Judge — June 8, 1901 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "To Start the Game" This cartoon depicts two rural figures, one identified as "Amos Squashbeak," discussing a hunting scenario. The dialogue references a wife giving a loaf of bread and a "cross-eyed saw" to steal a six-dollar crosscut saw from "the woods-shed" to sell for profit. The satire appears to target rural/working-class opportunism and petty theft during economically difficult times. The humor relies on dialect comedy ("Amos Squashbeak") and the absurdity of the scheme—trading a loaf of bread for stolen property worth six dollars. The title "To Start the Game" suggests this represents how ordinary people resort to cunning or dishonest schemes to survive economically. The cartoon reflects Judge magazine's urban satirical perspective on rural American life and behavior.