Judge — February 23, 1907 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This editorial cartoon depicts the closure of American industrial factories during what appears to be an early 20th-century economic crisis. Industrial buildings with smokestacks display signs announcing various trusts—Sugar, Salt, Rubber, Coal, and Tobacco—forced out of business. The caption reads "The Great Gate of American Industry, Closed Forever." On the right, a distressed workingman with a child represents the American laborer facing unemployment and destitution. The cartoon critiques the collapse of major industrial monopolies (trusts) and their devastating impact on ordinary workers. The accompanying text fragment ("It's all well enough for...but what will become of me if...") emphasizes the worker's vulnerability when big business fails, suggesting anxiety about economic instability and the fate of those dependent on industrial employment.