Life, 1909-07-08 · page 7 of 28
Life — July 8, 1909 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains satirical silhouette illustrations mocking upper-class British women, specifically those associated with St. James's (an affluent London neighborhood). The top panel depicts New York's skyline labeled "as it looks to those who go down in the struggle"—suggesting financial ruin. The main cartoon shows exaggerated silhouettes of fashionable ladies engaged in vigorous, unladylike activities: running, riding motorcycles, and generally behaving with athletic abandon. The accompanying verse mocks their pretensions and social climbing, particularly focusing on "Phyllida," who appears to be a stock character representing frivolous upper-class women. The satire critiques Edwardian-era society women's contradictions between refined expectations and their actual reckless behavior.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
OTE OTT tn iaoere: m ral THE SKY LINE OF NEW YORK (AS IT LOOKS TO THOSE WHO Go DOWN IN THE STRUGGLE) Ladies of St. James’s (With Apologies) g to the pl Were fond of games and sport ran before them They spent their cash at * Ombre,” IIE Ladies of St. James's, As everybody knows, Through masks of silk and sativ They ogled at their Meaux But Phyllida, my Phyllida, You'd scarce believe it tr When Hor mask is made of re If people run before her, With goggles tinted blue! She prompt] Their time they spent at Court Rut Phyllida, my Phyllida, ‘ourt” she draws the line, very time she goes there has to pay a fine, comicbooks.com