ABSTRACT
One of the most striking features of American democratic development is the party system. No feature of American politics attracted more attention during this period than the compact organization and the widespread activities of the political parties. One of the most conspicuous features of the early part of this period was the struggle over the 'spoils' system, and the political ideas developing out of that controversy. The enormous expenditure of the Federal Government during the Civil War, the rise of the public utility about the mid-century, the utter inadequacy of our system of taxation under the new urban and industrial conditions, the control of the individual states over commercial and criminal law in the absence of a national code, were temptations to which the spoilsmen readily succumbed. The Liberal Republican movement of the '70's; the Mugwump movement of the '80's, and the 'anti-machine' and 'insurgent' movements of the last twenty years were illustrations of unofficial activity within the party itself.
