Judge, 1906-12-22 · page 34 of 48
Judge — December 22, 1906 — page 34: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features a nostalgic, dialect-heavy poem about December celebrations in the antebellum South, paired with an illustration titled "The Face in the Water" showing a figure bending toward water with a water lily visible. The poem romanticizes enslaved life during Christmas season—describing festive gatherings ("Raccoon club...ball"), food preparation, and gift-receiving, all rendered in exaggerated African American vernacular dialect. The imagery presents slavery's holiday periods as joyful occasions. The accompanying illustration's meaning is unclear from the image alone, though the title suggests it may depict a reflection or contemplative moment. This represents *Judge* magazine's editorial approach: using stereotypical dialect and sentimental imagery to present a whitewashed, paternalistic view of the pre-Civil War South. For modern readers, this reveals how period publications normalized and aestheticized slavery through nostalgic "Lost Cause" rhetoric popular in late 19th-century America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
O .' Decembeh cum along, Wil’ es pdemus Heah him sing his blizzard song— Shake det bac’ lawg, Remus! Sprinkle san’ aroun’ de flo’ Step out in de middle Choose yo" partnehs—let me go!— Keep wahm by de fiddle. De Raccoon club dey gib a ball, OF Possum was a membeh He grinned de widest in de hall— Hurrah fuh Decembeh ! THE FACE IN THE WATER. DECEMBER IN DIXIE. De sun seem frozen in de sky, Ah watch his red face glowin’ ; Aunt Hannah say det by-en-by Et sho'ly will be snow En den she hang her goosebone up, Kase she’s de weddeh wizabd ; Oh. fetch along det ol’ dram-cup— Ah cleeh Ab feel a blizzahd. Holly gleamin’ white wid snow, Behhies red es embeh ; Christmas-trees all in a row— Hurrah foh Decembeh ! But bes’ ob all Decembeh brings Christmas en good wish: OI Dinah bakes de sweety things En lets me scrape de dishes De kernal rides his swifes’ hoss, En drinks his strongest tod. Ah ketch de silbeh det he toss Befo' he gets too noddy. Plenty feas’ en plenty cheeh, En big fokes dey remember De little fokes dis time ob yeah — Hurrah foh Decembeh ! VICTOR A. WERMAWN. comicbooks.com