Happy 140th Anniversary of the Joining of the Rails!
Can anyone explain the point being made by the cartoon in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, issue dated May 29, 1869? What is meant by the caption "Does not SUCH a meeting make amends?" What is the politics, humor, symbolism, etc.? Amends to whom for what?
posted from CPRR Discussion Group at 5:10 PM
2 Comments:
From: "Wendell Huffman" wendellhuffman@hotmail.com
My gut level reaction is the reference is to amending the breech of the recent War Between the States; though a joining of East and West hardly seems the same as a joining of North and South. However, beyond that, I notice one meaning of "amend" in the OED is "to bring into a better state, or improve." Or, maybe it referred to amending the competition between the UP and CP. I'll be interested in seeing what others might come up with.
—Wendell
From: kylewyatt@aol.com
I'm not entirely sure of the meaning either. But I note that former soldiers from both the North and the South worked on the railroad (especially the Union Pacific portion) together.
—Kyle
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