Judge, 1888-05-12 · page 1 of 16
Judge — May 12, 1888 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Explanation of Judge Magazine Page (May 12, 1888) This page features a "Before and After" advertisement for Mills's Free Trade Mixture, a patent medicine. The cartoon shows two working-class men in tattered clothes and poor condition on the left ("BEFORE"), and the same figures dramatically transformed into healthy, well-dressed gentlemen on the right ("AFTER"). The satirical point targets the **Free Trade political debate** of 1888. The quote attributed to "John Bull" (England personified) suggests that free trade policies have harmed British workers, reducing them to poverty and degradation. By framing the "cure" as a commercial product rather than actual policy reform, Judge mocks both the ineffectiveness of free trade rhetoric and the era's reliance on patent medicines as cure-alls.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOL.14 NO. 343 MAY 12, 1888. PRICE 10 CENTS. ENTERED AT THE POST OFFICE AT NEW YORK AB SECOND CLASS WATTER, COPYRIGHT 1887 BY THE JUDGE PUBLISHING Co. COMPARATIVE WAGES. England. United States. $0.75 $16.60 ery 11.88 8.00 21.00 6.00 13.30 6.00 1200 6.25 12.16 4.50 16.60 3.00 10.00 1.80 16.00 6.00 135 1.00 7.00 5.60 1.80 4.10 8.00 6.00 8.50 8.00 » oes 1.60 8.00 1.80 aor 1.00. 10.00 1.00 7.00 6.00 ““ Thave used the Free Trade Mixture, and the condi! They are Dow enjoying @ condition of degradation, comicbooks.com