Judge — September 9, 1899 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains two cartoons satirizing early automobile technology. The top cartoon, "ON STRIKE," depicts various animals (goats, dogs, a cat) protesting with a banner reading "WE WANT NO DEWEY DINNERS"—likely referencing Admiral Dewey's fame after the Spanish-American War. The animals appear to be striking against their replacement by horseless carriages (automobiles). The bottom cartoon, "MUCH NEEDED," shows a mule observing an early motorized vehicle, remarking that since humans invented horseless carriages, they should invent "muddless carriages"—a pun on the mule's complaint about mud. Both cartoons humorously express anxiety about automotive technology displacing traditional animal labor, a genuine concern during the early automobile era (1890s-1900s). The satire mocks both the animals' concerns and the limitations of early cars, which were notoriously unreliable and got stuck in mud.