Judge, 1904-11-05 · page 10 of 16
Judge — November 5, 1904 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes American political tactics through an extended folk-tale allegory narrated by "Uncle Isham," a waiter who speaks in exaggerated African American dialect (characteristic of Judge magazine's racial stereotyping). The Brer Rabbit fable compares political parties to animals trying to resist temptation. The Republican Party is the big bear fanning away mosquitoes; the Independent ticket is the fox brushing them away; the Prohibition Party is the slow terrapin hiding in its shell. Brer Rabbit—representing mainstream Democrats—has no defense against the "skeeters" (political attacks) except distraction through tall tales about circus horses. When he becomes absorbed in his own story, he forgets his discipline and scratches anyway—the moral being that politicians inevitably succumb to temptation regardless of their stated methods. The piece mocks how different political approaches all fail equally, suggesting American political discourse is fundamentally about self-interest disguised as principle.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
+What ‘d_ yo" see dar, Brer Rab- bit?" Sez Br'er Rabbit, sez he, ‘Dar wuz a circus dar.’ Didn de ole man prick up he ears at AT THE HEAD OF HIS CLASS. Teacher—"" James, how much isa pint?” Jimaty Matone— Ten cents.”” UNCLE ISHAM’S POLITICAL TALKS. [UNCLE ISHAM is a waiter in an up-town café, who in the midst of New York’s bustle keeps up all his old-time darky beliefs, super- stitions and obsequious manners. Under his bushy gray wool is a fund of African folk-lore which he fits to the doings of to-day. Toa dis- cussion yesterday on political methods he gave the following addenda: De way yo" gemmen talkin’ puts me in mind ob Brier Rabbit an’ some ob his cunnin’, cute doin’s an’ debilment. Br'er Rabbit him useter go visitin’ ebery ebenin’ on Miss Susan an’ de gals, De gals dey all jes’ natchually lub Br'er Rabbit, but de ole man he do jes’ ‘spise him. De ole man he tell Miss Susan an’ de gals eber Br'er Rabbit to come to his house an’ scratch hisse jes’ one time, den he gwine shet to de do’ on him an’ neber let him come in no mo’. La, gemmen! how wuz Brer Rabbit gwine keep frum scratchin'’? De ole man’s house wuz in de swamp, an’ de ‘skeeters wuz tick dere as plum-hunters in Washin‘ton. De very nex’ night heah to de ole man’s house dey come—Iir'er Rabbit, Br'er B'ar, Br'er Fox, an’ Brer Terra- pin—de gals all settin’ watchin’, so feared Br'er Rabbit gwine fergit hisse’f an’ scratch an’ dey git missed ob his visits. Br'er B'ar he set dar, jes’ as big an’ buxom as de ‘Publican party is, an’ he jes fan off dem ‘skeeters wid his palemetter fan. Br'er Fox he runnin’ de independent ticket, an’ he jes’ bresh off dem ‘skeeters wid his tail. Brer Terrapin he like de pro- hibition party—love watah, al- ways on de road an’ neber git- tin’ dar, slowes’ man in bunch, casies’ man on top-side tion ter beat—he jes’ draw in his head an’ set ter home in his house wheneber a ‘skeeter come buzzin’ by. Br'er Rabbit he got no fan; he hob. got no shell, he got nuffi set jes’ as still on a t'ree-legged stool ; he skeered ter shake his ear or wink his eye. He jes’ set wid bof han’s on his knees an’ study ‘bout how kin he stan’ dem ‘skeeters widout scratchin’, Dem ‘skeeters dey jes’ buzzin’ roun’ Brer Rabbit like bees roun’ a bee-gum. Drrectly a notion struck Br'er Rabbit. He say to de ole man (ole man he jes’ watchin’ Br'er Rabbit ter see is he gwine scratch), sez Br'er Rabbit, sez he, ¢I's up ter town las’ Sad- dy." Sez de ole man, sez he, THEN WILLY dat! *Yassah,’ sez Br'er Rabbit, sez he; ‘an’ dey had de parade, man, dey did, Dey had de blow- in’es’ calliope dar, an’ dey had de goldenes’ chariot dar dat I eber did see. Yassah. An’ dey had de calicoes’ hosses pullin’ dat char- iot dat Leber seed. Yassah. De fust two ob dem hosses wuz sho'- ‘nough calico—de one had a spot right heah an’ a spot right dar, an’ a spot right heah an’ a spot right dar!’ Wid dat Brer Rab- bit lam hisse'f heah an‘ lam hisse’f dar. An’ de nex’ two,’ sez Breer Rabbit, sez he, ‘dey wuz mo’ cali- coer dan de fust two. Dey had a spot right heah an’ a spot right dar, annudder right dar, an’ a spot right heah an’ a spot right dar!’ Br'er Rabbit slap_hisse’f heah an’ slap hisse'f dar, Gem- men, time Br'er Rabbit done tol’ “bout all dem twelve calico hosses he wuz good scratched all ober. Gemmen, dar’s mo’ roads roun’ dan de straight way t'roo.” . ELI SHEPPARD. THE QUARTER-BACK. HE GOES to college bound to make A name with fame replete, And then on history's golden page He writes it with his feet. THE CHAMPION. [¥ WAS in the bar-room of an Arizona hotel. “That chap,” said the bar-tender to the new clerk who had dropped in to get the liquid part of his salary, and pointing to a cowboy in chaps and a sombrero, “holds the record in this town, He has killed seven men in seven weeks.” . “That's nothing,” said the clerk as he gulped his wages down. “A man just registered from the east who has killed one almost every day for the last year.” Gee!" said the bar-tender. “Is he running from the sheriff?” No,” said the clerk ; “he is touring in his motor-car.” T IS the thing that has no reason for existence that goes right on ex- isting and refuses to be choked off or stamped out. KNEW HE WAS GETTING NEAR BOSTON, “Could yer give mea tite ter eat, leddy 2” “Certainly not. A bite has not substance: it is merely a muscular-rending movement of the jaws."” Th are al count Th 7 comicbooks.com