Life, 1913-03-13 · page 18 of 44
Life — March 13, 1913 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page contains multiple satirical pieces targeting American corruption and public deception circa early 1900s. **"Monopoly's Creed"** mocks corporate monopolies as quasi-religious entities, personifying "Monopoly" as an amoral force that corrupts courts, controls bosses, and distributes token charity ("contributes a bone") while accumulating vast wealth through graft. **The courtroom cartoon** satirizes jury bias: a lawyer asks if a juror can render impartial judgment; the juror admits he's a barber—implying ordinary citizens lack the competence or independence for fair verdicts, corrupted by self-interest or simple ignorance. **"No Wonder They Are Laughing At Us"** criticizes sensationalized scientific claims about yellow fever cures. It describes how miraculous statistics were promoted via "big drum" (media hype), then quietly retracted when the germ identified proved wrong—yet promotion continued anyway. This satirizes how Americans are duped by authorities (even the President) making false claims about medical breakthroughs. The page's overall theme: institutional corruption, media manipulation, and public gullibility.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Monopoly’s Creed I, Monopoly, Trust in Myself; Sacred is Privilege, Sacrosanct Pelf; The Court is my handmaid, Bosses my staff; My legitimate profit. A half and a half; The Earth is my m Graft is my throne; To the Public my bounty Contributes a bone; Churches commend me. 1 surely shan't die; G holy, thrice holy, Monopoly, 1 M.W. Chaney Lawyer: W’M. $0 YOU IMINK YUU COULD NUL RENDER AN IMPARTIAL VERDICT : TO THIS DEFENDANT? His Forte Juror: Xo, SAIR! IT AM A BARBER! ANDALL: I don’t: know what will become of my son, the No Wonder They Are Laughing At Us author. He writes nothing but drivel OLLOWING is from the London Abolitionist: Rocers: Why not get him a job as By experimenting on animals the viviseetor discovered the yellow fever germ, society reporter? The germ formed the basis of a miraculous serum. Many were “saved” by it, and startling statistics and remarkable incidents were heaped up and blended confusedly with firework displays, al- ways accompanied by the big drum, in the presence of a dazed bewildered public, uddenly, the germ was found to be the wrong one. Hence the serum was wrong, too. And the statistics and incidents were, a_matter of course, in the same case. They were quietly withdrawn from publication, but the big drum went on beating, and its hollow din, though it had nothing to announce, contrived by persistency to impress the uninformed listener, until at last the President of the United States was in- duced to declare that yellow fever had been banished from the region of the Panama by the marvelous discoveries achieved through experiments on ani- mals! But they are still looking for the germ that should have effected the mira- cle, but didn’t, and even while the search is being prosecuted the big drum, un- abashed, goes on beating. Familiar Letters N_ overworked letter. A busy letter.... A deep letter.. A surprised lette: A rustic letter. A financial letter A Chinese letter MOTHER G-GOT ME A social letter... An inferior letter.. comicbooks.com