The Nasby Papers

The Nasby Papers is a collection of satirical letters published in newspapers around the time of the American Civil War by David Ross Locke under the name "Petroleum V. Nasby", meant to mock northerners who supported the south.

Can be read online at the Internet Archive here.

Tropes used in The Nasby Papers include:

The Alcoholic: Nasby likes his whiskey.
- The regimental Chaplin in the confederate unit may also qualify, given how Nasby had to catch him "Sober Enuff" to wed him and his new wife.
Big "What?": The carpenter Kitt exclaims "WHAT!" when he realized Podhammer would simply buy a slave carpenter, rather then pay Kitt for one last job, which would have enabled him to buy a carpenter slave, cutting out Kitt as the middleman.
Berserk Button: Several:
- Oberlin, Ohio sets Nasby off.
- Nasby when he realized he had married a woman (Who is seemingly a good wife, and probably out of his league) was 1/8th black.
- The spirit of Thomas Jefferson as channeled by a medium quickly begins reciting The Declaration of Independence when Nasby implies he wouldn’t have supported a war of abolition.
Black Comedy: The actions of Nasby are often reprehensible, but are made funny through his ineptitude and misfortune that follows as a result of his immorality or foolishness.
Corrupt Bureaucrat: Nasby's dream job is to be a postmaster, and do no real work in exchange for a salary.
Comically Missing the Point: Nasby calls the spirit of Thomas Jefferson inhabiting a medium an impostor because he claimed that all men are created equal, which is something Nasby heard an abolitionist preacher say on the Fourth of July.
Dirty Coward: Beyond dodging the draft, Nasby was once caught tried to wiggle his way out of it by pretending to be an abolitionist, which he wouldn’t shut up about hating earlier.
Doomed Hometown: Nasby views his hometown as this for having abolitionist majorities, and notably, feels as though he is also indicates he could turn around its fortunes easily, as once America learned it was his birthplace, tourists would flock to it to visit the place of his birth, skyrocketing property values. That would mean enriching abolitionists, which disgusts him.
Draft Dodging: Nasby writes a letter outlining why he isn’t fit for service, such as how he has had "Kronic Diarrear", which was actually somewhat serious, to the completely trivial such as needing to wear a wig to cover up his baldness.
Eagle Land: Nasby himself. An early example of a negative representation from an American writer, against southern sympathetic Northerners as an Acceptable Political Target.
Even Evil Has Standards: An unnamed spirit inhabiting a medium claims that Judas Iscariot and Benedict Arnold are no longer on speaking terms, on account of Judas calling him a copperhead which he would not stand for.
Fair for Its Day: More to do with the presentation then the message, the language used is extremely politically incorrect by contemporary standards.
Funetik Aksent: Nasby writes like this, including when he writes something someone else is saying, implying that he really doesn’t know how to spell.
Have a Gay Old Time: Being primarily written in the 1860's with a Funetik Aksent, this was bound to happen.

Trouble air (are) cumin upon me thicker and faster.

Historical Hero Upgrade: May apply to Thomas Jefferson, depending on how one interprets his relationship with slavery in real life.
Jerkass: Petroleum V. Nasty himself.
Letters 2 Numbers: Nasby writes words such as "Hentz4th".
Older Than They Think: Many of the tropes in American political comedy and commentary can be seen here, such as a conservative debating a person from a liberal college town, discussion of "stait rites", etc.
Only in It For the Money: The reason why the congregation agrees to reinstitute slavery, with Nasby noting the poorer the fellow, the more exited they were. Falls apart almost immediately, when the tradesmen realize the wealthy will be able to have slaves do their work at rates they could never compete against without falling into squalor. This has then labeled as heretics by Nasby.
Politically-Incorrect Villain: Nasby was meant to be mock northerners who supported the south during the Civil War. Many of his views and actions, such as how he treated his own wife, or his open cowardice and treacherous scheming were definitely not Fair for Its Day, even if they were Played for Laughs.
President Evil: The Sprit of Andrew Jackson as channeled by a medium wastes little time gleefully disparaging James Buchanan, before reflecting on South Carolina, reflecting through gritted teeth, and rattling off a list of politicians he would hang if he had been able to suspend habeas corpus.
Promoted Fanboy: Abraham Lincoln, complete with "Goriller" characteristics, meets Nasby when he visits Washington. An early case of this happening with a sitting president in popular media.
Putting on the Reich: Nasby notes his confederate uniform is more ornamental than practical.
Refuge in Audacity: Letters made by a pathetic alcoholic man that gives flimsy excuses for supporting the south and openly wants to be appointed to a "Post Orfise" near a distillery to feed his habit.
Some Anvils Need to Be Dropped: Repeatedly hammers home how Slavery is bad. Given the Target Audience of newspaper readers in the north, it often by focusing on how it screws over non-wealthy whites, and even some slave owners, rather then the plight of the slaves themselves, though this is also touched upon.
Strawman U: Nasby hates Oberlin College as exemplified in Annihilates an Oberlinite.
Unreliable Narrator: Nasby in general paints a rosy picture of himself, his causes, and those who agree, while disparaging his enemies, real or perceived. Unlike many examples, he’s quite bad at hiding his bias.
Vote Early, Vote Often: Nasby voted for President Andrew Jackson seven times.
Willing Channeler: Nasby uses one to talk to dead spirits, many of which he finds impostors due to misunderstandings of who they were as people.