Judge — May 19, 1883 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "More Intimidation" - The Judge, May 19, 1883 This political cartoon satirizes Irish-American threats against opening the East River Bridge on the Queen's Birthday. Two figures on the left (appearing to represent Irish or Irish-American leaders) are intimidating a central figure wielding a large bomb or explosive device. A sign references the "Dynamite Plundersite League" and "the real goes to Ireland," suggesting connections between Irish-American activism and dynamite violence—a reference to actual Fenian bombing campaigns of the 1880s. The caption "If ye attempt to open that Bridge on the Queen's Birthday, we'll blow it up wid dynamite!" frames this as extortion through terrorism. The cartoon criticizes what it portrays as violent Irish-American coercion to prevent British-aligned celebrations in New York, mocking such intimidation tactics while reflecting contemporary anxieties about anarchist and nationalist violence.