Life, 1886-09-02 · page 12 of 16
Life — September 2, 1886 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine Satire Analysis The main illustration shows Victorian-era beachgoers swimming and enjoying summer, with a capsized boat—a lighthearted scene titled "The Pleasures of Summer Bathing." The "Scraps" section consists of brief satirical quips mocking contemporary topics: - A joke about a calculating dog reflects skepticism of dubious claims in newspaper reporting - The "Virtue in Washington" article joke implies Washington politics lack virtue - Gum-chewing as "jawgraphy" puns on jaw/geography - A jab at the Boston Journal's question about future fuel predicts hell/damnation for unchristian lives - The Pennsylvania coal boycott pun ("running into the ground") plays on coal mining - A dig at John L. Sullivan (likely the famous boxer) mocks his intelligence - The Irish dialect joke defines "posthumous works" as writings after death The lower cartoon depicts a woman teaching a man to mix a drink with lemon peel, playing on his drunken confusion about ingredients—typical Victorian humor about alcohol. Overall, the page offers light social satire typical of 19th-century American humor magazines.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE PLEASURES OF SUMMER BATHING. SCRAPS. S* NICHOLAS tells of a dog that can compute figures. It is probably a lame dog that puts down three, and carries one. * * * CHURCH organ in this city has an article on “ Virtue in Washington.” into humor at times. * * * 6¢ TS gum chewing recognized as a regular course of study in our schools ?” asks a New Orleans paper. Certainly A course in jawgraphy. * * * it is. HE Boston Journal of Commerce asks: “What will be the fuel of the future?” Such of us as are living Christian lives have been taught to believe it will be brimstone. * * * COAL mine in Pennsylvania has been boycotted. This is running the thing into the ground. * * * BOSTON amateur photographer has just had made E have received Wade's Fibre and Fabric, a practi- cal journal devoted to the cotton and woolen trades. We are glad to notice that it takes no part in politics. When it does it will have to be rechristened the Fvbber and | Fabricator. Even staid church papers will drop by a New York firm, the largest camera ever manu- | factured in this country. He probably desires to make a photograph of John L. Sullivan's opinion of himself. A NEW DEFINITION. RIDGET: Pat, phwat’s “ posthumous worruks ?” Pat: Begorra, an’ it’s worruks a man writes afther he is dead. She: Wuy, HENRY, WHAT IS THE MATTER? He: M’ Love, I—HIC—LEMON PEEL THREW ME DOWN. ‘She: LEMON PEEL, YES; AND WHAT WERE THE OTHER | INGREDIENTS ? comicbooks.com