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 The Tariff Question

 


 “Her Platform Going to Pieces”
  Cartoonist:  Bernhard Gillam
  Source:  Puck
  Date:   March 26, 1884, p. 105

Click to see a large version of this cartoon...

Click to see a large version of this cartoon

Complete HarpWeek Explanation:
Anticipating a floor fight at the Democratic convention over the tariff issue, cartoonist Bernhard Gillam depicts the female persona of the Democratic party anxiously holding on to the platform which is being broken into two pieces. Speaker of the House John Carlisle of Kentucky (left) leads the tariff reform movement (lower tariffs or free trade) in the name of labor interests. Representative (and former speaker of the house) Samuel Randall of Pennsylvania pulls for tariff protectionism in the name of business interests ("monopolists"). In reality, the Democratic party decided not to decide the issue at the convention, and included only a vague statement in its national party platform.
 

 

 

 
 

 

     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 
     
 

 

 

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