Life, 1914-10-01 · page 33 of 48
Life — October 1, 1914 — page 33: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This is a **corporate advertisement**, not a satirical cartoon. It announces that while other rubber companies are raising prices due to war-disrupted crude rubber supplies from Europe, Kelly-Springfield will keep prices stable for customers. The company positions itself as ethical and fair-minded, attributing price spikes to temporary wartime conditions rather than permanent market changes. They claim their limited high-quality output and stockpiled raw materials allow them this principled stance. For modern readers: This reflects **WWI-era economic disruption** (likely 1914-1917). The advertisement uses corporate virtue-signaling—a marketing tactic where companies advertise their restraint or fairness as a competitive advantage. The "war in Europe" justification and promise of eventual normalcy show wartime uncertainty about global trade and supply chains. No satire or caricature is present; this is straightforward business messaging.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
NNOUNCEMENT has been made of a large increase A in the price of their product by various rubber companies. In this connection we wish to state that the Kelly- Springfield Tire Co. will not take advantage of the situation, but will give the benefit of it to their customers. It is our opinion that the sharp advance in crude rubber is due to an unnatural condition caused by the war in Europe, and that ina relatively short time the commerce of the United States will be in full swing, and crude rubber will return to its normal price. The Kelly-Springfield Tire Co., as is well known, has a limited output of the very highest grade products, which necessitates having a large supply of raw material on hand in order that it may be properly seasoned. We believe that you will appreciate our action in the matter, and our fairness at all times to the public. Kelly-Springfield Tire Co. 229 West 57th Street, New York Branch offices in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, St. Louis, Detroit, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Cleveland, Seattle, Atlanta, Akron, 0. The Hearn Tire & Rubber Co., Columbus, Ohio Atkinson Tire & Supply Co., Jacksonville, Fla. The Southern Tire & Rubber Co., Houston and Central Rubber & Supply Co., Indianapolis, Ind. Beaumont, Texas C. D. Franke & Co., Charleston, S. C. Bose Rubber Co.. Denver, Colorado Springs and K. & S. Auto Tire Co. Limited, Toronto 2c! : Can. y See Rarnard & Michael. Buffalo, N. Y. jeans, La. L. J, Barth, Rochester, N. Y. Seifert & Baine, Newark, N. J. l comicbooks.com