Life, 1910-03-31 · page 31 of 46
Life — March 31, 1910 — page 31: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct humor pieces from an early 20th-century American satirical magazine: **"A Great Surprise"** (top): A comic dialogue between a father (Papa) and daughter (Ruthie) about a potential baby brother. The joke's appeal relies on the child's innocent misunderstanding—she agrees to keep the baby a "surprise" for mother, not grasping the biological reality that the mother would already know. It's gentle, family-oriented humor typical of the era. **Two visual cartoons** appear below, including one depicting what appears to be Hell or the underworld (flames, devils), with a caption about meeting someone who "used to be my clergyman"—dark religious satire suggesting hypocrisy or damnation of clergy. **The middle dialogue** between Howard and Coward presents a philosophical quip about truth and majority opinion, paired with a sight-gag where one character needs longer arms, not glasses. The page also includes book reviews of contemporary 1900s-era novels at the top, reflecting Life's role as a literary and cultural commentary magazine.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Blue Bird, by Maurice Macterlinck, A dra tale full of fancitul humor and. beauty Shaw, by G._K. Chesterton, The quintessence 3. with G. K. C. blown in the bottle. It Never Can Happen Again, by William De Morgan. An ferent’ story, but a chance for a weck's delightful: compani with a fascinating writer, The Land of the Lion, W. S. Rainsford. See above. Margarita’s Soul, by “Josephine Daskam Macon, Engaging ro: mance presented as ‘the reminiscences of a middle-aged. bachelor. The New Word, by Allen Upward. A critical examination of the foundations of ‘knowledge and the sanctions of hope. The most remarkable book of the dav. The Old Wives’ Tale, by Arnold Bennett. An exceptional novel in which the life of three generations is shown both i panorama and/in perspective. On the Bronch, by Pierre de Coulevain. An interesting example 4 7 of a contemporary’ French * best seller MN Oren Country, by Maurice Hewlett. Realism once removed. A “Se present day idyl by Mr, Hewlett at his so far best Penguin Island, by Anatole France, A subtly wrought satirical parody on the history of France and the writers of history The Song of Songs, by Mermann Sudermann. A moral tragedy presented with brutal frankness but tremendous effect The Tower of Ivory, b arude Atherton. A typical story by a talented writer who is impaticat of merely life-sized figures. A Great Surprise APA: Ruthie, I shouldn't be surprised if God would send you a little baby brother before long. What would you think of that? Rote: Ob, papa! I think it would be perfectly iovely And say, papa, iet’s you and me keep it @ surprise for mamma. “om, MOTHER! WHAT A DUST WE'RE MAKING! OWARD: Say, -old man, you hold everything about E majority is always wrong; truths are discovered one mile away from your eyes. You nced glasses. ata time by one at a time. Coward: Nonsense! What I need are longer arms. The New Arrival: 1 BEG PARDON, HAVEN'T 1 MET YOU BEFORE? “CERTAINLY. YOU USED TO BE MY CLERGYMAN.” i comicbooks.com