Life, 1913-06-12 · page 18 of 44
Life — June 12, 1913 — page 18: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**The Hoodoo Chaser** (left): A humorous poem mocking the era's fascination with fortune tellers and pseudo-mystical advisors. The "Hoodoo Eraser" is a fairy-tale charlatan who claims to solve life's problems through occult means—love potions, Latin incantations, French and Egyptian spells. The satire's punchline: her actual secret is simply two English words: "forget it." Life ridicules both the gullible clients seeking magical solutions and the fraudulent practitioners exploiting them, while promoting instead pragmatic self-help philosophy (move on, stay busy, find joy). **The European Dog Show** (right): A darkly satirical cartoon depicting France and Germany as grotesque, exaggerated dogs in a show. This likely references post-WWI tensions and military competition between these nations, caricaturing national character through animal grotesqueness. The caption "MADAM, WILL YOU KINDLY REMOVE YOUR HAT?" suggests absurd politeness masking underlying hostility—a commentary on European diplomatic pretense amid underlying antagonism.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“You'Re NOT HOLD- ‘NG YOUR KODAK Levels” “YeES—nUT IT's THE ONLY WAY I CAN GET THE TOWER STRAIGHT.” The Hoodoo Chaser HEN Fate gives you the glance that is glassy, Extending the hand that is iced; When Luck deals you upper cuts sassy, Refusing the nectarine spiced Your back *> the wall and a facer Lands a final and furious blow— Just call on the Hoodoo Eraser, Whom ‘twill pay you to know. She is really a wonderful Fairy Who lives in a beautiful flat, With terraces graceful and airy And WELCOME engraved on the mat; Her office hours ten in the morning And afternoons two until four, With taxis and motor cars swarming, Three deep at the door. Her specialty giving advice is To those who to zero are down Her method so simple and nice is, She might wear a harp and a crown. She has oodles and oodles of money; Her secret as old as the hills, Though some think she sells philtres funny And Helen pink pills. They hint at love powders and potions, With occult and mystical charms, That will give all your meanings new motions And steer laggard joy to your arms. Should the one you love best remain chilly, THE EUROPEAN DOG SHOW The secret in Latin repeat, And the person you name, willy nilly, Will slide to your feet. The truth is a small bit of paper; Two short words are all that you get, And your troubles float off in the vapor, And you haven't a care or a debt. It’s written in French and Egyptian; Whatever the tongue that you speak; In Chinese it’s a classic conniption, And also in Greek Two words in the English—forget it; Perhaps you have heard them be- fore? Don't dwell on a woe or regret it; Just sponge it off; start a new score. Get busy and bury the sorrow; Smile over the scratches and scars; Prepare for a gladder to-morrow And laugh with the stars. Forget it—whatever the spot be That rankles and = scorches and stings; Forget it and soon it will not be And the flutter of cherubim’s wings Will Lring you the gifts that you long for, The rose and the fire and the dew; Will bear you to all that you're strong for; They're waiting for you. The old world is crying for gladness; It is sick of its grieving and sin; It is weary of striving in sadness And dark with no lights shining in Go out where the boughs are abloom- ing And the robins are calling a tune; Give over the grouch and the glooming And whistle. It's June! Kate Masterson ADAM, WILL YOU KINDLY REMOVE your Hat?" comicbooks.com