Life — May 7, 1903 — page 24: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is **not a political cartoon**, but rather a **full-page advertisement** for the Columbia Electric Victoria automobile, a Mark XXXI model produced by the Electric Vehicle Company of Hartford, Connecticut. The page showcases early 1900s electric vehicles as luxury goods. The top photograph depicts an early electric automobile on a rural road, while the central advertisement features an ornate illustration of the "Electric Victoria" carriage with decorative Art Nouveau-style borders showing women's faces—common advertising imagery of the era meant to appeal to affluent buyers. The ad emphasizes the vehicle's combination of "art and utility," highlighting comfort and aesthetic refinement. Multiple salesroom locations are listed (New York, Boston, Chicago), indicating the company's national reach and the vehicle's status as a premium product. This reflects the pre-1910 period when electric vehicles competed seriously with gasoline cars among wealthy consumers, particularly women drivers, before internal combustion engines ultimately dominated the market.