Life, 1894-03-22 · page 17 of 22
Life — March 22, 1894 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three separate humorous pieces typical of *Life* magazine's satirical format: **Top cartoon**: A joke about urban living and social climbing. A woman claims marriage is "elevating" because she now lives on the eighth floor—a pun equating literal height (apartment floor) with social elevation, mocking the era's real-estate-driven status anxiety. **Middle section**: Two brief dialogue jokes. One mocks a Kansas pioneer's amazement at civilization spreading (distance to nearest neighbor shrinking from forty miles). The other makes light fun of Colonel Blank claiming to love trees because of war experience—likely a gentle jab at romantic militarism or post-war nostalgia. **"Affinity" poem**: A sentimental poem about reincarnation and soulmates—the speaker believes he's finally reunited with a beloved from a past life. This satirizes Victorian-era spiritualism and romantic idealism, playing earnestly sentimental while the very concept invites gentle mockery. The page ridicules American social pretension, frontier mythology, war sentiment, and spiritualist romanticism—all recognizable targets of *Life*'s era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
aes, ‘ Aclplare “AND DO YOU FIND MARRIAGE SO VERY ELEVATING ?” “ EXTREMELY SO. SINCE I HAVE BEEN MARRIED I HAVE LIVED ON THE EIGHTH FLOOR.” production of the “ Comedy of Errors,” which is well known as a thoroughly enjoyable and mirth-provoking performance. * . . HE shade of Lester Wallack may well wear mournful lineaments. The thought of his favorite * Rosedale” being performed by a Boston company in his own theatre might even make it shed material tears. Metcalfe. HE WANTED TO KNOW. ONDERFUL country!" exclaimed the Kansas man, “ Why, when I moved out here it was forty miles to Brown's, my nearest neighbor.” “ And how far is it to Brown's now ?” put in the Eastern man. ISS GUSH: Oh, Colonel, just look at those magnifi- centelms, I am sure you love trees. COLONEL BLANK: Dearly, Miss Gush. I learned to love them during the war. AFFINITY. N cycles past, when here on earth before, I met and wooed a maid, the sweetest maid, With face so like to thine, and smile as sweet, And deep brown eyes, that beamed as bright As those that window forth thy soul, And steal away my heart and peace of mind I wooed her, soon to lose her, how I know not, And ever since have sought her, far and wide. Feeling that I would know her, and she, me; Full oft have thought 1 saw her coming, And, with glad rush, sprang forth to meet her, To find, on nearer look, that ‘twas some other soul, And, saddened, turned to seek again, for her, my own. But O, glad thought! when, in this latest life, Mine eyes first met thine own, my heart stood still, Then sang, and sang again, ‘* ‘Tis she, ‘tis she, at last,” And clear thy spirit answered back ‘Tis thee at last.” Our quest was done. comicbooks.com