Judge, 1921-08-06 · page 7 of 34
Judge — August 6, 1921 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Explanation for Modern Readers The page contains two separate pieces: **The Cartoon** (top): A domestic humor sketch by John Conacher showing a couple in a capsized boat. Ernest Wiggins defends his boating incompetence by sarcastically claiming that most men wouldn't even have the "sense" to capsize in shallow water—implying deliberate foolishness. It's gentle marital comedy playing on the trope of the incompetent husband and exasperated wife. **"Fate and Pajamas"** (bottom): An humorous short story by Fred C. Kelly about a man buying flashy pajamas (pink-striped with mother-of-pearl buttons, purple silk) for a cross-country train trip. The joke is his overthinking—he feels obligated to wear stylish sleepwear in a Pullman car to entertain fellow passengers, consulting a shop clerk with excessive seriousness. It satirizes masculine vanity and the absurdity of worrying about appearance even while sleeping. Both pieces represent typical *Judge* magazine humor: light domestic satire and gentle mockery of everyday social pretensions among middle-class Americans.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Drawn by JOHN CoNACHER. “ERNEST WIGGINS, I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU KNEW HOW TO SAIL A BOAT!” “Now MABEL, IN ALL FAIRNESS, HOW MANY MEN WOULD HAVE THE SENSE TO CAPSIZE IN THREE FEET OF WATER?” Fate and Pajamas matters of mere garb to be- O RDINARILY I do not permit come a paramount issue in my scheme of things. This is particu- larly true with regard to nightwear. When I go to bed I do so largely for purposes of slumber and my attire is simple and comfortable, rather than ornate or gaudy. I make no bid when in bed for the acclaim of the casual onlooker. I had selected nightwear always from a purely utilitarian angle—until one day. Then, as I was about to make a journey across the continent, it occurred to me that I must operate on a slightly different basis. With the thought of a whole Procession of nights on a Pullman, I realized that I must do the fair thing by other passengers. I must make them glad they were traveling. As I look at it, the man who stays at home is entitled to all the simplic- By Frep C. KEtty ity in sleeping accoutrement he may desire. But living in a sleeping-car is something else again. One must contribute his little mite to the scenic environment. So I set out in search of something especially attractive and modish in pajamas. I went to the most exclu- sive shop in men’s togs and found a bright, forceful young clerk who seemed to catch the carnival spirit of my wishes at once. He was an enterprising young person who gave shimmy lessons by night and sold pajamas by day, so he confided to me, and one could see by the manner in which he was intrigued with his clothes that he, if any one, would be in direct touch with the Very Latest. I discussed the situation with him in a low, confidential tone, like that of a bridegroom inquiring the rate for room and bath, and he assured 9 me, while tapping me on the chest with his index finger, that he would show me something almost exactly like he, himself, wore. Thus placed at my ease, I found myself gazing at a dazzling layout with broad pink stripes and mother-of-pearl buttons. Feverishly I bought them on the spot. Then I explained that I wanted still another pair, and we took up the question of a suitable color to supple- ment the pink. I personaliy leaned toward a robin-egg blue, that my young friend had caressingly lifted down from his files, but I could see that his judgment lay in favor of a rich purple garment with white silk fastenings. It was indeed a regal outfit that I carried from the shop. I was flushed with a sense of tri- umph as I hastened homeward to place the bundle of treasure in the little old alligator bag. comicbooks.com