Judge — January 19, 1907 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This Clifford Berryman cartoon satirizes major American industrial trusts using the Biblical scapegoat imagery. The massive figure represents consolidated corporate trusts labeled "Rail Road Trust," "Coal Trust," "Gas Trust," and "Steel Trust"—monopolies that dominated the early 20th-century economy. The small figure labeled "Bryan" (likely William Jennings Bryan, the progressive political leader) appears to be the scapegoat being sent away to bear the sins of these trusts. The cartoon critiques how powerful corporations were blamed for economic problems while remaining largely unpunished. The Biblical reference suggests these trusts were using society as their scapegoat mechanism—transferring blame elsewhere while maintaining control.