Judge — November 6, 1897 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Cause of It All" - Judge, November 6, 1897 This political cartoon depicts a demonic or villainous figure as the root cause of multiple social problems. Radiating from the central character are vignettes labeled with various contemporary issues: "Robbery," "Lynching," "Steamship Company's Abuse of Immigrants," "Labor Agitation," "Bloodshed," and "Uncle Sam's Unauthorized Coercive Remedy." The central figure appears to represent either corporate greed, political corruption, or a specific antagonist blamed for America's social ills in the 1890s. The surrounding scenes illustrate how this singular "cause" allegedly generates cascading societal crises—from labor disputes to violence to immigrant exploitation. The title suggests the cartoonist's argument that one root problem (likely monopolistic business practices or political mismanagement) produces all these secondary evils.