Question

\probably no other individual than cornelius vanderbilt, 1794 - 1877 made an equal impact over such an extended period on americas economy and society.... he vastly improved and expanded the nations transportation infrastructure, contributing to a transformation of the very geography of the united states.... far ahead of many of his peers, he grasped one of the great changes in american culture: the abstraction of economic reality, as the connection faded between the tangible world and the new devices of business, such as paper currency, corporations, and securities... one person cannot move the national economy single - handedly—but no one else kept his hands on the lever for so long or pushed so hard.\ t. j stiles, historian, the first tycoon: the epic life of cornelius vanderbilt, 2009 38. which of the following developments in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries most directly represented a continuation of the pattern described in the excerpt? (a) the growth of international immigration to the united states (b) the expansion of sharecropping and tenant farming in the south (c) the consolidation of corporations into large trusts and holding companies (d) the organization of workers into local and national unions

Explanation:

The excerpt emphasizes Vanderbilt's role in the transformation related to business devices like corporations. The consolidation of corporations into large trusts and holding companies in the late 19th and early 20th centuries continues the pattern of business - related transformation. International immigration (A) is more about population movement. Sharecropping and tenant farming (B) are agricultural labor systems. Organization of workers into unions (D) is a labor - related movement, not directly related to the business - device transformation described in the excerpt.

Answer:

C. The consolidation of corporations into large trusts and holding companies