Life, 1895-08-22 · page 3 of 16
Life — August 22, 1895 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page, Volume XXVI, Number 660 This page contains social humor typical of early 20th-century Life magazine. The top illustration depicts "A Fashionable Resort" with upper-class figures enjoying summer leisure—a satirical commentary on wealthy urbanites escaping the city heat. The poem "Summer in Town" mocks those who remain in the city rather than vacationing, suggesting they're out of step with fashionable society. The brief comic exchanges ridicule common social pretenses: a woman's concern about engagement costs, someone missing a cable car, and marital dynamics regarding expenses. The large illustration at bottom shows figures with a parasol near the beach—likely mocking either fashion absurdities or romantic mishaps typical of resort settings. Overall, the page satirizes upper-class leisure culture and the anxieties surrounding social status and wealth.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XXVI. NUMBER 660. A FASHIONABLE RESORT. HE sun on the Avenue glistens As it glimmers and gleams through the trees, And one stands in the glitter and listens For the murmur of harps in the trees. It is morning—just after eleven ; All you need is the harp and the crown ; For the city is very like Heaven, Though every one’s gone out of town ! SUMMER IN TOWN. Delmonico’s dull as a grave is, At the Waldorf the band doesn’t play ; A cabby your absolute slave is, For every one else is away. How shocked they would be could they see us : You all tanned—I in last summer's gown, And oh, think how they'd just long to be us, Unchaperoned here in the town ! NECESSARY INFORMATION. ADGE: engagement ring ? MARJORIE: No, my dear. until I find out what it cost. “A OVERLOOKED. ND did you have any trouble in catching the cable car “No; the conductor didn’t see me till it was too late.” I suppose you are happy now. You have the I won't be perfectly happy SHE: pay any. HE (on the hotel piazza): These electric lights are very unreliable. That's so, <A girl never knows what minute she’s going to be kissed. AN EASY WAY OUT OF HE WIFE: to see us unless we let her pay board. THE HUSBAND: We dine at the jolliest places, At queer open air table d’hotes ; And study the types and the faces That we meet on the railways and boats. And here in the sweet golden weather, Fate doesn’t dare on us to frown ; It's such fun to be larking together With every one else out of town ! Kate Masterson. IN DOUBT. IT. Mother says she won't come Then tell her she shan’t comicbooks.com