Life, 1912-11-14 · page 14 of 44
Life — November 14, 1912 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two distinct pieces: **"All About Side-Whiskers"** (left column with illustration "At the Horse Show"): A humorous essay arguing that growing side-whiskers fundamentally changes a man's psychology and attitude. The accompanying cartoon depicts fashionable society people at a horse show, suggesting side-whiskers were a status symbol among the wealthy elite. The satire mocks how adopting this facial hair fashion supposedly transforms one's personality and sense of responsibility. **"Origin of the Dinner Jacket"** (bottom left): A small illustration showing the historical origin of formal evening wear, presented as lighthearted social commentary. **"Concerned About the Future"** (right column): A brief anecdote about a child asking her mother what will happen as she grows up—touching on parental anxiety about children's futures, a timeless concern. The overall tone is genteel social satire typical of early 20th-century Life magazine.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
2194 All About Side - Whiskers CCORDING to the Kansas City Star, George Ade, recently home from England, predicts an epidemic of side-whiskers in the United States this fall. We have noticed recently more side- whiskers than usual, but this fact has not alarmed us until Mr. Ade came along with his dreadful prophecy. There is no explanation given for the prospective epidemic. Probably some men in all ages have worn side- whiskers. Did not Pericles affect these appen- dages at one time of his life? But the fact that they are likely to become universal, would, we believe, mark a distinct psychologic change in our people. No man who grows. side-whiskers can ever be the same as he was be- fore. His attitude toward the world is a changed attitude. He develops subconsciously a new sense of re- sponsibility. We wonder if this new fashion can possibly have orig- inated in the Outlook office. It is possible that side-whiskers have an up- lifting effect. We do not believe that a deacon with side-whiskers would do all the wicked things when he was away from home that he would if he wore what is known as the Jersey lilacs. We are not able to say why this is so, but we feel it instinctively Neither do we believe that a man with side-whiskers is a deep thinker. No possessor of these appendages can AT THE HORSE sHow \. B.—THERE. ARE PRESENT A REAL PRINCE, A DUKE, A MILLIONAIRE AND TWO SOCIETY LEADERS help but caress them, and this in itself takes away from that concentration of thought necessary to produce the highest mental results. On the other hand, side-whiskers unquestionably stand for a certain amount of courage, especially where the owner is in the minority. They indi- cate also a modicum of self-respect, something which no doubt may often shade itself into vanity. Concerned About the Future AYING down the volume of Wordsworth, of whom she was an earnest disciple, the precocious child turned to her mother with a sigh. If Heaven lies about us in our infancy,’ as the poet says,” she queried, “ what will happen to us when we are grown up?” : comicbookom