Last in bed puts out the light
Another fascinating stereoscopic image from about the 1890s, this time showing an intimate moment between man and wife. The card is #17 in a series and entitled “last in bed puts out the light.”
As before, I pulled one piece of the image to manipulate a bit so we can try to see better what is happening. The couple are preparing for bed. Note that the lamp is on the woman’s side of the bed, so I wonder if she will get stuck with the domestic task. The man has draped his clothing over the foot of the bed and it appears the woman has draped her dress over a chair.
The card was made by Webster & Albee Publishers, in Rochester, NY. Apparently the cards were exclusive as they state “Sold only by canvassers.” I am not sure what a canvasser was.
Who Were They? 
I think a canvasser was a “door to door” salesperson.
LikeLike
intenseGuy hit the nail on the head, Door to Door sales man
LikeLike
Found in a wonderful specialized book of rules for U.S. census takers
published in 1930: (source: Google Books):
Classified Index of Occupations:
Fifteenth Census of the United States, Volume 2, Page 177
There are 49 different varieties of “canvassers” which was only one occupation category under “Salesmen & Saleswomen”.
LikeLike