Judge, 1911-10-21 · page 13 of 24
Judge — October 21, 1911 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This two-panel comic contrasts expectations versus reality at a horse show. The top panel depicts what an attendee (likely named Smith) *expected* to see: elegant horses and refined spectators in a proper exhibition setting. The bottom panel shows what he *actually* saw: a chaotic crowd of working-class people in casual dress, with a notably rotund figure on the right—likely a mule rather than a purebred show horse. The accompanying verses mock the absurdity: a sportsman celebrates winning, but horses supposedly "abhor a vacuum cleaner" (unclear reference, possibly a joke about grooming). An editor warns against writing about a mule that kicks dangerously. The joke satirizes the pretension of horse shows—the gap between their refined reputation and their actual, messier reality, populated by ordinary people and unsuitable animals.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE HORSE-SHOW WHAT HE REALLY DID SEE]! According to the Sportsman. Hazardous To Write “ About” Him. F ALL glad words the tongue can I WANTED to write all about the say, mule— The gladdest are these, ‘I’ve won to- That animal full of the very Old day.” Nick— But the editor warned me not to fool Horses abhor a vacuum cleaner. With a beast so likely as that to kick. Winners at the Show. JACK and Jill received a thrill Of pleasure and delight, When they espied blue ribbons tied Upon their horses white. Tir ribbons by the forelock. comicbooks.com