Life, 1911-01-26 · page 29 of 44
Life — January 26, 1911 — page 29: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This *Life* magazine page satirizes wealthy philanthropists and politicians who positioned themselves as social reformers while maintaining systems that harmed ordinary people. **"The Net Result"** mocks the contradiction: prominent figures like Lyman Abbott, Theodore Roosevelt, John D. Rockefeller, and Andrew Carnegie—presented as "uplifting" society—paradoxically leave Americans worse off. The sarcastic list suggests their interventions are self-serving rather than genuinely beneficent. **"Don't Be Too Good"** (attributed to Charles Edward Russell) argues that educated elites are *more* dangerous than "bad men" because they rationalize injustice through philosophy: they defend monopolies, mock working people, worship wealth, and create two-tiered justice systems—all while claiming moral superiority. The cartoon "Caught in the Act" (left) appears to show someone trapped or ensnared, likely illustrating how the privileged are caught in their own contradictions. The page reflects Progressive Era skepticism toward wealthy "reformers" whose philanthropy masked exploitation and class contempt.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“CAUGHT IN THE act.” Don’t Be Too Good UPERIOR” people have never been popular. That much we all ad- mit. But Mr, Charles Edward Russel, in the Coming Nation, goes that old truth one better and tells us why even the good men are undesirable. And what makes us uncomfortable is the sickening possibility that he may be right. Listen: If I know anything about life in my native land the college-bred element as a whole is the most dangerous we possess. At all times, brethren, this country is in far more danger from its good men than from its bad. s bad men never preach that democ- is a failure and that what we want is a strong centralized government with one man to run it. That doctrine comes exclusively from the good men. Bad men never talk about the evils of a republican form of government and look yearningly upon a. monarchy like that of Great Britain. Such ideas ema- nate only from the good men, Bad men never condone crime among the rich, never think there should be one kind of justice for the rich and an- other for the poor, never think it is dreadful for a hungry man to steal a loaf of bread, but admirable for a trac- tion company’ to steal a fifty-million-dol- lar franchise. Such views are confined exclusively to good men. oe Bad men do not sit around clubs and talk about “ the ignorance of the masses,” nor uphold the right of wealth to rule, nor fall to the floor in adoration before the image of Mr. Morgan. All these things are done by good men. Bad men never feel that because one has learned and forgotten something about Greek roots one is an eminent per- son. Bad men never think that because a man works with his hands and serves his time he is, therefore, a contemptible object. All of these triumphs of the su- *LIPE® perior intellect are reserved for good men and are largely the product of the American university as at present con- ducted That being the case I will take my chances with the bad man. The Net Result OW that we have been uplifted by Mr. Lyman Abbott, clubbed by Mr. Roosevelt, educated by Mr. Rockefeller, literated by Mr Carnegie, scrutinized by Mr. Devine, throttled by Mr. Cannon, conserved by Mr. Pinchot, sat on by Mr. Taft, femimzed by Mr. Bok, vaccinated by Dr. Flexner, mentalized by Mrs. Eddy, mortalized by Mr. Baer and divorced by Reno, what is to become of us? 221 Modern Problems [ it requires immigration authorities to protect American labor from the pauper labor of Europe, what will it re- quire to protect the pauper labor America from the thing that pauperizes it? If it takes one large trust to establish a modern university, how will it take to educate the entire coun- try? If the interests of labor and capital are identical, what time does a stockholder have to get up every morning in order to have his wages increased? We pause for a reply. many ts Methuselah (to youngest son): 1T MURTS ME MORE THAN IT DOFS You, MY BOY. comicbooks.com