Life, 1904-10-06 · page 7 of 38
Life — October 6, 1904 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **product advertisement** for the Angelus player piano, disguised as editorial content. The ad compares automatic piano playing to human performance, arguing that the Angelus piano roll reproduces music with perfect expression and nuance—matching the sheet music's markings exactly. The visual shows someone operating the mechanical device. The implied satire targets the era's anxiety about **mechanization replacing human skill**. The ad ironically claims the machine *surpasses* individual musicianship by eliminating human inconsistency, an absurd sales pitch that actually highlights what listeners would lose: genuine artistic interpretation and emotional variation. This reflects early 1900s concerns about industrialization's cultural impact, packaged as humorous advertising in a satirical magazine.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
outh! when se of m of con- ilepsy by a Dogs th at 3 Tun water scons d vously heated e dog avages must rey are mn ever | cutter. baseball The Travelers. Rickey soon will go away \nd in oblivion hide, m comes marching bravely in, With rolling gait and jolly grin And Jerry by his side. —New York Sun. Manners. WRITER in the Manchester Guardian A whimsically afgues for the method of sys- tanatic experiment rather than haphazard observation in the study of contemporary man ners. Iwo simple experiments which he de- scribes are performed with such éasily pro- cured apparatus as a straw hat and a gale of wind, a bicycle and a punctured tire. Either of the tests will develop the presence of man- 1 individuals in whom the ordinary super- | | examination would fail to develop even he experimenter in the bicycle ex- t, after achieving his puncture, has only to conceal his repair outfit, and take a station y the roadside. T like a collector of moths watching his ar of treacle on a tree trunk, the student of manners sits and waits, and like moths to the treacle so his victims come. Very soon two total strangers have his tire off, their own career cut short, and their bi- les propped against the hedge. A. little| ring of cyclists watches them, offering advice various instruments. When at last the been located there is quite a competition for the privilege of supplying the | necessary patch. The student, if he chooses, may take up a collection of the rubber disks : of a future emergency. When the tire has been replaced he is not even permitted to ; a dozen willing hands are there to man the pump. Finally, be receives | is machine back, restored to function, from timed, perspiring Samaritans, whocheerfully remark, “I think you'll findshe'll hold up all right now,” and all take the road again, the better and happier for having ex- ereised the higher attributes of humanity, for having the possession of manners. ... ame befriending cyclist will madden us| on other occasions by the sight of his hori-| zontal hack and his obvious and insane desire | 1 us into a scorching competition, in which our defeat would be assured, and our dignity and comfort alike sacrificed; whereas the inflate it himse experimenter may be one whom the most complicated array of knives and forks on a table would be powerless to disconcert. under the conditions of the experiment the | of manners is all in favor of the for- | you be willing to work?" answered Plodding Pete, ‘if ow me chosen profession. hat 2” : or ona flyin’ machine.” —IWashington Star. Condy THE MANIFEST SUPERIORITY OF THE ANGELUS Contrast for a moment automatic and individual piano playing. With a music-box ora mechanical piano player, you have a monotonous succession of notes but not an atom of expression or personal sympathy. Look at a sheet of music and see the accent and expression marks —the very life and essence of the music. Now look at a perforated roll of music used in THE ANGELUS. It corre- sponds exactly with the sheet of music and contains all the same accent and expression marks, together with any change of time, all so clearly indicated that they can be easily followed by anybody. Remember it is not even necessary to be able to read music when playing with the aid of an ANGELUS. How are these quick little touches, changes and shades of expression obtained >—WITH THE PHRASING LEVER— the exclusive property of THE ANGELUS. Purchased by Royalty and the world’s greatest musicians, Send for (free) bandsome booklet and the name of the nearest agent. THE WILCOX & WHITE CO. Established 1876 MERIDEN, CONN., U. S. A. OSEPH CHAMBERLAID list of jokes of the host sat Mr. Chamberlain J includes this one on himself: On one occasion he was invited to Liverpool to make a speech. It was to be a great celebration. The Mayor, who was to preside at the meeting, had arranged a fine dinner for the guest of honor. A distinguished assembly surrounded the table and at the right couple of hours the company chatted over their food, and finally the coffee was. served at this juncture that the Mayor leaned over and whispered to Mr. Chamberlain: “Your Excellency, shall we let the crowd enjoy itself a while longer, or had we better have your speech?”—New York Times, comicbooks.com