Life, 1928-04-05 · page 17 of 59
Life — April 5, 1928 — page 17: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This cartoon depicts a father discovering his wife keeping a diary—a private record he views as evidence of infidelity. His shocked reaction ("my wife was keeping a diary") and the caption "A fool and my money are soon parted" suggest he's been cuckolded. The satire targets early 20th-century anxieties about women's privacy and independence. A wife maintaining a secret diary was presented as inherently suspicious—the cartoon assumes hidden thoughts equal hidden affairs. The joke relies on the era's assumption that wives should be transparent to husbands, and that a woman's private life automatically indicates wrongdoing. The cartoon reflects broader period concerns about changing gender roles and male insecurity about female autonomy.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The Vernal Harbinger “pur BANS will turn off the brow, Youthful but ever so knowing! Crowns are much shallower now. Brims rather wider are growing.” “Pendants of simulant jade. Necklets of almost carnelian.” “Mauve is a dominant shade. Veils of gamboge and chamelcon.” “Soft femininity rules Robes, when not sternly athletic.” “Chie is gemiitlich in mules.” “Dansettes are subtly ascetic.” “Lindbergh will influence frocks.” “Hose are insouciantes—trés gaies klingly speckled with clocks.” “...(hip lines are snug, by the ) ee * Thus the department stores sing... . ’T is Spring! Baron Ireland. Danger Signal FPRIEND: You don’t mean to tell me you've been sleeping in that helmet and steel vest! What's the idea? Marrieo Man: Well, the other day [ discovered that my wife was keeping a diary. “A fool and FATHER'S lament my money are soon parted.” Evverty Tourist: Oh, Captain, I'm generally seasick at thi sure the boat's going properly? Two Chaperons Call a Spade a Spade Look at that boy g with your daughte I think he’s had a little too much, if you ask me.” “He does seem a bit under the in- fluence. I fancy there are a good many here to-night who have looked upon the wine when it was red.” “T think it’s perfectly disgusting, the way the younger generation drinks this awful stuff! They never “I see by this school report that your marks in deportment are very low.” “Yes, 1 guess it's ‘cause I don’t have any home work in it.” feel they're having a good time un- less they're half-seas over.” “T suppose the fault of Prohi- bition, Martha, Before the law went into effect, you never used to sec any one in his cups. Of course, people got a little tipsy on New Year's Eve, but you never saw them lly the worse for drink.” That's just what I say, Nellie. »+-There! Look now! That girl in orange is getting perfectly maudlin. She can hardly stand up, the silly I imagine she had pie before she came here Tchk! Tchk! Disgusting! And it isn’t as if they needed stimulation, either. Why, it’s a heavenly night! If I were a girl, just the magic of the da and the sheer beauty of the evening would make me positively drunk!” N.R. J. Monetary 10 mills—1 cent. 10 cents—1 dime. 10 dimes—1 dollar. 10 dollars—1 payment. 10 payments—1I vacuum cleaner, 1 radio, 1 fur coat, 1 set of books, 1 washing machine, 1 electric refrigerator, and 4+ autos. HE most approachable chap in the world is the pedestrian. comicbooks.com