Life, 1908-03-26 · page 6 of 22
Life — March 26, 1908 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
The main cartoon depicts two military or naval officers in elaborate uniforms labeled "WHEN ALLOPATHIC AND HOMEOPATHIC DISAGREE?" — a satirical visual pun comparing disagreement between officers to conflicting medical philosophies. The text below, titled "Undigested Virtue," critiques self-righteous reformers. It argues that virtuous people who constantly promote morality and reform are actually harmful to society, creating an "undigested" mass of unwanted virtue in the public stomach. The piece sarcastically suggests these reformers should distribute their virtue wholesale without "regard to the demand" — implying nobody wants their unsolicited moral superiority. The scattered quotes and brief items mock various social figures and situations, typical of Life's satirical humor format.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
regarded with the disgust that accompanies temporary repletion and depreciate in market value. Persons to whom virtue is comparatively a novelty seldom realize this, but recognizing that they have a good thing that others would be better for possessing, they attempt a wholesale distribution without regard to the demand. It is very bad business. The great reformers don’t go about their work in that way. Their chief—almost their sole—efiort is to make a market for virtue; to make people yearn to get some, letting go whatever is necessary to attain it. A Certainty PA, when will the world come to an end?” “Probably, my boy, some Sunday morning when I can sleep as long as I want to and have left orders not to be called.” PRESS notice— “Hug me close.” D FAD to the world—the moon. “DAPA, what is stoicism?” “The after-effects of a honeymoon.” Our District Attorney A HE King Committee, peti- tioning for his removal, says: To that small army of men in business houses, factories and warchouses who had jaith in Mr. Jerome, and contrib- uted money and work to insure his clec- tion, we especially appeal to work as hard to have him removed as they did to have him elected, IS THERE TROUBLE AHEAD WHEN ALLOPATHIC AND HOMEOPATHIC ADMIRALS DISAGREE? Kind of an expensive luxury, this Jerome. He came high, but his removal Undigested Virtue C2 DHE people who pound vice at and wickedness most im- 3) patiently are apt to be not the most virtuous nor the wisest peo- ple, because these realize how great an advantage they possess in the superiority of their own morals and intelligence. Th are reformers, but do not insist on reforming everything over f night. Being sincerely pleased with vir- tue and confident of its attractions they are the less disposed to force it too hard on an unwilling market. They realize, perhaps, that the presence of a great mass of undigested virtue in the stomach of any community leads to results closely analogous to those that follow the ac- cumulation of a great mass of undigested securities on the stock market. The de- mand being over-supplied, the goods are is cheap at almost any price. ILT-EDGED security is often guilt- edged, “BILGER eloped with his cook, the unfeeling wretch!” “Well, I don’t know. Why shouldn’t he if he wanted to?” “But his wife was just going to give a dinner party.” comicbooks.com