Judge, 1906-12-22 · page 40 of 48
Judge — December 22, 1906 — page 40: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This six-panel comic follows an American character ("Nervy Nat") through Paris, satirizing American wealth and gauche behavior abroad. Nat, apparently wealthy but crude, finds a five-million-franc note and uses it to commission expensive clothing. The satire targets American tourists: his ostentatious spending, his casual attitude toward massive sums of money, his assumption that money solves all problems, and his complete lack of cultural respect (wanting to buy the Arc de Triomphe as a golf hazard, flicking cigar ash at locals). French characters respond with exasperation—tailors and taxi drivers exploit or mock him. The humor lies in contrasting American presumption with European sophistication. The reference to "Rothschild kids" and the five-million-franc note suggest this mocks nouveau-riche American industrialists (echoing Gilded Age stereotypes) visiting Paris, a recurring Judge magazine theme about American cultural inferiority abroad.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1, Nenvy Nat—"' Merciful rebates! Just when I was giving up hope of anyone's remembering poor old Nat this Christmas. jh, it must be an hiatus in my conning-tower. It can't be genuine—the kind you have always bought—and yet itis! It is! A five-million-franc note! Some of those Rothschild kids have been playing in this boulevard. Oh, tweezers!" Hur we RERNS I'm getting awful chesty and hard to meet, but I'm not so far gone but that | have had my regular clothes done up In a bundle. Boy, call about eighteen cabs and I'll look “em over and see if any of ‘em are fit to convey me—and tell those sniveling, apes in tho doorway to add a quarter-to-four suit to my order."" No, swindlaire; It 1s not enough to look at ze money. You shall pay me!” Nervy Nat—"Now, isn't that funny? Everyone else just passed quletiy away when I flashed this thing. I'll bet this man doesn't come from Missourl—he Is Just rutning these Joyous togs. Caduc, oh, Caduc!" 2. Nervy Nat—" Gentlemen, I desire clothes—the kind you spell with a capital “C'"! Does this little bit of wood-pulp suggest anything to your minds as to the quality, cut and appearance of aforesaid body covering ? *Yes: I thought so. Now kindly come to, boys. Get together and sce what you can do for meh!” Currirrina rerson—"* Oul, Oul, Monseigneur!"” ¢ + ‘ aA zy Cocher, drive up to the Place de I'Etolle. | want to take cne more squint at the Arc de Triomphe before | decide to buy it and Fave it shipped home. It would make a corking hazard on my private golf links—and if you see Caduc drive close to the curb; | want to flick some cigar ashes at him!" 6 Senos Capvo—*Come, you have been disturbing some pesc again Nervy Nat—“'Now, don't, for Pete's sake, be importunate. old chap; give me time to’ change back into my real clothes. That low hack person has just robbed me of five million francs, and as | don't for a moment expect you to believe it we will go along. 1 hope next time Christmas comes around I'll oversleep, that's all!” NERVY NAT SPENDS CHRISTMAS IN PARIS. comicbooks.com