An Inspiration for History - McKinley Lives!

[Beck Reilly]

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PART I: William McKinley
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1901

History and Politics:
- September 5: (POD) Leon F. Czolgosz is arrested by the Buffalo (NY) Police Department for public drunkenness. By the time Czolgosz is released from jail, President William McKinley has long since returned to Washington, DC.
- The Boxer Rebellion in China officially ends with the signing of the Peking Protocol.
- The Royal Navy launches its first submersible at Barrow.
- Leon Czolgosz commits suicide by hurling himself over Niagara Falls, plummeting to his death.
- Prince George (V), the Duke of Cornwall, becomes the Prince of Wales and the Earl of Chester.
- McKinley quietly expresses his interest in cracking down on trusts, especially Northern Securities.

Arts and Sciences:
- Eastman Kodak introduces the 120 film.
- Guglielmo Marconi transmits the first trans-Atlantic radio signal, from Cornwall to Newfoundland.

1902

History and Politics:
- The Carnegie Institution is founded in Washington, DC, with a $10 million gift from Andrew Carnegie.
- Circuit Court ruling effectively ends Thomas Edison’s monopoly on motion picture technology.
- British suffer their last major defeat of the Boer War, with the capture of a British general and 200 men.
- Alphonso XIII of Spain formally begins his reign.
- Cuba is granted independence by the United States.
- The Second Boer War ends with the Peace of Roodepoort.
- Lord Salisbury retires from the post of Prime Minister after nearly fourteen years. He is replaced by Arthur Balfour.
- Edward VII is crowned the King of the United Kingdom.
- When negotiations with industry officials fail, McKinley allows the owners to deal with a five-month coal strike by Pinkerton agents. This (in)action by the McKinley government hurts his public image. On the other hand, his Vice President, Theodore Roosevelt, speaks out against McKinley and his popularity soars.
- President McKinley orders the prosecution of the Northern Securities Company for violating the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, enhancing his popularity after the strike.

Arts and Sciences:
- The first motion picture theater opens in the United States in Los Angeles, California.
- Lyman Gilmore (CA) reportedly flies a steam-powered glider.
- “Heart of Darkness†by Joseph Conrad.

1903

History and Politics:
- Edward VII of the United Kingdom is proclaimed the Emperor of India.
- Cuba leases the area around Guantanamo Bay to the United States “in perpetuity.â€
- The Hay-Herran Treaty, granting the United States the right to build the Panama Canal, is ratified by the United States Senate. The Colombian Senate, later, rejects the treaty. McKinley backs away, wanting neither to harm Central American relations nor to come into conflict with Colombia.
- Serbian conspirators overthrow Aleksandar Obrenović, replacing him with Peter Karadjordjevic, who rules as Peter I.
- Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto is elected Pope Pius X.
- President McKinley successfully convinces the German Empire to settle its claims against Venezuela in the Hague Tribunal, thereby ensuring the continuation of the Monroe Doctrine as United States policy.
- The Russian Social Democratic Labor Party splits into two groups; the Bolsheviks (Russian for "majority") and Mensheviks (Russian for "minority"). (NOTE: Later the Mensheviks became the majority party, meaning that the Mensheviks became the bolsheviks and the Bolsheviks mensheviks).
- McKinley decides to take part in a tribunal to arbitrate the dispute over the Alaskan border and appointed Henry Cabot Lodge as the United States representative. After two months of arguments, the tribunal rules in favor of the United States.

Arts and Sciences:
- Ford Motor Company sells their first production model, the Model A.
- The Wright Brothers make four flights in their Flyer I in Kill Devil Hills outside of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. These are generally accepted as the first powered, piloted flights. After years of dedicated research and development, the brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright fly 300 yards in the first practical aeroplane. This may be the first controlled powered heavier-than-air flight and the first photographed powered heavier-than-air flight.
- Thomas Hunt Morgan discovers that chromosomes contain genes.
- “The Great Train Robbery†becomes the first motion picture to relate a fictional story.
- “The Call of the Wild†by Jack London.

