Life, 1897-03-25 · page 5 of 24
Life — March 25, 1897 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis This page contains two distinct elements: **"Spring Cometh" (poem):** A lighthearted verse by Ellis Parker Butler celebrating Spring's arrival, personified as an attractive woman bringing warm weather and flowers. **"No! A Correspondent" (editorial):** Life magazine's response to reader mail defending their hunting and fishing coverage. The editors reject criticism that such content promotes animal cruelty, arguing they don't endorse "unsuspecting birds with gunshot" or torturing animals for medical entertainment. They refuse to equate hunters with vivisectionists performing laboratory experiments. **The cartoon** (credited to J.A. Horsley) depicts a romantic scene titled "Where Oblivion is Bliss," showing a kissing couple with dialogue about love. The page reflects early 20th-century debates about animal welfare versus recreational hunting—still contentious today. Life positioned itself as defending traditional pastimes against growing animal-protection criticism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
227 SPRING COMETH, NCE more has Winter fled gaway; The sweet bird voices ring; The blossoms rise from earth to-day To welcome fair Miss Spring. She comes bedecked in sunshine bright, A crocus in her hair, And where she steps, her foot- prints light Are marked by blossoms fair. She comes in radiant beauty dressed, And Summer underclothes, A mustard plaster on her chest, A sniffie in her nose! Ellis Parker Butler, NO! CORRESPONDENT informs us that we should endorse the following if we wish to be consistent: We,the persons responsible for the articles: and, pictures; in LIFE di- rected against the practice of vivi- section and_its advocates, are fully aware that~the ‘sports of huoting and fishing;entail -upon the brute creation many thousandfold more suffering than does vivisection, and that the thousands who cause this suffering while, hunting and fish- ing have not, even the excuse that they wish through their sport to help scientific research. We never hunt or fish ourselves, and we dis- courage these habits in our friends on all possible occasions. Oh, no! We endorse no such statements. Why en- dorse one of the most com- prehensive, able-bodied lies that ever floated through space? While possessing no admi- ration for the courage dis- played in filling unsuspecting birds with gunshot, we re- fuse to class even that grade of hero with the man who tortures dogs and horses for the entertainment of medical students. And as for “Scientific phiadl ST ae . Research,” we are still wait- AMor Kelluy Y/ ing for evidence to show that Se the inquisitor of the labora- WHERE OBLIVION IS BLISS. tory is of greater value than Angelina (after receiving a score of kisses): ARE YOU SURE YOU LOVE ME, EDWIN? the more gentlemanly slaugh- “OH, ANGELINA!” terer of the forest and stream, “THEN YOU MAY KISS ME.” comicbooks.com