Life, 1890-07-24 · page 3 of 16
Life — July 24, 1890 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis This page from *Life* magazine (Volume XVI, Number 295) contains three satirical pieces: **Top cartoon**: A romantic scene where a man proposes to a woman on a balcony, but she refuses to answer his question. The humor relies on her silent, dismissive response to his earnest proposal. **"It Did Not Match"**: A grocer-customer dialogue about a melon purchase. The joke is a simple pun—the customer complains the melon doesn't suit them because it's green, while they are not. **"As Matters Stand Now"** and subsequent dialogues: These appear to reference contemporary social/political figures (possibly including President Harrison based on the text mentioning "President Harrison"), though the specific context and identities aren't entirely clear from this page alone. The humor throughout is genteel, wordplay-based satire typical of early 20th-century American humor magazines.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
MAIN t Delncaicl t Astor How RAND! nef at OF NUMBER 395. He: O, PO SAY YOU WILL MARKY ME! WHY DON'T YOU ANSWER ? She (hesitating): ER—l—ER—ER— He: WY, ANYONE WOULD THINK I HAD ASKED YOU TO SING! os IT DIO NOT MATCH. ROCER : I'll sell you that melon for fifteen cents. CUSTOMER: That melon doesn’t suit me. GRocER: What's the trouble with it ? CUSTOMER: It’s green and I'm not. AS MATTERS STAND NOW. M® . FAKIR: Shall we invite President Harrison ? Mr. FAKIR: No, dear; we cannot afford to make him a present of a cottage, and you know he wouldn't come unless we did. Wisk I learn that my old friend, Minks, editor of the Daily Clarfon, was found dead in his office this morning. Foul play is suspected. J Had he been making many enemies lat WINKS: No, noncatall, He had stopped all sensationalism and was printing a pure, modest, highly moral family paper. JINKS: ‘Then he has not been murdered. He has simply starved to death. IFE.: What do you suppose baby is thinking about ? THe BRUTE: | ‘spose he’s thinking w to ery about to-night. comicbooks.com