1904

History and Politics:
- A Japanese surprise attack on Port Arthur (on the Liaodong Peninsula) starts Russo-Japanese War.
- Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany becomes the first person to make a political recording of a document, using Thomas Edison's cylinder.
- Russo-Japanese War: Russian troops in Korea retreat toward Manchuria followed by 100,000 Japanese troops.
- The Entente Cordiale is signed between the United Kingdom and France.
- The Trans-Siberian railway is completed.
- The Republican Party decline to nominate extremely popular Vice President Theodore Roosevelt as the Presidential candidate, fearing that he is too progressive. In his stead, they nominate Attorney General Philander C. Knox, a conservative Republican (Elihu Root was the first pick but he initially declined as he had retired two months earlier.
- Vice President Roosevelt, outraged, decides to run as a third party candidate. The progressive wing of the Republican Party (the so-called Liberal Republican Party) nominates Roosevelt as their candidate.
- The Democratic Party nominates newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst for President and James “Champ†Clark for Vice President.
- Russo-Japanese War: Japanese infantry charge fails to take Port Arthur.
- William Randolph Hearst defeats Theodore Roosevelt and Philander Knox in the US Presidential election.

Arts and Sciences:
- The first Rolls-Royce manufactured.
- The first New York subway line opens. The New York subway system will become the largest in the United States and one of the biggest in the world.
- The first successful caterpillar track is made (it would later revolutionize construction vehicles and land warfare).
- John Ambrose Fleming invents the first vacuum tube.

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END: PART I
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[Coriolanus]

Fascinating! This isn't a well explored POD; I'm sure you'll do a pretty good job with it.

Interesting to see that Theodore Roosevelt is getting shafted by the Republicans....I guess putting him in the VP spot is going to pay off after all, as they wanted it to.

 

[Tom_B]

President Kane

I too find this POD interesting, plausible and original (most posts of late don't meet even 2 of those criteria). Not completely sure that E. Root might not be persuaded to run, though. Particularly interesting to see someone take Hearst seriously as a political figure. Looking forward to seeing where this one goes.

 

[Beck Reilly]

Can anyone recommend a website, or tell me more about, William Randolph Hearst's political views?

I've read he was initially considered a liberal. I've heard of his hate for the British Empire and dislike minorities (he used his newspapers to raise racial tensions at every oppurtunity). The minorities he disliked were west coast minorities (i.e. asians and mexicans). I've also heard that he especially hated Mexicans, but that may have been because he had lost 800,000 acres of timberland to rebel Pancho Villa, but I assume he had some anti-Mexican tendencies before that.

Can anyone tell me what positions he advocated during this period?

 

[Grey Wolf]

Well Tom can tell you lots about him if you ask him nicely

Grey Wolf

 

[Beck Reilly]

Well Tom can tell you lots about him if you ask him nicely

Grey Wolf

The same Tom who posted earlier in this thread?

 

[Grey Wolf]

Tiny note

Prince George (V), the Duke of Cornwall, becomes the Prince of Wales and the Earl of Chester.


He was Duke of YORK
Cornwall is part of the Wales bundle, so to speak

Grey Wolf

 

[Grey Wolf]

The same Tom who posted earlier in this thread?

Tom B seems pretty much an expert on Hearst

Don't forget to come back to my place from time to time

Grey Wolf

 

[Tom_B]

The Chief

Most of what I got about WR HEarst comes from a very good (but not quite great) biography called The Chief by D. Nasaw. You can get it our from any decent American library. What you are interested in can be gleaned from reading about 3 relevant chapters in fast forward mode.

Some basic points:

Hearst was initially a Bryan Radical. However he never completely jumped on the free silver bandwagon. He emphasized the other Bryan issues though. He was more a Populist and his war mongeing re Spain is well known. He was initially very proLabor until the newsboys struck his papers and then his attitude changed big time. He was ferociously antiRossevelt for a while and in return Roosevelt called Hearst the most dangerous man in America. Hearst strongly opposed Amercan involvement in World War One--even though this position cost him circulation after Lusitania. Hearst had not become a pacifist though--he favored strong intervention in Mexico and was very worried about Japan. He was a strong advocate of "preparedness". He disliked Wilson even before the war and his dissatisfaction with the Wilsonian foreign policy eventually led him to the conclusion that Republicans weren't so bad after all and endorsed them in the 1920's.

