Life, 1895-07-11 · page 1 of 16
Life — July 11, 1895 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine, July 11, 1895 This page contains a single-panel cartoon titled "Based on Experience." It depicts a woman on a bench with a young child holding a balloon. The dialogue reads: **"What makes the sides of the balloon stay out, ma?"** **"Because it is filled with gas."** **"Is it a case of colic?"** The humor is straightforward: the child misunderstands "gas" as digestive gas (colic), comparing the balloon's inflation to infant stomach troubles—a common parental concern of the era. It's gentle domestic humor playing on innocent childhood misinterpretation, typical of Life magazine's satirical but family-friendly content. The ornate decorative border on the left is characteristic of the magazine's design.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XXXVI. NEW YORK, JULY 11, 1895. NUMBER 654. Entered at the New York Post Office as Second-Class Mail Matter. Copyright, 1895, by Mircwent & Miuer, ety etching Sum. ducted snallsh fas uo BASED ON EXPERIENCE. ; “WHAT MAKES THE SIDES OF THE BALLOON STAY OUT, MA?” = > “BECAUSE IT 18 FILLED WITH Oas.” “IS IT A CASE OF COLIC?”