Life, 1912-06-13 · page 18 of 44
Life — June 13, 1912 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**"A New Occupation"** sarcastically celebrates wealthy elderly men fathering children late in life—Andrew Carnegie, Senator Clark, Dr. Harvey Wiley, and others in their 60s-80s. The satire mocks the illogic: men spend their first 50 years becoming educated and financially secure, then finally have leisure to enjoy life—precisely when they should be raising infants. The accompanying sketches show elderly gentlemen awkwardly managing young children, emphasizing the absurdity. **"A Matter of No Importance"** criticizes press suppression of a vaccination death in Yonkers (1909), noting major newspapers ignored the story because it contradicted pro-vaccination positions. It invokes George Bernard Shaw's call to criminalize vaccination, suggesting institutional pressure silences inconvenient medical facts—a commentary on journalistic bias and corporate influence over health reporting. Both pieces exemplify *Life*'s satirical tradition of exposing social contradictions and institutional dishonesty through irony and dark humor.
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1214 A New Occupation E desire to note the growing fash- ion for elderly gentlemen in good circumstances to increase their families. Recently Dr. Gorton, who is over cighty years of age, was blessed with twins; and Dr. Harvey Wiley, at sixty-six, has secured the additional presence of a nine-pound boy; Andrew Carnegie at sixty-two was presented with a daughter; Senator. Clark, at sixty-three, a daughter; J. H. Thiry, at eighty-seven, a son; John W. Prov- ince, at eighty-one, twins; Thomas Ludway, at cighty-nine, a son; Charles Powell, at seventy-two, a son, and Ambrose Calhound, of Georgia, at cighty-two, triplets. All of these gentlemen have achieved these additions practically within the last decade. And they are only a few examples of a growing tendency. This is as it should be. Owing to our system of education, it takes the first twenty-five years of a man’s life to know anything at all. After that, it takes about twenty-five years more for him to be able to earn a living. It would seem, therefore, that the proper sociological period for any gentleman to raise a family is during the closing years of his life, when he can presmuably give his attention to the education of his children. It is only after a man gets to be sixty years of age that he really has any fun, and what is more fitting than that he should spend a proportion of his days in the nursery playing hide- and-go-seck with the babies? T. L. M. A Matter of No Importance ECENTLY (on May 22) a seven months old baby in Yonkers died suddenly after having been vaccinated by a physician connected with the Board of Health. The coroner stated that the vaccina- tion was the cause of the child’s death. This, of course, is of no importance —relatively. Children are dying every week all over the country from the same cause. In this particular instance apparently only three New York papers. made any mention of the fact—the American, the Herald and the Press. Naturally the metropolitan papers are “TUL oF HUMAN INTEREST” SEE = SOME PRESS OPINIONS OF A BEST SELLER not going to report facts which are not in accord with their own views. George Bernard Shaw said the other day, writing to an English newspaper: “Vaccination should have been made a criminal offense immediately after the great smallpox epidemic of 1871, and it has been maintained ever since then because doctors can’t afford to tell the truth about i HA the world don’t know how they live themselves. Bait IRST SUFFRAGETTE: If we want to get the young girls inter- ested in our meetings we must have something to attract them. Seconp Surrracette: Which would it better be? Refreshments or men? “QHE remembers everything she reads.” “Um. Please don’t leave me alone with her.” comicbooks.com