Life, 1908-06-11 · page 6 of 20
Life — June 11, 1908 — page 6: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes **public opinion and democratic demands**. The top cartoon depicts a prodigal's return and "killing of the fatted calf"—likely referencing wasteful public spending or a politician's homecoming. The "Public Opinion" essay criticizes how average citizens invoke "the people" to demand action, yet this rarely represents genuine collective will. The author (Ellis O. Jones) argues such demands are often private grievances presented as public mandate—people demanding "twaddle or tweedledee" while claiming democratic authority. The accompanying photograph shows people at "Life's Farm" playing bean-bag, illustrating ordinary public life the editorial discusses. The satire targets the gap between claimed democratic legitimacy and actual individual self-interest in civic discourse.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
PON eal ake g* THE PRODIGAL'S RETURN—AND THE KILLING OF THE FATTED CALP Our Fresh Air Fund ISLY acknowledged... 8 Jacob Astor J.T. Griffith, Je M. G. Moore... $2,016.36 $20 $2,126.36 Acknowledged with Thanks FROM Mrssas Kiprnip Brotttas, sco folders Lirn's Fara; composition and printing 1,000 note sheets, 500 envelopes: printing 1500 sheets of special letter paper. Public Opinion HREE tailors of Fleet Street once assembled and issued a manifesto beginning, “We, the people of England.” That is about as much authority as the average opinion labeled “pub- lic” possesses. Public opinion, as it usually stalks, is the opinion of some one about the public, ~ not the opinion of the public about something. It is merely private opinion publicly ex- pressed. Some potentate has a private ax to grind and he thereupon mounts the rostrum or some other elevated place and thunders, ‘‘The people are a unit on this proposition,” or, if subject to occasional « sty, he might qualify by saying, ry honest and intelligent man,” ry man who loves his country,” which amounts to the same thing, for no man admits that he is not honest or intelligent or that he does not love his country. Some editorial writer, engaged to turn O out copy by a newspaper wedded to a definite policy, lashes himself into an appropriate frenzy and s demands twiddle or twee: Now that’s funny. How did he find it out? Just across the street, the worthy scribe of the esteemed contemporary calls him a liar and is no less emphatic that, “The public demands twaddle and tweedle- dum.” In the meantime, so far as the public can be actually ob- served, it is demanding the blood of the umpire or a cur- tain speech from the “‘star.”” No. When you see a double- leaded, fire-and-flame editorial to the effect that the public is demanding something, don’t believe it without an affidavit from the public itself. It usual- ly means that the public is about to have something done to it, while the chances are that the public is down at Coney . Island demanding beer and hot weiners or at the race-track demanding tips. Whatever we have in this de- mocracy, we have because the public has either demanded it or has failed to demand something better and, when the public really demands some- thing, there is no room for a disagree- ment between two esteemed contempo- raries and it can be understood with- out the benevolent assistance of either preacher, politician or pencil-pusher. Public opinion needs no bush. Ellis O. Jones. AT UFE’S FARM PLAYING BEAN-BAG comicbooks.com