Life — July 29, 1920 — page 6: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page is **primarily an advertisement**, not satirical content. It promotes the Ruud Automatic Gas Water Heater, manufactured in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (with a Canadian branch in Toronto). The ad contrasts two approaches to hot water: the "old way" (lighting a fire under a water tank daily) versus the "up-to-date way" (instant hot water from a gas heater). The illustration shows two decorative faucets with steam, emphasizing convenient, always-available hot water. The pitch emphasizes labor-saving benefits for household staff ("servants have no cause for complaint") and convenience for families and laundresses. The ad claims over 150,000 units were in operation and encourages readers to contact their gas company or plumber. This reflects early 20th-century marketing of modern domestic conveniences as status symbols and time-savers.