Judge, 1904-04-23 · page 5 of 16
Judge — April 23, 1904 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This comic strip satirizes a con-man character named "Nervy Nat" who attempts to seduce a woman by staging a fake rescue—pushing her into a pond then "saving" her to win her affection. The joke relies on period conventions of chivalry and romance. The satire targets: 1. **Fraudulent masculinity**: Nat boasts of rescue "medals" he doesn't possess, exposing false heroism 2. **Social climbing via romance**: His reference to "Wall Street" suggests fortune-hunting 3. **Class commentary**: The woman's actual boyfriend is a working-class "hulking freight-car" type who arrives and beats Nat, revealing the con The punchline shows Nat's swift rejection of romance entirely after being exposed and attacked—mocking men who claim chivalry while pursuing deception. The strip critiques both romantic pretense and the desperation of social climbers using manufactured scenarios to seduce women.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
lL Nexvy Nat—"" It was a bright lad that said, ‘In the spring a Young guy's fancy lightly flops to thoughts of mushiness.’ The love-bug has nipped ‘yours in haste.’ Did you ever see a bonnier lass? How to win Nexvy Nat—'* ‘Tis a monstrous pity to have to resort to such means to win so fair a maid—but all is fair in love and Wall street.” her— Ah, | have it! 1 will save her from a liquid grave!" 3. Tue maiven—" Help! Assistance!” Nervy Nat—"*Fear not, gentle maid! Your rescuer ts at_nand. Nervy Nat is near, dear lady. As a rescuer I am distinctly it. 1 have medals for rescuing. haven't them with me, I grieve to say, but I's all right."* Tue Maipen—"* My protector!"* Nexvy Nat—"Sweet girl, don't mention it—you embarrass me! 1 admit | have an almost mediseval sense of chivalry, and if my instinctive gallantry has secured for me some little warm nook in your dear little heart | “—— THe MAIDEN's swain—"' Gol ding yer gol-dummea pesky face: take thet! I'seen yer dump thet gal inter ther pond, ye dad-gasted hobo! so don't yer go pretendin’ ye saved her from gittin’ drownded, I'm a-goin’ ter git ther boys, an’ we'll tar an’ feather ye, ye humly buzzard!” Nervy Nar—"L ILE EEL PL PL Pey1 yee 6. Nerve Nat—‘ Coward! Well, henceforth I become a woman-hater. Of all deceitful, artful, treacherous creatures! She knew that hulking freight-car of a lover was there all the time! Anybody that mentions love, or any kindred disease, to me, let ‘em look out for short-arm jabs, that's all!” NO. 21.—NERVY NAT’S STRENUOUS WOOING. comicbooks.com