Life, 1909-12-09 · page 12 of 32
Life — December 9, 1909 — page 12: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This political cartoon depicts a group of well-dressed men in formal attire (top hats and coats) standing together in what appears to be a queue or gathering. The caption "The Line of Least Resistance" suggests social or political conformity—the figures represent people following the path of least conflict rather than taking principled stands. The upper illustration shows figures in a tree, with dialogue about "going south" and a stove, appearing unrelated or possibly illustrating a separate anecdote. The text discusses literary criticism and book reviews, mentioning *The Journal of a Recluse* and *Margaretta's Soul*. Without additional context about the specific date and political climate, the exact targets of satire remain unclear, though the cartoon likely criticizes institutional conformity or political cowardice.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“hi E* Bes Rouen “WHAT, NOT GOING souTH?"* “Nor MUCIT! LOOK AT THE STOVE I'VE PUT IN.” termining elements in what, as a matter of fact, is a k aroused interest Lady Mechente, too, is pulled out—well out, mind you waiting for a happy conjunction of unimpeded leisure, whett« responsiveness and—what should one say—literary agnosti ism. Because? Well, because the sixth sense—we'll call 1 that—or is it only the surreptitious licking of a finger dipped here and there into the text?—impels one to believe that Gelett Burgess has given himself carte blanche in the making of it; has allowed himself for once the joy of being uproar- iously and inconsequentially serious; and, having delivered himself to his own approximate satisfaction, is equally hope- ful and defiant as to the result. These are instances of comparatively clean cut impression. There are others more vague. The Journal of a Recluse, fcr instance. I have never opened the book recollection has spoken of it in my hearing. I have read no estimate of it and, for the matter of that, and for obvious reasons, I seldom read any formal opinion of a book, except the publisher's, until after expressing by own. And yet I am fully persuaded—heaven knows how, unless, as we say, “it is in the air'’—not that the volume is worth while, but of a current notion to that effect that puts an edge on curiosity. And Margarita’s Soul. In this case a friend for whose No one to my pronouncements (because we disagree so stimulatingly ?) I have a considerable respect has added to my interest by a rec mendation. But, probably through the reading of a forgotten advertisement, I had been on the lookout for the book before its publication; and something about the sub-title, “The Ro- tic Recollections of a Man of Fifty,"’ added to the evi- nce of distinct personality on the part of its author con .ained in its chapter headings, in the oddity of its larger di- visions and in the commentative trend of mind revealed by cntative glances here and there in its pages, had already ‘vanced the novel to the ranks of the chosen. Austin’s Lost Boarders, , by Cleveland Mof- f course there are others: Mai by jowl with The Hole in the W THE LINE OF LEAST RESISTANCE comicbooks.com