The Wasp — 1890 — page 398: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical cartoon depicts two men embracing in a tree—labeled Cleveland and McKinley in the caption. Cleveland says "Hug me, Johnny; hold me true! We believes in free love, too!" while McKinley (positioned above) responds "This dream of bliss will soon be o'er!" The cartoon mocks both politicians' positions on trade policy. The "free love" language appears to be a double entendre satirizing their stated support for "free trade" versus protective tariffs—a major political debate of 1890. By depicting them as romantic partners literally hugging in a tree, the cartoonist ridicules what it presents as their hypocrisy or inconsistent positions on economic policy, suggesting their political alliance is absurd or temporary.