When Britain's industrialization began to falter, the North American continent was still asleep in the farming century. When it woke up, the original child had grown up. American industrialization, which began before the Civil War, was once a follower of Europe. However, the latecomers came to the fore. Less than a century later, sturm und drang left the pioneers far behind. The government plays an important role in the success of American industrialization.
Unlike many developing countries, the American government is not an "engine" but a "booster" in the process of industrialization. In other words, in order to engage in industrialization, the president did not call on the whole country, the Congress did not formulate a development plan, and the Federation did not directly set up factories. The role of "booster" is mainly to create conditions for industrialization, provide space, and give enterprises a thrust at this juncture.
What is the most important thing in industrialization? Talent and technology, of course. Britain is the hometown of world industrialization. Take the ready-made ones in Britain? Come, become the top priority of the US government. But the British are very stingy. From 1774 to 1785, the British government issued a series of bans prohibiting technicians and machines from leaving the country. Those who "break through" with private drawings will be sentenced to 1 year and fined 500 pounds. "Take" or "dig". Each state in the United States shows its magic power, introduces technology and attracts talents. 1790 In April, the United States Congress passed the patent bill and the Federal Patent Office began to operate. Under the four rewards, there must be brave people. The poor craftsmen in England are still alive. Samuel Schleiter and John Schleiter, two poor brothers, implanted cutting-edge spinning technology into their brains and crossed the ocean to come to the United States. American Lovel's trip to England was not in vain. He stole back the most advanced knitting technology. 18 14 autumn, the world's first integrated cotton carding, spinning and weaving factory opened in North America, and the textile technology of the United States was ahead of that of the United Kingdom. Foreign monks like to recite scriptures, and local monks can also do Dojo. In order to tap the potential of local talents, 1863, the federal government established the National Academy of Sciences to encourage states, enterprises and individuals to invest in scientific research. Folk scientific research has become a common practice. Edison founded the "Invention Factory" in 1876, and General Electric Company established an experimental station in 1900. By 19 15, there are more than 100 industrial research institutions in the United States. American inventors, such as Bell and Edison, became household heroes, and walked out of their laboratories with first-class scientific and technological talents in the United States.
In order to industrialize the vast territory, transportation must take the lead. 1830, just after the British steam locomotive was put into operation, the United States built a railway with it. Not everyone can play the railway, which needs huge funds and professional technology, has a long payback period and high risks, and should be run by the government. The American government has another brilliant idea. The essence of this move lies in "exchanging land for roads, borrowing more and investing less". According to the bills of 1862 and 1864, the state gave the railway company the right to build roads, and for every 1 mile of railway, it gave away10-48,000 miles of land along the railway, and obtained a loan of1.6-48,000 dollars. The government allocated 200 million acres of land and issued a loan of 65 million dollars, which is an amazing figure, but it obtained five transcontinental trunk lines, 4 billion dollars of foreign investment and 654.38 billion dollars of interest income, saving the government 600 million dollars of freight. 19 10, the total length of American railways is 1 1 times that of Britain, and the industrial center is 350 kilometers closer to the raw material producing area in the west. The government has built so many roads, without taking risks or raising taxes to pay off debts, and gained a lot of control, transporting nearly 10 million immigrants to the west and promoting the economic development along the railway. The best thing is that the road construction has completed the government's "four or two efforts" and can be used in other public utilities by the way.
Industrialization is inseparable from people. Nearly a hundred years after the founding of the United States, the population is only 3 1 10,000, with an average of only 4 people per square kilometer. The agricultural labor force is four times that of industry, and there are still 3.5 million black slaves who cannot move. The civil war made it possible for labor to flow freely, but the shortage of labor needed for industrialization is still a big problem that puzzles the United States. Importing labor is the most convenient solution, but the focus of American immigration policy is not blind introduction, but key input. 1864, the federal immigration office was established, and the immigration encouragement act was promulgated to provide preferential policies for industrial workers. For example, foreign workers can borrow travel expenses in advance when going to the United States. In the next half century, there will be 27 million immigrants, of whom more than 60% are young adults under 45, and more than half are migrant workers in major industrial sectors. The development of industrialization needs more high-quality talents, and running education well has become the highlight of the government. 1862, the federal government signed the "Moreel Act", which stipulated that states could acquire state-owned land and establish universities. By the end of 19, * * * allocated1500,000 mu of land, equivalent to the total area of France, Switzerland and Belgium. 1867 set up an education bureau to carry out compulsory and vocational education. At the beginning of the 20th century, the United States has achieved compulsory primary education and established an education system from kindergarten to university.
Large factories are masterpieces of industrialization. For the government, setting up a factory should be a piece of cake. The government may also bring some benefits, such as increasing fiscal revenue, accelerating technological progress, and providing a model for private enterprises ... This kind of good thing is rarely tried by the US government, but it gives full support to private factories. 1798 In the spring, Whitney, a college graduate, heard that the relationship between the United States and France was tense, so she wrote to the Minister of Finance and volunteered to produce 10000 guns for the country. Two years after delivery, the Ministry of Finance only saw a package of parts. Under the suspicious eyes of officials, the young man assembled six muskets on the spot. It took Whitney 10 years to complete the order and make money. Such a foolish thing can only be done by the US government. But without such a government, there would be no industrial standardization in the United States and no large-scale intensive production in the future. Since then, the "stupidity" of the US government has not diminished. Taylor's labor quota management, Ford's assembly line, Carnegie's coal-iron joint venture and Amur's joint production were all taken care of by the government and finally took root in the United States. The government's care for enterprises is far more than that. For example, developing investment banks to help enterprises raise funds; Implement the gold standard system to ensure the price of industrial products is firm; Increase the average tariff from 18.8% to 52.4% to protect domestic products from the impact of imported goods; Adopting a diminishing tax system to reduce the burden on enterprises ... The relationship between the American government and enterprises can be summarized in one sentence: officials promote official assistance, not official management.
The role of the US government as a "booster" is good. From 65438 to 0894, the industrial output value of the United States surpassed that of Britain, ranking first in the world. After another 20 years, it surpassed the sum of Britain, Germany, France and Japan and became the world's number one industrial power.