Life, 1901-11-28 · page 7 of 22
Life — November 28, 1901 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "The Fair One of the Golden Rocks" This is a fictional short story illustrated with a narrative cartoon, not political satire. The plot concerns a railroad magnate ("Railroad King") who sends his nephew Cummings to a Western fair to scout golden rocks for business consolidation. At the fair, Cummings encounters "the Fair One"—an attractive woman—and becomes smitten. She challenges him to perform three difficult feats to win her favor, including breaking a golf record. The illustration shows spectators watching as a golf ball rolls into a hole at an odd angle. The story is lighthearted romantic fiction typical of Life magazine's entertainment content, with no apparent political commentary or social satire.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“ERPE + long ago, in a Western city, there lived a Rail- road King. He was old and plebeian, so, when he heard of a fair aristocrat with ample rocks in the Eastern metropolis, he thought it would be a good plan to con- solidate. Just as he was about to go East, an attack of lumbago confined him to his room, so he sent his nephew, Cummings, & rising young man, to look over the ground. As Cummings was approaching the Fair One's coantry place with his dachshund at his hecls, he saw a grasshopper about to be dis- membered by a child in the pursuit of nature study. He rescued the un- fortunate insect, who hopped away, blithely assuring him of help in time of need. Further on at the porter's lodge he found a little boy hammering a tack. “ Cruel child !"" heexclaimed, seizing the tack and throwing it over the fence. “How would you like to be hammered on the head?” And the little tack promised to remember his kindness. Just as he was approaching the house, a cat ran by with a little mole in its mouth. Cummings set the dachshund on the fierce beast, and, never having seen one, she fled, while the little mole swore eternal devotion to his preserver. At the door Cummings sent up his card with a letter from his uncle, who had known the Fair One's father in several deals. When at last she appeared, he was dazzled by her beauty and almost petri- fied by her manner. After some general conversation on the weather, he iuti- mated his errand with great delicacy. “Before I give your uncle any en- couragement,’’ she said, ‘* you must per- form three difficult feats. To-morrow you must break the record on our golf links, Cummings asserted his willingness to try and went out tolook over the ground. He reached the eighteenth hole in despair. “Fear not,’’ chirped a little voice be- side him, “I will be here.” 427 The next day dawned faultlessly rainy. A large crowd turned out to follow Cum- mings. His play was wonderful, but when he reached the eighteenth teeing ground, he was only two under the bogie. With a desperate contortion he drove off. The ball fell on the green and rolled slowly at a strange angle into the hole. The specta- tors could not see the grasshopper skip merrily away. After congratulating Cummings the Fair One said ,“ To-morrow you must beat me in a five-mile automobile race.”’ Cummings walked over the road with grave misgivings, for he did not notice the little t The race proved a thrilling one, wheel to wheel, until in the last quarter mile the Fair One suddenly slowed up and came in witha punctured tire. “To-morrow,” she declared, ‘‘ you must win the steeple- chase.” Cummings went over the ground in deep dejection and WQS “The ball rolled at a strange angle into the hole.” comicbooks.com