 

[Beck Reilly]

Tom, thank you very much. I think I have the entire pre-war period pretty well fleshed out, depending on the answer to this next (and, hopefully) last question:

I've read that, had the Russo-Japanese War continued for a longer time, the Russians would have won. Does anyone know if there is any truth to that?

 

[Beck Reilly]

I'm trying to do this TL right, so bear with me (and KEEP READING IT). The following is a reworked version of Part 1. I've tried to edit what I could, add footnotes of explanation, and generally tighten the TL in an effort to make it better. Please keep commenting as your comments are immensely helpful...

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----------
PART I: William McKinley
----------

1901

History and Politics:
- September 5: (POD) Leon F. Czolgosz is arrested by the Buffalo (NY) Police Department for public drunkenness. By the time Czolgosz is released from jail, President William McKinley has long since returned to Washington, DC.
- The Boxer Rebellion in China officially ends with the signing of the Peking Protocol.
- The Royal Navy launches its first submersible at Barrow.
- Leon Czolgosz commits suicide by hurling himself over Niagara Falls, plummeting to his death.
- Prince George (V), the Duke of York, becomes the Prince of Wales and the Earl of Chester.
- McKinley quietly expresses his interest in cracking down on trusts, especially Northern Securities. [1]

Arts and Sciences:
- Eastman Kodak introduces the 120 film.
- Guglielmo Marconi transmits the first trans-Atlantic radio signal, from Cornwall to Newfoundland.

1902

History and Politics:
- The Carnegie Institution is founded in Washington, DC, with a $10 million gift from Andrew Carnegie.
- Circuit Court ruling effectively ends Thomas Edison’s monopoly on motion picture technology.
- British suffer their last major defeat of the Boer War, with the capture of a British general and 200 men.
- Alphonso XIII of Spain formally begins his reign.
- Cuba is granted independence by the United States.
- The Second Boer War ends with the Peace of Roodepoort.
- Lord Salisbury retires from the post of Prime Minister after nearly fourteen years. He is replaced by Arthur Balfour.
- Edward VII is crowned the King of the United Kingdom.
- When negotiations with industry officials fail, McKinley allows the owners to deal with a five-month coal strike by Pinkerton agents. This (in)action by the McKinley government hurts his public image. On the other hand, his Vice President, Theodore Roosevelt, speaks out against McKinley and his popularity soars. [2]
- President McKinley orders the prosecution of the Northern Securities Company for violating the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, enhancing his popularity after the strike. [1]

Arts and Sciences:
- The first motion picture theater opens in the United States in Los Angeles, California.
- Lyman Gilmore (CA) reportedly flies a steam-powered glider.
- “Heart of Darkness†by Joseph Conrad.

1903

History and Politics:
- Edward VII of the United Kingdom is proclaimed the Emperor of India.
- Cuba leases the area around Guantanamo Bay to the United States “in perpetuity.â€
- The Hay-Herran Treaty, granting the United States the right to build the Panama Canal, is ratified by the United States Senate. The Colombian Senate, later, rejects the treaty. McKinley backs away, wanting neither to harm Central American relations nor to come into conflict with Colombia. [3]
- Serbian conspirators overthrow Aleksandar Obrenović, replacing him with Peter Karadjordjevic, who rules as Peter I.
- Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto is elected Pope Pius X.
- President McKinley successfully convinces the German Empire to settle its claims against Venezuela in the Hague Tribunal, thereby ensuring the continuation of the Monroe Doctrine as United States policy.
- The Russian Social Democratic Labor Party splits into two groups; the Bolsheviks (Russian for "majority") and Mensheviks (Russian for "minority"). (NOTE: Later the Mensheviks became the majority party, meaning that the Mensheviks became the bolsheviks and the Bolsheviks mensheviks).
- McKinley decides to take part in a tribunal to arbitrate the dispute over the Alaskan border and appointed Henry Cabot Lodge as the United States representative. After two months of arguments, the tribunal rules in favor of the United States.

Arts and Sciences:
- Ford Motor Company sells their first production model, the Model A.
- The Wright Brothers make four flights in their Flyer I in Kill Devil Hills outside of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. These are generally accepted as the first powered, piloted flights. After years of dedicated research and development, the brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright fly 300 yards in the first practical aeroplane. This may be the first controlled powered heavier-than-air flight and the first photographed powered heavier-than-air flight.
- Thomas Hunt Morgan discovers that chromosomes contain genes.
- “The Great Train Robbery†becomes the first motion picture to relate a fictional story.
- “The Call of the Wild†by Jack London.

