Farewell performance by Robbin’ Hood and his merry men
Subject(s): Corruption, Depew, Chauncey M. (Chauncey Mitchell), 1834-1928, Fraud, Hegeman, John Rogers, 1844-1919, Hendricks, Francis J., 1834-1920, Hughes, Charles Evans, 1862-1948, Hyde, James H. (James Hazen), 1876-1959, Insurance, McCall, John A. (John Augustine), 1849-1906, McCurdy, Richard A. (Richard Aldrich), 1835-1916, Robin Hood (Legendary character), Theater--Production and direction
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The cast of a theatrical production “Robbin’ Hood and his Merry Men” appears on stage for the final song of the production. Shown are, from left, Francis Hendricks as “Alan-a-Dale” playing “The Insurance Lyre,” John R. Hegeman as “Friar Tuck” with a small bag labeled “Loans” at his waist, John A. McCall as “Little John,” Richard A. McCurdy as “Robin Hood” with an animal horn labeled “Bluff” hanging at his waist, James H. Hyde as “Will Scarlett,” Chauncey M. Depew as “Maid Marian” with a bag labeled “Retainer” hanging at his waist, and in the background, Charles Evans Hughes as “The Sheriff of Nottingham.” A diminutive figure labeled “Policy Holder,” his arms and legs bound, is standing between McCall and McCurdy. Includes the lyrics of the song.
Comments and Context
Cartoonist J. S. Pughe closed out the year 1905 and one of its most spectacular news stories, the scandals uncovered in the insurance industry — with a parody of an opera company’s “farewell performance.” The investigations lasted so long, however, with Puck milking every opportunity to make cartoon commentary, that readers might have wondered whether there ever would be a farewell.
Yet it was time to reprise the cast of villains, at any rate, and Pughe delineated a few. At center stage is Richard A. McCurdy, president of the Mutual Insurance Company; behind him to his left is James H. Hyde, a more publicized miscreant in the hearings, both for the business shenanigans of his Equitable Life Assurance Society and for his personal embarrassments in high society.
At the audience’s far right of the chorus is Chauncey M. Depew, New York Senator whose profitable services for the Equitable were many and lurid, as exposed in the hearings. At the far left is Francis Hendricks, the New York State Insurance Commissioner who actually inaugurated the calls for investigations (evidently not a strong enough reformer in Puck‘s view); and in the rear, as the Sheriff of Nottingham, is lead counsel Charles Evans Hughes — his trademark whisk-broom beard not yet famous enough to caricature. Hughes’s dogged work in the hearings led directly to two terms as New York governor, two terms as United States Supreme Court Justice, serving as Secretary of State under presidents Harding and Coolidge, and being a 1916 presidential candidate.
Perhaps the linchpin for the whole double-page cartoon was the opportunity to employ the pun “Robbin’ Hood.”
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1905-12-20
Creator(s)
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909
Period
U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)
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:
Farewell performance by Robbin’ Hood and his merry men. [December 20, 1905]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o278472. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909. Farewell performance by Robbin’ Hood and his merry men. [20 Dec. 1905]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 26, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o278472.
APA:
Pughe, J. S. (John S.), 1870-1909., [1905, December 20]. Farewell performance by Robbin’ Hood and his merry men.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o278472.
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 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.
