Life, 1914-11-12 · page 7 of 48
Life — November 12, 1914 — page 7: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page from *Life* magazine presents satirical commentary on World War I's anticipated outcomes. The header illustration shows two figures playfully tossing a heart, symbolizing optimistic romantic notions about war. The main text, attributed to Amor R. Wells, lists competing predictions about what "The War Will Do"—offering ironic, contradictory claims. Some predictions are absurdist (producing "a new Shakespeare"), while others mock political positions (strengthening republicanism in Europe, confirming Democrats in power). The satire suggests people held wildly unrealistic expectations about the war's consequences. The bottom cartoon, "Figures of Speech: It's Simply Impossible to Get Servants Nowadays," depicts a domestic scene where the absence of working-class servants (presumably due to war) has created household chaos. This satirizes how the war disrupted class hierarchies and servant availability—a pressing concern for wealthy readers.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
T will bring about universal peace. It will establish the permanent reign of militarism. It will make The Hague Palace the capital of the world. It will smash The Hague Peace Palace to smithereens. It will constitute the Kaiser a second Napoleon. It will make the Kaiser plain Mr. Hohenzollern, It will strengthen republicanism in Peace What the War Will Do lt will enormously increase the power of European autocracy. It will last for years. It will be over in three months. It will produce a new Shakespeare. It will bury the last poet. It will be a boon to war correspond- ents. It will smother war correspondents in censorship. It will confirm the Democrats in power. It will bring back the Republicans, FIGURES OF SPEECH It will build up the American mer- chant marine, It will put back all commerce to the days of the dugout. It will inaugurate universal free trade. It will prove the value of protective tariffs, Tt will be the dawn of the millen- nium, It will be the end of civilization. And that is what we all know about Amos R. Wells. “Y's SIMPLY IMPOSSIBLE TO GET SERVANTS NOWADAYS” comicbooks.com