Life, 1887-05-12 · page 1 of 16
Life — May 12, 1887 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of "Life" Magazine Page, May 12, 1887 This page contains a satirical cartoon titled "All Things Come to Him Who Waits," depicting a domestic scene where a husband complains about lunch costs. **The Joke:** Charles spent only 75 cents on lunch (bread and milk), but his wife questions the expense. He defends himself, revealing he actually paid 25 cents for bread and milk, with 50 cents going to the waiter as a tip—an absurdly generous gratuity that defeats the purpose of economizing. **The Satire:** The cartoon mocks middle-class anxieties about household expenses and servant/worker wages during the Gilded Age. It satirizes both husbands' attempts at frugality and the tipping culture that undermined such efforts, presenting the economic tensions between employers and service workers in American society.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Ubio, letely wn itt vails, sville other roped joney paper once. ser, Riley, 0. VOLUME. IX. NEW YORK, MAY 12, 1887. Entered at New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1887, by Mircuatt & Miter. ALL THINGS COME TO HIM WHO WAITS. Charley; MY LUNCH TO-DAY ONLY COST ME SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS. His Wife: THAT WaS CHEAP, DEAR; WHAT DID YOU HAVE? Charley: BREAD AND MILK. His Wife: ISN'T SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS A GOOD DEAL FOR BREAD AND MILK ? Charley: OW, NO, TWENTY-FIVE CENTS FOR THE BREAD AND MILK AND FIFTY CENTS TO THE WAITER. comicbooks.com