Life, 1903-03-19 · page 13 of 22
Life — March 19, 1903 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This *Life* magazine page contains three separate satirical pieces: 1. **"Truth"** (poem): Mocks how society demands truth be dressed up—calling "naked truth" improper, requiring "unvarnished truth" to be polished. The satire: high society won't accept plain honesty; it demands truth presented decorously. 2. **"Municipal Mots"**: Puns on American cities, playing on famous phrases ("All's well...," "The race is to the swift"). Unclear without dating, but appears to mock civic characteristics. 3. **Main cartoon** (bottom right): Shows a domestic dispute where a woman says "You know we must make these calls" and the man responds "Can't do it, Clara, have to work," with her replying sarcastically that social visiting isn't "work." The satire targets gender roles and class expectations—a wife's social obligations (visiting friends) versus a husband's paid labor, with the implication that society calls (socializing) were considered women's unpaid "work." 4. **"A Word to Visitors"**: Darkly jokes that New York ambulance drivers treat street illness as drunkenness, costing lives—satire on indifferent urban emergency response.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“ Truth.”” pur "Tis shockingly bad form. ‘The ‘plain truth” is too plain, you see, The smart set to adorn. “naked truth” goes forth undressed ; “Unvarnished truth” inust polish up, ‘That through it we thay see. The “gospel truth” is now aimyth And not a mystery. The ‘simple trath” Has no tone, so society Is at a loss for brands of truth It may tell with propriety. is simple quite, Mollie Bourke (Godfrey.) Municipal Mots. OSTON is its own reward. A Ladysmith in the hand is worth two in the Bush. The wicked flea,whom San Francisco pursueth. Chicago is paved with good inten- tions, An ancient Gloucester, Every Pittsburg lining. Washington makes strange bed- fellows. All's Philadelphia Potomac. New Orleans is tery. Oh, Brooklyn, where is thy sting? Flatbush,where is thy victory? The race is to the New York. T. aM. and a fish-like has a silver on the a lot- Pensions. TT! as they say, Congress passed no fewer than fifteen hundred special pen- sion bills during the last session, a broadening of the general pension law would certainly seem to be called for, Of course, Congress ought not to be spending its time with a multitude of special acts, when one general act will achieve the same end. A general law giving everybody a pension who wants one, and is willing to vote the Republican ticket, would virtually do away with this special pension business. GUBRE: There is a» woman out- / side who says you have robbed her of all she had. Trust PRESIDED one it is. : I wonder which A Word to Visitors. STRANGERS sojourning in New York should avoid all forms of illness in the streets. Anything in the way of fits, nausea, dizziness, or loss of consciousness from whatever cause is “Som, come, CARL! MUST MAKE THESE CALLS." “CAN'T DO IT, CLARA, HAVE TO WORK.” “wravENs! box’? You CaLt that work?" You KNow wz regarded by ambulance surgeons—or thugs — as inexcusable drunkenness, and treated accordingly. More than one good citizen has lost his life from this little peculiarity of ours. comicbooks.com