Life, 1919-08-07 · page 39 of 44
Life — August 7, 1919 — page 39: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page combines poetry satire with period advertising. The left column features "Aunty," a humorous poem by Arthur Guiterman personifying social prudishness as a killjoy female authority figure who opposes all youthful pleasures—smoking, drinking, reading, sports, bathing suits. "Aunty" represents the restrictive social conventions (likely Victorian-era moralism) that govern behavior. The main advertisement showcases a Waterman's Ideal Fountain Pen, claiming it enabled officials to sign the Treaty of Peace (likely WWI's Treaty of Versailles, 1919) without logistical delays. This is tongue-in-cheek corporate puffery—crediting a pen for diplomatic efficiency. Below are advertisements for Fox's Puttees (spiral leg wrappings for military/outdoor use) and a joke about hardware stores. The humor relies on period-specific products and social attitudes modern readers wouldn't immediately recognize.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Aunty gues sometimes “ Mrs,,” sometimes “Miss” She may be lean or fat; fone people call her “ Anticthis,” ‘And others, “ Anti-that” Fat when in harmless, youthful glee You seck to have your fling, Jeol mighty quickly learn that she Js Anti-everything. tT make a bet jon't you think ake a cig parallelogr Aunty! Cs nele Sam? BXow, Aunty, can't 1 xo to sce day ga and free Within the festal hall? “Ob.can't | wear this bathing skirt? much too scant.” “PEP” PUTTEES NOW-TRAY SPIRAL (Pusented) For camping, hiking, hu: fishing, nsilitary drill all outdoor sports—FOX'S Spiral Puttees are the thing. They are made on a curve and wind about in fiat, neat spirals. They will not fray Tueted at the edges, like cheap puttees.. They Bott comfortable, best-looking, ree, can buy—made ot b's, women’s and bo: the genuine FOX'S have a small brass tag on each Py.Barked with the name FOX and with R for right E Lfor left. Genuine FOX’S Puttees are always full pet and width. Writefor the name of thedealer who them in your city. MANLEY & JOHNSON Dest 265 W. Broadway, New York City G,) ae The Pen That Signed the Wotan of Peace rma srman's : nitain: 1Pen a Its readiness to write instantly any- where without dependence upon desk or inkwell, enabled the men who thought, planned, drew up and signed the Treaty of Peace to do their great work efficiently without giving consideration to time, place or emer- gency. But Aunty looks extremely hurt, Nove Don't you love to walk And says, “You surely can’t!” through a hardware store? Too»: Indeed I do. T love to look at So Aunty rules our sorry lot all the things I can’t find when I need With Presidential s' A them at home (If one should ask her, “ May I not?” Would Aunty smile, “You may” 1," said Milton’s daughter after she'd es ta big ¢ Of Mrs Grundy’s sisterhood his dictation of “ Paradise Los That hold us by the throat, wish you'd become an annual subscrib- She's my Antipathy—I would er to Livre, Then you'd learn that I knew her Antidote! Cl ‘an be poetry without being a Arthur Guiterman, comicbooks.com