Life, 1894-12-27 · page 33 of 53
Life — December 27, 1894 — page 33: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three separate humor pieces about early 1900s domestic life: **"Bed-Time"**: Satirizes a demanding Brooklyn wife who imperiously orders her husband to bed at 7:48 PM—an unusually early hour, suggesting either her control over him or his exhaustion from work. **"Strange!"**: Jokes about Mrs. McGinnis's frustration that her three-year-old son Johnny swears constantly despite her efforts, yet he'll behave perfectly when asked to swear for a visiting church lady—playing on childhood hypocrisy and the humor of innocent profanity. **"Why did he get a divorce?"**: A punchline joke: a man divorced his wife because she named their baby after her first husband, implying either her lingering attachment to her ex or the awkwardness/insult of such a choice. The satirical target is domestic relationships and child-rearing among ordinary Americans. The bicycle illustrations above represent fashionable cycling culture of the 1890s-1900s era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
BED-TIME, “COME: Henry.” The Brooklyn woman stirred uneasily in her chair, as she beckoned imperiously to her husband “Tis tr She pointed to the fingers of the clock that stood at seven forty-eight. “To go to bed.” STRANGE! * sighed Mrs. McGinnis, to. the church *Tean't seem to keep Johnny from swear- ing, nohow. ‘s only three, and you wouldn't believe what things h johnny, swear for the lady.” es HY did he get a divorce from his wife?” “She named the baby after her first husband.” comicbooks.com