Milking time

Thomas Taggart, Democratic National Committee Chairman, on the left, and George B. Cortelyou, Republican National Committee chairman, on the right, milk a cow into buckets labeled “Dem. Campaign Fund” and “Rep. Campaign Fund.” A bell labeled “Wall Street” hangs from a ribbon labeled “Trust Interests” around the cow’s neck.

comments and context

Comments and Context

Cartoonist Keppler’s caricatures of Tom Taggart and George B. Cortelyou generally reflected their gifts used in 1904 as chairmen of their national political parties.

Taggart, Irish-born, was a politician rarely in elected positions (e.g., mayor of Indianapolis, and a brief stint in the United States Senate) but enormously effective as a functionary. In his Republican Indiana he managed campaigns that bucked the tide of Republicans in important elections; and he successfully advanced the political careers of others, including Thomas Riley Marshall (to be Woodrow Wilson’s vice president) and James M. Cox as Democrat presidential candidate in 1920.

George B Cortelyou served in President Grover Cleveland’s Treasury Department and on his office staff; as President William McKinley’s personal secretary; as President Roosevelt’s Secretary of Commerce and Labor (the nation’s first so named), and after the 1904 election, as Postmaster General and Secretary of the Treasury. He also performed important services to Roosevelt when he was assigned the tasks of reorganizing the office of the President; and establishing working relationships with the press, including the first forms of press conferences held in the White House.

The main point of Keppler’s cartoon was true than, as now: despite the stereotype as one party (usually the Republicans) of being the servant, or master, of Wall Street, titans of finance have traditionally favored either — or sometimes both — parties. They considered it logical to “have their bread buttered on both sides,” but also followed their personal views on trade, social issues, regulations, etc.

Collection

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Creation Date

1904-08-10

Creator(s)

Keppler, Udo J., 1872-1956

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

Cartoon

Rights

These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.

Citation