Life, 1914-02-05 · page 38 of 44
Life — February 5, 1914 — page 38: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page is primarily **advertisements** interspersed with a brief satirical essay titled "Undesirable Citizen." The essay mocks **M. Baretta**, a French anatomical sculptor who refuses to commercialize his secret craft, insisting his pupil must be motivated purely by artistic devotion rather than profit. Life's satire targets Baretta's naïveté: if he were American, the piece argues, he'd have inevitably been drawn into capitalism—either losing control of his invention to investors or becoming a wealthy industrialist himself, perhaps even indicted for monopolistic practices. The joke reflects early-20th-century American cynicism about the impossibility of maintaining artistic purity in a commercial society. Baretta's principled refusal to profit is presented as almost absurdly foreign to American values, where even artists eventually get "dished out" of their ideas or become wealthy businessmen. The surrounding ads (Hinds Cream, Burpee seeds, Cascade Whisky) reinforce the page's commercial context, making the satirical point visually ironic.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
Itjs wel to remember that this non- greasy cream has become ai toilet necessity in thousands of refined homes throughout the world.—Apply just enough to moisten the skin, morning and night,-—-also on returmng indoors. Follow other simple directions in the booklet, which will assure a fine, soft skin that will be clear, fresh and’ free from blemishes. We positively gu: antee Hinds Cream not to bh It is pure and harmless. Selling everywhere, of postpaid by us\ on receipt of price Hinds "Cream in. batles, SOc" Hinds Cold Cream in tubes, 25¢. Do not take a wbatiuies init upon HINDS, Samples will be sent if you en- close 2¢ stamp to pay postage. .v" A. S. HINDS f. ee ‘St.; Portland, Maine You should try Ths Seep. highly refined, HINDS Honey delightully fra: and Almond rant and beneficial, Cream SOAP. postpaid. No samples “THAT'S ABOUT TH’ BIGGEST BEETLE I EVER SAW” Undesirable Citizen BARETTA, the celebrated °° Frenchman and maker of ana- tomical objects out of a material which nobody knows but himself, proposes to Iet his secret die with him, His reason is that he knows of no one with sufficient self-abnegation and love of art to become his pupil. Says M. Ba- retta: “He would have to abandon all hope of fortune. In a word, love of art alone should inspire him.” M. Baretta is evidently skeptical that there is such a person, or at least that he will be able to find and distinguish him from some impostor. Imagine what would happen if M. Baretta were an American. Long since he would have started a stock company, the underwriting of which would have heen accomplished by some prominent millionaire. In this case M. Baretta, a victim of American luck, would either have been completely dished out of his owner- ship in his idea, and would have lived to see vast factories equipped with modern machinery turning out his models by thousands; or else he him- self would have become the head of his business, with town houses in New York and country homes in the Berk- shires and elsewhere, and the doings of his family would be chronicled daily among the society events by the metro- politan papers. Possibly, indeed, M. Baretta ere this would have been in- dicted by the government for running Spencers” For 25¢ fenane 1S-cent packet of Bur- pre's OrcuiD, the most beauti- ful helio-mauve; one regular 10-cent packet (40 to 50 seeds) each of Bratrice Srencer, deep pink; Groror Herner: rosy carmine; Mas. C. W. Brrapmore, cream edged rose; Stixtino Srent, best Howicg, salmon-orange: also one ket (90 to 100 seeds) of Tur jURPEE BLEND oF SurPass- merry Supers Spencers ror 1914, which is absolutely unequaled. ‘With each collection we enclose our Leaflet onculture, Purchased separately, these six packets would cost 6S cents. Burpee’s Annual Known as the leading American seed catalog—this bright book of 182 pages for 1914 is better than ever before. Itis mailed free upon application. Write for it today and name Life W. ATLEE BURPEE & CO. Burpee Buildings, Philadelphia PURE a WHISKY | Bi Demanded Friends of Cascade are staunch friends — they think of it, not as an alternative, but with no alternative — pure, rich, mellow. Soft as dawn. Geo. A. Dickel & Co. Dassul Nashville, Tenn, a combination in restraint of trade, and along with this be numbered among the chief philanthropists of the year. In- stead, he prefers not to have the fine product of his mind commercialized. What a poor American he would make! A voor man is despised the whole world over ; despised as much by a Chris- tian as by a lord, as much by a dema- gogue as by a footman, and not all the copy-book maxims ever set for ink stained youth will make him respected — “Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow,” Jerome K. Jerome. A. L. Burt Company New York. Sampl you w letter 1 HAM The o Cy comicbooks.com