Judge, 1916-10-21 · page 5 of 32
Judge — October 21, 1916 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical piece mocks turn-of-century American club culture. Markowitz, a skirt manufacturer, complains to his bookkeeper Henry Shapiro about receiving countless postcards from different clubs soliciting business. He's frustrated that clubs—which ostensibly keep young men away from homes, wives, and "tear business men away"—somehow expect his commercial support. Henry responds by praising clubs' social value, but Markowitz dismissively counters that clubs are merely excuses for men to escape domestic life. The accompanying golf scene illustration reinforces the leisure-class absurdity. The satire targets both excessive club proliferation and the expectation that businesses fund organizations whose primary purpose appears to be extracting men from productive home life and family responsibilities.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The golfiac’s wife—Oh, William! the house is on fire! Hurry! The golfiac—Oh! all right. We've just two more holes to play MARKOWITZ AND HENRY—They Discuss Political and Social Clubs Ry LOU RAB 6¢LJENRY, a million times L told you,” remarked Max Mar- that you ain't out nights on an express wagon, expressing your kowitz, the skirt manufacturer, to Henry Shapiro, his feelings for Wilson or Hughes.” bookkeeper and brother-in-law, “that I don’t want you to mix “What! I make politician speeches!” exclaimed Markowitz private geschiften with office business. But with surprise. ‘Ain't I told you enough times and tried to you—you do just like you please, like a — knock it in your janitor after New Year's. Foist you get a — head——” thousand different pictche postal cards in “With a the office mail, with love and reg: Club,” broke in a hundred different kinds of goils what you — Henry jestingly met oncet in the country. And now you “Sure with are doing a big mail order business from a Club,” con- clubs and societies. Every day a different tinued Marko. notice from a different club. Outside of — witz earnestly. what you need to fill in a hundred aces or “‘and you need eighty kings I have so much use for a club like a banana it, too. Ain't ! peddler without a license has fora policeman’s. Henry, them told you that I societies and clubs take young men away from their sweet- don’t care for hearts, pull married men away from their homes, tear busi- _ no societies, and ness men away——" here you tell me “Say, Max,” interrupted Henry, “you talk like you was Tought to make making speech. You mal 2 good speecher and put — speeches what's such an assortment of fee ings in your voice that Iam surprised — made only from Near-sighted gentleman—Oh, you little fledgling comicbooks.com