Life, 1893-09-14 · page 3 of 18
Life — September 14, 1893 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis This Life magazine page contains humorous illustrations about windy weather and two literary pieces set at "Kitty's at the Fair." **Top cartoons:** Three sequential drawings depict men struggling with wide-brimmed hats in strong wind—the hats are blown away, requiring desperate chasing. The captions explain the practical joke: such hats "are good for casting a shadow" but become "awkward" and "dangerous" in high wind, requiring you to "let go in time." This is straightforward physical comedy about the perils of fashion in bad weather. **Literary content:** Two poems—"Chicago" and "You Princes of the Orient"—nostalgically reference "Kitty's at the Fair," apparently a popular social venue or fair attraction. The bottom illustration shows people chasing/following horses at races, labeled "Following the Races," supporting the fair setting. The humor is gentle, focusing on leisure and romantic daydreaming rather than political satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THOSE) WIDE BRIMMED. HATS ARE GOOD FOR CASTING A SHADOW. BUT IN A HIGH WIND THEY ARE AWKWARD, AND EVEN DAN ROUS, UNLESS YOU LET GO IN TIME, CHICAGO. N vain for me the autumn days All sunshine come and go : In vain the maples flame and flare With frosty winds a-blow,— A shade has fallen on the town, Its lovely precincts wear A strange and unfamiliar look— For Kitty's at the Fair. Behind the screen of swinging vines No slender figure stirs, As from my window, wistfully, I gaze across at hers ; And wandering from Coke and Kent My wistful thoughts repair On wings towards the far-off West— And Kitty, at the Fair. In fancy, through the wandering crowd, I step at her dear side ; A scene of fairy sights and sounds Outstretching far and wide— The choicest treasures of the earth— But who could ever spare A glance from her delicious face— When Kitty's at the Fair? At dusk [ dream of palaces Ablaze with twinkling light, A wide lagoon that mirrors back The starlit Western night, A gondola, a snatch of song Blown out upon the air— O would that I might share such bliss With Kitty at the Fair ! You Princes of the Orient Make haste across the seas ! The gods will puff your eager sails With many an onward breeze ; ‘The older world you leave behind Has nothing to compare With what the New can show to you— And Kitty’s at the Fair! “FOLLOWING THE RACES.” comicbooks.com