Life, 1904-07-14 · page 29 of 44
Life — July 14, 1904 — page 29: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains three distinct satirical pieces critiquing American life circa early 20th century: **"Liberty"** (top): Debates whether independence is worth its human cost. Patriots argue wars cause minimal casualties; moderates counter-argue that annual Fourth of July celebrations with fireworks and toy cannons are annoying enough that servitude might be preferable—a tongue-in-cheek jab at American patriotic excess. **"Needed a Day Off"**: Mocks the modern commuter's exhausting schedule, suggesting he can't properly judge his new residence because he's never actually *there* during daylight—satirizing the grueling work culture of urban Americans. **"Happy at Last"** (right): Dark humor about a man relieved to die because he was drowning in installment plan debt—critiquing consumer culture and predatory lending practices. The main illustration (signed F.W. Reed) depicts a man-eating scenario, captioned with gallows humor about friendship versus self-preservation—likely another commentary on modern anxieties or human nature.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
63 Liberty. IBERTY was a fine thing, to be sure; but even liberty could be too dearly bought. Thus argued a strong party. “You forget,” answered the pa- triots, nothing daunted, ‘‘that in modern warfare the loss of life is small. We can achieve our inde- pendence with trifling slaugh- ter.” “‘Ah, doubtless, But the cele- bration of it from year to year!” urged the moderates. Serfs had at least no occasion to be firing off cannon crackers and toy pistols; chains were in many ways preferable to lockjaw, rea- soned the moderates, and would not be prevailed upon. Needed a Day Off. IRST BUSY AMERICAN: Commuting now, are you? How do you like the place you're living in? Srconp Busy American: Well, you see, I haven’t spent a Sunday there yet, and it’s pretty hard to judge a place in the dark. Happy at Last. *“*QUDDKINS said that, after all, he was glad to die.”’ “What made him feel that way?” “Well, he was paying for so many things by the installment plan, that death came as a welcome ew “RUN! SAVE YOURSELF! 1 CAN GO NO FARTHER!’ “WHAT! AND LEAVE A FRIEND! NEVER! BESIDES, WHAT'S THE USE? HE WON'T BE HUNGRY AFTER HE EATS You."’ A BIRD'SEVE VIEW. comicbooks.com