Life, 1904-09-01 · page 14 of 38
Life — September 1, 1904 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a humorous essay by illustrator James Montgomery Flagg about his supposed wildlife documentation work. The piece gently mocks both Flagg himself and contemporary nature writing through exaggerated claims and absurd anecdotes. Flagg purports to be creating an elaborate animal-tracking project with signposted trails, claiming he'll appear in numerous posed photographs—some in "Indian costume" with stuffed coyotes, others driving a buckboard or instructing "Apache warriors." The humor lies in his self-aware vanity: he's ostensibly documenting animals but constantly inserts himself into the narrative. The kangaroo anecdote demonstrates the satire's core joke: Flagg's carefully-planned system fails immediately when animals refuse to cooperate with his schemes. His climactic near-encounter with a mountain lion on the wrong trail undercuts any pretense of scientific methodology. The piece gently ridicules popular adventure narratives and nature writing of the era while celebrating Flagg's own theatrical self-promotion—presented tongue-in-cheek as the real "whopper" (tall tale) being told.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
210 -LIFE- WAC Antinal Whopbers BY BS Janes Montgomery Flagg the frontispiece, and twelve others of myself in different ERY few kanga- poses, among them myself in Indian costume surrounded Toos are near my by a few tame animals and two stuffed coyotes, myself place, and I want- driving in my buckboard bringing my laundry home, and ed to write them myself instructing a full-blooded Apache warrior in the art up before they all of building teepees. There is also a handsome picture of died. The kanga- myself conversing with a squirrel. Excuse this side talk. Too was on my en- I just happened to think of it. gagement pad for I signaled the cabby to halt under the bough of some Thursday. Thurs- maples, for I had caught a glimpse of a kangaroo mother day I looked him and two young kangaroo calves. They had not noticed up. It was a hot us in my cab with rubber tires, It sounds extravagant and muggy August taking a hansom cab, but I knew the firm would back afternoon that Thursday, me, as it was all for the sake of truth and art and— as I took a hansom from money. the cab-stand near my I leaned forward and watched the cute animals. The cabin, I indicated the ™other was instructing her young ones in the running broad jump. The kangaroo is a rather stupid animal. The parents have a very difficult time in teaching it to breathe at first. It was laughable to see the mother taking a running start trail to the driver with my stick as we jogged along. At the beginning of every trail I have lately placed sign- boards bearing the names of the animals to which the trails lead. I am pained to admit (not for publication, mind you,) that it has not been as brilliant a success as I expected. Some of my animal friends were kind enough to stay put, but others inconsiderately took different trails. I will give you an example of how nearly fatal to me and to Natural History the plan worked out. I started out on the trail I had marked ‘*Ground-hog Trail" to revisit that animal, and instead of finding him at the end of his own trail, I nearly had a stroke of apoplexy on discovering a crouching mountain-lion glaring at me from the branch of a tree. I don't believe in signs any more. But about the kan- garoo. At about three o'clock I was hot on the trail—we all were, in fact—I'll bet it was ninety-five degrees in the shade ! . The management has not yet decided whether they will give me a motor car. They are thinking it over. By the way, it will perhaps interest you to know that my first talk on animals is nearly ready. There will be a full- length photograph of myself printed on real birch bark for ‘Follow the leader.” comicbooks.com