Judge, 1925-07-04 · page 9 of 36
Judge — July 4, 1925 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Satire Analysis This page satirizes American moral reformers and censors of the early 20th century. "The True Reformer Pleads for Funds" mocks self-righteous activists who ban alcohol, censor films and literature, and restrict public behavior—while admitting (through the poem's ironic voice) their efforts fail and are hypocritical. The reformer admits drinking persists despite prohibition and describes himself as a "dangerous dunce." The accompanying cartoon shows a reformer trapped behind numerous restrictive signs ("No Parking," "No Smoking," "Keep Off Grass"), suggesting reformers are imprisoned by their own rigid rules. The "Bulletin of the Bluetown Chamber of Commerce" parodies this further, imagining a dystopian future where the reformist impulse has created absurd weeks: "Smileless Week," "Mirthless Monday," "Witless Wednesday"—suggesting that excessive moral policing destroys basic human joy and normalcy. The bottom cartoon mocks a man claiming his home is exempt from law enforcement, likely referencing Prohibition-era hypocrisy about private drinking. The satire targets puritanical reform movements as counterproductive, absurd, and ultimately self-defeating.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The True Reformer Pleads for Funds I™ A morally, quarrelly mut, Who'd banish and censor and cut All the fun and delight From the daytime and night, And prudery leave nothing but. A bombastical, beggarly boor, My effort at piety’s poor; All drink I have banished, Though it has not vanished, The law’s a fiasco, I’m sure. I'm a heathenish, heavenly fiend, Who ruins the films that are screened; The drama, I say it’s A menace, each play it’s By me, and my co-workers, preened. I read books that I don’t understand, And think they are perfectly grand; I love them, God bless them, And then I suppress them, I'm proud of the things I have banned. I'm a dabbling dangerous dunce, Who has to succeed only once, To prove he’s a failure, So if you'll please mail your Donations I’U start doing stunts. Carroll This freedom! An optimist is a dealer who sells traveling bags on time, What most people like for lunch— three hours. “Don’t disturb yourself, officer, this is my home and I’ve got a right to keep and drink liquor in it.” Bulletin of the Bluetown Chamber of Commerce (In the Very Early Future) URING Smileless Week the mayor announces that all theaters and moving picture houses will be closed, to reopen on Hoarse Laugh Monday. Forbidden to Kiss Your Wife Week commences immediately after Smile- less Week, to be followed later by Tobaccoless Tuesday, Sunless Sun- day and Witless Wednesday. During Smileless Week there will be no funerals, so that no enemy of the deceased can get a good laugh out of the funeral. On Tearful Tuesday, during Get More Gloom. Week, the cemeteries will be thrown open for basket parties. During August we will celebrate Spread a Little Sorrow Week, after which, early in the fall, we will have the usual Mirthless Mondays. The railroad will no longer run through the city, as reports have reached the mayor that certain loafers enjoyed seeing the two daily trains pull in. Any person receiving a summons for petting his dog in public should report at once to the mayor. During Mirthless Monday no woman will be permitted to shoot her husband. The day must be made mirthless, no matter what extremes are gone to. A, L. Le Sas As a neighbor we'd prefer a prac- “aticing physician to a practicing musician any day. comicbooks.com