Life, 1889-12-26 · page 30 of 55
Life — December 26, 1889 — page 30: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine presents a romantic poem titled "What Shall I Call My Love?" by Wilson K. Welsh, accompanied by an ornamental portrait illustration of a woman's profile in an oval frame, surrounded by decorative flowers (appearing to be daisies or chrysanthemums). The poem is a clever wordplay exercise—a extended conceit where the speaker proposes various abstract qualities as names for his beloved: Revenge, Conscience, Experience, Economy, Consistency, Knowledge, Ignorance, Learning, Brevity, Silence, and History. Each name plays on a familiar saying or proverb (e.g., "Revenge is sweet," "Ignorance is bliss," "Silence gives consent"). The satire targets sentimental Victorian love poetry and masculine romantic posturing. Rather than describing the woman herself, the speaker reduces her to abstract concepts and generic compliments ("winsome elf," "virgin charms"). The final joke—calling her "History" hoping "she'll repeat herself"—mocks both romantic cliché and male presumption about women's roles and predictability. This represents early 20th-century genteel humor for educated readers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
WHAT SHALL I CALL MY LOVE? F there be truth in ancient saws, It surely would be meet ‘That I should call my love * Revenge"— They say Revenge is sweet. Or I might name her ** Conscience,” who Makes cowards of us all; Or her that teaches more than books} ‘* Experience” I might call. “Economy” is wealth, they say— She's wealth enough for me; ** Consistency’s " a jewel, and A jewel, too, is she. Or "* Knowledge” wodld be apt and true, For that is power I wis Yet might I dub her * Ignerance "— For Ignorance is bliss. And, yet again, she drives us mad, So '' Learning" would befit. And she'd do grace to *' Brevity,” For she's the soul of wit, But when before her virgin charms My suppliant knee is bent, I'd like to call her ** Silence "— for T ‘is Silence gives consent. And ‘f in these triumphant arms I hold the winsome elf, T'll call her ‘* History,” in the hope ‘That she'll repeat herself. Wilson K. Welsh, comicbooks.com