Life, 1896-04-02 · page 25 of 32
Life — April 2, 1896 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **product advertisement**, not political satire. It appears in *Life* magazine and promotes Nubian brand fast black cotton dress linings. The image shows two women in early 1900s attire (high-collared black dresses, feathered hats) sharing a tandem bicycle, illustrating the modern, active lifestyle the product enables. The advertisement emphasizes that the lining "Will Not Crock"—meaning it won't transfer black dye onto the wearer's skin or outer garments, a common problem with inferior dyes of the era. The ad's appeal to middle-class women highlights that quality materials were now affordable ("moderate enough for any dress"), positioning this textile as combining durability and economy. The phrase "All leading Dry Goods Stores" indicates widespread retail availability. This is straightforward commercial messaging typical of *Life*'s advertising content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
| AW FAST BLACK COTTON DRESS LININGS ins ‘Scier Will Not Crock nig positively unchange- and of superior quality. Nothing else so fully satisfies the highest requirements and yet the cost is moderate enough for any dress. Look for this on every yard of the Selvage: All leading Dry Goods Stores. (UCC, SUG sliced ( comicbooks.com