File:Illustration of altercation between Matthew Lyon and Roger Griswold on the House floor at Philadelphia's Congress Hall on February 18, 1978.jpg

English: Illustration

Congressional Pugilists

After the House failed to expel Matthew Lyon for the “gross indecency” of spitting tobacco juice at Roger Griswold, the latter sought justice by attacking Lyon on the House Floor (then located in Philadelphia’s Congress Hall) with a cane. Lyon defended himself with a pair of fire tongs. Commemorating the row between Representatives, this 1798 etching includes verse describing the scene, including the detail that Lyon “seized the tongs to ease his wrongs.” Following the tone of the simplistic rhyme, the grotesque, laughing faces (including that of Speaker Jonathan Dayton), and awkward, exaggerated poses further reinforce the absurdity of the situation.

Per https://history.house.gov/Historical-Highlights/1700s/Representative-Roger-Griswold-of-Connecticut-attacked-Matthew-Lyon-of-Vermont-on-the-House-Floor/ , on February 18, 1798, "Representative Roger Griswold of Connecticut attacked Representative Matthew Lyon of Vermont on the House Floor (then located in Philadelphia’s Congress Hall). Incensed that the House failed to expel Lyon for spitting tobacco juice at him on January 30, 1798, Griswold sought justice against the “gross indecency” by caning Lyon on the House Floor. Lyon defended himself with a pair of fire tongs. Both Members were separated, and a resolution to expel them was defeated handily, 73 to 21. One contemporary cartoon depicted both Members jousting with cane and tongs in what the cartoonist described as “royal sport.” The episode revealed emergent political factionalism in the House at a time when formal parties had yet to fully form. Underlying the Lyon-Griswold incident was Griswold’s support for the John Adams administration’s hard-line diplomacy toward France and military preparations in the event of hostilities. Lyon believed that preparations for war would eventually precipitate war."