Life, 1915-06-03 · page 47 of 52
Life — June 3, 1915 — page 47: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The main cartoon depicts a domestic disaster: a wife tells her husband Jonathan that "everything we own is lost!" The husband, labeled "Optimist," responds that it could be worse—some fool might have saved Aunt Jane's cuckoo clock (a wedding gift universally understood as ugly and worthless). The joke satirizes forced optimism during hardship, a common wartime attitude. The cuckoo clock represents unwanted familial obligations and tasteless heirlooms—suggesting that losing everything might be preferable to keeping such burdens. The page also includes a honeymoon dialogue mocking newlyweds' romantic ideals: the bride promises love will last forever, while the groom admits he's not worried about love—only money. This reflects post-WWI economic anxiety, where practical financial concerns overshadow romantic sentiment. The advertisements (Lee Tires, Cascade Whisky) fill remaining space, typical for this era's magazine layout.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
connoisseurs an for its rich, smooth mellowness. GEO. A, DICKEL & C0 Distillers Wife: om, JONATHAN! EVERYTHING WE OWN 18 Lost! Optimist: IT MIGHT BE woRSE, MY DEAR. SOME IDIOT MIGHT HAVE SAVED TILE CUCKOO CLOCK AUNT JANE GAVE US. Books Received The City of Pleasure, by Arnold Ben- nett. (Geo. H. Doran Co. 50 cents.) An Interpretation of the Russian Peo- ple, by Leo Wieher. (McBride, Nast & Co. $1.25.) Confessions of a Clergyman. (Pub- lished by McBride, Nast & Co. $1.50.) Four Weeks in the Trenches, by Fritz Kreisler. (Houghton Mifflin Co. $1.00.) The Road Toward Peace, by Charles W. Eliot. (Houghton Mifflin Co. $1.00.) The Life Builders, by Elizabeth De- jeans. (Harper & Bros. $1.35.) HIGHBALL made with Cascade Pure Whisky wins the praise of J the approval of all Oricinal Bottling Has Old Gold Label Nashville, Te we ARE BOOKS AND FIRST EDITIONS PUR- CHASED for people who are too busy to form libraries, Address Dept. 3, E. V BOSTON | TRANSCRIPT, Boston, Mass. cARGUMENT: Apply for Booklet “ G ”’ to LEE TIRE & RUBBER CO. CONSHOHOCKEN, PENNA. Manufacturers of Rub- ber Goods since 1883 Distributors in All Principal Cities. Look up “Lee Tires” in your Telephone Directory TRADE MARR ao) The Competitive Nephew, by Monta- Puncture- Proof —and so guaranteed—is the last word in pneumatic tire improvement. Major and minor road troubles are put to flight. MORE MILEAGE is the aim achieved. Fewer tires to buy is the net result. LEE tires live long be- cause hand-built of “‘vanadium” rubber. Sales increased 600% in two years. New$1,000,000 factory now running day and night. gue Glass. (Doubleday, Page & Co. $1. Plays of the Pioneers, by Constanc D'Arcy Mackay. (Harper & Bros. $1.) Defenseless America, by Hudson Maxim. (Hearst's International Library Co. $2.00.) The War Terror, by Arthur B. Reeve. (Hearst's International Library Co. $1.) King Jack, by Keighley Snowden. (E. P. Dutton & Co. $1.35.) The Princess Cecilia, by Elmer Davis. (D. Appleton & Co. $1.30.) Poems, by Brian Hooker. (Yale Uni- versity Press. $1.00.) Viewpoint RIDE: I'm sure the rest of the honeymoon will be just as happy. I know our love will last. Brivecroo: I'm not worrying about the love, dear, but I'm a little nervous about the money HAT is a food expert?” “Any man who can make his wages buy enough for the family table.” comicbooks.com