Life, 1922-02-16 · page 3 of 34
Life — February 16, 1922 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page presents a poem titled "A Valentine" by George K. Denny, contrasting romantic ideals from 1852 versus 1922. The left stanza expresses Victorian sentimentality about a beloved's physical beauty and charm. The right stanza, dated seventy years later, satirizes how modern women have changed—"knees now peep out," fashion has abandoned modesty, and women are more athletic ("pulses throbbing"). The accompanying illustration shows people on frozen ice with a "DANGER" sign, depicting ice-skating. The caption "How much'll ye gimme to come off the ice?" suggests the cartoon mocks either the recklessness of modern youth or changing social norms around courtship and propriety. The satire critiques how dramatically women's fashion, behavior, and social roles had shifted in the early twentieth century.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
A Valentine 1852 W JOULD I might kiss that crimson li With honied smiles o’erflowing; Would I might watch the opening rose Upon thy soft cheek glowing. Thy glorious tresses to thy waist In raven blackness sweep; Two tiny feet, in velvet cased, Beneath thy dresses peep. I bow me to thy beauty’s spell, And wish those charms were mine. I'd love thee always passing well, And be thy Valentine. 1922 J DARE not kiss that crimson lip, Lest it should need renewing; Upon thy cheek the opening rose Now takes a lot of doing. Thy glorious tresses are no more Since Fashion orders “bobbing”; Knees now peep out, whenas of yore Feet set my pulses throbbing. But just the same— I bow me to thy beauty’s spell, And wish those charms were mine. T'd love thee always ‘passing well, And be thy Valentine. George K. Denny. “How much’ll ye gimme to come off the ice?” comicbooks.com