Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, April 1921 · page 28 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #19 — page 28: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a dirty joke playing on the phrase "piece of resistance" (a choice dish). A girl claims she fears being overpowered in a lonely ravine, but then helpfully explains *exactly* how the man could restrain himself to kiss her anyway—by securing his encumbrances (kettle, chicken, goat, cane). The man takes her advice and kisses her. The punchline subverts expectations: the girl claims she "let" him kiss her only because *he* threatened to scream—reversing the typical sexual-threat dynamic and suggesting her initial resistance was calculated manipulation rather than genuine fear. The humor relies on implying the girl orchestrated the situation to appear virtuous while getting what she wanted.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
26 Captain Billy's Whiz Bang “Piece de Resistance” A girl was walking along a road, and a young man along another. The roads finally united, the man and woman reaching the junction at the same time, walked on from there together. The man was carrying a large iron kettle on his back. In one hand he held, by the legs, a live chicken, in the other a cane, and he was leading a goat. Just as they were coming to a deep ravine the girl said to the young man: “I’m afraid to go through that ravine with you, it is a lonely place and you might overpower me and kiss me by force—!”” “How can I possibly kiss you by force,” he asked, “when I have this iron kettle on my back, and a cane in one hand, and a live chicken in the other, and am leading this goat? I might as well be tied hand and foot!”” “True,” replied the girl, “but if you should stick your cane into the ground and tie the goat to it, and turn the kettle upside down and put the chicken under it, then you might wickedly kiss me in spite of my resistance!”” “I should never have thought of that,” he said. And when he came to the ravine, he stuck his cane into the ground and tied the goat to it, and, lowering the kettle from his shoulders, imprisoned the fowl under it, and kissed the girl! * * * Bess—“Why did you let him kiss you?”” Tess—“He threatened to scream if I didn’t.””