Life, 1908-04-02 · page 29 of 44
Life — April 2, 1908 — page 29: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a humorous short story illustrated with a sketch showing a domestic scene. The narrative depicts a wife named Ilyria returning home after childbirth to find her beloved cats. The joke centers on her priorities: she's far more concerned with her cats' welfare than her newborn baby. The satire mocks obsessive cat-lovers—particularly women of means with leisure to maintain a "cattery" (cat breeding establishment). The subtitle "Rain Without—Tears Within" suggests emotional drama over trivial matters. The husband's nervous tone ("ventured, timidly") when discussing cat pregnancies humorously emphasizes how his wife's cat-passion dominates household dynamics. This reflects early 20th-century satirical attitudes toward eccentric pet devotion, portraying it as an amusing character flaw. The illustration shows the wife surrounded by attentive family members, yet preoccupied with feline concerns rather than her infant.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A MICHTY WET EASTER MORNING. RAIN WITHOUT—TEARS WITHIN A Cat Fantasy Dedicated (with Apologies) to All Lovers of Cats T WAS the first morning after the baby came that my wife Ilyria had been out in the sunlight. The air was warm and springy, and we sat together on the rustic bench in front of the cattery. There were, of course, cats everywhere—cats of all colors, ages and shapes. Many were sunning themselves on the edge of the asparagus bed. One or two were stepping along with a velvety stealth in the tall grass near the fence; there were kittens playing in the sun; other mature felines with what seemed the reek of centuries upon them sat with half-closed eyes meditating upon—what? Ilyria declared that only they— the ones who had accummulated wisdom during the span of their vere really possessed of the secret of existence. ia’s eyes, upon this day, as we sat there together, was a new light. I could almost see her gathering strength, for to have been parted from her cats for so long had been a sore trial—one that she had keenly resented. Now she was coming to herself again. “Look!” she exclaimed, as a beautiful king cat strolled leisurely out of the door of the cattery, and, although he had not seen his mistress for weeks, gave her only a dull glance. “Look at Neb’s coat. How neglected! Dear me! It will take days to get him into shape again, and see, Bab has been swallowing her fur. Dear, dear!” “Did you know,” I ventured, timidly—for before this passion of Ilyria’s I was prostrate—“ that Tiger Lily has had ittens?” kittens? (This story continued on page 362) comicbooks.com