Life, 1898-08-11 · page 3 of 20
Life — August 11, 1898 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page 103 **Main Content:** The page features "A Song of Four Seasons" by Arthur Ketchum, celebrating a woman named Polly across seasonal changes. The poem expresses romantic preference for Polly in each season. **Cartoons:** 1. **Top illustration**: Shows a woman reading to a man in an interior domestic scene, relating to the seasonal poem's romantic themes. 2. **"Easily Adjusted"**: A brief dialogue between a Floorwalker and Proprietor about retail profitability and customer satisfaction—typical contemporary commercial satire. 3. **"Physiological Note"**: Comments on American preference for "done" (well-done) meat, suggesting this reflects broader cultural sentiment, likely poking fun at American dining habits versus other nations. 4. **Bottom right**: A simple joke about a pig and mistaken identity ("You've made a mistake; I'm not that kind of hog"). The page is primarily light humor and verse rather than sharp political satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A Song of Four Seasons. HEN April wakes the woodlands, And the long links greener grows, And Polly dons tho scarlet And out a-golfing goes— Then Springtime is the season That's better than the rest And it’s as the queen of golfing clubs That I love Polly best. But when tho later Summer Has parched the meadow lands, Then Polly goes seafaring, The tiller in her bands— And Summer is the season That's bettor than the rest, And it’s as my jolly little Cap’ That I love Polly best. Yet when the crisp October Has come in gold and red, Then Polly takes her rifle And xecks the woods instead— And Autuain is tho season That's better than the rest, And it’s as Diana-up-to-date That I love Polly best. But whatsoo’er tho pasture Tho changing seasons bring, Or Summertimo or Autumn, Or Winter days or Spring, When I’m with her’s tho season That's bettor than tho rest, And whatsoever guise she wears "Tis 80 I love her best. NEW BIOLOGY. Arthur Ketchum, The Recent Graduate: GOOD GRACIOUS! 1 DIDN'T KNOW THAT THEY EVER GREW $0 LONG. Ordinary Girt: wuaTt — R.G. (reading); “THE PRAGMENTS OF BACCHYLIDES, RECENTLY FOUND IN EGYPT AND NOW BEING = VERY man is the architect PUT TOGETHER AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM, WH ET SIX INCHES IN LENOTH,’ of his own fortune. “BUT THAT MEANS OF TH Wo wich tblng- bis ances eit. tee on oar da No such thing ; his ance stors are the architects—he is only the con- asily Adjusted. either, “Dono” is the better word. tractor.” It fills the mouth fuller, and goes off with a more satisfactory report, The YOR A POET TO BE FOURTREN PRET LONG?” Fioorwatker: We're not getting enough profit on these goods, and they don’t sell, anyway. Tue Proprietor: Well, mark them up ninety-eight cents and put them on the bargain counter. Philological Note. T is observed that the mass of the free people of this country prefer “done” to “did.” It is the sentiment of a mighty majority of our citizens that Dewey dono well. Folks who feel that Dewey did well are ina minority, and not a very influential minority, most curious thing of all about it is that the preference for it seems to be contagious, Instances aro known of persons of careful education who havo come to be so much in sympathy, as well a8 go frequent in intercourse, with the plain people, that they have uncon- sciously allowed “done” to oust “did” from its place in their vocabu- lary. Ha, Ha! 6 Ragone Why isn’t a nauti- cal mile the same as an ordi- bary mile ? Waren Because it is knot. “YOU'VE MADE A MISTAKES I'M NOT THAT KIND OP A 100." comicbooks.com