Judge — May 23, 1885 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical cartoon depicts a massive, authoritarian military figure (resembling a judge or ruler) standing atop a pedestal labeled "his pedestal." The figure holds scales of justice aloft while clutching documents marked "Berlin Rules" and other regulations. The pedestal itself is constructed as a multi-story building containing various establishments—bars, dance halls, and other venues—suggesting the commercialization of urban entertainment. The caption references a "Bartenders' Statue of License Lightening New York," indicating this critiques how liquor licensing regulations were being weaponized or manipulated by authorities. The cartoon satirizes how licensing laws ostensibly meant for public welfare actually became tools of control by an overbearing judicial/governmental apparatus. The irony: a "license" supposedly granting freedom instead represents oppressive regulation.