File:The emblem of the free LCCN2004665368.jpg

English: Title: The emblem of the free

Abstract: Number three in a series of illustrated song-sheets published in New York by Samuel Canty. This example includes the words of a song by Canty entitled "The Emblem of the Free" and alternately "The Traitor's Dream." The "emblem" in the strongly Unionist song is the American flag; the traitor is Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy. The illustration, based on the song, shows Davis asleep in a chair at right, about to be crowned by a winged demon, Lucifer, who stands behind him. At Davis's feet is a kneeling woman who presents him with an American flag. In the background the specter of George Washington looks on. Washington points toward Liberty and two female attendants (center), who appear in an aura of light. Liberty has a halo of stars, and holds another American flag. On the far left two Revolutionary War soldiers huddle next to a campfire, "your vet'ran sires, Encamp'd at Valley Forge, Exposed to winter's storms." The music sheet bears a dedication to Thomas H. Faron and William Atkinson, Esqrs. Although the print has an 1862 copyright imprint, a handwritten note on the Library's impression indicates copyright deposit on October 11, 1864. The latter date seems credible for the illustration, whose portrayal of the hardships of colonial troops at Valley Forge would probably have struck a sympathetic chord in the war-weary North of 1864. Physical description: 1 print on wove paper : lithograph printed in black and buff ; sheet 49 x 62 cm.

Notes: "Entered ... 1862 by Samuel Canty ... Southern District of New York."; B. Day, del.; Published in: American political prints, 1766-1876 / Bernard F. Reilly. Boston : G.K. Hall, 1991, entry 1862-14.; Title from item.