The runaway
Subject(s): Aldrich, Nelson W. (Nelson Wilmarth), 1841-1915, Cannon, Joseph Gurney, 1836-1926, Capitalists and financiers--Political activity, Carnegie, Andrew, 1835-1919, Dalzell, John, 1845-1927, Legislators, Payne, Sereno Elisha, 1843-1914, Pressure groups, Reform movement, Sherman, J. S. (James Schoolcraft), 1855-1912, Steel, Swine, Tariff, Trusts, Industrial
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A runaway pig labeled “The Tariff Issue” drags Joseph Gurney Cannon behind it. They are being chased by John Dalzell, Nelson W. Aldrich, Sereno Elisha Payne, and J. S. Sherman. An overturned cart labeled “Steel Trust” has spilled its contents of steel railroad rails. Andrew Carnegie, wearing a kilt, stands next to the cart waving his hat and gesturing to the congressmen. In the background is a large crowd, some in pursuit, and the U.S. Capitol.
Comments and Context
After the Republican party’s sweeping victory in the 1908 elections, the major goal of the party establishment, after the oath-taking of William H. Taft, seemed to be the passage of a tariff bill. It had been a decade since the last revision of import duties (the Dingley Act of 1897), and the tariff was a hot topic in the campaign.
By general consensus, the public desired and expected lower rates, with the assumption that lower prices in markets would result. But the “hungry” managers of a proposed tariff bill in the Republican Congress were comprised of men whose careers were devoted to higher rates and “protected” industries and monopolies.
A looming fight was evident; and Puck‘s cartoon L. M. Glackens pictured those legislative managers, including Representative Sereno Elisha Payne and Senator Nelson W. Aldrich, whose names would indeed grace the eventual legislation.
Glackens also pictures Vice President J. S. Sherman, a high-tariff, “Stand Pat” former House member whose presence on the ticket with President William H. Taft was a sop to the party’s Old Guard.
Glackens depicts the challenges in addressing the tariff as unanticipated by the Republican establishment. Being “free” of the soon-retired President Roosevelt had seduced some in their ranks to think that Reactionary policies would easily return.
Exacerbating their challenge is the role of Andrew Carnegie, possibly the world’s richest man at that time, who from his castle in Scotland was advocating severe reductions in tariff duties. It was a radical reversal of his traditional position during his years in the United States, running various steel corporations. But he had sold his interest in the steel trust, and thus “saw the light” and threw a monkey wrench (of steel?) into the plans of Protectionists.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1909-01-13
Creator(s)
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933
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:
The runaway. [January 13, 1909]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289990. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933. The runaway. [13 Jan. 1909]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 12, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289990.
APA:
Glackens, L. M. (Louis M.), 1866-1933., [1909, January 13]. The runaway.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289990.
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.
