Life, 1917-12-06 · page 25 of 92
Life — December 6, 1917 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a children's poem with gentle moral instruction, not political satire. A Christmas doll on a tree refuses to look pleasant, complaining of cold and loneliness. When the room warms and other toys animate—a bunny, pup, jumping-jack, monkey, teddy bear, toy captain, tiger, duck, and goat—the doll's attitude transforms. She becomes happy when a "Small Pink Person" (a child) takes her from the tree. The satire targets not politics but childhood behavior: the sulky doll represents an unhappy child who, exposed to warmth, companionship, and attention, reforms her disposition. The poem's ironic title and closing question—"How so bad a Dolly could become so good!"—gently mock how quickly children's moods shift when circumstances improve and they receive affection. It's sentimental Victorian-era advice wrapped in whimsy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Christmas Life The Dolly’s Reform AID the Clristmas Dolly on the fir tree hough, “No, I won't look pleasant, ‘cause I don't know how! For the room's so chilly, and my hands are numb, And I feel so lonely, and T feel so glum, \nd T can’t be happy, and I shan't be! but I will just keep scowling with my lids tight shut!” Oh, the white star twinkled on the tree's tip-top, And the lop-eared Bunny flipped a wild flip-flop, And the brown Pup waggled, and the Jumping-Jack Kicked his right foot forward and his left foot back, And the long-haired Monkey did a one-hand vault, And the big black Teddy threw a somersault. Then the lights were lighted, and the room grew warm, And the gold-lace Captain in his uniform Took the Army riding on the cight-wheeled truck | With the tin toy Tiger and the hardwood Duck; | And the Goat went coasting on the new red sled, | ‘Aad be Jamped up laughing when he buraped bis head | So the Christmas Dolly had a gre: But she smiled politely, and she blinked both cyes, surpris: And she seemed as happy as a doll could be When a Small Pink Person picked her off the tree. And I’ve always wondered (as you knew I would) | How so bad a Dolly could become so good! FRIEND AND FOE GREAT EXPECTATIONS comicbooks.com