President Roosevelt off to hunt wild animals

President Roosevelt walks into a clearing of animals with his rifle where a snake, bear, cougar, and rabbit holding signs that read “Immune. I’m a ‘practical’ varmint,” “Immune. Grandfather of the teddy-bear,” “Immune. Testified against fakirs,” and “Immune. A friend of John Burroughs.” Caption: Prepared.

comments and context

Comments and Context

President Roosevelt went on an extended bear hunt near Stamboul, Louisiana, between October 6 and October 19, a rather long vacation away from the public in the middle of an extended speaking tour. It was in a part of the country, the canebrakes stretching between Mississippi and Louisiana, where a bear hunt early in his presidency, where the incident leading to the legend of the teddy bear arose.

Canebrakes, tall grasses resembling bamboos that also grow rapidly — sometimes as tall as twenty-four feet — are less common today, replaced by agricultural and residential land. Their broad swaths of the southeast and Gulf Coast were host to Florida panthers and, indeed, bear, but also a wide variety of snakes, including venomous species.

The distinctive brakes were depicted in W. A. Rogers’s drawing, if little else was original to the concept: cartoonists frequently imagined frightened or clever animals challenging Roosevelt, long before this hunting trip, and afterward, especially related to his African safari. One twist was the animals’ resort to specific ruses like the nature faker controversy, or Roosevelt’s friendship with naturalist John Burroughs.

After the president emerged from the canebrakes and wound his way back to Washington with speeches along the way, the Wall Street Panic hit the financial markets. The dense and dangerous canebrakes likely seemed a bit milder than what confronted Roosevelt in subsequent weeks.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1907-09-23

Creator(s)

Rogers, W. A. (William Allen), 1854-1931

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