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Various forms of graft, fraud, and bribery were committed by San Francisco mayor Eugene Schmitz and members of the Board of Supervisors. Following trials of many offenders, a report is published on the causes of the corruption and recommendations made on how to prevent municipal corruption in the future.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1910-01-05
President Roosevelt holds a “strenuousness” kit as he walks toward Washington, D.C. Behind him is a paper trail in the shape of “1904,” including “songs by the Roosevelt club,” endorsements, “presidential song as sung by the ladies glee club,” “come agains,” “Ohio endorsement,” “dedicated buildings,” “photos of the Yellowstone,” “photos of largest families,” and “addresses of welcome by Democratic mayors.”
A case of a cartoonist biting off more than he can chew is this drawing, which is likely by William Donahey (later cartoonist of the comic feature The Teenie Weenies), not at this point in his career, as proficient as later, or as his brother, the Cleveland Plain Dealer‘s chief political cartoonist J. H. Donahey.
President Roosevelt returned, at the time of this cartoon, from an extended tour of the Dakotas (including Dickinson and Medora, which was near the site of one of his old cattle ranches), Yellowstone Park and other pristine wonder lands, and speeches in Washington and Oregon.
Various men hold up resolutions. John D. Rockefeller holds a can of “Standard Oil” can and a paper that reads “Resolved that I’ll still do business in Missouri. John D.” President Roosevelt holds his big stick and a paper that reads “Resolved that I’ll abandon the Ananias Club.” President-elect William H. Taft reads a “my policies” pamphlet. Caption: Taft might forget Roosevelt. Herbert S. Hadley sits on top of a goblet with “the lid” and holds a paper that reads “Resolved that I will take off the lid. Hadley.” Speaker of the House Joseph Gurney Cannon smokes a “gag rule” cigar. Caption: Cannon must swear off using the same old brand. Andrew Carnegie holds a paper that reads, “Resolved that I’ll refuse to reveal any more secrets of the steel trust. Carnegie.” Arthur N. Sager holds a paper that reads, “Resolved that I’ll absolutely refuse to run for mayor.”
Edward McBride’s cartoon in the reliably, and highly partisan Democrat, newspaper the St. Louis Republic features seven prominent figures referring to major news stories, disputes, and scandals. Rather than attacking the figures or seeking to persuade readers, the cartoon’s publication date reveals that it simply was a humorous treatment of New Year’s resolutions.
It then was common, and to an extent still is among political commentators and cartoonists to exploit holidays for their thematic preoccupations– in fact, sorts of holidays for themselves. The humorous New Year’s resolutions (or, sometimes, “the Millennium has come!”) presented an opportunity to show prominent figures doing things opposite of their normal pursuits.
A collection of editorials by Alfred H. Holman in The Argonaut covers politics and industrial topics in the San Francisco Bay area. Mayor Eugene E. Schmitz is on trial and control of mayoral power lies in the balance. Strikes affecting streetcar and telephone service are losing steam, with employers claiming that the unions are acting in bad faith. The involvement of Rudolph Spreckels and Patrick Calhoun in the prosecution of Schmitz is examined. Holman has little faith in the industrial conciliation meeting to be held in San Francisco. Holman also makes recommendations regarding fire safety and railroad management.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-06-29
New York gives Admiral Dewey, hero of Manila Bay, a lavish welcome September 27-30, 1899, and one of the highlights of that welcome is the land parade of September 30. Cheering crowds waving flags line the street as a battalion of sailors from the cruiser Olympia, Dewey’s flagship, march by. Included in battalion are a color guard carrying the American flag and what is probably the battalion flag, men pulling a piece of artillery, and medical personnel. After the marching sailors, a long line of carriages follow. In the first carriage, drawn by four horses, ride Admiral Dewey and Robert A. Van Wyck, Mayor of New York City (1898-1902). Additional carriages containing dignitaries and naval officers follow. At ca. 53 ft. a carriage appears in which a hatless naval officer, who is probably Rear Admiral William T. Sampson, Commander of the North Atlantic Squadron, rides; the man wearing a top hat on the far side of the carriage is probably Thomas F. Woods, President of the Board of Aldermen of New York City.
Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Recorded Sound
1899-09-30
Richard Croker sits at a table, sharpening a large knife. On the table is a large turkey labeled “Patronage of Greater N.Y.” on a platter. A small dog labeled “Platt,” sitting on a hassock next to the table, is begging for scraps. A portrait of Mayor Van Wyck hangs on the wall behind Croker.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1897-11-24
A fashionably dressed young woman with long ribbons labeled “Greater New York” stands on a floating shell on “Political Waters” with Thomas Collier Platt and Richard Croker as mermen.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1897-11-10
Benjamin F. Tracy is a cat who burned his paws on a hot stove labeled “Mayoralty Campaign 1897,” on which food labeled “Budget of Greater New York 70,000,000 Dollars” is cooking. Thomas Collier Platt is a hurdy-gurdy monkey sitting on a stool in the background. Caption: The Cat–(in a tone of great pain) M-i-e-a-o-u! Mee-yow!!
