Life, 1903-06-25 · page 1 of 23
Life — June 25, 1903 — page 1: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features a satirical illustration about the **Middletown Club**. The main cartoon shows a sophisticated domestic scene with a woman discovering what appears to be a dead rat near the fireplace, while two men stand nearby. The caption indicates the woman ("She") declares "Mother is on our side, anyway," to which one man replies about the rat: "She told papa that he mustn't judge too much by looks." The property notice warns the illustration is "Property of the Middletown Club" and warns against mutilation or removal from the building—a playful ownership marker typical of Life magazine's era. The satire appears to mock domestic pretensions or family dynamics, though the specific Middletown Club reference is unclear without additional historical context.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
VOLUME XLI. NEW YORK, JUNE 285, 1903. , NUMBER 1078. Entered at the New York Post Ofice as Second-Class Mail Matter, Copyright, 1902, by Lirg PUBLISHING ComPaNY. She; MOTHER 18 ON OUR SIDE, ANYWarY. Hes: wnat pip sue sar? “gum TOLD PAPA THAT HE MUSTN'T JUDOE TOO MUCH BY Looks.” comicbooks.com