Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, October 1921 · page 32 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #25 — page 32: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from the satirical magazine contains several brief humorous items: **The Drug Store Joke**: A stranger winking while asking for a "good drug store" suggests he's seeking illegal alcohol during Prohibition. The villager's reply—"You're talking to one right now"—implies pharmacies were fronts for bootleg liquor sales, a common satirical target of the era. **The Two Tommies**: Likely British soldiers ("Tommy" being slang for British infantrymen), this dialogue jokes about facial hair and self-image through mirrors—mild humor about vanity. **Bobbie's Logic**: A child refuses to kiss a lady, fearing she'll slap him "like she did Papa," implying marital discord or the woman's volatile temperament. The humor relies on childish innocence revealing adult domestic friction. **That's Righto!**: The final piece contrasts material wealth with family devotion, suggesting a working man's love from his family and children rivals a millionaire's status. References to "Babe Ruth" (baseball celebrity) and "High-Gate Pete" (unclear figure) emphasize this sentimental value system.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
30 Captain Billy's Whiz Bang Stranger (winking): Can you direct me to a good drug store? Villager: You're talking to one right now. * * * The ocean wearily exclaimed, “Incessantly I go; I wonder that I don't get corns Upon my undertow.” * * * The first Tommy was ruddy of complexion, with a huge growth of beard of the hue known as auburn. The second was smooth shaven. Said the latter: “I useter have a beard like that till I saw myself in the glass. Then I cut it off.” But the bearded man was not dismayed. “Much better ’ave left it on, mate,” he re-turned gently. “I useter have a face like yours till I saw it in the glass. Then I growed this beard.” * * * How Do They Get That Way? Mother—Come, Bobbie, don't be a little sav-age—kiss the lady. Bobbie—No, she's a naughty lady. If I kiss her she may give me a slap just like she did Papa. * * * That's Righto! The man who has the love and confidence of a good woman, and whom the children run to meet when he is coming home from his work at night, may no be rated as a millioaire, by Bad Street and Done, but High-Gate Pete has him pretty well lined up in the Babe Ruth class!