Political slogans perplexing today

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A button from William McKinley’s 1900 campaign sold for $1,948.


In the 1900 U.S. presidential campaign, Republican William McKinley of Ohio used the slogans “ Protection and Prosperity” and “Four more years of the full dinner pail.” His campaign often pictured a workman’s lunchbox as a symbol of jobs.

One of his most famous buttons, if used today, would startle a 2013 voter. The button shows a strange boxlike container — the lunch pail of the day. Inside the pail is a building with smoke pouring from the smokestacks and the words: “Do you smoke? Yes, since 1896.” The smoking chimneys on the building represent work being done inside, just as the lunch pail means jobs.

Today, though, the smoke could be misinterpreted as pollution, and the answer given to “Do you smoke?” would suggest a health problem.

The rare button sold for $1,948 at a recent Hake’s Auction.  

Q: I inherited a ceramic tile mural made up of two dozen 4-inch tiles. The tiles aren’t cemented together, but when laid out, they picture a large sailing ship, two smaller sailboats and a lighthouse. One tile is signed “ Pillsbury.” I think the tiles came from a pottery in Ohio. Any information and present value would be appreciated.

A: Hester W. Pillsbury (1862-1951) was a decorator who worked at Roseville and Weller, both Ohio potteries. Roseville Pottery was organized in 1890 in Roseville, Ohio, and opened a plant in 1898 in nearby Zanesville. Roseville made pottery until 1954. Weller Pottery started out in Fultonham, Ohio, moved to Zanesville in 1882 and closed in 1948. Hester Pillsbury began working in about 1904 and worked at Weller after 1918. A tile picture such as yours, made up of 24 signed tiles, could be worth $1,000 or more. 

Q: My small electric mantel clock has a metal embossed design under the dial. The design includes a seaplane with a propeller that rotates when the clock is running. There’s also a sailing ship, a man standing near a tepee and the words “Polar Bird.” The case is Bakelite and like new. I can’t find a manufacturer’s name. Do you know who made it? What is it worth today?

A: A clock matching yours sold for $119 at an auction last year. Clocks like it, with extra parts that move when the clock is running, are called animated clocks. Yours probably dates from the 1930s, the decade after Adm. Richard Byrd’s first flights to both the North and South poles. Some sources say the clock was manufactured by the New Jersey Clock Co. of Newark, N.J. Others say it’s a Chronart clock, which might have been a trade name used by the New Jersey Clock Co.

Q: I am interested in finding out the value of a vintage Rolls Razor set called the Traveler. It includes a travel box and a razor with disassembled handles and other parts. The back of the razor says “Made in England.”

A: Rolls Razor of London was in business from the 1920s to the early 1950s. It made several razor models that used permanent blades rather than disposables. Your Traveler set probably dates from the 1930s. Your set might sell for $40 to $60 if it’s complete and in good condition.