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  1. Portrait of Clifford Berryman - Click to Enlarge
  2. Clifford Berryman Self Portrait - Click to Enlarge
  3. Drawing the Line in Mississippi - Cartoon featuring Berryman’s iconic teddy bear

“Gettin’ Awful Crowded!”
January 28, 1924

The Democratic race to challenge Republican President Calvin Coolidge in 1924 opened up when front-runner William McAdoo proved weaker than expected. This cartoon comments on the ever-growing field of potential candidates in the months leading up to the Democratic National Convention in New York City. Here Missouri Senator Jim Reed is the latest one to “throw his hat in the ring,” while the Democratic donkey worries about the crowded field. At the convention, former Ambassador John W. Davis received the nomination.

U.S. Senate Collection
Center for Legislative Archives

From Berryman’s Recurring Cast of Characters...

The donkey has become the common symbol of the Democratic Party. It was first associated with Democrat Andrew Jackson’s 1828 Presidential campaign. The figure was popularized in the 1870s when it was frequently featured in the cartoons of Thomas Nast. See more of Berryman’s Recurring Symbolic Characters