Life, 1908-11-05 · page 22 of 48
Life — November 5, 1908 — page 22: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces targeting institutional incompetence and medical ethics. **"Uncle Hiram" cartoon** (top): A humorous mystery illustration featuring snow shoe tracks—a visual pun on institutional bumbling. The accompanying text mocks bankers and financial leaders, arguing that people saturated in their profession's "conventionalities and traditions" become incompetent despite appearances. The author suggests banking reform will only come from outside "dreamers and cranks," not insiders. **"Scientific Progress" section**: Quotes Doctor Allen M. Starr's address to Columbia medical students, then satirizes it. The satire targets medical experimentation on patients—suggesting Providence "blinds" the ignorant to danger while enlightened patients should be "duly thankful" even if operations fail, since failed procedures can at least be "named after them" in post-mortem analysis. This bitterly mocks cavalier attitudes toward experimental medicine and patient welfare. Both pieces critique institutional self-interest masquerading as expertise.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Maanrarwlacy Uncle Hiram BY HEC So, So! mn of America should be trial affairs when the is lame. Our sy the crutch iy rote ident of the First ) al Bank of Chicago. HIS observation seems to be an argu- ment in favor of something of other, we don’t know what. But if we may be permitted to guess at a moral, we should say it was about like this That in reality, the people who are con- stantly engaged in a particular business are pretty likely to becbine so saturated with its conventionalities and traditions. and so filled with a sense of their own importance, that they are actually not half so competent as they seem. The bankers ought to know something about banking, or at least about finance. But apparently the best thing they can say about it is that it is rotten. We knew that before. And the probability is that when it is reformed, it will be reformed The barking sy A THANKSCIVING MYSTERY by some rank outsider with hayseed in his hair, and the previous reputation of being a dreamer and a crank. “Scientific Progress” N his opening address to the Students of the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University, Doc- tor Allen M, Starr, among other things said: It is true that there are always ignorant or fanatical or prejudiced persons. who op tific progress and. shut their eyes to The fact that the law of compensation works in the case of ignorant and fanati- cal persons, and gives them the benefit of having their eyes blinded to danger, ought to be an evidence that Providence is watching over some of us, even though they are not recognized by the medical profession. As for those other more en- lightened ones, who are waiting to be cut up, or otherwise experimented upon SNOW SHOE TRACKS LEADING TO TH DOOR, PRIZE COBBLER GONE AND NOT A FOOTPRINT LEAVING THE COOP, by experts who are trying to make new discoveries in science for the ultimate benefit of humanity, they should be duly thankful. If the operations performed on them are not successful, they may, as the doctor once said to the patient who expressed some doubt about the outcome of his particular operation “Have the disease named after them’ provided the post mortem justifies it. The Cause IFE: What was the thought the house Huswaxp: I dreamed I was trying to put on my clothes in the upper berth of a Pullman. matter? I you would break down LE steam-heated mind is common to large cities. It often makes a loud crackling noise without tangible results, It has to be fed continually, and is either absolutely unresponsive or else furnishes more hot air than you want.