T. E. Powers (American, 1870-1939) High Ho Silve

T. E. Powers (American, 1870-1939) High Ho Silver, Topsy and Turvy—They Dabble in Oil, and Returning to The Caesars, New York Journal newspaper cartoons (three works), 1934-1936 India ink and blue pencil on heavyweight paper 10-1/2 x 11 inches (26.7 x 27.9 cm) (each, image) Each signed lower right: T E Powers Thomas E. Powers was an early newspaper cartoon and comic artist and considered to be the first American to have a cartoon published in color. He worked at the Chicago Herald in the early 1890s and by mid-decade had found a place in New York with the New York Evening Journal of newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst. His comic strip creations included Our Moving Pictures, Mike and Mike, and Mr. Nobody Home. Powers' cartoons were enormously popular and admired by Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Calvin Coolidge. Powers regularly pilloried the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal, which he called the "Raw" Deal. His work appeared in newspapers across the United States, and the Hearst organization remained his home for forty years until his retirement in 1937. President Franklin Roosevelt rides High Silver and the "Gold Standard" bites the dust in High Ho Silver, likely published in 1934 when the Silver Purchase Act of 1934 was enacted. FDR ended the US gold standard in 1933-34 in accordance with efforts to vastly expand the supply of money and fight the Great Depression. The Silver Purchase Act allowed the government to control silver and required that all silver bullion be delivered to the Treasury at the rate of 50¢ per ounce. It inflated silver prices worldwide and forced China to abandon the silver standard; an enraged Chinaman is seen at upper left. US Senators William Borah (R, Idaho), Elmer Thomas (D, Oklahoma) and Burton Wheeler (D, Montana) cheer on the President. Senator Carter Glass at lower left is less pleased; he was a severe critic of the New Deal and supporter of states' rights. At lower right the artist wrote "apologies to WOR's Lone Ranger." Topsy and Turvy—They Dabble in Oil was published during the 1935-1936 invasion of Abyssinia by Italy. President Roosevelt opposed selling American oil to Italy and urged a "moral embargo" on shipments. Nonetheless, American companies continued to sell oil to the fascist government in Rome. Topsy and Turvy are two delightful cartoony characters who skewer the efforts of Uncle Sam and the Raw Deal to control trade. The ineffective League of Nations, which the US never joined, issued only weak sanctions that did not include oil; it exposed the powerlessness of the League for all to see. Returning to the Caesars is an unfinished and unpublished Powers original from 1932 that displays biting portrayals of two of the most prominent Americans of the day. Louisiana Senator Huey "Kingfish" Long supported Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 and helped him win nomination and election to the Presidency. In this original they congratulate one another and acknowledge each other's dictatorial leanings; Long was governor of Louisiana from 1928-1932 and thoroughly dominated the state legislature. By 1933 the nationally known populist Senator broke with FDR over what he considered the President's timid efforts to combat the Depression. Long was assassinated in 1935. "Unfinished TEP" is written in pencil at upper left. Quantity: (3) HID03101062020 © 2026 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved www.HA.com/TexasAuctioneerLicenseNotice

Condition
Toning to each sheet. Edgeware to Topsy and Turvy—They Dabble in Oil with very minor tears along extreme lower edge; two small vertical abrasions lower right extending into image, about 2 inches. Some light scattered handling creases, visible under raking light. Some light scattered pin points of surface dirt, faint stains, and smudges, most visible in areas of negative space and along extreme edges. Light curved pencil mark through center region of Returning to The Caesars partially affecting smaller figure's arm. Wear and markings to margins of page in keeping with illustration and publishing process. Each not framed. Each sheet overall: 11.5 x 14.5 inches to 11.75 x 14.5 inches
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