Life, 1898-03-10 · page 7 of 20
Life — March 10, 1898 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "Studies in Demonology" This satirical piece uses religious imagery to mock poverty and suffering. A clergyman (Rev. Dr. Portly) dismisses social statistics about human misery—poverty, illness, ignorance—as "dreadful" but fundamentally acceptable. The Devil appears to challenge this complacency, sarcastically praising the Doctor's rationalization that such suffering exists naturally. The satire targets clergy who cite statistics to justify inaction on social problems rather than advocate for reform. The "three kinds of lies" reference (likely alluding to Mark Twain's famous quote) suggests that statistics are being manipulated to legitimize indifference. The cartoon critiques religious hypocrisy—using faith and data selectively to avoid uncomfortable moral obligations to help the poor and suffering.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
TUPICD 2" EAR me! Bless my soul!” said the Rev. Dr. Portly, turning his copy of “In Darkest. New York” downward on his kuee, d-rimmed glasses in a perturbed manner.“ What horrible things statistics are! Whoever in. the world would bave thought that so many thousands of wretched human beings and wiping his could be at one's very door, without one having an inkling of it! It is astound. And the good gentleman leaned y study-fire and mused dreamily to himself. “Its very crimi nal, too,” headded atlast, “ What right have I, «man in the prime and vigor of nis manhood, tosit here snugly ensconced ina fat living, while literally thousands of poor humanity are struggling in the blackness of poverty, ill-health, igno- “They drank together. 187 nance and famine He was pacing the room by this time, with a determined tread. “I will send in my resignation this very night; I'll go among. these people; PN Just then the Devil appeared. “How perfectly ridiculous, my dear said he, ‘to hand in your resigna- sir, tion.” “And why not?” questioned Doctor, ‘Doesn't the condition of these people ery out for self-sacritice on the our partt” “ Babt” said the Devil. “But look at the statistics,” Doctor, still strong. “Who is it has so wisely remarked that there are three kinds of lies—li said the comicbooks.com