The Wasp — 1896 — page 602: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This 1896 satirical cartoon from *The Wasp* depicts the Democratic Party as a Native American mourning figure standing over a wreath marked "DIED JUNE 1896." Two smaller male figures below—labeled with references to "Democratic Party" and holding flags marked "Protection" and what appears to be "Free Silver"—mourn the party's apparent demise. The cartoon satirizes the Democratic Party's internal collapse during the 1896 presidential election cycle. The June 1896 date references the Democratic National Convention, where the party fractured over the free silver issue and presidential succession. The imagery suggests the cartoonist viewed the Democratic Party as effectively "dead" due to these internal divisions and policy conflicts.