Life, 1913-11-27 · page 14 of 40
Life — November 27, 1913 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page critiques class inequality and neglect of the poor. The top illustration, titled "The Line of Least Resistance," depicts impoverished people gathered at night under a crescent moon—visualizing their desperate circumstances. The article argues that while historians note the material poverty of millions worldwide (hundreds of millions without clothing), the mental poverty is equally severe. It highlights children exposed to harsh street conditions, shivering from cold and hunger, entirely neglected by their wealthy owners/employers. The lower cartoon, "Shade of Pilgrim Father," shows a wealthy man dining lavishly while toasting a bountiful harvest—the implied irony being that his prayers for abundance are answered while others starve. The satire targets the hypocrisy of the privileged class's indifference to surrounding human suffering.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“THE LINE OF LEAST RESISTANCE” The Mentally Poor RECENT paragraph in the London Times called at- tention to the fact that there are two hundred and fifty millions of people in the world who are not clothed at all, and seven hundred and fifty millions who are enty half clothed. This is what historians or political economists might term a “ drastic arraignment”. But consider for a moment how much worse it is in the case of minds. How many minds are there with any cover- ing at all? Think of the minds which stand upon the street corners, exposed to the elements. Think of the rags and tatters that cover millions of minds. It is interesting to reflect that among all the millions there are few who care whether they expose their minds or not. Isn't it pitiful to see a poor little mind, shivering with cold, almost dead for want of nourishment, begging ‘in the city streets, utterly neglected by its owner? And what remarkably fine clothes the owners of some of these minds do wear! Shade of Pilgrim Father: HOW WELL HIS PRAYERS FOR A BOUNTIFUL HARVEST HAVE BEEN ANSWERED.