Judge — August 28, 1909 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This political cartoon satirizes the protective tariff's effect on consumer prices. A cheerful, rotund figure labeled "THE CONSUMER" wields a large knife while surrounded by piled goods—lumber, steel rails, pig iron, scrap iron, Paris green (pesticide), chalk, hides, and other commodities—each marked "FREE" (from tariffs). The joke inverts expectations: the caption reads "See what the tariff has done for me," yet the cartoon ironically suggests the consumer must *cut through* or *fight* these tariffed goods to access them. The mottoes "HOME SWEET HOME" and "EAT DRINK BE MERRY" mock promises of consumer benefit. The satire argues that protective tariffs, intended to help Americans, actually burden ordinary consumers with inflated prices on basic goods and raw materials.