Judge, 1908-10-17 · page 6 of 16
Judge — October 17, 1908 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon satirizes American socialism and the Socialist Party's 1908 presidential campaign, likely featuring Eugene V. Debs as the socialist candidate. **The main narrative** follows "Hiram Pennick," a rural populist who previously championed the Populist Party (which collapsed around 1900). He now advocates for the Socialist Party as the only force capable of challenging entrenched money and political power. The letter mocks populist rhetoric and rural dialect. **The political satire** ridicules socialists by depicting them as naive idealists. The bottom cartoon shows a hypothetical socialist administration where the President wastes government resources on trivial tasks (sending ice water to South Dakota), suggesting socialists are incompetent administrators unfit to govern. **The joke**: While Pennick praises socialism's principled platform, the cartoon implies it would be disastrous in actual practice—implying socialist ideology sounds good in theory but fails in execution.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
HIRAM PENNICK BY ARTHUR YOUNG from the veteran ¢1 were a successful feature of Ju f whose travels and speeches paige of 1900, ka, JUDGE. Davis Junction, 0., money—its the only party thet haint afraid to October Ixt, 1908, take a plutyerat by the scruff of the neck an EAR JUDGE. I see him divide the funds, D by the papers that a speech Thursday nite corner of polities is gittin lively an that theres penin gun of the campaign wunty. Follerin is part of the best ont. Since swi paign of 1900 an writin * Feller citizens—What we need is a govment thetll govern, } fer the Jupce, Ive ben reedin up &e., an I want to tell ye thet the nashun has got to git a strangle holt on the issues as presents them- thin doin as the feller si goin to be soi round the cirele in C selves an settle suthin r the issues will settle the country. Prhunlle hal. Ive figgered out thet ay fer to theres only the an_thets Send we. Sen to vote the strait Socialist 4 Mpc chew ticket. 4 They a platform | wt hee WybT thets made of the best planks ever spiked. Fer aurasy — fifteen years L put my shol- der to the wheel an fought fer populism, When my rhumatizm wus wust (fall of 1900) I went out in the open, by cracky! an told folks to there # what I thought of the wa ent sasiite leineh an was runt . an cur. , comes really interest ried tl lopulist banner right into the rampurts of the enemy stirrin things up, sos the money kings was tottrin on there thrones, | But whats come of the list party today? Swallered up! hide an hair. | No party kin swaller the Debs platform, Its too much fer em. 1 er thet its the only party thet bas a chance fer to fight an live thru it, Its the only party today thet stands fer them thet needs more Mr. Pennick reads up on socialism and * sees things trey | sare | i Govt MADE WHEN SOCIALISTS RUN THINGS AT WASHINGTON. ay President—"* Front! take a pitcher of ice-water out to Sand Hollow, South Dakota.” comicbooks.com