Judge, 1902-05-10 · page 9 of 20
Judge — May 10, 1902 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**"The Cruel Editor"** satirizes literary pretension. A young poet submits a vague spring poem; the editor demands specificity—is "spring" a town, bathhouse, drinking establishment, or mechanical device? The joke mocks both the poet's ethereal clichés and the editor's philistine demand for concrete commercial references. Spring poetry was a literary staple, but this editor represents modern journalism's impatience with romantic abstraction. **"Why He Never Called Again"** features two Irish characters (Cassidy and Casey, identified by dialect spelling). Cassidy proudly shows off his newborn; Casey's response—that he hasn't visited a dime museum or sideshow in twenty years—is a cutting insult implying the baby is a circus freak. The satire targets Irish-American stereotypes and working-class masculine humor. The page also includes miscellaneous spring-themed poems and humorous vignettes of varying quality, typical of Judge's mixed-content format.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“No, sir; it is just on spring. Well, what particular spring “Why, the spring that comes with ethereal mildness and "—— “Can't use it, Give us something specific. Get up something that identifies your spring, so that we will know whether it is a town, a drink- ing-place, a bath-house, or an implement. We can’t use any more of this vague, general, backward-and-forward poetry; and besides ™. But the rolling-eyed, rip- pling-haired youth was drifting down the stairs with a haunted PULLING OFF A FIGHT, look on his face and a dull pain in his bosom. THE CRUEL EDITOR. «4] HAVE here," says the young man with the rolling THE early apple catches the Mose Kercnum (who has just shot a hawk)—"* You old ras- cal! many a spring chicken you stole around here dat eye and the rippling hair, a poem on spring.” worm, T've been blamed for. And a good many of dese | “On what?" asks might have had but for you.” the cruel editor, drop- ping a bundle of manu- : p — ODE TO SPRING. script into the waste- Wren, Sexe *) D Datiencg Hospring ao green: basket and shoving the a 5 me 4) ‘Thy touch is seen return postage into his d mee . i oF In blossom, leaf and bud ; pocket. 3 3 4ijalh \ NG R But, truth to tell, “On spring, sir.” : ; Y » a oe Thou art a sell— Oh, spring, thy name is mud! CAROLYN WRLLS, “ What spring 2" “Mineral spring, sulphur spring, hot spring?” - EASY FOR HIM, “It’s just the or 4 LASS BARES SRE] os PUH said the first ai”. Ss SS ASS little girl. * We're “Spring Lake, Min- - ; ' Vi-S a ve goin’ to have three vans nesota, Warm Spring & f /f Niwa to move our goods on Indians, Springfield, | Ls. the first o' May.” Ohio 2” bays g ad ‘ “Huh!” answered “You do not seem naa " “a 5 ad the second litte girl. is ATO Ce Old King Frog was a good pollywog, BAe el cetera te spring, buggy-spring, And a good pollywog was he. * erything hisself. He's a He smoked six tons most every day Of fine old long-cut "* new-mown kay.”” steel spring ? WHY HE NEVER CALLED AGAIN. Cassioy (proudly) —"" Come, now: did yez iver see such a baby as thot before ?”” Casey—“ Shure, an’ Oi can’t remimber, Cassidy. Oi hovn't bin to a doime-museum or a soide-show (er twinty years.” comicbooks.com