Life, 1910-06-02 · page 21 of 56
Life — June 2, 1910 — page 21: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces from early 20th-century America: **"Overrated" (Main Cartoon):** A globe surrounded by figures represents how Halley's Comet (which appeared in 1910) failed to impress Americans. The text mocks the comet's inconvenient timing, overshadowed by major events: King Edward VII's death, Theodore Roosevelt's political activities, and the Ballinger scandal. The satire suggests the comet was overhyped—Life's editors humorously propose Mayor Gaynor should revoke its "license" for disappointing the public. **"Results of Research" (Bottom):** A joke about German beer-drinking and livers. It implies German researchers have "discovered" that Germans possess livers—a backhanded comment on both German scientific research and stereotypes about German alcohol consumption. Both pieces reflect American attitudes circa 1910: skepticism toward overstated phenomena and ethnic stereotyping presented as humor.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Overrated ALLEY’S comet was more trouble than it came to. It was no more than a side-show at best. It gave its performance at very inconvenient hours. It butted in at a time when the death of King Edward, the capture of Europe by Colonel Roosevelt and the obstreperous developments of the Ballinger inquiry engrossed more of the time of American observers than they could spare from food, wage-earning and sleep. It was not considerate of Halley to exhibit his comet as he has done this time. It would have served him right to have Mayor Gaynor revoke the license of his show. If we could have THE WANDERLUST \ \\ \ Chester Ivers GARDE smelled the celestial vagrant it would have been some satisfaction. There was hope that we might, but we didn't Notice. 10 Posterity: Don't get excited about Halley's comet! It is hardly up to its advertisement. Results of Research AISER WILLIAM says a German student can drink too much beer, and he warned them to moderate their pota- tions. In the present enthusiasm for research into the re- cesses of the human body some operator must have discovered that Germans, too, have livers. comicbooks.com