Life, 1890-07-10 · page 12 of 14
Life — July 10, 1890 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Incidents of New York's Water Famine" This satirical page documents a severe water shortage affecting New York City. The cartoons mock the crisis through exaggerated scenarios: **The situations depicted:** - A family debating whether to wash their child's face or cook potatoes, given water scarcity - A drunk man who substituted beer for water (the "saloon red" reference) - A man arrested and sentenced to six months for the "crime" of using city water to wash his face - Vagrants with no fixed residence, forced to board in Brooklyn **The satire's point:** The cartoons expose the absurdity and desperation of the water shortage by showing its ridiculous consequences—rationing basic hygiene, criminalizing normal washing, and driving people from the city. The page also includes unrelated gossip about explorers Livingstone and Stanley, and a quip about Benjamin Harrison's 1893 administration, suggesting this appeared around 1892.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
- LIFE: INCIDENTS OF NEW YORK’S WATER FAMINE. je Lees zt = i yh\ m \ WELL, CuAkLIE, WHAT WOULD WE BETTER DO, WASH Tosay's FACE, OR HAVE BOILED POTATOFS FOR DINNER ? “ VERY SORRISH, MY Love, BUT I (IIc) COULDN'T a a 7 = i . 7 GET WATER TO DRINK; HAD TO TAKE BEER (HIC). A NEW color is coming into fashion. It is called “Saloon red,” and is much used for decorative purposes. “GREEN OLD AGE” is the attribute of the venerable victim of the bunco man. ALWAYS in hot water—Heat. Judge: WHAT 18 THE CHARGE, OFFICER? Officer: USING THE CITY'S WATER TO WASH HIS FACE with. Judge: SIX MONTHS, HIS RESIDENCE. RIGGS: Where are you living now? GricGs: Nowhere. I'm boarding in Brooklyn. OW that Stanley has found Livingstone and res- cued Emin Pasha, he may have considerable = difficulty in striking another job suited to his talents ; HE WAS SO PLAINLY CHECKED, THE BAGGAGE MEN DID IT FROM FORCE OF HABIT, but if he can wait until 1893, he can get one looking for B. Harrison. comicbooks.com