Primary Sources from the Interwar Neutrality Debate

Cartoonists on League of Nations 1919

Context: As debate over the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations unfolded in the Senate, newspapers published cartoons illustrating a range of conflicting opinions.

Cartoon showing man scratching his head while looking down at peace treaty — Cartoon by Clifford Berryman showing a senator gazing with puzzlement at a scroll labeled “Peace Treaty,” while Wilson walks back to the White House. President Wilson was deeply involved in negotiating the terms of the treaty in Paris, but he did so without congressional participation. Source: U.S. Capitol.

Cartoon shows U.S. Senators as misbehaving toddlers, holding the United States back from working toward world peace and international trade — Cartoon featured in the Dearborn Independent depicts Senators as misbehaving toddlers, holding the United States back from working toward world peace and international trade. Source: Library of Congress.

Cartoon showing children walking with dog and text that reads "the most interested members of the league of nations" — Cartoon by private Cyrus LeRoy Baldridge published in the military newspaper Stars and Stripes, identifying children who would be spared from fighting in future wars as those who would be “most interested” in the League of Nations. Source: Library of Congress.

For more information about the first cartoon titled "At Last", or to access the image, visit the U.S. Capitol website. For more information about the second and third cartoons, or to access the images, visit the Library of Congress.