Life, 1918-12-19 · page 27 of 34
Life — December 19, 1918 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes a petty legal dispute between a restaurant patron and its hat-check attendant. An indignant customer sued the establishment after the hat-check man refused to let him enter wearing his own hat and coat, insisting on hanging them up (presumably to secure a tip). The article mocks the customer's presumption in bringing such a trivial matter to court. It argues that metropolitan restaurants have an "inalienable privilege" to require customers to check their belongings—a standard practice of the era. The satire suggests the customer should be grateful to receive his items back at all, not litigious over the principle. The accompanying illustrations show a formal party scene and a small figure greeting someone named "Billy," though the connection between image and text isn't entirely clear. The final quoted exchange—about small men doing great things and great men doing small things—reinforces the mockery of this petty legal action.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
RILL-YOU WERE ALWAYS AMONG THE SHOCK TROOPS” Presumptuous N indignant patron of a prominent New York restaurant has hauled the proprie- Meee 26000 tor of the establishment up in court be- af} 3[ cause of an alleged outrage to his person The hat-check man at the entrance re- K ~ fused to let him enter with his hat and ON, coat, and, in hopeful antici m of the customary tip, grabbed those articles wy from him and insisted on hanging them up. The claims that he had a right to his own belo s involves a large principle. Tf the m n others: will lly follow his exampl if mistaken, precedent, the hat-chy 1 would soon hegin to pass his dividends The man, of course, was wrong, He had no right to his t and coat. It is the inalienable privilege of all metro- restaurants to exact from their customers the usual bute. This particular customer should have been thank- 1} to have got back his helon: Some people don't w when to be grateful ES, sir, small men certainly do great thing Yes, they are almost equalled by the ability of great ven to do small things.” “HELLO, RILLY!” comicbooks.com