Life, 1919-07-10 · page 17 of 50
Life — July 10, 1919 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains a sentimental story-poem about furniture mourning a bride's departure after her wedding. The sofa and armchair, which have witnessed her life, lament losing her company and fear a dreary future with "total strangers or insipid friends." When the newlyweds return looking despondent, the furniture initially despairs—but then witnesses the couple reconcile with an embrace, restoring their faith in love's endurance. The cartoon below ("Common People") shows two working-class figures; one comments on the other's "halo," likely satirizing pretension or false respectability among ordinary people. At bottom, "Her Fatal Beauty" is a brief joke: a dog became ill from eating a woman named Maudie's "complexion"—suggesting her makeup or cosmetics were so heavy or poorly applied they poisoned the animal. This mocks exaggerated beauty standards of the era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Afterwards 'HE last guest had gone. The sofa and the old arm- . chair stood looking at each = other disconsolately. “She certainly looked beau- tiful,” said the sofa. “I had no idea, indeed, how beautiful she | was until I saw her come into the i room with her bridal veil on. How i lovely the music was! When the min- | ister began speaking I could scarcely hold myself together.” | “Yes,” rocked the armchair, “and i wasn't he manly and distinguished- looking? I have heard that during these affairs the groom attracts scarcely any attention. But I was particularly attracted to him this evening because he held himself so well. Ah, brother, how well we know them both! What evenings we have passed with them!” i The sofa creaked mournfully, “T am afraid we have nothing much to look forward to,” he said, “now that she has gone. There is no F, one to take her place. Our best even- ings are past. We shall drag out a miserable existence, sat upon by total strangers or, at most, insipid friends _. Fh, me) V/s. | Common People: somenow, 1 poN't | SEEM TO LIKE YOUR HALO! 69 AT THE AIRPLANE MANGUVERS of the family, totally devoid of all true sentiment.” “Ah, how true! doubtless, T shall hold up, respectable business men, who will talk politics and crops, while you, at most, can look forward or acouple of gdssip-laden women. About the only consolation left is for us to pass our idle moments in talking over old times.” “Never lived! Hello! here come mother.” We father and mind, brother. have Two figures entered silently, One sat in the old armchair. “This affair seems to have broken them all up,” said the sofa. “Why, it's all she can do to keep from sob- And I don't wonder. I felt trembly myself all the evening.” “He's worse than she is, although he’s doing his best not to show it,” re- One on the sofa. hing. plicd the “Well, ion in the fact that we armehair there's some cons« will all face the future together.” Overcome by his emotions, the arm- chair paused. Then the man from the sofa said softly to the woman: “Come, ¢ sat down beside him She went over and He put his arms around her. Then the sofa said to the armchair: “Brother, the only trouble with us was that we lacked faith. We ought to have known that even when the door of a home swings open, love within never dies.” TLL. Mf. Her Fatal Beauty UIN SRE: Heavens! ails the pup? Maprtine: Sh! The poor thing ate Maudie'’s complexion. What