Hunting--Moral and ethical aspects

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.”

comments and context

Comments and Context

W. A. Rogers, a nationally celebrated cartoonist of thirty years’ work, was not above falling back on tired themes. Theodore Roosevelt’s passion for hunting, the apparent contradiction of his fervent conservation work with that passion, and the comic possibilities inherent in anthropomorphic creatures made cartoons like this virtually inevitable, and frequent.

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.

Theodore Roosevelt is against spring shooting and feels that the date of possession should close concurrently with the shooting season.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-05-31

Gregory A. Wynn charts the history of three rhinoceros inkwells connected to Theodore Roosevelt. One belonged to Roosevelt and has a prominent place on his desk at Sagamore Hill and two others were gifts from Roosevelt to John Callan O’Laughlin and Lawrence F. Abbott, both of whom accompanied Roosevelt on parts of his African safari and European trip in 1909-1910. Wynn notes the manufacturers of the inkwells, their provenance, and he situates them in the context of Roosevelt’s love of big game hunting.

A photograph of Wynn and three photographs of the inkwells supplement the text.