Judge, 1891-11-28 · page 11 of 20
Judge — November 28, 1891 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **product advertisement** disguised as satirical verse, not political commentary. It promotes Liebig Extract, a beef extract product popular in the late 19th century. The "satire" mocks the Victorian ideal of the perfect housewife: the image shows a well-dressed woman presiding over her kitchen domain with various Liebig Extract bottles displayed. The poem humorously suggests that using this product makes cooking so effortless that a housewife becomes a "queen" ruling her kitchen without actual labor or servant trouble. The advertisement's joke targets middle-class aspirations—implying the extract is so effective it eliminates the need for skilled cooks or troublesome domestic help. The final stanza is a mock-toast celebrating the Liebig Company's product and sales success. This reflects late-Victorian marketing tactics: wrapping product promotion in entertaining verse to appear as editorial content rather than obvious advertising.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE HOUSEHOLD QUEEN. WITHIN the kitchen there she rules, Fair shines the face—perpetual smiles ‘The cook has gone her way ; Wreathe rich and rounded lips, She queens it from the basement stairs For she her mistress is; no shrew Up to the lighter day, Ts coaxed, or asks for tips. Where through the wide door callers come ‘The Lresic Extract draws the pain And sunshine sheds its ray ; Ill-tempered help infticts— For largely doth the cooking do A queen the housewife, and her rule Itself in its own way. No servant interdicts. Justus vow Ltestc! here's your health, And it's a bumper too! THE LIEBIG COMPANY gives us that, And its return is due. Success to thee, and to thy ‘*Co.” Each year all hail, all hail ! And may ever through the coming years Your Extract increase in sale. ‘ comicbooks.com