General Hancock Gulliver, July 31, 1880 by Thomas Nast (lots of politicians to try and identify here!).

The Election of 1880: James Garfield v. General Winfield Scott Hancock (Description from Norman Rockwell Museum)

When creating political cartoons, Nast faced the dilemma of maintaining his personal integrity. In this case, he admired General Winfield Scott Hancock’s service in the Union Army. Though he did not support Hancock’s party, Nast preferred not to malign the General’s reputation. When asked about his relationship with Hancock, Nast replied “The man, yes; his party, no.”

Conversely, Nast felt that it was hypocritical to endorse Garfield, although he still supported the Republican Party. He had depicted the presidential hopeful in a disapproving cartoon related to the 1873 Credit Mobilier scandal. The charge accused congressional members of exchanging political favors for undervalued Union Pacific Railroad stock.

In the end, Nast’s drawings lacked passion for either candidate. His renderings defended the Republican platform by drawing negative images of the Democratic Party, avoiding direct attacks on Hancock. With fewer than 2,000 popular votes separating the candidates, Garfield won the Electoral College and became the 20th President of the United States. Tragically, he was assassinated six months after taking office, and was succeeded by Vice President Chester A. Arthur.

In Nast’s cartoon, Harper’s readers would have instantly recognized his literary reference to the satirical work, Gulliver’s Travels, by Jonathan Swift (1667-1745). In Swift’s narrative, Gulliver washes ashore on the island of Lilliput, finding it populated with tiny citizens who are arrogant and self-righteous.  Here, the Democratic presidential candidate Hancock is being tied down by members of his own party. By comparing Hancock to Gulliver, Nast does not attack Hancock directly but implies he is under the control of corrupt Democrats.

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