1885 <i>Judge</i> Satirical Political Cartoon, Ohio Gubernatorial Election

Lampooning the Democrats' New York Political Machine.

This is an October 1885 satirical political cartoon that appeared in The Judge. Referring specifically to the Ohio Gubernatorial election that year, it lambasts the Democratic Party political machine of the time, led by New York Governor David Hill.

A Closer Look

The cartoon depicts Hill and incumbent Democratic Ohio Governor George Hoadly as Jack and Jill, who went up a hill to fetch a pail of 'water' (votes), no doubt playing on Hill's surname. But on their way down the hill, they trip on rocks labeled 'the misgovernment of Ohio' and 'partnership with Tweed,' that is, Boss Tweed (1823 - 1878), head of the Tammany Hall political machine in New York City, deceased by this time but still casting a long shadow over U.S. politics. In doing so, they spill votes out onto the ground while in the background onlookers from the Republican Headquarters cheer. (The 'Davenport and Carr' signage was a fictitious outfit frequently appearing on signage in Judge cartoons, a kind of inside joke with readers). A modified form of the children's rhyme at bottom drives home the point.

Historical Context

The background to this cartoon is the relentless lambasting of the Democratic Party machine in New York by Judge, which earlier in 1885 had been purchased by William J. Arkell and took on a strident, partisan tone, expanding the magazine's circulation by recruiting Republican supporters. Soon, the magazine's satirists saw their nemesis, the Democratic political machine, especially based in New York, at work in the rather genteel Ohio gubernatorial election in October 1885. The race was contested by two Cincinnatians who were on good terms with each other, incumbent Democratic Governor George Hoadly and Republican Joseph B. Foraker, the same two candidates nominated by their respective parties in 1883. While Hoadly narrowly won in 1883, he lost by a similar margin in 1885, hurt by his response to the deadly Cincinnati Riots of 1884 and the use of state militia to quell the Great Hocking Valley Coal Strike. Judge determined that New York Democrats, particularly Governor David B. Hill (who had assumed that role after being Lieutenant Governor under Grover Cleveland), were mobilizing their party machine to support Hoadly. Hill, a frequent target of Judge, was an archetypal machine politician, very unlike his former running mate and long-time political rival within the New York Democratic Party, Grover Cleveland, who crusaded against machine politics and corruption.

Publication History and Census

This cartoon was drawn by an artist signing 'Dmac,' was most likely printed by the Franklin Square Lithography Company, and was published as the back cover of the October 31, 1885, issue of The Judge. It does not appear to be independently cataloged with any institution.

Cartographer

Franklin Square Lithographic (fl. c. 1883 - 1886) was a short-lived New York City lithography firm active in the late 19th century. We have been able to trace just 2 separately-issued pieces with the Franklin Square imprint, though they also printed covers for the satirical weekly Judge. Despite their brief period of operation and limited output, the overall quality of their work, mostly chromolithography, is high.   Further Details...

Source

The Judge, Vol. 9 No. 211, Oct. 31, 1885.    

Judge (1881 - 1947) was a weekly satirical magazine published in the United States. The first issue was first printed on October 29, 1881 as The Judge and was only sixteen pages long. Judge was launched by James Albert Wales, Frank Tousey, and George H. Jessop, who had previously worked for its rival magazine Puck. In the mid-1880s, William J. Arkell purchased the magazine, which was having difficulty competing with Puck; at this time the magazine's title was shorn of its definite article. Arkell, taking advantage of his considerable wealth, persuaded cartoonists Eugene Zimmermann, Frank Beard, and Bernhard Gillam to leave Puck and join the staff at Judge. As Arkell was a supporter of the Republican Party, Judge soon became a platform for criticizing the Democratic administration of Grover Cleveland, which was blamed for the Panic of 1893, among other issues. With support from the Republican Party, Judge saw a rise in popularity during the 1880s and 90s, surpassing Puck in both content and circulation. Judge also widely supported the candidacy of William McKinley, largely through the work of cartoonists Victor Gillam and Grant E. Hamilton. Judge reached its peak circulation of around 100,000 by 1912. One of its former editors, Harold Ross, used his experience at the magazine to launch his own publication, The New Yorker in 1925, which quickly began to compete with Judge. Due to the success of The New Yorker and the Great Depression, Judge became a monthly is 1932 and ceased circulation in 1947.

Condition

Good. Dampstaining to right margin. Minor verso repairs.