Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, March 1921 · page 50 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #18 — page 50: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains several short humorous pieces typical of 1920s satirical magazines: **"Good Advice"** mocks Victorian propriety through a mother warning her daughter against ice-skating tricks. The joke: performing a "figure 8" will make her look foolish, particularly when her "bustle" (the padded rear of women's clothing) becomes visible during skating movements. It satirizes both outdated fashion and overly cautious parenting. **"Sign in Natchez"** is a brief joke about carelessness at a Natchez bank that must repeatedly ask patrons not to leave small change on counters. **"Latest Ballad"** and subsequent items are absurdist wordplay and puns: a bee gasping about a "bull," a cook who's an ex-umpire shouting baseball terminology about pancakes. The final piece comments on magazine covers featuring scantily-clad women—a common complaint about 1920s publication practices. Overall, the page reflects *Whiz Bang's* style: lowbrow humor mixing sexual innuendo, puns, and social observation aimed at working-class readers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
48 Captain Billy's Whiz Bang Good Advice “Mother, may I go out to skate?” “Yes, my darling Julia, But don’t you try the figure 8, For it will surely fool ya! Just as you make a fancy whirl To show your springy muscle, The boys will see a foolish girl, Sleigh-riding on her bustle.” * * * —Brutus. Sign in Natchez Patrons depositing in this bank are respectfully requested not to leave any small change on the counter. Natchez must indeed be careless. * * * Latest Ballad We will now sing: “The Liveryman’s Sweet Daughter; All But Me Knew Her.” * * * “Sweet Patootie!” gasped the bee, as he pushed his head high enough to get a breath of fresh air, “Bees may come and bees may go, but the Bull goes on forever.” * * * “Batter up for the wheatcakes,” shouted the cook in the beanery, who was an ex-umpire. * * * A successful magazine cover is one that has very little cover for the girl. * * * “Poor Fish!” I wish I was a fish, A-frozen in the ice; Then I could watch the girlies skate; Oh, wouldn’t that be nice!