Life, 1911-05-25 · page 27 of 42
Life — May 25, 1911 — page 27: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a cartoon or satire** — it's a straightforward advertisement for Kelly Motor Trucks, appearing in Life magazine (likely early 1900s, based on the vehicle style and "19%" grade reference). The page documents a real **Portland Endurance Contest**, a competitive hill-climb test where multiple truck manufacturers competed. The Kelly truck succeeded where competitors failed: one truck stalled three times, a water-cooled truck overheated ("boiled"), and two other trucks had to reverse back down. The advertisement celebrates this victory as proof of Kelly's superiority, highlighting three claimed advantages: their exclusive Blower-Cooled Engine, superior design and balance, and optimal weight-to-capacity ratio. The copy emphasizes practical benefits — better work performance and lower operating costs — to persuade business owners to purchase Kelly trucks. This reflects early automotive advertising's reliance on competitive demonstrations to establish brand credibility in an emerging industry.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
> ENRRAIES: The truck that The Portland Endurance Contest for Motor Trucks made the grade — pw proved an elimination contest on this 19% grade, where the only truck in the heavy division that climbed this hill without trouble was this elly Motor Truck One well-known truck stalled three times before accomplishing this climb; the best known water- cooled truck “boiled” and had difficulty all the way; two well-known trucks started, stalled and had to back down and return to Portland. The Kelly alone took the grade without difficulty. This demonstration of superiority of the Kelly Truck is representative of the kind of service it is giving in almost every industry today. It is repre- sented in your line of business. It is doing better work in your line than any other motor truck made. It will do better work for you and at lower operating cost than any other motor truck ever can. What are the factors that have contributed to bring the Kelly home a winner in every in- stance? First, the famous, exclusive Kelly (Frayer-Miller) Blower-Cooled Engine; second, perfect balance and correct design; third, light weight in proportion to load capacity. Write us today for full details of the work of the Kelly in your particular line The Kelly Motor Truck Company, 204 Burt Street, Springfield, Ohio comicbooks.com