As the jingo sees it
Subject(s): Chauvinism and jingoism, Japan, Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919, Trolley buses, Washington Monument (Washington, D.C.), White House (Washington, D.C.), William II, German Emperor, 1859-1941
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In the first vignette, a Japanese man holding a camera sees the Washington Monument and says, “I’ll snap this shot tower” while another Japanese man takes a picture of German Emperor William II saying, “Ah, a snap!” In the second vignette, a Japanese man takes a picture of the White House, “This may come in handy.” In the third vignette, a Japanese man draws a picture of a trolley car and says, “Hist!” In the fourth vignette, a Japanese man takes a picture of President Roosevelt as he pushes a plow, “Ha! A new engine of war!” In the fifth vignette, a Japanese man draws a picture of a trolley and a car on a torn up road, “I never saw such a sight before! Some new method of blocking a forward movement I suppose.” In the middle of the cartoon, a man labeled “American jingo” reads the “yellow journal” with the headline, “Japs posed for war! Spies everywhere!”
Comments and Context
In this commentary-cartoon by Clifford Kennedy Berryman, the focus is not on suspicious activities by Japanese immigrants and visitors, but mocking the paranoia of nativists at the time and, specifically, the frenzy whipped up by the “Yellow Press” (a name applied to sensationalist newspapers, nothing related to racial stereotypes).
The chief promoter of anti-Japanese sentiment in the press was William Randolph Hearst, whose flagship paper was The Examiner of San Francisco, center of xenophobia and racial prejudice against the Japanese.
During his presidency Theodore Roosevelt worked hard to counter the class friction in California that had manifested itself in manners like excluding Japanese students from the public-school system.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1907-07-17
Creator(s)
Berryman, Clifford Kennedy, 1869-1949
Language
English
Period
U.S. President – 2nd Term (March 1905-February 1909)
Page Count
1
Production Method
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
As the jingo sees it. [July 17, 1907]. Library of Congress Manuscript Division.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o301566. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Berryman, Clifford Kennedy, 1869-1949. As the jingo sees it. [17 Jul. 1907]. Image.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. August 3, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o301566.
APA:
Berryman, Clifford Kennedy, 1869-1949., [1907, July 17]. As the jingo sees it.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o301566.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. August 3, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.
APA:
Library of Congress Manuscript Division. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-manuscript-division.
