Judge — September 1938 — page 10: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Cartoon Analysis This single-panel cartoon from *Judge* magazine satirizes sales management during an economic downturn. Two businessmen in an office examine a U.S. map labeled "SALESMEN" where sales territories are marked with small figures arranged in declining patterns—visually representing reduced sales numbers. The caption, "I guess it was that ten per cent cut!" suggests ironic commentary on corporate cost-cutting measures. One manager apparently expects the other to acknowledge that cutting salesmen's pay or commissions by 10% has directly caused the visible collapse in sales performance shown on the map. The joke critiques corporate logic: management implemented cost-cutting expecting no consequences, but the data now clearly shows the negative impact. It's a satire on short-sighted business decision-making where penny-pinching backfired, demonstrating that reduced compensation demotivates the sales force and harms overall revenue.