Life, 1897-05-20 · page 3 of 20
Life — May 20, 1897 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page (Volume XXIX, Number 752) **"Her Preference"** (top cartoon): A woman declines a formal church wedding, preferring "a cheap little clergyman, and plenty of ice-cream." This satirizes excessive Victorian wedding ceremonies and their social pretension. **"Conjugal Repartee"**: A domestic humor piece about marital squabbling over minor household troubles. **"Political Nursery Rhymes"**: Satirical verses mocking Congressional spending and protectionist tariffs. References to "Morgan and his crew" suggest criticism of wealthy industrialists and political corruption. The rhymes attack government fiscal mismanagement and special interests favoring the wealthy while farmers and taxpayers bear costs. **"Cynicus" dialogue**: Brief satirical exchange about municipal police expenditures and immigration taxation policy. The page combines domestic humor with biting political-economic critique typical of Life's satirical agenda.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME NUMBER 752 HER PREFERENCE. ATER (to twelve-year-old daughter ): Nina, when you get married I'll have a bishop perform the ceremony. “No, papa. I'd rather have a cheap Little clergyman, and plenty of ice-cream.” F there is one impression which is more prevalent than another, it is that made by the bicycle sad- dle, Sad to say, it is almost univer- sally unfavorable. Look in the advertising sections of the maga- zines and see what a succession of manufacturers and inventors offer to bicycle riders experiments that as yet they have not tried, in place of those they know. So long as hope contiaues to rally in the human breast and faith has power to rise above ex- perience, a bicycle saddle unlike any in use must always bea lucrative invention. The truth is that the saddles are not so much amiss, but that when man was designed it was not anticipated that he would ever aspire to sit down and walk CONJUGAL REPARTEE. at the same time, and he was not so put together as to make the simultaneous per- formance of these conflicting purposes “THEY DO SEEM INSIGNIFICANT WHEN I THINK OF THAT." more than imperfectly convenient. —— Practice makes perfect, however, and POLITICAL NURSERY RHYMES. constant use makes wonderfully tough. ING a song of Congressmen, pockets full of bills, — More Protection is the thing to stop the country’s ills; YNNICUS: It's a good thing the Surplus or a deficit the cure’s the same you sce, new tariff bill doesn’t levy a Isn't that an easy way to bring prosperity? tax on immigrants. Finnicus: Why so? “The expenditures for our city police service are quite high enough “JACK, DEAR, IT ISN'T A BIT NICE OF YOU TO LET SUCH SMALL TROUBLES WORRY DinG, dong, dell, Arbitration's knell, Tolled by Morgan and his crew Just to make the lion blue. What short-sighted men are they Who this beast would try to slay, Which never did them any wrong But furnished speeches right along. Mr. Brack, Mr. Black, where have you been? I've been to the city to see the machine. Mr. Black, Mr. Black, what did it say? Go back and do nothing, ‘tis Platt's busy day. Lexow and Co. sat in a row Probing for trusts in state, Each wept for their land and the farmers said “ grand But the taxpayers paid the freight. A CROSS-HAICHED CHICKE: comicbooks.com