Life, 1893-11-09 · page 12 of 18
Life — November 9, 1893 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine Page 300: Social Satire This page contains several unrelated satirical humor pieces typical of Life magazine's format: **"A Doubting Thomas"** mocks skepticism about newspaper reporting—Mr. Beenthere won't believe Bartholdi (the French sculptor of the Statue of Liberty) received a free luncheon in Chicago, dismissing it as newspaper exaggeration. **"A Recall"** jokes about football: a player makes an impressive 45-yard run, but the play doesn't count because the ball was out of bounds. A character quips he must want an "encore." **"A Safe Risk"** shows a man preparing to climb a dangerous structure with a "DANGER" sign—apparently tempting fate. **"Only a Short Time"** satirizes marital annoyance: Mrs. Witherby says windows were cleaned "two girls ago," implying servants are hired and fired rapidly. **"Going at a Reduction"** depicts economic hardship: an Indian girl wants a toy dog, but her mother insists hard times require accepting only basic food—reflecting period anxieties about poverty and luxury. The tone throughout is genteel mockery of middle-class concerns and human foibles.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
300 -LIFE- A DOUBTING THOMAS. M RS. BEENTHERE The Chicago people gave sculptor Bartholdi a luncheon while he was there. MR, BEENTHERE: Eh! Gave it to him? Didn't charge him a cent?” Phat’s what the papers sa “Humph! You can’t believe every thing you see in the papers nowada A RECALL. HE half-back seized the ball, and darting around the left end made a superb rush down the field. It a forty-five yard gain and the crowd went wild. But when the cheers of applause had subsided it was apparent that the ball had not been “in play.” “Oh, dear! what does he have to bring the ball way back for?” asked Kitty, despairingly. “I'm sure | don’t know,” replied Reggy Westend, “unless the beggah got an encore!” AIR MAIDEN (at the foot-ball game, during an exciting melte): Ob, look there—can't Jack hug just beautifully ! HE THOUGHT HE HAD ’EM. Traveler in the Tropics: THIS SETTLES IT! I'LL SWEAR OF F—FIRST OF THE YEAR! ONLY A SHORT TIME. ITHERBY (savagely): Isn't it about time to have those windows. cleaned ? Mrs, WiTHERBY: Why, they were cleaned only recently, WITHERBY: How recently ? Mrs, WITHERBY: Two girls ago. HE dark eyes of the Indian girl were moist, pa,” she announced with trembling “won't buy me a bow-wow.” Never mind, dear,” replied the mother, soothingly, “in these hard times we ought to be satisfied with plenty of good bread and butter and roast beef, without any A SAFE RISK. of the luxuries.” GOING AT A REDUCTION. comicbooks.com