Judge, 1906-06-23 · page 16 of 16
Judge — June 23, 1906 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This 1906 Judge comic satirizes smuggling and customs corruption. "Nervy Nat" is an American traveler attempting to smuggle cigars into France. The satire works through Nat's escalating deceptions: he first plays coy with customs, then claims the cigars belonged to his spine (injured from train travel), and finally feigns ignorance about ownership. Meanwhile, a foreign businessman ("Mr. Buxensturrern," depicted with Germanic dialect) has bribed Nat to move the contraband through customs. The joke hinges on Nat's smooth-talking ability to manipulate the bumbling French customs inspector, who keeps providing Nat excuses or seemingly doesn't realize he's being lied to. The title character lives up to his name—he's "nervy" enough to bribe officials and fool authorities with absurd explanations. The cartoon mocks both smuggling and the ease of corrupting official processes, while poking fun at French bureaucratic incompetence and accent-based ethnic stereotypes common to the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1. Mr. Buxensturrern— My frient, if you vill get dese cikars der gus- toms droo for me you shall have one box for yourselluf. Ve are nearly to Baris." Nervy Nat—"'In the language of the people, you're on! I've just about run out of the perfectes old Lord Bucktooth gave me. I'll see you later on the outside." 3. Customs insrectorn—"' Aha! you smuggle. Vat it is you concsal, forelgner?”* Nat—'"' No, it is not a dog: It fs, if you Insist in your highly Indelicate examination, my spine. It buckled on me this aftemoon riding in your barbarous rallway-carriages. It is sad, is It not?" 5. Mr. Buxensrurres For der luf of bock-beer, my cikars!"* You see, he admits they were his. Officer, do your hal” you confess. You sweendle ze répub- phile, summon ze sergent-de-ville’ 2. Customs insrector--"' You haf somsing to deeclaire. is {t not?" Nervy Nat-—''| have nothing whatever to say. Im in Paris on private affairs, and I decline to be Interviewed My convictions on the tariff questions are unalterably the same. | am not a candidate for office, and | don't wish to be annoyed by you newspaper Johnnies." 4. Customs msrector—"* Mille tonneres! ze tabac trust!" Nervy Nat—"" You don't mean to tell me that those cigar-boxes were under my cost? Well. what a relief! By Jove! isn’t that remarkable? Tcan never tell you how much obliged | am. If it hadn't been for you | would still be thinking my steel construction had-warped on me. Joy— oh, delicious joy!" 6. Nerve Nat—" Have a cigar! CCopynisnt 1906 bY JUOGE COMPANY PUBLISMERS, 228 FOURTH AVE. MEW YORE