An unkempt woman leans against a post and drinks from a bottle of liquor., Text: Begone, you dirty drunken jade, / And feed along with swine, / For none but a pig would have you / To be his Valentine., Provenance: Helfand, William H..
A portly woman smiles vacantly and holds a bottle of liquor. The valentine suggests that her consumption of alcohol has permanently rendered her unattractive., Text: O! Whisky is your souls delight / Your only Valentine. / Go steep your brains in alcohol. / You never shall be mine., Provenance: Helfand, William H..
The ugly hatter stands at a table ironing top hats. "Gossamer" refers to the shellacked muslin pieces that shaped silk hats. "Swipes" is slang for copious drinking, and "logwood" is a type of dye. "Judy" is slang for a ridiculous woman, and the sender suggests that the recipient could only marry such a woman., Text: Ah! now I well know what it was that I smelt, / It was the bottle-nosed, rabbit-mouthed dealer in felt. / Mother Judy might marry such a fellow, but I-- / Detest such a dabbler in logwood and dye, / Though your head is so big-- 'tis of gossamer rig-- / All bloated and puffed, like a measly pig, / Beastly swiller of swipes-- what a picture is thine-- / Bad luck to the girl who is your Valentine., See similar print, A Hatter, Comic Valentines, 4.40, Provenance: Helfand, William H.
A jockey stands at a bar drinking from a beer tankard with a dog standing attentively at his side. In the background, a bartender stands behind the bar across from a woman who grins and holds a glass., Text: Alas, poor man, thy suit of plush, / Has fairly turned thy brain I ween, / But if thou art a man, Oh! blush, / To be a thing so very mean, / Oh! Jockey of the spotless clothes, / Oh! Jockey of the gundy plush, / Oh! Jockey with the turn up nose, / I pity thee and for thee blush., Provenance: Helfand, William H.
A baker in a paper hat is putting a pie into an oven. His shoe has split open and his red nose, combined with the word "sodden," imply that he is drunk while on the job., Text: What! Buy of you! Your senseless grin / Would sour all your pies, / And not a loaf, poor, sodden oaf, / But would smatter of your lies. / Heavy as lead, your lightest bread, / Cakes, buns, and buscuits, all; / Smash your paper cap on your grinning head, / And into your oven crawl!, Provenance: Helfand, William H..
A driver who has falled from his cart sits on the ground. His hat has fallen off, he has dropped his whip, and his clothes are torn at the knees and elbows. His horse is running away with the cart int he distance and the boxes of cargo have fallen off. The text indicates that he is careless because he drinks too much., Text: You stupid old donkey, just from the bogs, / You’re only fit to drive, a drove of western hogs, / You always are loaded, and so much more of late, / That your tongue seems a brick and you cannot see straight, / Your horses get scared – for their blinders don’t blind them, / When they see such a sot, on the truck-load behind them., Provenance: Helfand, William H..
A thin man in top hat with a dripping nose drinks from a teapot. On the left, two rows of casks containing liquour are smiling. One of the casks is labeled "Uncle Tom." On the right, a water pump is depicted with a mournful face, since the drunkard prefers liquor to water. The text suggests that no woman would take a proposal from him seriously, since he is unable to provide even for her basic needs., Text: You drink so much that it is plain / You must have water on the brain, / Dost think that any girl would jump / At offer coming from a Pump, / Or that thou ought thou man of water / To have a wife, who can't sup-porter., Provenance: McAllister, John A. (John Allister), 1822-1896, collector.
A woman with elaborately done hair stands behind a counter. The counter and the shelf behind her are covered with pastries and other delicacies and she holds a glass in her hand. The text implies that both she and the customers she serves have inflated opinions of themselves, and that she will be unsuccessful in finding a husband through overt flirting with customers., Text: You, no doubt, think you're very fine, / As you hand the swells a glass of wine, / Your hair done in the fashion, with curls hung down your back, / I'm sure you're boldness would not the courage lack, / To ask some one to take you to be their Valentine, / But stick to your refreshment stall for you never will be mine., Provenance: Helfand, William H..
A woman with elaborately done hair stands behind a counter. The counter and the shelf behind her are covered with pastries and other delicacies and she holds a glass in her hand. The text implies that both she and the customers she serves have inflated opinions of themselves, and that she will be unsuccessful in finding a husband through overt flirting with customers., Text: You, no doubt, think you're very fine, / As you hand the swells a glass of wine, / Your hair done in the fashion, with curls hung down your back, / I'm sure you're boldness would not the courage lack, / To ask some one to take you to be their Valentine, / But stick to your refreshment stall for you never will be mine., See similar print, "You, no doubt,", Comic Valentines, 17.11, Provenance: Helfand, William H..