Chariot racing

President Roosevelt is depicted as Ben-Hur and drives a chariot of four horses: “public honesty,” “square deal,” “publicity,” and “centralization.” He leads the chariot race. Behind him are “swollen fortune” and a “reactionary.” On the ground are an “undesirable citizen” and a “molly-coddle.” In the stands are Miss Columbia, William Loeb, Ohio Senator Joseph Benson Foraker, Speaker of the House Joseph Gurney Cannon, Pennsylvania Senator Philander C. Knox, Secretary of War William H. Taft, Vice President Charles W. Fairbanks, New York Governor Charles Evans Hughes, and Secretary of the Treasury George B. Cortelyou.

comments and context

Comments and Context

In a regrettably typical cartooning overreach, the Washington Herald‘s Joseph Harry Cunningham transforms a popular image in the public’s consciousness into a putative grand statement on the current political situation. Beyond the idea that President Roosevelt was engaged in racing ahead with several policy agendas, pursued by opponents of those programs, there was little that was prescient, or that would bring a new insight to readers.

A chariot race is underway, with “Miss Democracy” driving a team of donkeys labeled “Dem. Congressional Campaign” and President “Taft” driving a team of white horses labeled “Rep. Congressional Campaign.” A chariot labeled “Payne-Aldrich Tariff Mess,” driven by Nelson W. Aldrich, has crashed in front of Taft, possibly derailing the Republican campaign in the upcoming Congressional election. Uncle Sam, a woman wearing a red liberty cap, and Puck, among others, watch from a platform in the center of the racetrack.

Collection

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Creation Date

1910-08-24