Judge, 1907-07-20 · page 7 of 16
Judge — July 20, 1907 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This six-panel comic strip satirizes a pompous British character ("Lord Reginald Somerville," nicknamed "Nervy Nat") who attempts to rescue a drowning woman to impress her wealthy father. The satire works through ironic deflation: Nat poses as a noble rescuer motivated by chivalry, but his aside reveals he's actually motivated by the prospect of financial reward ("four or five canal-boats full of money"). His pretensions to English superiority ("manly Henglish form") crumble when he discovers his supposed victim is actually a champion female swimmer who nearly drowns *him* instead. The final panel delivers the joke's moral: his class-based assumptions about who needs saving prove spectacularly wrong. The working-class life-saver's dialect-heavy conclusion mocks Nat's bumbling incompetence while celebrating authentic capability over affected gentility. The cartoon uses physical comedy and social reversal to lampoon snobbery and false gallantry.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1, Nervy Nat—' Now, look at that! There's a bunch of plumpness who 2. Nervy Nat—' That's right, Algernon—the overhand stroke! It's an im- has possibly taken swimming lessons from a correspondence school, and portant assignment we're on now. We are saving a young lady whose papa she's caught in the undertow. I intended only to pace the sands and exhibit has four or five canal-boats full of money. Do your part, Algy, and it's Eng- my manly Henglish form; but I cannot stand by and see Frances drown.” lish mutton-chops for the rest of your dog-days.”” 3. Nervy Nat—"* Gee! I hope that purp isn't on to the fact that | am chang- 4. Nervy Nat—'‘I thought so—tired out and clinging to the life-raft. ing my stroke because I'm winded. It's some years since I used to swim in Never fear, little one; I'll save you. That's what | am here for. Saw you the sewer with the kids."* were drowning, so came to your rescue."" Aemor ene 5. Tue Lire one—“'Save nothin’, yer big dub! Wot t'ell do yer mean 6. Lire-saver—"' Holy mackerel! dis mug swallered half de Atlantic Ocean, tryin’ ter drown me—hey? I'll bat de head off uv yer, yer fresh Jimmy!" 1." Nervy Nat—" Blub—sg-lup—blub! I'm decelved—cruelly mocked! Nervy Nat—'t Who saved the fair lady 2°" Gurgle-urgle-upsh!"” Lire-saver—"' Say, Johnnie, de nex’ time yer wants ter save enny loldies COMYONT 1887 BY 4UDGE COMPANY PUBLHNERG 228 FOURTH AYE. MEW YORK yer had better not pick out de champeen female swimmer uv de United States."” NO 7—NERVY NAT, ALIAS LORD REGINALD SOMERVILLE, SLIPS UP AS A LIFE-SAVER. comicbooks.com