Judge, 1915-08-14 · page 8 of 28
Judge — August 14, 1915 — page 8: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces typical of Judge magazine's social commentary. **"The Country Doctor"** is a sentimental portrait of an old-fashioned rural physician—poor, shabby, driving an ancient buggy, yet deeply dedicated to his patients regardless of their ability to pay. The satire targets urban contempt for rural life: city folks laugh at Doc Blank's appearance and decrepit practice, yet he embodies genuine virtue through selflessness and compassion. The final detail—his grave marker uses his old office sign—elevates his humble, "ridiculous" dedication into something noble and enduring. **"The Advantages of an Education"** mocks educated pretension through a poker game between a college graduate and an ordinary tramp. Despite his education, the graduate can only imagine increasingly abstract sums ("billion," "quadrillion"), while the practical tramp concedes victory, implying that excessive intellectualism divorced from common sense is worthless. Both pieces critique the era's class assumptions: one defends rural simplicity against urban mockery; the other deflates intellectual superiority.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THAT AWFUL SENSATION WHEN YOU BREAK YOU FIRST WINDOW The Country Doctor NE OF those absurd Country Doctors you see when you go away for your Summer _ vacation. Old-fashioned; no automobile, no fancy manners; clothes posi- tively ill-fitting; same style collar he had been wearing for thirty years. Big shoulders that stooped as though he had been carrying the troubles of his community ever since it had troubles. A light in his keen old eyes—A light as though perhaps an Angel had spoken to him in the Night. Day and Dark, Rain, Hail, Sun and Gales his companions. Shrewd old fellow! When young Grady Ellyson came home from Baltimore with his lungs done for (that’s what the Balti- more Doctor said), Doc Blank grinned and prescribed sleep. Grady was perfectly able to lick his father’s hired man in three months, One of those dear, buoyant, believing, lovely natures that delighted in fooling death, in sidestepping demise, and cheering the forsaken. A Ridiculous Doctor who would ride thirteen miles in a blizzard to see a patient who had nothing but trouble. (No money.) Foolishest looking rig you ever saw; when the Big Doctor climbed into his rattle-trap buggy of the vintage of eighteen- eighty-one, the entire outfit was a Sight. The Doctor especially. Folks kinder liked to see him descend in front of the house and enter the door with that old, old, old medicine case, though—Folks that were waiting for him. Folks had been taking what Old Doc Blank gave them for many and many a year. House Doc Blank lived in was awfully Regularly run down. No paint; all worn off, long ago. Where the fence used to be, there wasn’t any. Doc burned up the remains one Winter to keep warm. Ilere’s a confidence: Old Doc Blank hadn’t any money. He never had any. Of course he had enough to buy drugs for folks that couldn't buy their own. Sort of a poor folks’ Doctor. Frayed clothes, Disreputa- ble rig, faithful mare that got so tired, Doc used to get out and walk up the hills to help. Doc was the most absurd Extremist. funny. City folks used to laugh when they saw Doctor Blank. Even did they laugh at his horse and his buggy and his house. Right by the four steps you had to go up to get into the Doctor's utterly Out. of-date office was a weather-beaten Sign on a post that said: DR. BLANK Office Upstairs, The Doctor died the other day. None of his Friends had any money, So they took the old post, sign and all, and stuck it up at the head of his graye; DR. BLANK Office Upstairs, —Fred Ladd, The Advantages of an Education Te TRAMPS, sitting by the roadsids at dusk, were indulging in an imag. inary game of poker, in which pebbles played the part of lucre. One of them was a downfallen college graduate; the other just an ordinary tramp, named Pat, Said the latter, ‘‘I’ll just bet you a thoy. sand dollars. as an opener."* The college graduate replied, ‘‘I° raise you a million.” = “*Make it a billion, “Raise you a hundred “Seventeen quadrillion, Pat scratched his head for a minute, Then he said, ‘*Take the pot, you educated son of a gun!”’