Judge, 1908-12-12 · page 16 of 16
Judge — December 12, 1908 — page 16: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a humorous six-panel comic strip, not political satire. It tells a slapstick story about "Little Johnny" (a boy) and mischievous anthropomorphic teddy bears. The plot: Johnny works hard hauling flour sacks while the lazy "Teds" shirk responsibility. The bears steal his flour, climb to a roof, and dump it on Johnny's head as a prank. Johnny and a man (likely the neighbor) catch the bears on the roof, trapping them—they "cannot jump, they cannot flee." The humor relies on physical comedy and role-reversal: the teddy bears (toys, normally innocent) are depicted as lazy troublemakers who get comeuppance. The "Teddy Bear" was a popular toy phenomenon following President Theodore Roosevelt's 1902 hunting trip, so these animated bears would have been instantly recognizable to contemporary readers. The strip appears designed to promote a children's book advertised at the page's bottom.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
5. Oh, silly bears! to think you're hidden, Suage- LITTLE JOHNNY AND THE TEDDY BEARS. THE TEDS PROVIDE A FLOUR SHOW WHICH ENDS IN WHALING AND IN WOE. petty, 1. Alas, poor John! he has to work. 2. They wait until he goes for more, ‘The ‘Teds, as is their habit, shirk. ‘Then rush in silence to the door ‘They watch with glee how hard he labors And grab the bags he placed with care— In bringing flour-sacks from a neighbor's. ‘They seem to vanish ii 3. But lo! a ladder is the means 4. Then from inside there comes a man— By which we reach a change of scenes. The bears at once fulfill their plan. Up to the roof they take the flour, ‘The flour descends upon his head ; And plan to have a snowy shower. I'd hate to tell the words he said. = And John delightedly stands b; And that your pranks will be unchidden. To see the Teddies caught on high. ‘The roof ’s in view and so are you ; They cannot jump, they cannot flee, Your victim soon will be there, too. And there 's that man—oh, mercy me! COPYRIGHT, 1908, BY JUDGE COMPANY, PUBLISHERS, FIFTH AVENUE AND MADISON SQUARE, NEW YORK. nt the advent je Johnny and the Teddy Bears” is now ready in handsome book form. Price, 60 cents. For sale Fs everywhere, or sent postpald upon receipt of price by Judge Company, Fifth Avenue and Madison Square, New York. comicbooks.com