Life, 1911-05-04 · page 18 of 56
Life — May 4, 1911 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page lampoons several aspects of American upper-middle-class life circa early 1900s: **"Dyspepsia"**: A poem mocking wealthy people who frequent fancy restaurants to display status while eating excessively, damaging their health—equating aristocratic pretension with gluttony. **"To Referees With This"**: Satirizes the petty dispute between Harvard and Yale universities over scheduling their annual boat race around Commencement ceremonies. The piece ridicules how undergraduates bicker over logistics while their presidents could easily resolve it maturely. **"Those Moving-Day Breakfasts"** and **"Commuters"**: Mock the suburban lifestyle emerging in America, contrasting the disadvantages (cramped apartments, despotic janitors, mowing lawns, nosy neighbors) against promised benefits. The final cartoon, "A Hold-Up in the Suburbs," darkly jokes that suburban servants/cooks are so valuable they can extort money ("your cook or your life!")—suggesting the absurdity of suburban dependence on domestic help.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
f | “JOUN, WHATEVER INDUCED YOU To BUY A HOUSE IN TITS. o” FOKSAKEN KEG ONE OF THE BEST KEAL ESTATE MEN IN THE HUSINESS.” Dyspepsis O cat that when the invitation comes To join the host of idle rich, which moves Toward those emblazoned restaurants where cach all play the gourmand in a tawdry place of show Thou yo not like the simp Weary and hungry, but, sure of the family doctor's skill, Approach thy gorgcous spread like one who fecls That the truc measure of aristocr: The capacity for overdoing To Referees With This HE Boston Transcript reports cruel in dergraduate Y agree to a date for the boat-race at convenient for Yale. For many years Harvard and Yale had Commencement on the same day. The next day came the race. But last year Yale changed her habits and arranged to have her Com meneement a week carlier than Harvard's. Now Yale says: “Le n't hang around a whole week!” And Harvard (probably) replies: “How can we have the boat-race before Commencement? ndon and then back? Some years we have to walk home after that boat-race, How could cars? What can we do with Class Day, which comes on Friday, two days after your Commencement and five days before ours? We never c man of toil, y is but tion of un te Harvard won't ew London that is ale because undergradua 's have that boat-race earlier. Our people Must we all shutile up to New Le we finance Commencement in such sented to have you change the date of your Commencement It was that that muddled things. You ought to take the con- sequene Take it to court, young gentlemen. Older heads settle the matters politely, justly, and with far less friction than you do. The President of Yale and the President of Harvard are both experienced and practical men who are in request to settle disputes, Get them to thrash the matter out for you Postscript" I faybe it’s not so that indignation eats the Yale heart. There is nothing to that effect in the Harvard Bulletin, which reports the conference with Yale about the race; tells why June 30 was named as the day, Yale fully concurring; and expects for next year and thereafter a race date that will be equally s tory to both colleges. rides in di: Discontented servants, Children fallin; welfare and conduct THOSE MOVING-DAY BREAKFASTS “GP YOU WANT TEA, JAMES, IT’S ON THE P 1S IN THE Coat ScUTT Commuters (COMMUTERS are men who prefer DISADVANTAGES ways. establishments than Cramped up many flights. Despotic janitor. © coal bills. No heat. cyard quiet. Incessant din, Shoveling snow and wading Trolley blockades and icy pavemen: Mowing lawns. No yar out of trees Children fading away. amusements. Petty distractions called amusement neighbors who take The lonesomeness of living an undue interest in. their in the midst an A HOLD-UP IN THE SUBURBS “youR COOK oR YOUR LIFE!" NO, AND THE SUGAR To THESE trains, Short rides im crowded sub- known multitude. comicbooks.com