"A 'Smash' for Jeff"

By Robyn Buchanan

The U.S. Naval blockade was declared by President Abraham Lincoln to disrupt the regular trade route for the Confederacy. The Union Navy’s blockade had an imperfect reputation. The blockade did not deny the Confederacy of imports of food and weapons. However, the Confederacy’s exports were weakened and their purchasing power was reduced. The Confederacy was still able to smuggle weapons to supply their armies for some security. The blockade can be viewed as effective or not effective since the Confederacy was still able to obtain goods. On the other hand, the blockade’s effect was not an immediate change but a “gradual exhaustion” of the Confederacy’s supply flow.^[1]

"A 'Smash' For Jeff” is a cartoon depicting Jefferson Davis and the Confederacy in danger. Jefferson Davis is being handed an enormous drink portraying the size of the situation in front of him. In the drink is a “smash,” the “smash” is referring to the U.S Naval Blockade declared against the Confederacy. The U.S Naval blockade was specifically established to prohibit the Confederacy in exports and imports of war weapons. In the cartoon, Davis is in astonishment from the abundance of steam ships in the water coming towards him. Many of the ships the Union used to block the Confederacy were steam ships; the steam ships were too large and too slow.^[2] Behind Davis are the people of the Confederacy swarmed around waiting to see his next step. The people are on the same side of Davis showing their support for the Confederacy. Also, the cartoon depicts Jefferson above an explosive barrel of gunpowder to show the precarious situation. The Confederacy is in great trouble without the access to weapons to protect and fight in the war.

Harper’s Weekly, a northern publication whose views are against the Confederate views, distributed this cartoon. The editors of Harper’s Weekly aimed to show the Confederacy defenseless against the Union’s blockade. Harper’s Weekly wanted to portray the blockade as a vast problem the Confederacy had to encounter. In the North, the blockade was viewed as effective “in weakening the Southern economy under the stress of war.” They saw the Southern railroads as a major reason for the Confederate defeat. The blockade was stated to be able to hinder the South from getting “rails, rolling stock, and locomotives.” They viewed the blockade directly and indirectly to have created the “chaos” in the Southern economy.^[3]

On the other hand, the journal questions the “efficiency or inefficiency of the Union blockade of the Southern ports”.^[4] The blockade was not able to prevent the Confederacy from getting ammunitions and supplies. Southern views suggest that the Confederate defeat did not result from the blockade. The Southern leaders were unconcerned with the blockade’s effect on the economy since they simply infiltrated the Union’s navy strategy.^[5]

This cartoon is direct in showing the topic of the blockade and the reaction of the Confederacy. Davis was in disbelief when being served the massive drink with nowhere to move as he sits upon gunpowder. Davis has his people migrated around him waiting to see his next move. The reaction on Davis face is very straightforward in showing the surprise and panic the Southern economy faced with the new implementation of the blockade.

Endnotes:

^[1] David Surdam, "The Union Navy's Blockade Reconsidered." in Naval War College Review, 85-107. 1998.

^[2] Kevin Weddle, "The Blockade Board of 1861 and Union Naval Strategy," in Civil War History, 123-142. 2002.

^[3]David Surdam, "The Union Navy's Blockade Reconsidered."

^[4] “Foreign News”, Harper’s Weekly, April 5, 1862.

^[5] David Surdam, "The Union Navy's Blockade Reconsidered."