Judge, 1919-02-15 · page 13 of 32
Judge — February 15, 1919 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Old Days and New" - Context for Modern Readers This story illustration depicts a soldier in khaki uniform (identified as "John") unexpectedly returning home to his wife, Mrs. Morland. The satire's title contrasts "old days" (pre-war domesticity) with "new" (wartime disruption). The joke hinges on gender role reversal and social expectations: Mrs. Morland has dressed elegantly for an evening out—suggesting independence and modern female autonomy. John's casual, exhausted arrival interrupts her plans. His indifference ("run along") and self-focused needs (bath, nap) subvert the traditional expectation that wives exist to serve returning soldiers. The cartoon likely satirizes post-WWI social tension: soldiers returning to find women who'd gained independence during wartime. The "exposed face" caption suggests surprise at who women had become in men's absence—more autonomous, less decorative.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
if it i “SomeTHING ON THe Exposep Pace Excrren His Wonper ” Old Days and New By J. A. Watvrox Illustration by Lawrence Frttows RS. MORLAND had dressed for the eve- ning and was going out. Her costume, the ultimate of style in fine taste, outlined a figure that would attract attention anywhere. Her face, slightly shadowed by her hat, would have charmed but for its melancholy cast, and was innocent of the beauty aids so commonly employed. She was in the early thir- ties. That she was not without vanity was shown when she stopped at a mirror for self-inspection. Suddenly she started. She had heard the metallic contact of key and lock, and now the hall door was closed. In a moment a man in khaki stood in the door- way !° He advanced with little con- “Going out, TIT see, as “Hello, Madgi cern, extending a ha usual.” : “John!” She was so dazed that she took his hand automatically “Didn’t expect me, of course,” he said, looking about. Selecting a comfortable chair beside which he dropped his hat—an_ officer’s—he looked up at her. “Pardon! I’m a bit tired. Don’t let me keep you.” “I was going out, but— “Oh, run along! | shall be here when you return. | might take a bath and a nap while you zone. | need both.” He shrugged his shoulders. “This quiet comicbooks.com