Judge — November 29, 1890 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This November 1890 *Judge* cartoon satirizes a political dispute over credit for a Democratic electoral victory. Two caricatured figures—labeled as Mme. Cleveland and Signorina Hilla—quarrel over a bouquet marked "Democratic Victory," which sits atop what appears to be a map showing electoral results. The joke hinges on their competing claims: Mme. Cleveland ("Hands off! I contemptible upstart; that's mine!") and Signorina Hilla ("Why, you crazy old back-number! I worked for it while you sat still!") fight over who deserves credit for the Democrats' success. The cartoon likely references Frances Cleveland (wife of President Grover Cleveland) and another female political figure or symbolic representation, mocking women's involvement in partisan politics—a contentious novelty in 1890.