Judge, 1907-11-02 · page 10 of 16
Judge — November 2, 1907 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This 1907 Judge comic strip follows "Nervy Nat," a character attempting to cure an elderly gentleman's gout using unconventional remedies, particularly "odorless benzine." The satire targets two contemporary trends: **Christian Science** (the faith-healing movement popular in early 1900s America) and patent medicines/dubious medical cures that flooded the market. Nat mockingly quotes Mrs. Eddy's Christian Science principle that illness is merely "error" to be forgotten, then applies it absurdly to physical ailments. The humor escalates when Nat's benzine treatment literally explodes, causing chaos. The elderly gentleman, despite the disaster, credits the concoction for curing his gout—reflecting real-world gullibility toward unproven remedies. The underlying joke: Americans eagerly embraced pseudoscientific "cures" and faith-based healing without evidence. The strip mocks both the charlatans peddling such treatments and the desperate patients willing to try anything, no matter how ridiculous or dangerous.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1. Nerve Nar (re hakespe question: whether ‘tis nobler in the * ""—— Nerv Nat (with a bottle of odorless benzine)—'* "Tis passing strange how Oto GenTLeMan—"‘ Avast! Stow that and put some liniment on this dope will make these old mugs forget their sufferings. Did you, your rheumatic foot of mine. This cussed gout is raising Cain with me to-day. excellency, ever practice the theory of Mrs. Christian Science? Just imagine that the—er—error that is supposed to be in your foot is—er—well. a fire- cracker, or any old thing. In other words, forget it.”” 4. Nerve Nat—' Sleep on, old Rip van Winkle! Snore your sconce off slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to’ "—— forall | care! I will proceed to perfume this apartment with the smoke of ‘Ot cenrtewan—t Zip! Whoop!’ Glup! Gurgle!"* the finest cigar I have yet had the good fortune to graft. You (as he drops Nexvy Nat—"* Well, for the love of mazuma! what do you think of this? his lighted match) old souse! if | had you in the army you would be shot at He's sleeping! You old chipmunk! what are you paying me seven kerplunks sunrise. Prosit!"* for? ‘To sleep, to dream —aye, there's the rub.’ Well, me for the perfectos!”" 3. Nerve Nat (continuing hs Shak In the mind to sutfer the 5. Ovp centieman (as the benzine explodes)—'* SUFFERING, HOWLING 6. Oto centLeman—‘‘ Take that and that, you bum!—you served the WHELP! what in canned fruit are you WOW! _ FIRE! ®**2?!!" crowned heads of Europe! Bosh!—and that! Get ye gone! My gout ts Nervy Nat—"‘ Helle, hello! hellee, hello! What an awful roar cured, I think."* guess it's fire,-all right—fire for the old boy's foot and fire for me. How in Nervy Nat—" Yes, God wot it is. Nathaniel, | guess the amount left the name of graft did that happen ?” to me in the old duck’s will—will be about zero. NO. 22.—NERVY NAT IS TEMPORARILY OFF THE JOB. COPYRIGHT 1907 BY JUDGE COMPANY, FUBLISHERS, 225 FOURTM AVE., NEW YORK. NOTE—The Firat Series of Nervy Nat's Adventures ts now ready, handsomely bound, tn book-form. Price, 73 cents; 10 cents additional for postage when ordered by mail. Address JUDGE COMPANY, 225 Fourth Avenue, New York. comicbooks.com