Life, 1910-11-03 · page 19 of 72
Life — November 3, 1910 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains two satirical pieces critiquing early 20th-century American institutions. **"We"** (top left): An editorial commentary mocking how newspaper editors manipulate the pronoun "we" to obscure their true allegiances. The editor begins claiming to speak for himself ("we think"), shifts to representing advertisers, then the community, then his political party—constantly changing whose interests "we" represents. The satire exposes journalistic dishonesty: editors use "we" to make partisan or commercial positions sound universal. The phrase "we-goats from the we-sheep" suggests readers cannot distinguish genuine public interest from hidden agendas. **"Universal Satisfaction"** (right): A brief, dry satire on Justice Moody's retirement with full pay. The piece sarcastically claims everyone approves—because everyone would love such a cushy arrangement themselves. It's mild criticism of elite privilege: while ordinary citizens must work until death, Supreme Court justices receive lifetime compensation upon retirement. **"Only a Dream"** (illustration): Shows a woman gazing wistfully at the dinner scene at top, suggesting the comfortable life depicted is fantasy for ordinary people.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
E is one of the most bothersome words in the language. It is re- sponsible for more misunderstandings than any other ten words put together. An editor will start out conscientiously to give his opinions. He will begin by saying “‘ We think,’’ meaning himself. A little later he will say “ we,’ meaning his advertisers. A few lines farther down he will use the word again, mean- ing the class of people who read his pa- per Then his heart will soften and expand He will become cloquent with the use of “we,’’ meaning the whole community or the entire human race. Then suddenly he will bethink himself and reflect that his is a party organ and “ we,’ the party, is paramount after all. Whereupon he will divest himself of opinions in which the people at large have no interest, or at least no profit. All this is very confusing. The unsus- pecting reader struggles along trying in vain to separate the we-goats from the we-sheep. Sometimes that’s exactly what the editor is striving for and some- times he is the most confused of all We was invented to conceal thought. Universal Satisfaction HE announcement that Justice Moody will continue to receive full pay upon his retirement from the United States Supreme Court will be heartily ap- proved by everybody There is not a man or woman in the country who would not like to retire on full pay. = ONLY A DREAM comicbooks.com