Judge — May 6, 1882 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Plumbers on Strike" This May 1882 cartoon satirizes a plumbers' labor strike. The main illustration shows a well-dressed man on his knees, pleading with a burly plumber labeled "PLUMBER." The gentleman holds an empty wallet, suggesting financial desperation. A woman watches from a window above, implying domestic crisis. The caption reads: "The winter is over, and I can stand it as long as you can"—the gentleman's bluff assertion to the striking plumber that he can endure the work stoppage indefinitely. However, his posture and empty wallet contradict this boast, making the satire clear: homeowners are actually suffering badly from the strike and desperate for the plumbers to return. The cartoon mocks the striking workers by depicting the employer as pitiful rather than the workers as sympathetic—Judge magazine's typical pro-business stance during labor disputes of the Gilded Age.