Life, 1913-10-30 · page 19 of 40
Life — October 30, 1913 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This Life magazine page satirizes New York City politics, specifically mocking Frederick Whitridge, a political commentator and letter-writer. The cartoon depicts "The Styx Special"—a mythological reference suggesting Whitridge's political judgment is spiritually dead or ferrying the wrong passengers (wooden cars for "old directors"). The satire targets Whitridge's inconsistency: he previously championed Theodore Roosevelt over Woodrow Wilson in the 1912 presidential election, yet now opposes mayoral candidate Mitchel in favor of Judge McCall. The magazine implies Whitridge's political endorsements are unreliable and contradictory. The text defends Mitchel as a competent, reform-minded "fusion ticket" candidate—meaning a coalition ticket—despite being unfinished politically. It mocks Whitridge's complaint that Mitchel lacks "profession," noting Mitchel is actually a trained accountant fit for the position. The secondary article celebrates Benjamin Altman's art bequest to the Metropolitan Museum, presented as a counterpoint to destructive political judgment.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
voters who oppose him is that he is a wild nominated because the goats will take him, Mr, Frederick Whit- ridge, the complete political letter- writer, has put that argument forward in a letter in his best style to the vening Post. Mr. Whitridge writes ery agreeably. If the politicians had heen looking for a letter-writer to be a candidate for Mayor in place of Judge Gaynor they might very prop- erly have chosen Mr. Whitridge. He ders Mr. Mitchel “rather an a complished young demagogue", and does not want him, and in spite of full with Tammany and a ution of it that seems sincere, he acquaintance HIS is the same Mr. Whitridge who issued a thorough and enter- taining diagnosis of the Presidential situation last year, and summoned us THE STYX SPECIAL WOODEN CARS ONLY. all to step up and vote for Mr. Roosevelt. A good many of us pre- ferred Mr. Wilson then, and will pre- fer Mr. Mitchel now, and will feel about Mr. Whitridge’s counsel that the same feelings and powers of discern- ment which led him last year to prefer Mr. Roosevelt to Mr. Wilson now con- strain him to prefer Judge McCall to Mr. Mitchel. To sure Mr. Mitchel is not a finished product. He is a man still in the making, whose future, it is fair to surmise, will depend a good deal on the sort of political company he keeps. The company the present fusion ticket hopes to furnish him is very much the he ought to have, and he, as Mayor, will he much better comp: for them than Judge McCall. Mr. Whitridge complains that he is “ with- out 1s profession”, but that is imperfeetly true, for he is a trained and expert accountant, and there are worse accomplishments for a Mayor of New York than the ability to read figures and understand them. he sort FOR THE OLD DIRECTORS, Mr. Altman's Bequest Mr. Benjamin Altman found his pleasure in later life in gathering works of art of very rare quality and very high value. He ¥ not run to quantity in his collections. He was constantly replacing objects in late T" his treasure house with other-like ob- jects that were rarer or better of their kind. So, when Mr. Altman died the other he left a moderate-sized collection of beautiful: things; pictures—very ones—hy Rem= brandt, Velasquez, Raphael and such painters, and porcelains and and, having neither wife nor children, he left them all to the Metropolitan Museum for New York. is a great and important acqui- for this community and_ this The enrichment of such a very good Holbein, rugs fit for such company the people of Tht sition country museum as the Metropolitan by such treasures as Mr. Altman has be- queathed to it adds interest and rich- ness to American life. comicbooks.com