1904

History and Politics:
- A Japanese surprise attack on Port Arthur (on the Liaodong Peninsula) starts Russo-Japanese War.
- Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany becomes the first person to make a political recording of a document, using Thomas Edison's cylinder.
- Russo-Japanese War: Russian troops in Korea retreat toward Manchuria followed by 100,000 Japanese troops.
- The Entente Cordiale is signed between the United Kingdom and France.
- The Trans-Siberian railway is completed.
- The Republican Party decline to nominate extremely popular Vice President Theodore Roosevelt as the Presidential candidate, fearing that he is too progressive. In his stead, they nominate Attorney General Philander C. Knox, a conservative Republican. [4]
- Vice President Roosevelt, outraged, decides to run as a third party candidate. The progressive wing of the Republican Party (the so-called Liberal Republican Party) nominates Roosevelt as their candidate. [5]
- The Democratic Party nominates newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst and James “Champ†Clark. The Democrats gamble that Hearst, who has only held elected office for one year, will use his wealth and youlth to win the day. [6]
- Russo-Japanese War: Japanese infantry charge fails to take Port Arthur.
- William Randolph Hearst defeats Theodore Roosevelt, who comes in second place, and Philander Knox in the US Presidential election.

Arts and Sciences:
- The first Rolls-Royce is manufactured.
- The first New York subway line opens. The New York subway system will become the largest in the United States and one of the biggest in the world.
- The first successful caterpillar track is made (it would later revolutionize construction vehicles and land warfare).
- John Ambrose Fleming invents the first vacuum tube.

Footnotes

[1] Prosecution of trusts such as the Northern Securities Company (which was such a fat, juicy target) was expected to happen under McKinley. However, unlike Roosevelt, McKinley would not have been so dramatic as to make a 20,000 word speech in Congress to justify it. Thus, while McKinley does almost as much as OTL’s so-called “trustbuster,†he does not attract *quite* as much attention.
---
[2] McKinley’s handler, Mark Hanna, while being one of the kinder businessmen (even arguing that businessmen must recognize labor unions), would not have allowed McKinley to act in such an overtly pro-labor manner as Roosevelt did in OTL. Thus, when negotiations, which Hanna would encourage McKinley to attempt, fail, McKinley allows the owners to deal with the strike on their own.
---
[3] McKinley would never have acted as belligerently as Roosevelt did in OTL towards the Republic of Colombia. Instead, he would have negotiated for the purchase of Panama and, when the Colombian Senate refused, arguments from McKinley would gradually have faded away. The Canal will have to wait.
---
[4] The Republican Party’s first pick would have been Secretary of War Elihu Root (Secretary of State Hay was far too old and, in fact, died the next year). However, Elihu Root was closer to Roosevelt than much of the rest of McKinley’s following and, while not quite sympathizing with Roosevelt, he would have known him well enough to know that Roosevelt would take such banishment in stride. With an inkling that Roosevelt may try for a third party candidacy, the recently retired Root would have known that the Republican Party was not going to win and, thus, would not have gone after the nomination in 1904.
---
[5] In 1912, despite tradition, Roosevelt attempted to run for a third term because he was maddened by the way conservative William H. Taft had run the nation. In TTL, upset already with the way McKinley has handled labor and foreign relations, and infuriated by the Republican leadership’s effective dismissal of him, a younger (and more ambitious?) Teddy Roosevelt runs as a third party candidate.
---
[6] Untainted by any (false) connection between the death of McKinley and Hearst himself, Hearst is a more viable candidate. In a field which includes such non-starters as Francis Cockrell and Alton Parker, the (preceived) liberal, Hearst, can use his youth, wealth, and public notoriety to force his way into the political mainstream. At a time when the nation was looking for a liberal candidate, Hearst was the most liberal of the bunch to the people of the time.

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END: PART I
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[G.Bone]

very interesting....

I like the inclusion of footnotes in this edition.

