The Wasp — 1877 — page 163: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This political cartoon from *The Wasp* (March 31, 1877) depicts a bearded man wielding a pickaxe labeled "CIVIL SERVICE REFORM" against a large rock formation labeled "REPUBLICAN MACHINE COAL MINE," with "CORRUPTION" marked at its base. The figure appears to be President Rutherford B. Hayes, who campaigned on civil service reform—eliminating patronage and corruption in federal hiring. The "coal mine" represents the Republican Party's entrenched system of political favors and kickbacks that Hayes promised to dismantle. The cartoon's title sarcastically suggests Hayes saw reform as a profitable opportunity ("bonanza") rather than genuine anti-corruption work. The imagery implies he's attacking the corrupt machine, though the satire questions his sincerity or effectiveness in actually reforming it.