Life, 1888-12-27 · page 39 of 43
Life — December 27, 1888 — page 39: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces typical of early-20th-century American humor: **"According to Length"** (top): A domestic comedy joke mocking husbands' incompetence in the kitchen. Edwin claims to know how to cook but cannot answer a simple question about cooking time, instead asking his wife how long *the chicken* is—absurdly literal and unhelpful. **"A Good Sneeze"** (main illustration): Shows a wealthy gentleman's Christmas act of charity backfiring. He buys a doll for a poor girl he encounters, intending generous goodwill. However, the caption reveals his gift becomes a neighborhood spectacle—other impoverished children swarm him afterward, making him "run the gauntlet" of their expectations and pleas. The satire mocks how charity, even well-intentioned, can create awkward social consequences and attract unwanted attention from the deserving poor. Both pieces reflect period attitudes about class, domesticity, and the complications of benevolence.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
*- LIFE: ACCORDING TO LENGTH. OUNG HOUSEWIFE (to husband, who says he knows how to cook): How long do you broil a chicken, Edwin? Oh—er—how long is the chicken ? A GOOD SNEEZE. ONE CHRISTMAS MORNING THIS BENEVOLENT OLD TOOK A STROLL THROUGH THE POVERT' OUR GREAT CITY, , SE AT A DOLL I ON HIS WAY, NTLEMAN STRICKEN PORTION OF ING A LITTLE GIRL GAZING WISTFULLY PURCHASED IT FOR HER, AND WENT NO ALL THE RETTER FOR THE HAPPINESS HY ITTLE SOUL, a GIFT HAD REEN SHOWN TO THE ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD, AND THE GAUNTLET HE HAD TO RUN IN CONSEQUENCE WAS VERY TRYING, comicbooks.com