Life, 1910-03-03 · page 52 of 80
Life — March 3, 1910 — page 52: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct satirical pieces from 1880s Life magazine: **Top Strip:** Three sequential panels mock a commuter's complaints about his heavy suitcase during a trip to the station—visual humor about everyday inconvenience. **"Lily" Poem & Illustration:** A German-accented monologue (rendered in exaggerated dialect) about a man's wife. The humor trades on ethnic stereotyping common to the era: a German immigrant describes his large, quarrelsome wife in broken English. The caricatured woman in the illustration reinforces period stereotypes. The joke relies on audience familiarity with this comedic type. **"Times Have Changed":** Self-referential satire: Life jokes that its circulation was only 27 copies the previous week (19 given away, 2 sold in New York, 3 in New England, one borrowed by Chicago and never returned). This is meta-humor about the magazine's own modest readership. **"Do You Have to Take Care of the Dog?":** A brief exchange where a young nurse says she only watches the children, not the dog—implying the children require similar basic care to animals. All reflect Victorian-era humor conventions and editorial attitudes.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
1. RIDE TO THE STATION! 1 GUESS NoT! IRY, fairy Lily! Dot Ieedle Deutch gal, Lily! Ven I ekshd her off she love me, She shcumps righd oop. by shinks, und shoves me— Hans, you silly.”” two hoonert pound, y Lily. Ven I gourt dot Lily (Lily vos a vider) I do n'd gif somedings avay, I do n’d tell her vot I's She’s no pig vol, neede! Schmile und schmile youst all de vile, Vhispers nodding oudt, but schmile— Dot's youst like a vider; Vot off she veigh tree hundred pound, Dot ish no heft for a vidder. Ve gets married righd avay Off I do n'd gif her der midden. BWM. THIS SATCHEL 18 HEAVIER THAN Tuoventr, Lily's so pig ash a bale of But she’s youst like a kitte: When ve fighd, den we agree; Lily vos de gal for me— Vot off she veigh scex hoonert pound, Dot shblaindid vidder, Lily! Harold Van Santvoord. (October .4, 1883. No. 40.) Times Have Changed Our Hot-Weather Boom in 1886. HE circulation of Lire last week was twenty-seven copies—nineteen of { MAD NO IDEA 1T WAS SO FAR. which were given away, two were sold in New York, three in the New England States, one went abroad and one was borrowed by the city of Chicago and not yet returned. (August 12, 1886, No. 189.) OLICEMAN: Do you have to take care of the dog? Nersr Girt: No. The missis says I'm too young and inexperienced. I only look after the children (September 26, 1887. No. 352.) A NIGHTMARE AND A BUGBEAR (November 21, 1889. No. comicbooks.com