Judge, 1911-04-15 · page 24 of 24
Judge — April 15, 1911 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a straightforward **cigarette/tobacco advertisement**, not political satire. It promotes "Velvet" brand tobacco at 10 cents, positioned as "the smoothest tobacco" available. The image depicts sailors in a small sailboat, using the nautical scene to evoke leisure, adventure, and portability—the "Take it with you" tagline emphasizes the product's convenience for travel. The ad claims superiority through aging ("two years"), smoothness, coolness, and flavor. The casual leisure setting and "happy people" framing are typical early-20th-century marketing tactics. This reflects an era when tobacco advertising was unrestricted and made health/pleasure claims now recognized as false. The ad provides no satirical commentary—it's genuine period marketing.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Take it with you The greatest smoke ever invented for happy people—adds more pleasure to the pastime! The choicest leaf—aged two years—a mellowness no tobacco ever got before! Time has eliminated all harshness—developed the rich- est of flavor. Smokes cool—burns even. You can smoke it all day. It’s smooth! “Velvet.” 1O¢ comicbooks.com