Life, 1915-12-02 · page 37 of 100
Life — December 2, 1915 — page 37: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a humorous poem by Arthur Guiterman, not political satire. It's a lighthearted Christmas story playing on mistletoe tradition—the plant associated with romantic kissing under the holidays. The joke: A maiden unable to distinguish holly from mistletoe mistakenly wears a decorative garland (thinking it's holly) that's actually mistletoe. A knowledgeable youth, who knows plant identification, encounters her in a shadowy stairwell—the perfect setup for a mistletoe kiss. The poem's humor lies in the narrator's coy refusal to reveal what happened, ending with "how can I finish the story?"—implying romantic action occurred that shouldn't be explicitly described. The ornamental border featuring wreaths and holiday scenes reinforces the festive, innocent tone. This is gentle holiday humor for a general audience, not social commentary.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Christmas Life A Christmas Garland There once was a Maiden, who, all would allow, Was otherwise blameless of folly, That couldn’t tell holly from mistletoe-bough Or mistletoe-berry from holly There once was a Garland with berries like pearls (It might have been wise to ignore it); The Maiden, who needed a wreath for her curls, Believed it was holly—and wore it. There once was a Youth, unaccustomed to look For foolish and formal excuses; And still, having studied his botany book, He knew all the plants and their uses. There once was a nook on a shadowy stair; And Maiden, and Garland of glory, And youth were all present, but | wasn’t there, So how can I finish the story? Arthur Guiterman. comicbooks.com