Judge, 1924-08-30 · page 24 of 36
Judge — August 30, 1924 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical story mocks the early 20th-century trend of urbanites relocating to the countryside seeking peace and quiet. The joke is ironic: John's wife pressures him to sell their comfortable city home for rural tranquility, but her relentless nagging about the move drives him insane instead. He ends up in an asylum, obsessively repeating her demands verbatim—a darkly humorous commentary on how wives' insistence on lifestyle changes (often presented as improvements) can backfire catastrophically. The accompanying cartoon shows a man arriving home to find his wife waiting with news, captioned "Hello, George! Funny thing, I was just thinking about you!"—suggesting she has more unwelcome announcements or demands. The satire targets both the country-living craze and marital dynamics, suggesting that well-intentioned domestic decisions, when forced, create chaos rather than happiness.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“Hello, George! A Sad Case Why Men Go Crazy! My rrr John, sold his com- +"* fortable up-to-date home in the city and with Mrs. John moved ‘out into the country, where he had purchased a residence some ten miles from his former domicile. I was surprised at this, for T knew that John was fond of the city and not at all in favor of country life. ‘The next I heard was that they had taken the poor fellow to an asylum. I came from my home town to see him. He was in a padded cell and paid no attention to my greeting, but kept repeating this monologue over and over: “You must sell the place, John. Everybody is buying homes in the country. It is terribly noisy here, and I am tired of hearing the street cars and the automobile T want to be where it is nice and quiet and I can hear the birds singing, and just relax and enjoy it all. You must sell the place, John, you must sell the place!” The poor fellow gazed for a mo- ment into space then began to tear AtwR earme 2 Funny thing, I was just thinking about youl? Ou Lapy—Pa ir.can I be of don m any assistance? “Good Lord, Sera'ch my ear!” yes! at his hair and continue: “You must sell the place, John, you must sell the place, It is terrible here! Everyone wonders why we got rid of our beautiful home in the city and came out here where it’s so lone- some, I tt to be where T can and the bustle of the automobiles and street cars. If I hear nothing but those birds sing- ing for another day I shall go crazy! You must sell the place, John, you must sell—"_ At this point my friend began to shriek and tear out great. handfuls of his hair, throwing himself against the sides of his cell, his eyes rolling, and filled with a wild, terrible excitement. “Poor fellow!” T thought. But of course I could do nothing! Bill Rendered Pen Name Judge—Y our correct name. Are you sure it is Feath Prisoner—No, sir, yo" honor, dat am my nom de plume. Rey The original beauty specialist was a man—the sandman. XUM comicbooks.com