Life, 1883-09-20 · page 14 of 16
Life — September 20, 1883 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**The Visual Content:** Two parallel sketches labeled "Horn of Plenty" and "Plenty of Horn" depict contrasting domestic scenes—one showing a man generously distributing goods to a gathering of people, the other showing a man with a horn (trumpet) making noise while children and figures react. **The Satire:** "The Difference" plays on the double meaning of "horn"—abundance versus noise/disruption. The juxtaposition mocks how similar situations can have opposite outcomes: genuine plenty versus empty spectacle or annoyance. **The Text:** The poem "Pantoum" by H. L. Satterlee is a romantic August reverie about a young woman ("Polly") and a declaration of love in nature. **The Anecdote:** Below describes an English cattle-dealer who posed as a preacher, delivering sermons about sorrow and separation, then absconded with debts—literally "practicing what he preached" as a cruel joke, ironically embodying the sermon's themes of abandonment. The page combines sentimental poetry with caustic social commentary on hypocrisy and deception.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE DIFFERENCE, Horn oF PLenty, PLenty or Horn, PANTOUM. IN AUGUST, RIGHT shines the sun overhead, (Hear the wind rustle the trees !) Mid-summer clovers are red, Tempting to pilfering bees. Hear the wind rustle the trees, Running in waves through the corn, Tempting to pilfering bees. Brilliant and fair is the morn. Running in waves through the corn, Bending its loftiest plume, Brilliant and fair is the morn, Scented with flow’ry perfume. Bending its loftiest plume, What does it hear in the air, Scented with flow’ry perfume, Tossing the curls in her hair? What does it hear in the air? What can it see in her eyes? Tossing the curls in her hair, Polly looks up in surprise. What can it see in her eyes? “ Darling, I love you,” I say. Polly looks up in surprise,— What do her glances betray ? “Darling, I love you,” I say, Drawing her close to my breast. What do her glances betray ? Only the leaves know the rest. Drawing her close to my breast, (Bright shines the sun overhead,) Only the leaves know the rest. Mid-summer clovers are red. H. L. SATTERLEE. Aw English cattle-dealer, who also acted in the réle of local preacher, gave a sermon on the text: “Sorrowing most of all for the words that he spake, that they should see his face no more; and they accompanied him unto the ship.” A few days later he absconded leaving behind him heavy debts and sorrowing creditors. This was practising ‘what he preached, to the extent of a practical joke. comicbooks.com