Life, 1917-08-09 · page 32 of 42
Life — August 9, 1917 — page 32: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**Top Cartoon:** A man purchasing an expensive automobile claims it's "for my wife's sole use." A salesman sarcastically asks "First or second wife, sir?"—satirizing the era's high divorce rates among the wealthy. The joke mocks both marital instability and the extravagance of buying such a costly vehicle for a spouse. **"How to Tell a Well-Bred Dog":** This humorous essay satirizes the affectations of the ultra-wealthy by describing a "well-bred" dog with absurdly high-maintenance and delicate requirements: eating only caviar, requiring rose-water baths, being untouchable, sleeping on silk. The punchline—"If he dies before you can get him home"—mocks the impracticality of such extreme pampering. **"Epidemic" Dialogue:** Two characters discuss world war becoming "almost as general as a neighborhood row," trivializing global conflict by comparing it to commonplace domestic disputes—satirizing the casual acceptance of warfare's prevalence. All three items target wealthy society's excesses, marital instability, and social complacency during the World War I era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“THIS CAR IS FOR MY WIFE'S SOLE USE. “FIRST OR SECOND WIFE, SIR?” How to Tell a Well-Bred Dog IF he defies all the laws of natural beauty and symmetry, If he has a disease calling for specialists, If he cannot eat anything but Russian caviar and broiled sweetbreads, If he costs more than a six-cylinder roadster, If he must be bathed in rose water and fed out of a cut- glass bowl, If he cannot be touched by the naked hand, or patted more than twice a day, If he refuses to wear anything but imported leather col- lars, If he has to sleep on a silk cushion, If he dies before you can get him home, Then he is a well-bred dog. Epidemic ASHER: Two-thirds of the world now are at war. Faxxine: Yes; the thing's becoming almost as gen= eral as a neighborhood row. HOW LONG WILL YOU GUARANTEE IT?" “Oft in the stilly night” Ms 5 oT ES aN comicbooks. Gam