Judge — March 27, 1920

# Content Summary This page is primarily **advertising, not satire or political content**. It's a full-page advertisement for "Everyman's Guide to Motor Efficiency," a technical manual about automobile care and repair published by Leslie-Judge Company in New York. The ad targets various audiences (owners, dealers, salesmen, drivers) and highlights the book's practical features: 320 pages, 269 illustrations, self-finding index, and tire/lubrication records. It promises to answer common automotive questions like "Why does the battery need distilled water?" and "How to stop a wheel from squeaking?" The price was $7.80, sold exclusively through Judge magazine. This reflects Judge's era—likely early-to-mid 20th century—when automotive ownership was becoming widespread and technical guidance was commercially valuable.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page, March 27, 1920 This is a satirical cartoon by Walter de Maris depicting two well-dressed people standing outside the Palace Theatre, considering whether to see "Moonshine Comedy." One person suggests they go elsewhere to "have a good cry instead," implying the film is so unfunny it's depressing. The joke likely references Prohibition (enacted January 1920), with "moonshine" being slang for illegally-distilled liquor. The cartoon satirizes either: (1) bad comedies made during Prohibition's early days, or (2) the absurdity of Prohibition itself as a source of dark humor rather than entertainment. The casual rejection of the theater suggests contemporary audiences found certain entertainment offerings disappointing during this period of social upheaval.

# "Sharper Than a Servant's Tooth" This cartoon satirizes wealthy leisure-class attitudes toward taxation and servants. The scene shows an elegantly dressed woman reclining on a sofa while a man stands in the background, apparently departing. The caption references "de Peyster riding about in a common, ordinary taxi" and jokes that he's "given up his limousine" because "the income-tax punctured all his tires." The humor targets the wealthy's complaints about income tax, personified as literal punctures destroying their luxurious automobiles—a metaphor for how taxation erodes their lifestyle. The small dog observing the scene adds domestic irony. The illustration mocks upper-class anxiety over newfound tax burdens, presenting their distress as trivial compared to servants' hardships (the proverb reference in the title).

# Analysis This satirical piece by Perriton Maxwell proposes a "Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution" titled "Down, Fido! Down!" It mocks what the author sees as excessive American freedom of speech and press. The cartoon depicts a man commanding a dog labeled with various vulgar slang terms (depicted as a list in the text). The satire argues that Americans have too much liberty—particularly regarding "booze-haters" and their prohibition activism. Maxwell suggests that certain offensive words should be eliminated from common vocabulary to maintain national decorum. The piece is fundamentally conservative satire opposing Prohibition's advocates and criticizing censorship of language. The dog imagery positions uncontrolled speech and vulgarity as something that needs disciplining, reflecting anxieties about social propriety during the Prohibition era.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page This page contains three distinct pieces of satirical content: **"His Deplorable Condition"** (right column): A dialogue between Gap Johnson and Jurd about rural hardship—starvation, crop failures, and inability to feed livestock. The satire targets rural poverty during what appears to be an agricultural crisis period. **"Compromise"** (left column): Commentary on marital compromise, where the author discusses "Big World Affairs" with his wife by reducing complex topics to domestic simplicity. The satire mocks both intellectual laziness and how serious matters get trivialized in casual conversation. **Lower cartoon**: "A Certain Carpenter Is Suspected of Intending to Build a House"—depicting what appears to be public suspicion or concern about construction plans, though the specific reference remains unclear without additional context. All three pieces employ Judge's characteristic satirical humor targeting contemporary social and economic conditions.

# The Artistic Assassin - Explanation for Modern Readers This is a satirical story by Cyril B. Egan about a narrator obsessed with murdering someone—likely a theatrical or literary rival—but paralyzed by aesthetic concerns rather than moral ones. The joke centers on the narrator's twisted priorities: he's determined to kill, but agonizes over *where* and *how* to do it artistically. He rejects Wall Street as "too commercial" and initially considers a Percy Mackaye play for privacy, before reconsidering due to taste. He references being "T. B. M. in taste" (unclear who this abbreviates), suggesting snobbish artistic pretension. The top cartoon shows crowded cars—likely mocking an insurance company's claim that certain people "live longer than Stout," implying the joke involves mortality or traffic accidents. The satire appears to mock the pretentious artistic world's self-absorbed concerns, where even murderous impulses must be filtered through refined sensibilities. It's dark comedy about bohemian affectation.

