Life, 1919-03-27 · page 33 of 44
Life — March 27, 1919 — page 33: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily a **product advertisement** for the Ruud Automatic Gas Water Heater, not political satire. The illustration at top shows a domestic scene—a mother with children at a sink and bathtub—depicting the convenience of instant hot water. The "satire" is **commercial rather than political**: the text humorously lists common domestic complaints (children avoiding baths, dishes piling up, difficulty keeping household help, wasted gas heating) and presents the Ruud heater as solving all these problems. It's gentle, lifestyle-based humor typical of early 20th-century advertising. The advertisement emphasizes that the automated heater requires no user maintenance—you simply turn a faucet and hot water appears instantly, day or night. This was genuinely innovative plumbing technology at the time. The page lists numerous branch offices across major American and Canadian cities, indicating Ruud's national distribution network circa the 1910s-1920s.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Hot Water by Turning a Faucet Instantaneous—All You Want—Hot As You Want It— Any Hour— Summer or Winter—From Any Hot-Water Faucet in the House iter——-whether for a bath on a cold morning, or for the laundry in July, or for washing ne, or for filling a hot-water bottle at midnight—simply by turning the hot-water faucet. hot water always ready, no wonder the children don't like to bat No wonder the ctimes pile up inthe sink. No wonder it is hard to keep domestic help. No wonder tes to shave every day. No wonder you waste gas heating water in small quantities. that as well be heating a lot of water—plenty for everything. ture of the Ruud Water Heater that you see here is the automatic water heater that goes sement or kitchen, After it is installed, you need never go near it. In fact, we ask you > much about the actual machine any more than you think of the city water-supply when v the fauce t water service that you buy when you put in a Ruud Water Heater. Whenever you turn ater faucet, a gas flame jumps up in the Ruud Water Heater and concentrates upon a cop- ough which the water passes. The water is instantly heated and continues to flow hot as et is open. water shuts off the gas, except for a tiny nt that glows continually, at a trifling cost. l Watce Heater burns artificial or natural gas—burns only when you are ater—heats only the here is No waste, Over 125,000 are in use, some of them since be ade with wonderful strength and sincerity— de to work and ink of the service instead machine that gives it on for being sure you get a Ruud, made by a strong organization that has a proud history and service, RUUD AUTOMATIC GAS WATER HEATER “Hot Water All Over The House’’ ad Water Heater is made in sizes to fit any home, Installation in homes already built is simple. Any gas Ruud Booklet Mailed Free nber. oF gaxappliance store will tell you about the Ruud Water Heater for your house, “If you are near mith) complete descriptive telting atl “branch houses sted below, go in and see a Ruud Water Heater for yourself. ae eet eribeibaer waa : . S Address Ilome Offi ‘cor rest Branch. See the Ruud at any of these branch offices and agencies = = : = ect Dallas, 1501 Commerce Street Los Angeles. 745 S, Broadway gton Street Dayton, 17 Rockwood Avenue Milwaukee, 8 Middle Street Detroit 303 Park Huding Minneapolis, 29S. Filth Street Datuth, uperior Street New York, 11§ Broadway Indianptis 337 Home-stansae Bide New Orleans, 216 Rourbon Strect ansas City, Mo., 1508 Mai iladelphia, 1938 Market Street rhgton, 711 Thirteenth S Louisville, 309 S. Third Street Portland, Ore, 412 Gaseo Building ison, 701 Thirteenth St. N..W. RUUD MANUFACTURING CO., Dept, A, Pittsburgh, Pa., Makers of Standardized Gas Water Heaters RUUD MANUFACTURING CO. of Canada, 371 Adelaide St. W., Toronto comicbooks.com