“What a fuss they made about us!”
Subject(s): Clark, William Andrews, 1839-1925, Cleveland, Grover, 1837-1908, Corruption, Harrison, Benjamin, 1833-1901, Quay, Matthew Stanley, 1833-1904, United States. Congress. Senate
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“Senator Clark,” of Montana, with a bag of money hanging at his side, and “Senator Quay,” of Pennsylvania, on the right, with an iron bar labeled “Political ‘Jimmy'” hanging at his side like a sword, point at each other and laugh. The U.S. Capitol is in the background.
Comments and Context
Senators William A. Clark of Montana and Matthew S. Quay of Pennsylvania, Democrat and Republican, respectively, were two of the most odious politicians in a time of widespread political corruption. Quay was a long-time Republican “boss” in Pennsylvania and bragged about rigging elections. As Benjamin Harrison’s manager in 1888, he invented a system whereby Indiana voters in blocks of five cast multiple votes in different polling places. In New York State he outmaneuvered the Democrats’s schemes. Harrison lost the popular vote to Grover Cleveland but won the electoral-college vote, thanks to the tally in a few states like Indiana and New York. William A. Clark of Montana became one of the richest men in America thanks to lucky strikes in gold and copper mines, and resultant business activities. At the time of this cartoon, United States senators were still elected by state legislatures, not popular votes. Despite widespread bribery and “financial contributions” attendant on senatorial elections, at the time of Dalrymple’s cartoon Clark and Quay were hampered by investigations into their “purchases” of senatorial seats. Both overcame their challenges, hence the cynical celebration depicted here.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1901-02-13
Creator(s)
Period
Vice President of the United States (1901)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
“What a fuss they made about us!”. [February 13, 1901]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o275708. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Dalrymple, Louis, 1866-1905. “What a fuss they made about us!”. [13 Feb. 1901]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. February 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o275708.
APA:
Dalrymple, Louis, 1866-1905., [1901, February 13]. “What a fuss they made about us!”.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o275708.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. February 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
