Life, 1903-11-05 · page 11 of 38
Life — November 5, 1903 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features a satirical column by Quierpoint Gorgon addressing wealthy children about financial morality. The accompanying caricature depicts a portly, well-dressed gentleman (identified by the caption as "The Public is very tender-hearted") standing beside a pedestal labeled with a seal. The satire targets **syndicates**—groups of wealthy investors who pool money to manipulate stock markets and exploit the public. The author argues that syndicates are "bodies of money entirely surrounded by men," implying greed drives them. The piece ironically advises children that becoming successful syndicate members means the public—depicted as naive and sentimental—will lose money. The underlying message critiques how the wealthy exploit ordinary people's trust while claiming moral superiority.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
-LIFE: Heart to Heart Talks. By Qurerroxt Goxcox. NOTE: This department has deen opened for the benght of our younger readers, all of whom, we feet sure, are anztous to grow up into successful men and women. — It will be conducted each week by a different person—some one who has decome prominent and who is qualified to give advice in his own fed. We cannot bezin to tell our young readers how glad and proud we are to be in this humble manner the moral agent through which #9 much good advice will go Jorth to our million readers, but if ax many new subscribers come tn as we hope and pray, then we shall indeed feel as f our work had not bern in vain, Dear Little Boys and Girls: There isn’t anything I would rather do than talk to you, except lending money to the Govern- ment ata ten million profit, or reorganizing a railroad. Because, you see, I love little children, and want them all to grow up like me and have enough money to make an Episcopal Bishop or a new Senator, or possibly even a new President. Remember, children, if you can’t be President yourself, you can be the next best thing, whi Me. Now I wonder if any little boy or girl can tell me what a syndica’ Some one has said that a syndicate is a body of men entirely surrounded by money, but, my dearies, that isn't the answer. In reality, a syndicate is a body of money entirely sur- rounded by men. Some day, little ones, you may be a syndicate all by yourselves. When you are, cable me at my ex- pense, and I will exchange your stock for bonds. Both of us will make money. The only party that will lose is the Publi Can any bright little boy tell me what the Public is? No? Well, the Public is merely a lot of people who buy worthless stock, just to oblige the syndicate that wants to sell, The Public is very tender- hearted, and wants all the good syndicates to make ail the money they can, so it helps them out in this way. Sometimes the Public is sorry for what it has done and sheds bitter tears. But I am not sorry, are you? Why should we be, when we can make so much money to give away to the churches that really need it? And now, little boys and girls, want you all to remember that if you would be like me, you must begin early and work hard, And not only work yourself hard, but everybody else. That is the secret of success, And here’s a little steel plant for each one of you. Put it in the ground, and some day it may grow up and bear lovely dividends—to cut. Tom Masson. i Ts u ~ axe wea “The Public is very tender-hearted.” comicbooks.com