 

[Tom_B]

Only have time for a quick read. The bit about Root turning down the nomination is OK in a sort of "it could go this way. It could go that way" sense. Looking forward to what you do with Hearst.

 

[Beck Reilly]

Here's a quick summary of what I've got planned for the next part:

The actual fighting of the Russo-Japanese will go *slightly* better for the Russians than in OTL (it's not really possible for it to go worse). The war stagnates, however, with the Japanese offering to negotiate an end to the war but the Russians refusing the offer. Meanwhile, without Roosevelt's offer of mediation, the war continues at a very subdued level and the Japanese economy continues to worsen.

When the San Francisco School Board rules that the Japanese students should be taught in racially segregated classes, it triggers a diplomatic crisis between the US and Japan. President Hearst comes down heavily in favor of the ruling and bans future immigration from Japan when they raise a stink. It's the final straw for the victorious but war-weary economy, which collapses. The Russians offer negotiation to end the war, which is mediated by the British. Battle lines are drawn at the Yalu River. The Japanese are left with a lasting dislike for the Americans and the Russians, while the Russians are in a stronger position than in OTL.

Meanwhile, in America, Hearst initiates government regulation of the railroads and meat factories (both had to be done) but avoids the issue of conservation. As a show of force directed at the Japanese, who Hearst has angered, Hearst orders a naval buildup to be followed by a world tour in 1908. However, the economy of the US takes an even sharper hit than in OTL in late 1907, cancelling the tour and repairing relations between the two wings of the Republican Party.

By 1908, the liberal and conservative wings of the Republican Party were forced together by the worsening economy. In order to ensure continued party cohesion, it was decided that the ticket would consist of liberal and a conservative. But who? The conservatives (actually a majority within the party but a minority of the voting block) get their choice as Presidential candidate: Elihu Root. Meanwhile the liberals have a much harder time choosing a representative.

In the end, they always come back to one man: Teddy Roosevelt. He faces two challenges, his own stubbornness and conservative opposition. However, in the end, with a heartfelt speech from Elihu Root, a conservative "rebellion" led by Roosevelt's friend Henry C. Lodge, promises to enact some of his reforms, and the threat of nominating another conservative as VP, the still popular Roosevelt relents (at least he has somewhat of a friend as the top dog, also his extreme dislike for Hearst and his own intelligence and ambition, which tell him that this is the only way he is ever going to be in the US government again), taking the #2 spot for one final time. The (extemely reluctant) nomination of Roosevelt is the effective finale of the mediocre Hearst Presidency. That brings us to 1909.

 

[Beck Reilly]

Part II (1905-1909) should be along sometime tomorrow.

 

[wkwillis]

I am not sure that the Japanese would react the same way to a 'defeat' in the Russo-Japanese war as to a 'victory'. They rioted after their negotiators got them Korea and part of Sakhalin. If the war continued, they would have lost all of Sakhalin and all of Korea. This would have weakened the war party in Japan. The Japanese were so aggressive and expansionist because they were successful in their earlier attacks on Okinawa, Taiwan, and Korea. If they were not successful, they would have turned elsewhere, probably to commerce as they did after 1945.
Indeed, I wonder why the Russians bothered to negotiate. Perhaps they were more worried about the Germans. Maybe they were worried about the tendency of the Russian aristocracy to screw up the fighting and the prospects of a more meritocratic armed forces.

 

[Tom_B]

A Spectacular Idea

Hearst liked to put on a good show. HE was very fond of fireworks until an accident destroyed a couple blocks of New York. As President he would have found a way to do something really flashy. This does not upset your TL, it won't get him reelected but it could add some color to the piece.

 

[Beck Reilly]

Please keep commenting. I've tried to include all the necessary changes or additions that I have been able to glean off of your comments. Keep reading and commenting!

