Life, 1884-06-12 · page 10 of 16
Life — June 12, 1884 — page 10: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Explanation for Modern Readers This is a satirical "catechism" (Q&A lesson) mocking financiers and the justice system's treatment of them. The humor relies on absurdist logic to expose hypocrisy: **The Core Satire:** A financier's job is managing other people's money—which he then loses or embezzles. Poor people end up with nothing to manage. When caught, wealthy financiers face no real consequences, while small-time criminals get 25-year sentences. **The Key Joke:** The punchline reveals a "short-haired gentleman in striped clothes" (a convict at Sing-Sing prison) was convicted of "financiering in the sixth degree"—which turns out to be burglary. The satire suggests that embezzling millions goes unpunished while stealing small amounts gets harsh prison time, exposing class-based legal inequality. **Historical Context:** This reflects Gilded Age anxieties about wealthy financiers escaping justice while poor criminals faced severe punishment—a critique of systemic inequality and corporate malfeasance in early 20th-century America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
332 POPULAR SCIENCE CATECHISM. Lesson XVIIIl.— The Financier. ‘HAT is this? This, darling, is a financier. What does a financier do for a living? He finances. . What is it he finances? Finance. Oh! that is very funny, isn't wt? Very. But what és really his busi- ness ? Managing other people’s money. But does he never manage his own? Oh, yes. When? ( When he has got through managing other people's. Then whom do the poor neglected people get to manage their money? 5 Nobody. y) - w Why ? ‘ Because they have no money left to manage. Why ! where did it all go? That is what they would like to find out. Do they never find out ? Hardly ever. But how, if the poor financier spends all his time managing other people's money, can he make any money himself ? That is what Ze is trying to find out. He? Who? ‘The District Attorney. Will he have much trouble in finding out? ‘That depends. On what ? The evidence. Gracious! do they bring the poor financier to trial? Sometimes. What for? For financiering. But is it it a crime to manage other people's money, even if it gradually gets managed into a hole? Certainly not. Then what is all the fuss about ? To try and manage some of it out of the hole. But why didn't the poor financier manage his own money in the first place, and let other people's alone ? Because he had none of his own to manage. But you said that after managing other people's, he managed his own? Yes. How then did he make it? That is what they would like to know. - LIFE - Who? ‘The other people. But did the poor financier make much out of the man- agement ? Yes, about that much. About how much? About as much as the other people put in. My ! financiering must be a very profitable profession? It is. Are there many financiers? Lots. What do they do after they have made their money ? They salt it. Why do they salt it? Because the people they made it out of were too fresh. But I should think they would take little trips, and va- cations and all that sort of thing ? They do, generally. But you spoke of financiers being tried? Yes. Are they ever convicted? That depends. On what? The amount of money they managed. How if the amount be very, very large? They are never tried. How if it be moderately large ? They are tried. And sentenced? Oh, no! But if the amount be only large? They get six months. Six months’ what? Vacation. Where? In Ludlow street. But how if the amount be small? They go up for twenty-five years. Where? Sing-Sing. This short-haired gentleman in the funny striped clothes? His amount was very small. Was he convicted of financier- ing ? Only in the sixth degree. And what is financiering in the sixth degree? | Burglary. How time does change things! Four years ago I liked conventions because they attracted the public’s attention toward me. This year I love them because they turn the people’s attention away from me. But I must write that letter !!— U.S. G. comichooks.