Judge — June 18, 1921 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "The Wet and Dry Conflict" This June 1921 Judge cartoon satirizes the **Prohibition debate** during early Enforcement of the 18th Amendment (ratified 1919). The image shows a young boy on a beach with a small dog, apparently engaged in a playful tug-of-war over what appears to be a fish or wet object. The title "The Wet and Dry Conflict" is a pun: **"Wets"** were those opposing Prohibition, while **"Drys"** supported it. By depicting this as a childish, pointless struggle between a boy and dog, the cartoonist mocks both sides of the Prohibition battle as equally foolish and undignified. The cartoon suggests the conflict was petty and ridiculous rather than substantive political debate.