Judge — August 18, 1917 — page 7: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a satirical cartoon mocking class prejudice and social hypocrisy. The "widow de Puyster" represents an upper-class woman who initially despises Tiknek, the new milkman, finding him "insufferably vulgar"—a stock character representing working-class vulgarity. The joke's irony lies in the final line: despite her snobbish contempt, they've married. The asterisked footnote "*We have not learned to whom" suggests unclear or ambiguous details, adding to the satirical effect. The cartoon ridicules the pretensions of the wealthy widow and the notion that class barriers determine compatibility, while also poking fun at the absurdity of their union. This reflects Judge magazine's typical social satire targeting American class attitudes and romantic conventions of the era.