Life, 1914-07-23 · page 9 of 40
Life — July 23, 1914 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon satirizes wealthy families who arrive at church with perfect punctuality while their household staff enables the chaos behind the scenes. The well-dressed man and woman stand prominently with their children, appearing pristine and punctual. Below them, a small dog with an umbrella sits abandoned—humorously suggesting even pets are organized into the family's rigid system. The joke targets Victorian-era hypocrisy: respectable appearances mask the coordination required from servants and staff. The title "Why the Hustleton Family is Always Punctual at Church" suggests their virtue is performative rather than genuine. The cartoon mocks both the family's self-satisfaction and the invisible labor maintaining their facade of propriety and reliability.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
TEAM-WORK WHY THE HUSTLETON FAMILY IS ALWAYS PUNCTUAL AT CHURCH Our Animal Dictionary OAT—The director or president of almost any rail- road company which has been operated in this country for the past thirty years. Lams—An innocent little animal who used to be in the habit of going regularly to a place called Wall Street to be sheared. But having been cropped too closely upon several occasions, he is now staying on the farm much more than he did. Wotr—An inhabitant of the slums, parts of the suburbs, and the outskirts of cities. Though meeting with constant rebuffs, he always comes back. Stac—A name applied to certain parties during certain summer months when women and children have been segregated at summer resorts. Lion—The protégé of an advertising agent; any Eng- lish author visiting in this country. “A SABBATH DAY'S JOURNEY” comicbooks.com