By-products of a busy life

President Roosevelt holding his “big stick” and San Francisco Mayor Eugene E. Schmitz in his arms steps up on a platform, “Conquest of California.” In the background are other figurines of Roosevelt: “San Juan Hill,” “Russian Jap Peace,” and “Anti-race Suicide.”

Comments and Context

T. S. Sullivant was one of the great American cartoonists of his time, active mostly between the 1890s and his death in 1926. His specialties were animal subjects and ethnic themes. Between roughly 1904 and 1909, he was employed by William Randolph Hearst, principally to draw daily political cartoons. The drawings often were cartoon masterpieces, but unlike his earlier and subsequent work for magazines and color supplements — both rare enough today — are virtually inaccessible to scholars due to the scarcity of newspaper files.

This commentary by Sullivant is one example. It is mildly critical of Roosevelt — for instance, the inevitable Rough Rider outfit is inappropriate except for one cited accomplishment — but notes a few of the substantial achievements of a life that indeed was busy.

The specific context, unnamed, of Sullivant’s drawing is the “Gentlemen’s Agreement” the president struck with the government of Japan at this time. A roiling controversy engendered by anti-Japanese prejudice in San Francisco attracted Roosevelt’s attention and concern. In addition to the injustice of racially motivated acts (for instance the banning of Japanese students from San Francisco’s public schools) resulted in protests from the offended Japanese government and anti-American riots in Japanese cities.

The president personally intervened, in many fashions, from appeals to American citizens and officials to diplomatic overtures to Tokyo. The Agreement included the cessation of Japanese immigration (with several exceptions) and conciliatory gestures by American authorities.

Under Roosevelt’s arm is, typically, the Big Stick, which he employed (as well as behind-scenes “speaking softly”) in his negotiations; and the figure of San Francisco Mayor Eugene E. Schmitz, a scoundrel of spectacular corruption, who had recently weathered the famous earthquake and was soon to be sent to jail for extortion and bribery, but with whom the president was obliged to work.

That this cartoon appeared in the New York American is somewhat ironic, because the newspaper was owned by William Randolph Hearst, whose flagship was the San Francisco Examiner — a prime instigator of circulation-boosting anti-Japanese agitation.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-02

Creator(s)

Sullivant, T. S. (Thomas Starling), 1854-1926

Language

English

Period

U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)

Page Count

1

Production Method

Printed

Record Type

Image

Resource Type

Cartoon

Rights

These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.

Citation