Judge, 1916-12-09 · page 9 of 28
Judge — December 9, 1916 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes the emerging social custom of **tipping** in early 20th-century America. Two Jewish businessmen—Max Markowitz (a skirt manufacturer) and Henry Shapiro (his bookkeeper)—debate whether tips should be given to service workers. **The satire's point:** Markowitz complains that tipping has become excessive and rewards laziness. He refuses to tip a messenger boy who delivered bad news about a business loss, arguing people should be paid wages for their work without additional gratuities. Henry counters that poor workers deserve sympathy, and even mentions a messenger boy who became a millionaire—implying hard work pays off. **The joke:** Markowitz's absurd logic (why tip for bad news?) exposes the hypocrisy of wealthy employers resisting small tips while paying minimal wages. The cartoon above reinforces this: a mystical female figure (representing the tipping "spirit") hovers over the dinner table, suggesting it's an inescapable social obligation that keeps working men away from home. **Context:** This reflects genuine anxiety among the wealthy about tipping culture's growth in the 1910s-1920s, viewed as either democratic progress or wasteful excess depending on one's perspective.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Mr. Inventor, it’s up to you to give us a mechanical toy on these lines and keep the men of the lay be home nights. MARKOWITZ AND HENRY DISCUSS GIVING AND TAKING TIPS Ky LOU ENRY, if they make a society want to be elected the foist: president.” Max Markowitz, the skirt manufacturer, ing Henry Shapiro, his bookkeeper and brother-in-law, picking up a telegram from his desk “What kind of tips do you mean?” in- quired Henry with pretended ignorance.“ You know, Max, there’s a million kinds of tips. ips what you get and tips what you give. Tips what's true and tips what's fake. ‘Tips what's at the end of your fingers and tips what's at the end of your tongue. Tips a “Enough, enough!” impatiently inter rupted Markowitz “You know alleright what kind of tips I mean. Tips what's given for something which should be gotten for nothing. Did you hear the way that messenger boy talked to me and banged the door this morning when he went out? It’s about time people stopped tipping them loafer: You stopped it alleright,” laughed Henry. “You »ever yen gave the boy a penny, when he brought that telegram.” What for?” demanded Markowitz. “Money I should give him for a telegram what tells me that Gluck & Sons went mechula! It asks me yet fifty dollars funeral expenses, for a lawyer, for the seven hundrec y dollars what's buried For such a telegram I should give tips?” n't the m enger boy’s fault that Gluck & Sons went pair, is it?” argued Henry sympathetically. “Is it my fault?” gesticulated Markowitz. “If I lose seven hundred and fifty, does that loafer worry? Never mind, he gets paid regela for his woik and he wantsextras yet. It’s a shande the way good money is thrown away for tips. A waiter spills your seup and you ¢ him a quarter to quiet his noives. A barber cuts your face and you give him a dime to heal his feclings. A shine-boy hits your corns and you hit him back with for stopping tips, I growled address and RAK a nickel. Everybody—manicure goils, hall boys, bell boys “And what if Henry * Poor fellers!” mocked Markowitz you. They become millionaires.” “Tf them messenger boys become millic you give you yourself delivering telegrams, instead of skoits?’ Hen: sarcastically. them poor fellers—" res, usher goils, hat boys, broke in “They're richer than why ain't asked “You think IT don’t know a millionaire what used to be a messenger boy!” cried Markowitz defiantly THE DESCENT OF MAN Newlywed—Darling. without showing my love is dying. I'd like to ask you to have liver and bacon some night soon. a little tired of chocolate cake. I'm getting comicbooks.com