Judge, 1914-06-20 · page 14 of 24
Judge — June 20, 1914 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes small-town American hypocrisy circa early 1900s. **"A Frog in His Throat"** is a simple pun joke about a student's excuse. **"In Bad Nauheim"** is the main satire. A self-righteous deacon reads gossip about Empress Maria Sophia bathing at Bad Nauheim (a German spa town), then censors his wife from reading it—while simultaneously lecturing about the empress's lack of morality. The humor targets his transparent double standard: he's scandalized by a royal woman's public bathing, yet gratified by the juicy gossip itself. He congratulates his wife for being modest enough to lock the kitchen door on Saturday nights, implying rural Americans possess superior virtue to decadent European royalty. Judge mocks this provincial moralizing and the deacon's obvious hypocrisy. **"Puzzle Picture"** asks readers to identify who owns the automobile in the top illustration—a class-commentary game popular in the era. The overall tone satirizes rural American sanctimoniousness and fascination with European scandal.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A FROG IN HIS THROAT “Why didn’t you study your French lesson last night ?"* “* Please, teacher, my throat was so sore I couldn't scarcely speak English,” In Bad Nauheim «eT HEM furrin monarchs is always up to somethin’ scandalous,’’ said the deacon, looking up from the patent inside of the Heifer Valley Weekly Clarion to address his wife, who put down her knitting to give all her attention to a topic which started so interestingly. “Here ‘it says,"’ he continued, ‘‘that the Empress Maria Sophreea takin’ PUZZLE PICTURE Find the lucky chap who owns the automobile. the baths at Bad Nauheim, and, right under it, that thousands of country people go to get a glimpse of her. The good woman, now entirely interested, rose and started to read the item over her husband’s shoulder; but the deacon covered it with a horny hand of right- eous censor- ship. “Ain't it dreadful, Man- dy,” he said sternly, “to think of a high- up woman like that who ought to be a object lesson of pu- rity to her subjecks, dis- portin’ herself in the tubs of a place what's so fa- mous fer bein’ bad as that there Bad Nauheim? What kind of decency and good morals can you expect in a community like that? Thank the Lord you ain’t no empress, Mandy, and have the modesty to lock the kitchen door Saturday nights!’’ —Stantey R. Hofftund. Synonymous F A bird in the hand, as we all under- stand, Is worth two in the bush, let me utter This ball player’s cry, when he says that a fly In the hand is worth two in the butter! SEEING THE TENDERLOIN comicbooks.com