Political cartoons, such as this one, played a significant role in the debates on meat packing reform. During the latter half of the nineteenth century, cartoons played an important part in defining the symbols of political discourse. Occasionally the representations were readily recognizable in more than a symbolic sense. When Boss Tweed fled the United States to escape a jail term, he was arrested in an out-of-the-way Spanish village. The Spanish constables, it turned out, had recognized him from this Thomas Nast cartoon. The symbolic aspect of the drawing escaped them, however; they thought they had apprehended a notorious child kidnapper. As you examine this cartoon, compare and contrast it with other political cartoons in this collection. Do you notice any similarities?

Investigate the source using the zoom and navigational tools in the Flash player and then answer the questions below.

1			Who is the figure in the center of the image? Look closely at his attire. What is he wearing? What is around his waist? Around his neck?
2			Who is he holding onto? What is he pointing at?
3			For what purpose was this cartoon created? Did the cartoonist intend to amuse, inform, or argue?
4			What details or features of the cartoon were most important in helping the cartoon achieve the goal?
5			What does this cartoon tell us about this time in history? Does it shed new light on the political controversies and/or the social ideals of the time period? What interest groups would have approved or disapproved of the cartoon's message?