Judge — March 5, 1921 — page 9: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "At Palm Beach" - Judge Magazine Cartoon This satirical cartoon depicts two wealthy women at Palm Beach (a fashionable resort destination). Mrs. Van Style reassures Mrs. Silke about receiving news from her absent husband. The joke's punchline reveals Mrs. Silke's priorities: she's relieved not to hear directly from her husband, but instead from "his cashier"—meaning she only cares about receiving money. The satire targets wealthy wives' materialism and the era's social dynamics where husbands and wives maintained separate lives. The irony is sharp: rather than missing her husband personally, Mrs. Silke values financial reassurance more. The fashionable setting and parasols emphasize the leisure-class context, making the women's mercenary attitudes the cartoon's central joke about gilded-age marriage and wealth-based relationships.