Life, 1909-10-28 · page 14 of 36
Life — October 28, 1909 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes the early 20th-century spiritualism craze by mocking prominent intellectuals who endorsed it. The text references **Professor William James** (Harvard psychologist), **Hamlin Garland** (author), and **Alfred Russell Wallace** (naturalist Darwin's collaborator)—all real figures who publicly supported spiritualism. The satire's central joke: if we wouldn't trust a stranger claiming to sell us a gold brick on the street, why trust unverified spirits? The proposed solution is humorous—spirits should carry "official certificates" proving their authenticity. The cartoons illustrate the absurdity: one shows a séance with dubious participants; another depicts "Mrs. Spook" scolding a ghost for scaring children with frightening stories "about living people." The satire targets both gullible spiritualists and the respected academics lending them credibility, suggesting spiritualism exploits the same human vulnerabilities as street con artists.
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Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Professor James. But if, in the actual material world we livé in, we are likely at any moment to be buncoed on the next street corner and have a gold brick forced into our hands, or subjected to the hundred and one i positions common to our visible world, how can we Le expected to swallow the bare statement of every spirit we meet just because he himself says it? What is needed is an of- ficial certificate, signed per- sonally by one of these tlemen, which cach spirit can present as a badge of his calling. Then we would know where we stand Suppose a Revolutionary aunt calls upon us in the dead of night, wakes us up by the customary three ra —just when we necd the dd insists that she ssage of the great- ortance. — Suppose, she has a tip OH, THE RASCAL 1! all Street, that Steel The Mediunt: Does ANY ONE RECOGNIZE THE NAME OF WILLIAM BENNINGS? A HUSHAND, 1 Common is going to jump aiae ten points in the next twen- ren EE idtied Lodices Weick bb ty-four hours. What right Now any spirit can say that. Any spirit, 19 mat- ve we to believe her? we Notice ! ter how humble or retiring, may assert that he is She may be a spirit e1 Spirits, Take Notice ! of the Pepper brand and a walking delegate for ployed by Pierpont Morgan HE spirit world is no longer a m ter of uncertainty, Sir Oliver L s endorsed it. Professor Willi James has admitted it. Hamlin Garla: has corroborated it Alfred Russell W lace, co-worker with Darwin, justi- fied it. Professor Hy upon it nent, have demonstrated it or those of us, however, who are s yet out in the open, who have not been admitted into the sacred circle of believers, there is still some difficulty \nd this difficulty comes fror fact that spirits whom we may meet occasionally have received no official recognition from he gentlemen above mentioned, and con sequently there is no way for us to tell whether they are genuine or not The other evening, for example, we chanced upon a fat old ghost leaning uy nst a lamppost on the edge of an ad jacent graveyard, smoking a poor cigar He recited a few nonsense rhymes, merely to prove that he was all right, but when he was pinned down he had noth- ing more to say for himself than that he Mrs, Spook: DYAR, DON’T RE SCARING THE CHILDREN WITH THOSE AWFUL STORIES had long been a member of the Ham AMOUT LIVING PEOPLE; THE POOR YOUNGSTERS WILL BE AFRAID TO COME OUT OF Garland circle. THEIR GRAVES, comicbooks.com