Judge, 1913-08-02 · page 5 of 24
Judge — August 2, 1913 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**The Cartoon:** The top illustration titled "A Technical Phrase" depicts a man asking a blacksmith for directions, with the caption: "Beg pardon, sir; but is there a blacksmith's shop hereabout? The lady's cast her left hind shoe." **The Joke:** This is a pun on equestrian terminology. "Cast a shoe" means a horse lost its horseshoe—a literal, practical problem. The humor lies in the man's overly formal, technical phrasing of a simple situation, making it sound more serious or dramatic than it is. The woman on horseback appears unimpressed with his verbose language. **The Story Below:** Ellis O. Jones's story follows a young man receiving conflicting workplace advice from superiors—"master the details," "be serious," "keep quiet"—setting up what appears to be a cautionary tale about navigating office politics.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A TECHNICAL PHRASE “Beg pardon, sir; but is there a blacksmith’s shop hereabout? The lady's cast her left hind shoe.” The Man Who Did Wrong By ELLIS 0, JONES NCE there was a Young Man who undertook to carve out a career, and, accordingly, he made ‘a connection with a large and prosperous mer- cantile establishment. As the Young Man was extremely young, all the older employes felt it their duty to give him the benefit of their experience and to offer him advice. “Master the details of the business,”’ said the Head Bookkeeper. ‘‘That is the only true secret. If you have the details of the business, you are indispensable. Look atme. I've been here thirty years."’ The Young Man looked at him, shook his head doubtfully and passed on. “Always be punctual and keep your mouth shut. That's the way to make a hit with the Old Man,"’ advised the Pro- prietor’s Secretary. ‘*He always knows to a second just where I will be at a certain time." “What a bore!'’ observed the Young Man, as he passed along. “Above all, be serious,’’ cautioned the Head Designer. “‘Remember the fable of the Ant and the Grasshopper. Of course it doesn't matter quite so much what you do outside of the office, but bear in mind constantly that this is the place for work—hard, serious, conscientious work. Let the Boss see that you are in dead earnest."’ As the Young Man passed on, he hoped that, when he had reached the age of the Head Designer, his own shoulders would not be so rounded. “Be very respectful to the Boss. That's the way I’ve got along with Old Blodger all these years,’’ declared the Stock Manager, looking about him furtively. ‘‘I hate the old cur- mudgeon, but you'd never know it to see me talking to him. I make him think he’s the salt of the earth. Take my tip. Bow and scrape. That’s the combination.’” The Young Man passed on, still unconvinced. That night he pondered this and other bits of advice he had received. The next morning, as he was passing the door of the private oflice of the Proprietor, the Young Man had a sudden impulse to go in and tell him a capital story he had heard a few nights before. The horror of the punctilious secretary at this undig- comicbooks.com