Life, 1920-02-26 · page 24 of 40
Life — February 26, 1920 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three unrelated satirical pieces typical of early 20th-century Life magazine humor: **"The Lost Hat"** is a humorous poem by Carolyn Wells about an impulsive hat purchase—a feathered, ornate creation resembling a Spanish Don's hat. The satire gently mocks women's shopping impulses and fashion obsession, with the narrator unable to relocate this "divine" hat afterward. **"Changed Conditions"** is a brief joke about shifting domestic expectations: a new maid asks to *stay* rather than take a night off, suggesting economic hardship has reversed servant privileges. **"Come and Be a Psychic"** is sharp satire mocking the spiritualism craze and correspondence-school scams prevalent in the era. It ridicules get-rich-quick schemes promising supernatural powers, mentioning Sir Oliver Lodge (a real spiritualist) and offering absurd services like "auras fitted while you wait" for $50/day income. **"Hard to Tell"** is Irish-dialect humor about ambiguity: when a woman sees her husband surrounded by police, she cannot tell if he's been arrested or simply going to work in a non-union shop—likely referencing labor unrest of the period.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Che Lost Hat ATED one day in 1 was bored and a bit blasé, a hat shop And my fingers wandered idly Over the plumed array I know not what I was buying Or what T was trying on, But 1 saw a feathered wonder Like the hat of a Spanish Don! ’Twas flooded with crimson velvet, Like the clothes of a Sheban ¢ And Javed by a feather fancy With a touch of real Blondine It rioted gold and silver, Like It seemed the harn sun overcoming rain pnious Of a genins gone insane, It linked all perplexed s\ Into one perfect hat, led away to a tricorne, 1 sort of a toque or flat. e sought, but I seek it vainly one lost hat divine, from the head of an artist sat so well on mine be that haughty salesgirl sold it to some old hent And it may be at somebody's luncheor I shall see that hat again Carolyn Wells, Changed Conditions RABSHAW: Did the new girl ask for a night off? Mrs. Craustiaw: No. She asked which night we hoped she might stay A MISCONCEPTION ye: 1 DO HOP, ADAM, THAT POSTERI- TY WON'T THINK 1 WASN'T PROPERLY CLOTHED, JUST BECAUSE 1 ONLY HAD FIG LEAVES TO WEAR THE RELATED APPEAL Come and Be a Psychic Good mediums are rare and valuable. Sir Oliver Lodge UR school for open mediums is now Classes in correspondence are being rmed by the hour, Are you making less than fifty dol- lars a day? If so, let us convince you of what you can do for yourself. Hitherto you have been blind to the secrets of your power, In a short time every household in the country will have a pet medium on the premises. Will you he one of these? We teach you how to communicate in three lessons. A small deposit re- quired in advance There is a psychic vein in every one of us. By means of a new system of attraction we know how to bring it out in you. Inside of one week you cat in arm with Napoleon Alexander the Great yin it Be the captain of your own bank account Auras fitted while you wait. Dr. Wanver Beater, Buncombe Builk You float up twenty-cight flights. Hard to Tell RS. MALONEY: are deceitful, Mus. Casey: They sure are. Whin Oi sce the ould man surrounded by a Appearances squad of cops nowadays, Oi don't know whithir he’s got pinched or is going to wurrk in some non-union plant. comicbooks.com