Life, 1924-03-06 · page 25 of 42
Life — March 6, 1924 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**"The Penitent"** (top): A poem by Mabel Haughton Collyer depicting a woman who resisted romantic advances, now regretfully contemplating the kisses she rejected. The satire targets Victorian courtship anxieties and female restraint—mocking both the strict moral codes women were supposed to follow and their potential regret. **"Literature to Match"** (bottom): A young woman seeks a book to complement her yellow evening dress for a date with a wealthy thirty-year-old man. The punchline—"They haven't much in common, have they? / No, they've spent it"—satirizes both gold-digging dating practices and the superficiality of matching accessories to romantic prospects. The humor suggests the couple shares nothing except his money, which he's already spent. Both pieces satirize courtship customs and female economic dependence in the early 20th century, treating romance as transactional and women's choices as constrained by social and financial pressures.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Penitent i Riga Y told he All p That gaunt remorse w Exacting fearful, tearful Struck from the tinde And now she sits a And feels intense and sad regr O'er kisses that she did not get! fabel Haughton Collyer. Literature to Match SWEET Youne Tune (dashing into bookshop): | want LIVIN a book that will go well with a yellow dress I'm wear Congressman ing to-night in a low hight for a man of thirty in the bond LOVEE OF THE GREATES business ! . or iT, MAN! 1 \ “THEY HAVEN'T MUCH IN COMMON, HAVE THEY? “NO, THEY'VE SPENT IT.” comicbooks.com