Life, 1897-11-18 · page 25 of 26
Life — November 18, 1897 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **advertising**, not political satire. It features commercial ads for consumer products typical of the 1890s: needlework patterns, patent medicines (Blair's Pills for gout/rheumatism, the Oppenheimer Cure for alcoholism and morphine addiction), perfumes, malt extract, and Scotch whisky. The main content is a **contest**: readers must identify which line from a Longfellow poem is illustrated by the large image below, which appears to show a riverside or harbor scene with figures and flags. Winners receive one hundred dollars (or share it if multiple correct answers exist). **Social context for modern readers**: The prevalence of morphine and alcohol addiction "cures" advertised reflects widespread substance abuse in this era, before legal regulation of such drugs. Patent medicines were unregulated and often ineffective or harmful. The Longfellow contest suggests *Life* engaged readers through interactive puzzles and prize competitions—a common magazine strategy of the period.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“The Finest Obtainable ” A TRULY CHOICE SCOTCH WHISKY DOODOQOOOOMOOONCE QOCSSDOONS AGENT C. H. ARNOLD For 1898 PRICE 10 : Corticelli a ps : 27 So. William St. : Home Needlework NEW YORK CITY | MALT EXTRACT ‘ site ee tea $ 1 Blair’ s Pills ergot Algae A rg rie of He book ree | ALCOHOLISM, © Nonotuck Silk Co . 98 Bridge G and RHEUMATI: MORPHINISM & sooneonnnonnnnnnooasonnno nes | { pagina crm tiiunst, —_— | . NEURASTHENIA The Craving for TT Day. Use Uiscontinued at once, OLE ES AR WiTHouT Ppancen” No Mypadermics. yio Ss. onnated ag pee, Peni axa sever seers ob" Violets) 19) CONCENTRATED j ie ; PERFUMES LATEST NOVELTIES SPECIALLY RECOMMENDED : ROYAL GILLET (carnation) — GRANDE DUCHESSE, FONKIA of JAPAN L. LEGRAND (08/24-PERFUMERY) 11, Place do la Madeleine, PARIS Bi i Ds De E.G. Ua. WHAT LINE OF LONGRELLOW’S DOES THIS PICTURE ILLUSTRATE ? All envelopes | : - nee SSSR oa: fame will be given One received will be Ese. a zo 3 Hundred Dolluss. open:d December ; - 4 : Should there be ist, 1897, in the : ee SS others whese presence of i : Se a icy guesses are correct, witnesses. To the \ ey) SS eutess | lee the One Hundred cerson whose ; Bey. : Dollsss will be envelope contains Was 4 ‘ divided among the correct guess ES on " z . them. Title of Poem..............000.. The line or lines illustrated by this picture t Name and address of sender .... comicbooks.com