Life, 1904-07-14 · page 5 of 44
Life — July 14, 1904 — page 5: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features "Heart to Heart Talks" by Ernest Thompson Seton, a naturalist and writer. The illustration shows a man in Native American costume holding educational materials, with a small animal (appears to be a possum or similar creature) beside a pedestal. Seton humorously addresses his credibility as a nature educator, contrasting himself with "John the Roughs," who runs a celery farm and restricts himself to facts. Seton admits he doesn't know everything about nature but positions his imaginative approach as superior for inspiring children. He references "his royalties" from advertising within his books and explicitly instructs readers to buy his works while avoiding competitors like John Burroughs. This is **self-promotional satire**—Seton mocks his own commercialism while selling his brand of nature education to young readers.
📄 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 Ernest Tiiompson Sittur. ar Boys and Girls: Were 1 am again, all dressed up in my genuine Indian costume, fresh from the staff of the Ladies’ Bum Journal, and ready to pose for you as usual and tell you about Nature. When it comes to talking about Nature, dear children, there is nobody like me. I not only can tell you all I know about Nature, but all I don’t know, and my old friend, John Bur- roughs, who runs a celery farm some- where up the Hudson, says that what I don’t know about Nature is a great deal more than what I do know. So you can take your choice either way. The only trouble with John is that he is behind the times. He confines himself to facts, which limits his audience, Why, John doesn’t make half the money I do, which is proof positive that his method of dealing with Nature is all wrong, Dear chil- dren, to be a real, up-to-date natu- ralist, and have your name a household word, you must keep one eye on Nature and the other on the pub- lisher. And remember that it pays to adver- tise. It is whispered in those inner and obscure and correct scientific circles— circles that noone who readsthe current magazines ever hears of—that there is about as large a margin of fakery about my naturalism as you will find in some of my books. But this doesn't trouble me a bit as long as my royalties in- crease, When I get on my genuine Indian costume, and, sitting inthe heart of the ancient woods, strike a real catchy attitude, with a line of sub- servient photographers near, I forget it all. You must not think, however, from what I have told you, that I haven't a real mission in life. Because I have. I want all the little boys and girls in the country to be full-fledged, up-to- date naturalists like myself, still achiev- ing, still pursuing the notoriety bee, with a heart for every pose, Like my- self, I want you all to be real devilish. And above all things, I want you all to read my’ books. Don’t read any of John Burroughs’s books. He is a farmer, But stick to me, and have your little, pliable imaginations tickled with a straw. Remember, however, that you can- “Ut pays to advertise.” not all hope to succeed as I have comicbooks.com