Life, 1905-12-07 · page 57 of 60
Life — December 7, 1905 — page 57: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is primarily a **Sorosis department store advertisement** rather than editorial satire. The image shows a woman decorating a Christmas tree, with the headline "The first thing to go on the tree." The phrase is a play on words: it likely refers both to decorations placed *on* a Christmas tree and to items that sell out quickly during holiday shopping season. By showing a woman preparing her tree, the ad suggests Sorosis offers the merchandise shoppers need for their Christmas preparations. The advertisement lists Sorosis locations across major American cities (New York, Boston, Chicago, etc.) plus international shops in London, Berlin, and Hamburg, emphasizing the store's reach and prestige as a major retailer. This appears to be a standard early-20th-century department store holiday advertisement rather than political commentary or social satire.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1, one seople inued essed ed on said, The first thing to go on the tree SOROSIS STORES AND DEPARTMENTS: james McCreery & Co., 23rd St. : Cor. Fulton and Hoyt Sts. 19 Lexington St, W 13 F St & 176 Boylston St. ti: 6 West Fourth St Newcomb-Endicott Co. San Francisco: 216 Post St., & go Third St. St. Louis: Scruggs, Vandervoort & Barney D. G. Co. London Shops: Regent House, Regent Street, Berlin : 60 Fri 3 19 Westbourne G: Buffalo: H, A, Meldrum Co. Philadelphia : 1314 Chestaut St. Penn Ave. & sth St. & ang 6th St 177 Euclid Ave. 93 Wisconsin St. St. Paul: Field, Schlick & Co. Denver : 626 16th St. Hartford: 945 Main St Providence: The Shepard Co. inneapolis: yoo Nicollet Ave. . W.; 83 Brompton Road, S. W. Strasse ; Hamburg : 25 Jungfernstieg ; Frankfort am: 19 Rossmarkt; all important cities in Europe and America, comicbooks.com