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PART II: William R. Hearst
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1905

History and Politics:
- Massacre of Russian demonstrators at the Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg is one of the triggers of the abortive Russian Revolution of 1905.
- Tsar Nicholas II of Russia agrees to create an elected assembly (the Duma).
- Russo-Japanese War: Russian troops begin to retreat from Mukden, Manchuria after losing 80,000 troops in 3 days. The Japanese forces in Manchuria capture the town a week later. For a time, it looks as if the Russian Army has been completely routed in Manchuria.
- William Randolph Hearst’s inauguration is followed by a display of fireworks unrivalled in American history.
- The Wright Brothers make flights of up to 24.5 miles (39 km.) and 40 minutes in their Wright Flyer III.
- German emperor Wilhelm II asserts German equality with France in Morocco, triggering Tangier (or First Morocco) Crisis.
- Russo-Japanese War: Battle of Tsushima - The Japanese fleet under Admiral Heihachiro Togo prevails over the Russian fleet under Admiral Zinovi Petrovich Rozhdestvenski in this two day battle. [1]
- President Hearst urges “governmental supervision and regulation of the railroad industry,†warning, however, that the government should not simply take over the railroads as William Jennings Bryan had urged. Representative John S. Williams will assume this same position and become Hearst’s mouthpiece in the Hosue of Representatives.
- Norway declares the union with Sweden dissolved. Sweden will later, reluctantly, agree to repeal the union with Norway.
- Russo-Japanese War: Despite the defeat of the Russian Army and Navy in the Far East, the Russians are unwilling to enter into the negotiations that the Japanese have offered. In Japan, the economy continues to stagnate as the war drags on. [2]
- Despite the war, Tsar Nicholas II is forced to grant Russia's first constitution, officially forming the national assembly (Duma) and assigning it limited powers.
- The title “Prime Minister of the United Kingdom†is officially recognized by King Edward VII.
- The German Empire launches its first submersible “U-boat.â€

Arts and Sciences:
- Albert Einstein publishes his theory of of special relativity and states the law of mass-energy conservation.
- Pathé Frères succeeds in coloring black and white films using a machine.
- “The Scarlet Pimpernel†by Baroness Orczy.
- “White Fang†by Jack London.

1906

History and Politics:
- The United States Congress signs the Williams Act. It is not nearly what Hearst originally wanted, but it does strengthen the Insterstate Commerce Act of 1887 by forbidding rebates to shippers. [3]
- Russo-Japanese War: The Russians, despite almost a year-long lull in fighting, still refuse to open negotiations with the Japanese, who continue to occupy Korea and much of Manchuria.
- The US Congress, in response to the outcry caused by Upton Sinclair’s novel “The Jungle,†passes the Meat Inspection Act, a bill designed to clean up the meatpacker’s methods.
- The 1906 San Francisco earthquake, an est. 7.9 on the Richter scale and centered on the San Andreas fault, strikes near San Francisco. The earthquake and fire destroy over 80% of the buildings in the city, and kill as many as 6,000 people.
- The Tangier Crisis is defused in a Conference called by British Prime Minister Henry Campbell-Bannerman.
- The San Francisco School Board sparks a diplomatic crisis between the US and Japan by ordering Japanese to be taught in racially segregated schools. President Hearst comes down heavily in favor of the school board’s ruling, which provokes an uproar from the Japanese government. President Hearst responds by banning further immigration to the US from Japan. [4]
- The San Franciscan Crisis brings about the collapse of the already fragile Japanese economy. Before long, the Japanese government requests the British to mediate a ceasefire between themselves and the Russians.
- President Hearst makes it clear that the United States is still interested in constructing a Central American canal. He dispatches a group of diplomats to Colombia to negotiate the purchase of the Panamanian isthmus.
- Glenn Curtiss meets with the Wright Brothers to discuss aeronautical engineering. Met with hostility, Glenn Curtiss will go on to found Curtiss Motors, at one time the largest airplane and second largest automobile manufacturer in the world.

Arts and Sciences:
- The BCG (Bacilli-Calmette-Guerin) immunization for Tuberculosis is first developed.
- Westinghouse engineers make the first radio broadcast from their headquarters in Monroeville, Pennsylvania. [5]
- The Royal Navy launches the HMS Dreadnaught, the world’s first all big-gun battleship.
- “The Story of the James Gang†becomes the world’s first feature film.
- “The Jungle†by Upton Sinclair.

