Life, 1897-04-22 · page 5 of 20
Life — April 22, 1897 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Analysis of Life Magazine Page 333 This page contains three separate satirical pieces about money, journalism, and language instruction. **"A Warning"** critiques McKinley (likely President William McKinley) for trusting the public despite a previous scandal four years prior when "the people spoke" about a bill. The verse warns that the public's will is unreliable—"their coffers fill" while people suffer. **"French Method"** mocks the absurdity of claiming someone can learn French in five weeks, sarcastically contrasting the claim with the reality that it "takes him only five weeks to persuade people they have a working knowledge of French." The illustration shows a well-dressed couple, likely depicting class commentary about wealth and social pretension during the Gilded Age era.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
2 WHEN 1 MARRIED YOU, YOU HADN'T A CENT. “on, VES, 1 HAD. MY FACE WAS MY FORTUNE.” “Now 1 KNOW WHAT THEY MEAN WHEN THEY SAY MONEY TALKS.”? A WARNING. Mcetes: have a care about L The tariff bill you pass! Remember that it doesn’t pay To fool with broken glass ! The high protection bubble broke Four years ago. The people spoke And then and there threw off the yoke, Or thought they did, alas ! McKinley, don’t permit the trusts To sway you at their will, Then laugh to sce the people writhe While they their coffers fill! Should you the common herd ignore, Just bear in mind, in four years more The people, who spoke once before, Will pass another Bill. Charles $. Carter. HE Evening Sun is a smart little paper, and should know that many of the bright things that appear in such a notori- ous offender as the London Tit-Bits are regularly stolen from Lire without credit. In reprinting material from Lire and cred- iting it to 7it-Bits, the Evening Sux is therefore guilty of a journalistic impropriety, doubtless due to that lack of the keen ob- servation which Mr. Dana insists is one of the first principles in well-regulated news- paper offices. FRENCH METHOD. $6 AN he actually give his pupils a working knowledge of French in five weeks?" “He doesn’t try to. But it takes him only five weeks to persuade peo- ple they havea working knowledge of French.” comicbooks.com