Life, 1909-11-04 · page 13 of 52
Life — November 4, 1909 — page 13: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical cartoon critiques **vegetarianism** through a humorous predator/prey inversion. Two foxes discover a "Vegetarian Restaurant" with birds visible through its windows—an ironic setup since foxes naturally hunt birds. The cartoon's caption states: "Ah, ha! A restaurant! And we so hungry! And if we don't see what we want, we can ask for it." The joke mocks vegetarian establishments as absurd or impractical, suggesting even carnivores would struggle with such limitations. The accompanying text discusses "Individuality" in education, featuring dialogue between Mr. Hokkins (a teacher) and Miss Rools about teaching methods and student originality—suggesting the page addresses broader themes of conformity versus individual thinking in early 20th-century American society.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“an, WA! A RESTAURANT! AND WE SO HUNGRY!”* “AND IP WE DON’T SER WHAT WE WANT, WE CAN ASK FOR 17.” Individuality * says the teacher, I should speak to you about your son. He is not succeed- ing in his studics as he should.” “I'm sorry to hear that. What is wrong?" asks Mr. Hokkins. “In his arithmetic, for instance, he in- sists that two and two make six and that the half of twelve is eight. And in geography he always answers that the Pacific Ocean lies between America and Europe.” “Now, Miss Rools, you bring up a point I have often made. Our present school system is an absurd arrangement, sticking to the cut-and-dried habits and ideas of centuries. Here my b dis. playing a little native orig and you want to stifle it in its inception. It Seems to me that the purpose of a public school should be to discover and develop and encourage original modes of thought in the pupils.” HAT’S in a name?” “A good deal. A perquisite isn't half as humiliating as a tip.”” A TURKEY COBBLER comicbooks.com