Life, 1889-06-20 · page 7 of 18
Life — June 20, 1889 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page 359 Analysis: Life Magazine Satire This page contains three separate satirical pieces: 1. **"A Close Competition"** (top): A cartoon depicting women boasting about their families' new possessions—horses, broughams, pianos, and cooks. The satire mocks upper-class women's competitive materialism and status-seeking through consumer goods. 2. **"An Optimist"** (right): A dialogue where a drunk husband claims he came home sober four of seven nights. The wife's pessimism contrasts with his self-deceptive optimism, satirizing both alcoholism and marital dynamics. 3. **"Reasonable"** (bottom): A lawyer's circular argument defending his client's sanity, suggesting the accused couldn't be insane because only a sane person would commit such a questionable act. The satire targets legal sophistry and absurd reasoning. The page also includes book reviews and advertisements typical of the period.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
359 AN OPTIMIST. IFE: This is the third time you have come home drunk this week. Hunsy: D-don’t be so p-pessi- mistic, my dear. You should think of the four nights I came home sober. £7 WANT to write a letter to the Secretary of the Nav Shall I address him as ‘ Your Ex- cellency ?"" “Oh, no; use the term, * Your Warship. as D° you want to buy this hand-book ? “Do you call that ponderous quarto a hand-book ?" “Certainly ;-#’s a work on palm- istry A CLOSE COMPETITION. NEW YORK drummer stum- “MY PAPA'S GOT SOME NEW HORSES AND A NICE NEW BROUGHAM.” * bled and fell in Hartford, WELL, MY PAPA'S GOING TO NUY A NEW YACHT, striking the pavement with his AND MY MAMMA'S GOT A LOVELY NEW PIANO,” cheek. The town sued him for “WELL—W—WELL, MY MAM&AIA‘S GOT A COOK THAT HAS STAYED TWO WEEKS!” the laboring classes of this country, entitled * The Tramp at Home” (Harper's); and John Durand’s translation from French archives of “New Materials for the History of the American Revolution (Holts). Droch. NEW BOOKS - CREAN: OR, THE MORMON'S DAUGHTER. Vy Alva Milton Kerr. Chicago, New Vork and San Francisco: Melford, Clarke & Co. The Prophet's Mantle, By land. Chicago, New York and San Francisco: Belford, Clarke & Co. Sin? By Mark Douglas, Philadelphia: T. B. Peterson & Ry Emerson Bennett. Philadelphia 3. Peterson By Bella French Swisher, New York: G. W. tealah.”” New York: G. W. Dill . y Ferd, C, Vale M.D. New York: G. W By Thomas Russell Row. REASONABLE. I AWYER (iit the not very déstant future): V have proof ~ positive that my client was insane at the time of this murder. Now, Witness, did you notice anything singular or erratic in the conduct of the accused lately ? Witness: No, sir: nothing whatever, LAWVER (Crviamuphantly): There, gentlemen of the jury, does that not confirm my claim? The unfortunate man was ‘ SMILING COUNT! CE AND THROW OFF THAT JADED LOOK ? certainly out of his head, or he would not have neglected to Rev. VV. Heighton: TAKE ME AS Laat, [SEED A VACATION perform some act in public which would render his sanity tis stmMer, AND THESE PICTURES AKE FOR DISTRIRUTION doubtful! AMONG RISHIONERS. STRATEGY. Photographer: MY DEAR SIR, CAN'T YOU ASSUME A MORE comicbooks.com