Life, 1892-06-23 · page 10 of 16
Life — June 23, 1892 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page 392 This page contains **humorous letters to the editor** rather than political cartoons. The correspondence concerns a flask of Palestinian water sent as a christening gift, which C.B.H. then forwarded to P.J. Ingalls. A mix-up occurs—C.B.H. had brought back two flasks from Palestine (Jordan River water and Dead Sea water) and cannot remember which is which. The joke satirizes the earnestness of religious sentiment combined with practical absurdity: using "holy water" for a baby's christening while dealing with the mundane problem of mislabeled containers. The accompanying illustrations titled "The Jumping Match: A Surprise for a Kangaroo" show kangaroos jumping, likely a separate humorous piece unrelated to the letters.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
‘LIFE: sent you the wrong flask. Suppose you taste the water before using. If it’s salt it isn’t the right lot, and I will swap with you. Very cordially, c. B. H. 19 WEST XTYSTEENTH STREET. DEAR CHARLES: My wife's cousin, who is in the clerical profession, was in town last week, and we took advantage of his visit to have our daughter Cynthia baptized. He used the water you sent, and which I have preserved. On tasting it now, I find it so phenomenally bitter as to leave no room for THE JUMPING MATCH. A SURPRISE FOR A KANGAROO. “IF THE STREETS OF NEW ORLEANS ARE CLEANED BY VULTURES, WHY COULDN'T THEY DO SO IN NEW YorK?” “THEY WOULDN'T WORK HERE, THEY'D BE PERCHED ALL ALONG FIFTH AVENUE, WATCHING THE STAGE HORSES.” WITH THE BEST INTENTIONS. OFFICE OF Hysop & THYME, NEw YorK, May 3, 1892. To Peter J. Ingalls, Esg.: DEAR PETER: Learning with sincere pleasure of the recent happy event in your family, I seize the occasion to send you a flask of water from the Jordan to be used at the newcomer's christening. I brought it from Palestine myself last year. Very cordially, c. B. H. 19 WEST XTYSTEENTH STREET. DEAR CHARLES: Without admitting that the new babe is so steeped in sin that common water won't do, my wife and I thank you very cordially for your interest in the little girl's welfare. Send the Jordan water along, and we will get the parson to use it. Faithfully, May 4th, 1892. P. J. INGALLS, To Chas. B. Hysop. OFFICE oF Hysop & THYME, New YORK, May 23d, DEAR PETER: In the matter of that water I sent you, it has occurred to me that I brought back two flasks of water from Pales- tine, one from the Jordan and one from the Dead Sea. Now that I think of it, I remember that when I put them away I was in some doubt as to which was which. It is just possible, therefore, that I comicbooks.com