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Of course the period had its booms and busts. Researchers are still unable to determine how the economy recovered from its busts without quantitative easing, deficit spending, unemployment insurance, safety nets, TARP, TALF, HAMP and the rest of our enlightened acronyms, but somehow it did. It’s a mystery, but capital poured into this country from around the world, especially after the gold standard was reinstated in 1879, although there was no SEC, CFTC, FINRA, SIPC or FDIC to protect it. Some have argued that the gold standard was responsible for the rising real value of the dollar that characterized the period—a dollar bought more in 1912 than 1879—but there’s a gold nut in every crowd. By the way, a dollar in 2014 buys what a few pennies did in 1912. Another mystery—labor poured in as well, although there was no Department of Labor, Fair Labor Standards Act or minimum wage to protect it. Millions of immigrants encountered widespread discrimination and exploitation with no welfare state benefits, and attempts at unionization were often met with armed force, but still they came.