Judge, 1909-09-18 · page 9 of 16
Judge — September 18, 1909 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page depicts "Nervy Nat," a recurring character in Judge magazine's humor strips. The comic shows a mischievous boy (Nat) interacting with mermaids and sea creatures while "waiting the arrival of the 'Half Moon'"—likely a ship or boat. The humor is typical of early-20th-century children's comics: slapstick physical comedy and cheeky dialogue. Nat torments the mermaids with crude jokes and rough behavior—pulling their arms, threatening violence, and making loud noises to scare creatures away. The mermaids respond with exasperated complaints about his recklessness. The satire targets nothing political; rather, it's simple comedic entertainment mocking a troublemaking boy's impudent behavior toward fantastical creatures. The nautical setting and character names (Doris, Leggo) suggest seaside adventure humor aimed at young readers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
eranto beautifully, my dear shrimp. No, indeed, 3. Nervy Nat—No, let's sit up here, Doris. I get fearfully peevish under water. I ds. Went toa fish-ball they gave. My, can feel that arm coming out of the socket. I don’t believe it was put in very securely. (e's a lobster, between you and me. You say Now, all joking aside, let go or I may forget myself and hand you a wallop that will be heard to the chalky cliffs of Dover. Leggo, you half portion of mackerel !" : Wy" RAK \ aes way on household matters as regular girls. 6. Nervy Nat—"Next—time—I see one—of—those things sitting on—a rock I'm amuse me. I hope I can make that rock going—make a noise like a—folding door and—slide away !" MDS WHILE WAITING THE ARRIVAL OF THE “HALF MOON” comicbooks.com