Judge, 1895-06-15 · page 16 of 16
Judge — June 15, 1895 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Judge magazine cartoon satirizes the American jury selection process. The left panel shows a vertical lineup of jurors being questioned, with text explaining the absurd contradiction: ignorant men with no opinions are accepted as jurors, while educated businessmen who read newspapers and hold informed views are rejected. The implication: the legal system *wants* uninformed jurors who can be easily manipulated. The right panel offers darker commentary—"The modern way" to win a case is to put "boodle" (slang for bribes) "in the slot" to secure a favorable verdict, suggesting corruption undermines justice entirely. The bottom quote, attributed to Hamilton, expresses frustration at finding eleven obstinate jurors. Overall, the cartoon criticizes both jury selection practices and widespread courtroom bribery as systemic failures in American justice.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
comicbooks.com y the citingn dislikes to be called for jury duty is on aécount of the questions that are fired at him before be is accepted or rejected. ‘The idiot who knows nothing and has no opinion on any subject is an acceptable While the brainy business man who reads juryman. the papers and has an opinion is rejected. Tur rweirre suron—* Darned if I ever see eleven sich obstinate men before !"* The modera way (if you have a law case) is to put "*boodle "in “the slot ‘and get a favorable verdict. er HAMILTON - * ‘What chance is there of justice wi this jury? Sackett # Wilhelms Litho Co New York OUR DEFECTIVE JU SYSTEM.