Antebellum Dogs and Frogs

Here's the Wikipedia article about "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" or should I say "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" or should I say "Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog" as it was originally titled. I don't want to spend too much speculating as to the significance of the title changes. Personally, I find the term "notorious" to be more appropriate than "celebrated" within the context of the story, but I can't help but wonder if the change was due to the changing of the times.

The story was first published in 1865, but the change from "celebrated" to "notorious" took place in 1872 or 7 years after the Civil War ended. During this time Twain and the rest of the nation had time to reflect on the Civil War and the Antebellum period and perspectives more than likely shifted.

There are two animals in the story: a pug and a frog named Andrew Jackson and Daniel Webster respectively. Each animal is successful in their respective competitions, winning Jim Smiley a good deal of money.

The pug's main fighting technique was to grab on to the back legs of its opponent until it had won, but eventually the pug had to face a dog with no hind legs. Confused about how to fight back, Andrew Jackson gave up and lost. In the story, Simon Wheeler says of the fight:

"It was a good pup, was that Andrew Jackson, and would have made a name for hisself if he'd lived, for the stuff was in him, and he had genius I know it, because he hadn't had no opportunities to speak of, and it don't stand to reason that a dog could make such a fight as he could under them circumstances, if he hadn't no talent. It always makes me feel sorry when I think of that last fight of his'n, and the way it turned out."

It's ambiguous as to whether Twain or Wheeler feels that way about Andrew Jackson the president. Regardless, it's clear that someone believes Jackson had potential and talent but never had "opportunities" and fell short of that potential. It's unclear to me what the legless dog represents, perhaps a scandal or issue. My first instinct is that the legless dog was the Bank of the United States, an institution Jackson hated and repeatedly attempted to destroy. If I remember correctly, Jackson attempted to tax the Bank to the point of dissolution but the Supreme Court removed his ability (or rather, Congress' ability) to tax the bank on the grounds that "The power to tax is the power to destroy." Eliminating Jackson's ability to tax is similar to the way that the legless dog renders the pug Jackson unable to use his usual technique to win. This is the most fitting historical metaphor or parallel I have been able to find at least.

Daniel Webster, the frog, is described as being able to jump better than any other frog and being "modest" and straight forward. Smiley eventually bets a stranger on the frog's jumping ability and leaves him with the stranger so he can find another frog. The stranger fills Webster with buckshot so he doesn't jump when the time comes. The stranger takes his money and disappears and soon after Smiley realizes what has happened but is unable to catch the stranger.

The real Daniel Webster was a Senator and Secretary of State at different points in his political career and was renowned for his oratory abilities as well as being one of the main forces behind compromise in the antebellum period. His mouth is stuffed in the story, a reference to his oratory abilities being silenced, although I'm not sure if this correlates to any specific event (possibly his death in 1852?).

What needs to be figured out is who Smiley, Wheeler, and the stranger are, or rather who/what they represent.

Smiley's first name is Jim, like the boy in "The Story of the Bad Little Boy" who became a legislator and is clearly disliked by Twain. Smiley could be Congress or the Supreme Court or the American people. Smiley is always gambling and either puts his animal in a fight it cannot win or makes a mistake that results in him being cheated, each costing him dearly. The Supreme Court fits the pug situation while the frog could fit any. For example, perhaps the American people neglected Webster while looking for another "frog" which resulted in Webster's silence when the moment of truth came (Webster ran for president 3 times was never elected).

It seems to me that Wheeler is either how the American people remember the antebellum period or how historians remember it. The narrator could be the American people, disinterested and trying to leave the antebellum conversation since the Civil War was over and its restructuring of the political landscape made the old landscape irrelevant in a way (no longer relatable or useful perhaps?).

Once again, the stranger could be Congress, the Supreme Court, or the American people. Which one depends on what the other characters represent, like different puzzle pieces, but then again it may be several small puzzles or simply an imperfect puzzle.

In case you were wondering, yes, I did love AP US history.