Judge, 1902-05-10 · page 18 of 20
Judge — May 10, 1902 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains four separate comic vignettes using dialect humor popular in early 20th-century American satire: 1. **"It Had Him Guessing"**: A man suspects his neighbor acquired a stolen Newfoundland dog as a fur coat—implying the neighbor killed the dog for its pelt. 2. **"How It Happened"**: A joke about a man named Simpson staying healthy because jail kept him worry-free, playing on stereotypes about working-class criminality. 3. **"A Sudden Shot"**: A golf-themed joke where a caddy is asked if a hole contains a woodchuck, he sarcastically responds asking if they expected a golf ball instead. 4. **"He Nearly Did the Work"**: A pun where someone was asked to "saw wood" (work hard) but literally only took the saw without accomplishing anything. The humor relies on ethnic dialect stereotyping, class-based jokes, and wordplay typical of Judge's era. These cartoons mock working-class and immigrant characters through exaggerated speech patterns and simple-minded scenarios.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
IT HAD HIM GUESSING. Mr. Jounson (thoughtfully)—" De more I look at dat new fur coat ob dat man Yallerby's de more mystery dere is about dat Newfoundland dog I lost. HOW IT HAPPENED. (1 Simpson is purty hearty fer a man uv his age."’ 's never had nuthin’ much to worry him. He's bin in jail most of his life." A SUDDEN SHOT. Gotrer—'* What's in the hole—a woodchuck ?"* Tae xio—" Why, soltinly! W'ot did yer tink it wuz—a golf-ball ?” HE NEARLY DID THE WORK. Wiren Hazet—'* So de lady told yer ter take de saw an’ saw some wood. Did yer do it?” Hrrcnin Post—" Well, I half did it—I took de saw."* Sache 8 With Litho & Pig Co Rew York comicbooks.com