A complete issue · 28 pages · 1917
Judge — February 3, 1917
# "The Countersign" — Judge, February 3, 1917 This cartoon depicts a smiling woman at a store counter displaying merchandise with a "SPECIAL TODAY" sign. The title "The Countersign" is a pun: it plays on "counter sign" (a password or verification) while showing an actual store counter. The joke appears to satirize retail advertising and sales tactics of the era. The woman's knowing smile and prominent display suggest she's promoting goods through charm and marketing rather than genuine value. The "SPECIAL TODAY" sign—a common retail practice—is being mocked as a formulaic sales technique. The exact product being sold remains unclear from the image, but the cartoon critiques how merchants use attractive presentation and urgency ("TODAY") to move merchandise, a consumer culture concern relevant to 1917.
# Analysis This is primarily a **Johnnie Walker whisky advertisement** disguised as satirical content. The cartoon depicts three caricatured men observing a figure labeled as representing "Johnnie Walker" (the whisky brand's mascot—a striding man in top hat). The "joke" plays on the brand's slogan and mascot: one character says the wind "profits nobody," while another responds that Johnnie Walker "rewards the urchin, catches a cold" and discovers "the efficiency of Johnnie Walker Red Label." The satire appears to mock the contradiction between the whisky's advertised quality and actual outcomes, but this is ultimately **advertising copy masquerading as editorial humor**. The real message: the non-refillable bottle ensures quality, and agents Williams & Humbert in New York can supply it. Born 1820, "still going strong."
# Winter Sports in Henryville This is a crowded, comedic illustration depicting winter recreational chaos in what appears to be a small town called "Henryville." The scene shows numerous figures engaged in various winter activities—sledding, skating, and general merriment—rendered in deliberately chaotic, overlapping compositions typical of Judge magazine's slapstick humor. The cartoon satirizes amateur winter sports participation through exaggerated mishaps: collisions, tumbles, and comic disasters populate the scene. Speech bubbles capture characters' bewildered reactions to the mayhem. A "Danger" sign near water suggests skating hazards. The overall point appears to be mockery of recreational winter sports and their inherent dangers, presented as entertainment through the cartoonist's busy, frenetic drawing style emphasizing physical comedy and disorder.
