Life, 1899-08-03 · page 15 of 20
Life — August 3, 1899 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes **Russell A. Alger**, Secretary of War under President McKinley, who resigned amid scandal (likely related to mismanagement during the Spanish-American War). The main cartoon depicts Alger as a figurehead—a fancy but hollow decoration—being manipulated by a small, ordinary figure representing the "McKinley Trust." The text argues Alger prioritized personal ambition over duty to country, making him merely a symptom of deeper corruption under McKinley and political boss Mark Hanna. The bottom section includes unrelated humor: dialogue between a duck aspiring to be different, and commentary on New York streetcar monopolies exploiting workers and passengers. The satire's point: Alger was expendable to Republicans precisely *because* he was dispensable—a placeholder whose resignation wouldn't hurt the party's re-election bid. McKinley and Hanna, the "real disease," remained untouched.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
95 Poor Mr. Alger. USSELL A. ALGER has been practically compelled to resign, not so much for his faults, as for the fact that he was becoming 100 heavy a load for the McKinley Trust to carry in its attempt to clect the Major for a second term. In his political career Mr. Alger has suffercd from a wrong sense of proportion. He has placed things in the following order of importance: 1. His personal ambition to hold office. 2. His obligations tu the politicians and to the party which could give bim office. 8. His duty to his country. Had Mr, Alger reversed this order when the war broke out he might not. now be retiring from office in disgrace, But, afterall, as some one has aptly ob- served, Mr. Alger is only the symptom, and McKinley and Hanna the disease. Little, Common Duck: 1 HAVE ALWAYS YEARNED TO BE SOMETHING DIFFER- ENT, AND “AIN'T IT JES’ WONDERFUL TO FINK ALL DEM BRICKS IN DAT WALL WAS LAID BY MEN."? “MO! WONDERFUL EP DEY IAD BEEN LAID BY HENS." “DID YOU EVAN LAY ANYTHING, MISTA RASMUST"? “1 LAID MY HEART AT YOUR FEET MORE'N ONCR, MISS JONSING.”” Degrees. TOOK him to tho circus, My little boy, and My! That kid seemed to enjoy it Almost as much as I E are not surp at any strike along the lines of New York street railways, The employees are over- worked and underpaid. The public are treated like cattle. Let the next strike be by the public against the inadequacy of the service, and against the brutal in- difference of these monopolies in all that conceros the comfort and con- venieuce of their patrons. They out- monopolize all existing monopolies. NOW I'M_A CANVAS BACK 1