Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Uncle Sam is Over Here!

American intervention in the war really was very important. The other combatants were truly stretched to the limit. Now vast numbers of fresh troops arrived full of optimism. They were enthusiastically welcomed by the Allies and feared by the Central Powers as they were called.

This actual joke hardly reflects the enormous significance of the arrival of the American army. Together with the plethora of food riots within Germany this is why the war ended when it did.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Americans Again

Convalescing soldiers all wore blue jackets and trousers, a white shirt and a red tie. Again the American contribution to the war is only mentioned indirectly.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: No email

The soldier is practising the state of the art communication system, 1918 style. Until fairly recently communication in the military was always a very chancy business. For semaphore you needed line of sight contact and properly trained signallers. This implied good weather and good visibility. Without those ingredients it was down to sending a messenger.

In the cartoon the two ladies seem unconcerned with the soldier’s need to be on top of his subject.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Animals on short rations

A bit of whimsy about a real problem. The humans were on quite short rations. There was just about enough to eat but the margin was quite small. In Germany the rations had become really inadequate.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Slumming again

George Belcher consistently visits scenes ignored by the rest of Mr Punch’s cartoonists. He doesn’t usually poke fun at the ‘lower orders’ but this time he surely is doing just that,

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Heavy Work

Bath-chairs feature regularly in Punch. The idea was to supply fresh air and a change of scenery to people who were too ‘ill’ to walk. The man pushing the chair is clearly doing heavy work but the powers that be don’t include him in their regulations. It is not at all clear that he is going to be generously rewarded by his current passenger.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Cinema very much present

Two convalescing Tommies contemplating a visit to the cinema. Still silent, of course, but becoming very popular.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Corpulent bather mistaken for a mine

A possible real-life episode. The war has reached every aspect of contemporary life.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: The war brings two different worlds in contact with each other.

But for the war this conversation would not have taken place. Of course ‘Miss’ Giles does not take anything for freckles. She had never been aware that there was anything you could take.

Re: The Pages of Punch

1918: Banter in a military hospital

Many romances really did follow the coming together of wounded soldiers and marriageable nurses.