Life, 1911-12-28 · page 31 of 41
Life — December 28, 1911 — page 31: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page mixes editorial content with period advertising, typical of early 20th-century magazines. **"L'Envoy" Poem**: A satirical verse (credited to Kipling) about marriage. It ironically presents a woman's married life as restful reward—yet the actual details reveal drudgery: sitting in a rocking chair darning socks endlessly, working dawn to nightfall without payment or recognition, existing solely to please her husband as "Lord of Creation." The satire lies in the gap between the promise of "rest" and the reality of unpaid domestic servitude. This reflects contemporary feminist critique of women's marriage as economic and social imprisonment. **Advertisements**: The page features ads for Philip Morris tobacco, a winter cruise company (Thomas Cook), and Cortez cigars—typical luxury goods marketed to affluent readers. **Cardinal Dubois anecdote**: A brief humor piece about the French cardinal's temperament, showing a clever secretary's witty solution to his excessive swearing. The page's juxtaposition—romantic poem about marriage's "rest" alongside ads for leisure travel—underscores the irony: some enjoyed leisure; married women, apparently, did not.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
its, Ices, Distr L’Envoy (Lines written on the marriage of a friend, @ schoo’ teacher of long stand- ing. Apology due to Kipling.) When the very last spinster is married, And the wedding cake crumbs have dried, When the freshest flowers have faded And the wedding march echoes have died, There'll be rest, and, faith, ‘twill be needed, Sweet rest for those who have toiled For the climax of Love's consummation, That its sweet dream should ne'er be despoiled. And she who is wed shall be happy: She shall sit in her own rocking chair, Darning number ten socks by the dozen, Neatly done to the very last pair. She has found a real man to live with, Jonathan, Harry or Paul; She can work from the dawn till the nightfall, And never grow tired at all. And only her husband shall praise her, And only her husband shall blame; Ne'er in shall she work for moncy, Ne'er in shall she strive for fame. But all for the joy of the working, Shall-she toil in her separate star, To please her own Lord of Creation, The Monarch of things as they are. The Best Curisrmas ANNUAL PUNCH ALMANACK ULLof humorous Pictures and better than ever. Sent post free on receipt of 15 cents in postage stamps. @The weekly copy of “Puxcn” for one year, in- clusive of the Almanack, is sent post free for S440. Address: “Puncn” Office, 10 Bouverie Street, London, E.C, Yu may talk about your “pet” brands, but right here is where you can start your tobacco edu- cation — where you can_leam what a real smoke is, Philip Morris English Mixture and Cut Plug Everything that's good or possible in Y/ tobacco has been put into these Y, brands. If your dealer does not stock Philip Morris English Mixture and Philip Morris Cut Plug, send us his name and 25 cents for tin of either brands. 7“ PHILIP MORRIS & CO., Ltd. 417 W. Broadway, New York City Factories New York Montreal London Cairo — You can well risk a quarter for a trial two-ounce tin. peered Ge SSE Cardinal Dubois The famous Cardinal Dubois, prime nuinister of France during the Orleans regency, had a violent temper, but was by no means ill-natured. At one time he was swearing at his clerks, saying that with thirty clerks he could not get his business done. Venier, his secretary, after looking at him a long time in si- lence, answered: “ Monseigneur, take ene clerk more to swear and scold for you; half your time will be saved and your business will be done.” 1189 \WINTER CRUISES |anD TOURS | Mediterranean with | South You can conveniently select from ALG the popular Cruises, by All | Lines, at any of Cook's | Offices. | Egypt and Nile. West Indies, | rica, Round the Worl, ete, THOS. COOK & SON, |245 Broadway, 264 Sth Ave., New York | | FOR OF BRAINS IGARS “MADE AT KEY WEST comicbooks.com