Life, 1913-07-10 · page 17 of 44
Life — July 10, 1913 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The main cartoon depicts an **umbrella manufacturers' association meeting opening with a prayer for rain**—an ironic joke about self-interest. The manufacturers literally pray for the weather condition that drives sales of their product, satirizing how businesses profit from circumstances beyond their control and may subtly encourage conditions harmful to the general public. Below is a separate baseball-themed dialogue about a player named "Lire" discussing pennant races and Ty Cobb's batting average. The conversation satirizes casual sports talk and the disconnect between serious matters (baseball statistics) and actual importance. The final line—"A woman in the kitchen is worth two in the polling-booth"—is a sexist aphorism mocking women's exclusion from voting, suggesting their value lies only in domestic work rather than political participation. The page reflects early 20th-century American satirical humor targeting business self-dealing, sports obsession, and gender inequality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE UMBRELLA MANUFACTURERS’ ASSOCIATION WAS OPENED WITH A PRAYER FOR RAIN don't brag and bluster about it. You just go along and play for that pennant. We never saw a pennant in our life, but judging from results it must be a good thing to play for. We sometimes think it would be better if the magnates played for pennants instead of for our pocketbooks. We would enjoy the game much more. “Well, I'll take it all back, Lire. I guess you're a good sport after all. By the way, what do you think of Ty Cobb's batting average?” “Really, you will have to excuse us from considering such a vital matter. As we hinted before, we are neither scientists nor statisticians.” “Right you are, Lire. Keep up the good work. So long.” “So long.” BO5 BALL TERM A woe in the kitchen is worth two in the polling- oth, FIRST BASE MAN comicbooks.com