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Primary sourcePainting

Cross Roads

John Henry Walker

A satirical political cartoon showing Charles Tupper and Joseph Howe as rival paths for Nova Scotia's future, regarding Confederation.

The cartoon depicts Tupper as the pro-Confederation choice for Nova Scotia, opposed to Joseph Howe's anti-Confederation stance.

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Black-and-white engraved political cartoon titled 'Cross Roads'. A signpost reads 'To Ottawa' and 'Washington Wall Street'. A bearded man on the left sneers, a seated figure sits in the middle, and a woman in a bonnet holds a bundle of papers marked 'Cadiz' near a barrel labelled 'Salt' and papers labelled 'Taxes', 'Repudiation', 'Gold Ring', 'Bowie Knives', 'Scalawags', and 'Dangerous'.
John Henry Walker, "Cross Roads - Shall we go to Washington first, or How(e)?", 19th century.

About this source

What it is

This engraved cartoon by John Henry Walker is titled "Cross Roads - Shall we go to Washington first, or How(e)?" It depicts Nova Scotia as a young woman, "Acadia", choosing between two directions represented by Charles Tupper and Joseph Howe, with a signpost pointing to Ottawa and to Washington/Wall Street.

Why it matters

Tupper was the pro-Confederation Premier of Nova Scotia credited with doing the most to bring his province into Confederation, while Howe led the opposing anti-Confederate movement, though Howe never actually favoured joining the United States. The cartoon shows how contemporaries caricatured this political rivalry and its stakes, using exaggerated and, in this case, racist imagery to make its point.

Look closer

  • Why does the cartoonist show Nova Scotia as a woman choosing between two paths?
  • What does the stereotyped depiction of the seated figure tell you about attitudes of the time?
  • How does a cartoon like this persuade its viewer differently than a speech or a newspaper article would?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Charles Tupper and Joseph Howe on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Black-and-white group photograph of about two dozen men in 19th-century suits and top hats posed on the front steps and lawn of a shingled colonial building with white columns and a fanlight doorway.Photograph

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Charlottetown Conference Delegates, September 1864

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Title page of an 1867 printed copy of the British North America Act, reading 'An Act of the Imperial Parliament for the Union of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and the Government Thereof', with a royal crest and 'Ottawa: Printed by Hunter, Rose & Co. 1867'.Document

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Constitution Act, 1867

1867

Front cover of a blue cloth-bound book with the title 'Recollections of Sixty Years' and the author's name 'Sir Charles Tupper, Bart' in dark letters, with a dark embossed coat of arms with a crest, supporters, and motto in the center lower half.Book

Primary source

Recollections of Sixty Years in Canada

Charles Tupper · 1914

Black and white studio portrait of a standing man with wavy hair and a bow tie, wearing a long dark coat over a vest. He rests one hand on an ornate carved table with a book on it, and a draped curtain and upholstered stool are behind him.Photograph

Primary source

Charles Tupper 1864

William Notman · 1864

Black-and-white studio portrait of an older man with side-whiskers and a moustache, wearing a dark suit jacket, waistcoat, and bow tie against a plain backdrop.Photograph

Primary source

Tupper Portrait

William James Topley · 1896

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