Life, 1915-03-04 · page 19 of 48
Life — March 4, 1915 — page 19: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This World War I-era piece satirizes Germany's extensive spy network (reportedly 30,000 agents) by ironically celebrating espionage as a "new" heroic profession. The text mocks the German elevation of spying to an art form, contrasting this with history's usual disdain for spies. The mock epitaph for "Herr von Schneaker" is the satirical centerpiece: it catalogs the dishonorable tactics German spies allegedly employed—exploiting hospitality, manipulating women and children, abusing trust—all "for the glory of the Fatherland." The portrait of a masked ball at Hollywood Glen (left) visually reinforces themes of deception and hidden identities. The satire cuts both ways: it condemns German espionage practices while questioning whether a nation willing to venerate such dishonor deserves respect. The inscription's sardonic tone suggests the author finds both the spy work and Germany's willingness to celebrate it morally repugnant.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
367 The New Hero HE business of being a spy has never been one of repute. Spies, when caught, have had short shrift. They do not, as a rule, boast of their occupation. Will the Germans succeed in lifting up spying into an art? No one has carricd it to their extreme. The art of being a spy— if it can be termed an art— consists of obtaining infor- mation about your neighbor, and then patiently holding it in solution until it can be used to his disadvantage or ruin. Inasmuch as it is the acknowledged aim of a State to ruin its neighbors, it follows that the work of a spy is of great importance. Yet, history has not apo- theosized any spy. Perhaps this will be changed, now that the Ger- mans are said to have over thirty thousand spies in the field. Perhaps in Berlin, over the monument of Ger- many’s greatest spy, the fu- ture will see the following inscription : Sacred to the Memory of Herr von Schneaker, who, in foreign lands, built up a fictitious rep- utation for honor and decency, violated friend- ship, desecrated hospi- tality, took advantage of children, ingratiated himself with — honest and unsuspecting peo- ple, traded upon the perfidy of women, and abused the sacred priv- ileges of Love for the glory of the FATHERLAND. 2 HOLLYWOOD GLEN HOLDS A BAL MASQUE comicbooks.com