1907

History and Politics:
- Russo-Japanese War The Treaty of Vladivostok, officially ending the Russo-Japanese War, is signed by both of its participants. The treaty assigns all of Manchuria, Korea, and Sakhalin Island to the Russians. The Japanese, in no position to protest the results of the treaty, turn inwardly.
- Despite the victorious end to the war, the new Duma is still opened in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Russian Empire goes through a period reinvigoration following the seemingly victorious end to the Russo-Japanese War.
- The British and Russian governments sign the the Anglo-Russian Entente. The UK had already entered into the Entente Cordiale with France in 1904, while France had concluded the Franco-Russian Alliance in 1894. The Tsar meets the signing of the Anglo-Russian Entente with promises to expand and uprgrade the Russian military.
- With all the news of military buildups and alliances, President Hearst announces that the United States will enlarge and upgrade its Navy with Dreadnaught-type ships. He announces that a US fleet will launch a global cirumnavigation in the fall of 1908. This is mainly to impress (frighten?) the Japanese, who have been acting with hostility towards US interests.
- The Panic of 1907, a relatively serious economic downturn in the United States caused by a New York credit crunch that spread across the nation and led to closing of banks and businesses, begins.
- Korea becomes a protectorate of Russia.
- New Zealand becomes a dominion.
- Hearst’s diplomats stike a deal with the Colombian government, paying a lump sum of $30 million for a swath of land twenty miles wide through the Panamanian isthmus. The region of Colombia north of the Canal Zone becomes the independent Republic of Panama while the southern region stays a part of Colombia. [6]
- Japan concentrates mainly on (re)building its economy while revamping the miltary and secretly meeting with representatives of the German government to discuss a possible alliance against Russia.

Arts and Sciences:
- Inventors Louis Breguet and Charles Richet demonstrate their Gyroplane No. 1, the first rotary wing aircraft to lift a person off the ground (although it is guided by men on the ground).
- The first cabs with taxi meters began operating in London.
- Carl Laemmle of Paramount experiments with combining audio from phonographs with film. Laemmle's experiements lead to the German development of "Syncroscope." "Syncroscope" had several successful demonstrations, but was eventually abandoned.
- Lee DeForest invents the triode thermionic amplifier, starting the development of electronics as a practical technology.
- The Autochrome Lumière is the first color photography process marketed.

1908

History and Politics:
- Herbert Henry Asquith takes office as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize for his work ending the Russo-Japanese War and the Tangiers Crisis.
- The 1908 Summer Olympics open in London.
- At Masjid-al-Salaman in southwest Persia, the first major commercial oil strike in the Middle East is made. The rights to the resource are quickly acquired by the United Kingdom.
- The Democratic Party comes into the election year with high hopes, easily renominating William R. Hearst.
- Due to the evidence collected by Roger Casement, Leopold II of Belgium is forced to make reforms in Congo, which is his personal colony.
- The Tunguska impact event occurs in Siberia.
- The Republican National Convention is much more hectic than the Democratic one. While the Panic of 1907 drove the two wings back into the same bed, the Convention is still ripe with hostility between party liberals and conservatives. The Convention unofficially decides to include one liberal and one conservative on the ticket and, since the conservatives hold a majority of the party leadership, they get to choose the presidential candidate. Their choice is Elihu Root.
- The Convention has a much harder time selecting a Vice Presidential candidate from the liberal wing. However, time and time again they come back to one man, Theodore Roosevelt, who, in the end, reluctantly accepts the nomination for the number two spot on the ticket. [7]
- The Young Turks successfully lead a revolution in the Ottoman Empire.
- Change of Emperor of Qing Dynasty from Guangxu Emperor of China (1875-1908) to Henry Puyi (1909-1967).
- Elihu Root (R-NY) unexpectedly defeats incumbent William R. Hearst (D-NY) in the US Presidential election.

Arts and Sciences:
- The United States Army announces plans to buy flying machines.
- Glenn H. Curtiss is awarded the “Scientific American†trophy for a public flight of over 1 km. Curtiss flies more than 5,090 ft. (1,550 m).
- Thomas Edison formed the Motion Picture Patents Company, with goals of controlling production and distribution, raising theater admission prices, cooperating with censorship bodies, and preventing film stock from getting into the hands of nonmember producers.
- Hans Geiger and Ernest Rutherford invent the Geiger counter.
- Henry Ford develops the assembly line method of automobile manufacturing and produces the first Model T automobile.
- “Anne of Green Gardens†by Lucy Montgomery.
- “The Steel Heel†by Jack London.

