Life, 1913-01-09 · page 90 of 100
Life — January 9, 1913 — page 90: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page combines advertisements with a serialized story called "The Chauffeur." The narrative depicts the dismissal of a French chauffeur named Achille Le Bon by an English employer, Mr. Armyne, who must replace him with the son of an old family retainer—a decision driven by social obligation rather than dissatisfaction. The letters show the awkward formality of upper-class Victorian/Edwardian correspondence: Mr. Armyne must fire a loyal employee, and a follow-up letter suggests the original notice was lost in the mail, forcing an uncomfortable repetition. The surrounding advertisements—Pears' Soap and Thomson's Exercise Course—target genteel readers concerned with maintaining health and appearance through consumerism. The soap promises to protect against weather's harshness; the exercise course claims to restore vitality to the exhausted modern man. Together, they reflect period anxieties about bodily vigor and social respectability. The page illustrates early-1900s serialized fiction marketed to middle-class readers alongside lifestyle products.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
SRE / Weather Wisdom To take the edge off the weather and prevent it cutting, biting or piercing you—to keep your skin smooth, clear, comfortable, and healthy under all weathe: changes — use Pears’ Soap. As famed for its protective influence over the skin as for its com- plexion beautifying effects. Pears’ Soap possesses those special emollient properties that act like balm upon the surface of the skin, and while making it soft and velvety to the touch, impart to it a healthy vigor that enables it to withstand the weather vagaries of our changeable climate. Pears is the Soap for all Weather and all People. Matchless for the Complexion The Great English Complexion Soap STMBLISHE The Chauffeur (Continued from page 130) warn us. By the time we could have sent to the village and got a carriage your dinner would have been over, and so we decided not to go at all. Achille has not yet returned, which makes us fear that the poor fellow, who has rela- tives in Soho, may have found real trouble. Yours sincerely, Emiry ArMyne. Vi (Mr. Armyne to Achille Le Bon.) Dear Acuitte: I am very sorry to have to tell you that it has been made necessary for us to ask you to go. This is not on account of any dissatisfaction that we have with you, but merely that Mrs. Armyne has heard of the son of an old housekeeper of her father’s who wishes for a post as chauffeur, and she feels it only right that he should be given a trial, You will, I am sure, sce how the case stands. Perhaps we had better say that a month’s notice begins from to-day, but you may leave as much earlier as you like. I shall, of course, be only too pleased to do all I can to find you another situation. I should have told you this in person, but had to go to town, and now write because I think it would be wrong not to let you have as early an intimation of Mrs. Armyne's decision as possible. I am, Yours faithfully, Aprian ARMYNE. VIL. (Mr. Armyne to Achille Le Bon.) (By hand.) Dear Aciitue: I am afraid that a letter which was posted to you from London when I was last there, a month ago, cannot have reached you. Letters are sometimes lost, and this must be one of them. In it I had to inform you that Mrs. Armyne, having made arrange- ments for an English chauffeur (being the son of an old housekeeper of her father’s, who was in his service for many years, and quite one of the fam- ily), it was made necessary for us, much against our will, for we esteem you very highly, to ask you to go. As that let- ter miscarried, I must now repeat the month's notice that I then was forced to give, and the permission for you to leave at any time within the month if you like. I am, Yours faithfully, Aprian ArMyYNE, VIL. (Mr. Armyne to his nephew, Sidney Burnet.) (Extract.) There seems to be nothing for it but to sell our car. This is a great blow The Man who is “Always Tired-Out” will soon be worn-out If the day’s work fags you— If an ill-chosen meal upsets your diges- tion— If a sleepless night spoils the next day- then you are not normal, but are below par, unnecessarily, yes, and shamefully. You were given a body that had an abundant reserve fund of energy to draw upon in just such hours of need. The Thompson Course of Exercise is a rational, pleasant and easy means of securing and maintaining that reserve power which your body originally had and which by unthinking neglect most men have dissipated. My Course is different from any other treatment in that it benefits (by naturalmovements scientifically ap- plied) the govern- ors of the bodily machine, i. e., the lungs, heart, stom- ach, intestines, etc. All these are mus- cular and can be strengthened by a proper exercise. Yet, as far as I know, until my Course was evolved, no system- atic treatment existed that was based on this axiomatically natural method. The clearness of your mind, the strength of your nerves, your hopefulness and joy in living, all depend on the tone and vigor of your vital organs. 4 i I offer you something that will benefit every inch of your body and brain through every minute of your life, and I offer it on free-trial terms that make it impossible for you to lose a penny. Are you interested enough in making yourself a healthier human being to send for and re: ny book, “Human Energy” (sent free and postpaid)? You will find it very startling, yet obviously true. ! J. Edmund Thompson Suite 97, Exchange Building, Worcester, Mass. a to us, but we cannot go on as we are, apparently owning a car, but in reality being owned by a chauffeur. IX. (Sidney Burnet to Mr. Armyne.) Dear Uxcte: Don't sell the car. The thing to do is to pretend to sell it, get rid of your Napoleon, and then have it back. Why not .say I have bought it? I will come over one day soon and drive it home. Say Thursday morning. Your affectionate nephew, Sipney. (Continued on page 138) comicbooks.com