Judge — August 16, 1913 — page 14: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page presents three brief satirical jokes typical of early 20th-century Judge magazine humor: **"A Mere Formality"** mocks modern parental obsession with children's health and medical intervention. Parents have subjected their infant to glasses, appendix removal, and stomach reinforcement—yet forgotten the most basic duty: naming the child. The satire critiques excessive medicalization while ignoring fundamental parental responsibilities. **"Everything Relative"** is a mild pun about perspective. One woman notes the summer feels cooler; her friend attributes this not to weather but to wearing fewer clothes—reframing the observation as relative to personal circumstance rather than objective fact. **"Honk!"** humorously suggests that cows have evolved to honk like automobiles to avoid being struck by "pesky autos." It satirizes both the rapid proliferation of motor vehicles in society and presents absurdist humor about animals adapting to modern dangers. The comic strip at top, "The Discovery of America," appears to retell Columbus's voyage satirically, though specific details are unclear from this image alone.