Judge, 1907-10-19 · page 10 of 16
Judge — October 19, 1907 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This six-panel comic follows a con-artist character, Nervy Nat, as he fraudulently lands employment with a wealthy old gentleman by fabricating credentials. **The satire:** Nat answers a want ad by claiming (falsely) to have served as companion to European royalty and the Prince of Wales. The gullible employer hires him for six dollars weekly. Once employed, Nat exploits the situation shamelessly—he steals cigars and liquor ("perfectos and Madeira"), tells bad jokes to sedate the irritable, gouty employer, and relaxes while the old man suffers. **Social context:** The cartoon mocks both naive wealth (easily duped gentlemen) and opportunistic working-class hustlers. Panel 4 references President Roosevelt's 1907 Great White Fleet deployment to intimidate Japan—contemporary geopolitical news Nat cynically uses in conversation. The comedy relies on period class dynamics: an underhanded servant exploiting a wealthy but foolish employer, a familiar scenario in early-1900s American humor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1, Nervy Nat (reading advertisement) —"‘ ‘Wanted —handsome, distin- Well, what in thunder do you want guished gentleman of fine address to act as companion to wealthy gentle- Nervy Nat—‘' Mayhap, my respected grouch, I Called to see about a man.’ Ha! that sounds very good. That's just me. I'll Investigate.” job.” 2. Oto centieman—‘* 3. Op cenrLeman—'* Ever had any experience 4. Nervy Nat (reading)—"' ‘The sending of the battle-ship fleet to the Nervy Nat—"‘ Experience! | was ret ieeper to the Prince of Wales Pacific means that Japan's bluff has been called by President Roosevelt, and other crowned heads of Europe and Alas! and’ "— LD CENTLEMAN—'* You're engaged. Six dollars a week.” Oto cenTLeman—' You just bet your hind legs it does!" 5. Ovp centieman (as he thumps his gouty limb)—'' Wow! What fa. thao 6. Nervy Nar—‘'I thought that a few of my assorted jokes would do the | der—~ Suffering snakes! I'll rag your eye-teeth out, you—you——* york. They're as good as knock-out drops. Sleep on, you old mackerel! | Nat—"*Gee! but he's a cranky old scout. I wish you wouldn't And now that I've located the perfectos and the Madeira, I'll while away a jer ae toca a Gainer you old horse!"* few lonely hours, This is pretty good for the frst day's work.” NO. 20.—NERVY NAT GETS A JOB. COPYRIGHT 1907 BY JUDGE COMPANY, PUBLISHERS, 225 FOURTH AVE., NEW YORK. NOTE.—The First Series of Nervy Nat's Adventures ts now ready, handsomely bound, tu book-form, Price, 79 centey 10 cents additional F postage when ordered by mail. Address JUDGE COMPANY, 213 Fourth Avenue, New ¥ comicbooks.com