Judge — March 30, 1929 — page 16: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a satirical cartoon about future air traffic in cities. It depicts a chaotic scene of aircraft flying at various angles around tall buildings, with a confused police officer on the ground unable to direct traffic because aerial navigation occurs in three dimensions rather than the two-dimensional streets he patrols. The humor centers on this collision of old and new: a traditional "horizontal cop" (walking city streets) becomes obsolete when vehicles operate "perpendicular" to ground level. The P.D. (Police Department) insignia on equipment and the bewildered officer's uniform emphasize institutional unpreparedness for technological change. The title "In Them Happy Days to Come" suggests optimistic futurism, though the chaotic imagery ironically questions whether this future is actually desirable. This likely reflects 1920s anxieties about rapid aviation advancement and urban modernization outpacing regulatory infrastructure.