Go Away

Probably the best remembered theme of "The Squirrel Cage" was that the other unnamed players were often trying to get The Little Hitchhiker to go away. There are probably hundreds of strips built around this, often ending with our bearded friend somehow benefitting from any attempts to remove him. This was something Ahern had first played with in "The Squirrel Cage" in 1937, but with an unwanted neighbor as the target. Here are a few examples:

Although Ahern soon did away with this character, he realized that the theme was a good one. It would not be long before The Little Hitchhiker became the eyesore of our two "normal" friends. Here are some examples from the early 1940s based on getting rid of The Little Hitchhiker.