Judge, 1909-07-03 · page 5 of 16
Judge — July 3, 1909 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The top cartoon shows a chaotic tenement scene titled "Celebrating His Fourth," depicting Independence Day festivities among poor urban residents, likely immigrants. The "Boots and Shoes Repaired" sign suggests a working-class neighborhood. The main text is "A Modern Declaration of Independence: The Uncommon Declaration of the Bachelors' Brotherhood of America"—a satirical document parodying the Declaration of Independence. It humorously claims bachelors possess "inalienable rights" and protests women's encroachment on male privileges, specifically mentioning women's attempts to control marriage customs and legislative decisions. The Mars diagram below depicts "yearly disturbances seen on the earth by the people of Mars (July 3rd)," a whimsical device suggesting Martians observing Earth's chaotic Independence Day celebrations. The satire mocks both bachelor anxieties about changing women's roles and broader social tensions over gender and marriage in early 20th-century America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
CELEBRATING HIS FOURTH. A MODERN DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, (The Unanimous Declaration of the Bachelors’ Brotherhood of America.) E HOLD these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created free and single, that they are en- dowed with certain inalienable rights, that among these are the single life, unhampered liberty, and the pursuit of individual happiness. To secure these rights, we are informally banded together, and h been from time that whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contrary; and whenever any government, petti- coat or otherwise, presumes to infringe upon these rights; it is the duty of those affected to alter or abolish it, as seems best, to assure unto themselves safety and happiness, Such have been the encroachments of woman upon these our rights and privileges that we can no longer suffer in silence, but are, perforce, compelled to drag the matter into the glaring spot- light of publicity. It would ill become us to put forward these declarations were it not that we have been most grievously used, and in proof of this we submit facts toa (we fear) prejudiced world: She has laughed to scorn the ancient faiths of our brotherhood. She has constrained many of our fellows to take the great leap into a ‘* cottage built for two’; furthermore, she has incited them to tempt the weaker brethren into the selfsame snare. She is vigorously waging a war of extermination against those of us who are left. She has endeavored to have various Legislatures impose a grievous tax upon us because of our condit vhen, in the ma- jority of cases, the cause of such condition can be traced directly to her door. - Not content with leap year and its presumed privileges, she has tried to inculcate the opinion that custom should tion the pro- posal of marriage by woman, thus virtually making™every year an open season for bachelors, Failing in this, she is considering the advisability of taking the matter into her own hands, and, in spite of custom, herself propos- ing marriage when all other means fail towbreak man’s determina- tion, trusting to our innate chivalry for an acceptance of such proposal. We, therefore, the Brotherhood of Bachelors of America, in ji, CAB if vine Nh -Hormvay- -Peane. YEARLY DISTURBANCES SEEN ON THE EARTH BY ‘THE PEOPLE OF MARS QULY 410. comicbooks.com