Life, 1922-05-11 · page 10 of 38
Life — May 11, 1922 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical sketch depicts a married couple (labeled "Bed No. 1" and "Bed No. 2") arguing about household finances before sleep. The humor centers on marital discord over money management: the husband wants to discuss stock investments while the wife interrupts with domestic concerns—she lacks nice dresses and wants money immediately. The illustration above shows a jockey on a horse jumping a fence, captioned with dialogue about a wife who "never refuses anything" her husband asks of her—a sardonic commentary on marital obedience. The satire targets early 20th-century gender dynamics in marriage, where husbands controlled finances while wives had limited access to money for personal needs. The "twin beds" reference suggests separate sleeping arrangements, common in that era, emphasizing emotional and financial distance between spouses.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“Just like her husband.” “Didn't know he rode.” “The horse, I mean—never refuses anything she puts him to.” Twin Bed-Time Stories Domestic Finance CENE: The Newleighs’ bedroom, twenty minutes after Benedict and his wife Leila have retired for the night. Bep No. 1 (Mrs. Newleigh turns over to look in the direction of her husb. -:4’s bed. The glance apparently satisfies her). sSene- dict. (A slight movement on Benedict's part is designed to indicate sleep.) Benedict, are you asleep? Bep No. 2 (in a muffled tone): Yes. Bep No. 1 (triumphantly): There! I knew you weren't. I want to ask you something. Bep No. 2: Questions are limited to five minutes each. I’ve got work to do to-morrow. Bep No. 1: As long as you are awake you might as well listen to me. ‘ Bep No. 2: Am listening. Can’t help it—as long as I’m awake. Bep No. 1: Now keep quiet, Benedict, and listen to me. Do you or don’t you buy stocks? Bep No. 2: Do. Good night, m’love. Bep No. 1: How do you know what stocks to buy? Bep No. 2 (yawning): Oh—look up their finances, see what dividends they are paying, prospects and such stuff. Bep No. 1: Didn’t that steel stock you bought last week go down? Bep No. 2: Yes, but— Bep No. 1: What did you buy it for, then? Bep No. 2 (tossing restlessly) : Thought it was going up. Beb No. 1 (with conviction): You didn’t investigate, then! Bep No, 2 (impatiently): Of course I did! Now I'm going to sleep. Good night, Honey. No nightmares! Bep No. 1: You are not going to sleep. You're going to listen to me! If you had waited and watched the stock you could have seen whether your judgment was right or wrong, couldn’t you? Bep No. 2: Yes, of course. have done? Bep No. 1 (addressing an imaginary third person in the darkness): Listen to him. He could have saved himself money and he asks what good that would have done. He doesn’t want me to have nice dresses and other things like my friends. Oh— 2 Bep No. 2: Oh, keep quiet! Bep No. 1 (suddenly) : the first thing in the morning. But what good would that Benedict, I want some money | : comicbooks.com