A complete issue · 16 pages · 1883
Judge — December 1, 1883
# "Who Is to Be Speaker?" — Judge, December 1, 1883 This cartoon satirizes the competitive struggle to become Speaker of the House of Representatives. Three men, identified in the caption as **Carlisle, Cox, and Randall**, hold law books labeled with what appear to be vote counts or procedural rules—their "weapons" in the political contest. The satire mocks how these ambitious politicians are invoking legal technicalities and parliamentary procedure to advance their candidacies rather than relying on genuine qualifications or merit. Each figure clutches his rulebook defensively, suggesting they're using arcane legislative knowledge as their competitive advantage. The judge figure overlooking from above likely represents the House itself or public observation of this procedural maneuvering.
# Analysis: Judge Magazine Page - Thanksgiving and Political Commentary This page from Judge contains two main pieces: **"Thanksgiving"** (left column): A tongue-in-cheek editorial celebrating Thanksgiving while sardonically noting America's genuine problems—murders, bank fraud, "shorn lambs from Wall Street," and dirty streets. The piece mocks the irony of being thankful despite social ills, while acknowledging Thanksgiving as a legitimate "pretty custom" for family reunion. **"A Triangular Fight"** (right column): References Captain Marryatt's novel about a mathematical duel involving three parties arranged as an equilateral triangle. The author draws a contemporary political parallel: the dispute between **Carlisle, Cox, and Randall** over the Speaker's chair. The satire suggests these three political rivals should resolve their conflict as elegantly as Marryatt's mathematical duelists, rather than fighting chaotically. This appears to reference late-19th-century House leadership disputes, mocking the messiness of actual politics versus orderly literary solutions.
# Explanation for Modern Readers This page from *Judge* contains three distinct pieces of satire: **"The 'L'" (Main Cartoon):** A lengthy poem attacking the elevated railway in New York City, apparently built through an arrangement between railroad magnate Jay Gould and financier Cyrus W. Field with city authorities. The satire mocks how they obtained land rights through corrupt "Corporation" dealings, then profited from an eyesore structure that darkened streets, caused accidents, charged excessive fares (a dime), and employed rude conductors. The joke: Gould and Field claimed it benefited the public, but obviously enriched themselves. **"One More Unfortunate":** A brief comic dialogue where a sympathetic old man recognizes a tramp's "better days," but the tramp admits his farm failed—he's genuinely poor, not romantically fallen. Dark humor about real economic hardship. **"Nerve Composers":** A slapstick vignette where a young man's involuntary nervous dancing (caused by an old man's cigar smoke) paradoxically restores peace when the old man removes the cigar. The page reflects *Judge's* focus on urban corruption, class commentary, and absurdist humor.
