Judge, 1915-06-19 · page 12 of 24
Judge — June 19, 1915 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes evolving attitudes toward women's independence and social convention. The main story depicts a courtship where the woman (Grayce Aylmar) claims to be "unconventional"—she believes women should vote and do "exactly as men do." The male protagonist (Brindley) is impressed until she smokes a cigar on their balcony, shocking him into awkward silence. The punchline reveals she was testing him: she doesn't actually smoke or enjoy cigars. She merely performed unconventionality to gauge his true acceptance of female independence before marriage. The satire targets both genders: the woman for faking progressivism, and the man for being deceived—despite his stated acceptance, he's unsettled by her actual behavior. The joke reflects real anxieties of the era about "New Women" and whether men's professed support for female equality was genuine or merely performative. The secondary cartoon ("That Irresistible Impulse") involves a golfer, seemingly unrelated.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Aylmar went to a famous sub- urban hotel for a rest. Brind- ley followed quickly. One evening as they danced he wooed her more ardently than usual. During the early part of their acquaintance she had frankly told him that her countrymen were clumsy love- makers compared with foreign: ers. Since that Brindley had greatly improved in method, and she seemed to like him. “*But what do I know about she asked. ‘Superficial you observation tells me little. **You may know everything about me,"" he replied. “And what do you know about me?"* “‘Enough to want to marry Are you sure of that?'’ “Quite sure “T am unconventional in many things."* “So am I “I believe that women should do exactly as men do—if they want to."* “T believe women should vote—if they want to."” **Quite aconcession! But I mean things relating to companion- ship—individual hygiene. Say habits."* “You couldn't do anything that would change my mind as to you."* **You can't be sure of that!"* “Oh, yes, Ecan."* He looked at her ardently. ‘If youdon't out his cigar cas | care to dance again, would you mind coming with me? I'd like “Will you permit me?’’ She took the case from his hand, a smoke." placed a cigar between her lips and asked him for a light. He could hardly believe it. Yet he gave her a light. She didn’t pay close attention to her cigar, it was true. But, heavens! was she not smoking? Conversation, he found, was not so easy. “If we should marry,’’ he ventured, after a while, ‘‘and I should stop smoking, would you stop also?"’ “Men,” she replied, ‘give up the habit temporarily—as, for in- stance, during a honeymoon. And I haven't promised to marry you,” ** You'll not like it right off, Uncle John. I didn’t at first.’" y to an unlighted balcony. There he pulled Brindley led the w: selected a panatela and lighted it. . . . . . . . . . id Brindley to , nce Dorsette. “If you don’t mind, dear, I'll go for a smoke his bride on the honeymoon, his bride being Doll \, “Oh, Harry, dear!’ cried Mrs. Brindley on his return a letter from mamma! And what do you think she says?"’ “T'm not clairvoyant, dear. What does she say?"’ “She says Grayce Aylmar has married Teddy Braintree.”’ “*Huh-huh.’” “And Teddy has told one of his chums of a great joke Grayce played on him."* “A joke “Yes. Before they were married, she made him think she s smoked cigars and liked ‘em. She don’t. She was only trying him out!" “here's The One Exception ery one seems to be here for his health,’" remarked the new arrival at the summer resort. “Yes, every one but the hotel proprietor,” THAT IRRESISTIBLE IMPULSE had been there three days. replied the guest who