Just a quickie today, involving our favorite Corrupt Politician/Satirical Target of the Presidential Election of 1884 – Newt Ging–, er… James G. Blaine! Above, by cartoonist Joseph Keppler, Sr., the centerspread cartoon in the September 17th, 1884 issue of Puck magazine – The Pyrrhic Victory of the Mulligan Guards of Maine (Blaine’s home-state).

I chose this one for today, for no better reason than “Mulligan Guards” sounds Irish. In truth, “Mulligan Guards” is a reference to the Blaine scandal known as “Mulligan Letters”.

The cartoon depicts Blaine’s campaign unsuccessfully assailing the fortifications of his Democratic rival for the Presidency – Grover Cleveland. Held in Blaine’s hand is a scroll labeled “Aggressive Cash Campaign”. A banner held by the editor of the N.Y. Tribune (a Republican-controlled paper), has crossed out the words “Moral Ideas”, and replaced them with “Soap and Success” — meaning, to use soap to attempt to scrub out Blaine’s record, as the only thing that counts is Success. The plumes in Blaine’s helmet (Blaine had called himself “The Plumed Knight”), are labeled after a couple of his scandals. Below right, we see one of Blaine’s supporters, pouring Blaine’s “Personal Animosity” into cannon balls labeled “mud bombs”, “spite”, and “malice”. (Hell, this sure does sound like Newt Gingrich’s prior incarnation!)

Click on the above picture, to view a larger, more detailed version.

Doug Wheeler

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