Life, 1925-04-23 · page 23 of 37
Life — April 23, 1925 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two distinct pieces of 1890s satire: **"The Circassian Princess"** (main story): A humorous rural anecdote about a hired domestic worker who abandons her job at a parson's house, then reappears as an exotic circus attraction billed as a "Circassian Princess." The joke exploits the era's fascination with "exotic" racial spectacles—circus sideshows marketed foreign or fabricated identities to audiences. The irony is that the parson fails to recognize her while she performs this theatrical role, and she maintains the act throughout their encounter. **"Discovered"** (brief dialogue): Political satire suggesting corruption exists equally in both the home and U.S. Senate, using the genteel anxiety of Victorian ladies about burglars as a vehicle for commentary on governmental dishonesty. **The illustration** depicts a wealthy family's Sunday social gathering, captioning a mundane domestic concern (remaking an old dress), characteristic of Life's satire of upper-class preoccupations. Both pieces mock period class anxieties and social pretensions.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
- LIFE - 21 The Circassian Princess PEAKIN’ of folks disguisin’ themselves, Doc Brady was tellin’ the boys up to the Grange the other night ‘bout the goings-on of that hired gel of Parson Brownell’s folks up to North Pills- bury. It seems they seen an ad in the paper "bout this young woman wantin’ to hire out, an’ statin’ that Christian influences was more to ‘er than wages. Doe said the Parson's always on the lookout for a bargain, so the Christian influence stuff got him. s the Parson's folks got a jolt when they seen 1 come in, the day after they answered the ad, Doc said she was the darn‘dest-lookin’ picce of humanity ever he'd seen. She said her name was Katie Cassidy an’ her folks come from Maine. Doc said he guessed it was the Spanish Main, he said she was the color of an Indian, with the blackest eyes he'd ever seen, an’ black frizzly hair standin’ out on her head. week an’ then she lit out n’ any wages, or CLristian influences either, as Doc says she only stayed "bout a without far as they knew. Well, it seems a few weeks after, the Parson an’ Doc an’ all the folks druv’ over to the Circus up to the City, an’ in one of the side shows there sat that hired gel on a red velvet stand, with beads an’ bracelets onto ‘er an’ a sign over ‘er callin’ ’er “The Circassian Princess.” Doe said there was a feller sittin’ side of ‘er sellin’ pictures of ‘er, an’ in- terpretin’ what she said. Doc said it was a scream to see the Parson an’ the folks standin’ there lookin’ at ‘er an’ she never battin’ an eyelash. At last Doc says the Parson said, “Don’t you know us, Katie? n’ the gel never moved a muse side of ‘er bled something to her an’ she whispered some- thing to him, an’ he said to the Parson, “ the reverend gentleman must be mistaken,” an’ Doc says he thought he'd die, the Parson said, “Well, I'll be damned,” Doe says he thought he seen Katie's mouth twitch, an’ Doc crowd ‘round an’ he said if , an’ then the feller he Princess says there was considerable of it hadn't been one already, he'd have said it was as good as a Circus. He said he got laughin’ so he had to leave ‘em an’ the last thing Doc said he heard was the Parson's v sayin’ to the interpreter, “We ain't particler "bout her knowin’ us if she'll tell us where she put the can-opener.” Beatrice Herford. Discovered “QH! Sh! I think there are some robbers in the house.” “Hist! What? In the House?” “Sh! Sh! Yes, I think so.” “Hist! Sodo I. I think there's some in the Senate, too.” John! THE GAY NINETIES THE SUNDAY AFTERNOON FAMILY COUNCIL TO DECIDE THE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS WAY TO TURN THE OLD PLUM-COLORED POPLIN DRESS. comicbooks.com