Judge, 1918-04-20 · page 9 of 36
Judge — April 20, 1918 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This WWI-era page contains two distinct pieces satirizing the conflict. **"Shrapnel"** consists of aphoristic commentary by Benjamin De Casseres mocking Germany's defeat. It references General Pershing preparing "TNT" for the Kaiser, predicts the Prussian eagle will soon be "taxidermied," and compares the Kaiser to deposed biblical figures. The tone is celebratory of Allied victory. **"Inevitable"** is a cartoon (drawn by John Cosacher) depicting American soldiers discussing a German air raid. The joke plays on a news item about U.S. Army prohibition against profane language directed at mules. The caption shows a frustrated mule-driver yearning to return home and curse freely—satirizing military censorship and the absurdity of regulating speech toward animals during wartime. Both pieces reflect American confidence in Allied victory and use humor to mock German defeat and military bureaucracy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Shrapnel amin De Casseres ser’s star begins to look like a dead moon. Where and when did the Kaiser check his street clothes? The goose-step has become goose-flesh. Pershing is getting ready to give the Kaisera little TNT party. The Kaiser’s idea was to make a world-safe for democracy. The Prussian eagles are nearly | ready for the taxidermist. The Kaiser’s Fixed Idea is be- ginning to drag anchor. One of the most interesting conversations about recent events in the East would be that be- tween Mahomet, ex-Mayor of Mecca, and David, ex-Kaiser 0 Jerusalem. The wisdom of the German people lies buried under their knowledge. Suppressed personal liberty generates anti-social TNT. INEVITABLE “Bet you a dollar Fritz raids us inside of five minutes” “Forget it! “Don’t fool yourself! ‘The wind’s in his direction, and he’s sure to smell this roast beef we’ve got for dinner!” Genius is a trick, but you must be one to know the secret. There is no morality like humor; nothing cleanses like a smile. Let the Allies beware of the velvet-lined gumshoe that covers the cloven hoof. Love is an instinct; marriage is an institution, and all instincts and institutions are in eternal conflict. ‘The German people are getting tired of being the grounds in the royal coffee-pot. Russian fiction is a pharma- copia of mankind’s spiritual ills. The Marne, Verdun, Ypres— the sacred Trinity of the Allies. Imagination is the sap of the brain; reason is only its bark. France, the pawnshop of crowns, has her eye on a few Rhine-stones. Laughter is the music of the heart; humor is the music of the brain. American mule-drivers in France have been prohibited by a recent Army Order from the use of profane language to their mules—(News Item) Private Ke ty (soulfully)—“MOMME WAIT till I get you back in God’s country again