Judge, 1908-08-01 · page 16 of 16
Judge — August 1, 1908 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a humorous six-panel children's story from Judge magazine (copyright 1900). It features a boy named Johnny and his teddy bears—likely referencing the popular "Teddy Bear" toy craze that emerged around President Theodore Roosevelt. The plot: Johnny sets a trap to catch a wildcat terrorizing the neighborhood. The teddy bears help, but a rat gets caught instead. When a stern woman arrives and sees them releasing the rat from the box, she assumes they're mischievous troublemakers playing cruel tricks on animals. She scolds them harshly. However, she quickly discovers the "villains" (the bears and boy) have fled, leaving her alone—subverting her moral authority with a comedic ending. The satire appears gentle: mocking both children's innocent mischief and adult paranoia about youth behavior. The teddy bears themselves are the joke's centerpiece, reflecting their novelty and popularity at the time.
📄 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. | A LITTLE TRAP THE TEDDIES SET- YOU'LL NEVER GUESS JUST WHAT THEY GET. For days and days an awful sound 2. But as they watch behind a tree Has scared the neighborhood around ; A rat approaches carelessly. j So Johnny set a trap with care He sceks the cheese beneath the flap And hoped to seize a wildcat there. And straight is captured in the trap. e Teds and Jobny laugh and s! u naughty boy !” she straight declares. And rush to get their victim out, . With all your silly, naughty bears, When, lo! there comes a lady hy I'm sure you're up to wicked tricks, Who sees them with suspicious eye. And some poor creature's in a fix.” “* Open the box, you bad, bad boy !" 6. But her recovery is quick, Teds obey, nor hide their joy. And grabbing her umbrella stick, rat leaps out to get away She quickly tries to make things square, fills the lady with dismay. But finds the villains are not there! T And COPYRIGHT, 14M, BY JUDGE COMPANY, PUBLISHERS, FIFTH. AVENUE AND MADISON SQUARE, NEW YORK. Tue, Firat Series of the adventur. Little Johnny and the Teddy Bears” is now ready in handsome book form. Price, 60 cents. For sale by book Jenlers everywhe: postpaid upon receipt of price by Judge Company, Filth Avenue and Madison Square, New York. comicbooks.com