Life, 1895-01-17 · page 12 of 16
Life — January 17, 1895 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Life Magazine Page Analysis This page satirizes **Police Superintendent Byrnes** of New York City, who is being criticized by **Dr. Parkhurst**, a Presbyterian clergyman and reform advocate. The text supports the "Lexow Committee" investigation into NYPD corruption. The caricatured heads at top likely represent Byrnes and Parkhurst. The "Too Much Byrnes" section quotes Parkhurst's attacks: Byrnes has been "in rot for thirty-one years" and led the corrupt force for two years. Parkhurst argues the Lexow Committee didn't go far enough—real reform requires examining Byrnes himself, not just subordinates. **Life magazine sides with Parkhurst**, declaring him earnest while suggesting that if Byrnes "assists" reform efforts, Parkhurst should be jailed instead for "disturbing the peace"—heavy sarcasm. The lower section, "A Phenomenon of Light," is an unrelated romantic satire about how a bachelor's apartment needs bright gas lamps, but a woman's presence makes dim lighting seem brilliant—suggesting love blinds judgment.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
> LIFE: How TO WEAR YOUR HAIR A LA POMPADOUR AT THIRTY. IN THE SAME STYLE AT FIFTY, BUT IN ANOTHER PLACE. TOO MUCH BYRNES. NCE upon a timea certain Super- intendent of Police undertook ‘¢ some fun with a Pres- byterian clergyman, The clergyman appeared for a si time to be the under doy, but he was too much for him even in the beginning, and now, although the Superin- tendent has been copiously 2 whitewashed by the Lexow CEs Ae Committee, the clergyman gets in an occasional blow between the eyes that brings a shout of joy from all that’s clean and honest in this dirty city. Here are some of his plain truths. He also occasionally lands on the point of the jaw of the Lexow Committee. “* Wherever they have stuck in their fork they have found rot ; and whether Byrnes be rotten or not, he has been in rot for thirty-one years and has been the executive head of rot for the last two years. ‘The presumption therefore was against him, so that the indisposition to handle him thoroughly must have been the ground of some other consideration than that of his presumable innocence.” “Men with as much influence as Mr. Byrnes, who have been in the midst of iniquity clear up to their ears for thirty years, can fight iniquity if they want to.” “We knew that the character of the police force was a reflection from the character of its chief executive and his immediate subordinates, and that however many captains might be besmirched, and however many sergeants might be cashiered, the genius of the matter would not be reached till we had arrived at the quality of the five men who together constitute its executive headship.” “They have sought nothing of the kind, nor did they allow for the examination of Mr. Byrnes sufficient time to avail of any such disclos- ures, even if they had secured them.” “ We of the Executive Committee feel that our fight forthe last three years has been permanently a contest with Mr. Byrnes, He has known perfectly well that our only intention has been to secure the enforce- ment of law in this city, and yet has dogged our steps from first to last."" “Mr. Byrnes has repeatedly attempted to play the same game with the Society for the Prevention of Crime, but we have refused to allay ourselves with a man that we believed to be more than any other one man responsible for the condition of the department.” Dr. Parkhurst is still on top. As far as we can judge he is the one figure in the drama who is in earnest and intends to fight to a finish. Lire is with him, and has been with him from the start. If Superintendent Byrnes is to assist in reorganizing the force we may as well put Dr. Parkhurst in jail for disturbing the peace. . A PHENOMENON OF LIGHT. a I" is remarkably strange, not to say unaccountable,” mused Harold Holdington, “that when I am seated in my small and lonely bachelor apartment, the combined radiance of three or four great flaring gas burners is scarcely sufficient to dispel the gloom and furnish enough light to enable me to read from the printed page the words of some inspired philosopher or poet.” “While here in these spacious parlors, with you on my knee, and your golden head resting peacefully on my shoulder, but one gas jet is going, and it is turned more than half way down at that, And yet that fiery little glowing spark at the extreme end of the other room seems to shine with a mar- velous brilliancy, and to flood both of these high-ceilinged apartments with the dazzling refulgence of a six hundred candle power are light.” “Yes, it does,” said Etta, simply. “Why don’t you turn it out?” And thus it was again demonstrat- ed that even in matters connected with the most ten- der affections of the heart, Woman is far more practi- cal than Man. M*: Does Jobson show any aptitude as a hington cor- respondent ? Mis: Oh, my, yes! When he heard that baby Es- ther had the colic he tried to inter- view the Secretary of Interior about it. WALL STREET PHRASES. “CALLING A LOAN.” Sal