# Analysis of Judge Magazine Page **Top Cartoon ("The First Moving Picture Comedy"):** A man carries a portrait of another man away in a wheelbarrow. The accompanying text describes the narrator murdering someone (feeding him to tigers at the zoo) and receiving public approval—a dark satire on vigilante justice and mob sentiment. The joke mocks how the public celebrated extrajudicial killing without trial. **Bottom Section - Real Estate News:** This is thinly-veiled political satire. The "important transaction" describes a "choice mansion" on Pennsylvania Avenue being vacated on March 4, 1921—the White House. The text jokes about the sitting president's lease expiring and the property being offered to a new tenant "high in the national Government." This references President Woodrow Wilson's final day in office (March 4, 1921), when Warren G. Harding would assume the presidency. The estate-speak disguises commentary on executive transitions. The lower cartoon about obscurity is unrelated social humor.

# "The Mechanic" by Walt Mason (Judge Magazine) This is a humorous poem with accompanying cartoon, not political satire. The cartoon illustrates the written complaint: a weary poet/writer sits at his desk while a smiling mechanic stands nearby holding a bill, with an editor visible in the background. **The joke:** The narrator is a struggling writer who earns decent money from his work, but all his income gets consumed by an incompetent—or at least constantly-working—auto mechanic. His car perpetually breaks down, requiring expensive repairs. Meanwhile, his aunts and nieces need new clothes, creditors are at the door, and the sheriff awaits payment, yet the mechanic keeps extracting fees ("doubloons"). **The satire:** This reflects early-1900s frustration with the unreliability and high costs of automobile ownership—then a relatively new phenomenon. The mechanic becomes a comic villain, the modern equivalent of a parasitic drain on income, while the writer remains trapped toiling endlessly to support both his car and dependents.

# "The Mystery of Medicine" Page Analysis This page from *Judge* contains three satirical pieces: **"The Mystery of Medicine"** mocks doctors for deliberately obscuring their practices and finances. The Boston newspaper anecdote—"The doctor felt the patient's purse"—jokes that physicians diagnose based on ability to pay rather than actual illness. The essay satirizes medicine as inherently mysterious, comparing modern doctors to ancient Chinese practitioners who used dubious ingredients, arguing patients can't understand treatments anyway, so they should keep their finances equally opaque to protect themselves. **"His Adamantine Attitude"** ridicules an overzealous small-town constable (Slackputter in "Petunia") who declares two cars parked in a street "promiscuous" and refuses to listen to reason—illustrating foolish, inflexible authority. **"Judgment of a High-School Girl"** appears to reference President Wilson, praising his physical posture as representing his philosophical position—likely contemporary political commentary, though the specific context remains unclear. The page emphasizes satirizing institutional opacity and pompous authority figures.

# "Imagination" by J.A. Waldron This satirical story critiques romantic idealization and marital disillusionment. Melvin obsesses over a woman (Dora) as an idealized fantasy—he reconstructs her beauty imaginatively, like a biologist reconstructing prehistoric creatures from fragments. Upon marrying her, reality disappoints: she's naturally lazy and appears at breakfast unkempt, lacking the "personal preparation" he demands. His constant criticism about her dowdiness damages their affection rather than improving her habits. They separate, though divorce is deferred. The caption "The Charming Woman Did Not Move" suggests she refuses to change to meet his impossible standards. The satire targets masculine fantasy-projection in courtship—men creating imaginary perfection rather than accepting actual women—and the inevitable collision between imagination and reality in marriage. It's a critique of both male fastidiousness and the gap between romantic aspiration and domestic life.

# Analysis of "The Great Decision" This illustrated story, drawn by Warren de Maris, depicts a married man named Melvin who becomes infatuated with an unknown woman on a train. Glimpsing her through her lower berth curtain—noticing her hair, neck, and arms—he fantasizes about pursuing her, rationalizing that if she's single, he'd court her; if married, he'd pursue her anyway since "she was his fate." The satire targets masculine entitlement and rationalization of infidelity. Melvin's casual willingness to abandon his marriage ("A divorce was but a detail") and his scheme to engineer a breakfast encounter with a stranger reveal the era's critique of male hypocrisy. The porter and waiter's misinterpretations—assuming the woman must be a bride—add ironic commentary on how society romanticizes such meetings while ignoring moral implications. The "great decision" is Melvin's internal justification for potential infidelity.

This is a crowded street scene satirizing urban life, likely from the early 20th century. The cartoon depicts a chaotic neighborhood with various businesses (butcher shop, stationery store, grocer) and abundant children and activity in the streets. The central joke, revealed in the caption, involves "Deak Wheezle," who sold his 38-year-old horse to his mother for a hundred dollars—and the horse promptly dropped dead. The satire mocks both the absurdity of the transaction and the gullible mother who purchased such a decrepit animal. This reflects period humor about urban poverty, shabby commerce, and family dynamics in working-class neighborhoods where people might genuinely try to profit from worthless goods. The detailed street scene establishes the setting as a tenement district where such shady dealings were apparently common enough to warrant satirical comment.