Life, 1920-03-25 · page 27 of 40
Life — March 25, 1920 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains satirical cartoons and humorous commentary on American society, likely from the 1920s. The "Recently" cartoons mock contemporary issues: one depicts poverty ("Poor Pay Killed Them"), another shows a weather forecaster predicting "wet" weather, and a third references baseball ("The Voice of the Umpire Shall Be Heard in the Land"). The "Sick Man" cartoon appears to reference abandoning naval habits or spending. The main article "Waiting" satirizes small-town pretension. Mrs. Rubetta B. Boggs is a village woman who secretly publishes under the pseudonym "Phoebe B. Bee." Her family—husband, child, and neighbors—wait expectantly for her novel, but she only publishes mundane household advice articles. The satire targets both her modest affectations and the village's misplaced literary reverence. The "Billy Swift" section mocks wealth and expense, joking that hat-check tips cost more than the hat itself. "The Evolution of a Multi-Millionaire" shows four faces, likely depicting stages of wealth accumulation.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“LIFE: Recently THE VOICE OF THE UMPIRE SHALL BE HEARD IN THE LAND. WEATHER FORECAST: THE “SICK MAN" GIVES UP THE “NAVY HABIT.” Waiting RS. RUBETTA B. BOGGS is my next-door neighbor. The people in our village say that Mrs. Boggs is a “very intellectual” woman, They say she even “ writes.” Not long ago some village sleuth ferreted out a poem from the pages of the Houschold Weakly, This poem was signed by “ Phoebe B. Bee.” And that is how Mrs. Boggs’s dark secret was unearthed. Mrs. Boggs receives a great deal of homage in our town. The Woman's Club hangs on her every word with breath- s interest. Everybody is sure that she is writing a novel. t Mrs. Boggs is so modest. She never mentions her vork.” She refuses invitations with an enigmatic smile, 1 says, “I don’t go a great deal. I manage to keep busy at home.” We are all waiting with breathless interest for the ap- pearance of her novel. I think Mr. Boggs is-waiting, too. At least he sits out on the front porch all the time he is at home and plucks aimlessly at his frayed shirt cuffs— ‘as if he were waiting for something. And little Mary Boggs is waiting, too. I am sure of that. She plays out in the back yard, and every now and then she stops and pins up a tear in her apron, or ties her ribbon more securely about her matted curls. She is surely waiting for something. IT'S GOING TO Be “WET” FOR 100% AMERICANS ONLY, Meanwhile I hear the click of Mrs. Boggs’s typewriter through her study window. And I wait for the appearance of her book. That is, 1 did wait. But yesterday I picked up a copy of Home, and in it I saw an article entitled “ Efficiency in the Home,” by Phoebe B. Boggs. So I have decided to discontinue my watchful waiting. I do not, however, expect to tell my fellow-villagers that I am no longer on the waiting list. I might be accused of using undue influence. Buty SWIFT, who eats most of his food in public dining-rooms, is being congratulated upon getting his new plush hat for only eighteen dollars, “But,” he says ruefully, “it’s not the initial cost—it's the uphang that counts.” For our part, we think hat-check tips should be charged off in one’s overhead. Ree THE EVOLUTION OF A MULTI-MILLIONAIRE comicbooks.com