Life, 1908-10-22 · page 4 of 24
Life — October 22, 1908 — page 4: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is **not a political cartoon or satirical content**—it's a commercial advertisement for Kelly-Springfield pneumatic automobile tires, published in *Life* magazine. The ad uses a product photograph (showing the tire's cross-section) and marketing copy that emphasizes brand heritage and quality. The argument is: Kelly-Springfield built the best solid carriage tires for years; now they make the best pneumatic (air-filled) automobile tires using that same expertise and rubber composition. The pitch appeals to consumer trust through reputation and longevity ("the best made but also the best known tire"). There is no satire, political commentary, or joke—merely period advertising rhetoric targeting early automobile owners deciding which tires to purchase.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Kelly Span feu Pneumatic Tire for Automobiles When you drove a carriage you knew that the name of the best solid, two-wire carriage tire was “Kelly-Springfield.”’ Today that is also the name of the best pneu- | matic tire for automobiles. We made solid tires for years, and we made them so well that the Kelly-Springfield Tire has become | not only the best made but also the best known tire and the one of which most is sold. WE did not start in the business of making pneumatic tires until we were sure we had the right tire. We did not wish to make a pneumatic tire that was not good enough to be named ‘‘Kelly-Springfield ’’ because we set the tire standard so high on our solid tires. We intended that the best in pneumatics should be Kelly-Springfield, just as the best in solid tires is Ke ly-Springfield. We now have that tire. The Kelly- Kelly-Springfield Solid Tires at all carriage builders PHILADELPHIA NEW Yor: CINCINNATI, 0, 245-245 West 47tb Se. BSN GAL Main St. BOSTON 1-15 Hawking St. orrices: St Louis SAN FRANCISCO 2340 Olive St. $07 Howard st. 430 Springfield Pneumatic is recommended to those who drive automobiles as embodying the best in automobile tire construction, backed up by years of experiment and suc- cess in making rubber composition to pro- duce the best wearing and the most resilient automobile tire that can be made. Equip your auto with Kelly-Spring- field Pneumatics the next outfit of tires you buy, and you will know what we say is true, CONSOLIDATED RUBBER TIRE COMPANY Kelly-Springfield Pneumatics 20 Vesey Street, New York, and Akron, Ohio at all automobile supply houses cHICAGc DETROIT A$ Wabash Ave, 294 Jefferson Ave.