems and this was a bitter pill to swallow. II. The Unresponsiveness of the Republican and Democratic Parties to Agrarian Needs. During the Gilded Age from 1877-1896, political competition between the two major parties was incredibly intense and close.
And, After the American Civil War (1861–1865) agricultural prices began a long decline that lasted for a generation. Between 1870 and 1897 wheat fell from $106 per bushel to $63; corn fell from $43 to $29; and cotton fell from 15 cents a pound to five cents. At the same time farmers' costs of operation remained constant or increased. These costs included freight rates, interest on loans, and the cost of machinery and other needed commodities.
The cause of the farmers' troubles was overproduction occasioned by the expansion of the agricultural domain—it doubled during the same period—coupled with more efficient methods. Increased production overseas also contributed. However, U.S. farmers did not recognize the complexities of the matter. They believed they were the victims of a conspiracy generated by the railroad companies, the bankers, the grain elevator operators, and conservative politicians who favored a money system based on the gold standard. The latter was an outgrowth of the specie theory of money which held that precious metals must stand behind the circulating medium (money) to give it value. This system tended to keep money scarce and prices low. The farmers and their political leaders, on the other hand, adhered to the quantity theory of money which held that the amount of currency in circulation should be flexible (based on production) in order to meet the needs of all producers and debtors as well as creditors. A system based on this theory would tend to enlarge the money supply and make credit more easily available. It would also tend to drive prices up.
Therefore, The main problems American farmers faced in the 1890s included the steady decline of prices due to foreign competition and domestic overproduction, and the high rates charged by railroads and grain elevator operators to transport and store grains.
