Compromise

In response to the vote count confusion, on January 29, 1877, Congress passed, and President Grant signed the Electoral Commission Act that created a bipartisan Federal Electoral Commission to decide which candidate would win the twenty disputed electoral votes and ultimately become the 19th President of the United States.

This Commission consisted of five members of the Senate, five members from the House of Representatives, and five Supreme Court Justices. Three Republicans and two Democrats were chosen from the Senate and two Republicans, and three Democrats were selected from the House of Representatives. From the Supreme Court two Democrats and two Republicans were chosen. The final Supreme Court Justice appointed to the Commission was an Independent, Justice David Davis. Justice Davis, however, was elected as a United States Senator for Illinois and therefore was unable to serve on the Commission. Justice Joseph P. Bradley took Davis’s place as the final member of the United States Supreme Court to serve on the Commission. Bradley was a Republican with some Independent tendencies and therefore acceptable to the Democrats.

Thomas Nast was fearful of the prospect of creating an Electoral Commission. He believed this Commission would favor the Democrats. In this cartoon, Nast illustrates “Tilden or Blood” printed on the paper on the table held down by an unseen figure's left hand holding a whip. This figure's right hand holds a pistol pointed at a second unseen figure across the table. Nast depicts his fear that coercion through violence could influence the outcome of the election in favor of the Democratic Presidential Nominee Samuel Tilden.

Nast follows up "Compromise-Indeed" a month later with "A Truce- Not a Compromise". In this political cartoon Nast illustrates the hand of Uncle Sam, identified by his cufflink on the left, disarming the potential conflict Nast saw as an imminent threat.

Nast had a change of heart about the formation of the Electoral Commission. Because Justice David Davis was elected to the Senate in Illinois he could not serve on the Electoral Commission and was replaced by Justice Joseph Bradley, a Republican with Independent tendencies. Nast saw this replacement potentially tipping the Electoral Commission's decision in favor of the Republican candidate, Hayes. The artist illustrates his hope by removing the whip from the figure on the right's hand and having the hand of Uncle Sam subdue the hand bearing the gun. Nast felt more confident that the Republican Hayes would become the next President.

In addition to the Electoral Commission, behind-the-scenes negotiations between the parties also occurred. In exchange for Southern Democrats not blocking the certification of the election in favor of Hayes, Republicans agreed that President Hayes end the military presence in the South, which had been in place since the end of the Civil War. The Reconstruction Era would effectively end.

This agreement became known as The Compromise of 1877 also known as the Wormley Agreement because the meetings were held at Wormley’s Hotel in Washington D.C., an upscale hotel owned by a wealthy black businessman. The Electoral Commissions’ decision then had to be ratified by Congress. Democratic filibustering took place, but the vote was finally approved, and Rutherford B. Hayes became the 19th President of the United States.

Discussion Questions

1. What does it mean to compromise?

2. In Nast's political cartoon, "Compromise-Indeed" what imagery does he use to demonstrate he was fearful of violence?

3. How does the imagery change from "Compromise- Indeed" to "A Truce-Not a Compromise"? What does that tell you about Nast's opinion of events?

4. How did compromise impact the results of the 1876 election?