Judge — October 20, 1888 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "This Marriage Is a Failure" This 1888 *Judge* cartoon satirizes a marital dispute, likely referencing a contemporary scandal. Two figures sit in chairs beneath a sign reading "In Rum We Trust"—a satirical riff on "In God We Trust," suggesting alcohol fuels their relationship. The woman (labeled "Miss Hill") demands her husband write a letter redeeming her character; the man (labeled "Cleveland") refuses, fearing he'd lose "what little character I've got." The cartoon likely references President Grover Cleveland and a specific controversy, though the exact biographical details are unclear from the image alone. The satire targets both figures' compromised moral standing and suggests their "marriage" (perhaps their political relationship or alliance) is fundamentally broken and untrustworthy.