Judge, 1900-06-23 · page 7 of 25
Judge — June 23, 1900 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Judge magazine page satirizes early 20th-century urban life through multiple sketches: **"Shakespeare in Possumville"** parodies a rural staging of Shakespeare's "Merry Wives of Windsor," showing African American performers in a makeshift theater—mocking both amateur theatricals and racial stereotypes common to the era. **"Don't I Wish That I Was Home to Mother's"** is a sentimental song-poem about a homesick child visiting an aunt in a cramped New York City apartment. The humor stems from the child's complaints: no yard, no animals except a cat, and Aunt Sallie's coldness—capturing period anxieties about urban versus rural life and city apartment living. **"Needed Light on the Subject"** makes a simple visual pun: shallow gas-lamp globes at the aunt's home create many reflections, making the rooms appear flooded with "bowls of light." **"Obeying the Adage"** and **"Minus Necessary Gear"** are brief joke sketches with ethnic humor and wordplay typical of Judge's comedic style. The page emphasizes nostalgic rural values versus impersonal city life.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
UB is GOING DE cu 4) “ Merry Wives of Windsor"—Act third, scene third, WIFES OB WINDSOR } pearins SHAKESPERE | "STAFF IN DE PRINCIPA |——|FATTY FAL: ART EARE IN POSSUMVILLE. Mistress Ford and Mistress Page hide Falstaff in the clothes-basket, DON'T | WISH THAT | WAS HOME TO MOTHER'S! AT HOME T wasn't wanted And so they sent me on To see Aunt Sallie, in her New York flat. There ain't a yard about it, Or a hen-coop, or a tree, Or nothin’ here to ‘muse me, ‘cept de cat. Don't I wish that I was home to mother’s ! New York flats is good enough for others, My Aunt Sallie don’t seem glad ‘That I've comed, and Iam mad ; ‘And I wish that I could go right back to mother’s, NEEDED LIGHT ON THE SUBJECT. THE globes around the gas in Aunt Sue's home are very shallow and “Oh, mamma,” exclaimed Beth on getting home from her visit, “Aunt Sue's house at night is just filled with bowls of light !" dish-like. 1. cint more will I pay yez. Faith, an’ it’s mesilf thot ‘ll stroike whoile th’ iron 's hot.”* They scolded me ‘cause dollie Was drownded in the soup, And Unc slipped down the icy steps I washed. ‘And when he found red pepper In his new bicycle-pump You'd oughter heard the way he golled and goshed. Don't I wish that I was home to mother’s ! New York flats is good enough for others. No one likes me here, I know, And I think it's drefful slow ; And I wisk that I could go right back to mother's. dle-bars?* OBEYING THE ADAGE. But, shure, yez are not 1a Last evenin’ while Aunt Sallie Was with the preacher-man I took my little dollie and my cat And hid behind the curtings, Where I heard ‘em kiss, kiss, kiss, So I went and told my Unc what they was at, Don’t I wish that I was home to mother’s ! New York ways is good enough for others. ‘They just spank me black ‘n blue When they've nothin’ else to do ; And I wish that I could go right back to mother's RRNA HUNT SURFTIRLD. MINUS NECESSARY GEAR. Willie (as he sees from the car-window a herd of hornless cattle)— “ Goodness, papa! how can they ever steer themselves without any han- * me wid this hot iron on th’ anvil 7" comicbooks:com