A complete issue · 16 pages · 1877
Puck — October 31, 1877
# "The Cigar Makers Strike" This 1877 cartoon satirizes a labor dispute involving cigar manufacturers. The caption quotes Puck (the magazine's mascot): "If these are the things I've got to smoke, I'll strike, myself." The cartoon depicts cigar makers in what appears to be a workshop, with one figure holding up a poorly made cigar as evidence of the strike's impact. The joke plays on dual meanings of "strike"—both the labor action and the act of striking/hitting. The satire criticizes either the quality of strike-replacement cigars or suggests that even the magazine's mascot would protest working conditions by refusing inferior products. This reflects late-19th-century labor tensions and consumer concerns about product quality during labor disputes.
# "PUCK" Magazine Page Analysis This page consists primarily of **text articles and commentary** rather than political cartoons. The main content includes: 1. **"Jenkins Again"** — satire mocking sensational newspaper coverage of a young woman (apparently named Jenkins or Delaware) and her romantic entanglements, critiquing how society papers obsess over trivial society gossip. 2. **"The Earl King"** — a humorous poem parodying Goethe, likely satirizing romantic or melodramatic literary conventions. 3. **"Simon Cameron"** — commentary on a Pennsylvania politician, calling him a "chicken" and referencing his unpopularity, with criticism of his Civil Service record. 4. **"Ash-Cart Bells in Baxter Street"** — an anecdote about street sweeper Bill Buggins. The page emphasizes **satirical social commentary** over visual cartoons, typical of Puck's editorial approach to American politics and society.
This page from Puck magazine contains two distinct sections: the left column features "Memoirs of a Suicide," a dark satirical narrative about a man's repeated failed suicide attempts using increasingly absurd methods (hot frog soup, indigestion, hanging, immersion). The piece satirizes both the desperation of poverty and the incompetence of the suicidal protagonist. The right column, "Answers for the Curious," presents reader responses to various submitted queries about social etiquette and personal matters. These brief advice-style responses offer humorous commentary on contemporary social conventions and personal problems. Without visible illustrations on this page, the satire relies entirely on written content—typical of Puck's mix of humor targeting 19th-century American social conditions and personal foibles. The suicide narrative particularly satirizes economic hardship and despair.
