"None but Millionaires Need Apply. The Coming Style of Presidential Election." Puck Magazine, March 3, 1890.

Pennsylvania Senator Matthew Quay auctions off the empty chair of the 1892 presidential election to the highest bidder. Terms cash reads one of the papers at his feet on the floor.

In the late 1800s, Pennsylvania Senator Mathew Quay was a national symbol of the power of special interests and American political corruption. On March 3, 1890, Puck magazine devoted its cover to the rule of money in the nation's capital. In this political cartoon, Quay auctions off the empty chair of the 1892 presidential election to the highest bidder. "Terms cash" reads one of the papers at his feet on the floor.

Courtesy of the United States Senate