Life, 1912-02-29 · page 23 of 40
Life — February 29, 1912 — page 23: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This satirical piece mocks Eastern urban life—particularly New York City—as decadent and culturally exhausted ("effete"). The left cartoon shows a man and woman in a doorway with a grandfather clock, captioned "New Yorkers Are Always in Such a Hurry," playing on stereotypes of frantic city dwellers. The main text describes a fictional "congress" or exhibition displaying Eastern types as curiosities: hurried commuters, suffragettes ("apostlettes"), street criminals, and corrupt officials. It then catalogs performers representing American urban vice: dangerous subway acrobats, customs corruption, reckless drivers, con artists, and "Capital and Labor" in violent conflict. The finale features drunken wealthy men ("Near-Millionaires") committing vehicular manslaughter with police indifference. The satire targets urban corruption, class conflict, reckless wealth, and institutional hypocrisy while stereotyping the East as morally bankrupt compared to (implied) wholesome America.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
y} “ NEW YORKERS ARE ALWAYS IN SUCH A HURRY fl ===" Wari ree 1 THE GIRL HE LEFT BEHIND HIM The Effete East COI-OSSAL congress and carefully collected con- glomeration of silently suffering straphangers soberly hurrying homeward, agile alluring apostlettes seductively seeking the suffrage, listless and lovable ladies busily bus- tling for bargains, cheerful considerate chauffeurs in toot- ing and tortoise-like taxis, polite predatory pickpockets and pleasantly pursuing policemen, and other equally character- istic creations of Eastern effeteness in an instructive, con- vincing and truly educational exhibition of the salient and picturesque features of what (it is hoped) is a passing phase of American civilization. A Troupe of Wild Brooklynites—Suburban leapers, tumblers, high jumpers and straphangers will perform their remarkable feats of strength, quickness and devil-may-care daring on a rapid transit vehicle in full motion in sight of the audience. The Jones Family of American travelers will go through the Customs House, assisted by a company of trained Cus- toms officials (permission of the United States Govern- ment), who will go through the Jones family. See “ Plain” Smith, the “average citizen” in his inter- esting and refined acrobatic interlude with three automo- biles, a surface trolley, a fire engine and a police patrol wagon. See “ Bunco” Bill, the peerless, practical prestidigitator selling gold bricks to farmers chosen at random from the audience. See our two great clowns, Capital and Labor, who will pummel each other entertainingly at regular intervals. The whole to conclude with the Near-Miilionaires’ Joy Ride, by Hugger and Mugger, champion high ball smash- ers of the Tenderloin, who, after an illuminating exhibition of their skill with the high balls, will leap in splendid in- toxication into their racing motor car, and will be consid- erately captured by the motor police after innocently kill- ing or maiming several thoughtless pedestrians, RB. comicbooks.com