Life, 1926-12-16 · page 10 of 34
Life — December 16, 1926 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three separate humorous pieces typical of early 20th-century satirical magazines: 1. **"The Absent-Minded Burglar"** (top): A visual joke about a burglar struggling to open a train window—the absurdist humor lies in his incompetence at a basic task. 2. **"In King Arthur's Time"** (middle-left): A medieval dialogue joke between a Squire and Sir Lancelot about armor hinges and a chess contest, playing on anachronistic confusion. 3. **"The Redeeming Defect"** (right): A narrative about Watson, someone chronically forgetful and disorganized, whose only virtue is returning borrowed items. The satire mocks the tension between personal failings and occasional redeeming qualities. The page represents typical Life magazine humor: wordplay, domestic observation, and gentle social satire rather than sharp political commentary.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Life THE ABSENT-MINDED BURGLAR HAS DIFFICULTY OPEN THE TRAIN WINDOW, In King Arthur’s Time Gaur E: What dost thou desire, my lord? 7 sin Lancerot: Hinges on the legs of my suit of armor and right speedily! Am I not entered in the Charleston and Black Bottom Contest at Camelot? Explained ILD LADY: Goodness gracious, how can that little boy swear so? Tue Kin: It's just natural ability plus Father: vor A YOUNG GIRL, I THINK YOU KNOW ENTIRELY TOO MUCH. Daughter: you MEAN ENTIRELY TOO MANY, DON’T you, DAD? The Redeeming Defect HAVE known Watson for years and I have never liked him. That is, not until recently. He was too perfect. He always remembered to return my rake when he borrowed it. He never forgot what was trumps He had all his liquor analyzed before he touched it He could recall all the scores of Yale-Harvard games He never missed the 8:21. He knew what years Millard Fillmore was President of the United ‘States. He never failed to bring his wife flowers on the anniversary of their wedding da He was unfailingly and dis- gustingly right. . Now, however, I find myself feeling somewhat kindly toward him. We were lunching together (he always remembered whose turn it was to pay the check) and he was declaring that he never failed to locate a letter in “It is all,” said he, “a matter of orderliness. I have a place for everything I never clutter up my mind NS with useless things and I a never keep any article un- As he spoke, he rattled a bunch of keys in his pocket. An evil glint came into my ae, his files when he needed it. iebae ihe i a and everything in its place. less it serves a purpose.” A (AES fay I see your keys? I inquired in the voice of one who knows himself to be cunning as a_ fiction de- tective. He displayed them will- ingly cnough, “Tell me what they are for,” I went on, insinuat- ingly. For a moment the look of something trapped came into his eye. But he was game, that boy. Th he began bravely, “is the key to my roll-top desk. This is the key to the garage; this is my locker at the club, This one—hum—let me sec, oh, yes, this is the key to that apartment we had in Chicago when I was out there three years ago on business. This is the key to the back door of our old house in Pleasantdale—the one we sold last spring. And these two—well, now, this one must be the key yy tackle-box. . .no, that is a flatter k Frankly, I’m dashed if I know what these two are for.” I beamed upon him. “Watson,” said I, “I don’t care whose turn it is. This lunch is on me.” Sterling Patterson. \ (\, TILE POPULAR CONCEP- TION OF THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT. Also Self-Sacrificing HAE: Is she entertaining? Frank: I should say so. I talked to her about myself all eve- ning and she never interrupted me once! comicbooks.com