How did intellectuals utilize the idea of Social Darwinism in the Gilded Age?

How did intellectuals utilize the idea of Social Darwinism in the Gilded Age?
 
  A) Survival of the fittest applied to the wealthiest members of society and thus the poor members of society deserved their fate and the government should not alter fate.
  B) Survival of the fittest applied to the poorest members of society and thus the rich should be taxed at a high rate to cover any income gaps.
  C) The government needed to step in and make sure that the rich got richer in order for wealth to trickle down to the middle and lower classes.
  D) The poor would eventually evolve into the rich if they were provided with government assistance.