Life, 1925-09-17 · page 15 of 36
Life — September 17, 1925 — page 15: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces from *Life* magazine: **Top cartoon**: An insurance agent discusses fire insurance with a farmer. The joke plays on rural dialect and practical concerns—the agent pushes insurance while the farmer skeptically asks "Why not?" The farmer's response, "Das barn burns down't'ree mont' ago," suggests he's already experienced a loss, making the timing of the insurance pitch darkly comedic. **"Selling Centerville"**: A humorous narrative about promoting a Swiss location to tourists. The writer describes printing "See Centerville!" on handkerchiefs to advertise the place, using absurdist tourist-marketing humor. **"Fairy Story"**: A brief joke setup about a dentist examining a patient's teeth. The page exemplifies *Life's* early 20th-century style: rural humor, satire of commercial schemes, and snappy punchline-driven stories.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Insurance Agent: OLE, THE PREMIUM ON THE FIRE INSURANCE POLICY COVERING YOUR BAKN WILL BE DUE NEXT WEEK. Ole: AY GUESS AY DON'T NEED DAS INSURANCE DIS YAR. Lucerne, Switz. H, there, Jeff, old Mounseer: The “Mrs.” and me have just got through “doing” Switzerland and next we will “do” Italy and then we are ning home like Babe Ruth does. And bet, Jeff, that little old Centerville. wa, will look good to “yrs. truly.” I im sick of mountains and oceans and all se foreign things, Jeff,and 1 would ap them all for Main St. where a rson can speak their own language. Well, the other day we started tw go up Mount Blank 1 do not know what its real name is, but it must he a pretty bad cussword for them to put Blank in, because foreigners wil) say practically anything, includ- ing “Mon Due,” — which means “My Go—,” and they will say it right before women and ladies, too. But I have not let their loose ways effect me, Jeff, and you can invite me out to your house todinner without being afraid I will say anything to shock Jennie. We are duc home the 25th and I would just these “wry Not?” “DAS BARN BURN POWN T'RRR MONT’ AGO.” Selling Centerville The Hundred Percenter Abroad us soon eat with you that night, because the “Mrs.” will probably not have time to get anything into the house to eat. T like turkey pretty well, Jeff, but not liver. And I do not like turnips, ex- cept mashed. But course y not need to ask us you feel you cannot afford it or something. Well, what I was going to do was to print “See Centerville Ist” on a handkerchief and stick it like a flag on the top of Mount Blank, and then all the tourists would sce it and come UP SOMETHING SCANDALOUS over and we could sell them some lots on the Extension, But then I looked at the top of the Mt. and it was so far up I figured nobody in their senses would go up there, when all there is to do when you go up is to come down again, so the “Mr: and I decided not to go. So I gave the handkerchief to a tourist and ast him to put it on the top of the Mt. and he said he would, but later he came back and said a shammy had ate it. Do not forget what I hinted to you about the night of the 25th, Jeff. The “Mrs.” says I should not have said anything about having din- ner with you because maybe you cannot afford it the way we can, but that anyway she likes chestnuts and not onions in the dressing. Well, “over the river.” Sam, (per Tip Bliss.) Fairy Story “TUST as I -thought,” said the dentist to the new patient, “your teeth are in perfect condition.” comicbooks.com