Life, 1911-03-02 · page 18 of 52
Life — March 2, 1911 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes the conflict between modern scientific advice and traditional parenting practices, circa early 1900s. **Top cartoon**: Shows fashionable women in a line following an "Oving Airway" sign—mocking how blindly people follow trends. **Bottom section**: A doctor insists rocking cradles damage infants' brains (reflecting contemporary pseudo-scientific fads), but a mother points out the doctor himself was rocked as a baby without harm. The doctor's weak response—that this was "before science had determined" the dangers—exposes the absurdity: he's contradicting lived experience with unproven theory. **"The Force of Gravity" cartoon** depicts people buying expensive hats that blow away in the wind, illustrating how fashion demands override practical sense. The satire's point: society blindly adopts whatever scientists or fashion dictate, even when it contradicts common sense and tradition, earning the title "Needs Must When Fashion Drives."
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
NEEDS MUST WHEN FASHION DRIVES “OU must not rock the baby at all,” says the grave physician. “But I think an old-fashioned cradle is so cunning, and besides the gentle mo- tion gets the baby to go to sleep without crying for an hour,” says the young mother, “Yes, but that rocking motion is very injurious upon the child’s brain. The constant swaying really damages its mind.” “ Doctor?” “Yes, madam?" “When you were a little baby they still used cradles, didn’t they?” “Certainly, That was before science had determined so many of the ——" “Wel-I-L-IL” In New York voman across the hall from us ad. low did you find that out?” Why, I happened to sce it in the paper.” THE FORCE OF GRAVITY comicbooks.com