TH. Nast; His Period and His Pictures

Princeton: The Pyne Press, 1974. A facsimile of the 1904 edition. Hardcover. Very good/Good. xxi, [3], 583, [3], xx pages. Frontis illustration. Illustrations. Index to Text. Index to Illustrations. DJ has some wear and soiling. Albert Bigelow Paine (July 10, 1861 - April 9, 1937) was an American author and biographer best known for his work with Mark Twain. Paine was a member of the Pulitzer Prize Committee and wrote in several genres, including fiction, humor, and verse. Thomas Nast (September 27, 1840 - December 7, 1902) was a German-born American caricaturist and editorial cartoonist considered to be the "Father of the American Cartoon". He was the scourge of Democratic Representative "Boss" Tweed and the Tammany Hall Democratic party political machine. Among his notable works were the creation of the modern version of Santa Claus and the political symbol of the elephant for the Republican Party (GOP). Nast was associated with the magazine Harper's Weekly from 1859 to 1860 and from 1862 until 1886. In 1902, he applied for a job in the State Department, hoping to secure a consular position in western Europe. Although no such position was available, President Theodore Roosevelt was an admirer of the artist and offered him an appointment as the United States' Consul General to Guayaquil, Ecuador in South America. Nast accepted the position and traveled to Ecuador on July 1, 1902. During a subsequent yellow fever outbreak, Nast remained on the job, helping numerous diplomatic missions and businesses escape the contagion. He contracted the disease and died on December 7 of that year.