Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #3 — page 51: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page contains three humorous short pieces typical of 1920s satirical magazines: 1. **"Soft Bosoms Only"**: A joke about a woman shopping for a shirt for her ill husband who must avoid starch—the clerk's misunderstanding of "soft bosom" (shirt front) plays on double entendre. 2. **"That Shiftless Shavetail"**: A military joke about a young, inexperienced officer (shavetail = junior officer slang). Soldiers mock him with a Biblical reference ("a little child shall lead them"), and the officer retaliates by ordering a grueling 25-mile march—a classic power-play punchline. 3. **"Sayings of the Famous"**: A list of catchphrases attributed to frontier/outlaw figures (Blackjack Pete, Poker John, etc.), presenting colorful period-appropriate slang. The humor relies on wordplay, military hierarchy satire, and period vernacular.