Black and white print of five men (Martin and John Van Buren, Zachary Taylor, Louis Cass, and Edwin Croswell) and the "Goddess of Liberty" (with her Liberty cap on a pole) standing around a coffin in graveyard eulogising Silas Wright. Martin Van Buren is leaning on a tombstone incribed dates and with his name as well as that of Washington, Jefferson, and Jackson. In the middle of the scene is a large sow with head of a black woman labeled "Federal Pap" and four piglets with human heads identified below the image as "Propaganda, Corning {Erastus Corning}, Dickinson {Daniel S. Dickinson}, and Foster {Henry A. Foster.}" The last three were all prominent Hunkers and in the dialog they are planning the defeat of Wright and Van Buren. In the background is a wolf. Additional dialog and phrases appear on the print. While the print is untitled, below the image is a three line quotation from an antislavery speech given by Daniel Washburn in Utica, New York on June 22, 1848 following the nomination of Lewis M. Cass by the Democratic National Canvention in Baltimore on May 22.
This print is in reference to the Election of 1848. Prior to the election, prominent Democratic politician, Silas Wright, who was thought to be a prime candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, unexpectedly passed away after losing his bid for reelection in the New York gubernatorial election. In this print, five men, Martin and John Van Buren, Zachery Taylor, Louis, Cass, and Edwin Caswell, and the “Goddess of Liberty” (with her liberty cap on a pole) are standing around Wright’s coffin eulogizing him. . Martin Van Buren is leaning on a tombstone inscribed dates and with his name as well as that of Washington, Jefferson, and Jackson. In the middle of the scene is a large sow with head of a black woman labeled "Federal Pap," and four piglets with human heads identified below the image as "Corning {Erastus Corning}, Dickinson {Daniel S. Dickinson}, and Foster {Henry A. Foster.}" Those men were all prominent Hunkers, and in the dialog they speak to how they plan to defeat Wright and Van Buren. Wright was part of the radical Barnburner faction of the Democratic Party, and his loss of the governorship was attributed to the lack of support amongst the conservative Hunker faction of the party. While the print is untitled, below the image is a three line quotation from an antislavery speech given by Daniel Washburn in Utica, New York on June 22, 1848 following the nomination of Lewis M. Cass at the Democratic National Convention in Baltimore.
The artist of this print is Peter Smith, who according to Harry T. Peters, is most likely a pseudonym for Nathaniel Currier (1813-1888). Currier was a well-known lithographer and one half of the iconic printmaking firm, Currier and Ives that operated in New York City from 1835 to 1907. This firm was very successful, and known for their cheap and colorful prints that were easily accessible to common people Currier likely used this pseudonym to publish his opinionated political prints to distance them from his business and guarantee that profits would not be impacted by his political stance.