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Punch Civil War Wood Engraved Cartoon

John Tenniel's "THE BLACK CONSCRIPTION, When Black Meets Black Then Comes The End (?) Of War"
 September 26, 1863

Union Soldier: "Dat you Sambo? Yeah, Yeah!" Confederate Soldier: "Bress by heart how am you Jim?"

This cartoon by John Tenniel pictures a joyous reunion of Black troops from the North and South with the Union soldier on the left saying "Dat you Sambo? Yeah, Yeah!" and the Confederate soldier stepping high with a big smile saying "Bress by heart how am you Jim?" Tenniel has obviously mastered African-American Vernacular English, also called Ebonics or Jive. The apparent theme of the cartoon is that the natural bonds among Blacks and their convivial nature is such that when they became a large part of the competing armies that the Civil War would stop. The Emancipation Proclamation became effective on January 1, 1863 and after the victory at Vicksburg large scale recruitment of blacks into the Union army commenced, but the Confederate Army still did not allow Black soldiers at the time the cartoon was published, so Tenniel was a bit premature in his hope for a happy conclusion to the war. When the South out of desperation became serious about recruitment of Blacks into their armies in 1865 it was too late to help or hasten the end of the war.

Price: $60

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