Life, 1922-02-23 · page 3 of 34
Life — February 23, 1922 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes a habitual liar named "Dan" through a poem by Mabel Haughton Colyer. The verse describes Dan as someone whose deceptions are constant and charming—he lies about romance, his romantic exploits, and his schemes, yet no one confronts him because no one wants to disrupt his fabrications. The accompanying illustration depicts a rural farm scene where two men (labeled Eery and Marthy) read a newspaper. Their dialogue reveals the satirical point: they're discussing Cy Henders killing a pig, noting that the Henders family always appears in the society column—a joke about small-town vanity and how rural families seek social prominence through newspaper mentions, no matter how trivial the news. The cartoon mocks rural social pretension.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
HIS toast is to a liar who Enchants us when he lies, Whose frank deceit is always sweet As breath of summer skies. The lies he tells ring wedding bells That might not ring, percha ice. He jilts each one whose heart ne’s won; But never jilts Romance. Dan Cupid is the god of bliss Whose fiction is so gay. He springs his lies with quick surprise, And Reason flits away. Ezry (over the paper): Marthy: He rides supreme through every scheme That sober minds may pla But no one dares—or really cares— To interfere with Dan. We'd rather not disturb a plot That Cupid deigns to make— We'd rather keep our wits asleep, For everybody We would not try—not you nor I— To set him right, in sooth; For we, my dear, might not be here, Had Cupid told the truth! Mabel Haughton Collyer. I see that Cy Henders killed a pig last week. Huh! them Henderses is always gittin’ their names in the S’ciety Column. comicbooks.com