Prologue: The Money Question Chapter 4: The Bonds of Union

1. List and describe three things that the capitalists did during the Civil War to help the U. S. economy.

2. What did the Buttonwood Agreement eventually evolve into and how did it help the economy?

3. Which capitalist in the mid-late 19th Century wanted to control the Erie Railroad (considered the
richest man at that time)? What was the name of the “war” over the Erie Railroad and what trio of
men were “waring” against the richest man in the United States at the time? What will this “war”
prepare two of the trio for in their near future?

4. Describe the purpose of the Gold Room that was created in 1862? What was meant by being a BULL
on gold? What was meant by being a BEAR on gold?

5. What is the highest price that Gold was trading at when the “bubble” burst? What was the total
amount of Gold that the US Government sold which caused the burst?