Judge — February 6, 1892 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Explanation for Modern Readers This February 1892 *Judge* cartoon satirizes the Chicago *Inter-Ocean* newspaper's contest offering prize money for the best sketch of an "ideal figure typical of Chicago." The central figure is a fashionably dressed woman weighted down with symbols of Chicago's commercial excess: a globe labeled "CHICAGO MAMS" (likely mocking wealthy Chicago matrons), boxed goods marked "SALT," and a miniature of the World's Fair (Chicago hosted the 1893 Columbian Exposition). A small dog pulls at her skirts. The caption asks "WILL 'JUDGE' GET THAT PRIZE?" — the magazine claiming that THIS exaggerated caricature better represents Chicago's true character than any serious submission the *Inter-Ocean* might receive. It's satirizing both the contest premise and Chicago's materialistic reputation.