Life, 1916-08-17 · page 15 of 38
Life — August 17, 1916 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two separate satirical pieces: **"Kontemporaneous Kulturetts"** (left): A dialogue mocking Mary's pretentiousness about a cotton bale. Someone quotes Winston Churchill's saying that "a rolling bale gathers no moss," and Mary responds that the bale has nothing to do but "sit around and look pleasant"—a veiled insult about idle wealthy women. The satire targets upper-class women who contribute nothing productive to society while maintaining airs of sophistication. **"Behind Closed Doors"** (right): A domestic scene showing Clarinda feeding her meals strategically—in the pantry after dinner—to make her thinner. The caption sarcastically lists "Eloping Heiress: HEAVEN, JAMES, AND DON'T SPARE THE GASOLINE," mocking young wealthy women who elope. The humor targets both wasteful wealth and deceptive domestic practices. Both mock affluent women's superficiality.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LANGUAGE Kontemporaneous Kulturetts Balekult M*kY had a bale of cotton, and its fleece was white as snow. Everywhere that Mary went—and she went in lots of places where she ought not to have went—the bale, not having anything else to do but to sit around and look pleasant, was certain to be there also. “You can't lose me,” remarked the bale. “But you ought to know that a rolling bale gathers no moss,” ejaculated—as they say in Winston Churchill's books—Mary. “A rolling bale may not gather any moss,” remarked her famous protégé, “but when there is a foreign war on it is his business to remain idle just as a kind of retri- bution to all the folks who employ child labor. What do you say, Mary, to that brilliant witticism?” “Which makes the children laugh and play,” replied Mary, as she merrily wenc on with the salmon sweater she was crocheting out of almost pure lamb’s wool. Behind Closed Doors LARINDA trifles with her meals, And diets to grow thinner, But—you should see her eating in The pantry—after dinner! Eloping Heiress: WEAVEN, JAMES, AND DON'T SPARE THE GASOLINE! comicbooks.com