1885 Frank Beard Political Cartoon of Uncle Sam Astride the Nicaragua Canal

This dramatic depiction of Uncle Sam as an 'American Colossus of Rhodes' was drawn by Frank Beard for the January 10, 1885 issue of The Judge, in boisterous support of the 'Nicaragua Canal Treaty' between the United States and the Central American nation towards the construction of a canal from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The prospective canal, seen as an essential link between the Atlantic and Pacific, was proposed as a natural extension of U.S. power in the context of the Monroe Doctrine, and was embraced by those - The Judge's editorial staff among them - eager to see the U.S. policies in the hemisphere unfettered by European concerns.

A Closer Look

Dominating the image is a confident, cocky Uncle Sam: his jacket over an arm, his sleeves rolled up for work, and a shovel in hand. The Colossal American has one booted foot planted on the United States, the other on Nicaragua, these two are divided by water. Sam's shovel is labeled 'Monroe Doctrine'. Onlooking Nicaraguans are dwarfed by the towering figure. In the background, a feeble-looking lion, Great Britain, protests - 'Hear Me Howl!' - while vultures hover overhead. Sam is quoted below: 'I preempt this claim.'

The image is reflective of The Judge's editorial position on the 1884 Frelinghausen-Zavala Treaty (also known as the Nicaragua Canal Treaty.) This agreement - signed but not yet ratified at the time of this image's publication - would have given the United States exclusive rights to build a canal across Nicaragua. This flatly ignored the 1850 Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, signed by the United States and Great Britain, which established that both countries would have equal access to any prospective canal through Nicaragua, that neither country would build such a canal without the other's consent, and that such a canal would be open to all nations. As the image suggests, the application of the Monroe Doctrine to the Nicaragua Issue would establish that a canal passing through the Americas would fall squarely within the United States' sphere of influence and that the establishment of European - and especially a British - influence on the canal would run counter to U.S. policy. Britain's lion is thus impotent and (if the vultures are anything to go by) moribund. Meanwhile, France was active in Panama building the Panama Canal.

Editorial Position

This cartoon was not the only word The Judge had on this subject. The editors first argued against the Panama Canal, citing practical arguments. Their support for the Nicaragua Route, however, took a more emotional turn:

Hence the Nicaraguan project… whose very contemplation has had the effect of setting the British lion's hair on end. The canal would be an exclusively American enterprise, and England fears that it would leave her out in the cold altogether. We do not think that England's apprehension will disquiet Uncle Sam very seriously. He has his Nicaraguan treaty safe, he has pre-empted the claim, and if he feels like sinking a few hundred million dollars in a ditch in Nicaragua, he will be very apt to do it without consulting England's preferences in the matter, or those of any other country.

The Judge's strongest argument, then, was that the Canal's greatest benefit to Americans is that it would upset the British.

Events as they unfolded in 1885 would prove disappointing to those who agreed with The Judge's position on the canal project. The incoming Cleveland administration did not support the Frelinghausen-Zavala Treaty due to its implication that Nicaragua and the United States would be chained by a perpetual alliance and that any Nicaraguan war would thus involve the United States. Ratification of the treaty stalled in the Senate, and President Cleveland withdrew the treaty from consideration, a move in tune with his other efforts to avoid foreign entanglements.

Publication History and Census

This cartoon was drawn by Frank Beard and published in the January 10, 1885 edition of The Judge (he also drew the cover for that issue.) We see no catalog listings for this view. The separate image is not listed in OCLC.