A complete issue · 16 pages · 1884
Judge — October 18, 1884
# Analysis of "The Judge" Cartoon, October 18, 1884 This cartoon satirizes a scandal involving a coachman. The main illustration shows a man at a stable door denying involvement with "mash" (slang for flirtation or seduction), claiming "some other coachman, Belva, dear!" The caption references someone named Belva. This likely references the Belva Lockwood scandal of 1884. Lockwood was a prominent women's rights advocate and presidential candidate that year. The cartoon appears to mock her or associates in her circle through this domestic/romantic entanglement involving servants. The satire targets progressive reformers by using a servant's indiscretion to undermine their moral authority—a common tactic in period political humor. The caricatured faces employ exaggerated features typical of 1880s satirical illustration.