Life, 1909-10-07 · page 9 of 44
Life — October 7, 1909 — page 9: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical cartoon compares two polar expeditions. The text references the Chosen People following Moses to reach their goal, then contrasts this with Cook and Peary's attempts to reach the North Pole—but being "led by Eskimoses" instead. The cartoon depicts a tall, thin figure (appearing to represent a polar explorer) standing beside a darker, heavyset figure (an Eskimo guide) in an arctic setting. The caption reads "Miss Northice: Two Callers in One Year." The satire mocks the irony that famous explorers required indigenous guides to succeed, suggesting they were as dependent on native peoples as the ancient Israelites were on Moses. It's commentary on exploration mythology versus practical reality—the "modern" expeditions still needed native expertise.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE History Repeats Again HE. Chosen People did not reach Their goal by following their noses, pages of the Scriptures teach That they were wisely led by Moses And now the story of the pole In each particular discloses That Cook and Peary found the goal— But they were led. by Thoroughly Modern SD when at last the North Pole decided no longer to hide its glare under an iceberg and to emerge triumphantly from its age-long obscurity, it spoke unto itself thuswise: “This feat must be accomplished in a manner thor- oughly modern. One-ringed circuses are out of date, and, therefore, not for me. It would be infra dig for me to be discovered by only one man at a time." But poor little man, not realizing that the pole was big enough to have corners in its heart for us all, fell to quar- reling and wanted his money back Moral.—lt’s a wise pole that knows how to be discov- ered. Miss Northey: 1Wo CALLERS IN ONE YEAR comicbooks.com