PLEASED. The PEN is MIGHTIER than the Sword.

Prosperity is pleased with Taft’s first message to Congress.

This colorful political cartoon presents William Howard Taft at a massive desk, intently authoring his (first) message to Congress after his Presidential Inauguration. Tools of his office are scattered about, including the Constitution, International Law, and The Tariff. Behind the large man, a beautiful maiden representing national prosperity looks on, smiling in satisfaction at the possibility of reduced tariffs and a federal income tax. A bust of Lincoln and portrait of McKinley put Taft into good presidential company, while the accoutrements of the Rough Ridgers hang on the wall – a nod to his predecessor, Teddy Roosevelt.

The scene was designed by the prolific Swiss-American cartoonist Eugene Zimmerman (signature, ‘Zim’, in the lower right). It was copy-written by Judge Publications of New York in 1909 and published as a centerfold in a magazine from that year.

Sources: Miller Center; Delaware Art Museum;