Judge, 1923-01-13 · page 9 of 36
Judge — January 13, 1923 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Judge Magazine Page Analysis This page contains satirical stories mocking African Americans and presenting racial stereotypes common to early 20th-century American humor magazines. **"I Won a Ball That Day"** depicts white golfers repeatedly losing to a narrator who plays badly but wins their golf balls through bets—the joke being these skilled golfers are repeatedly outsmarted. **"Speaking of African Golf"** opens with a racist aside about "little black rascals" not losing balls, establishing the magazine's crude racial humor baseline. The remaining anecdotes feature African American characters ("darky," "old negro," "schoolboy") portrayed as dim-witted: - A Black man confused by telephone deposit instructions - A church deacon removing money from the collection plate - A schoolboy tricking a clerk with false arithmetic These stories present Black characters as foolish, thieving, or incompetent—typical of *Judge*'s editorial stance. The satire targets not these characters but reinforces white superiority through their portrayed ignorance. This reflects the racist attitudes embedded in mainstream American media of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ie “eee Ma yy Nvae roube Ye, rani \ a wes Par SUL DML \) AW jit UNEE A 2 fais” Wyn AVA Z Ty Wan SPEAKING OF AFRICAN corr “I say, Bob, that was a great idea of ; yours, marking the balls that way. Why, those little black rascals haven't lost a ball all day.” I Won a Ball That Day Mack saw noted golfers play to m B., Those guys have taught me how to putt, just lamp me once and see. You stand erect, you grasp the club, you hold your left leg still And when you get direction, tap the ball and then it will Go straight and care-free on its way and drop into the hole.” but missed it by a foot—he and said Dave “tapped did upon my soul. ‘Then I stepped up and putted in my own old- fashioned way; The ball dropped in—I won another ball from Dave that day. “A. B., you don’t know how to drive,” Doc Robbie said one day. “You'd better take some lessons or you'll never learn to play. You move your feet, you swing too quick, you ought to slow a bit; Just watch me and I'll show you how a golf ball should be hi He teed his ball, he swung his club, it came through with a will But left the golf ball on the tee quite undis- turbed and still. I teed my ball and modestly drove in my awkward way And though my form was awful, won a ball from “Doc” that day. “Now listen, Abe,” Bill Williams said, “your drives and putts are good, y brassie shot you make goes off into the wood. You hold your club too tight and take your eye off of the ball, You'll never be a golfer ‘till you get it right, that’s all Now watch me and I'll show you how a brassie shot is made.” He showed me with a rotten shot, worse than Lever made. I stepped up with my brassie in my dumb, bewildered wi And won another golf ball from my old friend Bill that day. And so, no matter what the club, I always play it wrong to listen patiently to some friend But even so, L have my fun, for when the day is done He has to sign an order for the golf ball I have won, —A. B. Merritt, Grand Highlands Country Club. re Rapids (Mich.) N ou darky hurried into a drug store telephone booth and asked for long dis- ronnection, giving the address of a person in San Francisco. After a long wait the or told him that the San Francisco ex- ge was on the wire. “Now,” she said, “deposit seven dollars and Wt Nun V0 ZT Ninny 7 AMIN 7 sixty-five cents, and I will give you the con- nection.” The old negro appeared not to have under- did yo" say, Miss?” he asked. ‘ou must deposit seven dollars and cents. Put the money in the slots on the telephone.” “Ma-aam?” “T told you to deposit seven dollars and ents.” She raised her voice. Miss,” came the quavering tones of the darky, “how much do it cost hang up dis thing? Oo Sundi of a small of the chu substitute it for a large: The parson asked, Rasta The dea fifty t pi wid fo’ five S. A seHooLBoY at lunch time entere: LX grocery store and said to. the clerk: “Take this order: 10 pounds sugar at 6 cents; 11 pounds coffee at 25 cents; 8 pounds tea at 30 cents. Add that up. How much is The clerk replied. 75.” “Are you sure?” asked the boy. “Of course [am sure.” ‘The boy thanked him and said, arithmetic lesson for to-morrow.” soe r church a negro outhern town saw the de: ch take a coin from his pocket and yin on the “plate.” “What's doin’, yo" ‘on answered, “I’se takin’ out my it I’se started de collection Stet “That's my comichooks,