The Modern Exodus from the Land of Free Trade Bondage to the Land of Protection and Plenty
- Title:
- The Modern Exodus from the Land of Free Trade Bondage to the Land of Protection and Plenty
- Alternate Title:
- The Modern Exodus from the Land of Free Trade Bondage
- Collection:
- Persuasive Maps: PJ Mode Collection
- Creator:
- Gillam, Victor
- Other Creators:
- Sackett & Wilhelms, lithographers
- Date:
- 1888
- Posted Date:
- 2024-04-25
- ID Number:
- 2472.01
- File Name:
- PJM_2472_01.jpg
- Style/Period:
- 1870 - 1899
- Subject:
- Allegorical
Money & Finance
Politics & Government
Pictorial - Measurement:
- 32 x 47 (centimeters, height x width)
- Notes:
- As a "nation of immigrants," Americans have produced persuasive maps addressing the issues of immigration and nationality over most of the country's lifetime. The collection includes a number of these maps published since the 1840s. Some are welcoming, encouraging, and provide advice to immigrants. Some assert that the diversity of our nationalities is a source of strength for the country. And yet others attack immigrants in general, or specific ethnic or religious immigrant groups, particularly Asians, Catholics, and Jews. For the range of these maps, Search > "immigration.”
This satirical map from Judge Magazine uses the biblical exodus as a metaphor. The seas of "Starvation," "Low Wages," "High Taxes," and "Oppression" are parting so that skilled workers can flee Britain's policy of free trade ("Bondage') and emigrate to the United States (the "Land of Protection and Plenty").
England is at the upper right, under dark storm clouds. A seemingly endless stream of immigrants flows to the U.S. carrying baggage identifying them as "Skilled Labor." Among those whose trade is established by text or their tools are a chef, a carpenter, a blacksmith, a tailor, and a milliner. Uncle Sam stands on the American shore as Moses wearing a top hat with ribbons of "Prosperity" and "Plenty" and carrying a staff labelled "Good Wages." Next to him is a frowning John Bull wearing a bowler and carrying a shepherd's crook labelled "Hard Times." "Why, O Pharaoh," says Uncle Sam, "are your hosts migrating to my Protection land if the Free Trade which your Country enjoys is such a blessing?" Below the image is a quote from the New York Sun: "Last year the arrival of Immigrants reached the enormous aggregate of 450,845, and this year's immigration will be over Half a Million."
In the 1888 U.S. presidential campaign, the central issue was trade policy. The Democratic incumbent, Grover Cleveland, had proposed dramatic reductions in tariffs, which he saw as a burden on consumers. The Republican challenger, Benjamin Harrison, supported high tariff protection as a benefit to labor and industry. These points are highlighted in ID #1096 ("The Whole Story in a Nutshell! Harrison's Ideas! Cleveland's Ideas!"), a political broadside not attributed to either side but obviously the work of the Harrison campaign. Britain was the leading proponent and practitioner of free trade at the time. See, e.g., ID #2118, "A Determined Effort to Break England's Hold on the Commerce of the World and Give America a Chance," another satirical map from 1888.
The owner of Judge Magazine, William J. Arkell, used it as a vehicle to support the Republican cause in general and specifically to attack the Cleveland Administration. Patterson 2008, 52. While the precise date of this map is unknown, it likely appeared in the weeks before election day like another Judge illustration in the collection, ID #2324, Oct. 27, 1888, "Free Trade England Wants the Earth." Cleveland narrowly won the popular vote, but because he failed to carry his home state of New York (see Notes for ID #1089), he lost the electoral vote to Harrison.
The exodus metaphor has also been used in persuasive maps both approving and criticizing the immigration of Russian Jews to the United States. See ID #2235, "The Modern Moses" (1881) and ID #1111, "Their New Jerusalem" (1892).
Cornell University Library is pleased to present this digital collection of Persuasive Maps, the originals of which have been collected and described by the private collector PJ Mode. The descriptive information in the “Collector’s Notes” has been supplied by Mr. Mode and does not necessarily reflect the views of Cornell University. - Source:
- Judge Magazine, precise date unknown
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- For important information about copyright and use, see http://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/copyright.