Life, 1910-11-10 · page 18 of 44
Life — November 10, 1910 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes early-1900s gender relations and male grievances. The cartoon "The Great American Baby" depicts a woman (labeled "Columbia," representing America) holding a baby while a man shows it toys. The caption's joke: the only toy that keeps "him" amused is—implied to be the woman herself or domestic life. Below is an advertisement for a fictional "Husbands' Correspondence Bureau" and "Husbands' League"—a satirical men's organization. The text mocks husbands' complaints about married life with faux-earnest prose about "tired crowds" attending a "Husbands' Bench Show," suggesting men gather to commiserate about their wives. The satire targets: - Male self-pity about marriage - The pretentious, self-important tone of men's clubs and organizations - Husbands presenting themselves as suffering victims of domestic life The humor relies on readers recognizing this as exaggerated mockery of contemporary masculine complaint culture.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Columbia: THE GREAT AMERICAN BABY 1T’S VERY ODD, SAM, BUT THAT IS THE ONLY TOY THAT ALWAYS KEEPS HIM AMUSED. Husbands’ Correspondence Bureau Branches Everywhere, Including Paris, Constantinople and Philadelphia. HE great Husbands’ Bench Show is over, and the tired crowds are trailing back home. Special trains contain- ing our customers are on their way West and South, and the usual calm has settled over Madison Square Garden. A closer bond of sym- pathy than ever before now unites us and the thought that all over the coun- try kindred spirits are suffering in about the same way—with slight variations— as we are, is certainly a great solace. Out of the show has grown a permanent organization called the Husbands’ League, with home circles all over the country. We have been urged very strongly to become the president of this League, but we must decline the honor with much regret. We have promised, however, to give the League our hearty support, and through our im- mense organization to make known far and wide its aims and purposes. We have been compelled to make a slight financial charge for this service and we mention the matter now frankly and un- reservedly because envious critics in the past have only been too willing to step forward at any inopportune moment and accuse us of mercenary purposes. This is not our temperament; we care little for money for its own sake; we would gladly give our services free, but beyond a few small comforts and the where-with to purchase the neces- saries of life we ask for nothing more. Our object in making this slight charge to all alike is simply to place the whole matter on the proper business basis, in No Connection With Any Other Establishment. order that the organization may be more select. Between the Husbands’ League and ourselves, we may say, there is a perfect understanding. During the past summer we have had the officers of this League out upon our steam yacht, and we have offered them the free use of all our motor cars in local centres, and otherwise shown our willingness to co operate with them; so that no one can say we are actuated by any mean spirit * 8 ND this leads us- before detailing the purposes of the League at length— to clear up another little matter that has given us some pain. Several of our newer customers have written Comicbooks.com