Judge — February 10, 1917 — page 7: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This satirical piece references the tradition that during leap years, women could propose to men—reversing normal gender roles. The cartoon shows a man kneeling before a woman in a domestic interior, apparently having been proposed to during the leap year. The text below offers comedic "advice" for men accepting such proposals, instructing them to be brief, avoid preparation, and sound spontaneous. The satire mocks both: 1. **Women's boldness during leap year**, treating female romantic initiative as shocking enough to require special coaching 2. **Male anxiety about proposal etiquette**, humorously suggesting men should disguise their acceptance as casual rather than deliberate The humor relies on Victorian-era gender expectations where male proposal-giving was standard. Judge magazine's readership would recognize leap-year proposal traditions as a comedic inversion of social norms.