Footnotes

[1] The Battle of Tsushima, while a loss of for the Russians, is less decisive as in OTL. In this timeline as Admiral Rozhdestvenski recognizes the Japanese battle fleet turning in sequence and targets the necessary area, destroying two battleships before the Japanese even had time to return fire. In the end, the Russians still lose, but it is not nearly as decisive a loss.
---
[2] In OTL, the Japanese economy was staggering when President Roosevelt offered his services as a mediator. Had the war continued longer, the Japanese would have faced a complete economic collapse. In this timeline, President Hearst, notorious for his dislike of both latinos and asians, would not have offered to mediate an end to the war and, thus, it would have continued for a time, until the economy collapsed.
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[3] The Williams Act of this timeline is more similar to OTL’s Elkins Act of 1903 (which, in this timeline, was never passed under the McKinley administration) than it is to OTL’s Hepburn Act. The Elkins Act was a jumping point from non-regulation to the passage of the Hepburn Act and, in this timeline, like our’s, is passed three years before Congress gave the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) the power to force railroads to obey orders.
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[4] President Hearst, who was notorious for his dislike of both latinos and asians, would not have been as compassionate towards the plight of Japanese students in San Francisco as Teddy Roosevelt was in OTL. When he sides with the San Francisco School Board, the Japanese raise a stink which causes Hearst to loose his cool and shut down immigration from Japan. This diplomatic crisis is the straw which broke the camel’s (or in this case, the Japanese economy’s) back.
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[5] The success of George Westinghouse’s engineers will be enough to allow Westinghouse to stay in command of his company until his death in 1914. The extra seven years of guidance will allow Westinghouse to successfully guide his company to new levels of prosperity, making his the largest manufacturer of appliances and motors. The future merger of the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company with Curtiss Motors will create the Curtiss-Westinghouse Corporation, one of the largest aerospace and automotive corporations in the world.
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[6] The Democratic platform of 1904 in OTL, included the construction of a trans-oceanic canal, as did William Randolph Hearst himself. "The only way we could secure a satisfactory concession from Colombia would be to go down there, take the contending statesmen by the necks, and hold a batch of them in office long enough to get a contract in mind." - William Randolph Hearst.
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[7] Roosevelt faced two challenges: 1) his own stubbornness and 2) the conservative opposition. Several factors eventually came into play (a heartfelt speech from Elihu Root, a conservative "rebellion" led by Roosevelt's friend Henry C. Lodge, a series of promises to enact some of his reforms, and the threat of nominating another conservative as VP) which caused the still popular Roosevelt to accept the nomination. After all, he has somewhat of a friend as the top dog, he has an extreme dislike for Hearst, and his own intelligence and ambition tell him that this is the only way he is ever going to be in the US government again. He agrees, surprisingly, to take the number two spot for one final time. The (extremely reluctant) nomination of Roosevelt is the effective finale of the mediocre Hearst Presidency.

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END: PART II
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[Grey Wolf]

I think the question is whether Russia can fight on ? It is a question not so much of military or economic equations, but of politics. For one thing the Russian Empire does not know what will happen to the Japanese economy if they continue to fight. But, the whole inter-related revolution, duma and popular protest issues will play heavily in this.

Grey Wolf

 

[Beck Reilly]

I think the question is whether Russia can fight on ? It is a question not so much of military or economic equations, but of politics. For one thing the Russian Empire does not know what will happen to the Japanese economy if they continue to fight. But, the whole inter-related revolution, duma and popular protest issues will play heavily in this.

Grey Wolf

I believe that the very social uprisings which COULD hurt the chances of the war's continuation, COULD also distract the Russians, leaving the ending to the war open-ended, allowing enough time for the Japanese economy to collapse. I'm not saying that the war continues indefinitely. The Japanese economy, in TTL, collapses a mere 10 months after OTL's ending to the war. The treaty is signed 2 months later and the war's over. I think that the Russians could survive that single year.

Don't forget, I've also included: A) the Tsar's reforms still happen, and B) there isn't really much fighting going on. The Russians are licking their wounds on the Amur River and the fragile Japanese economy keeps them from being able to launch any sort of massive operation against the Russians. They're watching each other carefully, but not exactly trying their hardest to kill each other.