Life — December 11, 1902 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# "Drifting Without a Compass" This cartoon satirizes actor **Mr. Faversham** (likely British stage actor William Faversham, popular in early 1900s American theater). The joke centers on Faversham's practical problem: as a wealthy gentleman-actor accustomed to servants handling his belongings, he has no pockets in his fashionable stage costumes and therefore nowhere to carry money or essentials during performances. The satire mocks both Faversham's dependence on servants and the impracticality of high-fashion formal wear. The title suggests he's "lost" without the basic necessities working people take for granted. It's a lighthearted jab at aristocratic pretension and the absurdities of theater world conventions that prioritize appearance over utility.