Life, 1914-04-02 · page 49 of 68
Life — April 2, 1914 — page 49: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is **not a cartoon or satire**, but a **commercial advertisement** for Federal Motor Trucks, published in *Life* magazine (page 613). The image shows a Federal truck in service for the Lemp Brewing Company of St. Louis, depicted hauling beer delivery cargo. The ad's headline promises trucks are "Fitted to Your Business"—not merely sold. The text is a testimonial-style pitch emphasizing Federal's reliability and advisory services. A quoted customer (Rock Spring Water Co.) claims their Federal truck ran continuously for a year with minimal downtime, even on poor winter roads, hauling water four miles daily. The sales strategy targets small manufacturers and beverage distributors by promising free consultation to demonstrate the truck's value versus traditional horse-drawn hauling. For a modern reader: this is early automotive industry marketing (circa 1912-1913), positioning motorized trucks as practical business investments for regional distributors before trucking became standardized.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
sity lerer rece | etlhed A Federal in the Service of the Lemp Brewing Company, St. Louis Not Merely Sold to You— But Fitted to Your Business We pride ourselves upon the fact that so many concerns now using large fleets of Federals started with the purchase of one, and bought the others largely because of the assist- ance we were able to give them in economizing haulage and labor costs. For instance : “During July, 1912, we purchased one of your Federal Trucks. After unloading from the shipping car we at once made a temporary body and started the rig on its way. With the exception of two weeks for painting last winter the truck has done daily work. Never in the last year’s use have we been held up a minute. The truck has been used in hauling water from our spring to city warehouse, a distance of about four miles (round trip); roads are very poor in places in winter, but wherever the FEDERAL can get traction it will go through.”—Rock Spring Water Co. Many other bottlers, dairies and creameries have had similar experiences with Federals. Our advisory service—the result of years of experience in practically every line and under all haulage conditions—is free to any manufacturer. It is one of the best means of demonstrating conclusively the relative value of motor and other haulage in different lines of business, Why not write us? One of our represent- atives will be glad to call; and he will not try to sell you a truck unless he has convinced both you and himself that you can use one profitably. Federal Motor Truck Co., 102 Leavitt Avenue, Detroi