Life, 1890-01-02 · page 1 of 16
Life — January 2, 1890 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "The Sportsman's Paradise" (Life Magazine, January 2, 1890) This cartoon depicts a horse-drawn cart carrying two men on a country road, captioned "The Sportsman's Paradise." The dialogue mocks rural English hunting culture: a Westchester host boasts to a visiting Englishman that "this is a great hunting country," but the guest responds sarcastically, "You don't say so." The host then claims "you can smell anise here most of the year." The humor appears to satirize American pretensions to English sporting traditions. The punchline—suggesting the area smells of anise (possibly implying cheap whiskey or inferior conditions)—mocks both the host's exaggerated claims and the gap between American and English sporting standards. The illustration style and setting suggest this targets wealthy American landowners aping British country-gentleman culture during the Gilded Age.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
OLUME XV. NEW YORK, JANUARY 2, 1890. Entered at the New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter, Copyright, 1890, by Mrrcuex, & Mier, THE SPORTSMAN’S PARADISE. Westchester Host (to visiting Englishman): THIS 18 A GREAT HUNTING COUNTY, YOU KNOW. Englishman : YOU DON'T SAY SO. Host: OH, YES, INDEED! YOU CAN SMELL ANISE HERE MOST OF THE YEAR. comicbooks.com