Putting it up to him
Subject(s): Congressional leadership, Corruption, Cost and standard of living, Day laborers, Labor unions, Patronage, Political, Tariff, Wages
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lllustration shows an oversized man labeled “capital,” sitting on a throne, holding a large cake labeled “Tariff Graft;” a smaller man labeled “Labor” is standing next to him, holding a loaf of bread labeled “Wages.” Caption: “If they take away my cake, I’ll take away your bread.”
Comments and Context
The allegory drawn by Puck‘s chief political cartoonist Udo J. Keppler stated well the soft form of blackmail — at least in terms of oft-repeated predictions — by big business to the pressure of middle-class citizens and workers that import tariffs be lowered. Business argued that high tariffs were insulation against foreign goods, and that American factories and farms could thrive thereby. A growing chorus of reformers complained that the policy allowed business freedom to set prices arbitrarily — usually higher at consumer levels — and stifled the “unseen hand of the market” where supply and demand would bring justice to prices and wages.
Keppler’s cartoon went, as cartoons can best do, beyond theories and even data, and depicted business (capital) as hoarding a magnificent portion of sweet desserts (labeled not merely as “tariffs” but as “tariff graft”) while a worker holds on to a lone loaf of plain bread.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1909-03-31
Creator(s)
Period
African Safari (March 1909-1910)
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:
Putting it up to him. [March 31, 1909]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o291129. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Keppler, Udo J., 1872-1956. Putting it up to him. [31 Mar. 1909]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. March 5, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o291129.
APA:
Keppler, Udo J., 1872-1956., [1909, March 31]. Putting it up to him.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o291129.
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 5, 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.
