Life, 1889-02-28 · page 5 of 22
Life — February 28, 1889 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis This page contains three separate humorous pieces from Life magazine: 1. **"The Emptiness of Life"** (top): A sketch showing an opera box or theater balcony filled with well-dressed society women. The caption describes Mrs. Swift's unhappiness despite attending social events—her journey from Chicago, divorce proceedings, and court appearances have left her exhausted and jaded. The satire targets wealthy women's shallow social lives and the emptiness of their leisure pursuits. 2. **"He Wanted Repose"** (bottom left): A brief exchange between a Tramp and De Pyster about sleeping rough versus getting shelter. The joke is that even destitute men prefer quiet rest to noisy urban life. 3. **"Keep It Warm"** (bottom right): Wordplay humor between a dude (wealthy gentleman) and a waiter, with the dude repeatedly requesting warm items (coat, cane) as double-entendre, likely suggesting intoxication.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
HE EMPTINESS OF LIFE. “You LOOK UNHAPPY TO-NIGHT, MRS, SWIFT. FROM CHICAGO HAS PROBABLY FATIGUED YoU.” “WELL, YES; AND THEN I FEEL TERRIBLY DISCOURAGED. WHFY I OBTAINED MY FIRST DIVORCE IT WAS THE SENSATION OF TH= DAY; THE SECOND ATTRACTED-SOME ATTENTION; BUT YESTERDAY THERE WERE NOT HALF A DOZEN PEOPLE IN THE COURT-ROOM,” YouR JOURNEY HE WANTED REPOSE. RAMP: Say, Mister, kin ye gimme two cents to git over to Brooklyn? DE PEYSTER: What do you want to go over there for? TRAMP: Well, Mister, it’s just this: I suppose I’ve got to sleep all night in the streets, but I'd prefer to do it ina quiet town, anyway! ON’T be angry when the photographer tells you to smile. Grin and bear it. KEEP IT WARM. UDE (entering Delmontco's, to waiter; the dude car- ries a heavy stick with an enormous horse's head): Hat, waiter ! WAITER: Yes, sir. DuDE: Coat, waiter! WAITER: Yes, sir. DUDE: Cane, waiter! WAITER: Yes, sir. Have it blanketed, sir?