Life, 1903-11-19 · page 7 of 22
Life — November 19, 1903 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two separate pieces: **"Heart to Heart Talks"** is a moral essay addressed to children, attributed to Tom Masson. The author (an older man, illustrated) lectures children about the importance of saving money and avoiding wasteful pursuits like art, flowers, and "idle dreams." He uses Uncle Russell as an exemplar of financial success. The piece advocates for practical moneymaking over creative or leisurely activities—a reflection of late-19th/early-20th-century American capitalist values emphasizing thrift and productivity. **"He Knew His Bible"** is a brief comic dialogue where a visitor challenges a boy's mother about her wealth, sardonically suggesting that if she's truly rich, shouldn't she be "rich enough to go to hell?"—a dark joke implying moral corruption accompanies wealth. Both pieces critique materialism, though from different angles: the first promotes it, the second mocks it.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
-LIFE: 481 Heart to Heart Talks. EAR CHILDREN: I have consented to take a few moments from a busy life, because if there is anything Ican say to make you drop everything else and save your money, I feel that I ought to say it. It’s very distressing to me to see growing up all around me, children who are being taught other things than to save their pennies. Everybody knows that I am closer than the next minute, and haven't taken a vacation for twenty years, because I couldn’t afford it, although I am worth over one hundred millions, But, dear children, this is business, And business is what wo are here for. Do you know what it means to go out in the fields and gather fresh flowers, to learn how to paint, and write stories, and cultivate the useless parts of your brain? And have you ever stopped to consider how little money there is in all this? I hope you will, before it is too late. To me, there is nothing sadder in life than a non-interest bearing brain. Lam glad to see your faces brighten up as I say this, because it shows that your enthusiasm is awakened. Let me tell you then, how Uncle Russell made such a grand success of his life. I began, dear children, with im- pulses like you. I was human once, I wanted to waste my time doing things that didn’t pay. But I said to myself, No! Learn to say No, dear boys, and you may yet be the meanest man in the world. I said No, and stifled all the un- profitable impulses. It will take time to learn that there is no money in flowers, or trees, or idle dreams, but if you keep at it you will succeed. And now, to show you that I am in earnest, I am going todo an unusual thing. Let mesee. How many little boys and girls are there here? Just twenty. Well, dear little ones, here is a real penny. Divide it among you, and when you think that Uncle Russell gave it to you, remember that all of us are fearfally and wonderfully made. And now run away quick, or I may regret what I have done. Tom Maxson, He Knew His Bible. MALL BOY: Mamma says you are a very rich man. Tue Vistror: Your mother exag- gerates, Willie; I'm not so very rich. “‘Ain’t you rich enough to go to “A real penny.” hell?’ SN S SSS ooo comicbooks.com