Captain Billy's Whiz Bang, December 1924 · page 33 of 71
Captain Billy's Whiz Bang #67 — page 33: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three pieces of early 20th-century American humor: **"Playing Table Stakes"** is a innuendo-laden joke about Mah Jong (a Chinese tile game popular in the 1920s). The humor relies on a double meaning: losing game pieces under the table becomes an excuse for couples to be physically close while searching. **"Modern Mother Goose Rhymes"** satirizes Prohibition (the alcohol ban 1920-1933). "Old Mother Hubbard" parodies the nursery rhyme, but her cupboard is bare because "dry agents" (federal Prohibition enforcement officers) have confiscated alcohol. This mocks the unpopular enforcement of Prohibition. **"Was It a Hint?"** jokes about printing terminology. The man's romantic request to "print a kiss" prompts the woman to sarcastically demand formal disclosure statements about "management, ownership, etc."—applying bureaucratic/legal language absurdly to physical affection. The final line about bachelors and women's "backbone" suggests women showed more moral courage or independence than men. All three jokes reflect 1920s American social attitudes and anxieties.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
=[Farmyard Fun and Filosophy]= Playing Table Stakes “Do you like Mah Jong? I don’t think there’s any fun in it.” “Oh, I do! Play it with your girl, and when you lose a dragon, or the east wind blows on the floor, you and your girl can look for them under the table.” “Yes, but where’s the fun?” “The fun is under the table.” * * * MODERN MOTHER GOOSE RHYMES Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard To get her old man a “shot” But when she got there The cupboard was bare — Dry agents had cornered the lot. Was It a Hint? He— “May I print a kiss on your ruby lips?” She— “Go ahead, but you know a printer has to make a statement as to the management, ownership, etc.” * * * Bachelors admit that women display more backbone than men. =[31]=