Dr. Monk, the Jungle Dentist

This six-panel strip follows Dr. Monk, a dentist, as he treats a large ape patient in the jungle. The humor unfolds through visual escalation: the ape initially requests tooth extraction, then describes severe pain, then reveals the solution involves unconventional powder. The sequence culminates in slapstick chaos as the treatment spectacularly backfires, with the ape's violent reaction sending Dr. Monk flying. The strip exemplifies early newspaper comic conventions: recurring character, sequential panels advancing a single gag, speech balloons carrying dialogue and reaction, and exaggerated body language for comedic effect. The detailed cross-hatching and expressive line work were typical of turn-of-the-century newspaper illustration, when Sunday pages and daily strips served as laboratories for the visual grammar that would define American comics.