Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, February 1922 · page 50 of 68
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #30 — page 50: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Captain Billy's Whiz Bang* (a WWI-era American humor magazine) contains a collection of brief jokes and witticisms rather than illustrated cartoons. The humor relies on wordplay and double meanings typical of the period: - **"Strike Three!"** jokes about loose-lipped romantics ending up married - **"She crept up to the scales"** puns on "weigh/way" - **"Motto for Poets"** uses sexual innuendo ("sucking") - **"Mr. Martin's Ferry" complaint** appears self-referential—the magazine joking about writing jokes on thin paper so readers could see through them - **"Mary's Lamb"** plays on the nursery rhyme while making suggestive comments about "calves" - The final exchange is straightforward advice The publication's humor is crude, risqué by period standards, and relies heavily on puns and double entendres. There are no identified political figures or caricatures—just generic social commentary presented as joke collections.
📄 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 Longfellow A tramp sat in the doorway of the box car, his feet dragging on the ground. * * * Strike Three! They are fools who kiss and tell, Thus it is the poet sings, But that is why so many girls Are sporting wedding rings. * * * SHE CREPT UP TO THE SCALES LIKE AN ARAB, AND SILENTLY STOLE A WEIGH. * * * Motto For Poets If at first you don't succeed, keep on suck- ing till you do suck seed. * * * Mr. Martin of Martin's Ferry, protests against us writing our jokes on tissue paper so that our Philadelphia friend could see through them. "Tearible," remarks Mr. Martin. * * * They are all roses, but some of them are pretty wild. * * * Will Be Dedicated By Request What care we for Mary's lamb, Now he's long been to sleep? We'd rather see her pretty calves Than those old, pesky sheep. * * * The cold weather chills me to the bone. You should wear a hat.