Life, 1915-01-21 · page 14 of 44
Life — January 21, 1915 — page 14: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
**"Dream of a Multimillionaire"** (top cartoon): Shows a wealthy figure on a tall pedestal being worshipped by a crowd below—satirizing the excessive reverence for the ultra-rich in American society. **"The German Professor Speaks"** (main article): Features a dialogue between a German academic and an American, debating Germany's invasion of Belgium during World War I. The German defends the invasion as militarily necessary; the American counters that it violates neutrality and international law. **"Roses" (bottom cartoon)**: Two soldiers discuss obtaining provisions, with wordplay on "Mortar Murphy"—likely satirizing military logistics or supply chain absurdities during wartime. The page overall critiques German justifications for Belgian invasion while skewering American attitudes toward wealth and war.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
DREAM OF A MULTIMILLIONAIRE The German Professor Speaks “ AH!” said the German professor to the young Amer- ican. “It is a pity that you cannot speak English as well as I can, but not at all surprising; you learned your English from an ignorant nurse, I mine from an educated teacher. You were speaking just now of Belgium. It is clear that our Chancellor made a mistake when he admitted at the outset of this war that the invasion of Belgian territory was an offense against international law, but that it was vital to the Germans’ plan of campaign that an attack should be made on France through Belgium. As I look at it, Belgium was the first to violate neutrality, since French aviators, I am informed, flew over Belgian territory into the German air. Before we invaded Bel- gium we offered her indemnity for all damage done, but she chose to resist our justifiable excursion. As a natural consequence of this resistance, we have slain their inhabi. tants, destroyed their cities, broken up the whole industrial structure of the country, and finally have fined the ruined towns millions of marks and have levied requisitions upon the starving inhabitants for the provisions which they do not possess.” “Yes,” said the American. “ And the United States are called upon to feed these Belgians whom you are fining and from whom you are taking provisions which they do not possess. It seems to me that even if military necessity demands, as you say, that your armies should go through Belgium, was it not natural that the Belgians should resist this invasion?” “Not at all,” replied the professor. “It is wicked to resist the German army, and useless. So that Germany is justified in doing all that it has done and will do.” “But why does not Germany feed the country it has devastated?” asked the American. ‘LIFE: “We are much too busy and cultured to do that,” re- plied the German. “To-day we expect rich America to attend to Belgium's needs, and later it is quite possible that we may cross the ocean to inform you in our forcible manner that it is wicked to criticize the foremost and most cultured nation in the world for anything that it may wish to do.” Failures SPEAKER before the honorable Civic Federation thinks our postal system is a failure because it doesn’t earn interest on the capital invested in it, on the hundreds of millions laid out in buildings and grounds. By the same sign, our schools are failures and our police forces and our fire departments and our navy and army and our streets and our city halls and our court houses and our public buildings of all kinds, and, in fact everything that is the public's. The postal system is the least failure of the lot, because it comes out about even, while all the others are total losses. ERTAIN politicians with axes to grind are discovering that President Wilson is a poor grindstone. Boss: HERF, WHERE YOU GOIN’? “'M TAKIN’ THIS PAIL 0’ MORTAR T” MUKPHY.” “WHAT PAIL OF MORTAR?” “DARNED IF 1 AIN'T FoxcoT IT!”