By the grace of “Justice”
Subject(s): Corruption, Criminals, Flagellation, Labor leaders, Labor unions
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Samuel Parks, recently released from prison on extortion charges, and still wearing his prison stripes, cracks a whip over the heads of two diminutive figures, one labeled “Capital” and the other labeled “Labor.” Sam Parks was a union walking delegate, a mediator of sorts between laborer and employer.
Comments and Context
Once again Puck attacks the contemporary figure, and phenomenon, of the Walking Delegate and his role in the labor movement, growth of unions, and workers’ rights in the United States. Frequent cases of corruption, extortion, bribery, and even incitements to strike and riot, were associated with Walking Delegates. They usually were freelances, insinuating themselves in situations of labor strife, but sometimes represented large unions seeking to organize locals.
Many cartoons of the era depicted the Walking Delegate in iconic fashion, a counterpart of the bloated figure of corporate trusts, with flashy suits and jewelry, pockets overflowing with money, and dollar signs festooned over their persons. But here cartoonist Pughe can specify the offender: Samuel Parks, a Walking Delegate who was convicted and imprisoned for extortion.
Two factors stand out through subsequent history’s perspective: Parks’ defense of relying on “reasonable doubt,” a Constitutional right but sometime a courtroom technicality; and the depiction of equal harm suffered by workers and employers by misdeeds of the Walking Delegates.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1903-10-14
Creator(s)
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909
Period
U.S. President – 1st Term (September 1901-February 1905)
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:
By the grace of “Justice”. [October 14, 1903]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277399. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909. By the grace of “Justice”. [14 Oct. 1903]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277399.
APA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909., [1903, October 14]. By the grace of “Justice”.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277399.
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. March 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.
