Life, 1887-12-15 · page 11 of 16
Life — December 15, 1887 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine Page 351: Satire and Social Commentary This page from the satirical magazine *Life* contains several standalone jokes and illustrated pieces mocking contemporary society: **"Rachmbunctius"** ridicules a careless druggist who confuses measurements (drachm/lachm/dachmn—intentionally garbled weights), showing professional incompetence with casual indifference. **"The Story of Narcissus"** illustrates three panels from classical mythology, likely contrasting vanity with modern themes (unclear without fuller context). **"Old and New"** satirizes generational conflict: old-fashioned adults annoyed by children who modernize spelling ("Holiday" instead of traditional forms), plus commentary on professional greed (eye doctors and dentists charging fees rather than practicing reciprocal justice). **"The Troubled Waters of True Love"** mocks a young man's desperate financial situation—forced to accept a ring's resale value (five dollars) after originally paying fifteen, accepting this loss as fortunate. The closing aphorism jokes about practical ignorance being acceptable when one has tools to compensate. Overall, these pieces satirize professional dishonesty, generational change, commercialism, and human foolishness.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
- LIFE: 354 RACHMBUNCTIUS. DRUGGIST who thought that a drachm, Was equal in weight to a lachmb, When charged by the boss For causing a loss, Replied, ‘* I don’t care a dachmn.”” We P. HE Manchester Union, in an account of a recent stabbing affray in that city, says the victim was “stabbed at the south end.” But it doesn’t say whether such wounds are fatal or not. THE STORY OF NARCISSUS. Patient: VE TAKEN ALL THE MEDICINE YOU SENT EXCEPT THIS ONE HOTTLE AND I DON'T SEEM TO FEEL ANY BETTER. Doctor: VOURS MUST BE AN AGGRAVATED CASE, FARMER ACORN's COW WAS TOOK DOWN AT THE SAME TIME YOU WUZ, AN’ I GIV' HER JUST THE SAME MED'CINE EXACTLY, AN’ IT CURED Aer, OLD AND NEW. LD CHRISTMAS (¢o children blowing horns): You young imps! Why do you disturb a Holyday this way ? CHORUS OF SMALL Boys: Yah, yah, old fossil! We spell it Holiday now. A_N oculist doesn’t want an eye for an eye, and a dentist doesn’t want a tooth for a tooth, They want $.... THE TROUBLED WATERS OF TRUE LOVE. OUNG MAN (fo jeweler): You can only allow me five dollars for the ring ? JEWELER: That's all. YouNG MAN: But you charged me fifteen for it a month ago! JEWELER: Exactly. YOUNG MAN (sadly): Well, give me the five dollars. I s'pose I ought to be thankful that I got the ring back at all. T isn’t necessary for a man to know enough to go in when it rains, if he has an umbrella. comicbooks.com