Object of the Day: A Trade Card for Union Sewing Machines

...if after a thorough inspection of the machine and its work, you are not convinced that it is the BEST, we do not want you to buy it.

Here, we see a girl in red stockings being attached by a cat as her greyhound looks on.  The scene of terror unfolds beneath a sampler which reads, “God Bless Our Home.”  I can only imagine that the cat has been made murderous by the fact that, across the chair to the left, the young lady has thrown the pelt of one of the cat’s ancestors.

Okay, maybe it’s not quite that dramatic, but the illustration on this trade card (dating to the late Nineteenth Century) for Union Sewing Machines is a bit odd.

Let’s take a look at the reverse:  It reads (weird caps, punctuation and all):

NEARLY ONE MILLION NOW IN USE!

….It has all the very latest Improvements.

Are you thinking of buying a Sewing Machine?  It will cost you nothing to try a

NEW HOME

We will deliver one at your home anywhere in the United States, free of charge.

Examine our Embroidery and Fancy Work as well as the Plain White Work, without any extra attachments, except those furnished with each machine.

We claim the NEW HOME is the BEST Family Sewing machine on the market, and invite the closest inspection of experts and comparison with others, and if after a thorough inspection of the machine and its work, you are not convinced that it is the BEST, we do not want you to buy it.  But, if you are so convinced, do not be induced to buy any other, but insist on having a NEW HOME.

 The New Home is for sale by dealers everywhere.

 If you would like to try a NEW HOME, call or send a postal card to the nearest agent or direct to the

 NEW HOME SEWING MACHINE, CO.

248 State Street,                      Chicago, Ill.

It is stamped with the name of a dealer:  “Jerome Risher” and the address is now illegible.