We’re told there’s no such thing as a “good war,” and it’s true: War, as the phrase goes, is hell.
Well, except for one: The Pig War, in the far corner of Puget Sound. Pickett’s 9th infantry with 14 cannons faced down a British front of 2,000 troops—and the only casualty lost was the pig. It’s a scene straight out of Delacroix, just with more emphasis on avenging the pig than toppling a king. Noble stuff! Which makes it all the more strange why, in the same year this happened, and from the perfect vantage point, artist/surveyor James Alden completely left it out. Guy hated pigs, apparently.