Life — February 14, 1901 — page 20: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is **not a cartoon or satire**—it's a straightforward advertisement from the February 14, 1901 issue of *Life* magazine. The page promotes **Colt Acetylene Gas Generators**, early lighting technology for homes. The technical diagram shows the generator apparatus used to produce acetylene gas, which provided artificial light before widespread electric service. The ad emphasizes that these generators are "entirely new in principle," endorsed by authorities, and manufactured by "the largest concern" in the field. It also mentions the company makes "stereopticons" (early projection devices). The J.B. Colt Company lists headquarters in New York with branch offices in Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia—typical for early-1900s industrial manufacturers. This represents the pre-electric era when acetylene gas was a cutting-edge home lighting solution competing with other technologies.