Life, 1887-05-05 · page 11 of 16
Life — May 5, 1887 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine Page 253: Content Explanation This page contains three separate humorous pieces typical of early 20th-century satirical magazines: 1. **Top illustration**: "Previous Training" depicts a new servant being instructed to serve champagne by saying "when" to stop pouring—a basic etiquette lesson, likely mocking nouveau riche or untrained domestic help. 2. **"Strange!"**: A sentimental poem about romantic rejection, playing on the melodramatic tone of period literature. 3. **Boston feet joke**: A pun mocking Bostonians' supposedly large feet, with wordplay on "soles" (feet vs. character/morality). 4. **Drunk humor**: A short quip suggesting alcohol promotes "reel fun" (likely a dance pun). 5. **"The Uncivilized Bear and the Civilized Bare"**: A fable contrasting a bear comfortable in summer with a shirtless young man suffering in his retained coat year-round. The moral sarcastically suggests "civilization" causes unnecessary suffering—a critique of social convention and class-bound behavior. The page exemplifies Life's mix of social satire, wordplay, and gentle mockery of contemporary manners and pretension.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
PREVIOUS TRAINING. The New Servant (beginning to pour the champagne): SAY WHEN. STRANGE! was Rose that turned my head, last June, With airy phrases uttered wittily ; And Rose that stole my boyish heart, Coquetting cruelly, but prettily. "Twas Rose whose blushes swept her cheek All through the tender songs she lilted me ; And yet—hine ille lachryme— When autumn came, "twas Rose that jilted me! MEW. OSTONIANS consider Mr. Riddle’s assertion that their feet are notoriously large as a deserved tribute to the broadness of their understanding. Mr. Riddle should remem- ber that large feet are symbolical of great soles. O'R friend the inebriate states that there is nothing like drink to promote reel fun. THE UNCIVILIZED BEAR AND THE CIVILIZED BARE. YOUNG man who had foolishly pawned his overcoat before the bleak winds of March had ceased, was gazing at a polar bear in a menagerie. | “Why do you shiver?” said the bear. | “I envy you your warm coat,” responded the youth. “ Ah, if you only wait until the summer,” said the bear, “you will see me suffer more than you do.” But when the summer came and the bear was luxuriously | disporting himself in the cool bath furnished by his owners, | he saw the young man sweltering under the same coat he had worn in the spring. Which shows that the savage has no appreciation of the benefits of civilization. | “THACKERAY'S LETTERS.”—W. M. T. comicbooks.com