Life, 1886-01-21 · page 1 of 16
Life — January 21, 1886 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "A Tidy Vintage, Y' Know" This satirical cartoon depicts two men at a restaurant table. The dialogue reveals the joke: Young Hobson complains about "beastly stuff" on the bill of fare, while Uncle John responds that items are "in their own importation, from the Box and Cox Company (Limited), Merchants to His Highness, the Prince of Wales." Young Hobson then suggests having "another bottle." The satire targets Victorian-era social pretension and name-dropping. By attributing ordinary restaurant fare to suppliers of the Prince of Wales, the cartoon mocks how merchants and establishments inflated their status through royal patronage. The punch line—ordering more wine despite complaints—suggests the young man cares more about appearing sophisticated than actual quality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
2 YORK, JANU Entered at New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 188s, by MITCHELL & MILLER. Grower ites br eganvrewen> A TIDY VINTAGE, Y’ KNOW. Young Hobson: WHAT BEASTLY STUFF THIS 13, Uncle John: THEY SAY ON THE BILL OF FARE IT IS THEIR OWN IMPORTATION, FROM THE Box anp Cox COMPANY (LIMITED), WINE MERCHANTS TO His HIGHNESS, THE PRINCE OF WALES. Young Hobson; Baw Jove! LET'S HAVE ANOTHER BOTTLE. comicbooks.com