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1897-11-10
Robert E. Pattison sits in a chair labeled “Mayoralty” with a woman labeled “Philadelphia” standing behind him. Charles A. Schieren sits in a chair labeled “Mayoralty” with a woman labeled “Brooklyn” standing behind him. William L. Strong sits in a chair labeled “Mayoralty” with Father Knickerbocker standing behind him. All are holding papers labeled “Reform.”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1895-02-13
Newly elected New York City Mayor William L. Strong and newly elected Governor Levi P. Morton sit on Tammany boss Thomas Collier Platt who is wearing a crown labeled “Plattism” and has a cat-o’-nine-tails labeled “Boss.” Strong and Morton confer over a paper labeled “Plans for Reform Administrations.”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1894-12-19
Charles A. Schieren walks toward city hall labeled “Brooklyn,” carrying a book labeled “Business Administration Schieren.” In the foreground, Whitelaw Reid is straddling a trunk labeled “To Salt River,” on which three men are sitting. He implores Schieren not to “forget the boys!!” The three men are of the “boss” or “walking delegate” type and their political careers appear to be over as they are headed up “Salt River,” as the new mayoral administration of Schieren gets underway. Caption: Political Adviser–For goodness’s sake! Don’t forget the boys!!
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1893-12-27
Puck as Diogenes carries a lantern and a lithographic pen and seeks the perfect mayor for New York City. At center Puck gets the opinion of “The Republican Machine” (Thomas Collier Platt with the tail and ears of a fox) and “Tammany” Hall (Richard Croker with the tail and ears of the Tammany Tiger). In the surrounding vignettes, he hears the opinions of “The Sunday Closers” who respect the Sabbath, “The Reformers” who seek “a man of the highest ideals … and irreproachable character!” and have “Seth Low” at the top of their list, as well as “The Germans” and “The Bicyclers,” before returning to the “Office of Puck,” somewhat dismayed. Caption: Diogenes Puck starts out to find him, and gets a lot of varied information on the subject.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1897-07-04
John Kelly, dressed as a woman, threatens New York City Mayor Franklin Edson with a stick labeled “N.Y. Board of Aldermen” and points toward jars on a shelf, containing former Mayors Edward Cooper and William R. Grace. Kelly has another stick labeled “N.Y. Legislature” tied behind his back. Caption: New York’s Mistress – “Want a new charter, do you? Take care, or I’ll put you up there with the others!”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1883-02-21
New York City Mayor Franklin Edson has his arm around an office seeker holding a paper that states “Application for Office – New York Ward Worker.” He gestures toward another office seeker who drops a paper that states “Application for Office – My small income forces me to reside outside New York” into the wastebasket. A portrait of John Kelly hangs on the wall next to the Mayor’s desk. Caption: Mayor Edson “Very sorry I can not appoint you; you may be capable, but you can’t vote!”
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1884-03-05
New York City Mayor William R. Grace is a rooster crowing over a defeated and demoralized John Kelly, Tammany Hall boss. Grace, an anti-Tammany Hall politician, was just re-elected mayor of New York City after being out of office for the previous term.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
1884-11-12
Theodore Roosevelt describes riding ponies and rowing with wife Edith. He had dinner with New York City Mayor Strong and says he is on good terms with him. Uncle Jimmie Roosevelt and others have visited.
1896-06-01
Theodore Roosevelt asks his sister Anna Roosevelt to send him Mayor-elect William Lafayette Strong’s address and says she will dine with them on Wednesday and Friday of her visit. Roosevelt is in good health but the doctor says he must stay in his room.
1894-12-11
A depressed old man wearing formal clothing sits on the sidewalk on small railroad cars labeled “Street Railways.” In his pocket is a paper labeled “Expiring Franchises” and protruding from a bag another paper labeled “Leases.” A bundle at his feet is labeled “Boodle.” Mayor of Chicago, Edward F. Dunne, is standing in the background with a broom.
This brilliant cartoon by Joseph Keppler Junior — in composition, simplicity, and humor the kind of work that enabled some readers to forget his cartoonist father — would be dispositive if published two years later. That is, the reform mayor of Chicago, Edward Fitzsimmons Dunne, is shown with the broom of reform and a crooked political boss sadly confronts his disenfranchisement from control of municipal utilities, fares, and contracts.
The flaw in the cartoon is not its delineation of issues, but its timing: Dunne was only sworn in as mayor of Chicago that very week. So Keppler’s cartoon was, he hoped, prophetic.
Tammany Hall boss Richard Croker, as a pirate, nails a new figurehead labeled “McClellan” to the bow of a ship labeled “Tammany.” The old figurehead labeled “Van Wyck” lies on the ground.
If there is a historical flaw in Joseph Keppler’s cartoon, it is not that the Tammany ship (of the corrupt Democratic organization typically controlling New York City) found it facile to change the figureheads — mayors who were pliant to the will of the Tammany “boss.” Since Boss Tweed and John Kelly and Richard Croker, it had been so for decades.
By 1903, however, Richard Croker was a figurehead himself, barely active during the election of George McClellan as New York City mayor. The Irish-born Croker endured scandals that were worse than usual; had devolved some of his powers; and attempted to run the party and city from his estates in Ireland and England, where he managed stables of race horses.
New York Mayor Seth Low directs the bombardment of a Tammany Hall bunker flying a flag labeled “Tammany Graft.” Several men, among them former President Grover Cleveland, and Charles V. Fornes, pass shells labeled “Clean record, Capable administration, [and] Just return for taxes” for an “Anti-Tammany” howitzer. They are behind a sand-bag bunker labeled “Honest Government” and are flying the flag of “Municipal Reform.” Caption: “That ammunition fits our gun only.”
“Regulars and Irregulars” — cartoonist Keppler illustrated the “fusion” aspect of Mayor Seth Low’s New York City administration.In 1901 Low had been elected as a Reform Republican and Fusion candidate, on the Citizen’s Union ticket.
In fewer than two years Low effected many reforms swiftly and forcefully, taking advantage of his unprecedented victory over Tammany Hall Democrats, who were demoralized and in disarray. And Low kept his coalition together. Public servants of all stripes supported him editorially or politically, as Keppler caricatured various leaders of various backgrounds.