Life, 1918-12-05 · page 70 of 76
Life — December 5, 1918 — page 70: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine contains humorous short anecdotes and advertisements typical of early 20th-century satirical journalism. **The Main Cartoons/Jokes:** "The Home Touch" depicts a burglar interrupted by a homeowner who scolds him for tracking mud on carpets—the humor lies in the burglar's politeness despite committing a crime; he leaves rather than face domestic complaints. "Foresight," "No Excuses," and other brief pieces are wordplay-based humor: a woman notes it rained three hours before a social event, a man refuses to apologize to his wife, and a doctor brags about patient survival rates. **The Advertisements** promote contemporary products: Stromberg carburetors (automobiles), Cuticura soap for skin conditions, and Masonic books. **Social Context:** The humor assumes readers value domestic propriety and middle-class respectability. The "Home Touch" joke satirizes how powerful domestic authority can be—even criminals defer to it. Overall, this reflects pre-WWI attitudes toward gender roles, class, and consumer culture, with gentle rather than harsh satire.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Home Touch The burglar had entered the house as quietly as possible, but his shoes were not padded, and they made some noise. He lad just reached the door of the bed . room when he heard. someone asked. TI the bed, as if about to get up, a ¢ ‘ / DB trying to: Stromberg Carbu- il bet TI bet tetor has undergone f thing the you come into this house,” it said, ‘| ¢ aciples and mechanical periection there's ¢ o be trouble, and a lot g x: contac - paused, The sound of floated to his ears. of it. Here it’s been raining for three ? - tin hours, and you dare to tramp over carpets - f MD ames, yearendnetctal ys with your maddy boots on, Go down- : E STROUBERS WOTDR DEMIS C0, Org. 112, 64 6. 25% St stairs and take em off this minute.” He went downstairs without a word, y are, ed Thornton Dut he didn’t take his boots. Instead . ee He ca he went straigh again, — Se ee = velope ful for; hm; war funil New ST BERG ia rob that house,” he said. “It ¢ of home.” —London Opinion. Foresight ————— — Orricen: ‘The ground was Fooled FOR g MEN OF BRAINS er the rain. We th e The sailor, returning a trifle saturated, IGARS 10 be postponed. $4 5 a respect. | ’ Lapy: Well, do you know, we were abl amouflayedinsthe moatmodern AMADE AT KEY WEST~ in the s. predicament the day cubist style! Running his cye over the Red Cross festival, but we had the fore- whole mess of conflicting squares, tri- F a angles, . circles and. sundry other CLEARS uti ur; Sats He i nameless blobs of paint which graced the a Se sides of his “ home,” and, blinking stupid. ¥ ey oat way Rereage vee ane ly at the hideously screaming color og X 0 u at excuses:ido, yout cheme, he slowly raised his hand, while Ano OINTMENT have wife when you st the tears coursed down his cheeks, and QUICKLY REMOVE “Tcaw't “T don’t make a et * replied _THESIN PIMPLES DANDRUFF THF AU 1s red wearily, “ Never again phony A eh ele ted Pc sf “ the Frene g she has been addressing th So Careless! lamb OP ASTELE ots ORENEE “Who was here with you la: little bit Noyes, the war Vell—er—Agnes was her Thornte sweep th pony “Well, tell Agnes she’s left her spurs Everything else has gone up three bun a Browne! under the seter dred or four hundred per cent., but a —Windsor Magazine. sonnet that before the war would easily bring five pounds commands a ‘ Luck . A Youne Docrow: I haven't lost a patient Mr. Noyes lav . si hung up my shingle. said, “to revise the old prov- ince T hung up hingle Secoxp Ditto: I wish I had your luck erb so as to m it read, * Poets are All mine get well—Boston Transcript. born, not paid.’”"—London Opinion “ ARK ‘om the Tombs a doleful Send for a Complete Catalogue of aan tbe Tans ems MASONIC BOOKS. caused by the fact that ver of those incarcerated in that famous bas- Jewelry and Goods tile have ever kuown the cheering and REDDING & CO. uplifting influence that comes from Publishers and Ulanelactorees being an annual subscriber to Lire, __ Dept. L. 200 Fifth Avenue, New York, DE LUXE XMAS SOMONEY DOWN, Ont wey “1 WANT NINE OF YOUR BEST ‘LIFES’ PLEASE”