The national bench show
Subject(s): Bryan, William Jennings, 1860-1925, Cleveland, Grover, 1837-1908, Dame Democracy (Symbolic character), Democratic Party (U.S.), Dogs, Gorman, Arthur P. (Arthur Pue), 1839-1906, Gray, George, 1840-1925, Hanna, Marcus Alonzo, 1837-1904, Hearst, William Randolph, 1863-1951, Hill, David B. (David Bennett), 1843-1910, Kennels, Olney, Richard, 1835-1917, Parker, Alton B. (Alton Brooks), 1852-1926, Presidents--Election, Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ), Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
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President Roosevelt appears as a dog in the “Republican Kennels,” with his trainer Mark “Hanna.” In the “Democratic Kennels,” an old woman labeled “Dem. Party” pats Alton B. “Parker” on the head and offers him a biscuit labeled “Political Sanity.” Other Democratic dogs George “Gray,” Richard “Olney,” David B. “Hill,” and Arthur P. “Gorman” labeled “Senatorial Leadership” and “Panama Issue” are kenneled nearby. Hanging on the wall is a picture of “Cleveland” with ribbons labeled “1884” and “1892,” and in the lower left is a cage labeled “Distemper” with William Jennings Bryan as a dog bandaged with “1896” and “1900” sitting inside before a small dish labeled “Free Silver.” In the center is a small dog labeled “Yellow Journalism Willie Hearst.”
Comments and Context
This cartoon appeared in Puck in the second week of February 1904 — five months before the actual Democrat Party presidential nominating convention. Pughe’s cartoon of a dog show mirrored Puck Magazine’s editorial desires, as per the depictions, dignified or mocking, of possibles candidates; and the nature of the labels. Also the expressions of the dogs in the kennel show reliably reflect the confidence of the various candidates. Further, the kind attentions to the otherwise obscure New York Judge Alton Brooks Parker — the eventual nominee, pushed by back-bench conservative Democrats — by the old spinster representing the Democratic Party, is prescient.
Pughe’s cartoon indicates that old-fashioned politics had that year’s presidential nomination foreordained.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1904-02-10
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:
The national bench show. [February 10, 1904]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277742. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909. The national bench show. [10 Feb. 1904]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. February 26, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277742.
APA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909., [1904, February 10]. The national bench show.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o277742.
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 26, 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.
