Judge, 1908-01-04 · page 16 of 16
Judge — January 4, 1908 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a children's comic strip satirizing turn-of-the-century urban life. "Little Johnny" and his gang of "Teddy Bears" (likely street urchins, the term reflecting President Theodore Roosevelt's popular "Teddy Bear" mascot) are mischievous troublemakers who harass two authority figures: a policeman and a butcher-man. The narrative follows their pranks: they steal from the butcher's shop, evade the policeman, cause chaos, and create general mayhem in the streets. The humor derives from adults (representing law and order) being outwitted by clever children—a common theme in early comics. The satire reflects anxieties about urban disorder and juvenile delinquency, presenting street children as pests that plague respectable merchants and police. The strip's tone is lighthearted rather than condemnatory, treating mischief as inevitable boyish behavior rather than serious crime.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Auage- LITTLE JOHNNY AND THE TEDDY BEARS. THEY PLAGUE, AS OFTEN AS THEY CAN, THE P'LICEMAN AND THE BUTCHER-MAN. 4 S3o , J et 0b. a 4. The butcher-man comes What all this scamper “Aba!” the fierce polic “You are the man who trun th 6. They see their chance Whiie each bruisea Just clinches up his swears Some day he'll get those Teddy Bears. some hook-form. Price, G0 cents. Far comicbooks.com