Life, 1919-07-10 · page 40 of 50
Life — July 10, 1919 — page 40: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes excessive social prohibition and regulation in 1920s America. The central dialogue mocks a society so obsessed with banning "frivolous" activities that virtually all entertainment is outlawed: vaudeville, movies, dancing, loafing in parks, and even chewing gum are all prohibited by various reform societies and laws. The joke's target appears to be moral crusaders and reform movements of the era—groups like the "Society for the Suppression of Fatuous Frivolity" and "Circle for the Abolition of Useless Energies" (invented names reflecting real prohibition-era sentiment). The visiting friend's only escape is to return to Mexico, implying that America has become unbearably restrictive. The surrounding advertisements for puttees, compasses, and the Biltmore Hotel represent normal commercial life, contrasting sharply with the satirized landscape where nearly every pleasure is criminalized.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Vacation for Outdoor Men and Somes. >ezer Puttees Are Popular F or Men, Women and Boys 1 all outdoor sports—golf, skating, toboggan- ing riding, walking, mountain climbing, ete— *( Spiral’ Puttees for comfort, con nd looks. Puttces have come are not a fad. The demand has rown tremendously as their advan s and smart appearance have been recognized. FOX'S MOM FRAY GFERAL (Pesmeed) FOX’S Spiral Puttees—the puttees of the world—have long been made of the finest English wool. They are quality puttees thre and through. They will not fray or ravel at the edges. They possess the £1 bility. They are made in two we everybody, Look for the For on the goods. For Sportsmen, Chauffeurs, Boy Scouts FON’S Spiral Puttees are lighter, more com fortable and more durable than leather or can vas puttecs and they are very easy to put on They lic flat and smooth. Hundreds of thou- sands of returning soldiers will find them the hest puttees for outd hs puttee, marked with the name POX and oi cnt Genuine FOX'S Puttecs are fe "Waitefor the name of thee in your city. 3 ngth a (®) MANLEY & JOHNSON Dept. G. 265 W. Broadway, New Yerk (ity got hold of the vaudeville business and wound it up.” “And the movies? “The Alliance for the Elimination of Thrills squelched them.” “What can we do, then? Can we call up some of the old crowd of girls and go to a tea-room for a dance?” “Goodness, no! You see, dancing had taken such a hold on the people that they cared for nothing else. So Society for the Suppression of Fatu- ous Frivolity was formed, and the gov- ernment was finally prevailed upon to put the ban on dancin “Then there is nothing for us to do, after we have finished our luncheon of weeds, but to sit on a bench in the park?” “ZT shouldn't advise that, either. The Anti-loafing Law would probably get us arrested. One of the men in our office was fined twenty dollars last week because he grew ill in the park and was compelled to sit down.” “Is there any law against hiring an automobile for a ride in the country?” “ Most assuredly, unless you have an affidavit that you are taking the auto for some compelling necessity “Tf you don’t mind, I'll cancel that luncheon and take the train back to Mexico. I'll buy some gum to stay my appetite.” “I'm sorry, old chap, that) con- ditions are so bad. And it’s all right about luncheon. But let me warn you about the gum. Don’t try to get it. The Circle for the Abolition of Useless Energies has made us give it up. And, say, don’t be in such a hurry, Give me a little time to arrange things and I'll go hack to Mexico with you. We'll celebrate your home-coming down there. An Expert Who Doesn't Know The assumption that God would P in a prob: allow departed human beings, whether ionary state or after they have attained their supernatural end to cause the phenomena presented by Spiritism is, as we have said inthe cestin chapter, preposterous ron J. Liljencrants in a book, Sus CKS! Why preposterous? Con sidering how human beings are Howed to cut up before they have te why is it pre that they should ent up in a: probationary 1 end ‘ ! € urself ” Vow r to these matt Ack Old Bill about the He knows! “Take one wherever you go, Son,”* Bill, “It’s a mighty comforting thing to have along. The LEXDAWL is the caty evarnateed Cumran £2. Meradial $2.0 ieee $1.50 | Ceebynite 3.00 “ Aurapole $2.50 | Gydawl 2 de Litenite - $2.00 | U Wifes Goowvess! JouN, WHY DON'T you GET OUT OF ITS Way? lif i | i hi |p I+} i y \\# 3] 4 i lf 4 A ‘| Slonelike~ |i 4 but still inthe | < i | heartot things \\ ‘| THE BILTMORE t NEW YORK xc YA SA a th ee 4 comicbooks.com