Judge, 1897-07-03 · page 15 of 16
Judge — July 3, 1897 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily **advertising content**, not political satire. Judge magazine is running a puzzle contest where readers identify ten bicycle brand names from cryptic illustrations. The first example shows No. 1 is "Columbia" (a major American bicycle manufacturer of the era). The contest offers $250 in prizes to incentivize readership and engagement. Contestants pay 10 cents to enter and receive bonus Judge copies; their small payments fund additional premiums for top solvers. The ten numbered illustrations appear abstract or allegorical—depicting scenes of people, water, buildings, and figures—each encoding a different bicycle brand name through visual pun or metaphor. Modern readers would struggle to recognize most brands without historical knowledge of 1890s cycling manufacturers. This reflects the bicycle craze of the 1890s: bicycles were wildly popular consumer goods, making them ideal puzzle subjects for a mass-circulation magazine seeking to boost circulation through interactive contests.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
JUDGE'S PICTURE PUZZLES. $250. IN PRIZES. ” Here are ten pictures. Each-one represents'the name of a well-known Bi manufactured in the United States. You will see that No. J is Columbia, and you will also see from this how to work out merce other pictures. We have $260 OO to give away 2 the first ten and most successful of our readers who solve these ten illustrations and THIRTY (30) others, that will appear during the next three weeks, as follows: ist Prize $100.00 6th Prize = = $10.00 2d Prize “= 50.00 7th Prize = 10.00 3d Prize 20.00 8th Prize 10.00 4th Prize 20.00 oth Prize = 10.00 5th Prize 10.00 loth Prize = = 10.00 A TOTAL OF $250.00 TO BE DIVIDED AMONG TEN PEOPLE. : Copyrighted 1897, by Judge Pablishing Co. of New York. Sic Sac ~- READ THESE DIRECTIONS CAREFULLY. In ‘addition to the above: Every contestant who :remits us 10c will receive an extra copy of JUDGE, entitling the purchaser to a second opportunity to solve the puzzles of the'series of 40. 4c out of each 10c will be placed to the credit of the person sending in the said’ amount of J0c, and the fund thus created will be devoted to the purchase of premiums which will be awarded to the one hundred most successful contestants; the value ofthese premiums depending entirely uspon:the number of subscriptions received. Ih order to participate in the awards of this special proposition, each contestant must from this office the four:numbers of Judge (viz., Nos. 820, 821, 822 and 823).containing‘the complete series of 40 Pictures. If these four asus can be remitted for by mail atone time,.or J0c sent in each week for four weeks. Write the solution- underneath each picture, cut out sheet (holding it until the fourth and last peries a p JUDGE, No. 823), and write your name and address plainly on the et yy Teft- corner to the “JUDGE PRIZE-PUZZLES DEPARTMENT, 0 'T FE time to reach this office not later than one week from date of JUDGE, No. 823. All solutions ita later will be disqualified. PRESS OF FLESS & RIOGE PRINTING CO, FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK. comicbooks.com|