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HomeHarper's Weekly: The Cartoons of Thomas NastNast & the Birth of the Political Cartoon › Andy's Trip: "Who Has Suffered More for You and for This Union Than Andrew Johnson?"
Andy's Trip: "Who Has Suffered More for You and for This Union Than Andrew Johnson?" by Nast, Thomas, 1840-1902, artist
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Nast & the Birth of the Political Cartoon

Andy's Trip: "Who Has Suffered More for You and for This Union Than Andrew Johnson?"

Nast, Thomas, 1840-1902, artist · c. 1866–1868, Harper's Weekly

This double-page spread fills both folio pages with a dense constellation of vignettes anchored by a stern oval portrait of President Andrew Johnson at center, his name rendered in bold display type — ANDY'S TRIP — arching across the gutter. Surrounding panels carry sardonic captions: "Don't Get Mad, Andy," "Our Soldiers & Sailors," "Our Wives & Children," and "I Am Prepared to Fight Traitors at the North." Smaller scenes lampoon Johnson's Swing Around the Circle speaking tour, depicting him haranguing crowds, losing his dignity, and contradicting his own pledges. Nast's argument is systematic: Johnson, who styled himself the Union's great martyr, betrayed Reconstruction, coddled former Confederates, and embarrassed the presidency with his rambling stump speeches. The mock-heroic central quotation — "Who has suffered more for you and for this Union than Andrew Johnson?" — turns the president's own rhetoric into the punchline.

About this artifact

Creator
Nast, Thomas, 1840-1902, artist
Date
c. 1866–1868, Harper's Weekly
Rights
Public domain — free to view, share, and reuse.
Restoration
Digitally restored and hosted by ComicBooks.com · high-resolution version available.

Part of our mission to preserve and restore the public-domain heritage of the medium.