Judge — January 13, 1900 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page from *Judge* satirizes boxing regulation and brutality. The top cartoons mock the desire for novelty in prize-fighting, showing exaggerated boxing scenarios with spectators. The central illustration depicts what appears to be a match with grotesque figures and a "type-slogging machine," suggesting boxing has become absurdly mechanical or dehumanized. The bottom comic presents a domestic scene where "Fitzjerr" tells his reverend father to "keep on with the prayer, pop"—implying the family needs prayer to save their mortgaged homestead. The joke appears to be that prize-fighting promoters exploit poor families desperate for income, turning brutal boxing into economic necessity rather than sport. The final caption "If the people who are opposed to prize-fighting wish to put a stop to brutal encounters they should pass a law that all contestants should use an anesthetic" suggests satirical criticism of both boxing brutality and ineffective reform efforts.