Judge, 1926-01-23 · page 3 of 36
Judge — January 23, 1926 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of "Judge" Page: "Old Stuff" This satirical piece mocks obsessive antique collecting, a leisure pursuit among wealthy Americans in the early 20th century. The poem by Gardner Lea complains about being "fed with antiques"—friends constantly discussing old objects, their origins, and valuations ("twenty-eighth row"). The cartoon illustrates the chaos this hobby causes: adults and children play chaotically around giant antique furnishings—a tilted cabinet, ship model, and drapery—scattered as if throughout a home. The figures appear overwhelmed and somewhat trapped by the clutter. The satire targets how antique collecting disrupted domestic life and social relationships, transforming homes into museums and consuming owners' time, money, and attention. The "unexpected result" caption suggests that hobby enthusiasm produces disorder rather than refined living.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
ASSO ‘“‘LIFE LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS”? JUDGE OLD STUFF ['x F with antiques wheresoever I go I tecter on wabblies “by Phyfe, don't you know?” Or “Boule”; I can’t tell “em from “Adam,” and yet They're driving me mad—and my friends into debt. Perchance I would dine rather nobly, and so I fare where the Forties ar zy and low— And what's the reward I receive for my dough? I'm fed with antiques! I'm bored, let us say, and I take in a show— Deliver the mint’ for the twenty-cighth row, To solace said boredom—and what do I get? Why, wheezes old Moses was young when he met! Is this, then, a system? Quick, Watson, the “snow”! I'm fed with antiques! Gardner Rea comicbooks.com