Life, 1907-01-31 · page 11 of 24
Life — January 31, 1907 — page 11: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes objections to the 1907 Jamestown Exposition (a major naval exhibition). The four caricatured figures labeled "E.H.," "Waitress," "J.P.M.," and "J.P.M." represent fourteen members of the Advisory Committee who opposed the show. Their stated concerns—that the site was unsuitable and warships were unnecessary—are mocked as hypocritical. The accompanying article argues the exposition is actually a peace demonstration, not militarism. The cartoons mock the critics as absurdly oversensitive. The section "Dangers of Sudden Reform" presents a darkly comic doctor's dialogue about radical dietary restrictions that could poison a patient—a metaphorical criticism of the objectors' extreme position on food reform, suggesting their logic is dangerously flawed.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Objections Not Well Taken ‘OURTEEN out of the one hundred members of the Advisory Commit- tee of the Jamestown E; position have been biting their thumbs at the show that has been planned because, they say, there is so much war in it. There is to be a good deal—a re- markable naval review, some military ex- hibitions, and a sham duel between a Monitor and a Merrimac in the very wa- ters where the actual fight took place. ‘The fourteen critics think that exposi- tions ought to be devoted to peace and that this one at Jamestown will not have that effect. ‘The warlike complexion of the James- town commemoration i ily explained. ‘The site was not fit, nor was money forth- coming, nor was the time suitable for a great industrial exposition, but the site was very suitable for a naval show, and 163 the Government agreed to help out the project by providing one. The objections of the fourteen seem to us hypercritical. "The Jamestown pro- jectors are doing their best, and the Gov- ernment is going to be kind to them at comparatively small expense. ‘The more warships we have the less chance there is of putting them to any sterner use than to adorn a spectacle. If we have a big is because we want to make sure of avoiding war. Therefore an exhibition of our naval strength is not a war demon- stration at all, but a demonstration of our solicitude for peace, Dangers of Sudden Reform “SVOUR husband must eat no food whatever for a month.” “Y-y-yes, doctor.” “But he must take as much as he can of broth composed of equal parts of glu- cose, cream of tartar, boracic acid, Paris green and sulphate of copper.” “Why! What!” “Tn addition, be sure to sprinkle a little arsenic in his drinking water and you might put a pinch of strychnine in his broth.” “Do you want me to murder poor, suffering John?” “Not at all, madam, I’m trying to save him. His nervous system isa wreck, while he is also suffering from acute di- gestion. His food agrees with him en- tirely too well and he is receiving an un- expected—I might say surplus—amount of nourishment. “And should the case not respond promptly, give a large bowl of excelsior and chalk-water each morning. “We've only had these cases since the first of January, when the sudden turn- ing loose upon the community of so much pure food resulted in this dreadful scourge. As the people get used to un- adulterated stuffs, however, they may be able to assimilate them, Let us hop: for the best. “Good-day, madam.” In a Hurry ITTLE DIMPLETON: How long will it take you to give me a working knowledge in jiu-jitsu? THE Proressor: Oh, say two weeks. “But, heavens! man, I can’t wait all that time to get rid of that cook.” comicbooks.com