Life, 1907-05-16 · page 23 of 36
Life — May 16, 1907 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces about professional conduct and authority, likely from the Theodore Roosevelt era (based on references to "the Chief Executive" and Jacob Riis, Roosevelt's associated biographer). **"Revised"** mocks Roosevelt's famous maxims by presenting absurdist parodies—"Make haste strenuously," "Leap before you look"—suggesting Roosevelt acts rashly and recklessly without proper deliberation. The satire implies his philosophy prioritizes action over thoughtfulness. **"Masterful Callings"** critiques claims by President Hadley that journalists, financiers, and politicians uniquely regard themselves as "masters" rather than servants. The piece argues this self-aggrandizement is false; all professionals can be independent only if they prioritize ethics over profit. The commentary suggests these "masterful" professions are actually compromised by financial interests and lack genuine integrity. Both pieces satirize early-20th-century American leadership and professional pretension, arguing that true mastery comes through humble service, not arrogant self-promotion.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
REFLECTIONS ON CERTAIN ASPECTS OF MARRIED LIFE ¢ BY BACHELOR BROTHER Revised ACOB RIIS, the Boswell of the Administration, has an- nounced a revised version of the three Roosevelt maxims which are said to be the guiding principles of our beloved President’s career. Of these, we note the first and third as relating more particularly to the Roosevelt springs of action: Be ready. Be prepared for everything that may occur. Apply your judgment to a question; and having done so, go ahead. Mr. Riis is surely in a position to know whereof he speaks, and it is not for us to compare the somewhat inflated literary form of the foregoing precepts with the originality and crisp- ness of the Essays and Addresses. But if we ourselves had been called upon to interpret the working philosophy of the Chief Executive we would, at a venture, have thus unlimbered the Maxims and gatling guns of speech: Make haste strenuously. Go ahead, then be sure you're right. Leap before you look. Conscience doth make mollycoddles of us all. When angry, count a hundred—though you count by tens. Trust in the Lord, and oil your shootin’ irons. All men are somewhat disposed to prevarication. Masterful Callings RESIDENT HADLEY says there are to-day three mas- terful professions—journalism, finance and_politics—the practitioners of which regard themselves as masters, and not as servants. The lawyers, then, are hired men, and the doctors, ministers, engineers and architects, but not the bankers, the journalists nor the politicians. There is something in that, but the statement is somewhat sweeping. In any of the professions a man may be as master- ful as he thinks he can afford to be. In any of them the practitioner who is indifferent to money-making can be his own boss. Independence is closely related to economy and to the ability to live inside of such an income as one can earn by the work of his choice. A politician who has a living to make must have an eye to his bread and butter in shaping his political conduct, and so must a journalist, and a banker who is in partnership with his conscience must be prepared to pay his partner a due share of the profits. But after all, why insist on being masterful when there is that in service which may satisfy the noblest of human aspi- rations! And, besides, it is through service that the road to mastery runs. comicbooks.com