Cara’s Blog

If there is one thing that the reading makes clear it is the blatant social division and finical troubles that occurred after the Revolutionary War. Men like George Washington and Henry Knox tried to honor veterans. Copious amounts of land were suggested in the Ohio territory for them. Little to my surprise congress denied this proposal claiming that Americans would care less about the financial solidity of the country. I don’t’ think that Americans were necessarily indifferent to the finances of the newly formed United States since it determined whether or not a lot of them were ever going to see any money for their efforts in battle. Never the less, in an effort to honor some of the veterans Henry Knox started the Society of Cincinnati.

Some men, however, weren’t concerned with the swords they received through this society. Veterans who had gone back to their farms were facing larger problems. It seems to me that Congress was almost embarrassed by the Cincinnati men into recognizing their soldiers. However, to fund such an endeavor they would need to collect taxes. This makes perfect sense except for the fact that most of these farmers had no money in which to pay them. Their land was being taken away from them because of this. I was reminded of the novel The Grapes of Wrath. The Joads’ circumstances were based on a drought but the outcome was similar. They lost their land because they could not pay their outstanding loans. When the family went to find work they found that there was none to be found. Surely farmers of the post Revolutionary War era felt the same hopelessness. How could they re pay their debts when they were being thrown in jail? They couldn’t find another occupation because this was all they knew. Society outcast people like the Joads similar to how society was split between farmers like Shay and men of higher social class. Both met angry opposition when all these people were trying to do was live with the dignity and honor they deserved.