Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, March 1921 · page 47 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #18 — page 47: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains four brief humor pieces typical of 1920s American satirical magazines: 1. **"Ahoy, Liza's Fig Tree!"** — A racist joke about a Black soldier returning from WWI France, using dehumanizing language and the stereotype that Black Americans were preoccupied with lynching (the "tree" reference). 2. **"Something to Worry About"** — A one-liner about Persian social customs, presented as exotic trivia. 3. **"Customer in soft drink parlor"** — A Prohibition-era joke: the customer requests flies be killed from his non-alcoholic drink, implying he wants actual alcohol ("kick") rather than the weak substitute. 4. **"Squaring Himself"** — A domestic humor piece where Jones insults Robinson's wife, then recovers by claiming his own wife is even uglier—a "compliment" through relative comparison. The content reflects period attitudes: casual racism, Prohibition commentary, and gendered domestic humor. These jokes would be considered offensive today.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang 45 Ahoy, Liza's Fig Tree! Returning from France, a colored trooper was awakened from his nap on the deck by a companion who shouted to him to get up and look at a passing sail boat. “Niggah,” drowsily answered the reclined troop-er, “Don’t you all waken me agin till we pass a tree.” * * * Something to Worry About In Persia boys and girls never play together. * * * Customer in soft drink parlor—Hey there, bar-tender, stop killing those flies! Don’t you suppose I want a little kick in my beer? * * * Squaring Himself Everyone has heard authentic stories of the man who asked another: “Who is that old slob over yon-der?” and got the reply: “She is my wife.” But the story doesn’t go far enough. Jones observed an old lady sitting across the room. “For heaven’s sake!” he remarked to Robinson, “who is that extraordinarily ugly woman there?” “That,” answered Robinson, “is my wife.” Jones was taken aback, but moved up front again. “Well,” he said persuasively, “you just ought to see mine!”