Judge — April 12, 1902 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains two racist caricatures using offensive dialect and stereotypes common to early-1900s American satire. **Top cartoon ("Why He Was Married"):** Features caricatured Black men in exaggerated dialect. The joke pivots on a man getting married to avoid being asked why he isn't working—implying marriage as escape from labor scrutiny. **Bottom cartoon ("What He Got"):** Depicts Irish immigrants (identifiable by the dialect and names like "Casey" and "Anearn"). A man pawns a book about papal persecution of Jews, expecting money but receives a beating instead. The "joke" relies on anti-Irish and anti-Semitic stereotypes—suggesting both groups are violent and that religious persecution is humorous. Both cartoons reflect Judge's satirical approach to immigrant and minority groups through crude stereotyping. The humor depends entirely on ethnic/racial mockery rather than social commentary. The 1901 copyright confirms this predates significant shifts in American attitudes toward such depictions.