Judge — July 14, 1883 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This political cartoon satirizes a proposal regarding Apache prisoners and the U.S. Navy. The caption suggests sending "Gen. Crook's Apaches back to Mexico alone in our Condemned Navy" — apparently a darkly humorous "solution" to the question of what to do with captured Apache warriors. The cartoon depicts Native Americans on what appears to be a deteriorating naval vessel, with the implication being that sending them back via a condemned (unseaworthy) ship is a cruel, absurd idea presented sarcastically. This references the historical tensions of the American Southwest, likely from the 1880s period when General George Crook was actively pursuing Apache groups. The satire mocks either the cruelty of the proposal itself or government officials proposing such impractical, dangerous solutions to the "Apache question."