Judge — August 6, 1892 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This 1892 political cartoon satirizes the Democratic presidential ticket of Grover Cleveland and Adlai Stevenson. The caricatured figures are depicted as two-faced—literally wearing halos and devil horns simultaneously—to suggest hypocrisy and contradiction. The surrounding crowd holds signs with conflicting messages (visible references include promises about "pure and honest candidate" alongside "$4,000" and "Hurrah" placards), implying the ticket appealed to incompatible constituencies through contradictory promises. The "face-both-ways" metaphor suggests Cleveland and Stevenson presented themselves differently to different voters—claiming moral virtue while making corrupt political deals. This was a common attack on politicians accused of inconsistency between public rhetoric and actual positions or conduct.